40 Miles (approx) from Periwinkle (B&B Galway City, Ireland).

The Burren is another Gaeltacht area and is located in North County Clare and South County Galway and covers an area of 160 square kms.  And can be seen from Grattan Road, beside  the Periwinkle B&B across the bay  The word 'Burren' is derived from gaelic meaning 'stoney place', it is about 200-300 metres above sea level at the north and about 100 metres in the south. .  The whole area is covered in huge  limestone rocks called ‘clints’ with fissures called ‘grikes’. There are several caverns and potholes in the region, caves can be viewed at Aillwee caves near Ballyvaughan.

The Burren is famous for its Geology, Flora, Caves and Archaeology.   Several varieties of Alpine plants now found only in the Artic  and Mediterranean regions survive in this harsh landscape   It is said that some are from seedlings which survived after the Ice Age! Bird Watchers come from all over the world to catch a glimpse of some of the rare birds found there.

There are many interesting things to be seen in this area. This is the area where the first Stone Age dwellers settled.  The Poulnabrone Dolmen is a 5,000 year old tomb used by stone dwellers to bury their dead.  Leamanagh Castle where once lived an infamous lady pirate amongst other things!! They say that even Queen Elizabeth 1st another tough lady, had a healthy respect for out Graineuaille!  Lisdooonvarna has the Matchmaking Festival in September. The views here are truly spectacular, especially from the Cliffs of Moher. See next section on the Cliffs of Moher 

Doolin, near the Cliffs of Moher, is famous for its traditional music.
Aillwee Cave is one of Ireland's oldest caves and was formed by the melt waters of a prehistoric ice age. The cave, carved out of limestone, cuts into the heart of the mountain. For more information on Ailwee Caves log on to www.aillweecave.ie
Dunguaire Castle, in the pretty fishing village of  Kinvara, is a 16th Century tower house which holds mediaeval banquets during the summer months ,

I often suggest to Guests arriving early at Shannon Airport that they come to Galway via the Burren, it’s a leisurely trip with lots of breaks and coffees to keep them awake until evening, when they can have an early night in bed and get up “Fresh” the following morning and suffer the minimum of Jet lag.

 Bus tours leave Galway each morning 10.am and return 5.pm

Joan can arrange your  tours, you will be picked up at 9.30am at The Periwinkle B&B and brought to the bus free of charge.

The castle was originally a basic, multi-storied Irish tower house which was built circa 1480, probably by by Turlogh Donn, one of the last of the High Kings of Ireland and a direct descendant of Brian Boru. The castle's name "Leamaneh" is believed to be derived from the gaelic "léim an éich" which, when translated into English means "the horse's leap".

History

The tower was surrendered to Henry VIII in 1548 AD by Turlogh Donn's son, Murrough, who was subsequently created 1st Earl of Thomond and Baron Inchiquin (the O'Briens having surrendered their Royal status to the English Crown).

The manor house was erected in 1648 by Conor O'Brien and his wife, Máire ní Mahon, one of the most infamous women in Irish folklore who, due to her flaming red hair, was commonly known as "Máire Rúa" (Red Mary). Conor, was another member of the large O'Brien family which had ruled much of Clare for several hundred years. She born in 1615 or 1616. Her father was Sir Torlach Rúa MacMahon, Lord of Clonderlaw and her mother was Lady Mary O'Brien, daughter of the third Earl of Thomond. Her first husband, Daniel O'Neylan (also written O'Neillan) of Dysert O'Dea Castle in north Clare died young and upon his death, she gained control of his substantial estate and a £1,000 fortune. This wealth enabled her and Conor to build a more comfortable mansion on to the tower house. It was, without doubt, Clare's most magnificent seventeenth century house. The multi-gabled manor house was very modern for its time.

In 1651 Conor was killed in battle against the Cromwellians. His widow realised that the punishment for his rebellion against the English would be the forfeiture of their property. Therefore, in a desperate attempt to retain her lands and estates, she offered to marry any Cromwellian officer who would take her hand. (This is refuted in other versions of the story which state that Máire Rúa didn't marry until 1653, two years after Conor's death.)

Her third husband, Cornet John Cooper was a Cromwellian soldier and through this marriage Máire Rúa successfully retained her estates. Cooper left the army and amassed some wealth through land and property speculation. However, he later ran into financial difficulty and, as a result, Leamaneh was mortgaged.

Máire Rúa's son, Donagh (later Sir Donagh)was the last of the O'Brien's to occupy the house. He subsequently moved the family seat from Leamaneh to the much-larger Dromoland Castle in Newmarket-On-Fergus, south of Ennis where his mother spent her final years. Although Máire Rúa's children from her first marriage to Daniel O'Neylan (or O'Neillan)were raised Catholic, he was brought up as a protestant and eventually became the "richest commoner in Ireland."

Present day

The stately gates which adorned the entrance to the property were moved to Dromoland Castle in 1902 and the most elegant of the fireplaces was relocated to the Old Ground Hotel in Ennis. Leamaneh had various occupants in subsequent years. However, the house finally fell into ruin at the end of the 18th century.

Today, the ruins include both the tower house and the four walls of the adjoining manor house with their mullioned windows.