That is not a figure of speech. The site has been formally recorded and just as formally noted as unlocated, which gives it a particular quality among sacred sites: it exists in the documentary record more confidently than it does in the landscape.

What is known comes largely from a 1926 source, which recorded that the well had already been closed by that point, though rounds were still being made there and votive gifts offered. Rounds, in this context, refers to the ritual circumambulation of a sacred site, typically performed a set number of times, often barefoot or on the knees, as an act of devotion or petition. The practice was widespread at holy wells across Ireland and frequently persisted long after any formal religious sanction had been withdrawn. The same account noted that the old thorn bush or tree remained. Thorn trees, especially hawthorns, have a long association with holy wells in Ireland; they were the traditional recipients of those votive offerings, their branches hung with cloth strips, medals, or other small tokens left by those who came seeking cures or intercession. Whether that thorn still stands, in a wood that may itself have changed considerably since 1926, is an open question.