The Hidden Village of Galboly is Incredible

The Hidden Village of Galboly is an abandoned village in the Glens of Antrim, Northern Ireland. Just a few miles from Carnlough, it sits high above the coast road, hidden from view, an oasis of calm, sheep and rabbits. How you get to the Hidden Village of Galboly? Well, a reward awaits the searcher...
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... it's on Google Maps

[@tomjohnston1220]

I know it well. We used to have one of the houses below on the coast road, way back on the 1960s. As kids, my cousins and I used to fish in the lake that's not far over the top of the mountain. We'd always stop in the village to say hello to the last real resident of Galbolly, his name was Bob Gibson. The monk, not a priest, had nothing to do with the village, he came to live in Bob's house, after he died. Bob was a bit like Ray Mears and taught us how to go fishing without having any equipment, how to snare other animals and what berries and vegetation we could eat. We went through the village and up the mountain so many times that I was able to run to the top.

[@tomjohnston1220]

The village used to be a hide-out for highwaymen, they'd prey on people making their way around the coastal paths that were there before the road. The area where the village is situated is called Fallovee, which translates as the Yellow Hiding Place, probably because of the gorse bushes.

[@tomjohnston1220]

The village was abandoned because of movement in the ground under the village. They were afraid it would slide down the hill. Bob Gibson was the only one brave enough to stay. That's what we were told over 50 years ago, though, modern historians say the village couldn't get water or that farming methods changed, I think that they are speculating, because we used to use a great well, not far away, and sheep farming hasn't changed that much. The other villagers just moved onto more solid ground, a short walk, further south along the slope. I visited their houses a couple of times but I'm not sure if they're still there.

[@tomjohnston1220]

The house we rented had no electricity or running water and our well, a pipe sticking out from a rock, was just inside the gate, on the coast road, to the path that leads to the Hidden Village.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks for this Tom! Brilliant information, great to get these insights! Feel like I’ll have to make a follow up video with everything I’ve learned. So when did Bob die and the monk move in? Do you know why the monk moved there and didn’t stay at the Abbey? I plan on hiking/running over the top some time from Glenariff Forest, didn’t realise the lake was big enough to have fish in it. Garron plateau is much larger than most realise.

[@tomjohnston1220]

@@StephenJReid Bob died, alone in his house around 1970. The lake was stocked with rainbow trout, I think for the sole use of the owner. We were always on the look-out for gamekeepers.The monk must have moved in within a few years of Bob's death. By then, I was in London, where I lived for 35 years, and only heard about the monk on my visits home. I, secretly, resented him, because everyone seemed to have forgotten about Bob. Anyway, clerics and I instinctively know to avoid each other. The way I saw it was that, by living in Galboly, the monk was going to great lengths to avoid me. I bought my house in Cushendall, in 1984 and moved here permanently 6 years ago.

[@sandragraham3363]

I was looking at Google for the village of Cairncastle.My great ×3 grandfather is buried there.I came across this video and I can't believe how beautiful my ancestral homeland is. The film and the story were great.I live in Brookside,Al. US. I'm 69 yrs old and I may not get a chance to visit there. This has been the next best thing. Thank you so much.

[@StephenJReid]

Hi Sandra! I love this comment, amazing to think I'm giving someone across the world an insight into their history 🙂 Cairncastle is an interesting place too, there are ancient ruins of buildings there going back to around 3000BC! This video is from the area above Cairncastle: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ppKWqYKZn7eEfq8

[@nicola2222nicola]

I was here today and the house which you pointed out to be the most modern one is actually where the local farmer lives. We met him today and got the low down. He showed us the lake and told us about the monk who lived in the house. Very intresting. Glad to actually see this cottage now with the walls down.

[@StephenJReid]

Yeah it looks a lot better now without that fence!

[@bernadettemclaughlin5411]

Beautiful Ireland 🇨🇮

[@dannyoconnor8357]

One of the brothers from the Cistercian Community in Bethlehem Abbey Portglenone lived here as a hermit up until 7 or 8 years ago Brother Vidor -he used to do some of the gardening work at Garron Tower.He used to thumb a lift to Larne on a Wednesday.He used to go to the leisure centre just to get a shower,and go to the market to buy vegetables as the Cistercians are vegetarian.He used to come upto the tower but after it became co-ed I think he stopped going up there for showers.I gave him a lift to Larne and met him on another occasion at the council building,He was very dogmatic,perhaps from a life of solitude,where he didn't have to interact or get along.Thanks for the video.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Danny! That’s fascinating, I actually met some of the brothers from Bethlehem Abbey recently when I was filming a short documentary about it. Very interesting place. He definitely picked a quiet spot to live!

