wicklow way.

jojod

thinking of walking d wicklow way this year.how many days would it take to do.i seen one website saying it should be done over 7 days but i havent got 7days.was hoping to do it in 4or5 days tops.im a gud long distance walker so wat do you people reckon it can be done in

sparrowcar

If your stuck for time just do Marley Park to Roundwood. 3 days is plenty of time and it's probably the best bit of the trail.

Donny5

sparrowcar wrote: »

If your stuck for time just do Marley Park to Roundwood. 3 days is plenty of time and it's probably the best bit of the trail.

Marley Park to Roundwood is an easy two days with light gear or kipping overnight in the Knockree hostel. The whole deal will take four days sleeping in accommodation, and five or six with gear. Once you pass the half-way point in Glenmalure, the scenery takes a bit of a dive for the Southern half, though.

sparrowcar

:rolleyes:

Donny5

sparrowcar wrote: »

:rolleyes:

Come on, the trailhead to Roundwood is only 40km. It'd be a tough day or an easy two. Three would be decadent.

sparrowcar

Donny5 wrote: »

Come on, the trailhead to Roundwood is only 40km. It'd be a tough day or an easy two. Three would be decadent.

I know I'm yankin yer chain.
You just re-worded what I said. 3 days is plenty, 2 is fine and 1 is a slog.
I also said that it's the best part of the trail.

Gillo

I was actually looking at doing Marley Park to Glendalough in two days, I figured day 1, Marley to Knockree then day 2, Knockree to Glendalough. Day two would be a bit of a long slog but I figure it's easy enough, just get a good early start.

Donny5

Gillo wrote: »

I was actually looking at doing Marley Park to Glendalough in two days, I figured day 1, Marley to Knockree then day 2, Knockree to Glendalough. Day two would be a bit of a long slog but I figure it's easy enough, just get a good early start.

I did similar carrying gear. Marlay Park to Powerscourt on day one, then on to Mullacor on day two. Without gear, it'll be a stroll - weather dependent, of course.

Slogger Jogger

Its been run end to end in the same day

If you had transport logistics in place and B&Bed along the way a 3 to 4 day end to end is possible. Some would say that after Glenmalure it gets less interesting in any event. I wouldn't agree. I like the peace and quiet of the southern bits of the way, although I do wish it was less roady, more trail and hilly.

sparrowcar

The last time i did it was 15 years ago.

We camped in Larch Hill on the friday night and hiked to Knockree on the Sat(camped down at the river). On Sun we did Knockree to Roundwood and got the bus home at 1800. We had wet tents & gear and were hungover on the Sun so it shows that it's not that tough going

Fuinseog

jojod wrote: »

thinking of walking d wicklow way this year.how many days would it take to do.i seen one website saying it should be done over 7 days but i havent got 7days.was hoping to do it in 4or5 days tops.im a gud long distance walker so wat do you people reckon it can be done in

it depends on your fitness level. most people do it in about five or six days, but i have met people on the trail, who did it in two. there is a good guide for it in easons.


there is a shop in Roundwood. What kind of food do they have?
you can get something to eat at the hotel at Glendalough but that is it until you reach Carlow, or is it?

Susan Lanigan

Hello, I did it in 8 days but I took a day off in Brook Lodge to get my legs massaged (btw it was for charity so I paid for the Brook Lodge and travelling costs myself - I don't believe in getting people to sponsor your holiday and call it charity)

The bit past Glenmalure is not quite as interesting apart from the bits around Aughavannagh which are nice. Also it's quite remote.

Here's the page from when I did it:

http://www.mycharity.ie/event/susan_lanigans_event/

Susan Lanigan

Gillo wrote: »

I was actually looking at doing Marley Park to Glendalough in two days, I figured day 1, Marley to Knockree then day 2, Knockree to Glendalough. Day two would be a bit of a long slog but I figure it's easy enough, just get a good early start.

It would be possible, but I'd wait till summertime as I'd say you'd have a good 8-9 hours' walking each day.

steelpete

i did marley to laragh in 15 hours in one push, if your fit you could do it in 4 days with 10 to 12 hours walking each day, and staying in a hostel or b and b at night.
It has been done in less then a day about 20 hours or so but they have been running it.

Donny5

steelpete wrote: »

It has been done in less then a day about 20 hours or so but they have been running it.

I think the record is held by Paul Tierney at 13:48:51. Incredible time.

Granite Head

Susan Lanigan wrote: »

I did it in 8 days but I took a day off in Brook Lodge to get my legs massaged

Hi, I am hoping to do something similar this Summer, including Brook Lodge. Do you have more details of your stages and where you stayed?

Thanks.

Susan Lanigan

wicklowway.com has good info. I stayed in a B&B near the Dying Cow Pub in Stranakelly for the last two nights before finishing in Clonegal and getting picked up from there. Trying to remember the B&B name, they were really nice people. It was right on the WW.

