Conor Pass

The Conor Pass is the road north out of Dingle, climbing to 456 metres before dropping down to Brandon Bay and the long beaches of the northern coast. It is one of the highest motor roads in Ireland and one of the narrowest — single-track in places with cliffs on one side and a steep drop on the other. Buses are formally banned and most rental car insurance policies treat it as a special-conditions road.

Drive it. The view from the top is — when the cloud lifts — among the finest in Ireland: the long curve of Brandon Bay to the north, a glacial lake (Pedlar's Lake) hung in a corrie a few metres below the road, and the deep glen back down to Dingle. There is a small lay-by at the summit and a short walk up the path on the eastern side leads to a higher vantage point. Avoid the pass in fog or high wind.

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The pass is one of the highest motor roads in Ireland and narrow enough that buses and trucks are formally prohibited — and yet local farmers still occasionally drive their tractors over the top when the weather is right. The lay-by at the summit holds a small plaque explaining the route's history and a long view that, on a rare clear day, stretches all the way to the Blasket Islands.

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