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Lough Dan

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  • 15-06-2013 1:55pm
    #1
    Bits_n_Bobs
    Registered Users Posts: 1,300 ✭✭✭


    Hi All,

    Thinking of doing the Scarr / Lough Dan walk as described here:
    http://www.wicklowwalks.com/scarr-loch-dan

    My only concern is where to dump the car - I had a similar idea a few years ago and trotted up but could find no obvious place to leave the car, eventually gave up and did some other walk but I do want to do this hike. Any advice would be appreciated!


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    #2
    duckysauce
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,930 ✭✭✭duckysauce


    Bits_n_Bobs wrote: »
    Hi All,

    Thinking of doing the Scarr / Lough Dan walk as described here:
    http://www.wicklowwalks.com/scarr-loch-dan

    My only concern is where to dump the car - I had a similar idea a few years ago and trotted up but could find no obvious place to leave the car, eventually gave up and did some other walk but I do want to do this hike. Any advice would be appreciated!

    did that walk a while ago just follow the directions --Take the road from Oldbridge towards Lough Dan and park about 200m outside Oldbridge village park on a grass virge


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    #3
    hmmm
    Registered Users Posts: 11,205 ✭✭✭✭hmmm


    There's plenty of parking here
    http://goo.gl/maps/SCfRv

    But be considerate of others who might arrive and park nose in.

    I notice this in the comments on the walk link:
    "Hi All,

    I live on this walking route with my family.
    Our lovely little puppy that myself and my little sisters adore went walkabouts this morning with some walkers.
    We have searched for her all day, but no joy.
    She was seen by a neighbor following a group up the lane, but did not go to them when called.
    If anybody has seen our lovely puppy Binky or has her and is minding her, could they please call my mum"
    Rest here
    http://www.wicklowwalks.com/scarr-loch-dan


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    #4
    duckysauce
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,930 ✭✭✭duckysauce


    hmmm wrote: »
    There's plenty of parking here
    http://goo.gl/maps/SCfRv


    http://www.wicklowwalks.com/scarr-loch-dan

    yep that's were I parked


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    #5
    beveragelady
    Registered Users Posts: 854 ✭✭✭beveragelady


    Careful!
    It's about 7 years ago now, but my friend and I parked our cars at the parking spot near the start of the Lough Dan route and came back to find them both wrecked. Nothing was taken, but both cars were written off. The locals don't seem to take too well to visitors. (The guard we dealt with was sure it was a local, but he wouldn't tell us why and nothing was done about it.)
    I would chew my own toes off before I'd visit the area again. It has that whole Deliverance/The Hills Have Eyes/Wolf Creek vibe.


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    #6
    Alun
    Registered Users Posts: 21,444 ✭✭✭✭Alun


    That's not fair at all. Everywhere in the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains is prone to this kind of thing. I've parked in that spot, and the other parking place further on where the turnabout is, many, many times in 12 years of walking in this area and never had a problem. You take your chances wherever you park out in the countryside to be honest.


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    #7
    beveragelady
    Registered Users Posts: 854 ✭✭✭beveragelady


    Alun wrote: »
    That's not fair at all. Everywhere in the Dublin and Wicklow Mountains is prone to this kind of thing. I've parked in that spot, and the other parking place further on where the turnabout is, many, many times in 12 years of walking in this area and never had a problem. You take your chances wherever you park out in the countryside to be honest.

    I've done a lot of walking and wild camping in Ireland. I've never experienced anything like that day. We tried to get a bit of help from a local (neither car was roadworthy) and the reaction was chilling. The guard's advice was to leave the area. He had a 'fairly good idea' who was responsible, but there was lots of head-shaking and sucking of teeth when we asked if it would be pursued. Another local (who did actually try to help) asked if a note had been left 'this time.' There were other things too, other details that, added together, made the whole experience nightmarish.
    It was bad enough that the cars were wrecked, but the general reaction of those we encountered afterwards made it clear that we had it coming.
    (We don't leave rubbish, we respect farmer's fences, we're quiet. We've never had any trouble of any sort on a walk.)