For the first two days, I went back home in between each leg, and also stayed with relatives. Day after that was brook lodge I think.

Andrew33

Hope I'm not resurrecting a zombie thread, I'm looking to do Marley park to Roundwood or Glendalough in May taking a leisurely 2-3 days to complete. I currently walk 6-10km per day with my dogs, mostly on the road and some Coilte trails, my other half wouldn't walk quarter the distance that I walk so I'm wondering about her ability to do the 40 odd kms on the "Way". Just to add, I won't be taking my dogs with me this time. I'm really looking forward to doing it and would love any advice regarding footwear (decent hiking boot), what to carry etc. I'm planning on doing a logistics run and dropping evening bags/clothes at our overnight stops so all I'm thinking of carrying is lunch, water etc.

Esel

Andrew33 wrote: »

I'm planning on doing a logistics run and dropping evening bags/clothes at our overnight stops so all I'm thinking of carrying is lunch, water etc.

You should really carry all the normal hill-walking gear - things don't always go according to plan!

Andrew33

Esel wrote: »

You should really carry all the normal hill-walking gear - things don't always go according to plan!

Thats the type of advice I'm looking for, what do I need to carry? We're in our forties, are walking poles advisable? any other advice appreciated.

dogmatix

Poles are useful if you have dodgy knees - but they are not necessary. Otherwise top priorities (as a minimum) are good waterproof gear, food, plenty of water, first aid kit, map and compass.

FrostyJack

If fitness is an issue, you may want to do the walk in reverse (Roundwood to Marley) if possible as there is less up hill sections as far as I remember. Most of the trail is on normal track so no need for mountain boots or crampons or the likes. I am going to do it before then so I will post back the conditions after it. I presume the weather will be better in May.

BarryD

You can get free accommodation advice on www.wicklowway.com and www.eastwestmapping.ie
Agree with earlier poster, the southern sections do have their attractions - less foot traffic and some lovely old boreens either side of Tinahely. A good bit of tarmac as well, even if it is quiet. There has been discussion on & off over the years about changing the route below Tinahely to bring it more off road but I guess the appetite & funding just isn't there at present.

Halloween Jack

Andrew33 wrote: »

Hope I'm not resurrecting a zombie thread, I'm looking to do Marley park to Roundwood or Glendalough in May taking a leisurely 2-3 days to complete. I currently walk 6-10km per day with my dogs, mostly on the road and some Coilte trails, my other half wouldn't walk quarter the distance that I walk so I'm wondering about her ability to do the 40 odd kms on the "Way". Just to add, I won't be taking my dogs with me this time. I'm really looking forward to doing it and would love any advice regarding footwear (decent hiking boot), what to carry etc. I'm planning on doing a logistics run and dropping evening bags/clothes at our overnight stops so all I'm thinking of carrying is lunch, water etc.

Howdy, we did something similar to this a couple of weeks ago, we started just after enniskerry. We walked to roundwoood that day, was about 25 kms. We stayed in a place called the Tochar House there. Second day we walked from roundwood to Gledalough, twas about 16 kms and only took around 3.5hrs, but we were booked into the hostel in Glendalough that night. On the Sunday we walked from Glendalough to Glenmalure, again, a shortish walk, about 15kms and took about 3.5 hours.

We are reasonably fit (run about 30-40kms per week) but unused to walking. While i never felt out of breath or lacking in energy, my feet and legs were sore in places from prolonged downhill sections and the use of muscles i wouldnt have used normally. We covered the ground fairly well, but were careful not to overdo it on any of the days. I felt that in terms of walking we got it right, not too much and not too little. Problem was we were typically finished pretty early for the day, so ended up in the pub for prolonged spells:)

The walk itself is nice, its pretty varied, you'll spen some time on forestry tracks, some on board walks on the hill tops, some on roads, etc.

I would reccommend continuing to glenmalure though. The section from glendalough to glenmalure was my favourite to be honest. If you do you'll get an absolutely magic view of Lugala, loch tay, glendalough and glenmalure valley.

As i mentioned above we stayed in accomodation on the way and carried everything we needed on our backs. If you want to pm me i'll send you a detailed list of what we brought and which items were useful etc.

The only other thing id say is make sure your footwear is comfortable, my girlfriend got bad blisters which made it a serious slog for her at times.

Gillo

Andrew33 wrote: »

Thats the type of advice I'm looking for, what do I need to carry? We're in our forties, are walking poles advisable? any other advice appreciated.

I've a bad knee and find poles brilliant, even if you don't have any "health issues", poles can be great as they take a long of the strain off your legs so chances are you won't tire as much. They also give added stability on step or uneven ground.
They do take a tiny bit of getting used to however they very quickly become second nature to use.