| Tonelagee | |
|---|---|
| Tóin le Gaoith | |
 Tonelagee from the Glendasan River | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 817 m (2,680 ft)[1] |
| Prominence | 202 m (663 ft)[1] |
| Isolation | 5.43 km (3.37 mi)  |
| Listing | 100 Highest Irish Mountains,Marilyn,Hewitt,Arderin,Simm,Vandeleur-Lynam |
| Coordinates | 53°03′13″N6°22′56″W / 53.053606°N 6.382171°W /53.053606; -6.382171 |
| Naming | |
| English translation | backside to the wind |
| Language of name | Irish |
| Geography | |
  Tonelagee Location in Ireland | |
| Location | County Wicklow,Ireland |
| Parent range | Wicklow Mountains |
| OSI/OSNI grid | O0850301589 |
| Topo map | OSiDiscovery 56 |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Adamellite with microcline phenocrysts[1] |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | From a car park at the top of nearby Glenmacnas Waterfall (on theSally Gap side) where there are routes to the summit on either side of the lake and stream. |
Tonelagee (Irish:Tóin le Gaoith, meaning 'backside to the wind'),[2] is at 817 metres (2,680 ft), is the 25th–highest peak inIreland on theArderin scale,[3] and the 33rd–highest peak on theVandeleur-Lynam scale.[4][5] Tonelagee is situated in the central sector of theWicklow Mountains range, and sits on the main "central spine" of the range that runs fromKippure in the north, toLugnaquillia in the south; and in particular, the continuous "central boggy ridge" that runs from theSally Gap in the north, viaMullaghcleevaun, to Tonelagee.[6] Tonelagee is the third highest peak in Wicklow afterLugnaquilla andMullaghcleevaun.[7]
To the north is the subsidiary summit ofStoney Top 714 metres (2,343 ft), and to the east is another subsidiary summit ofTonelagee NE Top 668 metres (2,192 ft); between these three summits is the deep "heart-shaped"corrie lake ofLough Ouler.[6][7]
Irish academic Paul Tempan, notes Tonelagee is sometimes spelled Tonelegee and its Irish name ofTóin le Gaoith appears in several Irish placenames, such asTandragee inAntrim, however, it was not clear what they had in common regarding the wind.[2] In addition, Tempan found no particular evidence of any other Irish language names behind Stoney Top except to note that there was a cross-inscribedstanding stone between Stoney Top and the summit of Tonelagee.[2]
Tonelagee is the third highest peak in theWicklow Mountains, and is situated in southern-end of the central section of the range.[7] Tonelagee sits on the main "central spine" of the wholeWicklow Mountains range that runs fromKippure in the north, toLugnaquillia in the south, and in particular, Tonelagee is the southern terminus of the continuous "central boggy ridge" that runs from theSally Gap in the north, viaMullaghcleevaun, to Tonelagee.[6][8]
Tonelagee'sprominence of 202 metres (663 ft), qualifies it as aMarilyn, and also ranks it as the 15th-highest mountain in Ireland on theMountainViews Online Database,100 Highest Irish Mountains, where the minimum prominence threshold is 100 metres.[9][5] Tonelagee's main "boggymassif" includes the northern subsidiary summit of Stoney Top 714 metres (2,343 ft), which has aprominence of 19 metres (62 ft) that qualifies it asVandeleur-Lynam;[6] while its second major eastern subsidiary summit of Tonelagee NE Top 668 metres (2,192 ft), has aprominence of 23 metres (75 ft) also qualifying it as Vandeleur-Lynam.[6]
Tonelagee's massif includes a long south-easterly spur with the summits of (in order of proximity):Tonlagee South-East Top 546 metres (1,791 ft),Brockagh Mountain North-West Top 548 metres (1,798 ft),Brockagh Mountain 557 metres (1,827 ft), andBrockagh Mountain SE Top 470 metres (1,540 ft).[6]
One of Tonelagee's most distinctive features is its deep north-easterncorrie, which contains the "heart-shaped" natural lake of Lough Ouler at 596 metres (1,955 ft) (not as high as Wicklow's highest natural lake ofCleevaun Lough at 686 metres (2,251 ft), onMullaghcleevaun).[7]
A common route to the summit of Tonelagee is from the east via an 8-kilometre 3-4 hour "loop walk" which starts from a large car-park just aboveGlenmacnass Waterfall just off theR115 road (also called theOld Military Road). The route crosses theGlenmacnass River to reach Tonelagee's north-east corrie and Lough Ouler, from where it then summits via the northern edge of the corrie rim to the summit of Tonelagee (passing the mica-shist "standing stone" along the way); the descent is via Tonelagee NE Top and then directly down to the shoulder to the Glenmacnass Waterfall car park.[8][7][10]
A shorter even more direct route is from theWicklow Gap on theR756 road to the west, climbing the 6-kilometre 2-3 hour route directly up the shoulder of Tonelagee and then retracing back to the car; this route is rarely offered in guidebooks as it leaves out Lough Ouler and Tonelagee's subsidiary summits.[8]
Walk 6: Tonelagee, Scarr
Route 18: Tonelagee
Route 61: Tonelagee
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