The Cozy Cow Café
A local café at the Village Inn in Kilcummin for coffee and something to eat after the loop. Check Instagram for current opening times.
The Village Inn, Kilcummin, Killarney, Co. KerryEasyBog trail · Killarney
Cill Chuimín
Bog Walk.
A long, low loop through the hills and bog of Cill Chuimín (Kilcummin), with broad views towards Killarney and the Kerry mountains.
Also known as Kilcummin.
DISTANCE
11.43km
ASCENT
239m
HIGH POINT
328m
My time 2 hr 26 · long, low-level loop 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?
LOW-LEVEL PROFILE
215 m to 328 m.
The profile stays within a narrow elevation band, with steady undulations rather than a sustained mountain climb.
Reading the forecast
239 m ascent · 235 m descent
THE LINE
Bog country above Killarney.
This broad loop crosses the open country of Kilcummin, staying between about 215 m and 328 m. There’s little climbing, but the views reach a long way: Donal Hickey describes these walks looking out over the Killarney Lakes and the MacGillycuddy Reeks. It’s easier than the mountain routes here, though 11.43 km still needs a fair level of walking fitness.
Writing about the Kilcummin Bog Walks in 2022, Donal Hickey set today’s leisure walking alongside memories of the work of harvesting turf, when young and old helped at the banks. The bog was a place of work before it was a place to walk.
The limekiln by the road
Seven metres off the recorded line the loop passes a limekiln, mid to late nineteenth century, built into a steep bank on the north side of a minor road. Its front wall is random rubble, three metres high, built into the field boundary, with a recess behind a roughly built arch that has no voussoirs. The top of it is overgrown. Burnt lime went onto land like this to sweeten sour ground.
Cill Chuimín
Kilcummin is Cill Chuimín, the church of Cuimín. The name preserves an ecclesiastical association in this bog country; the Placenames Database places the parish in the barony of Magunihy.
- 01Kilcummin startThe loop begins at approximately 254 m.
- 02Open bog countryA gradual rise leads through the low hills east of Killarney.
- 03Southern sideThe route turns through quieter countryside with modest height changes.
- 04Return loopThe line closes near its starting point.
The account of turf work and changing use of the bog comes from Donal Hickey’s Irish Examiner article on the Kilcummin Bog Walks (9 June 2022) ↗. The limekiln is Archaeological Survey record KE059-063, compiled by the Archaeological Survey Unit at University College Cork and measured from the recorded GPX to its published coordinate; what lime was used for on this ground is general practice rather than anything the record says. Cill Chuimín and the barony follow the Placenames Database.
Forecast for around 300 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.
The loop is over 11 km, so allow enough time even though the climbing is modest.
Bog and track surfaces may be wet, soft or slippery after rain.
Some sections are on quiet local roads. Stay visible and take care around traffic.
Waymarking and access can change. Carry a map or the GPX, and follow local signs.
This is a low-level loop with several opportunities to shorten the day using the local road network. Do not improvise across bog, farmland or private ground.
FROM THE BOG WALK
My photographs.
03 · GO
Getting there.
Start well.
STARTKilcummin Bog Walk trailhead
Select coordinates to copy
The loop starts and finishes on the road, where there’s space for about two cars. Park without blocking gates or the road, and respect homes, farms, livestock and local access along the way. This is a dog-friendly walk, but keep dogs under close control, and on a lead around livestock, wildlife and other walkers.
ROUTE FILE
Take the route with you.
The original GPX, exactly as walked. Load it into your watch, phone or offline mapping before you leave signal.
Distance, time, track and heights come from my own GPX and GeoJSON.
Download original GPXkilcummin-bog-walk.gpx · as recorded
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 33 routes →AFTER THE WALK
Post-hike picks.
A small, personal shortlist around Kilcummin.