Slieve Gullion
| County | Distance | OS Map |
| Armagh | 9.5 miles | Sheet 29 + The Gateway to Ulster |
| Nearest Town | Route Shape | RouteType |
| Forkhill, Meigh, Drumintee | Circular | Forest, Hill |
| Terrain | Grid Reference (Start) | Grid Reference (Finish) |
| Minor roads and forest tracks | J042196 | J042196 |
A mountain walk exploring the Slieve Gullion Special Area of Conservation and the Ring of Gullion Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) using mountain paths, forest trails and country roads.
The walk is located within the Ring of Gullion Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The AONB is an area of national landscape importance and is centred on the craggy heather covered hills of a circular ring dyke volcano that erupted over 50 million years ago. The Ring of Gullion is the most famous ring dyke in the world having featured in geological debate and theory over the past 160 years.
Slieve Gullion rising to 573m is the centrepiece of the volcanic landscape and is a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) which recognises the importance of the geology and the upland heather moorland. The purples of the heather contrast with the yellow of dwarf gorse and orange of the bracken to create rich mosaics of colours which contrast with the many greens of the agricultural ladder farm landscape.
At the base of the mountains are a network of lowland loughs associated with a diversity of fen, bog and wetland vegetation including bulrush, cotton grass, bilberry and deciduous woodland.
People have lived in the Ring of Gullion for over 6000 years. The area is renowned for the wealth of Megalithic and early Christian monuments including over twenty large stone tombs. Also close by is the Dorsey, dating from the Iron Age period. This is a massive earth embankment and rampart which sits astride an ancient routeway to Eamhain Macha, the ancient capital of Ulster.
The Ring of Gullion and Slieve Gullion, in particular, have rich associations with Irish legends and myths. In one tale, Finn McCool was bewitched by Miluchra on the summit of Slieve Gullion at the Lough of the Calliagh Bhirra. To this day the superstition survives that if you bathe in the lough your hair will turn white.
| Point of Interest | Cairns, Chambered Grave, Killeavy Castle and Killeavy Churches |
| Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty | Ring of Gullion |
| Route Description | The walk starts and finishes in the car park adjacent to the Slieve Gullion Courtyard Centre in Slieve Gullion Forest Park. Follow an uphill path from the top left of the car park adjacent to an interpretation panel. The path continues uphill through deciduous woodland for about 1km until arriving at a log bench opposite a Ring of Gullion Way marker post. Turn right on to the forest drive and continue uphill through a stand of mature beech trees for 800m. Turn right on to a short section of forest track until the upper forest drive is reached. Turn left on the forest drive and continue along the southern slopes of Slieve Gullion for about 2km until an upper car parking area is reached on the left hand side. This section of the trail has magnificent views of the Ring of Gullion peaks of Croslieve, Slievebrack and Mullaghbane Mountain. In the upper parking area are interpretation panels that explain the geology of the area and provide further walking information on the Ring of Gullion Way. Turn right fifty metres beyond the parking area up an initially steep mountain path. Continue on over a stile until a stone shelter is reached. The views in this section expand to include the peaks of Slievenacapple and the Ring of Gullion to the North. An interpretation panel at the stone shelter illustrates the legends associated with the area and the legendary Finn McCool. Passing to the right of the stone shelter the path becomes steeper, traversing areas of peaty and rocky ground. After 500m the path arrives at the summit of Slieve Gullion and the Neolithic South Cairn Passage Grave. The tomb can be entered from just below the summit. Panoramic views from the summit take in the Mourne Mountains, Carlingford Lough, The Cooley Peninsula, the Armagh Drumlins and beyond. The path continues North-West along the summit plateau arriving at Calliagh Berras Lough after 800m. Continue past the lough to the North Cairn which is also a Bronze Age burial chamber. Continue on the path and descend for about 2km down the North side of the mountain until reaching the Ballard Road. Turn right along the country lane and follow it as it undulates through the countryside. Keep right after 2km where the road forks and continue to Killevy Old Churches an ancient convent dating from the 5th Century. St Moninna is buried in the churchyard. St Bline’s Holy Well is on the hillside above. Continue along the country lane, past Clonlum South Cairn Portal Tomb on the left and Killevy Castle on the right for a further 2km before turning right at a cross roads. Continue through gateposts on to the exit drive from the courtyard centre and the car park. These walks are situated in a working forest environment and may be subject to diversion and closure from time to time. Up to date information is available on the Forest Service web site - link below. |
