Croghan Mountain

For other uses of the term, see Croghan (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Croghan Hill.

Croghan Mountain, also known as Croghan Kinsella or Croghan Kinshelagh^[2] (Irish: Cruachán Uí Chinnsealaigh, meaning 'little stack of the Kinsella family')^[3] at 606 metres (1,988 ft), is the 211th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale,^[4] and the 258th–highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.^[5][6] Croghan is situated at the far southeastern end of the Wicklow Mountains on the County Wicklow and Wexford border, in Ireland.^[6]

Croghan Mountain
Croghan, and Croghan East Top, in snow as viewed from Kilcavan, County Wicklow
Highest point
Elevation	606 m (1,988 ft)[1]
Prominence	520 m (1,710 ft)[1]
Listing	Marilyn, Arderin, Simm, Vandeleur-Lynam
Coordinates	52°48′N 6°19′W
Naming
Native name	Cruachán Uí Chinnsealaigh
English translation	little stack of Kinsella
Geography
Croghan Mountain Location in Ireland
Location	Wicklow/Wexford border, Ireland
Parent range	Wicklow Mountains
OSI/OSNI grid	T1309672884
Topo map	OSi Discovery 62
Geology
Rock type(s)	Basalt and gabbro[1]

Naming

The fuller name comes from the Uí Chinnsealaigh, who were the dominant gaelic family in the area; and is used to differentiate it from other "Cruachan" mountains.^[3][7]

History

The Wicklow gold rush of 1795 began after gold was discovered on the northern slopes of the mountain during tree felling.^[8][9][10]

Geography

Croghan is situated at the far southeastern end of the Wicklow Mountains on the County Wicklow and Wexford border, in Ireland.^[6] Croghan is separated from the main range on its own small massif that includes neighbouring Croghan East Top 562 metres (1,844 ft) (which gives Croghan the profile of a "double peak"), and Slievefoore 414 metres (1,358 ft) to the east. Croghan is the source of the River Bann with rises from its southern slopes.^[6]

Raheenleagh Wind Farm

The eastern side of Croghan contains the Raheenleagh Wind Farm, which was a 32.2 MW Coillte-ESB Group joint venture project that opened on 20 September 2016.^[11] The wind farm was constructed in an existing Coillte forest, and consists of 11 Siemens Wind Power (108 – DD – 3.2MW) wind turbines.^[11] The project received planning permission in 2012, and a 17-month construction process started in mid-2015.^[11]

In 2018, it was reported that Coillte had sold their 50 percent stake to Greencoat Renewables.^[12]

See also

• Wicklow Way
• Wicklow Mountains
• Lists of mountains in Ireland
• List of mountains of the British Isles by height
• List of Marilyns in the British Isles