Glenmalure runs deep into the mountains as a long U-shaped glacial valley, and it is the usual base for Lugnaquilla, Ireland’s highest peak outside Kerry. Camenabologue climbs from the same valley at Baravore, 758 m of boggy ground with 19th-century mine ruins on the way, and Slievemaan and Aghavannagh sit on the far side of the same massif. All of these mean a drive on narrow mountain roads, and ground rough enough that navigation matters more than the distance does.
Closer to the N11 the walks are shorter and easier to reach. Glen of the Downs has a 3.6km loop through sessile oak to a hilltop Octagon looking across at the Great Sugarloaf. Devils Glen, below Ashford, holds two waymarked Coillte loops, one to the waterfall and rock arch, one carrying Seamus Heaney’s lines on plaques; the falls roar after rain and barely run when it is dry. Djouce is the middle ground, an OPW boardwalk of old railway sleepers laid over the bog with Lough Tay below, though its trailhead car parks fill early on fine weekends.
Roundwood and Laragh function as bases rather than walks in themselves, with reservoir loops and the Green Road into Glendalough. Tinahely’s flat, traffic-free railway line to Tomnafinnoge Oak Wood is the easiest of the lot, best in bluebell season. The Bray to Greystones cliff path has been closed by landslides since 2022.
A long U-shaped glacial valley running deep into the mountains, the standard base for Lugnaquilla and still scattered with 19th-century lead-mining ruins.
A 758 m summit that stays quiet, reached by a boggy walk in from Baravore with a short detour to old silver and lead mine ruins.
Two waymarked Coillte loops through a wooded gorge below Ashford, one to the waterfall and rock arch, the other set with Seamus Heaney's lines.
One of the easiest high tops to reach in Wicklow, with a sleeper boardwalk over the bog and a wide view down onto Lough Tay.
A sessile-oak glacial valley just off the N11, with a 3.6km loop climbing past a stone Octagon to views of the Great Sugarloaf.
22 of 24 shown — tap a pin for the place.
Glenmalure, wicklow
Glenmalure is a long, remote U-shaped glacial valley in the Wicklow Mountains, the main walkers' base for Lugnaquilla, Ireland's highest peak outside Kerry. It was the O'Byrnes' stronghold and the site of their 1580 victory over an English army, and its slopes still hold 19th-century lead-mining ruins.
Wicklow, wicklow
At 758 m, Camenabologue is one of Ireland’s higher summits but among its quieter ones – a boggy walk in from Baravore in Glenmalure, with a short detour to 19th-century silver and lead mine ruins. The final pull to the cairn is straightforward; the wider Table Mountain and Conavalla rounds are rough, remote and need real navigation. Check the Glen of Imaal firing-range notices before you set out.
Ashford, wicklow
The Vartry River drops through a wooded gorge below Ashford, feeding a waterfall that roars after rain and barely runs when it's dry. Two waymarked Coillte loops cover the glen: the Waterfall Walk to the falls and rock arch, and the Seamus Heaney Walk, its plaques set with the poet's lines.
Roundwood, wicklow
Djouce is one of the most accessible high tops in Wicklow, thanks to an OPW boardwalk built from old railway sleepers to keep boots off the bog. The reward is a wide view over Lough Tay and out to the Irish Sea. Note that the official routes to the summit are graded strenuous, and parking at the popular trailheads fills fast on fine weekends.
North County Wicklow, wicklow
The Glen of the Downs is a glacial valley just off the N11, sheltering one of Ireland's finest sessile-oak woodlands. A 3.6km loop climbs past a hilltop stone Octagon to views over the Great Sugarloaf, and a December 2025 land purchase has grown the reserve to around 100 hectares.
Laragh, wicklow
Laragh sits where the Glenmacnass River drops off the moor to meet the Avonmore, at the junction of three mountain roads and a mile from Glendalough. Most people use it as a car park and a trailhead – it has a free one, St Kevin's Bus from Dublin, and the Green Road walk into the monastic valley out the back. It's a waypoint on the Wicklow Way rather than its start.
wicklow
Roundwood sits 238m up in the Wicklow hills, one of the highest villages in Ireland and a handy base between Dublin and Glendalough. The draw is walking: three flat, way-marked loops around the Vartry Reservoir, with harder mountain routes over Djouce and the Wicklow Way on the doorstep.
Wicklow & South Dublin, wicklow
Seefingan is a 724 m grassy dome on the Wicklow–South Dublin border, crowned by a large Neolithic cairn that has never been excavated. The reward is a 360° view over Dublin, Howth and the Wicklow peaks; the catch is boggy, often trackless ground and a firing range along the approach. Most walkers link it with neighbouring Seefin.
Wicklow, wicklow
Slievemaan is the western shoulder of the Lugnaquilla massif at the southern edge of the Glen of Imaal. Few people climb it on its own; most take it in on a long loop with Ballineddan and Lugnaquilla. The path is unmarked, the ridge is grassy, and the parking at Ballineddan is the real bottleneck.
Tinahely, wicklow
Set in the Derry River valley, Tinahely pairs a rebuilt 19th-century market village with a traffic-free trail along a disused rail line. It runs flat past stone bridges and spring bluebells to Tomnafinnoge Oak Wood, whose timber once went into Trinity College and St Paul's Cathedral.
Wicklow town, wicklow
Wicklow Town is the county town of the Garden County, set on the Vartry estuary around a sheltered harbour and the Black Castle headland. Its best-known sight, the 'Gates of Hell' gaol, is closed for renovation as of late 2025, but the free Saturday Heritage Trail and the Glen Beach cliff walk carry a visit.
South County Wicklow, wicklow
Ballinastoe, wicklow
Bray to Greystones, wicklow
Castlekevin, wicklow
Bray, wicklow
Arklow, wicklow
Greystones, wicklow
Kilmacanogue, wicklow
Knockree, wicklow
Wicklow Mountains National Park, wicklow
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Wicklow Mountains, wicklow
Wicklow Town, wicklow
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