Irish Mountain
Running Association

Running routes

AuthorDateMessage
David PeetersJan 30 2017, 4:59pmDear,

My name is David, Belgian, 35 years old and I am a Trail Runner. I'm staying in Dublin from 13/04/17 until 16/04/17. I would like to run some routes between 20-40km early in het morning(3am-7am) while it's still dark.
I would like to train on routes that are almost completly offroad and with a lot of alltitude gains. I've been to the Wicklow Mountains a couple of years ago at the end of April and there was still a lot of snow. So I'm not sure which routes can be done with a lot of alltitude gains mid April and I know the weather can be very unpredictable in your Mountains.
I have the proper equipement to run in harsch conditions, I can read maps/use a compass and have a smartphone with gps and a walking gps with me at all times.
But I would still appreciate your opinion and expertise on running in the Wicklows mid April.
Can u help me find some routes(gpx) or direct me to someone who can help me find these routes?
Thank U very much for even taking the time to read my post and hopefully U can help me explore your Mountains in a safe way!

Kind Regards,

David Peeters
James H CahillJan 30 2017, 7:28pmHI David, you can see some routes and download their GPX's here https://www.gpsies.com/userList.do?d-5037238-p=6&username=mntnrnnr
Paul O BrienJan 30 2017, 8:34pmHi David. Look up Juju Jay on facebook. He knows the Wicklow mountains well and will help you out. He has a group page called mud, sweat and runners too.
Stuart ScottJan 31 2017, 2:35pmHi David,

The Wicklow Way could be one option. It doesn't go to the peaks so it should be ok in most weather conditions, but there are a lot of road sections towards the south. See maps at https://www.imra.ie/events/view/id/1438

St Kevin's Way and the Dublin Mountains Way could also be worth looking at.

Navigation on open mountain in Wicklow can be very difficult in cloud, and especially at night time. A lot of the routes cross bog which is very featureless too and can be far from roads. These would be perfectly manageable during the day if the weather is ok, but for night time I would recommend sticking to the trails!

Hope this helps,

Stuart