About

Tir na Glass

Walking Tours of Kilranelagh hill in West Wicklow, Ireland’s Ancient East

How the walking tours got started:

I have always had a love for the outdoors and hill walking. I also have a keen interest in history, as well as Irish myths and legends. When I moved to the countryside and found myself living in the foothills of the Wicklow mountains, I found the perfect place that combined all these things. I lived in the shadow of Kilranelagh hill, and over the years, through talking to locals and exploring the hill, I discovered that this small hill is packed full of interesting monuments.

While training on a Track and Trail Lowland Leader course I saw the potential to develop tourism in the area. I started researching and discovered many more interesting things about Kilranelagh and its surrounds – including captivating legends. This encouraged me to set up a walking tour. I received permission from the landowners to do so and have been bringing people on walks on the hill ever since.

The area around Baltinglass contains the greatest concentration of prehistoric hillforts in Europe, as well as many other interesting ancient sites like Stone Circles, Ogham stones and Cairns. This area in West Wicklow is not well known for its tourism, but it has so much to offer, it is full of hidden gems. Many of the ancient sites are not easy to find on your own. We can guide you to them and tell you a little about the history and legends associated with them.

A note on the name:

The name Tir na Glass is a mixture of Irish and English –

‘Tir na’ means ‘land of’ in Irish, and ‘Glas’ means green. I chose to spell it as ‘glass’ since my tours are all in the Baltinglass vicinity. I originally chose the name ‘Tir na Glass’ for my arts and crafts business where I was primarily focused on stained glass work. When I started the walking tours and was considering a name, I realised that ‘Tir na Glass’ fitted perfectly, since Ireland is a beautiful land of green, and with the Baltinglass aspect, it seemed like a good fit.

This area of West Wicklow around Baltinglass is a beautiful and fascinating place, I hope you will join us on a tour and discover its beauty and interesting history for yourself!

Nicky Butler