LUNA coffee + wine
Rob’s pick for speciality coffee, house-baked pastries and artisan sandwiches back in Killarney. Check the current menu and opening times before you go.
1 Brewery Lane, Kenmare Place, Killarney, Co. Kerry, V93 PX32HardGlacial glen · Killarney
Gleann na
gCapall.
A four-lake circuit beneath Mangerton: Lough Garagarry, Lough Managh and Lough Erhogh in the Horses’ Glen, then the Devil’s Punchbowl, with the history of Tooreencormick on the lower slopes.
Also known as Horses’ Glen.
DISTANCE
10.72km
ASCENT
752m
HIGH POINT
772m
Rob’s recorded time 5 hr 59 · faint paths, steep mountain slopes and exposed upper ground 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.
01 · DECIDE
Is this your day?
ELEVATION PROFILE
The climb comes after the lakes.
The lower approach leads into the glen before the steepest ascent. The profile then crosses the upper ground and descends towards the original start.
Reading the forecast
752 m ascent · 752 m descent
THE LINE
Into the glen of the horses.
Most walkers on Mangerton keep to the main path to the summit. This circuit leaves it early for the Horses’ Glen, a quieter way into the mountain. The recorded line passes the lakes, follows the glen inland and climbs sharply onto the high ground to its west. It then turns towards the Devil’s Punchbowl before descending to rejoin the approach. The hardest climbing comes after the journey into the valley, so keep energy for the way out.
Three lakes beneath the cliffs
Gleann na gCapall, the glen of the horses, cuts a deep bend into the Mangerton massif. Lough Garagarry is the first lake on the approach. Beyond it, the valley narrows between the cliffs before opening around Lough Managh. Turn into the upper glen and Lough Erhogh lies beneath the enclosing mountain walls, tucked out of sight from the valley entrance.
Lough Erhogh and Lough Managh fill rock basins that the ice scoured out; Lough Garagarry formed behind a moraine across the mouth of the valley. The same scouring laid bare rhyolite, a volcanic rock that gives the glen a paler look than the valleys to the west. Seen from below, the cliffs give a very different sense of the mountain’s scale from the broad views on its rim.
Beyond the steep climb out lies the fourth lake, the Devil’s Punchbowl. It occupies a separate corrie on Mangerton’s northern side, divided from the Horses’ Glen by a narrow ridge. Reaching it changes the outlook again, from the enclosed glen to the descent towards Killarney.
Battle of Tooreencormick
In 1262, the northern slopes of Mangerton were the scene of a battle between the MacCarthys and Anglo-Norman forces, following the fighting at Callann near Kilgarvan the previous year. Cormac MacCarthy was killed here. Paul Tempan links the name Tuairín Cormaic, meaning Cormac’s little field, to his death. The commemorative stone stands among the bracken beside the start, inscribed with the battle’s date.
The National Parks and Wildlife Service describes Tooreencormick as an unsuccessful Norman attempt to take control of south Kerry and west Cork from the McCarthys. The memorial gives the start a human history before the walk enters the much older landscape of the glen.
About 600 metres from the start, the line passes within about 30 metres of a standing stone, and again on the way back. The Archaeological Survey records an upright sandstone stone a little under a metre high, on an old trackway leading up Mangerton.
- 01Mangerton approachFollow the opening mountain track, then leave it for the lower lake and the entrance to the glen.
- 02Through the lakesContinue into the valley past Lough Garagarry and Lough Managh towards the upper basin of Lough Erhogh.
- 03Climb out of the glenThe line gains height sharply to the west, reaching its highest recorded ground above the lakes.
- 04Punchbowl and returnContinue towards the Devil’s Punchbowl and descend the Mangerton approach to the start.
For more on the glen and its lakes, see Tony Doherty’s Irish Times account. How the lakes formed, and the rhyolite, follow his earlier piece, “Jaunt around Horses Glen”, The Irish Times, 12 February 2011. The map and figures here follow Rob’s supplied track. The battle account follows the Killarney National Park management plan and Paul Tempan’s Irish Hill and Mountain Names, under Mangerton. The standing stone is Archaeological Survey record KE074-018, on trackway KE074-032; the distance is measured from its recorded coordinate to Rob’s supplied track.
Forecast for around 770 m
Reading the forecast…
NOW
WIND
TODAY’S PEAK RAIN CHANCE
Reading the forecast…
–cloud
–humidity
–km/h peak gust
Strongest wind today–
Peak gust–
RECENT RAINFALL · LIKELY GROUND
NEXT SIX HOURS · swipe
Reading the forecast
Forecast. This is a modelled estimate for this route’s high ground; conditions can differ sharply across the mountain. Derived from Open-Meteo forecast data ↗.
HAZARDS & OPTIONSKnow the commitment.
Faint paths and open mountain ground require independent navigation, particularly in cloud.
The climb out of the glen is steep; wet grass, loose stones and rock can make footing difficult.
Streams and lakeside passages can become hazardous after heavy rain. Do not force a crossing in high water.
The upper ground is exposed to wind, with steep drops into the corries.
The route passes through a lot of bracken and ferns. Check yourself, and any dog, for ticks afterwards.
Assess the weather and water levels before entering the glen. If the approach is already difficult, turn back along known ground before the steep upper climb. From the high ground, navigate the planned descent and do not improvise a shortcut down the corrie walls.
GLEANN NA GCAPALL
Rob’s photographs.
03 · GO
Getting there.
Start well.
STARTMangerton approach, near the Finnoulagh bridge
Select coordinates to copy
The recording begins on the Mangerton approach near the Finnoulagh bridge, reached from the Muckross side of Killarney. Parking beside the bridge is limited. Check current signs and access arrangements, and keep the narrow road, gates and entrances clear.
ROUTE FILE
Take the route with you.
The supplied recording finishes about 23 m from its start. No return segment has been added.
Distance and elevation figures come from the supplied GeoJSON. Elapsed time comes from the matching 695-point GPX, recorded on 4 October 2026 and exported on 5 October. The original GPX has no elevations; the website profile uses the GeoJSON.
Download original GPXgleann-na-gcapall.gpx · Recorded 4 October 2026 · full circuit
Confirm the download when your browser asks, then open the file from your browser’s downloads and your mapping app will offer to take it. HiiKER and Garmin Explore both do; the route loads on HiiKER’s free tier, though its EastWest mapping of the Irish uplands is a paid layer. Onto a watch: import the GPX into Garmin Connect, Komoot or Strava and send it to the device from there.
Read the ground. Keep your margin.
Conditions can change the seriousness of any route.
Before you leave
- Check the forecast and warnings
- Plan your daylight
- Save the GPX or an offline map
- Pack footwear and layers
- Share your route and return time
Leave a plan.
Tell someone your route and return time. For emergencies in Ireland call 112 or 999 and ask for Mountain Rescue.
More in Killarney
All 32 routes →AFTER THE WALK
Post-hike picks.
A small, personal shortlist around Killarney.
Tango Street Food
Rob’s pick on Muckross Road for Argentinian food, empanadas and wood-fired pizza after the walk. Check the website for the current menu, opening times and bookings.
Muckross Road, Dromhale, Killarney, Co. Kerry, V93 FP40