Bulls Head
I was not expecting this. More stunning coastal scenery on the Dingle Peninsula.
When doing these hikes i intentionally do not go looking up the interwebs for videos or images.
Of course i go researching routes, parking locations and details about the routes, i’m not so reckless that i’m heading out hiking without having any details. However, anything related to images or anything else i tend to shy away from. On this occasion i feel it was well worth taking that approach. I was completly blown away by the scenery on this costal stretch of the Dingle Peninsula.
I parked up at Kinard beach where there is room for a few cars. All very safe looking but you’d have to wonder how much longer that road will last as the coastal erosion seems to be fairly active there. Being that its open to the ocean i’d expect winter storms will, over the coming years, change the coast here a considerable bit as it looks a bit soft. From here you catch your first glimpse of An Searrach (The Foal)
An Searrach
The route to the trail presents itself immediately from the car park. It’s just a question then of following the path and low walls up the side of the hill around to the main headland. Once you get up there, around the ridge, just wow. You catch your first glimpse of An Searrach and a huge bay with towering sea cliffs. Please for the love of god dont be foolish up here. There are some fences, but as you can see in the video a lot of it is exposed. Just be careful !!!
Looking over at Bulls Head you can see the outline of a path skirting along the side of the hill, and to be honest, i wasnt going to do it as it look a bit steep, but once you get over there it was in fact ok to do. To get over there you just follow the coast. There is some path, sometimes it does vanish but nothing too out of the ordinary. You see the waterfall and then make you way up to the fort. On the map it says Dún Cinn Tire, but i’ve since found out that just translate to Promotory Fort, so i’m just wondering is it called Bulls Head. The views up here are great, and to be honest you could just drop down and work your way back to the start. It would be a great day out at just that.
Eask Tower in the distance
I however had come to tick off Sea Hill and, i’ve seen many names on different maps for the other hill, Doonties Commons/Beenmore/Binn an Mhor/Cinn Ard. The going up to Sea Hill can be tough as you go up with the heather and paths, but its ok. There is a interesting slab of rock half way to Sea Hill, called Fin of Rock/ An Choimin. i skirted around the “top” and only saw it on the way down. Its a bit of a flat top. Making the way to Doonties Commons was tough going. No path, knee high heather, hidden rocks/walls, really bad ground in the lower sections with tusocks and very wet ground. Once you start making your way back up the hill the ground becomes firmer with just heather to contend with. The trig point on Doonties Commons was reached but i didnt stay long. The day was drawing in, the winter days are getting shorter and i’d to head back. The hill back down was rocky enough, nothing too dificult but care was required. You soon joing back onto the route you can up on and its a nice walk back to the car park.
The tide had come in so it was great to see the waves crashing into that little cut in the coast.
Sea Hill and Doonties Commons, if i’d to choose one to do again it would be Doonties, but to be honest, now i’ve them done i don’t feel any real inclination to go back to them again, although the views from Doonties at sunset i would imagine are spectacular. You never know.
The route out to Bull Head was breathtaking and it’s a route i’d have no hesitation in doing again.
Thanks for reading and see you next time.
Overall a thouroughly enjoyable day.
Ed