[@islanddweller3674]

I live solitude as a MoOnastic Nun on a small offshore island, and wouldl LOVE this place almost as much

[@AjaySingh-228]

Wow beautiful place sir..Have a nice day

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Ajay 🙂

[@AjaySingh-228]

@@StephenJReid you are welcome sir

[@AnthonyMcTigue]

BEAUTIFUL PLACE PLENTY ANGELS SPIRITS THERE

[@chorusofoddities]

One of the many stunning places we are so blessed to have access to! And blessed we are to have such great footage from there too

[@StephenJReid]

Thank you, it’s an amazing place 🙂

[@shirleyannex]

Great to see again my grandad, great grandparents and mum grew up there, most beautiful place on earth , thanks for sharing , x

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks! It’s an amazing place, I’d love to get back in winter if it snows

[@markhitachi]

absolutely stunning footage Stephen, i never knew such a place existed. 👍

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Mark, neither did I until recently! Stunning place

[@LittleMountainLife]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing!

[@StephenJReid]

You’re welcome.

[@kerrykingsplectrum]

Unbelievable filming, breathtaking scenery and quality soundtrack, must try n visit sometime this summer.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks 🙂

[@amcoutdoors]

That was a masterpiece. Half way through I'm commending your camera skills, then it flies 50m away and I'm commending your drone skills, then it's back on the ground and I'm completely confused as to how you did it, but I loved it. A true pro at work 💪 That location as well, nearly forgot about it 😂👌

[@StephenJReid]

Haha. That bit in the middle was with a tiny FPV drone, great for manoeuvring around places like that.

[@jamesmcdonagh5154]

Let's hope that the council don't ever start building houses there, it would totally ruin the beautiful landscape, and there are only a few hidden landscapes left to be desired and treasured!! Soo beautiful, would love to take my grandkids there one day!...

[@patriciareid8826]

Heard about this place, years ago. So pleased to see it and feel the solitude and beauty.

[@StephenJReid]

It’s an amazing oasis of calm

[@DavidDoyleOutdoors]

Epic drone footage, mini and FPV. I like how you made some of the mini footage look FPVesque. Loved the speed ramping through the little village

[@StephenJReid]

Which footage from the mini do you think looked like FPV. Impressed you could tell which was which. I was also trying to fly the mini in a more FPV style for one shot.

[@liamoreilly783]

Unreal lad .....never knew about this .....appreciate your content man

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Liam 🙂

[@LisaFrostPhoto]

What a wonderful place!! A shame they didn’t take their green fences with them, but still what a fantastic mix of scenery and history! And love the drone footage too!

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Lisa. Yeah the fences do spoil the look of the place somewhat.

[@rednome5443]

Such a cool location, those drone shot were 😙👌🏻 “Chef’s kiss”

[@thefullmonte1902]

Just amazing footage... sadly my own village is also empty and I know that eerie feeling when I'm up there. Sometimes I can hear the laugh and cries of children and their mom's calling for dinner. Or the cows in the morning, yearning to be milked. But no - there's nothing, only ghosts of a past time.

[@StephenJReid]

Sad how progress leaves some places behind sometimes. 😔I always walk places like that wondering what life was like before.

[@deanwallace9238]

@@StephenJReid Few places like that up around the Sperrins if you ever get bored of Skyrim territory around Antrim.

[@StephenJReid]

Haha Skyrim. I had planned on running in Sperrins last summer but only got there once in the end.

[@bentoogood]

Stunning footage! Great video.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Ben ! 🙂

[@advfix]

Ha nice, I just finished watching the gorrila promo. Cool spot made my "wanna renovate" feels swell :D

[@StephenJReid]

Definitely a few fixer uppers there!

[@frozenmist-w4k]

Yer welcome lol.. Nicely done !!

[@StephenJReid]

Haha thanks, let you go first, nick all your info 😛

[@frozenmist-w4k]

@@StephenJReid 😁😀😂

[@CraigBridges]

I love places like this, it would be interesting to hear more history about it if there were any. Loving all this FP drone footage too, adds such a cool dimension to your videos. Just feels like I am being taken on a journey.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Craig! Definitely check out some of the other comments, few bits of extra history there. Yeah fascinating place and I’d definitely like to visit it again, maybe better equipped with the history!

[@QuadDamageFPV]

Incredible landscape for FPV flying - and pretty handy to get to - thanks man!

[@StephenJReid]

Definitely is, although not somewhere I’d fly long at any one time for, although the sheep didn’t seem bothered.

[@annexplores3933]

Thats top class drone footages! What view and witness the sunrise.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Ann, very early start though!

