The Official Hiking Thread

[Orior]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

[brokencrossbar1]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

Not sure about the walks up the Sperrins but we took a walk round Gortin forest park the other week and it's a grand spot altogether

[Milltown Row2]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

You get lost? Half a day

Some cracking walks, the Cave Hill and the walks around it are good, Divis Mountain has been sorted out, in terms of paths and walkways

The Dams above Carrickfergus great for walking the dogs, but Slieve Donard is the best locally, havent done Slieve Gullion, seems wasted journey if it will only take 50mins up and down, is there a longer track?

Oh Castlewellan has a great dander about it, if you stick to the lake its easy enough but there are little trails up to the peak

[brokencrossbar1]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

You get lost? Half a day

Some cracking walks, the Cave Hill and the walks around it are good, Divis Mountain has been sorted out, in terms of paths and walkways

Think Orion definitely knows the Cave Hill walk!  Starting doing Divis myself recently. Very enjoyable

[Estimator]

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

Sawel is the highest peak in the Sperrins. It would be in the direction of Craigbane and Banagher.
Slieve Gallion is a decent climb, same with Eagle's Rock.. both around Ballinascreen

[Boycey]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

You get lost? Half a day

Some cracking walks, the Cave Hill and the walks around it are good, Divis Mountain has been sorted out, in terms of paths and walkways

The Dams above Carrickfergus great for walking the dogs, but Slieve Donard is the best locally, havent done Slieve Gullion, seems wasted journey if it will only take 50mins up and down, is there a longer track?

Oh Castlewellan has a great dander about it, if you stick to the lake its easy enough but there are little trails up to the peak

Slieve Gullion a much more comprehensive jaunt from the bottom carpark

https://www.activeme.ie/guides/slieve-gullion-loop-walk/#:~:text=A%2013km%20long%20moderate%20loop,as%20the%20Ring%20of%20Gullion.&text=The%20walk%20starts%20at%20the,the%20summit%20of%20Slieve%20Gullion.

[MoChara]

With hiking mountains, do you normally need to ask permission of farmers or stick to specific defined routes or generally just lash on and hope for the best.

[lurganblue]

Ah I have done a right bit of the old hiking round the Mournes over the years.  Completed the Mourne Wall walk twice, so been up the 15 peaks along that route.  Don't think i'd do that again though as it is a bit extreme.

Took the family up Slievenaslat on Sunday past in Castlewellen.  Lovely view of the Mournes from the top. 

[Tony Baloney]

This thread is for you to tell us about your favourite walking/hiking routes. This month I climbed Slieve Gullion for the first time. It's a very short walk from the upper car park, about 30 mins up and 20 mins coming down.

Starting in Newcastle, Slieve Donard is a great hike - half a day.

If I walked to walk the highest peak in the Sperrins, then where would I start?

http://www.outdoorni.com/blog/2012/08/30/northern-ireland-s-county-high-points/

[Milltown Row2]

Was up the Mournes at the weekend, Saturday there was all sorts of races going on, though I heard visibility wasn't great, was even worse on the Sunday!

there is usually around 15 of us that head down regularly and 9 of us were due to do the 7 peaks but as weather was bad (visibility wise) we've postponed it for a while. So two of us managed 5 peaks, some spot, but  the people that are running around those places are at a different level!! Met one guy who was doing the wall challenge, two others doing the 7 peaks and other randomers doing multiple peaks.

[bigarsedkeeper]

Was up the Mournes at the weekend, Saturday there was all sorts of races going on, though I heard visibility wasn't great, was even worse on the Sunday!

there is usually around 15 of us that head down regularly and 9 of us were due to do the 7 peaks but as weather was bad (visibility wise) we've postponed it for a while. So two of us managed 5 peaks, some spot, but  the people that are running around those places are at a different level!! Met one guy who was doing the wall challenge, two others doing the 7 peaks and other randomers doing multiple peaks.

Was up Donard a few weeks ago and met a 75yr old man at the saddle, local boyo with a load of collies with him. He walks the wall once a week. Some going.

I saw a few of the guys running down Donard - I could hardly walk down it at a decent pace. How do they not get wiped out?

[brokencrossbar1]

Was up the Mournes at the weekend, Saturday there was all sorts of races going on, though I heard visibility wasn't great, was even worse on the Sunday!

there is usually around 15 of us that head down regularly and 9 of us were due to do the 7 peaks but as weather was bad (visibility wise) we've postponed it for a while. So two of us managed 5 peaks, some spot, but  the people that are running around those places are at a different level!! Met one guy who was doing the wall challenge, two others doing the 7 peaks and other randomers doing multiple peaks.

Former member of this parish Bingo was up running the peaks last weekend. He's from Monaghan though so ....

[SHEEDY]

Was up the Mournes at the weekend, Saturday there was all sorts of races going on, though I heard visibility wasn't great, was even worse on the Sunday!

there is usually around 15 of us that head down regularly and 9 of us were due to do the 7 peaks but as weather was bad (visibility wise) we've postponed it for a while. So two of us managed 5 peaks, some spot, but  the people that are running around those places are at a different level!! Met one guy who was doing the wall challenge, two others doing the 7 peaks and other randomers doing multiple peaks.

I'd know the 3 guys that came in top 3 in Annalong horseshoe race, they're all serious mountain runners and would be running in the mournes at least 5 times a week. They were saying visibility was down to a metre or two in places, even an experienced mountain runner can go off course in those conditions and there was a good few runners didn't finish.

[Milltown Row2]

Was up the Mournes at the weekend, Saturday there was all sorts of races going on, though I heard visibility wasn't great, was even worse on the Sunday!

there is usually around 15 of us that head down regularly and 9 of us were due to do the 7 peaks but as weather was bad (visibility wise) we've postponed it for a while. So two of us managed 5 peaks, some spot, but  the people that are running around those places are at a different level!! Met one guy who was doing the wall challenge, two others doing the 7 peaks and other randomers doing multiple peaks.

I'd know the 3 guys that came in top 3 in Annalong horseshoe race, they're all serious mountain runners and would be running in the mournes at least 5 times a week. They were saying visibility was down to a metre or two in places, even an experienced mountain runner can go off course in those conditions and there was a good few runners didn't finish.

Passed a fella from Annalong who was up on his own with his compass out but was using an app that pinged once he got to the peaks, though he said himself that he wasn't convinced and would need to check his tracker the next day... You couldn't do that alone, even an experienced mountain man wouldn't do those walks in that visibility?

We got 'lost' briefly a couple of times but the maps on the phone got us through

In fairness there was another lone walker but he was sticking to the Wall challenge, ya can't get lost on that !

[Milltown Row2]

First hike up the Mournes this morning, left the Hen car park at 7am and completed  Hen, c**k and Pigeon mountains. Weather was surprisingly great, was expecting high winds but all good, views spectacular