By 1600, the castle was likely already in ruins, and whilst it was granted to Chichester during the Plantation period, his tenant Mr. Skinner’s ambitious plans to rebuild never came to fruition, despite having prepared lime and other materials for the task. The site itself is naturally defensive; protected by cliffs to the south and west, a steep slope to the north, and a quarried cliff face to the east that probably served the dual purpose of defence and providing building stone.

Today, only the eastern half of the three-storey keep remains standing, constructed from rubble and split stone bound with coarse sea-sand mortar. The ground floor originally contained two vaulted chambers aligned north to south, though only the eastern chamber’s vault survives intact, complete with the beam holes that once held its wooden centering. This eastern chamber measures 4.4m by 5.95m internally and features two widely splayed loops for light and defence; intriguingly, these appear to have been later modified, possibly to accommodate cannon. A mural staircase built into the thickness of the north wall provided access to the upper floors, its rough flag steps still visible beneath a similar stone roof. The first floor included a garderobe built into the southeast corner and was lit by narrow windows, whilst remnants of the second floor reveal traces of several wall recesses, including one that gave access to a murder hole positioned above the entrance.

The western half of the keep has collapsed into a mass of fallen masonry, though evidence suggests the main entrance was located in the west wall. Archaeological surveys indicate the castle’s sophisticated defensive features, including the murder hole shaft and draw-bar mechanisms for securing doorways, whilst domestic elements like wall presses and the L-shaped garderobe demonstrate it was designed for residential use as well as defence. These surviving architectural details offer a glimpse into the defensive strategies and daily life of a 15th-century Irish tower house, even as nature gradually reclaims the stonework.