The Irish love to walk. No matter what the weather, you’ll find people outside, enjoying nature, fresh air, and stunning scenery. While country roads, beaches, mountains, and cliffs are favoured haunts, there are also plenty of walking routes through the countryside and forests.
One of these, located near where I live in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford, is the walking trail through Colligan Wood. The woods form a steep ravine that flanks both sides of the Colligan River as it wends its way through County Waterford to Dungarvan Bay and the Celtic Sea. It’s proximity – about 4 km – to the town of Dungarvan makes the Wood a favourite among locals for scenic walks, jogging, and picnics.
On a recent autumn Sunday, I headed out to the Wood. Although the car park was filled to overflowing, the paths didn’t seem crowded. Much of the time, I had the wide, gravel paths to myself.
To access the paths, you cross the road and cross a small footbridge which spans the Colligan River. While it seemed calm and tranquil, apparently it is one of the swiftest flowing rivers in all of Europe. I wonder how they measure such things? It’s also favoured by fishermen as it is full of trout and salmon.
Just past the bridge is a trail map. There are two clearly marked routes. The Inchadrisla Loop and the The Greenane Loop. Both are easy and follow the Colligan River for a way before branching off into the forest. The Greenane Loop is the longer of the two at 6 km and takes in both sides of the river. I only walked part of this one as there was a “spur” off the shorter Inchadrisla Loop that I wanted to explore.
As I walked, I decided that if I were interested in photographing dogs, this was the place to come. All sizes, shapes, and colours were represented, and all happy to say hello to a dog lover. One pup defied her owner, plonked herself down on the trail and refused to go anywhere. I think she knew she was getting near the end of her walk and intended to let her person know that she had no notion of going home! Just after I snapped this picture, she came running back the path to me, closely followed by her “mom”. Captured, she trotted off down the path again, leashed this time.
I continued on my way, stopping here and there to try to capture the beautiful autumn colours in the wood. As I mentioned, there was a “spur” that headed off to a marked “lookout” point on the map. The climb was gradual, but constant. As I rounded a bend, the forest opened and rewarded me with a breathtaking view of Dungarvan Bay with Helvick Point in the distance. The most surprising thing was how high up I had actually come since the grade seemed quite easy.
Retracing my steps, I headed back down the forest trail. Supposedly this region abounds in wildlife, but I saw none. There is so much additional human traffic on the paths this year, I would imagine the wildlife keeps its collective distance.
What I did notice, however, was the cleanliness of the paths, despite there being no rubbish bins in sight. Not even around the picnic area. The Wood is used by everyone: couples of all ages, families, joggers, and dog-walkers. Everyone seemed to be doing their bit to keep the Wood tidy. It was nice to see.
Do you frequent a favourite woodland path? Let us know in the comments.