Fermanagh · Moderate · There and back

Cuilcagh boardwalk: the Stairway to Heaven

Across the blanket bog of Cuilcagh in Fermanagh on a gravel track and a boardwalk, then up the long wooden stairs to the viewing platform.

Distance
11.1 km (6.9 mi)
Ascent
437 m
Time
About 4 h
High point
613 m
Grade
Moderate

Line © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), checked by Global Adventurer.

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Move along the height chart to see each point on the map.
Cuilcagh boardwalk: the Stairway to Heaven
Michael Deligan · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The walk

From the car park at Legnabrocky, follow the wide gravel Legnabrocky track south across farmland and open bog, climbing gently towards the Cuilcagh escarpment. Where the gravel ends, the boardwalk carries on over the blanket bog, then climbs the escarpment as a long wooden staircase, nicknamed the Stairway to Heaven, to the viewing platform at the top. Stop there: walkers are asked not to go on to the summit, to protect the bog. Return the same way.

It is 11.1 km there and back with 437 m of ascent; allow about 4 hours. The grade is Moderate: a long, gently rising gravel track and boardwalk, then a steep staircase.

The car park and the first part of the track are on the Sheridan family's private farmland, run with a booking system. Beyond, the trail crosses protected blanket bog in the Cuilcagh Lakelands UNESCO Global Geopark: keep to the boardwalk. Dogs are not allowed. The top is exposed and the weather turns fast. The Geopark can close the trail at short notice in storms.

Car park spaces must be booked online in advance: £6 a car for a 3-hour slot, between 7am and 7pm, with the last slot at 4pm; the operator puts the walk at 2 to 3 hours. Killykeeghan Nature Reserve car park, about 1 km further along the road, is free. We found no public transport.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.

Good to know

  • Cuilcagh (665 m), on the Fermanagh-Cavan border, is the highest point in both counties.
  • The boardwalk was built in 2015 to protect one of the largest stretches of blanket bog in Northern Ireland from erosion.
  • The last stretch is a long wooden staircase up the escarpment, nicknamed the Stairway to Heaven.
  • The mountain lies in the cross-border Cuilcagh Lakelands UNESCO Global Geopark, above the Marble Arch Caves.

Getting there

Start: Cuilcagh boardwalk car park at Legnabrocky · Pay and display. 54.25045, -7.81590

Directions to the start

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Places to stay nearby

Rooms in and around Fermanagh: Booking.com → Expedia → Hotels.com →

Affiliate links: if you book, Global Adventurer earns a small commission at no cost to you.

Paths change, and the weather decides the day. The line and figures come from OpenStreetMap and our own checks; take a map, check the forecast, and turn back if it isn't right.