Walks and adventure sports in Meath

Leinster

Meath has 7 waymarked trails on Sport Ireland's National Trails Register, covering about 406 kilometres in total across walking (5), canoeing/kayaking/paddling (1), cycling (1).

Waymarked trails
7
Total distance
406 km
Longest
146.3 km

Spots worth the trip

Named on our sport and activity guides.

Drewstown Archery, Fordstown

Archery

Based at Drewstown House. One of two Meath clubs, alongside Athboy, in a county with room for full outdoor rounds.

Waymarked trails in Meath

All 7 from the National Trails Register.

Royal Canal Way

146.3 km · Easy · Linear

Starts at First Lock, near Dublin. Directions

6 days · Waymarked: yellow arrow on black background

Royal Canal Greenway Cycling Trail

121.4 km · Easy · Linear

Starts at Maynooth Railway Station, near Maynooth/Clondra. Directions

4 days · Waymarked: green sign with white arrows

Royal Canal Greenway Walking Trail

121.4 km · Easy · Linear

Starts at Maynooth Railway Station, near Maynooth/Clondra. Directions

6 days · Waymarked: green sign with white arrows

Boyne Blueway - Trim to Bective

8 km · Intermediate · Linear

Starts at Boyne Valley Activities, near Trim. Directions

1 hour

Drewstown Woods - Girley Bog walk

5.1 km · 20 m climb · Moderate · Loop

Starts at Girley Bog car park, near Kells. Directions

2 hours · Waymarked: purple arrow on yellow background

Jan 25 - It has come to our attention that the trail has been significantly impacted by recent storms, resulting in numerous large potholes. The trail management group has been informed.

Littlewood - Forest Walk

2 km · Easy · Loop

Starts at Forest Entrance Carpark, near Slane. Directions

40 mins

Starts at Car Park beside Trim Castle, near Trim. Directions

1 hour · Waymarked: green arrow on white background

Coillte maintains 3 forest car parks in Meath. These are the usual starting points for forest walks and mountain bike trails.

Bathing waters in Meath

3 designated bathing waters monitored by the EPA, 1 of them flying a Blue Flag. Water quality below is the EPA's annual classification, which is a verdict on the previous four bathing seasons and not a reading for today.

Bathing restrictions in Meath right now

Live from the EPA's bathing water service. Local authorities post restrictions after heavy rain, sewage discharges and pollution incidents, and they can appear the same morning.

Checking the EPA for current restrictions…

If this doesn't update, check beaches.ie directly before you swim.

Data from the EPA Bathing Water Open Data service, licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Gormanston Beach

Public transport

Directions

Laytown/Bettystown

Excellent Quality (2025)

Blue Flag · Green Coast · Lifeguard · Parking · Toilets · Public transport · Accessible

Directions · EPA profile

Mornington

Green Coast

Directions

Bathing water data from the EPA Bathing Water Open Data service, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Snapshot taken 2026-08-13. Positions converted from Irish Grid. The EPA publishes the full profile for each water at beaches.ie.

Sports in Meath, in depth

The sport with named spots, accredited centres or registered trails in the county.

5 clubs and schools in Meath

Listed by Diving Ireland, Archery Ireland and Mountaineering Ireland. Reproduced as each body publishes it, with a link back to the register. Contact details are theirs, not checked by us.

Guides for Meath

Common questions

Where can I go walking in Meath?

5 waymarked walking trails are registered in Meath. The longest are Royal Canal Way (146.3km), Royal Canal Greenway Walking Trail (121.4km), Drewstown Woods - Girley Bog walk (5.1km), Littlewood - Forest Walk (2km). Every one has a verified start point and driving directions on its own page.

How many waymarked trails are there in Meath?

7 on Sport Ireland's National Trails Register, totalling roughly 406 kilometres. The register records waymarked trails only, so unmarked mountain routes and informal paths aren't counted.

How hard are the trails in Meath?

By register grade: 5 easy, 1 moderate, 1 intermediate. Grades are set by Sport Ireland against national criteria, so they're comparable between counties.

Are there sports clubs in Meath?

5 clubs and schools in Meath are listed by their national governing body: Diving Ireland, Archery Ireland and Mountaineering Ireland. They cover 3 sports between them, and each listing links back to the register it came from.

What adventure sports can you do in Meath?

hillwalking & mountaineering, kayaking & canoeing, mountain biking, archery, based on the trails registered in the county and the locations named on our sport guides.

Elsewhere in Leinster

Trail data from the Sport Ireland National Trails Register, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Start points from the companion Trailheads dataset. Snapshot taken 2026-08-13. The register records waymarked trails only, so check the trail operator for current conditions and closures. Forest park and car park data from Coillte Recreation Information (CC BY 4.0), snapshot 2026-08-04, with county boundaries from OSi.