The stone circle
The reason to turn off the Ring of Beara at Ardgroom is the stone circle a mile east of the village, signposted off the old Kenmare road. Locally it’s the Canfea circle; most people just call it the Ardgroom circle. It’s Bronze Age, roughly 1000 BC, and what makes it worth the detour is the shape of the stones: instead of the usual blunt slabs, these taper to points, so the ring stands like a row of stone spires. Eleven stones make up the circle, nine of them still upright, with one alignment stone set apart outside it. Like many such circles, the stones are thought to have worked as a rough calendar, marking the turning points of the farming year.
Two honest warnings before you go. The circle sits in the middle of a working sheep farm, and the farmer allows people across his land – so close gates, keep clear of the animals, and expect the field to be wet: after rain the short walk over to the stones is genuinely boggy, and boots or even wellies beat trainers. Second, the parking is tiny. Look for the blue ‘Please Park Here’ sign at the end of the narrow approach lane; there’s room for about three cars and no more.
The Pulleen Loop walk
If you want to stretch the legs, the Pulleen Loop is an easy coastal circuit starting and finishing at Cuas Quay, near Bird Point. Beara Tourism puts it at 5km with about 100m of climbing and 1.5 to 2 hours walking; Discover Ireland lists it shorter, at 3.3km – either way it’s a half-morning, not a hike. Follow the blue arrows from the quay. The path runs past ruined farmhouses, sheepfolds and old field walls out to Dogs Point, where there’s a small beach and a sea cave for a break, then back along the coast. Near the end you pass close to the Coosmore sea caves, about 250m from the trailhead. Dogs aren’t allowed on the loop.
The village
Ardgroom is small and brightly painted, sitting between the Slieve Miskish Mountains and the Kenmare River estuary. It has the essentials and not much more: a shop, a petrol station, and Harrington’s, the post office that doubles as a café and is the de facto centre of village life. The Village Inn is the pub, open year-round, and worth timing for one of its trad sessions if you can – this is session culture without the tour-bus crowds you get further along the coast.
The village is a natural stop on the Beara Way and the wider Ring of Beara drive, between Eyeries and Lauragh.
Getting there
Ardgroom is on the R571 west of Kenmare; the stone circle is signposted about a mile east of the village, and the Pulleen trailhead at Cuas Quay is a short drive north toward the coast. Both have free parking, though the circle’s is the limiting factor. Bus Éireann route 282 (Kenmare–Castletownbere) stops at Harrington’s, so it’s reachable without a car if you don’t mind the timetable.
If you only have time for one thing and the weather’s dry, take the circle – the tapering stones are the single most distinctive prehistoric sight on this stretch of Beara, and ten minutes in a sheep field gets you there.