Glenshane Country Farm’s tourism experience welcomes international visitors to the heart of Mid Ulster, where they can meet Jamese McCloy, take in farm life, and enjoy his signature Sheepdogs at Work experience. Recognised as offering the Leading Farming Experience 2025 – Northern Ireland, we take a closer look at both the farm itself and the authentic experience it offers in a deep dive below.
A fourth-generation shepherd farming in the Sperrins, Jamese McCloy has an inspirational story of how his lifelong passion for farming, combined with his love for tourism, created a unique sheepdog demonstration business. As one of Northern Ireland’s original Embrace A Giant Spirit brand ambassadors, he takes great pride in showcasing his farm skills, history, and culture in the place he is proud to call home.
The core values of Jamese’s company are to deliver a warm welcome and create quality, lasting memories for guests. He initially stumbled across the renowned Sheepdogs at Work experience when some visitors to his self-catering property asked to watch him herd sheep. It was their total amazement that saw the start of his journey in this niche, resulting in Jamese looking at herding sheep, something he had previously taken for granted, in a different perspective and launching Glenshane Country Farm.
Through this venture, Jamese has succeeded in unveiling an authentic farm experience, best seen through the aforementioned Sheepdogs at Work offering. This experience positively taps into visitors’ feelings and emotions as they meet and connect with both him and this beautiful landscape. Visitor experience and loyalty are paramount to this family business and at the core of every decision made. This can easily be seen as it is publicly documented through 536 (and counting) five-star Google reviews.
In 2021, Tourism Northern Ireland (TNI) part funded a mural on the gable of Walsh’s Hotel Maghera of Jamese and sheepdog Moss, promoting the experience but more importantly highlighting the strong connection he has with his local community. This inspired Jamese to excel in living out his dream as a tourism anchor within Mid Ulster, encouraging visitors from around to world to not only spend time and money with him and learn about farming life, but also to do the same with other local hospitality businesses in Mid Ulster and across Northern Ireland.
An innovative entrepreneur, Jamese is always looking for ways to improve and develop his truly sustainable tourism business. For example, the newly built Country Barn Visitor Centre officially launched in the summer of 2023 and now offers new experiences linked back to farm life, with a gift shop including items made from wool from the farm, as well as a pre-booked hospitality area serving locally sourced food produce and home baking.
“While maintaining the uniqueness and quality of the Glenshane brand, the business has developed a reputation for delivering experiences which educate people on farm life, and just how much we as farmers care for our land and the animals we have under our watchful eye.”
As a result of this, Glenshane Country Farm has won numerous awards and worked hard to become a showcase regenerative, sustainable, low-footprint, and responsible tourism business protecting the environment. Even the new Country Barn Visitor Centre mentioned above reflects this, thanks to its use of air source heat pumps and solar panels.
Jamese’s close working relationships with TNI, Tourism Ireland, and Mid Ulster District Council – combined with his commitment to excellence, long-term vision, and work ethic – has resulted in his business being showcased on a local and global stage numerous times, including on CBeebies twice, Access Hollywood USA, and the American Wheel of Fortune. Derry Girls actress Siobhan McSweeney even filmed here for her acclaimed four-part series Exploring Northern Ireland.
After working with the Dept of Agriculture for over 24 years, Jamese has created a sustainable diversification on his farm, and, as of July 2024, has left his department job and can live off the land as a small hill sheep farmer, providing a sustainable future for his children and family who all take part in the working of this family business.
Jamese is also passionate about giving opportunities of employment to people in ways that suit everyone involved. He has achieved this by using wool directly from the farm to create bespoke, branded souvenirs on the site, while also supporting local pottery and felting artisans who create one-off pieces personalised to the Glenshane brand.
The vision and plans for the future are very exciting as Jamese has worked tirelessly in finding new ways to ‘wow’ his visitors, support local causes, and give the award-winning destination that is Glenshane Country Farm a diversification stamp like no other.
Contact Details
Contact: Jamese McCloy
Company: Glenshane Country Farm
Web Address: https://www.glenshanecountryfarm.com/
