Lough Shannagh Trail

Start : This walk starts at the Banns Road car park. (BT34 4SZ) The track from the car park (known as Banns Road) is in constant use by farmers husbanding their sheep. Please take care not to obstruct the track at any time.

(S/E) From the car park, take Bann’s Road that winds uphill (North-West) to Lough Shannagh crossing the Mourne Wall and the Miner’s Hole River after 3 Km; the name recalling unsuccessful excavations for metal ores by Cornish miners. The track proper ends amidst a flat expanse of white granite gravel and eroded peat hags.

(1) From here pick your way towards the northern edge of Lough Shannagh, (the lake of the fox), in an anti-clockwise direction by going North. At its north-east corner the lough’s outflow is dammed by a low stone embankment.

(2) Cross the river below the dam. Follow the shoreline to the north end of the lough and then ascend (over a boggy, pathless terrain) to a height of 50m to find a path.

(3) From here contour left (West) for approx. 600m to reach an obvious grassy gully which ascends directly to the Mourne Wall.

(4) Continue left (for 900m) to the summit of Carn Mountain.

(5) From the summit, the path veers right (South). The rocky mountain, which overlooks the Lough, is Doan (594m), which if climbed by the left flank (northwest) provides a rewarding view (this excursion adds an hour to the time taken to complete the walk).

To complete the walk, follow a wall leading left down the south face of Carn Mountain (this is not the Mourne Wall; the latter turns right from the summit to continue over Slieve Muck). At the base of the hill the wall breaks at its junction with the Miners Hole River.

(6) Turn left at the break and follow the left back of the river (no path) back to the stone bridge on the Banns Road Track. (1 Km)

(1) Return to the start via the same route. (S/E)

Start : This walk starts at the Banns Road car park. (BT34 4SZ) The track from the car park (known as Banns Road) is in constant use by farmers husbanding their sheep. Please take care not to obstruct the track at any time.

Driving to start : The approach to Lough Shannagh is from a discreet car park on the B27, 7 Km north of Kilkeel on the East Side of the road.

Terrain : Unsurfaced, uneven, hilly track

Public Transport : Translink

Facilities : Refreshments and toilets at Kilkeel or Silent Valley Visitors Centre.

Dog Policy : Dogs must be kept on leads

Note : Please be aware – Although, there are numerous walking routes in the Mournes, the majority of these popular walks are not formally designated public rights of way. Most routes have developed over time due to traditional use. Below 600feet (180m) most land is privately owned and is farmed or grazed. Many of the traditional access routes cross this land or pass along farm lanes and quarry tracks. Walkers are advised to respect that they may be walking on private land and are encouraged to make themselves aware of and adhere to the principles of ‘Leave No Trace’ – www.leavenotraceireland.org”
Please remember that much of the land you will cross is private property and access is only available through the goodwill of the landowners. Although some areas of the countryside have been traditionally used for recreation, the public have no general rights to access such land and are only walking with the tolerance of the landowner.

Find more information and walk ideas at Walk NI here.

Ben Crom Reservoir is a reservoir located in the Mourne Mountains near Kilkeel, County Down, Northern Ireland. Along with Silent Valley Reservoir, which is situated further down the Kilkeel River valley, it supplies water for County Down, surrounding counties and most of Belfast. It was constructed between 1953 and 1957, as the final part of the Mourne scheme to provide water to Belfast which started with the passing of the Belfast Water Act in 1893.

Ben Crom is a mass gravity dam, meaning it is made of concrete and designed so that the dam's own weight stabilises it against the force of the water. The middle of the structure consists of mass concrete with granite plumbs weighing up to 5 tonnes. The outer face of the dam was made with precast concrete blocks. The project cost approximately £1 million to build and employed 186 people.

In 2012 Northern Ireland Water carried out refurbishments at Ben Crom as part of a £1.6 million scheme to maintain and improve a number of reservoirs in Northern Ireland.

Source and more information about Ben Crom Reservoir here!