Scarr

About Scarr

Offering a rugged, heathery escape above the village of Roundwood, this elongated ridge provides some of the best underfoot conditions in the Wicklow Mountains. Its summit is marked by a distinctive spine of exposed rock, looking directly across the deep trench of Lough Dan toward the massive bulk of Tonelagee.

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Did You Know?

• •The name is derived from the Irish word Sceir, meaning a rocky ridge or outcrop, which accurately describes the sharp line of metamorphic rock breaking through the summit's surface.
• •Scarr forms part of the eastern ridge of the Wicklow Mountains, providing a spectacular vantage point over Lough Dan, a ribbon lake created by glacial action in the valley below.
• •From the summit, the view west across the Glenmacnass Valley is dominated by the massive, heathery dome of Tonelagee, while to the north, the sharp profile of Djouce Mountain stands out clearly.
• •Most walkers approach the peak as part of a circuit from Laragh or the Brockagh Woods, often combining it with a traverse of the neighbouring Kanturk to the north.
• •Despite its name suggesting a permanent facial injury, the Scarr is actually one of the more hospitable hills in the county, largely because its drainage is efficient enough to spare walkers the usual Wicklow experience of 'boot-swallowing' peat hags.