The site at Ballyhoodane sits in the grassy buffer zone of a forestry plantation on a gentle east-facing slope, and what survives is still legible, if you know what to look for.

A ringfort, or rath, is an enclosed farmstead of the early medieval period, typically defined by one or more earthen banks and ditches. The enclosure at Ballyhoodane is oval rather than perfectly circular, measuring roughly 24 metres on its north-northwest to south-southeast axis and about 20 metres across. The surrounding bank, or scarp, varies noticeably in height, rising from around 0.95 metres on the southern and northern stretches to a more imposing 2 metres where it curves from the north-northeast to the south. A gap of approximately 2.2 metres on the western side is a possible original entrance. The external fosse, the ditch running outside the bank, is 4.2 metres wide and about a metre deep. At some point drainage works re-cut the fosse along its northern and eastern arc, and a deep drain was dug roughly north to south, feeding water into the fosse at the south before a second drain carries it out at the southeast. The fosse is partially blocked at the north-northeast, which restricts the flow and leaves water pooling in sections. Three low linear mounds of around half a metre in height, sitting at the northeast, east, and southeast of the enclosure, are thought to be spoil dumped during those drainage operations. The record was compiled by Denis Power and uploaded in November 2013.

Access is not straightforward. The site lies within commercial forestry, and the scarp and fosse are heavily overgrown with mature thorns and briars, making the outer boundary difficult to trace on foot. The interior, though level, is partly obscured by blackthorn scrub across its northeastern half. Visiting in late autumn or winter, when vegetation has died back, gives the clearest view of the earthworks. The drainage modifications mean the fosse can hold standing water, so ground conditions around the monument are likely to be wet for much of the year. The mounds to the east and southeast are easy to mistake for natural undulations, but their linear form and regular height mark them out once you are aware of what the drainage works involved.