HardMountain crossing · Dingle · recorded

Cathair Conraoi
An Géarán · Doire Mór.

A demanding point-to-point crossing over Cathair Conraoi and An Géarán to Doire Mór, with remarkable rock towers, steep ground and wide views over Tralee Bay and Castlemaine Harbour.

Also known as Caherconree, Gearhane and Derrymore.

DISTANCE

7.41km

ASCENT

558m

HIGH POINT

827m

Rob’s recorded time 4 hr 38 · experienced hikers · 481 recorded track points GRADE GUIDE ↗

Reading the map…

INTERACTIVE TERRAIN · ACTUAL GPX TRACKACTUAL GPX TRACK

A recorded time is not a planning estimate. Build your own from pace, ascent, ground, weather and daylight.

DECIDE HAZARDS GO

GPX EMERGENCY

ONE · BEFORE YOU COMMIT

Is this your day?

The grade, the hazards, the forecast and the ground the route actually crosses. Everything you need to decide whether to go at all.

WEATHER AT A GLANCE

Forecast for around 800 m

Approx. 800 m

NOWReading the forecast

WINDReading the forecast

TODAY’S PEAK RAIN CHANCEReading the forecast

Forecast. This is a modelled estimate for this route’s high ground; conditions can differ sharply across the mountain. Detailed planning guidance follows. Derived from Open-Meteo forecast data ↗.

RECORDED ELEVATION

A 558 m climb to 827 m.

The crossing begins at approximately 247 m, climbs to the high Slieve Mish ridge and then descends roughly 736 m to its 76 m finish at Doire Mór.

827 m76 m

Reading the forecast

0 km558 m ascent · 736 m descent7.41 km

THE LINE

Over Cú Roí’s fort to Doire Mór.

The recording begins on the southern side of the Slieve Mish Mountains at approximately 247 m and climbs onto the rugged high ground of Cathair Conraoi, Caherconree in English.

The fort on the spur

The name means the fort of Cú Raoi, and there is a fort. Caherconree is National Monument 184, an inland promontory fort on a spur at 625 m, cliffs down its north-west and south-west sides and a drystone wall shutting the one open approach: 110 m of it, up to 3 m high and four and a half thick, its inner face rising in three steps, with two gaps left for getting in. It encloses about two acres, and four or five small D-shaped structures still sit against the inside of the wall. On a clear day the view runs to Loop Head, the Blaskets and the Reeks.

Cú Raoi and Bláthnad

Cú Raoi mac Dáire, a king and warrior of Irish legend, is its legendary builder. He humiliated Cú Chulainn and carried off Bláthnad, and it was Bláthnad who finished him: she poured milk into the stream below until it ran white, and that was the signal to attack.

Fionn Mac Cumhaill’s Chair

Cú Raoi does not have the ridge to himself. Fionn Mac Cumhaill, the legendary leader of the Fianna, is on it too. Above Tralee Bay a shelf of sandstone juts out from the crest, and the maps name it for him: Fionn MacCumhail’s Chair on the modern sheet, Fin Mac Cools Chair on the historic six-inch. Locally it is his chair, or his seat. The recorded line passes within about twenty metres of it.

The pairing carries on into the next glen. In Derrymore below, the historic map names Fin Mac Cool’s Table. The modern sheet calls that feature King’s Table, while keeping Fionn’s name for the Chair.

On to An Géarán and Doire Mór

The route then continues through the sculpted sandstone towers of An Géarán, reaching approximately 827 m, before making the long northward descent to Doire Mór. The finish is almost five kilometres by air from the start and 171 m lower, so this is a true mountain crossing rather than a loop.

01Southern startThe crossing begins on the southern approach at approximately 247 m.
02Cathair ConraoiA sustained climb gains the rugged upper mountain and its extensive coastal views.
03An GéaránThe recording reaches approximately 827 m among exposed ridge ground and striking sandstone towers.
04Northward descentThe route leaves the high ridge and descends towards the northern side of Slieve Mish.
05Doire Mór finishThe recording ends at approximately 76 m, well away from the starting point.

