Lough Tay

Lough TayCircling

Denis Gill continues his exploration of Wicklow’s stunning and historically rich Luggala Valley. Photos by Eoin Clarke

Denis Gill continues his exploration of Wicklow’s stunning and historically rich Luggala Valley. Photos by Eoin Clarke

Our second walk in this trilogy crosses the seldom-visited western flank of Djouce Mountain to approach the Cloghoge

Valley from above the dramatic crags and boulder fields on Fancy Mountain.

Getting to the StartFrom the east of the mountains follow the M50/M11 to Kilmacanogue to turn at the flyover onto the R755. Drive via Rocky Valley and Calary Bog for nearly 11km to turn right at a filter-lane onto the R759 at a signpost to Sally Gap. Continue uphill for 4km until beyond the forest there are clear views on the left across to Fancy Mountain. Crest the hill and descend to the first car park on the right with a signpost for the Wicklow Way. GR: O169.075From the west of the mountains take the N81 to Hollywood and turn onto the R756 to enjoy the drive across the Wicklow Gap to Glendalough. From Laragh follow the R755 Dublin road via Annamoe into Roundwood, just beyond the village fork left for 2km to an offset crossroads to turn left and follow as above.

Route From the back of the car park, follow the

Wicklow Way markers on a forest road, soon turning left at a stile to emerge from the forest and climb a boardwalk up a small hill to view what is surely one of the most magnificent panoramas in Wicklow.

This hill, aptly named The Barr, is a watershed between Stoney Pass Glen and the Cloghoge River Valley. The vista from the platform on its summit into the enormous hollow that encloses Lough Tay as it nestles below the majestic cliffs of Fancy Mountain, which is our eventual goal, will take your breath away.

Notice at the base of a nearby boulder a memorial to J. B. Malone, the pioneer of the Wicklow Way, who, when he stood on this hill many long years ago, was inspired to write:

A great revelation of height and space comes when you look west from this place, for now before you, beyond the huge cleft of Luggala, splendid mountains sharp with crag and abrupt slope rise to the sun and beyond them, still other giant forms, the true backbone of Wicklow from Kippure to Lugnaquilla above the heather deserts of Cloghoge…six thousand acres of loneliness!

It is with enormous pleasure that I quote J. B. Malone, as it was his articles long ago in the Evening Herald newspaper which gave

me a lifelong love of walking in Wicklow. Continue to follow the boardwalk on a

gentle uphill along a spur running southwest from the summit of Djouce. As height is gained, views open up to the east across Vartry lakes and the Irish Sea beyond. After crossing a stile onto White Hill, leaving the trees behind, continue on the boardwalk for 50 metres before turning hard left at a post to follow a narrow trail through the heather, Where the trail forks, tend left to the corner of the now clear-felled Ballinastoe forest to pick up our route once again, on what may once have been an old green road skirting the western flanks of White Hill and Djouce Mountain.

When the green road eventually narrows and disappears into the heather, continue over a crest on rough ground until the col between Djouce and War Hill is off to the right and the TV mast on Kippure Mountain is directly ahead. Notice in the depression below three broad sweeps of reeds that are the headwaters of an unnamed stream on the Osi maps.

Begin a descent across broken ground of heather and tussocks of sedge, keeping to the right of the reeds to reach the headwaters and follow Freestone Brook downstream.

If visibility is good, look behind to notice, amid a scattering of rocks above the col on the northern slopes of Djouce, a massive

Lein

ster

View of Lough Tay and Luggala from The Barr

oblong boulder silhouetted against the skyline. This is the Coffin Stone, sometimes referred to as a portal tomb but more likely an erratic deposited by prehistoric glacial activity.

Continue to follow game trails by the brook, holding the left bank for the easiest route, to reach tarmac at the attractive cut granite; Sheepbanks Bridge.

Turn right to follow the road, which is safer than turning left as in 1834 this would have led to…The Murdering Pass at Luggalaw!

Continue on tarmac for 500m to reach a second, more modern bridge that is purely functional and does not have the visual appeal of Sheepbanks Bridge! Leave the road to follow downstream the right-hand bank of another stream, unnamed on the Osi maps but which is White Sand Brook, to a sheltered hollow beyond two lone trees offering a pleasant lunch stop before reaching the exposed mountainside.

Carry on downstream to the junction with Luggala Stream/Cloghoge River to cross with the aid of a small island. Follow the stream’s right-hand bank for a short distance downstream, before beginning to traverse onto higher ground, walking parallel to the river but always climbing through trackless heather towards the north-eastern shoulder of Fancy Mountain. Your immediate goal is well

to the right of a grove of deciduous trees perched on the edge of a steep drop into the valley. As the trees fall behind, tend towards the edge of the precipice to locate a narrow trail that leads all the way to the summit of Fancy Mountain (598m).

While climbing above the crags and buttresses to the summit, the most wonderful views are revealed, as immediately below the cliffs is a sandy beach by Lough Tay next to beautiful parkland where deer graze. Close by

and surrounded by deciduous trees is the fairytale Luggala Lodge, built in 1787 and extended in 1805 by the La Touche family.

In 1937 Ernest Guinness bought Luggala as a wedding present for his daughter Oonagh, on her marriage to Lord Oranmore and Browne. Alas, the house was burnt down in 1956 but was rebuilt to its original gothic design with the clever use of old photographs. The house is still owned by Garech Browne, a member of the

“A great revelation of height and space comes when you look west from this place …six thousand acres of loneliness!”J.B. Malone

Lough Tay

At the J.B.Malone Memorial boulder with views of Lough Tay

On the slopes of Fancy Mountain with Djouce and White Hill in the background

Guinness family and many famous people have stayed there, including Mick Jagger, John Huston and Michael Jackson. My invitation was lost in the post!

Hidden among the boulders below are rock shelters that were used as hiding places by members of the United Irishmen during the aftermath of the 1798 rebellion, when the rebels under the command of Joseph Holt and Michael Dwyer continued to fight a guerrilla war against the forces of the Crown here in the mountains. In 1937 a musket from 1798 period was found in one of these caves.

The summit of this ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ mountain is soon reached; to the west is the Doctor Jekyll side: a gentle plateau of blanket bog stretching across to the Military Road (the tourist route to this peak) while to the east is the wild and dangerous Mr. Hyde side, plummeting down to the windswept surface of Lough Tay.

Continue on a long downhill to the southeast following a well used trail that descends all the way to the valley floor. Cross a stile before turning left to a bridge over the Cloghoge River beside a copse of trees, to enjoy a gentle stroll before beginning an uphill trek on tarmac to escape the valley at the Pier Gates.

Along the way, climb to the left of double electric gates using a set of steps that could be quite at home in a castle turret. On the final push to the Pier Gates, old maps show there was a police barracks to the right of the road; one wonders were our Wicklow ancestors an unruly lot? From even a casual reading of the history of Wicklow…the answer has to be a resounding yes!

FACT FILECIRCLING LOUGH TAY

Distance: 15kmAscent: 540mTime: 5-6 hoursMaps: OSi Sheet 56EastWest Mapping Wicklow Mountains West

Tarmac road leading away from Lough Tay and up to Pier Gates