Caherconree () at , is the 20th–highest peak in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

on the

Arderin Arderin () is a mountain on the border between counties Laois and Offaly in Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is ...

scale, and the 27th–highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins", Collins Books, Cork, Caherconree is the 2nd-highest mountain in the

Slieve Mish Mountains Slieve Mish Mountains (), is a predominantly sandstone mountain range at the eastern end of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. Stretching , from the first major peak of Barnanageehy outside of Tralee in the east, to Cnoc na Stuaice ...

in the

Dingle Peninsula The Dingle Peninsula (; anglicised as Corkaguiny or Corcaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of m ...

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

, Ireland, and one of its southerly spurs is the site of an ancient stone

promontory fort A promontory fort is a fortification, defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the Rampart (fortification), ramparts needed. The oldest kno ...

, which is a protected

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

Naming

In Irish academic Paul Tempan's ''Irish Hills and Mountain Names'', the name derives from Cú Roí mac Daire, the legendary king of Munster who features in many Irish folklore tales including those concerning

Cú Chulainn Cú Chulainn ( ), is an Irish warrior hero and demigod in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, as well as in Scottish and Manx folklore. He is believed to be an incarnation of the Irish god Lugh, who is also his father. His mother is the ...

and Bláthnat.

Geography

Caherconree is the 2nd-highest mountain of the Slieve Mish range, which is situated at the eastern-end of the

, in

. Caherconree is part of a "horseshoe" of the largest peaks in the Slieve Mish range that bound the deep glaciated valley of the Derrymore Glen, that include the mountains of Gerahane (), and Baurtregaum , the highest peak in the range. Caherconree's

prominence In topography, prominence or relative height (also referred to as autonomous height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contour line encircling ...

of does not qualify it as a Marilyn, however, it ranks it as the 11th-highest mountain in Ireland on the

MountainViews Online Database In these lists of mountains in Ireland, those within Northern Ireland, or on the Republic of Ireland – United Kingdom border, are marked with an asterisk, while the rest are within the Republic of Ireland. Where mountains are ranked by height ...

, '' 100 Highest Irish Mountains'', where the minimum prominence threshold is 100 metres.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins", Collins Books, Cork,

Hill walking

The easiest route is the 4-kilometre 2-hour return trip from the ''Bóthar na gCloch'' road (a north-south road between the N86 and the R561 roads); from where an easterly ''Caherconree Fort Trail'' goes from the car-park to the ancient promontory fort, from which the summit of Caherconree can be easily accessed. A popular method of climbing Caherconree is via is the ''Derrymore Glen Horseshoe'', a 11-kilometre 5-hour loop that starts from the base of the Derrymore Glen and ascends to the first summit of Gearhane, and then around the "horseshoe" to Caherconree and the summit of Baurtregaum. Options for the descent use either the Baurtregaum NW Top spur or the Baurtregaum NE Top Spur (and the Scragg) to get back to the base of the Glen. The route is recommended for its views of the Glen as well as incorporating most of the main peaks of the Slieve Mish range, and is also called ''The Slieve Mish Circuit'' in some guidebooks.

Caherconree Promontory Fort

Caherconree is named after an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

stone

, Caherconree Promontory Fort at , that sits two-thirds of the way up its southwestern shoulder, overlooking the north-south running mountain road called ''Bóthar na gCloch'' ("road of the stones"). The fort is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs. In

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...

this is the fort of Cú Roí mac Dáire, who was able to make it spin around at night to stop attackers finding the entrance. In the story of ''Aided Con Roí'', a king's daughter called Bláthnat is taken against her will to the fort by Cú Roí. She is rescued by her lover,

, to whom she signals that the time will be right to attack when she pours milk into a nearby stream; Bláthnat created the opportunity by taunting Cú Roí that his fort was too small for such a magnificent chieftain thus compelling him to take down the walls to build a bigger fort. This stream is now called the Finglas (from ''an Fhionnghlaise'' meaning "the white stream") and its source is close to the remains of the ringfort. Between the summits of Caherconree and Gearhane, is a rock feature called ''Fin MacCool's Chair'', named after the mythical figure

Fionn mac Cumhaill Fionn mac Cumhaill, often anglicised Finn McCool or MacCool, is a hero in Irish mythology, as well as in later Scottish and Manx folklore. He is the leader of the ''Fianna'' bands of young roving hunter-warriors, as well as being a seer a ...

Gallery

File:Caherconree Promontory Fort.jpg , Peak of the hill fort File:Caherconree Promontory Fort Ruins.jpg , Hill fort ruins File:Caherconree, Sliabh Mish, Kerry, Ireland.jpg , View south from summit File:Caherconree Fort.JPG , Hill fort from summit

References

External links

MountainViews: The Irish Mountain Website
Caherconree

the largest database of British Isles mountains ("

DoBIH The mountains and hills of the British Isles are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of elevation, prominence, and other criteria such as isolation. These lists are used for peak bagging, whereby hillwalkers attempt ...

")
Hill Bagging UK & Ireland
the searchable interface for the

{{IrishTrails Hewitts of Ireland Mountains and hills of County Kerry Forts in the Republic of Ireland Mountains under 1000 metres National monuments in County Kerry