Walking Dalkey Hill and the quarry

The hill behind Dalkey gives you the best free view in this corner of Dublin, and you can be at the top within half an hour of leaving the DART. It forms the southern end of Killiney Hill Park, with Dalkey Hill on the seaward side and the slightly higher Killiney Hill, crowned by its obelisk, just beyond.

The way up

From the village, walk up through Sorrento and onto the network of paths that climb the hill, or take the Dalkey Avenue and Torca Road side. If you are driving, there is a car park on Killiney Hill Road that drops you much closer to the top and is the gentler option for families. Either way the climb is short but steep in places, on rough paths and steps, so wear something with grip.

Once you are up, the two high points are easy to link. Aim first for the old telegraph station and the top of the quarry on Dalkey Hill, then walk the ridge across to the obelisk on Killiney Hill. The whole loop is well under an hour of actual walking, longer if you stop for the views, which you will.

The view

From the top you get the full sweep of Dublin Bay, with Howth across the water and the city laid out to the north. Turn south and Killiney Bay curves away below you towards Bray Head and the Wicklow Mountains. Visitors have compared this stretch to the Bay of Naples for two hundred years, which is exactly why the coast road below carries Italian names like Vico and Sorrento and why the area picked up its Irish Riviera reputation.

The quarry and the Metals

The great grey gash on the seaward face of the hill is Dalkey Quarry. Stone was cut here from about 1815 to build the harbour piers at Dún Laoghaire, the South Bull Wall out in Dublin Bay, and paving for the city streets. The granite was run down to the coast on a tramway, worked in part by the weight of the loaded wagons pulling the empties back up. That old line survives as a walking path still known as the Metals, and you can follow much of its route on foot.

Quarrying left behind tall, clean rock walls, and the quarry is now one of the most important rock-climbing venues in the country, with more than 350 graded routes. They are all traditional climbs, placed protection only, with no bolts allowed. You will often see climbers working the faces below you. Enjoy watching from the top, but keep well back from the edges, which are unfenced and a long way down.

The obelisk

The stone obelisk on Killiney Hill went up in 1742. It was built to give local men paid work during the famine of 1740 to 1741, one of the harder winters in Irish memory, and it has been a landmark ever since. From its base you get the cleanest all-round view of the lot.

Practical notes

It's free and open all year, in daylight hours. There are no big facilities on the hill itself, so bring water.

Combine it with the village. The walk pairs naturally with lunch on Castle Street or the boat to Dalkey Island, and all three sit within a short distance of the same DART stop.

Mind the weather. The top is exposed, and a clear morning can turn to driving rain off the sea by lunchtime. A layer in the bag saves the day.