If you are approaching from the west (road south of Knockanuha) please do not park on the corner at W04199 68795 K (junction of road and track), the farmer(who likes walkers) has told me that people park there and delivery trucks can't get up the road and on occasion he's had to follow walkers up the mountain to get the keys to move their car: please park in the farm yard of the first little cottage.
Carran itself is best approached from the south west, south (Carran South) or North East (along the ridge). It offers good views in most directions and is certainly a wild and remote spot to enjoy a well earned sambo and a cuppa. Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/262/comment/14933/

The reliable osulivanm describes the country lane to the farm below Knockanuha as "delightful". Sadly, on the day we made the trip they were auditioning for “Fast and Furious 23-Kerry drift” and a series of Jason Statham wannabes were clearly in a hurry to get to the fleshpots of Kenmare. Nerves shredded, we arrived at the corner where everyone says "don't park". I tried to find a farmer to no avail, but did meet the intimidating hounds- making me reassess my views on rewilding with wolves. We parked as responsibly as we could, and set off on the well described tail to the left of the final farm, the howls of dogs ringing across the valley. I was accompanied by Scottish pal "Points"- a giant of a man with the countenance of a puritan minister and the gait of a highland constable. I scurried along beside him as often before. Our outward route was that described by many, over Far North Top, then down to a lovely col that marks the watershed of the Roughty and a feed brook of the Slaheny rivers. With clear views and good sunshine, this was enough to soften the spirits of my more dour colleague. West of the NE top we took lunch admiring fabulous views of distant reeks etc. Every hillwalker needs a lunch like this, where you enjoy summer sun, long daylight and share reminiscences of lucky escapes, Scottish winters, and the times when we drove Datsuns like the locals. The route to Carran itself was a boggy shock but soon complete. Akin to millenials confronted by food, we took our photos. Points reversed the route, I pressed on to the South Top guided by a fence. The final lonely summit was difficult to discern, I tested both bumps then followed the fence back to the col. The East side was slightly drier on this day. At the col I followed an ancient dyke N for 100m to about the 550m contour, then a sheep trail NE delivered me to the col between Carran and NE top. The visibility being perfect and aware of the cliffs to the left, I combined animal trails on solid broad ground, to bypass the NE top on its NW flank, and similarly an animal trail allowed me to avoid the summit of the "Far NE Top" to join the fence heading NW. With my usual elegance I managed to get over this without hooking my boots more than twice, then dropped to the col where I rejoined my colleague. We descended the boggy ground to regain the farm trail back to the car. I had consumed 2L of water which says something about a day with less than 600m ascent. There were no irate farmers awaiting us as we got changed, but I'd have liked to thank them for their enlightened attitude. We drove cautiously to Kilgarvan, paid homage to their idols, and reflected on a gentle day that delivered more than expected. Whilst perfectly easy, I would only recommend my return variation for a day of fine visibility and to those confident of their route finding on steep ground, should hill fog gather it could be a different story-unless of course you really are Jason Statham. Linkback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/262/comment/24029/