Savour the winter solstice this week at Knockroe Passage Tomb in County Kilkenny

It's that time of year again, your chance to celebrate the winter solstice at Knockroe Passage Tomb in County Kilkenny on Thursday, December 21.

Nestled between the hills of the Lingaun Valley in Knockroe, County Kilkenny lies the Caiseal, a megalithic passage tomb, the only passage tomb which records both the morning and evening winter solstice events.

The morning solstice occurs at 8.40am while the evening solstice occurs at 3.40pm.

The Lingaun Valley Tourism Group and the Caiseal Conservation Committee will be on hand on the day to oversee parking facilities and provide refreshments to visitors, with a guest speaker scheduled to attend both the morning and evening events.

Patrons should be aware that this is an important national monument and care must be taken not to damage any of the stones.

For those attending the solstice events at Knockroe, remember it is rural setting and wellies or good boots would be advised, also plan on arriving early as there is a short walk in to the site.

Visitors to the morning and evening events are invited to join guided tours of the area during the day with a guided tour of Windgap Village and Grotto scheduled for 11.30am and a further guided tour of the Slatequarries set for 13.45pm, allowing time to be back in Knockroe for the evening Solstice.

Special thanks is extended to Kilkenny County Council for their grant allocation and to the OPW for their permission to host the event, as well as to those supplying parking facilities, baking and the many volunteers.