A new greenway will let you take in the splendours of the Déise country

As a new greenway opens in the southeast Dan MacCarthy hops on his bike and takes in the splendours of the Déise country

Cyclists are becoming spoiled for choice. The magnificent Great Western Greenway from Westport to Achill Island in Co Mayo has been open for several years and has been a spectacular success with around 200,000 visitors annually. At least 20 other greenways around the country of various lengths are at different stages of development.

However, there’s a new kid on the block which promises to outshine all the others: meet the Déise Greenway in Co Waterford. With 23km of stage one of the development just opened from Dungarvan to Kilmacthomas and the remaining 23km coming on track in the spring, the designers of this multi-million euro project have set out to make this the gold standard for Irish cycleways. Already, thousands of cyclists have been exploring the sections near Dungarvan.