Altan Tower is a ruined castle-like structure built on the
shores of Lough Altan and is nestled between Altan More and
Errigal. There is a lot of evidence that the land was once
cultivated but it's obvious that it has been abandoned for a long
time. The land between the Tower and the R251 is called Altan Farm
but I don't think this is a farmhouse!
It's very difficult to find any concrete information on the
building but the most believable theory is that it's a folly and
somehow related to the 19th Century estate at Glenveagh.
Altan Lough also has the dubious claim as the inspiration behind
the name of local traditional band "Altan".
Getting There
The best approach is from the R251 Churchill to Dunlewy road.
The usual driving route is from Letterkenny vai Kilmacrennan and
Termon but you can come from Letterkenny via Churchill also.
The best place to park is at the car park for the ascent of
Errigal at N55°01.500 W8°05.389. If you walk along the R251 you
will pick up a rough bog-track that will take you safely across
Altan Farm to the shores of Lough Altan.
It's worth bearing in mind that this is mountain terrain and
that the weather is prone to change quite rapidly. It's advisable
to come prepared for all eventualities with approriate walking and
safety gear. Mobile phone reception in the area is quite poor so
make sure someone knows where you will be and what time you expect
to return.
The walk from the car park to the tower is approximately 4km but
you can combine this cache with
GCVOPV - Errigal. This combination will give you a total walk
of approximately 11.5km. A GPSr track of this walk is available by
email via my profile.
If you click the map below it will take you to a Mapquest map of
the area.
Mapquest.com
The Cache
The cache is a large pill bottle, wrapped in black tape and with
a geocaching label on the outside.
PLEASE ONLY TRADE UP OR
EVEN.
TBs MOVE BETWEEN CACHES
AND REMAIN THE PROPERTY OF THE PERSON THAT RELEASED THEM. I DO NOT
COUNT THEM AS TRADE ITEMS.
IF YOU WISH TO TAKE
SOMETHING FROM THIS CACHE PLEASE DON'T LEAVE A TB IN IT'S PLACE.
THANK YOU.
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