Overview
The rare thing about Geokaun is that you can drive to the top of it. At 266 metres it’s the highest point on Valentia Island, and a paved road takes you – or a wheelchair, or a pushchair – right up to a summit viewing deck with a 360° view. It’s a Wild Atlantic Way Discovery Point and one of the easiest big views in County Kerry to reach, which is exactly why it’s worth the small fee to get in.
If you have time for only one stop on the deck, make it the Fogher Cliffs viewpoint on the north face – the cliffs fall a sheer 180 metres straight into the Atlantic, and it’s a more dramatic outlook than the summit panorama alone.
The views
On a clear day the summit deck takes in the lot: south to the Skellig Islands and the Blasket Islands, north across the Dingle Peninsula, and inland along the Iveragh coast to Cahersiveen, Portmagee and Beginish Island. When the air is sharp you can pick out MacGillycuddy’s Reeks on the horizon – Carrauntoohil, Beenkeragh and Caher.
Weather makes or breaks it. Fast cloud, sea mist and sudden shafts of light shift the scene minute to minute, which is a gift for a camera and a warning for anyone hoping to see the Skelligs on a soft day. Come early morning or late afternoon for the best light and the fewest people.
The trail and the panels
A 1.5 km loop walk circles the upper slopes and takes 30 to 40 minutes at an easy pace, calling at four viewpoints – Miner’s View, Shepherd’s View, Carraig na Circe and the summit deck. Along the way, dozens of information panels (more than fifty by some counts) turn the walk into a local tour: the Skelligs, the first transatlantic telegraph cable that came ashore on Valentia, Bray Tower, St Brendan’s Well, the Knight of Kerry, the seabirds, seine fishing, Valentia Lighthouse, and the island’s famous 385-million-year-old tetrapod trackway.
Access and facilities
The summit and its access road are on privately owned land, which is why there’s a charge for the main track – it pays for the upkeep of the road, paths and signage, and it shows. The road is steep but paved and manageable for wheelchairs, mobility scooters and pushchairs, with three parking areas spaced along the way so you can stop and walk short sections.
At the entrance there’s a self-service ticket kiosk and public toilets, and a picnic area at the summit. There’s no food on site, so bring your own. And the top is completely exposed to Atlantic wind – a windproof layer earns its place here in any month.
- Opening: open 24 hours, every day. Tickets from the self-service machine at the entrance.
- Admission: €8 per car or motorbike, €4 per walker or cyclist, €15 minibus, €10 campervan; children free with a paying adult.
Getting there
Valentia Island connects to the mainland by the bridge at Portmagee, just south of Cahersiveen. By car, follow signs from the bridge towards Knightstown and then the clear signposting for Geokaun – about 15 to 20 minutes from the bridge.
Without a car, the Valentia Island car ferry runs several times a day between Reenard Point near Cahersiveen and Knightstown, crossing the harbour mouth in about five minutes; from the terminal the mountain is a short drive. Local buses link Cahersiveen and Portmagee, but frequency thins out of season, so check times before relying on them.
Nearby on Valentia
Geokaun sits well at the start or end of an island loop:
- Valentia Lighthouse: one of Ireland’s older working lighthouses at Cromwell Point, with guided tours.
- Ahamore Abbey: the ruins of an early Christian monastery, reached by local boat from Knightstown.
- Knightstown: the island’s harbour village, with pubs, a small heritage museum and boat trips out to the Skelligs and Blaskets in season.