Progress made on phase two of Callan's Moat Field walk

Plans to extend the Moat Field walking loop in Callan have taken a step forward with an agreement between the County Council and landowners.

Funding of €193,500 for the second phase of the loop walk was awarded under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme, last year.

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Loop two of the Moat Field Nature and Heritage Trail, within Westcourt Demesne, is the second and final phase of the trail, which encompasses two fields, an area of 7.61ha., on the banks of the King’s River.
Callan Motte, known locally as the “Moat”, was built by the Norman invaders in about 1217. It was a wooden castle situated on top of an artificially created mound of earth. It had a wooden palisade and tower. Historical documents refer to it having wooden chambers, a state of the art kitchen (for those days) and a hall covered with wooden shingles.

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Congratulations!

For centuries after the departure of its lordly residents, the Moat field was just another stretch of land, with animals grazing. A little of its former glory returned when the field hosted carnivals in 1959, ’62, and ’63. In recent years it has become a popular walking route and has seen picnic tables and historical information signs erected along the route.