Walking time as visitwicklow.ie states it for this stage; measured on the mapped line: 9 h 02. Climb measured on the mapped line, on terrain heights. Visitwicklow.ie
33.3 kmStage distance
1,206 mAscent, measured
8 hOfficial time
5Stage number
The longest part, from Glenmalure south by Moyne to Crossbridge near Tinahely: 32.8 km, 8 h, Visit Wicklow says; its page is titled Glenmalure to Tinahely and ends the day at Crossbridge, about 0.8 km off the Way. Right at the start, Sport Ireland has signed a reroute along the Clohernagh brook at Drumgoff for forestry works, since August 2024 and until further notice; the ground is uneven. The official route here is not mapped yet: our line still takes the old route for about the first 2.5 km of this part (km 63.5 to 66 of the Way). Follow the signed diversion: southbound, follow the tree line and the brook up from the Half Way Marker to the forest road, then turn right to rejoin the Way. We could confirm no bed between Glenmalure and Tinahely, so this part stays one long day: start early.
Best season: All year. Neither Sport Ireland nor Visit Wicklow publishes a walking season. An Óige's hostels at Knockree and Glendalough are open all year, and the Glendalough Bus runs every day except Christmas Day. Some sections can be wet and muddy, Sport Ireland says. In midwinter there are under 8 hours of daylight, less than the longest parts take. Before you go
Glenmalure to Crossbridge
Loading topographic map…
Flat (<5%) Gentle (5–10%) Moderate (10–15%)
Green: Glenmalure to Crossbridge. Grey: full trail. Elevation follows this mapped track.
Facts read from the guide's sources and OpenStreetMap on 13 October 2026. A page can change after we read it, so confirm with your accommodation before you rely on a date or a bed.
Stage start
Glenmalure
Town
The middle of the Way, by Drumgoff Bridge in Glenmalure. Beds are few: An Óige's Glenmalure Hostel is about 2.6 km up the valley, with no electricity or running water and no online booking. OpenStreetMap also lists Glenmalure Lodge, a guest house by the bridge; we have not read its own page.
OpenStreetMap lists at least 1 place to stay within about 300 m (read 13 October 2026). TrailSplits has not checked which are open.
Visit Wicklow ends part 5 at Crossbridge, a hamlet near Tinahely, and starts part 6 from it; our line ends where the Way passes nearest, about 0.8 km from the hamlet. There is no bed here: Tinahely is the nearest town, about 1.2 km east of the Way some 2.4 km before this point. Some hosts offer walkers a lift: ask when you book.
Most places to stay are off the Way, Sport Ireland says, so plan with care and book every night ahead. No permit is needed. An Óige's hostels at Knockree and Glendalough take bookings online; its Glenmalure hostel takes enquiries only. South of Glenmalure beds are few, in Tinahely, Shillelagh and around Clonegal, and some hosts offer walkers a lift to and from the Way: ask when you book. Dogs are not allowed on the Wicklow Way.
Marlay Park to Clonegal
Visit Wicklow's six parts, a night at the end of each.
Loading the forecast for low point (112 m) and high point (519 m)…
Weather by month
Typical weather on this stage: at the lowest point (112 m) and the highest point (519 m). Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.
Monthly climate averages and daylight
Month
Weather
Mixed
Mixed
Mixed
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Mixed
High point, day / night
6°/1°
6°/1°
8°/2°
10°/3°
12°/5°
15°/8°
16°/10°
16°/10°
14°/8°
11°/6°
8°/3°
6°/1°
Low point, day / night
9°/3°
9°/3°
10°/4°
12°/5°
15°/7°
17°/10°
19°/12°
19°/12°
17°/10°
14°/7°
11°/5°
9°/3°
Rain, mm
138
115
104
102
105
89
106
117
129
162
175
159
Snow at high point
Frost
Frost
Frost
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Frost
Daylight
8 h 06
9 h 50
11 h 45
13 h 53
15 h 45
16 h 52
16 h 27
14 h 50
12 h 47
10 h 43
8 h 46
7 h 38
Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.
Before you go
Prepare for the Wicklow Way
Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.
