Glenpatrick - Glenpatrick Bridge Loop

On a mild but windy Saturday we chose this nearby loop. We had the excellent car park - with picnic tables - to ourselves even tho' there were cars parked in less salubrious locations along the trail. We met about 10 people - very few by lockdown standards on a fine weekend. The trail itself is very well thought out and should be followed in the signed (anti-clockwise) direction for best effect. Wonderful views - when you are out of the woods; along side streams and up a few mild climbs - 190m altogether. The only drawback - as so often with Irish trails - is a short but dangerous 300m on a busy road with no footpath or even grass margins. Yes there is a 'walkers on road' sign but that has no impact on people doing, or exceeding, the 80kmph limit. If we are to promote family walking - and attract tourists to enjoy it - we can NOT force families to walk on high speed roadways. In this case it ought be possible to carve out a path through farmland at a modest cost - and this would then be a model walk for anyone of moderate fitness.

I walked this trail in July 2015 and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is very scenic. Even the bits in the sitka spruce forest are scenic as a lot of the trees have been felled and there are good views. There was no rubbish dumped when I walked it and I managed to pick up the few bits of litter I came across.

I've walked this a good few times. Beautiful, panoramic views on a clear day. However, I'm shocked at what I saw on the trail today. Sections of it looked like a dumping ground. Over 10 bin bags full of rubbish, armchairs, tyres, loads of loose rubbish - all encountered in plain sight along the trail. Shocking. I'd be mortified to recommend this trail to anybody in its current condition.