Travel columnist Anna Farren gives her top tips for taking in Glenveagh.
A weekend walk like no other is that of the Lakeside Trail and View Point in Glenveagh National Park. The Lakeside Trail is a relatively easy walk, suitable for all ages and levels of fitness followed by more of a challenging 1km climb to the View Point.
The Lakeside Trail is a relatively easy walk, suitable for all ages and levels of fitness followed by more of a challenging 1km climb to the View Point.
Photo by Farrenwide
What you will need:
- Comfortable walking clothing
- Suitable walking shoes (preferably with a grip should you opt to complete the View Point Trial)
- A rainjacket
- A camera (you will most definitely want to snap what you see)
- €10 – €15 per person (depending on the amount of refuelling you’re after in the Tea Rooms and whether or not you need money for the return journey to the car park by bus)
Photo by Farrenwide
The trail, 3.5km one way, brings you along the shores of Lough Veagh and all the way to the beautiful walled gardens of Glenveagh Castle.
As you meander through this mostly flat trail, one is met with stunning scenes of Glenveagh Valley and the Derryveagh Mountains throughout, each view more stunning than the next.
Every 10 minutes or so, a gentle reminder of the fact that one can opt for taking the bus back to the car park comes with friendly salutes from the bus drivers as they pass each way.
Should there be any steam left in the engine on reaching the castle however, I would highly recommend that you bring yourself along the View Point trail to experience the most breathtaking views of Lough Veagh, Glenveagh Castle and the surrounding landscape.
Photo by Farrenwide
The trail itself is only 1km long but involves quite a steep climb from beginning to end. Any struggle experienced on this climb however, is only short lived and the views which you are met with at the top, are so well worth it! Any snap-happy walkers will be provided with the most perfect of backdrops for picture-taking or simply just taking a moment to step back and enjoy.
Downhill to the Castle Tea Rooms and one can feast on any number of savoury and sweet treats. My top pick, photographed below, was the most mouth-watering of red velvet cakes – well deserved after an afternoon of walking and climbing in the hills of Donegal.
Red Velvet Cake in the Glenveagh Castle Tearooms. Photo by Farrenwide
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