This sub-rectangular fortification, measuring roughly 25 metres east to west and 13 metres north to south, features straight walls with distinctively curved ends; a design typical of ringforts built between the early medieval period and the 17th century. Today, visitors to Ards Forest Park can explore what remains of this collapsed structure, where the northern wall debris spreads about 2 metres wide and rises between half a metre to a full metre in height, whilst the western collapse extends even further at 4 metres wide.

The cashel’s defensive walls have fared differently over the centuries. While the northern and western sections retain substantial collapsed material, only scattered, moss-covered stones mark where the eastern wall once stood, and the southern wall has vanished entirely. A narrow 1-metre gap on the northern side provides the only access point, leading to a relatively gentle slope from the platform’s summit. This strategic positioning would have offered the fort’s inhabitants clear views across the surrounding landscape, particularly towards the western extremity of the Back Strand of Sheephaven Bay.

The site’s natural defences are still evident today, with rocky outcrops dominating the immediate surroundings and low-lying wetlands to the east and south that would have made approach difficult for any unwelcome visitors. This combination of natural barriers and constructed fortifications represents a common pattern in Irish ringfort construction, where builders cleverly incorporated the landscape’s existing features into their defensive strategies. The Archaeological Survey of County Donegal, compiled in 1983, provides the foundational documentation for this site, ensuring its significance within the county’s rich archaeological heritage is properly recorded and preserved.