| Getting to the Start | From Newry take the Dublin Road until the Cloghoge Roundabout (2km). Travel on the B113 towards Forkhill, for approximately 5km past Meigh until the sign for Slieve Gullion Forest Park on the right hand side of the road just before Drumintee. Follow the drive past the Courtyard Centre to the car park which is the start and finish of the walk (GR J042196). Bus Service No 43 from Newry passes the Forest Park entrance. |
| Facilities | Car parking at the Slieve Gullion Courtyard. Village shops in Meigh, Drumintee and Forkhill sell supplies for taking on the walk and for having a picnic. Good food can be had in the restaurant or bar at Murphys in Meigh. The Forge Bar, Larkins and the Welcome Inn in Forkhill, Slieve Gullion Forest Park and The Three Steps in Drumintee also serve liquid refreshments. Toilets available at Slieve Gullion Forest Park. |
| Accessible Toilet Facilities | Yes |
| Accessible Terrain | Variable terrain from flat, undulating to steep mountain paths. |
| Accessible Signage | No |
| Publication | Newry & Mourne Walking Guide 'Walk' Northern Ireland |
| Publication Availability | Tel: Newry Tourist Office 028 3031 3170 or ROSA on 028 3086 8183 |
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8 feedback comments have been left by readers about Slieve Gullion:
I found that all levels were catered for at slieve gullion: a novice hillwalker could walk the Hawthorn Hill area, someone with more experience could walk the area around the summit, (by driving up and parking there). We actually missed this entrance to the summit path on the "drive" route.
If you had the whole day and started very early, an experienced person could probably walk the "drive" in a day? The views were really beautiful. The drive is a one-way route, so it's not so stressful, because you're not expecting oncoming vehicles on the narrow road
There was a lovely coffee shop on the grounds which closed at 4pm, which we weren't expecting and there were areas around it with picnic tables too. A really nice day out.
For anyone doing this walk there is also the option of entering from the Longfield Road side (see the Ring of Gullion Way) The Tí Chulainn Centre (Slieve Gullion Lodge) are currently offering en-suite accommodation for £25/€27 per night, we are right beside Slieve Gullion.
See http://www.tichulainn.com
Also, walkers are more than welcome to park in Tí Chulainn at any time.
Hi maeve, coming to the end of our hols we managed the Slieve Gullion walk this week.
A different sort of walk entirely from Castlewellan but far more remote and dramatic. We followed the instructions and I think by and large we passed all the pointers mentioned on the print out. It was a very enjoyable afternoon out with some 3.5 hrs allowing for stops.
All the views were outstanding.
The only advise we could give to novice walkers is make sure the right footwear is worn and adequate water supply is taken. You could be caught out on a very hot day. The other thing, although cafe at the courtyard was v.nice and one of the members spoke Irish which was intepreted by her colleague, the car park itself looked like a joy riders paradise with lots of tyre impressions. Infact rocks had been put in place on the secondary park to stop access. The picnic tables were in poor condition but there was a CCTV camera which might help if people are concerned about leaving cars. On the lovely descent from the summit you hit Ballard Rd, the whole area is so pretty but sadly people have been using it for fly tipping which is such a shame. All in all once you are in and above the car park it is really unspoilt and lovely. It's also a shame they do not charge, have some sort of gatehouse with security and it would be a much better place to visit. Kind regards. Andy G
Walked it today, and we really enjoyed it! My GPS reckoned it was a touch over 9 miles, though. Highly recommended.
This walk is stuning, we had a great day so the views were spectacular. I highly recomend this walk but it is not to be undertaken lightly, we didn't quite judge it right and nearly got locked in the car park. allow plenty of time. apart from that i can't wait to do it again !
The first gate is 350m from the Ballard Road, continue straight on through the gate. The second gate is at the Ballard Road at the end of the section. Both gates open. Please close after.
50 metres past the carpark there is a white marker, this is where to begin the path to the summit. Do not miss this marker! Agree with previous walker, there are 2 gates to go over before getting onto the road. A great walk with superb views but very boggy in parts after rain.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable though at times tough going walk. The route description here was generally helpful though I did end up a little offcourse at times. On the descent there were two gates to be climbed before reaching the country road and I think it would've been helpful if you had mentioned this. I had assumed those fields were private property and so had walked some distance each side of the first gate thinking the path skirted around. But apart from this the description was useful, especially how it signposts the historical sites towards the end of the walk.
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