ModerateHidden glen · Dingle

Macha na Bó
The Field of the Cow.

A loop from Glennahoo into the hidden valley of Macha na Bó, climbing over the open shoulder of Beenbo before returning beside the river and abandoned fields.

Also known as Maghanaboe, or The Field of the Cow.

DISTANCE

11.22km

ASCENT

417m

HIGH POINT

472m

My time 3 hr 47 · open mountain and valley tracks 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.

GPX EMERGENCY

01 · DECIDE

Is this your day?

ELEVATION PROFILE

A 417 m climb to 472 m.

The loop climbs from the northern valley to Beenbo’s broad high ground before descending into Macha na Bó and returning beside the river.

Reading the forecast

417 m ascent · 437 m descent

THE LINE

Old fields and the voices of the glen.

The walk begins at the graveyard at An Baile Dubh, Ballyduff, by the northern entrance to Glennahoo, and follows an old road south into the hills. It climbs over Beenbo, reaching 472 m, before turning east into Macha na Bó, where the river winds between steep green walls. Ruined houses and intact field boundaries line the long return north beside the water.

Mary’s house and the old fields

The Dineen and O’Donnell families are remembered in local walking accounts as having worked this glen. I know the ruin in the photographs as the house of Mary O’Donnell, known as Mary ‘Macha na Bó’.

Those boundaries are on the record. The Archaeological Survey lists the field system as KE035-078, on the level floor of the Glennahoo valley, and inside it the foundation of a circular drystone hut, 4.55 metres across and standing 0.8 metres high. The recorded line passes within about sixty metres of it.

The church that went

The graveyard the walk starts from once had a church beside it. In 1615 the parsonage of Balliduff was recorded as waste and worth nothing; seven years later it was still on the list of parochial churches in the diocese. Remains of the building were standing in the graveyard around 1837 and by 1841 there was no trace of any of it. Fifty metres from the start, and gone inside four years of somebody writing it down.

An Béiceachán

A voice from Macha na Bó survives in the Schools’ Collection. Nora O Donnell told a story of An Béiceachán, a frightening presence heard around the hills. In her account, Paddy O’Donnell was returning from Glenahue when he heard it and ran home, only to find it already at the door. He sheltered in a nearby hayshed. It was said never to cross the river. This is local folklore, recorded with the teller’s name and address.

The name on the record

The Placenames Database records Macha na Bó as Maghanaboe in English, and an 1841 note explains it as the field or bawn of the cow. The field system and hut on the valley floor are the kind of ground that name describes.

01An Baile Dubh graveyardThe loop begins at approximately 63 m and follows the old road south into Glennahoo.
02Old turf roadA steady climb gains height above the northern valley and opens views towards Tralee Bay.
03Beenbo high groundThe route reaches 472 m on the broad mountain shoulder above Macha na Bó.
04Descent to the glenThe route turns east across rough ground before dropping carefully towards the valley floor.
05Macha na BóThe return follows the river through the valley, beneath steep slopes and past old field walls.
06Ruined homesteadsStone ruins and the long valley track lead north towards the start.

The field system and hut are Archaeological Survey record KE035-078, described in J. Cuppage, Corca Dhuibhne: Dingle Peninsula Archaeological Survey (1986), no. 1403. The distance is measured from the recorded GPX to the published coordinate. Nothing in the record ties those remains to Mary’s household, or dates the walls to the name. The Irish name, English form and 1841 gloss are in Logainm, record 22469 ↗. The farming families appear in the Dingle Hillwalking Club’s account of the glen ↗. Nora O Donnell, aged 45 with a Macha na Bó address, is the informant for An Béiceachán, Schools’ Collection, volume 0430, page 152 ↗. Ballyduff church and graveyard are Archaeological Survey records KE035-066 and KE035-066001, with the 1615 Royal Visitation, the 1622 list, Lewis (c. 1837) and the 1841 Ordnance Survey letters quoted in the Survey entry, described from J. Cuppage, Corca Dhuibhne: Dingle Peninsula Archaeological Survey (Ballyferriter, 1986). I identified Mary’s house and the rock locally called Cac Ar Seasamh.