The fort is Archaeological Survey site KE046-003 and National Monument 184, described from the Corca Dhuibhne survey. Its wall carries the barony boundary between Corkaguiney and Trughanacmy. The spellings Cathair Conraoi, Cathair Chonraoi and Caherconree refer to the same site. The Bláthnad episode is given as local legend, separate from the Survey’s description of the remains. It is a protected monument: cross carefully and take nothing from it. The Chair’s names come from the historic six-inch and modern Ordnance Survey sheets.

PLANNING FORECAST · AROUND 800 M

Reading the forecast

WIND NOWReading the forecast

—cloud

—humidity

—km/h peak gust

Strongest wind today—

Peak gust—

RECENT RAINFALL · LIKELY GROUND

Reading the forecast

RAIN, GUST & VISIBILITY WINDOW

Reading the forecast

BEST HIKING WINDOW

Reading the forecast

DAYLIGHT PLAN

Reading the forecast

MET ÉIREANN · KERRY

Reading the forecast

NEXT SIX HOURS · swipe

Reading the forecast

HAZARDS & OPTIONSKnow the commitment.

This is a point-to-point mountain crossing; transport must be arranged between the two ends before starting.

The route climbs approximately 558 m but loses roughly 736 m on its longer descent to Doire Mór.

The upper ridge is exposed to wind and can lose visibility quickly in cloud.

Steep grass, loose rock and corrie edges require careful movement.

Navigation between the high points and descent line may be difficult in poor conditions.

Early in the ascent, retreat by reversing the known approach. Once committed to the high crossing, do not improvise descents into steep corries: follow the recorded line towards Doire Mór or reverse the route if that remains safer.

FROM THE MOUNTAIN

Rob’s photographs.

14 photographsSwipe and tap to enlarge from the recorded day · select to enlarge

A stone summit cairn lit orange by the setting sun above the coast — 01Last light on the summit cairn

A walker standing on the projecting sandstone ledge known as Fionn Mac Cumhaill’s Chair, high above Tralee Bay — 02Fionn’s Chair, above Tralee Bay

The sun breaking above a bank of cloud beside the steep mountain slope — 03Sun above the cloud

A walker standing among the sharp rock towers of the high ridge — 04Among the rock towers

A walker silhouetted on Fionn Mac Cumhaill’s Chair above the bay — 05On the Chair

Low sun and mist beside a dark steep cliff above Doire Mór — 06Light beside the cliff

Rock pinnacles above Doire Mór with Castlemaine Harbour and the Iveragh Mountains beyond — 07Rock towers above Doire Mór

A broad view across the Slieve Mish ridges to Castlemaine Harbour — 08Across the Slieve Mish Mountains

Sunrise shining through a notch in the summit rock — 09Sunrise through the rock

The descending ridge above Doire Mór with the harbour and coast beyond — 10The ridge above Doire Mór

A line of dark sandstone towers overlooking Doire Mór — 11The towers and the glen

Layered sandstone in the foreground above the long shore of Tralee Bay — 12North towards Tralee Bay

Deeply folded sandstone blocks on the high Slieve Mish ridge — 13Folded mountain rock

A walker beside the summit cairn on snow-covered high ground — 14Winter on the summit

TWO · YOU’VE DECIDED

Getting there.

Where it starts, the recorded file, and the checks worth making before you leave the house.

PLAN THE GROUND

Start well.

RECORDED STARTSouthern Slieve Mish approach

Select coordinates to copy

This is a point-to-point route with different start and finish locations. Arrange two cars or suitable transport before setting out. Both approaches have narrow roads and limited space: park safely and legally without blocking homes, gates, farm access or traffic, and confirm current land access locally.

ROUTE FILE

Take the recorded route with you.

481 recorded track points, exactly as walked. Load it into your watch, phone or offline mapping before you leave signal.

Track geometry and elevation come from Rob’s corrected GeoJSON; recorded time comes from the corrected GPX. The two ends are separate, confirming this as a point-to-point crossing. Access and conditions must be checked independently.

Download original GPXcathair-conraoi-an-gearan-doire-mor.gpx · as recorded GeoJSON KML

Onto a watch: import the GPX into Garmin Connect, Komoot or Strava and send it to the device from there. On a phone, the Garmin Explore and OS Maps apps take the file straight from the share sheet.

BEFORE YOU GO