The site occupies a naturally defensive position, with steep sides dropping down to the water on three sides. What makes this location particularly interesting is the rock-cut fosse, essentially a defensive ditch, that cuts across the neck of the promontory on its seaward side. Though some might assume this ditch predates the castle, the antiquarian Thomas Johnson Westropp believed it formed part of the castle’s original defensive system when he studied the site in 1914.

At the southern end of this fosse, just to its eastern side, sits a roughly square platform measuring about 10 metres on each side and rising approximately one metre high. Now covered in grass and sod, you can still spot some stone facing at its base if you look carefully; these are likely the foundation remains of the castle itself. Historical records tell us that Barry’s Castle was built sometime before 1553, though the exact date of its construction remains unknown.

The castle met its final demise around 1810 when it was levelled to its current state, leaving only these subtle earthworks and stone fragments to mark where it once stood. Today, visitors to this windswept spot need a keen eye and a bit of imagination to picture the fortification that once commanded this strategic position over Reanies Bay. The site serves as a quiet reminder of the many small castles and tower houses that once dotted the Cork coastline, most of which have vanished almost entirely from the landscape.