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    #8
    duckysauce
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,930 ✭✭✭duckysauce


    beveragelady wrote: »
    I've done a lot of walking and wild camping in Ireland. I've never experienced anything like that day. We tried to get a bit of help from a local (neither car was roadworthy) and the reaction was chilling. The guard's advice was to leave the area. He had a 'fairly good idea' who was responsible, but there was lots of head-shaking and sucking of teeth when we asked if it would be pursued. Another local (who did actually try to help) asked if a note had been left 'this time.' There were other things too, other details that, added together, made the whole experience nightmarish.
    It was bad enough that the cars were wrecked, but the general reaction of those we encountered afterwards made it clear that we had it coming.
    (We don't leave rubbish, we respect farmer's fences, we're quiet. We've never had any trouble of any sort on a walk.)

    did you block access for locals with your cars ?


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    #9
    trad
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,696 ✭✭✭trad


    I've been up at Lough Dan recently and couldn't get over the amount of No Parking / No trespassing signs in the area, not a very welcoming feel to the place at all. Only met 6 people all day, might explain it.


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    #10
    Alun
    Registered Users Posts: 21,444 ✭✭✭✭Alun


    trad wrote: »
    I've been up at Lough Dan recently and couldn't get over the amount of No Parking / No trespassing signs in the area, not a very welcoming feel to the place at all. Only met 6 people all day, might explain it.
    Where exactly? There are a few right up at the far end where the cluster of houses is after the bridge before you head uphill to the start of the track, but I've never seen any around the two main parking areas before.


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    #11
    beveragelady
    Registered Users Posts: 854 ✭✭✭beveragelady


    duckysauce wrote: »
    did you block access for locals with your cars ?

    No, we didn't block anything at all.


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    #12
    trad
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,696 ✭✭✭trad


    I parked just above the entrance to the scout centre. There were signs there saying no room for turning beyond this point and residents only.
    Further up where you can see the lough there were no trespassing signs and no parking signs and private property signs a plenty.


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    #13
    Bits_n_Bobs
    Registered Users Posts: 1,300 ✭✭✭Bits_n_Bobs


    I managed to park more or less where the walk begins, shoved the car well onto the verge and there was plenty of room for other cars to pass.

    It's a lovely walk however I would say the directions provided on the 'Dublin and Wicklow Walks' site are not really sufficient, and I relied on asking fellow walkers for directions a few times. In particular;

    - "After about a kilometre the track passes a farm and continues to the open side of Scarr mountain" (Wicklow Walks) as you round the bend to see the farm it definitely looks like the track terminates AT the farm. You need to keep walking pretty much up to the farm to spot the pathway to the right hand side of the farm entrance which you follow to the open side of Scarr mountain.

    - After the farm you get to a gate which you need to go through and pass some tree's on your right hand side. It's not at all clear that you need to open this gate and go through it.

    - The ascent to the top of Scarr is straightforward enough as is the trek to Kanturk. The 'top' of Kanturk is very boggy and kind of mazy, we relied on some very helpful folks to find our way through it. The key thing to look for is a standing stone and once you hit that the path swings right and the descent towards Lough Dan begins.

    - I'm absolutely no map reader (and it's quite possible we went the wrong way along with everyone else we spotted) but the descent seems to pop out half-way up the Lough rather than at the 'far' end. When you do finally reach "the unpaved road that runs along beside the path" mentioned in the directions, you need to cross it and go through a small gate, not follow it. Again without help from some fellow walkers it's not at all obvious.

    - When you finish walking along the Lough (a disappointingly short walk along some of the best scenery on the trek IMHO), you pop out onto a road. We took a right and ended up at a dead end and had to double back. So once you pop out onto the road take a left (downhill) and follow the road round till eventually you will get back to your starting point. I imagine it's about 1.5k.

    My car was totally fine and I have to say all the fellow walkers were most friendly. It's a shame the weather closed over and I'd love to repeat the walk on a finer day. We went astray a few times and were definitely not in any rush so the walk took us a good 5 hours (incl 1/2 hour lunch break), rather than the 3 hours indicated on the site.

    As others on this thread have pointed out - there are a lot of 'private property' signs and a corresponding lack of 'this way you idiots' signs. I can't help but think if the local people concentrated a bit more on the 'this way you idiots' signs everyone might achieve their goals in a happier manner....maybe I'm just naive ;)


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