Travel

Cycling through horse country

This lap of the Blessington Lakes features beautiful parts of Kildare and Wicklow

Poulaphouca Reservoir. Photograph: David Sleator

Turlough O’Brien
Sat Feb 10 2018 - 06:00

Route Kilcullen – Ballymore Eustace – Valleymount – Ballyknockan – Lacken – Blessington – Brannockstown – Kilcullen
Appeal Exceptional beauty on fine cycling roads
Location Kildare and Wicklow
Distance 67km
Duration 3 to 3½ hours
Grade 3
Height gain 638m

Kilcullen is horse country and the roads around the Kildare town are bordered by pristine stud farms. It’s a route of contrasts, with stunning lake and mountain scenery along the undulating lakeshore road.

Kilcullen is just off the M9 (take the R448 exit at Junction 2) and about 50km south of Dublin. Parking is at a premium in the town but you should be able to find spaces in the car park beside the church.

The town itself is on the river Liffey just 12km south of Naas. Cycle down the main street and over the Liffey, then head up the steep hill. Pass the Centra on the left-hand side and make a right turn just at the top of the hill. This quiet road will take you towards Ballymore Eustace. After 3km, continue straight at Carnalway Cross. Continue straight on a good cycling road and keep an eye out for a mysterious and unmarked ancient cross by the roadside behind a wooden fence, about 4km past Carnalway Cross. Locals believe it to date from the 17th century.

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Shortly after passing the cross, there are signs warning that the road ahead is closed. You must take a short detour by turning left on to the L6048, followed by a right after 1.5km and following the signs for Ballymore Eustace. The detour adds about 2km to the journey.

There’s a good pull uphill for 3km, but the views are great and it means avoiding a longer stretch on the busy N81. Take the first right-hand turn on the descent and follow the wall around Russborough House. Be careful not to miss a left turn, which is not signposted. This narrow road will lead you close to the turn-off for Valleymount and ensures your distance on the N81 is a mere 300m. If you miss the left turn, continue straight to visit Russborough House and then carry on down to the N81 and turn left. Turn right off the N81 towards Valleymount, which is signposted. The road passes over the first of three bridges over Blessington Lakes, also known as the Poulaphouca Reservoir. The lakes were formed 70 years ago when a dam and hydroelectric station were built, resulting in a beautiful 20sq km of lakes.

Navigation is simple: follow the road around the main lake in an anticlockwise direction. After passing through Valleymount, on a spit in the lake, turn left and soon you will roll into Ballyknockan, the granite village. Hard to believe you are only 25km from Dublin city centre in this beautiful wilderness. Ballyknockan retains a sense of remoteness and it could easily be located in Connemara.

The views are sensational from this village, famous for its granite quarries – the stone is evident all around in the farmhouses, cottages and the walls that enclose small fields down to the lakeshore.

Continue around the lake and into Lacken village on a narrow road that constantly rises and falls, with breathtaking views. You can extend this route at Lacken by taking a sharp right-hand turn and continuing up over the hill on a bog road for about 4km. This will add about 10km. The bonus is exceptional views of Blessington Lakes and across to Kippure on the other side of the hill.

Keep left at the next two junctions and follow the signs back to Blessington. Take the next left over the bridge, which will take you into Blessington, one of the larger towns in Co Wicklow, with many fine buildings. Continue out of the town on the N81 as far as the turn for Valleymount that you took earlier. Head back towards Valleymount but after 4km take the L8365 towards Tulfarris Hotel. Turn slightly right after Tulfarris and continue on this road for about 1.5km.

The main road veers right, but continue straight on to a narrow road for 3km, then turn right and cross over the N81 on to the R411 for 1km. Turn left onto the L5043 and take a sharp left after another kilometre, followed by a right on to the L6060. Stay on this road for a further 4km, passing through a crossroads. Turn on to the R412 and admire the beautiful stud farms on both sides of the road, among them Ragusa Stud and Ardenode Stud.

Continue into Brannockstown, turning left at Brannockstown Crossroads on to the R413. This will take you back into Kilcullen and your parking spot on the left as you enter the town.

Edited from Cycling South Leinster – Great Road Routes by Turlough O'Brien (The Collins Press, €14.99), available in bookshops and at collinspress.ie