High above the southen half of Dublin Dalkey and its obelisk dominate the eastern skyline. What few people realise is that the obelisk is built on the top of an ancient cairn , which given its position is most like a passage tomb.
This large mound is itself built on the top of a rock outcrop. All around it large outcrops of granite stand out, many of which have natural hollows in them and veins of quartz. From the top of the mound looking north Howth is very prominent. Looking down at the sea it is noticable that the cairn is placed so that Dalkey Island (County Dublin) is separated from the mainland by the tiniest sliver of sea.
Looking south the view takes in Bray Head, Carrickgollogan and the Sugar Loaf Mountains. Westward are the Wicklow Mountains.
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This is an explanation of (and a bit of a disclaimer for) the coordinates I provide. Where a GPS figure is given this is the master for all other coordinates. According to my Garmin these are quite accurate. Where there is no GPS figure the 6 figure grid reference is master for the others. This may not be very accurate as it could have come from the OS maps and could have been read by eye. Consequently, all other cordinates are going to have inaccuracies. The calculation of Longitude and Latitude uses an algorithm that is not 100% accurate. The long/lat figures are used as a basis for calculating the UTM & ITM coordinates. Consequently, UTM & ITM coordinates are slightly out. UTM is a global coordinate system - Universal Transverse Mercator - that is at the core of the GPS system. ITM is the new coordinate system - Irish Transverse Mercator - that is more accurate and more GPS friendly than the Irish Grid Reference system. This will be used on the next generation of Irish OS maps. |