Ciara McDonnell rounds up 10 walks to blow the cobwebs away on New Year’s Day.

A 6,000-year-old home built in the Ballincollig area features in a 200-page book on Heritage Houses of County Cork which could make an interesting Christmas stocking-filler.

Walk to castle greeted by a locked door

Last Wednesday’s storms are fading into memory for most households — but not all. The Lucey family in West Cork have been without power since the high winds struck last Wednesday, and it could be Thursday before the power — and the water supply — is back. There is also the matter of the man of the house recovering from heart surgery, but despite it all, Tony, Mary, and daughter Chloe are keeping their spirits up.

The earliest known settlers in Co Cork were hunter-gatherers who lived near Fermoy more than 10,100 years ago.