St Kevin's Way Pilgrim Path
About 30 km · Rolling upland terrain with some sustained climbs elevation
About
St Kevin's Way, sometimes called the Celtic Camino, is a waymarked pilgrim path of roughly 30km running from Hollywood and Valleymount in west Wicklow over the hills and down into Glendalough, following in outline the route medieval pilgrims are believed to have taken to St Kevin's monastery. It is usually walked over one long day or split across two, and it forms part of Ireland's network of pilgrim paths recognised by Pilgrim Paths Ireland. An organised, guided group walk of St Kevin's Way runs most years around Easter as part of the national Pilgrim Paths Week programme, bookable through Eventbrite; outside of that you can walk the marked route independently at any time of year.
Highlights
- ✓A genuine medieval pilgrim route ending at St Kevin's monastic city
- ✓Rolling west Wicklow upland scenery away from the busiest tourist trail
- ✓An organised guided walk most years around Easter
Tips
- →The organised guided walk usually runs around Easter and needs booking on Eventbrite; check pilgrimpath.ie for the current year's date.
- →Walking independently, arrange transport back to your start point since it is a one-way route.
- →Comes into Glendalough via the Green Road, so it ends at the monastic site rather than in Laragh village.
Best Season
More Walk Activities
The Spinc and Glenealo Valley Walk (White Route)
A 9.5km boardwalk-and-valley loop above the Upper Lake, climbing 380m through oak forest to a cliff-edge boardwalk and the ruined miners' village. About 3.5 hours.
The Green Road Walk (Lower Lake Loop)
A 3km, mostly flat loop from the monastic city to the Lower Lake shore on boardwalk, the easiest and most accessible walk at Glendalough.
The Miners' Way (Upper Lake Walk)
A roughly 5.4km flat walk along the Upper Lake shore to the old lead and zinc mine workings, an easier alternative to the Spinc for the same mining history.