Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop
Walking Trail · Cork
Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop is a 10.8 km strenuous waymarked loop in Cork, starting near Drimoleague.
Grade
| Activity | Grade | Difficulty | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walking | Strenuous | Challenging | 4 hours |
Getting there
Starts at Castledonovan Car Park, near Drimoleague.
- Trailhead coordinates
- 51.68972, -9.2923
- Irish Grid reference
- W 113 493
- Ordnance Survey sheets
- Discovery Series Sheet 85
The National Trails Register's own latitude and longitude fields are empty for all 1,186 trails on it. This trailhead comes from Sport Ireland's separate Trailheads dataset, matched to this trail on its register ID.
Public transport
Bus Eireann bus
- Waymarking
- Dark blue arrow
Who manages it
Sheep’s Head Way Limited
Sheep’s Head Way Limited
Conditions and closures change. The operator is the authority on both, not this page.
Trails nearby
Measured trailhead to trailhead, in a straight line.
- Sheep's Head - Deelish Cascades Walk (Drimoleague) 689 m away · 3.1 km trail
- Sheep's Head - Glounaclohy Walk (Drimoleague) 689 m away · 5.4 km trail
- Sheep's Head - St. Finbarr's Way (Drimoleague) 3.2 km away · 39.7 km trail
- Sheep's Head - Top of the Rock Walk (Drimoleague) 3.2 km away · 2 km trail
- Sheep's Head - Drimoleague Heritage Trail 3.9 km away · 5.1 km trail
- Sheep's Head - Moyny Bridge Walk (Drimoleague) 3.9 km away · 3.4 km trail
Common questions
How long is the Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop?
10.8 km, recorded as a loop on Sport Ireland's National Trails Register. It climbs 404 m in total. Sport Ireland estimates 4 hours.
How hard is the Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop?
Sport Ireland grades it Strenuous, with an overall difficulty of Challenging. Grades are set against national criteria, so they are comparable with other registered trails.
Where does the Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop start?
Starts at Castledonovan Car Park, near Drimoleague. The trailhead is at 51.68972, -9.2923 (Irish Grid W 113 493).
Can you get to the Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop without a car?
Bus Eireann bus.
Who manages the Sheep's Head - Castledonovan Loop?
Sheep’s Head Way Limited. They are the authority on current conditions and closures, not this page.
More in Cork
Trail data from the Sport Ireland National Trails Register, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Trailhead coordinates from the companion Trailheads dataset. Snapshot taken 2026-08-13.