[@meenastory893]

What an incredible place, really cool

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks! 🙂

[@jamesmcneill392]

Love it was a visitor in my youth my great aunts from Ballygally used tell me story's about the place. Me and a couple of friends hiked and had a good nosey round some of the houses were still furnished back then it was a real time warp that was about 25 years ago now.

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks James. Would have been amazing to see it like that just after everyone was gone.

[@tomjohnston1220]

When I lived nearby and visited the village often, it was over 50 years ago and, except for one man, the village was deserted then.

[@ironkid8836]

Some views I was up north last.summer on my harley and was amazed at the scenery the mountain by limavady is spectacular also another plateau I believe can't remember the name of it

[@StephenJReid]

That will have been Binevenagh up above Limavady 🙂

[@ironkid8836]

@StephenJReid that's it meant to have a grand lake with fish in it n all we have a chapter in limavady ,lovely restaurant out on magilligan Point too if your ever in vicinity just ignore the massive prison 😀

[@MattFaris]

So many hidden treasures on our doorstep! Amazing :-D

[@StephenJReid]

Yup! And loads more to

[@maximumdrone5334]

Amazing location Stephen! It seems like the sheep had a lot to say about it! Hehe Thanks for sharing again! :)

[@StephenJReid]

Sheep are very opinionated!

[@Droneaddiction]

Amazing place Stephen, glad it’s not easily accessible 👍🏻

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Hugh. Well I still think it’ll be busy enough this summer, think I’ve seen about 3-4videos of it already. Always torn with sharing places like this knowing that I’ll probably increase the footfall, but on the other hand it’s great to see people getting outdoors.

[@Droneaddiction]

@@StephenJReid it’s definitely hard to be alone anywhere now 🤣 good to see number 54 again 🐑

[@ivargu]

What an amazingly pretty place!

[@StephenJReid]

Yeah it’s an amazing little hidden world

[@markpatterson575]

Deadly ! As always !

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Mark!

[@RODPIKERDRONESUK]

Great video and information as always some lovely drone shots thanks for sharing cheers

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks! 🙂

[@SONICTONICfpv]

So peaceful, Don't want to fly there anymore but down the face looks like fun.

[@StephenJReid]

Yeah I felt bad just flying a couple of packs, it’s so incredibly quiet. I do have another spot in mind though... Hurry up and fix your quad!

[@SONICTONICfpv]

@@StephenJReid ITs fixed got to test flight today!

[@dreichoutdoors5274]

That intro ... drone footage done right 👍 Oddly when i was watching it i was thinking it looks just like skye 😄

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks! 🙂 I’ll actually hopefully be in Skye in sept!

[@dreichoutdoors5274]

@@StephenJReid Hope it quietens down a bit for you by September. It's like Royal Avenue of a Saturday afternoon right now (that's my wife's way of describing it) 😁

[@mokogene]

That's epic on every level!!

[@StephenJReid]

And it has several levels too!

[@mokogene]

@@StephenJReid Your video's are soo Pro man. I'm thinking fpv is the way to go next judging from your video's. But your editing skills! Do you edit yourself?

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks. Now only the village fly through was with an fpv drone, the rest was with Mavic Air2 & Mavic Mini. The FPV drone & camera I was using (Beta95x v3 & Insta360 SMO 4k) produce the lowest quality footage. Definitely wouldn’t give up my normal drones anytime soon, different tools for different jobs.

[@StephenJReid]

And yes I edit myself most of the time. Sometimes I have an edit who will produce a rough cut for me to speed things up but this one was 100% me

[@falconoutdoors6760]

Such a great little place, looking forward to a trip up there myself. 👍🏻

[@StephenJReid]

Well worth it

[@frozenmist-w4k]

few nice pitches on the top.

[@StephenJReid]

Looks like it, although the owner didn’t sound keen on the idea 😬

[@frozenmist-w4k]

@@StephenJReid Id be more worried about the Fae than Liam !!

[@StephenJReid]

@@frozenmist-w4k Haha, if the Fae turned up, I’d be wanting an interview!

[@iu2297]

Naoise o Haughan stashed some treasure up around Galbolly , hidden in a split in a cliff face , still there today ,im going to find it 🤑

[@StephenJReid]

Really?! I’m going to have to head back up there!

[@solo.exploring5036]

Hard to believe all that is up there and yet from the road it cant be seen unless you know locals, planning on camping it soon.

[@StephenJReid]

Amazing place!

[@StephenJReid]

I’d watch out though if planning on camping there, I’ve heard the owner isn’t a fan of campers.

[@alnomesamy]

Awesome!

