Dingle Way

The Dingle Way (Irish: Slí Chorca Dhuibhne)^[3] is a long-distance trail around the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. It is a 162-kilometre (101-mile) long circular route that begins and ends in Tralee and is typically completed in eight days.^[4] It is designated as a National Waymarked Trail by the National Trails Office of the Irish Sports Council and is managed by the Dingle Way Committee and Kerry County Council.^[5]

Route

The trail begins in Tralee, following the towpath of an old ship canal to Blennerville, after which it follows the road for a while before climbing up to a mountain track along the northern flanks of the Slieve Mish Mountains. From here it descends towards Tralee Bay and the village of Camp.^[6] The next few stages – Camp to Annascaul, via Inch Strand; Annascaul to Dingle, via Lispole; and Dingle to Dunquin, via Ventry – mainly follow minor roads and boreens.^[7] The latter section of the stage between Dingle and Dunquin follows a cliff path around Slea Head.^[8] The section between Dunquin and Ballycurrane follows a mixture of roads, beaches and cliff paths.^[9] The most mountainous stretch of the Way now follows as the trail ascends a saddle between Brandon and Masatiompan mountains.^[10] At 640 metres (2,100 feet), this is the highest point reached by any of the National Waymarked Trails in Ireland.^[11] The Way then descends to Brandon village and follows a trail to the village of Cloghane.^[12] From Cloghane, the trail follows Fermoyle Strand, Ireland's longest beach, to Fahamore, before following roads to the village of Castlegregory.^[13] The final stage follows the coastline to Camp before retracing the outward route to Tralee.^[14]

Usage

A review of the National Waymarked Trails in 2010 found both multi-day and day usage of the Dingle Way to be high and recommended that work should commence to upgrade it to a National Long Distance Trail, a proposed new standard of trail in Ireland intended to meet international standards for outstanding trails. It also recommended that the development of looped walks off the main route should be considered.^[5]

Views along the Dingle Way
The old ship canal between Tralee and Blennerville  Tarmac road section, looking towards Ballydavid Head  Cliffs near Slea Head  Hillside pasture and residence

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Bardwell, Sandra; Megarry, Jacquetta (2009). The Dingle Way (2nd ed.). Dunblane: Rucksack Readers. ISBN 978-1-898481-33-1. 
• Fewer, Michael (1996). The Way-marked Trails of Ireland. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. ISBN 0-7171-2386-3. 
• National Trails Office (2010). "Setting New Directions. A review of National Waymarked Ways in Ireland" (pdf). Dublin: Irish Sports Council. Retrieved 30 April 2011. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dingle Way.

• Dingle Way Walking Route, Map and GPS info at ActiveMe.ie
• dingleway.com
• Dingle Way at IrishTrails.ie

Long-distance trails in the Republic of Ireland
National Waymarked Trails	Ballyhoura Way Barrow Way Bealach na Gaeltachta, Dún na nGall Beara Way Blackwater Way Bluestack Way Burren Way Cavan Way Croagh Patrick Heritage Trail Dingle Way Dublin Mountains Way East Clare Way East Munster Way Grand Canal Way Hymany Way Kerry Way Lough Derg Way Mid Clare Way Miners Way and Historical Trail Monaghan Way Multeen Way Nore Valley Way North Kerry Way Offaly Way Royal Canal Way Sheep's Head Way Slieve Bloom Way Slieve Felim Way Sligo Way South Leinster Way Suck Valley Way Táin Way Tipperary Heritage Way Western Way Westmeath Way Wicklow Way
Pilgrim Paths	Cosán na Naomh Lough Derg Saint Kevin's Way
Greenways	Boyne Greenway Dublin-Galway Greenway Great Southern Trail Great Western Greenway
Other	Bangor Trail Malin to Mizen

Coordinates: 52°16′01″N 9°42′22″W / 52.267°N 9.706°W / 52.267; -9.706