Lough Erne

Lower and Upper Lough Erne together run about eighty kilometres through Fermanagh, joined at Enniskillen, and the lower lough alone holds over one hundred and fifty islands. Devenish Island has a monastery founded in the sixth century with a round tower of about thirty metres, complete with its conical cap, and a carved cornice unusual on such towers. White Island holds eight stone figures set into a wall, early medieval carvings whose meaning is disputed. On Boa Island in the Caldragh graveyard stands the Janus figure, a stone carving with a face on each side, probably Iron Age and among the strangest surviving carvings in Ireland. Marble Arch Caves nearby are a show cave system with an underground boat trip. The lough is a cruising water with hire boats and no locks on the lower section.

What you actually see

• The Boa Island Janus figure - a stone carving with a face on each side.
• Devenish round tower - a thirty-metre tower with its conical cap intact.
• The White Island figures - eight early medieval carvings set into a wall.
• The island cruising - over 150 islands on lock-free hire-boat water.

When to go

April to October for boats and island ferries, which run seasonally; the lough is quiet and often flooded in winter. Midges are present in still summer evenings.

Honest expectations

Island access depends on seasonal ferries or a hire boat, and services are limited. Fermanagh is wet, with high rainfall year-round. Sites are scattered and a car is needed between them. Winter flooding closes lakeside roads.

Nearby

Enniskillen sits between the two loughs; Marble Arch Caves and the Cuilcagh boardwalk lie south.