Despite its absence from Ordnance Survey records, modern technology has revealed the ghostly outline of an ancient oval enclosure measuring roughly 84 metres northeast to southwest and 62 metres northwest to southeast. When researchers conducted contour mapping and 3D digital surface modelling in 2016, they uncovered traces of what appears to be a levelled bank or wall curving from south through north to southeast, though it disappears where the ground becomes steep and boggy. Aerial imagery and geophysical surveys have also detected hints of an internal ditch, whilst on the ground, visitors can still make out the northwestern arc marked by large stones and remnants of an earthen bank.

Within this ecclesiastical boundary, a fascinating collection of religious monuments tells the story of centuries of devotion. The southern half contains an oval enclosure that houses a graveyard, an altar, and three penitential cairns; small stone mounds where pilgrims would perform acts of penance. The northern section features a holy well accompanied by two more penitential cairns. Although no church structure survives today, geophysical surveys have detected intriguing subsurface features including a square structure measuring about 6.5 metres on each side in the northwest quadrant, and a possible ditch system south of the enclosure that may have been used for drainage or even to power a mill. Two circular features, one inside and one just outside the southern boundary, add further mystery to the site’s complex history.

The place name ‘Disert’, meaning hermitage, points to the site’s monastic past, and local tradition connects it to St. Columcille, who supposedly blessed all the land visible through a hole in a quern stone that still rests on the altar. Historical records are sparse, though there’s an unverified claim of a Franciscan monastery being founded here in 1460. What is documented is that Niall O’Boyle, Bishop of Raphoe, died at Disert in February 1610, though his body was transported to Kiltoorish for burial. Today, this atmospheric site offers visitors a chance to explore layers of Irish religious history, from early Christian hermits to medieval monasticism, all set against the dramatic backdrop of Donegal’s rugged landscape.