The classic walk of Purple Mountain is the 14-kilometre 5-6 hour Gap of Dunloe Loop starting at Kate Kearney's Cottage and walking up the Gap of Dunloe road (circa 1 hour) past Black Lough to the Head of the Gap; the route then follows the path east into the Purple Mountain massif, and then northeast up to Glas Lough, and then to Purple Mountain itself. From there, the route follows the ridge to Purple Mountain NE Top, Tomies Mountain (or An Chathair), and Tomies North Top (also called Tomies Rock), and then returning to Kate Kearney's Cottage (care is needed to descend Tommies Chimneys and find the right paths back to Kate Kearney's).