The Mourne mountains revisited

This weekend I took myself off to the Mourne mountains again. It is such a photogenic place and is only around an hour's drive from where I live it's hard to resist, especially when the weather looks so promising.

I truly love this place, it has beauty in a very dramatic and desolate sense. In some parts it almost feels like and looks prehistoric, and it is very easy to forget that civilization surrounds it and is only just around the corner.

The brandy pad is a route I have never taken before. This starts at the foot of Slieve Meelmore and leads up past the hare's gap and up past Slieve Bearnagh. The track was created by smugglers and their heavily laden ponies as they transported illegal goods such as tobacco, spirits and leather inland from the east coast in the 18th and 19 centuries. It was so popular by 1835 that almost half the houses in Hilltown were pubs!




Once at the top of the path you climb over the Mourne wall and are then faced with the most amazing plateau that contains Doan and Slievelamagan. The view the stretches all the way down through and past the silent valley reservior to the sea. This is perfect for panoramic shots.



This area is very popular with hikers and climbers so if you don't want them in your images then you may need to be patient to get a clear uninterrupted view.

I will be returning here again in the near future as I didn't have the time (or the energy!) to explore the hares gap.

All the images are in the Kingdom of Mourne gallery.

Bye for now.