Seven of the eleven entries here sit on or near the Cork-Kerry border, which is the reason this page crosses counties at all. The Beara Peninsula runs 48 km between Bantry Bay and Kenmare Bay, and three of the roads listed climb out of it: the Healy Pass, a 12 km line of hairpins cut by hand as famine relief in 1847; the Caha Pass, where the N71 runs through hand-hewn 1842 tunnels and the county boundary passes underground; and Priest’s Leap, single-track and about 463 metres up, the highest paved road in Munster. The Ring of Beara loops the same peninsula and wants a full day. The Shehy and Derrynasaggart ranges hold the same border further inland, with Gougane Barra the one stop most visitors make.
The rest are scattered. The Vee, the hairpin pass over the Knockmealdown Mountains between Clogheen and Lismore, looks out over the Golden Vale, with Sugarloaf Hill climbable from the car park at the top. Mount Leinster straddles the Carlow-Wexford border and has a closed tarmac road up to its summit mast. The Partry Mountains, on the Mayo-Galway line, are bog plateau and suit experienced hillwalkers.
Most of these are drives first and walks second, and mist closes in quickly on the higher ground; Priest’s Leap in particular is one to turn back from rather than push through.
A slender 48 km peninsula between Bantry Bay and Kenmare Bay, holding the mountain passes, stone circles and working harbours that most of this page returns to.
Twelve kilometres of hairpins cut by hand in 1847, climbing over the Caha Mountains from Cork into Kerry above Glanmore Lake.
The Vee carries an old mail road over the ridge to views across the Golden Vale, with Sugarloaf Hill climbable from the summit car park.
Twenty-seven kilometres of the N71 between Glengarriff and Kenmare, with hand-hewn 1842 tunnels where the Cork to Kerry border runs underground, unmarked.
Munster's highest paved road at about 463 metres, single-track with a grass strip down the middle and a very steep pitch north of the summit.
9 of 11 shown — tap a pin for the place.
South-west coast of Ireland, various
A slender 48 km stretch between Bantry Bay and Kenmare Bay, the Beara Peninsula is the quiet corner of the Wild Atlantic Way: steep mountain passes, Bronze-Age stone circles and working fishing harbours, with a fraction of the Ring of Kerry's traffic. Healy Pass, Garnish Island's subtropical gardens and the Dursey cable car are the pick of it.
Beara Peninsula, various
Cut by hand in 1847 as famine-relief work, Healy Pass is a 12-kilometre string of hairpins climbing over the Caha Mountains from Cork into Kerry. The summit lay-by looks straight down onto Glanmore Lake; the Cork side opens to Bantry Bay, the Kerry side to the Kenmare River.
Clogheen, various
Knockmealdown, at 794m, is the highest point of County Waterford, but the range is best known for the Vee – the hairpin pass carrying the old Lismore-to-Clogheen mail road over the ridge. Drive it for the views over the Golden Vale, then climb Sugarloaf Hill from the Vee car park for the best panorama in the range.
Beara Peninsula, various
The Caha Pass carries the N71 for 27 km over the Caha Mountains between Glengarriff in Cork and Kenmare in Kerry. Its hand-hewn 1842 stone tunnels are the draw, and the Cork–Kerry border runs through the longest of them, so you change county underground with no sign to mark it.
Coomhola Bridge (Co. Cork) ↔ Bonane (Co. Kerry), various
Priest’s Leap climbs to about 463 metres between Bonane in Kerry and Coomhola in Cork, the highest paved pass in Munster. It is single-track the whole way, with a grass strip down the middle, loose gravel and a very steep pitch north of the summit – start from the Kerry side, where there are more places to pass, and turn back if the mist comes down.
South-East Ireland, various
At 794m, Mount Leinster is the highest of the Blackstairs Mountains, straddling the Carlow–Wexford border. A closed tarmac road runs up to the transmission mast at the summit, giving walkers and cyclists a steep, exposed climb, while the 75km Heritage Drive loops the villages below. The last authenticated wolf in Ireland was shot on its slopes in 1786.
Various, various
The Sheehy Mountains are a low, rugged range along the Cork–Kerry border, glacier-carved into deep valleys and bog. They hold County Cork's highest peak, Knockboy (706 m), the source of the River Lee, and the lake and 6th-century oratory at Gougane Barra – the one stop here most visitors come for.
Ballyvourney, various
Western Connacht, various
Various, various
various, various
← All things to do in Multi-County Trips
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