Westmeath Way

Walking
County Westmeath
4/5
4 reviews
Grade Moderate
Length 33 km
Time 2 days
Format Linear
Ascent 40 m
Dogs Allowed No
Waymarking Yellow arrow on black background
Start Point
Kilbeggan
Finish Point
Mullingar
Nearest Town to Start Kilbeggan
Grid Ref. N 331 355 / N 436 534
Lat. and Long. 53.36866, -7.50268 / 53.52874, -7.34245

County Westmeath, one of Ireland's smaller counties, is in the midlands, and the Hill of Uisneach in the county is considered the geographical centre of the country. The Westmeath Way is a 33km-long low-level linear walking route from the town of Kilbeggan, famous for its whiskey distilling and horse racing, to the town of Mullingar, the administrative centre of the county. The route follows a section of the River Brosna and then public roads northwards to the townsland of Lilliput on the shores of Lough Ennell: Jonathan Swift is said to have stayed with friends on the lake's shore, and used the name for his fantasy island in Gulliver's Travels. The route then continues by road, fields and woodland path to reach the north end of the lake, and from there it goes by road and canal tow path into Mullingar. Apart from pleasant river-bank stretches (which may be a little wet and overgrown), woodland sections and canal bank, much of this route is on road, some sections of which carry fast traffic.

Trail Management

Westmeath County Council, County Buildings, Mullingar, Co Westmeath, Tel: 044 9332000, www.westmeathcoco.ie

Facilities

Car parking At Start - on street in Kilbeggan At End - on streets or in car parks in Mullingar (probable charge)

WALKERS SHOULD NOTE THAT AT PRESENT THERE IS NO ACCESS OVER THE PRIVATELY OWNED LAND FROM LADESTOWN TO KEOLTOWN WOOD SO THE WAY IS CLOSED BETWEEN LADESTOWN AND DYSART. WALKERS ARE ADVISED TO PLEASE REFRAIN FROM WALKING THIS SECTION UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. 14 kms or 41% of the Way follows local roads. ***Under no circumstances should dogs be taken on farmland sections of the Westmeath Way***

Map Guides

Map Guides

WestmeathWay Sli na h-Iarmhi Waymarked Walking Route - published by EastWest Mapping for Westmeath Tourism

OSI Maps

OSI Maps

Discovery Series Sheets 41 and 48
5/5
01/08/2021

Emi from Westmeath

It has a great walkway and it’s very clean and I cannot wait to go here again and also I think it’s a very peaceful place and it’s always fun and I love to play here!!!🌺🌼❤️❤️🆒🆗
3/5
10/02/2016

Ger from Westmeath

A very pleasant walk, particularly from Kilbeggan to Ballinagore. The pathways are somewhat neglected, through lack of use, rather than any maintenance issues. It crosses beautiful farmland and runs parallel to the Brosna in its early stages and is tranquil with a great feeling of isolation, even though never too far from a road. Fairly well signposted, but a lack of traffic means there is not always an obvious pathway. It skirts Lough Ennell at Lilliput, providing magnificent vistas across the lake. It is a pity the trail does not offer more opportunities to enjoy this experience. On the whole a good walk and worth the day out.
06/08/2014

Dominic from Dublin

I was in Kilbeggan and, having viewed the excellent Information Board for the Westmeath Way in the main street, decided to do a 'recky' out towards Ballinagower. What a disappointment! The start of the Way was overgrown and looked very uninviting. It's a very poor advertisement of our hiking amenities for potential tourist hikers. We abandoned and headed home.
4/5
03/02/2013

Michael from Westmeath

The trail was exciting, peaceful and enjoyable. There were a few maintenance issues with the path: Near Kilbeggan you had to cross a small makeshift bridge and unfortunately this had been totally covered by grass and hedge which made it difficult but not impossible to cross. Apart from that it was smooth sailing. Got shocked by an electric fence, but it brought a bit of humour among the group and we had a good laugh. Overall I enjoyed the walk and I plan on doing it again in the coming months. Oh by the way bring a good supply of food and water (especially water on a good dry, warm day).

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