Overview
Slieve Mish is the walkable end of the Dingle Peninsula: rounded, grassy hills you can traverse from one side to the other, with trailheads minutes from Tralee. That is why beginners and families end up here rather than on the rockier MacGillycuddy’s Reeks further west. The range forms the eastern spine of the peninsula in County Kerry, running 19 km with Tralee Bay to the north and Dingle Bay to the south, and the walks run from a gentle coastal traverse to a hard full-day circuit. It is open mountainside, so there is nothing to pay.
The red backbone: geology and landscape
The Irish name Sliabh Mis means roughly ‘the mountains of Mis’, though the origin of the ‘Mis’ element is still argued over, possibly a woman’s name. The rock is not in doubt. The range is built mostly of Devonian Old Red Sandstone, laid down when this was a hot, semi-arid floodplain in the ancient Munster Basin, with a band of older Ordovician metasediments on the western slopes. Iron oxidation has stained it a deep purple-red that intensifies in late-afternoon sun – the single best reason to time a walk for the evening.
Glaciation in the last Ice Age cut the deep U-shaped valleys of Derrymore Glen and Curraheen Glen, with dark corrie lakes at the head of Derrymore Glen. The range is distinct enough to lend its name to the Slieve Mish Anticline, a large fold that geologists trace across the peninsula. The whole range is a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive, and it holds more than seventeen named peaks.
Legends of the spinning fort
Slieve Mish carries the mythology of the Tuatha Dé Danann and the Ulster Cycle. The central site is Caherconree Fort, a stone promontory fort set high on the mountain, on the shoulder of the 835 m peak of the same name. Legend says it was built by the early Iron Age king Cú Roí Mac Daire, who enchanted it to spin on its axis at night so attackers could never find the entrance.
The story turns on Cú Chulainn, who raided the fort to rescue Cú Roí’s daughter Bláthnaid. In the tale she signals the moment of attack by pouring milk into the nearby Finglas stream until the water runs white; that stream, Fionn Glas, ‘the white brook’, is still a landmark for walkers. Near the summit of Caherconree, guides point out a rock formation called Cú Roí’s Faces and a boulder known as Fionn MacCool’s Chair.
Walking the Slieve Mish Mountains
The walks cover the full spread, from a short family stroll to a multi-peak day that will test fit hillwalkers.
Summit day
For experienced hillwalkers the core massif is the draw, centred on Baurtregaum (851 m), with Caherconree (835 m) and Gearhane (792 m) close behind. The classic hard day is the Derrymore Glen horseshoe – roughly 11 km around the glen and its corrie lakes, taking in Baurtregaum, with views the length of Tralee Bay. It is a genuine mountain outing: navigation on the tops, and no shelter if the weather turns.
The Kerry Camino and Dingle Way
The gentler option, and the one most people should pick, is the section of the Wild Atlantic Way known as the Kerry Camino: a 14 km route from Tonevane to the village of Camp along the southern foothills. It passes the Victorian reservoir that once supplied Tralee, the early Christian ruins of Killelton Oratory, and the ‘Iron Man’, the rusted remains of a 19th-century signal deflector. It ends at Ashes Pub in Camp, which is reason enough to finish there. Largely flat with gentle undulations – but expect several stream crossings and, where cattle are moved, deep mud. Gaiters are worth it.
Family and easy walks
- Tonevane loop: a short waymarked loop of about 2 km near the Tralee Equestrian Centre, with wide views of Tralee Bay and the Brandon Mountains. The one to pick with children or if you are new to hill walks.
- Annascaul views: not on the range itself, but the Brackloon Loop near Annascaul gives long views of the Slieve Mish massif from the south-west.
Practical information
Slieve Mish is open year-round with no admission fee. The weather turns fast, and the ground includes boggy stretches and cattle paths, so the gear list matters.
- Maps and navigation: Ordnance Survey Ireland Discovery Series Sheet 71; a GPS device or hiking app is worth having on the summit day.
- Gear: sturdy waterproof boots are essential, gaiters help on the muddier stretches, and a windproof layer is worth bringing even in summer.
- Dogs: welcome but kept on a lead, especially on the lower slopes where livestock graze.
Access and parking
- Curaheen church: parking here gives access to the Curaheen valley and the start of the Kerry Camino trail.
- Camp village: lay-bys around the village give access to the western end of the Kerry Camino and the approaches to Caherconree.
Arrive in the late afternoon if you can. That is when the sun catches the Old Red Sandstone and the ridges go purple and gold – the difference between a good photograph and a forgettable one.