Walks in Glendalough

breadmonkey

Hi folks,

Weather looks decent for Thursday so I was hoping to go walking. I had a quick search of this forum and a look at this website

http://www.wicklowmountainsnationalpark.ie/WalkingTrails.html

and I think I'm going to go for one of these two:

1)

Spinc and Glenealo Valley (White Route)

Grade: Hillwalk

Distance: 9km

Time: 3hr 30 mins

Climb: 380 m

This popular walk leads you through some of the most spectacular scenery in Co. Wicklow. (The name Spinc comes from the Irish 'An Spinc' and means 'pointed hill'). The trail ascends steeply up by the Poulanass Waterfall before joining a boardwalk. More than 600 wooden steps lead you to a viewing point overlooking the Upper Lake. The boardwalk skirts the top of the cliffs before descending through blanket bog and heath into the picturesque Glenealo Valley, home to a large herd of deer. A rough track then leads you back down into Glendalough Valley.

2)

Spinc and the Wicklow Way (Red Route)

Grade: Hillwalk

Distance: 11km

Time: 4hrs

Climb: 490m

This walk follows the same route as the other Spinc trails up onto the boardwalk. It stays on this boardwalk for 1.7km before turning off in the direction of Lugduff Mountain. This Section of the trail is a good place to spot deer and birds such as Raven, Merlin and Kestrel. Finally the trail links up with the Wicklow Way track to lead you back to the Information Office.

Can anyone recommend one over the other? Also, what's the trail like? I presume things will be fairly quiet on a Thursday morning?

Alun

The second one will be in forest for the last part of the walk along the Wicklow Way, whereas for the first one you'll be in open country, and will also get to walk along the lakeside on the way back. Also you'll walk through the old Glendalough miners' village which is kinda interesting (might get to see some feral goats as well

I'd go for the first option personally ... better views. It'll be pretty dead there mid-week. If you're starting from the Upper Lake car park, remember to have €4 with you in coins for the car park machine.

Cookie_Monster

I second Alun, White route would be my preferred, nicer terrain and view.

Bear in mind that if you are in anyway fit it won't take nearly as long as suggested to complete the routes. I did the white route recently in 1h 45mins as opposed to indicated time of 3h 30.

Aim to do it under 1.5 hrs, with a bit of running:) Maybe eventuall in an hour but that would be really pushing hard.

Both routes are suitable to do in runners rather than hiking boots too, though if it's been raining or wet I'd suggest the boots.

Evil Phil

There's a good walk up Camaderry that brings your back to the Glenealo valley which is worth a try. I think it might be the purple walk.

breadmonkey

Evil Phil wrote: »

There's a good walk up Camaderry that brings your back to the Glenealo valley which is worth a try. I think it might be the purple walk.

It looks like the purple route coincides with the last third of the white route. Is the one on this map what you're thinking of?

http://www.wicklownationalpark.ie/downloads/walking_trails_map.pdf

I had initially thought I'd do something that would take 4-6 hours. Is there anything else around that area (or anywhere else in Wicklow) that might do the job? Maybe I could just do the red route as well.

As for the white route, is it better to do it clockwise or anticlockwise?

Alun

All of the waymarked walking routes around Glendalough are pretty short, so no, not really, unless as you say, you combine them in some way. There are other options but they won't be waymarked, and there won't really be anything resembling a proper track or path to follow. Having said that, if the weather's good, you can while away some time taking photos, having a packed lunch or a bit of wildlife spotting (deer, feral goats), so you could maybe string them out a bit, but certainly the white route won't take anything like the time advertised.

As for the white route, personally, I'd do it anti-clockwise. I find walking up the boardwalk steps a bit boring, so start out from the car park walking with the upper lake on your left, through the miners' village and up the zig-zag miners track to the wooden bridge over the Glenealo river, cross it and take the path on the other side up to the start of the Spinc, follow this along the edge, down the steps on the other side to the top of the waterfall, and back down to the car park.

Cookie_Monster

Combine the white and orange one maybe. The orange is a very pleasent and easy walk.
If doing the white walk along the north side of the lake first and come back along the boardwalk. This gives you a long flat warm up walk to the minor's village and gain all the height after that.