Forecast for around 450 m

Reading the forecast…

NOW

WIND

TODAY’S PEAK RAIN CHANCE

PLANNING FORECAST · AROUND 450 M

Reading the forecast…

–cloud

–humidity

–km/h peak gust

Strongest wind today–

Peak gust–

RECENT RAINFALL · LIKELY GROUND

RAIN, GUST & VISIBILITY WINDOW

BEST HIKING WINDOW

DAYLIGHT PLAN

MET ÉIREANN · KERRY

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 high section crosses open, exposed mountain ground where cloud can obscure the route and valley edges.

Bog, wet grass, rough track and loose rock can be slippery or slow after rain.

The slopes above Macha na Bó are steep and broken by cliffs, gullies and stream channels; keep well back from drops.

Streams can rise quickly after heavy rain. Do not force a crossing when water is high.

Livestock graze throughout the route. Give animals space, keep gates as found and do not bring a dog unless current access rules clearly permit it.

The final approach uses a narrow road with very limited parking and occasional traffic.

Before the high point, the simplest retreat is back down the known old road towards Ballyduff. Once committed to the descent into Macha na Bó, follow the recorded line and established track through the glen; do not improvise a shortcut over the steep valley sides. Turn back early if cloud, wind or rising streams remove a safe margin.

INSIDE MACHA NA BÓ

My photographs.

11 photographsSwipe and tap to enlarge from the walk · select to enlarge

A broad view into the green Macha na Bó valley with the standing rock known as Cac Ar Seasamh below Beenbo — 01Cac Ar Seasamh, ‘A shit standing up’, above Macha na Bó

A stony track leading into the steep-sided Macha na Bó valley beneath blue sky — 02The old road into the glen

The roofless stone walls of Mary Macha na Bó O’Donnell’s former house on the valley floor — 03The house of Mary ‘Macha na Bó’ O’Donnell

The winding river and old fields on the floor of Macha na Bó beneath Beenbo — 04The old fields of Macha na Bó

A walker on a grassy mountain shoulder looking north towards the coast and Tralee Bay — 05North towards the bay

The Glenahoo River winding through the valley towards patchwork fields and the coast — 06Following the river home

A walker crossing steep grassy ground high above the river in Macha na Bó — 07Above the valley floor

Ponies grazing on rough grass beneath the steep mountain wall of Macha na Bó — 08Ponies on the plain

Two colour-marked sheep standing on high ground above the valley — 09Livestock on the high ground

A sheep walking along a narrow surfaced boreen between fences in the hills — 10Sharing the old road

A Glenahoo walking-trail waymarker beside a fence with mountains in the distance — 11The Glenahoo waymarker

03 · GO

Getting there.

Start well.

STARTAn Baile Dubh graveyard

Select coordinates to copy

The walk starts at the graveyard at An Baile Dubh, Ballyduff, by the northern entrance to Glennahoo. Parking is extremely limited on narrow rural roads: find a safe, legal space without blocking homes, gates, farm access or the road. The route crosses working farmland and open mountain. Respect every sign, gate, fence, animal and landowner, and check current access locally before setting out.

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, track and heights come from my GeoJSON, and the time from my GPX, recorded on 6 July 2025. The history and placename sources are listed with the story.

Download original GPXmacha-na-bo.gpx · as recorded

More formats

GeoJSON KML

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.

A quiet valley behind exposed high ground.

The old tracks are inviting, but the crossing between them needs mountain judgement.

Macha na Bó is enclosed by steep slopes and the loop reaches open mountain above them. Carry suitable mapping, preserve a generous margin near drops and treat every stream according to conditions on the day.

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

01Check the mountain forecastReview cloud base, wind and recent rainfall before committing to the high ground.
02Navigate independentlyCarry suitable mapping and know how to identify the correct descent into the valley.
03Judge water and edgesTurn back rather than force a swollen stream or enter steep ground without a clear line.