Barnesmore Gap () is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

or gap (elevation 117 m) situated in the

Bluestack Mountains The Blue Stack Mountains or Bluestack Mountains, also called the Croaghgorms (), are the major mountain range in the south of County Donegal, Ireland. They provide a barrier between the south of the county, such as Donegal Town and Ballyshannon, an ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The main

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

Ballybofey Ballybofey ( , ; ) is a town located on the south bank of the River Finn, County Donegal, Ireland. Together with the smaller town of Stranorlar on the north side of the River Finn, the towns form the Twin Towns of Ballybofey-Stranorlar. Ba ...

road, the N15, and route of the former

County Donegal Railway The County Donegal Railways Joint Committee operated an extensive narrow gauge railway system serving County Donegal, Ireland, from 1906 until 1960. The committee was incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1906, which authorised the joint purc ...

run through Barnesmore gap, acting as the main route between south and north Donegal. It is an area of complex geology, but its main feature is granite formed in the Devonian period, 400million years ago. The gap held glaciers in the Last Glacial Period flowing to the Atlantic through what is now Donegal Bay, up to about 13000 years ago. The narrow gauge railway line was originally the

West Donegal Railway The West Donegal Railway (WDR) was a narrow gauge railway in Ireland. History The Finn Valley Railway had reached Stranorlar in 1863. The West Donegal Railway Company was incorporated by an act of July 1879 to extend the Finn Valley Railway l ...

which subsequently became part of the network managed by the

County Donegal Railways Joint Committee The County Donegal Railways Joint Committee operated an extensive narrow gauge railway system serving County Donegal, Ireland, from 1906 until 1960. The committee was incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1906, which authorised the joint pur ...

. The company pioneered the use of diesel rail-cars which ran through the gap up to the late 1950s, connecting Stranorlar in the east to Donegal Town, and through to Killybegs in the west.

References

Geography of County Donegal Mountain passes of Ireland {{Donegal-geo-stub