Slieve Bearnagh

After a rude awakening in the morning being questioned how to turn on my camera because there is a hot air balloon flying over the house; I began my day with nothing to do, so quickly settled on a hike on a nice day.

Having done Slieve Binnian twice almost a month ago, I decided to switch it up and do another peak that I hadn't done in many years - Slieve Bearnagh. However, this time I would do it the proper way instead of the unconventional way a friend and I climbed it many years ago. The drive up to the Trassey car park has some stunning views of Meelmore and Bearnagh, and although I am not typically one to stop the car on a tight road to get out and take photos, I couldn't miss the chance!

Trying to find suitable parking was a nightmare with the car park already filled and thus being relegated to the tight country road but thankfully we made it work and off I went. The start of the trail is a simple gravel path until the first gate where it then transitions to horrible rocky path that was just straight annoying to walk up with rocks jutting out from everywhere making the ground uneven to navigate.

The journey continued until the fork on the trail just before the quarry that decides which saddle you take to approach Slieve Bearnagh's summit. Having gone a 'non-traditional' way the last time I went up Bearnagh, I couldn't quite remember if the left or right path would take me to Hare's Gap. Seeing that the right path's saddle was closer to the summit, I surmised that must be Hare's Gap so on I went!

As I reached the saddle and climbed the stile to cross the Mourne wall, I noticed a severe lack of path heading towards Slieve Bearnagh's summit to my left. However, that wouldn't deter me so I moved forward which provided scenic, albeit just brown, views of the peatlands and heathlands that make up the heart of the Mournes area.

As I was making the climb up to Bearnagh's summit, I was impressed by the gradient eventually having to follow a sheep's switchback trail to continue to make quicker progress. However, I eventually got to the top to see half the country was up here enjoying their lunch with a view!

As I continued on my way back, I realised that this was the route everyone was taking to reach Slieve Bearnagh meaning I was actually heading towards Hare's Gap this time. Though I thought the gradient was bad on the other route, this route felt like it would be the more difficult route up with lots, for me, drops which weren't kind to the ol' knees.

The walk back was as exciting as the hike up - not very - so I don't have much to add to close out this section. However, the good news is that we're not done just yet.

Silent Valley

A new day and off I returned to the Mournes but instead of a hike to a summit it was a leisurely walk through Silent Valley with the 'rents and dog. Sadly, this day almost marked the first set of gorse fires in the Mournes in 2026 with the entire valley in a complete haze.

The walk was incredibly peaceful and somewhat eery with the lower visibility which really makes you understand why the valley and reservoir got its name. As we followed the tarmac path, you set yourself towards the base of Ben Crom reservoir. From there you can take the stairs up to the top of and probably the only 'challenging' part of this walk but provides a lovely view into the reservoir itself from one side and another lovely view back into Silent Valley.

If the section on Bearnagh didn't excite you, I'm sure this part on Silent Valley was even less entertaining. So instead I will close out on more of a rant that ties this all together - the farmers around the Mournes get away with far too much. Every year there seems to be a set of mysterious fires around the end of April and every year it is blamed for various reasons. However, it is the farmers that have their restrictions on burning the gorse lifted at this time (please educate me if I am wrong) and it is my personal opinion that some though not all farmers just let it slightly out of control so that fire men spend tireless hours managing the fires at their own risks. I won't say some of the fires aren't or can't be started by the general public but the timing of them consistently every year is telling.