Ballickmoyler is a small village in south Laois, on the road from Portlaoise to Carlow. It sits at the junction of the N80 and R429, a crossroads place—not a destination, but a marker on the road.
Before the rebellion of 1798, Ballickmoyler was growing. It had a patent for a weekly market, shops, energy. The disturbances destroyed more than half the village and left the market abandoned. That was over 225 years ago. The village never regained what it lost.
What remains is quiet. There are pubs, a church, the roads pass through. People live here. The shadow of 1798 still falls on it.
None of these are themed Irish pubs, because they don't need to be. A few that earn the trip:
The centre of what remains. Basic, old, the real thing.
There is no bad time. There are different times.
Quiet, the roads are clear, good for passing through.
Still quiet. The landscape around is pleasant.
The weather is good for driving the road.
Quiet and closed. The N80 can be rough.
If a local was sitting beside you, this is the bit where they'd lean in.
The market was abandoned in 1798. It never came back.
Ballickmoyler is a place you pass. There is one pub and a church.
This is not equipped for tourists. Carlow is 20 km south.
South of Portlaoise on the N80, 30 km. The direct road from Portlaoise to Carlow passes through.
JJ Kavanagh & Sons runs the Abbeyleix/Portlaoise–Athy–Carlow route. Two journeys daily each way.