Lakes & Rivers

Lakes

 

Lake

Lake at Glendalough

Copyright John Kennedy

Lake
Copyright John Kennedy

Lake

Lake at Glendalough

Copyright John Kennedy

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Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow

Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow

Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow

Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow

Lough Dan, Co. Wicklow

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Many of the higher lakes in the Wicklow Mountains National Park have their origins in the last Ice Age when the shape of the land was being carved out by huge glaciers. The lakes and corries created by the moving glaciers filled with water as the glaciers began to melt. Examples of these lakes include Upper Lough Bray (Lower Lough Bray is located outside the National Park), Lough Nahanagan, Lough Ouler and Lough Dan.

The Upper and Lower Lakes of Glendalough were only partly formed by glaciers. Although the valley was formed as glaciers moved across the land during the last Ice Age, originally only one lake was created. The two lakes that give Glendalough its name were formed when deposition from Lugduff Brook in the centre of the lake built up until it was divided in two.

Greylag Goose
Copyright Mike Brown

Grey Heron, Greylag Goose and cormorants are the birds mostly likely to be spotted around the lakes in the Wicklow Mountains, and Lough Nehanagan is known as a regular nesting area for the Peregrine Falcon.

Rivers

There are a number of important river systems that originated in the Wicklow Mountains: Liffey, Dargle, Cloghogo, Vartry and Glenmacnass. Along its course, the Dargle forms the highest waterfall in Ireland at Powerscourt. Otters and Brown Trout inhabit these rivers, and the most common bird species are dipper and Grey Wagtail.