The Conor Pass and the mountains behind Dingle

Behind Dingle the land rises sharply into the mountains that form the spine of the peninsula, and the road over them, the Conor Pass, is one of the best short drives in Ireland. The bigger walks here are a step up from the coast and need respect, but the pass itself is open to anyone with a car.

Driving the Conor Pass

The Conor Pass (An Chonair) is one of the highest surfaced mountain passes in the country, a single-track road on the R560 that climbs north out of Dingle over the ridge towards Cloghane and Brandon Bay. The drive is the attraction: a narrow ribbon with sheer drops on one side, a summit car park with a long view back over Dingle Bay, and the glacial corrie lake of Lough Doon, Pedlar's Lake, sitting below the road. A little down the northern side there is a waterfall worth the short scramble up to it. The road bans vehicles longer than about 7.2m, so no coaches or large campervans, and it can close in ice, so check the conditions before you drive it in winter. Pull in only at the marked laybys; the road is genuinely single-track in places.

Eask Tower: the short, steep one

For a walk with a big reward for not much distance, climb to Eask Tower, the squat stone beacon on Carhoo Hill above the harbour, built in 1847 as famine-relief work. The path is short, around 2km from the trailhead, but properly steep, through sheep meadows and a set of switchbacks to the open hilltop. The reward is the best single view of Dingle: the town, the harbour mouth, the whole bay and across to the Iveragh Peninsula. The landowner asks a small honesty-box fee at the start. Wear proper footwear and save it for a clear, dry-ish day.

Mount Brandon: the serious one

Mount Brandon (Cnoc Bréanainn), at 952m, is the highest peak on the peninsula and one of the highest in Ireland, named for Saint Brendan the Navigator. The classic route is from the Faha Grotto on the eastern side near Cloghane, a walk of around 8.5km to the summit that climbs along the Faha Ridge, past a chain of glacial loughs in the corrie, and up a steep zig-zag to the col and the summit cairn. Reckon on four to five hours up and down, more if the weather turns. This is a mountain walk, not a stroll: the east face falls away in cliffs, the cloud comes down without warning, and there is no shelter. The gentler western approach is the Cosán na Naomh, the Saints' Road, an old pilgrim path that runs up from Ventry past Gallarus to Ballybrack. Either way, check the forecast, carry layers and food, and tell someone your plan.

Practical notes

The mountains here make their own weather, several degrees colder and far windier than the town, and it can change within the hour. Treat the Conor Pass as a slow drive rather than a shortcut, and treat Brandon as a full day's hill walk that you only attempt in good conditions and with the right gear. On a clear day, both give you the peninsula from above, which is a different thing entirely from seeing it from the coast road.