Davy’s Island

Davy’s Island, once called Inishmore, lies in Castle Archdale Bay across the water from White Island. Its small ruined church is a 12th-century Romanesque building inside an earthen enclosure much like White Island’s, with a plain round-headed doorway put back up in the 20th century; the latest readable gravestone dates from 1762. By the early 1600s the island belonged to the Augustinian canons of Lisgoole, and it took its present name from Sir John Davies, who owned it by 1618. Medieval coins found here suggest a hostel for pilgrims heading to Lough Derg in Donegal, and digs in 2023 turned up possible prehistoric activity. The island is part of the Castle Archdale forest estate and has informal paths. Our sources describe no jetty, so treat it as a calm-weather landing by dinghy or kayak from the country park.