WALKING

There are boundless lovely places to walk in the Inchigeelagh area.  Unfortunately  they are seldom waymarked, so you need some local knowledge.  This site will probably include some more detailed descriptions of walks in the near future, or at least tell you where to obtain them.  In the mean time don't be afraid to ask local residents.    

Around Inchigeelagh

There are a number of short and long walks, mainly on minor country roads, in the immediate surroundings of Inchigeelagh:

1. To the mass rock, where mass was held during the 18th century when Catholicism was outlawed. (1 hour)
2. Cooragreenane viewing point above the South Lake Road, at the top of a forest track beyond the mass rock. (2 hours)
3. River Island and swimming area; recreational island in the village, a footpath leads away from the village to a swimming area. (1/2 hour)
4. Carrigacurra Castle, at the end of a cul de sac on the bank of the Lee; a footbridge over the Lee leads to the main road, return on the grassy margin of the road. (1 hour, can be extended with walk in forestry or to visit Rossmore Grotto.
5. To the Gortaneadin Grotto, a reknowned local shrine. (1 hour)
6. Viewing points up the hills north of the village. (1 – 3 hours)
7. Around Lough Allua (full day walk)
8. Upper Toon River valley (full day walk)
9. Shehy mountain, the hill that dominates the Inchigeelagh skyline; views to Bantry Bay and the West Cork peninsulas; long day walk, or 2 hours if the foot of the mountain is approached by vehicle. This walk is only recommended to those who have good walking equipment and some hill walking experience.

Further Afield

There are 3 forest parks within 45 minutes drive by car from Inchigeelagh:

• Farran Forest Park, see link with walking routes
• Gougane Barra Forest Park, see link with walking routes
• Glengarriff Forest Park, see link with walking routes

Local wildlife specialist Kevin Corcoran has written three excellent books of local, and more distant walks. See O'Brien Press

Waymarked Walks

Interesting waymarked routes exist around the nearby village of Copeen

Guided Walks

Guided walks around the village are sometimes available, please enquire at Creedon's Hotel.

Longer guided walks are usually available, see Lee Valley Walking

Coillte Forests (Irelands largest forestry company, once a State Enterprise issues the following statement on its Coillte Outdoors website)

Not all land owners welcome recreation users onto their land. This can be for a variety of reasons, privacy, safety, conservation, protection of livestock or crops etc. However Coillte welcomes responsible users who practice Leave No Trace and allows permissive access for walkers to its estate of over 1,000,000 acres. Much of  our forest lands are in Ireland's most beautiful locations and that makes Coillte Forests a great place to walk and hike. To assist you with knowing where access is allowed we are posting our “Walkers Welcome” signs at our forest entrances, so come on in when you see the sign. "