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks! 🙂

[@RobbyHoody]

Just WoooooW 😱😱😱👌👌👌

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Robby! 🙂

[@adriftonthelot4692]

The FPV performed well. Well done !

[@StephenJReid]

That wasn’t the DJI FPV drone btw in case you’re wondering.

[@adriftonthelot4692]

@@StephenJReid Mini2??

[@StephenJReid]

Mostly Mavic Air2, couple of Mavic Mini 2 shot and SMO 4k on Beta95x V3 FPV drone. I was there several times over a month making this.

[@adriftonthelot4692]

@@StephenJReid brilliantly executed (as ever)

[@alistairwylie6730]

Excellent

[@StephenJReid]

Thanks Alistair 🙂

[@sandragraham3363]

I was looking at Google for the village of Cairncastle.My great ×'s 3

[@TomMcClean]

I've heard of it but have yet to visit. Nice find! Best wishes.

[@StephenJReid]

Amazing place, you’d love it. Loads of wildlife

[@funwithflags7506]

Visiited today they were taking down the fences

[@StephenJReid]

That’s great news!

[@2013jpm]

@@StephenJReid - taking down fences & gates, by chance? Is visiting from the main road a possibility now?

[@Aiobhinx]

I just went there today. They have removed the green fences thankfully.

[@yourbeautybaby]

Good to know! I will be visiting in 2 weeks from Canada :)

[@Raachel244]

have you ever been to isle of skye stephen? great video as always. Just been to the gobbins today was wondering if you'd done a video on it before?

[@StephenJReid]

No not yet, but I’d love to, looks incredible. And yes: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j4CoXo1sp82cms0

[@hillreid4827]

The last person to live in the hidden village lived there until he died some years ago. Certainly within the last ten years. My guess would be 6 or 7. His name was Veder O’Kane, he was a monk and is buried in the Monastery in Portglenone.

[@StephenJReid]

Ah thanks for letting me know. I recently made a video about the Monastery in Portglenone for the Council. Very interesting place.

[@hillreid4827]

@@StephenJReid No problem Stephen. My brother lives at Garron Point and Veder used to walk past his house and then up over the fields and home.

[@StephenJReid]

Your brother isn’t the person that sells the dulse is he?

[@hillreid4827]

@@StephenJReid No, but he gathers dulce for the woman along the road at the White Lady. ‘Red’ John who lives in the wee cottage (end one of 4) beside the car park at the rocks sells dulce and it’s good stuff.

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Nice. Did you say someone is still living in one of the houses? Lovely drone shots again!

[@StephenJReid]

Not anymore, I thought they moved out ages ago but saw somewhere that said 2013.

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

@@StephenJReid Ah right, I couldn't decipher if you said there was someone in one of the houses or that someone WAS in one of the houses. Cheers, this is a great little find!

[@chrismccannIRL]

Very good! Did you shoot that opening foolish on the Mavic or the FPV?

[@StephenJReid]

Mostly Mavic Air2. Didn’t use the DJI FPV for this one. Wanted the best image quality for the sunrise.

[@funwithflags7506]

I know where im going this weekend

[@StephenJReid]

Portrush?

[@funwithflags7506]

@@StephenJReid No Galboly 😂😂

[@meekyman]

Not so hidden anymore now it's marked on bloody Google maps. Also last time I was there one of house was fenced off, I get it was probably used for GoT and so they maybe want to keep it but kind of spoils the look of the village IMO

[@StephenJReid]

Giving the secret away a bit there 😁 Yeah the buildings behind the fence look like they were built specifically as sets. Just a shame they didn’t clear up afterwards

[@manumn7499]

Is there any restrictions to go there? I am from Belfast..!

[@StephenJReid]

Sometimes the owner might remove access and it’s been used for filming in the past as well. But that’s rare these days

[@pixelpeter3883]

Is it just me or is there someone standing there with the back turned on top of the hill (on the left), when you fly down around 00:30?

[@StephenJReid]

Yeah, that’s me 😂

[@2013jpm]

I wonder how one might get permission to visit there?

[@StephenJReid]

Generally access is permitted unless there are signs up saying otherwsie

[@Craig-MItchell]

Mighty 😁 wid ye be paying that rabbit and those sheep to be in all your videos frae noo on ?

[@StephenJReid]

Naw, 2 episode contract 😂

[@jetrex1986]

Do you need permission to excess the Village?

[@StephenJReid]

Currently there’s public access just as long as you start at the right gate from the road. Not too hard to find

[@jetrex1986]

@@StephenJReid Thanks Stephen for the info :-)

[@lynnelowe7615]

I have to say I was disappointed, was looking forward to something that sounded very interesting, just to watch a drone whizzing about far to fast to enjoy the views.