Ireland

• Slieve Mish Mountains (Baurtregaum and Caherconree)

Charachter: a lofty circuit of Irelands highest non-Munro and its subsidiay, combined with a lower, little visited heathery ridge, topped by Moanlaur (566 m). First ascent may be boggy, and last descent is steep and ankle grinding!

Ascent: 4500 feet

Time: 6 hours good conditions, to 10 in very poor / Winter.

Map: Ordnance Survey of Ireland, Discovery Series (1:50,000), Sheet 71; part of Co Kerry (inc Tralee)

Caherconree (Cathair Conraoi); 835 m

These two fine mountains lie in the eastern part of the Dingle peninsula in Co Kerry. Rising to heights of 851 m and 835 m respectively, they are amongst the highest ground in Eire, and indeed, outside of the 12 or so 3000 feet peaks in Ireland, Baurtregaum is the highest non-Munro.

The ascent described also encorporates a subsidiary range to the West, topped by Moanlaur at 566 m.

Leavethe main N 86 road very soon after it splits from the R 560 continuing directly East. Head under a disused railway bridge and follow a little used path until it connects with the Dingle Way track. Do not walk along the track, but divert around three sides of a house to start heading South East either on or parallel to an old pathway. You are now in open fields, and need to aim for a cleft in the small hill ahead, marked at spot height 281 on the 1:50000 map, missing this top on its left hand side. A fence is reached near the top, and is then followed down hill to a corner of the field. On a clear day the ascent of the main north ridge of Caherconree now faces you. Head East, crossing 3 or 4 deep drainage courses in the peat, and continue across the increasingly steep ground. Pass just to the right of a small outcrop at about alt 320 m. The slopes start to get much more bouldery towards the top.

With the ridge gained, follow it in a Southerly direction, over two subsidiary tops. The views to the East reveal the small lakes held in the cwm, and on a clear day the breadth of the Dingle peninsula, and even to The MacGillycuddy's reeks is visible. The arete is never scary, but is narrow enough in places to give the enjoyment of being on a high ridge. In all places it is essentially grassy.

The top of Caherconree is marked with a cairn.

Baurtregaum (Barr Tri gCom); 835 m

The continuation on to Baurtregaum is straigtforward. After a short distance heading south and then progressively south east, a grassy arete is gained heading quite steeply downhill to the watershed between the two peaks. From this broad col, it is simply necessary to make the direct ascent up the broad slope of about 500 feet on a bearing of 73. About 100 m beyond a cairn is the summit trig.

Descent and continuation to Moanlaur

Retrace your steps to the col between the peaks. Also retrace up the narrow grassy arete, but at the top of this keep to the left of the highest ground, and contour around Caherconree. In good visibility, a SSW ridge will be apparent with a subsidiary top, but in poorer conditions continue contouring until an abrupt escarpment is reached. (You may even go over a letter "S" made of flat rocks in the ground as I did on the contouring leg!).

This escarpment is quite fierce, though not dangerous unless a direct descent off it is attempted. Far better, once it is gained, to keep it on your right hand side and descend via Caherconree's iron age hill fort, a jutting out table of land from the main escarpment, separated from the surrounding land by the original thick stone wall. What exactly were they doing up here at considerably above 2000 feet?!

Continue down the slope from the fort, until the ground levels before the subsidiary top of Ballyarkane Oughter. Here a series of red and white poles will lead you off to the right (WSW) and the road, avoiding the worst of the bogs.

The continuation starts by a small rise up on the single track road, and after about 70 m horizontally, and a 30 m rise vertically, the yellow and black warning chevrons as the road does a left tell us its time to head approximately westward up the obvious ridge. From here the views of the miniature Knockbrack and its proud NE corrie are beutiful, and but for their scale, are every bit as attractive as the much grander northern corrie of Baurtregaum / Caherconree.

The orchid and heather covered slopes are never easy but never difficult, and you are soon ticking off all the tops of this ridge. Moanlaur provides the stiffest challenge, with surprisingly steep (and indeed high,after a long day!) slopes. It is also slightly off the centre of the ridge to the south, as is Knockmore and the next minor top at 515 m, so stay to your left on the ridge to cross them all.

The continuing ridge to the West descends slowly over some cairned tops, and even via a named one (Emlagh, 481 m). After one more cairned top beyond this, the torturous descent begins. Even though you are now only at 441 m, this descent feels more painful than many larger ones, and indeed, is reminiscent of the dreadful trudge down the edges of Clachaig Gully at the westren end of The Aonach Eagach in Glencoe (OK, this is an exageration, but this minor descent is a major pain!).

Follow the very poor ruins of a wall down the centre of the ridge. The loose rock and heather grind the ankles and knees. Eventually, near the bottom, a fence may be gained. Taking this and following it for a few yards to the right, will allow you to cross the final field and find a gate on to the minor road from the north east, It is then straightforward to follow this road over the bridge and join another heading down towards inch where the cafeteria and a kind soul with a car await you (hopefully)!