Mount Stewart - Red squirrel Trail

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The trail takes in the path around the lake, formal and informal gardens including Rhododendron Hill as an alternative route.

Details

n°30954050
Creation:
Last update:
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–
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 1.48 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 0h 45 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 102 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 102 ft
  • ▲
    Highest point: 105 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 36 ft
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Photos

Gardens

Description of the walk

Start : Mount Stewart reception on Newtownards-Portaferry Road (A20). (BT22 2AD)

(S/E) Start at Mount Stewart reception and make your way to the front of the house via the courtyard. (A)

Make your way through the gate into the formal gardens, pass the Sunk Garden and use the stone steps to make your way down into the Italian Garden. Walk straight ahead towards the black and gold metal gate which brings you into the Lily Wood. Make your way through the Lily Wood until you reach the path.

(1) Follow the path to the left towards the lake. Make your way Westward towards Tir N’an Òg, the family’s burial ground high up on the hill. (B)

(2) Continue around the path until you reach Broadley’s woodland. Continue on the path around the lake towards Mount Stewart house or take an alternative route through Rhododendron Hill.

(3) Finish your walk by returning to the front of Mount Stewart house. (S/E)

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 36 ft - Mount Stewart House
  2. 1 : mi 0.67 - alt. 102 ft - Lily Wood - Jubction
  3. 2 : mi 0.84 - alt. 66 ft - Tír na nÓg
  4. 3 : mi 1.08 - alt. 52 ft - Main path
  5. S/E : mi 1.48 - alt. 36 ft - Mount Stewart House

Notes

Start : Mount Stewart reception on Newtownards-Portaferry Road (A20). (BT22 2AD)

Driving to start : 15 miles South-East of Belfast on Newtownards-Portaferry Road, A20 5 miles South-East of Newtownards.

Terrain : Surfaced pathways and Lawn

Public Transport : Translink

Facilities : Toilets located in the reception area, courtyard, and car park. Gift shop, wi-fi, ice cream shop, tea room, garden shop and baby-changing facilities available.

Dog Policy : Dogs must be kept on leads

Find more information and walk ideas at Walk NI here.

Worth a visit

(A) Mount Stewart is a 19th-century house and garden in County Down, Northern Ireland, owned by the National Trust. Situated on the east shore of Strangford Lough, a few miles outside the town of Newtownards and near Greyabbey, it was the Irish seat of the Stewart family, Marquesses of Londonderry. Prominently associated with the 2nd Marquess, Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh, Britain's Foreign Secretary at the Congress of Vienna and with the 7th Marquess, Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart, the former Air Minister who at Mount Stewart attempted private diplomacy with Hitler's Germany, the house and its contents reflect the history of the family's leading role in social and political life in Britain and Ireland.

(B) Tír na nÓg : In Irish mythology Tír na nÓg or Tír na hÓige ("Land of Youth") is one of the names for the Celtic Otherworld, or perhaps for a part of it. Tír na nÓg is best known from the tale of Oisín and Niamh.
Other Old Irish names for the Otherworld include Tír Tairngire (Land of Promise/Promised Land), Tír fo Thuinn (Land under the Wave), Mag Mell (Plain of Delight/Delightful Plain), Ildathach (Multicoloured Place), and Emain Ablach (the Isle of Apple Trees). Similar myths in the northern Celtic cultures include these of Annwn, Fairyland, Avalon and Hy Brasil.

Other walks in the area

Walking Mount Stewart - Red Trail

Tourist office
Mount Stewart - Red Trail
↔1.51 mi ↗+115 ft ↘-85 ft ◔0h 50 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Ards
Welcome to the Red Trail on the Mount Stewart estate. Mount Stewart gardens were acquired by National Trust in 1957, with the house following in 1977. The wider estate was acquired in 2014, bringing the total area to just under 1000 acres. The first areas that have been opened to visitors incorporate the Red, Blue, and Yellow Trails. The Red trail is the main circular walk, and loops through a mixture of woodland and farmland. There are a number of points of interest along the walk, including working farmland, the ruins of a folly, and water features. Red squirrels may be seen in the trees, or running along the ground to get into a tree. The best times to walk the Red Trail are early in the morning or late afternoon, especially in Autumn.

Walking Castle Espie Woodland Trail - Comber

Tourist office
Castle Espie Woodland Trail - Comber
↔1.04 mi ↗+26 ft ↘-26 ft ◔0h 30 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Ards
Castle Espie, situated on the shores of Strangford Lough near Comber, County Down, is the newest Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) visitor centre and the Trust’s first in Ireland. Castle Espie’s main draw, though, is its magical mix of wide estuary views, tidal lagoon, eel-grass mats, woodland walks, salt marshes and reed beds; the presence of Ireland’s largest collection of native and exotic water-birds

Walking Castle Espie Wildlife Wander Trail - Comber

Tourist office
Castle Espie Wildlife Wander Trail - Comber
↔0.75 mi ↗+10 ft ↘-10 ft ◔0h 20 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Ards
Castle Espie, situated on the shores of Strangford Lough near Comber, County Down, is the newest Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) visitor centre and the Trust’s first in Ireland. Castle Espie’s main draw, though, is its magical mix of wide estuary views, tidal lagoon, eel-grass mats, woodland walks, salt marshes and reed beds; the presence of Ireland’s largest collection of native and exotic water-birds

Walking Scrabo Hill - Newtownards

Tourist office
↔2.55 mi ↗+433 ft ↘-433 ft ◔1h 35 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Ards
The walk takes in the summit of Scrabo Hill and the famous Scrabo Tower built in 1857, one of Ireland’s best known landmarks. The views over Strangford Lough and North Down are some of the finest in the country. The walk then descends to the disused sandstone quarries which provided building stone since Anglo-Norman times. The old quarries have major geological importance and have been designated an Area of Special Scientific Interest.

Walking Donaghadee - Ulster Scots

Tourist office
↔2.27 mi ↗+33 ft ↘-33 ft ◔1h 05 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from Ards
Discover the town of Donaghadee his harbour and his points of interest. Half along the see and half in town, this Walk will delight everyone.

Walking Ballymacormick Point

Tourist office
Ballymacormick Point
↔3.33 mi ↗+16 ft ↘-20 ft ◔1h 35 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from North Down
This rocky outcrop along the shores of Belfast Lough, on the west side of Groomsport is covered in gorse and shrubs, good for rough walking, and for spotting birds, flowers and foxes. Ballymacormick is just on the edge of Belfast Lough, so there are interesting views north and west.

Walking Orlock Point

Tourist office
↔2.02 mi ↗+69 ft ↘-66 ft ◔1h 00 ▲Easy
⚑Departure from North Down
The Rocky outcrops of Orlock Point contain a mosaic of semi-natural habitats which support a rich diversity of plants and animals. The walk affords stunning views of the Copeland Islands and out across the Irish Sea towards Scotland. The area is steeped in archaeology and history, with evidence of Vikings, smugglers and World War II defences.

Walking Clandeboye Way - Helen's Bay to Whitespots Country Park Trail

Tourist office
Clandeboye Way - Helen's Bay to Whitespots Country Park Trail
↔13.72 mi ↗+974 ft ↘-981 ft ◔7h 10 ▲Difficult
⚑Departure from North Down
The Clandeboye Way is a great off road walk through a variety of landscapes with lots to see along the way. Of historical interest is Helen’s Tower and the old Leadmines at Whitespots Country Park. The path leads through old laneways, some farm tracks and woodland paths.

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