The Mourne and Cooley Mountains are quite simply a hiker's paradise. The highest and most dramatic mountain range in Northern Ireland, the Mournes hug the County Down coastline in a compact region designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Cooley Peninsula – a finger of land in County Louth bounded in the north by the spectacular Carlingford Lough – is one of Ireland's best kept secrets. These exhilarating walks will take you to the highest point in Northern Ireland. Trek through the picturesque woodland trails of Castlewellan and Tollymore. Discover the highest passage tomb in Ireland. Walk along an old smuggler's route, tranquil reservoirs and the sand-dunes of Murlough Nature Reserve. The more ambitious will relish the Mourne Wall challenge, and some summits include optional scrambles to the top of dramatic granite tors or rocky outcrops. Each graded route is illustrated with photographs and specially drawn maps. Snippets on the rich flora, fauna, geology, history, heritage and folklore of each area are included throughout. So, get your walking boots on and discover the impressive landscape that spawned the legend of the Táin Bó Cúailnge and inspired C. S. Lewis' magical world of Narnia .

The only guidebook for the Mourne Mountains written by a County Down local hiker: 30 handpicked routes. The only guidebook for the Mourne Mountains with Real 1:25,000 Maps: this makes navigation easy and saves you money: no need to carry additional maps. Also includes: - Game of Thrones film locations - Numbered waypoints linking maps to text - Quick Reference Route List: enabling you to plan an itinerary to match your ability and schedule. All difficult calculations of time, distance and altitude gain are done for you - Everything the hiker needs to know to plan routes: route descriptions, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more - Accommodation section - Information on Wildlife, Plants & Geology - History of the Mourne Wall - List of Irish Place Names - Edge to edge colour: the most modern and beautiful Mournes guidebook The Mourne range comprises the highest mountains in Northern Ireland. It is a stunning wilderness which is popular with local walkers but is relatively unknown to those outside of Ireland. The highest mountain in the range is Slieve Donard (849m), Northern Ireland's highest point, which sweeps majestically down into the Irish Sea at the pretty seaside town of Newcastle. This proximity to the sea is a characteristic of the Mournes, often creating a mysterious atmosphere, as frequently the high peaks can be seen rising dramatically out of a blanket of sea mist. The Mournes have everything you would expect from a mountain region on the Emerald Isle: beautifully long ridges, magnificent summits and vibrant heather and gorse covered slopes. However, there is one key thing which sets it apart: uniquely, the whale-backed slopes of the highest peaks are completely encircled by the lovely dry-stone 'Mourne Wall'.

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