The reroute at Drumgoff
Since August 2024 Sport Ireland has signed a reroute along the Clohernagh brook at Drumgoff, near the middle of the Way, for forestry works, until further notice. The signs are easy to follow, it says; the ground is uneven, so take care. Northbound, leave the Way at the hairpin bend towards a cul-de-sac, then follow the tree line down to rejoin it; southbound, follow the tree line and the brook up from the Half Way Marker to the forest road and turn right. The official route here is not mapped yet: our line still takes the old route for about 2.5 km at the start of part 5, so follow the signed diversion. Read 13 October 2026.
From 20 July 2026, for 5 or 6 months, the national park is upgrading the White Trail above the Upper Lake, from the Miners' Village up to the footbridge; the Blue Trail may be disrupted too. The trails stay open, except on one or two days when stone is flown in by helicopter. No detour is published, and the park does not say whether the Wicklow Way itself is affected: on part 4, obey the crew and the signs. Read 13 October 2026.
Parts 5 and 6 are 32.8 and 32.4 km, 8 hours each by Visit Wicklow's figures, and Visit Wicklow says the Way is usually split into six or seven sections. We could confirm no bed between Glenmalure and Tinahely; Shillelagh, about 2.4 km off the Way, splits part 6. Beds at Tinahely, Shillelagh and Clonegal are few: book them first. Read 13 October 2026.
Much of the Way crosses forest owned by Coillte, the state forestry company, which posts harvesting closures and diversions on its updates page. On 13 October 2026 none was current on the Way: the last, at Glenmalure from 27 April 2026, was for about six weeks. Check the page before you set off, and follow any diversion signs.
Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.
To the start at Marlay Park
Marlay Park is in Rathfarnham, on the southern edge of Dublin. Dublin Bus route 16 runs there through the city centre, the guidebook site wicklowway.com says; check times with Dublin Bus.
The Glendalough Bus (St Kevin's) runs from St Stephen's Green in Dublin by Bray, Roundwood and Laragh to Glendalough every day except Christmas Day, with only a few departures a day. TFI Local Link 183 links Glendalough with Arklow, and the 895 with Sallins and Naas for the train. For Knockree, take Dublin Bus 44 to Enniskerry, then the L15, then walk about 40 minutes, An Óige says.
Transport from Clonegal is thin. Bus Éireann's 132 between Dublin, Tullow and Bunclody stops at Bunclody, about 3 km away, and Kildavin, on the Dublin to Waterford road, is about 3 km away too; check the times with the operator before you set out.
Prepare every part while you still have a connection, and test it offline before you set out.
Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.
Open this trail in the app.Install TrailSplits, then open this trail there. On iPhone, downloads in a browser may not be available in the installed app.
Choose your route or stages. Choose Prepare offline above. Wait for the route and maps to finish downloading.
Try it before leaving coverage. Switch offline, close and reopen the app, then use My Hikes to start navigation. Repeat for every part you will need.
Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.
Route & sources
Route map & sources
Sport Ireland, which looks after Ireland's National Waymarked Ways, publishes the Wicklow Way as one route of 128.1 km from Marlay Park in Dublin to Clonegal in County Carlow, with no stages. Visit Wicklow (Wicklow County Tourism, which Sport Ireland names as the trail's management body) divides it into six parts, with an official stage time for each, shown beside ours on every stage. The line here is the route on OpenStreetMap (relation 2740, from the planet of 11 October 2026): about 128 km, the whole trail, cut at the six part ends, each within about 1.1 km of Visit Wicklow's figure. Two part ends are not on the Way itself: Visit Wicklow ends part 2 at Oldbridge (its page address says Roundwood, about 2 km off the Way) and part 5 at Crossbridge, a hamlet near Tinahely about 0.8 km off the Way; our line ends each where the Way passes. At Drumgoff, at the start of part 5, Sport Ireland has signed a reroute along the Clohernagh brook for forestry works since August 2024, until further notice. The official route here is not mapped yet: our line still takes the old route for about 2.5 km (km 63.5 to 66 of the Way), so follow the signs there, not the line. Sport Ireland's two figures for the total ascent disagree, so we quote neither. Our climb is measured on terrain heights, so short steep steps are smoothed out.
Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 13 October 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.