Overview
St Bartholomew’s Church, known locally as Rossmackowen Church, serves Rossmackowen on the Beara Peninsula, near Castletownbere. It is a small, plain white chapel with a graveyard, and it is an active place of worship. There is little to see inside; the setting is what stays with people, with mountain slopes rising directly behind the building.
Beara is the long finger of land between the Kenmare River and Bantry Bay, with the Caha Mountains and the Slieve Miskish running down its spine. The church is one of the scattered settlements of west Beara, the district that runs out through Castletownbere, Bere Island, Eyeries, Allihies and Cahermore, and it was built to serve spread-out farming townlands.
Walking: Hungry Hill and the Beara Way
The church sits beneath Hungry Hill and near a waymarked stretch of the Beara Way, so walkers sometimes use it as a landmark. This page does not give a route up Hungry Hill. It is a serious mountain with steep ground, outcrops and navigation that is unforgiving in mist, and it is for experienced hillwalkers with a map, compass and proper weather gear.
For a gentler outing, choose a signed section of the Beara Way and use its published trailheads. Check current route notices and conditions before setting out. Beara walking routes pass through open ground threaded with local folklore, including the grave of Princess Beara, the Spanish princess who, the story goes, married a local chieftain and gave the peninsula its name.
Practical information
Rossmackowen Church is an active place of worship. Check the Castletownbere parish information for services, and ask the parish about access before visiting. Give worshippers and neighbouring entrances space.
Parking and facilities: Do not assume dedicated parking, toilets, a café or an information desk at the church. The nearest food and fuel are in Castletownbere.
Accessibility: The walking routes in the area involve uneven, steep and exposed ground. Ask the parish about access to the church itself.
Walkers: Carry the Ordnance Survey Ireland Discovery Series map for the area and check the forecast carefully; exposed ground becomes dangerous in wet or misty weather.