Temple-na-Skellig Shore View

Temple-na-Skellig is the most westerly of the Glendalough churches: a roofless, single-cell rectangular ruin built of rough stone, sitting on a small shelf on the south side of the Upper Lake beneath steep wooded ground. It was partly reconstructed in the 12th century, and excavation work in the 1950s recorded traces of a wattle hut and a paved pathway on a platform to the west, along with a game board scratched into a slab of mica schist slate.

This location marks a reachable viewing approach on the north shore, along the fine-gravel Miners' Road track beside the lake. From here you look across the water at the ruin on the opposite bank. The ruin itself is not a normal walk-up stop: documented approaches are by boat or by a steep descent from the Lugduff cliffs, and that cliff route is not recommended.

• Follow Miners' Road roughly 350 metres along the north shore in the direction of the abandoned mining village.
• Pause at gaps in the trees and scan the opposite bank at the base of the wooded slope, low down near lake level.
• Look for the squared-off gable and low stone walls of a small rectangular shell rather than a tall building.

• Binoculars or a zoom lens make a real difference at this distance; the ruin reads as a small grey rectangle to the naked eye.
• Sturdy or waterproof footwear is sensible for a lakeside gravel track and any grassy verges you step onto to get a clear sightline.

Foliage, light and lake conditions all affect what you can pick out, so a sighting is not something to count on; low sun on the far slope or heavy summer leaf cover can hide the walls entirely. Be aware too that some online photos labelled Temple-na-Skellig actually show Reefert Church, a different and more accessible ruin nearby, so compare carefully before deciding what you have spotted.