Also means you are coming down rather than up all the boardwalk steps off the Spink and that is a truly horrible experience going up:)

Cookie_Monster

Alun wrote: »

As for the white route, personally, I'd do it anti-clockwise. I find walking up the boardwalk steps a bit boring, so start out from the car park walking with the upper lake on your left, through the miners' village and up the zig-zag miners track to the wooden bridge over the Glenealo river, cross it and take the path on the other side up to the start of the Spinc, follow this along the edge, down the steps on the other side to the top of the waterfall, and back down to the car park.

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Combine the white and orange one maybe. The orange is a very pleasent and easy walk.
If doing the white walk along the north side of the lake first and come back along the boardwalk. This gives you a long flat warm up walk to the minor's village and gain all the height after that.

Also means you are coming down rather than up all the boardwalk steps off the Spink and that is a truly horrible experience going up:)

Great minds...:pac:

otwb

White anti-clockwise and you can branch off onto the red at the top of the spinc - should take the 4 hours that way- bear in mind that, as Alun has said, the last bit of the red is a bit monotonous through the forest

Hugh_C

I always do the Spinc anti-clockwise too.

If you're looking for a challenge, try Lugnaquilla although you need to be well equipped and don't do it alone. Definitely a four hour + experience.

Camaderry is fun too,

Locamon

Did the red route today, up the steps and back around. Pretty windy up there but sunny:) Glad the wind was pushing me off the broadwalk towards the tree line. Otherwise perfect and even managed to run a little bit of the way:pac:

breadmonkey

Thanks for all the advice. Ended up doing the white route and then veering off the trail at the far end of the valley to walk up to the top of Lugduff. Great views and a great day! One of the lads even went for a swim in the lake, what a pyscho!

Carawaystick

if you go up Camaderry from the upper lake car park and on to turlough hill, take the road down almost to the wicklow gap and cut down to the power station car park. follow a track to the switchyard and there's a trail that leads down Glendassan to bring you out eventually at the junction just after the bridge across from the monastery.

Or else Derrybawn has a great ridge walk when you get up to it, and can join the wicklow way or lugduff route from the southern end of the ridge.

del88

Went on the white route yesterday,most excellent.....i'm going to do the rest of them over the next few weeks.....
Any more hikes to recommend within an hour of northside of dublin...how about the mournes??

chughes

There's some nice walks in the Cooley peninsula, north Louth.

dogmatix

I did the red route for the first time on Saturday with a slight variation whereby I started at the visitor centre and on the way back came around the side of Derrybawn to head down onto the green road back to the visitors centre. I had been intending to head on up the Glenealo valley to Lough firrib but I was short of time. I'm glad I did because at point where the route passes close to Mullacor I was rewarded with an amzing view of the whole lug massif covered in snow and shining in the evening sunshine. I've never seen lug from this perspective before and it was stuning. You could see it all - the zig-zags, the dip containing arts lough (could not see the lough itself), Lug, Benlagh. It was a view to match anything british columbia could show and i've been there many a time.

Alun

I was actually up on the top of Lug and Benleagh Cliffs on Saturday (came up the zig-zags and up Lug from the south (very steep!) ... the view from the top of the Benleagh cliffs across Fraughan Rock Glen towards Arts Lough and the cliffs behind it with a dusting of snow was indeed spectacular. At the top of Lug there was still a slight dusting of snow, and it was freezing at the cairn at the summit We had a Polish girl with us and she was gobsmacked at how beautiful it looked, and she was used to what we would probably call 'proper' mountains in her home land. just goes to show.

mathie

Hi

Looking to do the Spinc in Glendalough.
Anyone know if its well signposted from the carpark?

Thanks
M

Alun

mathie wrote: »

Looking to do the Spinc in Glendalough.
Anyone know if its well signposted from the carpark?

Yes. In the corner of the car park closest to the lake there's a big notice board with a map with all the walks marked on it. They're all colour coded, and the waymarkers (small wooden posts) have arrows with the same colours on them so you can't go wrong really. Don't forget your €4 in coins (automatic barrier) for the car park!

See http://www.wicklownationalpark.ie/pages/walkingtrails.php

You can get a map from the visitor centre or download the trail map from the website also ... http://www.wicklownationalpark.ie/downloads/walking_trails_map.pdf

L31mr0d

mathie wrote: »

Hi

Looking to do the Spinc in Glendalough.
Anyone know if its well signposted from the carpark?

Thanks
M

Only thing to note is the turn off on the right for the white/red route. Its signposted but it looks like just a small gap afair. I missed it the first time as there were sheep on the left that I was looking at and ended up walking pretty much up to Prezen Rock, before turning back. The turn off cuts off into denser woodland with steeper, sleeper steps lining the path.

