The lake is located in the Wicklow Mountains area west of Glendalough Early Medieval monastic settlement.

[5] Near the southern shore stands a small rectangular church named Temple-na-Skellig, only accessible by boat and a series of steps from the landing stage; a nearby cliff hosts a cave called St. Kevin's bed,[6] reputedly a retreat for St. Kevin and later for St. Laurence O'Toole.

[2] Close to the eastern tip of the lake passes the Wicklow Way, a long distance waymarked walking trail, on its way from Rathfarnham in the north to its southerly point of Clonegal.

Some of its shore is occupied by a marsh with horsetail, bottle sedge and common reed, which is a convenient place to spot dragonflies.

[2] Media related to Upper Lake, Glendalough Valley at Wikimedia Commons