How to get to Carrauntoohil, the highest peak in Ireland

How to hike to Carrauntoohil, the highest peak in Ireland: Rent a car in Dublin and drive on the wrong side of the road, for 3.5 hours to Killarney. Stroll the adorable Irish streets of Killarney and wish you had more time in this cute town full of bustling pubs, too bad there is just too much to see everywhere else in Ireland. The next day put on your hiking boots, trail runners will not do, grab your rain jacket, and drive to the trailhead ready to hike Carrauntoohil Mountain, Corrán Tuathail trail, via the Coomloughra Horseshoe Loop, and drive to the trailhead at the Hydro Track Car Park. Begin the ascent uphill and remember, the first mile is always the hardest, why is this so hard? Are vacations really meant for hiking difficult peaks? Reach the lakes and go left toward Beenkeragh Ridge. Notice the brightly colored sheep, painted for various reasons like their farmer's ownership, vaccines, and mating records, you've already noticed that you've been hiking in sheep droppings the whole time. Hike along the ridge and thank Mother Nature for not raining on you today while you scramble up miles of rocky boulders, which would otherwise be very slippery. Put on your rock climbing gloves and climb, hike, pull yourself up, and watch where you step as most big rocks are solid but some shift under your feet, as you go up what some refer to as the mountaineer's route. Finally reach the top of Carrauntoohil to find many other hikers who came up the other side which seems it must be shorter and easier. Enjoy the view, feel the cold Ireland temperatures, and feel proud that you traveled all the way to a far away country and hiked a big mountain. Don't get too comfortable because you still have two more little/big peaks ahead on this horseshoe loop. Descend down the ridge and back up to Caher Mountain, then descend again and ascend backup to Caher West Mountain, taking a break in between for a Sound of Music, green mountain arms out spin, oops wrong country but you forgot to have this moment in Switzerland. Begin your final climb down the mountain, your feet are exhausted and Irish beer never sounded better. Hike down, climb down, hike down, and get down that mountain. At the bottom take a great photo with the mountains that you conquered behind you.  Pat yourself in the back, wish you had more days of hiking around here and carry on, on your trip around Ireland. Carrauntoohil is only 3,268 ft, you may laugh because back in California we climb 10,000 ft mountains regularly but this was still a 8 mile hike with over 3,700 elevation gain and a crazy, rocky scramble.