Days Out NI
Lakeside walk Cookstown

Lough Fea

A level 4 km circuit round a mountain lough in the Sperrins.

5 photos
Open all yearOpen access, daylight hours
FreeFree car park
Near CookstownSperrins
Official website Get directions

Photos: Visit Mid Ulster; OutmoreNI; visitor photographs

30–60 min circuitHow long
All agesBest for
FreeEntry
Free car parkParking
OutdoorsSetting

Lough Fea is a 4.15 km level gravel circuit right round a mountain lough on the south-east edge of the Sperrins — one of the easiest genuinely beautiful walks in Northern Ireland, flat enough for a buggy or a wheelchair, and free.

  • What you'll do: Walk the full circuit of the lough — about 30 to 60 minutes at an ordinary pace — with the Sperrins on one side, water on the other, and benches when you want them. There is a children's play area at the car park end.
  • How long: Half an hour to an hour for the loop; longer if you sit, and you will want to sit.
  • Cost: Free, with a free car park on the B162.
  • Dogs must be on leads here. There are ground-nesting birds around the lough — a dog off the lead does real damage, so keep them close the whole way round.
  • Come ready: Level, well-maintained gravel, which makes this unusually good for prams, wheelchairs and small legs. Exposed hill ground though — bring a coat and let the weather do what it does.
  • Facilities: Free car park, toilets including accessible toilets, disabled parking and a play area. No café — bring a flask.
Plan your visit

One lough, one level path, all the way round

There is nothing complicated about Lough Fea, which is the whole appeal. A well-made gravel path leaves the car park, hugs the shoreline, and brings you back to where you started 4.15 kilometres later. It is level the entire way, well maintained, and honestly suitable for anyone — an all-terrain buggy has no trouble, a wheelchair has no trouble, a four-year-old on a scooter has no trouble.

What you get for that small effort is out of proportion. The lough sits at the south-eastern edge of the Sperrin Mountains, five miles north of Cookstown on the Draperstown road, and on a still day it goes completely flat — the hills, the wooded island and every cloud doubled in the water. In autumn the island turns copper and the first snow lands on the tops behind it. In winter the low sun comes across the water through bare branches. There is no season here that is not worth the drive.

Benches are set along the way for stopping, and there is a children's play area near the car park, which turns a walk into an afternoon for younger families. Runners use it as a measured loop, and dog walkers use it constantly — on the lead, because the ground around the lough holds nesting birds.

And when it rains, which it does, the whole place goes soft and silver and the hills come and go in the cloud. Put the hood up. It is one of the best hours you can spend in Tyrone.

Free, free parking 4.15 km level gravel circuit Buggy and wheelchair friendly Play area at the car park Mountain lough and island Ground-nesting birds — dogs on leads
Dogs on leads, please:

The ground around the lough holds nesting birds, so dogs must be kept on a lead the whole way round. It is a small ask for a place this good, and it is the reason the birds are still here.

Before you set off

What to wear & bring

  • 🧥A coatOpen hill ground at the edge of the Sperrins. The weather moves fast and every version of it looks good over that water.
  • 👟Comfy shoesLevel gravel the whole way, so nothing technical — just enough walking to want decent footwear.
  • ☕A flaskNo café on site. A hot drink on one of the benches halfway round is the correct move.
  • 📷A cameraStill days here produce reflections people travel for. A hat and water finish off a bright day.
What's on

What's on at the lough

Lough Fea has no programme and no ticket office, which is a large part of why people love it. It works as a measured 4.15 km loop for runners, a reliable all-weather walk for families, and a quiet hour for anyone who needs one.

It also sits in good company. The Sperrins run away to the north-west, and the OM Dark Sky Park at Davagh Forest — one of the darkest skies in Ireland — is a short drive away, which makes a late-afternoon walk here and a night under the stars a very good pairing.

Good to know

Everything before you go

Cost
Free
Opening
Open access all year; walk it in daylight
Best for ages
All ages and abilities — genuinely one of the most accessible good walks in the country
Walk
4.15 km (2.6 miles) circular, level gravel, roughly 30–60 minutes
What's there
Circular lakeside path, benches, a children's play area, toilets
Toilets
On site, including accessible toilets
Parking
Free main car park on the B162, with disabled parking
Dogs
Welcome but must be on leads throughout — ground-nesting birds
Accessibility
Level, well-maintained gravel path suitable for wheelchairs and buggies; accessible toilets and disabled parking
How long to allow
30–60 minutes for the circuit; an hour or two with the play area and a flask
Food
No café on site. Cookstown is five miles away
Getting there
Five miles north of Cookstown on the B162 Draperstown Road, on the south-east side of the Sperrins
Address
Lough Fea, B162 Draperstown Road, near Cookstown, Co Tyrone
Questions

Before you go

Is it free?
Yes — the walk and the car park are both free.
How long is the walk?
4.15 km, or about 2.6 miles, right round the lough. Most people take between 30 and 60 minutes.
Is it suitable for a wheelchair or a buggy?
Yes. The path is level, well-maintained gravel the whole way round, and there is disabled parking and an accessible toilet at the car park. It is one of the best accessible walks in Northern Ireland.
Can we bring the dog?
Yes, on a lead — and it matters here. There are ground-nesting birds around the lough.
Are there toilets?
Yes, at the car park, including accessible toilets.
Is there a café?
No. Bring a flask and use the benches — Cookstown is five miles away if you want a proper lunch.
Is there anything for children?
There is a children's play area at the car park end, and the flat loop suits scooters and small bikes.
When is the best time to go?
Any of them. Still days give the reflections, autumn turns the island copper, and winter brings low light across the water. Early morning is quietest.
Getting there

Lough Fea is five miles north of Cookstown on the B162 Draperstown Road, on the south-eastern edge of the Sperrin Mountains. The main car park is on the B162 and is free, with disabled parking, toilets and the play area beside it. The path starts at the car park and goes right round the water.

Official website Directions on Google Maps See it on our map
Nearby

Make more of the day

OM Dark Sky Park, DavaghOne of the darkest skies in Ireland, a short drive away Beaghmore Stone CirclesBronze Age circles out on the moor Drum Manor Forest ParkWalled garden, lakes and forest trails near Cookstown Wellbrook Beetling MillThe working linen mill on the Ballinderry
The story

About the lough

Lough Fea is a hill lough on the shoulder of the Sperrins, and for most of its history it was simply a body of water in an empty landscape — grazing, turf and weather. Its name comes down from the Irish, and like most water names in this part of the country it is older than any building near it.

The lough is not only scenery. Lough Fea Water Treatment Works stands on its edge and takes drinking water from it, supplying Cookstown, Draperstown and the country around — something like 24,000 Northern Ireland Water customers, and around 12 million litres a day. That is why the shoreline is partly armoured with stone and why the level stays so even: this is a working water body as well as a beautiful one. It is the same story as Creggan above Derry or the balancing lakes at Craigavon — engineering that ended up being the nicest place for miles.

The circular path is the modern addition, and it was well done. Rather than a rough lakeside scramble, the council built a level gravel route right round the water with benches, toilets, disabled parking and a play area — an ordinary piece of infrastructure that quietly opened one of the best views in Tyrone to people who could not otherwise reach it.

The reward is a strange one for a place with so few features. There is no visitor centre, no café, nothing to buy and nothing to queue for. There is a path, some water, and the Sperrins standing behind it. Walk it once in autumn with the island turning and the first snow on the tops, and you will understand why locals treat this as their own.

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