Glas-na-Bradan Wood
Newtownabbey, County Antrim
Reaching skywards, Glas-na-Bradan Wood sits on the highest point of the Belfast Hills. At 360m, its summit is one of the highest points and looks out across the beautiful Belfast Lough and the wider landscape of Northern Ireland.
Visit on clear days for views that stretch as far as Slemish to the north, Lough Neagh to the west and Strangford and the Mournes to the south. The stunning landscape will take your breath away and leave you feeling rejuvenated.
Features
- Public access
- Spring flowers
- Good views
How to get to Glas-na-Bradan Woods
Glas-na-Bradan Wood is 14.5km (9 miles) from Belfast city centre.
The site is set within the boundary of Antrim and Newtownabbey District Council, next to Cave Hill Country Park.
Glas-na-Bradan Wood is part of the wider Belfast Hills and can be accessed from Hightown Road, Newtownabbey, BT36 7AU.
Please note access to Glas-na-Bradan Wood is on foot only.
The nearest train stations are:
- Belfast Great Victoria Street railway station on Glengall Street
- Belfast Central Station on East Bridge Street.
Visit National Rail for more information.
Take the bus (1E) from Queen Street in Belfast city centre to Hightown Road. Get off at the bus stop outside Edmund Rice College.
Visit Traveline for more information.
From the Hightown Rd, follow the tarmac road and look out for the green sign for CLG Naomh Éanna St. Enda's GAC (and the Irish language nursey/primary school).
Turn into this tarmac road and walk towards the school. Keep an eye out for a kissing gate and Woodland Trust sign to the right of the car park. Go through this gate and follow the vehicle track to the stone pillar gateway to Glas-na-Bradan Wood.
Facilities and access
The formal walking trail is a wide, flat vehicle track, with a stoned and even surface. The track includes a ford and is steep in places, with a very steep 50m section of concrete road leading towards the summit.
It's worth noting that there is no way around the ford. While walkers should be able to cross without getting wet feet most of the time, there may be times throughout the year (e.g. after heavy rain) when wet feet may be unavoidable.
Please take care as accessing the wood can involve climbing informal stiles where the ground is uneven or muddy.
Currently, as this is a relatively new site, there is no specific car park for visitors. We're considering car parking here.
There are toilets available at Lilian Bland Community Park. Opening times are 9am-5pm in the winter and 9am-8pm in the summer. Alternatively, there are toilets within the grounds of Belfast Castle (no admission fee).
Wildlife and habitats
Glas-na-Bradan was traditionally a farmed landscape, and the practice of grazing and cutting has shaped the habitats that you can enjoy today.
Animals
Listen out for laughing magpies and melodic willow warblers, grasshopper warblers, stonechats and meadow pipits.
Look out for the resident salmon swimming in the Glas-na-Bradan stream, and Irish hare bounding across the land. Seek out butterflies and moths, like cryptic wood white, latticed heath, narrow-bordered five-spot burnet and grayling.
Look out for:
Trees, plants and fungi
Explore the grassland in late spring and summer to find gorse and patches of wild flowers, like common milkwort, common spotted-orchid and lesser butterfly orchid. Look out for the noteworthy Irish whitebeam (Sorbus hibernica) with its unmissable clusters of scarlet fruit in early autumn.
You may notice that some of the fields have been planted with native tree species including oak, wild cherry, Scots pine, hazel, alder, rowan and downy birch. Take care not to confuse Irish whitebeam with its relative, rowan.
Look out for:
Habitats
During your visit you may notice that the site is divided by the vehicle track. The lower slopes are made up of a series of fields with old boundaries, which contain areas of species-rich grassland with native scrub and small streams. The open and exposed upper slopes are predominantly heathland.
As part of a five-year community planting scheme, we're aiming to plant 57 hectares of land with over 150,000 trees. Visit over time to see the changes unfold.
Explore:
History of Glas-na-Bradan Woods
Glas-na-Bradan Wood was acquired by the Woodland Trust Northern Ireland in 2021 as a unique opportunity to create a new native woodland in the Greater Belfast area.
The new site in the Belfast hills was purchased thanks to funding from Biffa Award, as part of the Landfill Communities Fund, the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (DAERA) and private donations.
Following a public vote, the site was named ‘Glas-na-Bradan Wood’. This name translates in Irish to ‘stream of the salmon’ and refers to the salmon of knowledge, a creature based in Irish mythology.
Credit: Ann and Steve Toon / Alamy Stock Photo
Stream of the salmon
Legend has it that when an ordinary salmon eats nine hazelnuts that have fallen into the well of wisdom from nine hazel trees, it gains all the knowledge in the world.
It is believed that those that eat these red-speckled fish would absorb all of this knowledge, and that the first person to do so was the great warrior Fionn Mac Cumhaill (Finn McCool).
Look out for the large salmon swimming in the Glas-na-Bradan stream, as well as the hazelnut trees throughout the site.
Things to do in Glas-na-Bradan Wood
Walking
On your visit, take a stroll along the 2km formal walking trail, which leads from the entrance off Hightown Road to the summit of the Wood at 360m.
Pause, take a breather and appreciate the views as you have a well-deserved rest on one of the seven small seats, between the entrance and the summit.
There are a range of volunteering opportunities at Glas-na-Bradan Wood and within the surrounding Belfast Hills. Monthly events are organised for our registered volunteers throughout the year including tree planting, wildlife walks and talks, and training in species identification.
Events
There is an annual programme of events at Glas-na-Bradan and other Woodland Trust sites within the Belfast Hills.
Visiting woods
Walking dogs in our woods
Dogs are welcome for walkies in our woods. Take a look at our tips and guidelines for ensuring we keep our woods safe and special for dogs and wildlife.
Visiting woods
Walking
Taking a walk in the woods is the easiest way to enjoy the outdoors and get closer to nature.
Visiting woods
Events
Discover events at our woods and the festivals and fairs you can find us at soon.
Other woods nearby
