Climbing Carrauntoohil in 24 Hours

Climbing Carrauntoohil in 24 Hours - A Quick and Wild Irish Adventure

I’m not the best at stringing sentences together, but I wanted to share a quick write-up of mine and @Cadab’s climb of Carrauntoohil, the highest peak in Ireland, located in County Kerry.

✈️ The Journey Begins

We had an early start on a cold Friday morning in November, heading to Leeds Bradford Airport to catch a budget Ryanair flight to Dublin. We landed around 7:30 AM and had collected our Renault Clio hire car by 8:00.

After a quick Tesco run for supplies (water, fruit, sandwiches, and a few treats), plus a classic McDonald’s breakfast, we hit the road for a 4-hour, 207-mile (333 km) drive to Carrauntoohil.

🚶‍♂️ The Climb

We parked at Cronin’s Yard, which gave us a scenic and steady walk to warm up before the real climb began.

The ascent via Devil’s Ladder was pretty sketchy. The trail was full of loose stones that shifted underfoot, and at times we were scrambling on all fours. All part of the adventure, I guess!

Once we reached the top of Devil’s Ladder, the summit looked close — but the final stretch had quite a bit of snow. Luckily, we’d packed well for the conditions and pushed on.

🏔 The Summit

The views from the top were absolutely stunning, as you’ll see from some of the photos below. Snow-capped ridges, crisp air, and total silence. Worth every step.

With daylight fading fast (thanks, Irish winter), we began our descent and made it back to the car just before the temperature dropped and the sun fully set.

🍻 The Return

We stopped in a small town on the way back for a quick bite and a few beers, but @Cadab wasn’t feeling too great. So we hit the road again, arriving back near Dublin Airport around 1 AM.

We parked in a Tesco car park (budget travellers, after all) and managed a few hours of sleep before returning the hire car and catching our early Saturday morning flight back to Leeds Bradford.

🙌 Final Thoughts

Climbing Carrauntoohil was an amazing experience, and trying to do it all within 24 hours made it even more memorable. Between the travel, the climb, and the chaos — it was one for the books.

Would I do it again?
Absolutely. 100%.