Alun

L31mr0d wrote: »

Only thing to note is the turn off on the right for the white/red route. Its signposted but it looks like just a small gap afair. I missed it the first time as there were sheep on the left that I was looking at and ended up walking pretty much up to Prezen Rock, before turning back. The turn off cuts off into denser woodland with steeper, sleeper steps lining the path.

Yes, you're right ... the main track takes a bit of a left turn there and then goes over a bridge, but you need to take the narrow gap between the trees right on the bend that goes straight-on-ish. There used to be a great big sign right at the entrance to it warning you of all kinds of dreadful things, but I think they've either moved it further up the path or removed it altogether.

hellybelly

hi there

i havent done any of these routes before - are they suitable to take dogs on them, I have three which need lots of walking? - tend to avoid glendalough with them due to the crowds!? And are they quiet too, I hate walks with lots of other people about on them!

thanks in advance!

Cookie_Monster

hellybelly wrote: »

hi there

i havent done any of these routes before - are they suitable to take dogs on them, I have three which need lots of walking? - tend to avoid glendalough with them due to the crowds!? And are they quiet too, I hate walks with lots of other people about on them!

thanks in advance!

Lots of people bring their dogs up on these routes. I am under the impression that as it a national park dogs should be kept on leash at all time but don't know if this is an actual requirement. No ones seems to anyway.

The routes get quieter the further up the valley you go as the tourists tend not to wander to far. however at the weekend they are still quite busy and with the long section of boardwalk it can get quite annoying to meet lots of people.

hellybelly

thank you for that!

I want to ideally go somewhere, where there are little people in Wicklow - where we can take our dogs without worrying about lots of people and their dogs ( i keep two of mine on the lead at all times as they are not contolled off the lead - cant handel peoples dogs running at mine!).
Is there anywhere which is relativley tourist free? Somewhere we can park the car without having to park our car next to lots of other people?
I know the further you walk into the park the less people there are -but its the first part with lots of people which drives me mad - went to Glendalough once and it was so crowded i couldnt stand it!!
Or should we just stick to the slieve bloon?
Thanks so much!

Cookie_Monster

Anywhere slightly west of Glendalough is usually pretty quiet. Tonalgee or Turlough hill area. Tonduff (near crone wood). Gravale, Connevalla by Sally Gap.

hellybelly

excellent - thank you so much for your reply! Will try there this weekend!

foolelle

hey all, im off tomorrow (tuesday) and planning on heading down to glendalough. Im going down on the St Kevins Bus from town and should be arriving at the visitors centre at 1pm-ish which departs back for dublin at 4.30, which gives me 3.5 hours there.

I was wanting to do the white route that takes 3.5hours, which shouldnt be an issue as some people here have said thats a very generous allowance.

My question is though, how long does it take to get from the visitors centres to the start of the white route (top car park) could i miss the bus back?

Is the route waymarked both clockwise and anticlockwise?

Also I wouldnt have to worry about the timing etc if there was a later bus or way back to the city, does anyone have any info on this?

dogmatix

An easy 15-20 minutes walk back to the visitor centre from the upper car park I would imagine.

Seems the 16:30 service is the last bus back to Dublin. http://www.glendaloughbus.com/timetable.aspx

Alun

Yes, 20 mins from the upper car park to the Hotel/Visitors centre should do it easily, either along the green road or along the board walk .. not much difference either way, although the boardwalk is a bit more pleasant.

browne_rob5

foolelle wrote: »

hey all, im off tomorrow (tuesday) and planning on heading down to glendalough. Im going down on the St Kevins Bus from town and should be arriving at the visitors centre at 1pm-ish which departs back for dublin at 4.30, which gives me 3.5 hours there.

I was wanting to do the white route that takes 3.5hours, which shouldnt be an issue as some people here have said thats a very generous allowance.

My question is though, how long does it take to get from the visitors centres to the start of the white route (top car park) could i miss the bus back?

Is the route waymarked both clockwise and anticlockwise?

Also I wouldnt have to worry about the timing etc if there was a later bus or way back to the city, does anyone have any info on this?

Hi

I am looking to do exactly what you did over the weekend but was slightly concerned if I had adequate time.

Did you have any problem getting back to the visitors center for the 16.30 bus?

Thanks