The Big Gun

The Big Gun (Irish: An Gunna Mór),[2] at 939 metres (3,081 ft) high, is the ninth-highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, or the tenth-highest according to the Vandeleur-Lynam list. It is part of the MacGillycuddy's Reeks in County Kerry, and is also known as Lackagarrin or Foilnabreachaun.[1]

The Big Gun
An Gunna Mór
Climber walking towards The Big Gun (right), with the summit of Cruach Mhór behind (left)
Highest point
Elevation939 m (3,081 ft) [1]
Prominence74 m (243 ft) [1]
ListingFurth, Hewitt, Arderin, Simm, Vandeleur-Lynam
Coordinates52°00′03″N 9°41′20″W 
Geography
The Big Gun
Ireland
LocationCounty Kerry, Republic of Ireland
Parent rangeMacGillycuddy's Reeks
OSI/OSNI gridV840845
Topo mapOSI Discovery 78
Geology
Mountain typeWell-bedded grey sandstone Bedrock

Geography
Rocky summit of the Big Gun (left), and ridge to Cnoc na Péiste (right)

The Big Gun is in the eastern section of the MacGillycuddy's Reeks in County Kerry, Ireland's highest mountain range.[3] It is on a narrow rocky arête between the mountains of Cnoc na Péiste 988 metres (3,241 ft) to the southwest, and Cruach Mhór 932 metres (3,058 ft) to the north, and is considered as offering some of the most exposed and serious hill walking in Ireland (equivalent to The Bones on the nearby Beenkeragh Ridge).[4][5][3]

Because of its positioning, The Big Gun is usually climbed as part of a horseshoe, or loop-walk, of the eastern section of the Reeks, starting and ending from the Hag's Glen.[4][3] It is also climbed as part of the even longer MacGillycuddy's Reeks Ridge Walk, which often starts at The Big Gun's eastern end, from Kate Kearney's Cottage in the Gap of Dunloe.[6]

The Big Gun is the 378th-highest mountain peak in Britain and Ireland on the Simm classification.[7] It is regarded by the Scottish Mountaineering Club ("SMC") as one of 34 Furths, which is a mountain peak above 3,000 ft (914 m) in elevation, and meets the other SMC criteria for a Munro (e.g. "sufficient separation"), but which is outside of (or furth) Scotland;[8] which is why The Big Gun is sometimes referred to as one of the 13 Irish Munros.

The Big Gun's prominence qualifies it to meet the Arderin classification, and the British Isles Simm and Hewitt classifications.[7] The Big Gun does not appear in the MountainViews Online Database, 100 Highest Irish Mountains, as the prominence threshold is over 100 m (328 ft).[9]

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References
  1. The Big Gun at mountainviews.ie. Accessed on 3 Feb 2013.
  2. Paul Tempan (February 2012). "Irish Hill and Mountain Names" (PDF). MountainViews.ie.
  3. Ryan, Jim (2006). Carrauntoohil and MacGillycuddy's Reeks: A Walking Guide to Ireland's Highest Mountains. Collins Press. ISBN 978-1905172337.
  4. John O'Dwyer (6 June 2015). "Walks: The Big Gun is a blast on the Reeks Ridge, Co Kerry". Irish Times. Intimidating looking pinnacles now bar the way to the Big Gun, but generally the handholds are sound and surprisingly quickly you will be standing on the tiny summit. Regarded as the most difficult to reach of Ireland’s major mountaintops, it offers the comforting thought that the crux of the route is now behind.
  5. Anne Lucey (22 April 2013). "Climber dies after falling from mountain ridge between The Big Gun and Conc na Peiste". Irish Examiner. The man who is believed to have travelled extensively around Ireland was crossing the Coimin na Peiste Ridge — a steep rocky ridge — on the eastern tip of Carrauntoohil with a companion when he fell. He was not roped, but experienced climbers often traverse the ridge without a rope, according to members of the Kerry Mountain Rescue Team. The fall occurred between Cnoc na Peiste and The Big Gun at about 2pm on Saturday.
  6. Con Moriarty (2018). "The Ridge of the Reeks". Hidden Ireland Tours. Simply, the finest mountain traverse in Ireland with 7 summits over 3000 ft. From Kate Kearney’s Cottage, in the Gap of Dunloe, to Doire na Féinne and Loch a’ Chúis
  7. Chris Cocker; Graham Jackson (2018). "The Database of British and Irish Hills". Database of British and Irish Hills.
  8. Mountains – Key Facts. The Munros, Corbetts, Grahams, Donalds & Furths at www.smc.org.uk. Accessed on 5 Feb 2013.
  9. Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins", Collins Books, Cork, ISBN 978-1-84889-164-7

See also
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