Rocky Mountain Trail - Annalong

Start : Top of Quarter Rd at the junction with Head Rd, beside Rourke’s Park. (J360224)

(S/E) From the top of Quarter Road follow the track leading right (North-East) along the forested edge of Rourke’s Park.

(1) After 200m cross two gates (50m apart) to bear left upslope (North-West). Continue along an obvious track leading toward the quarried face of Round Seefin. Please close all gates.

(2) Reach and cross a third gate on the right (positioned in a stone wall).

(3) Turn immediately left and follow the adjacent wall for a short ascent onto Round Seefin. From here there are extensive views across the Annalong Valley. You can already see mountains' panoramic views. (A)

(4) From Round Seefin continue directly ahead (North-West), in 700m connecting with the Mourne Wall to scale Long Seefin en route to Rocky Mountain. Do not follow the minor wall leading right (North-East) from the top of Round Seefin.

(5) Beyond Long Seefin the summit of Rocky Mountain can be reached along several rough tracks which lead away (left) from the Mourne Wall. Walk North-North-West for 1 Km from the start of Long Seefin’s level summit ridge (B).

(6) Look for the first of the rough tracks on the left to reach Rocky Mountain summit. Then return from Rocky Mountain to the Mourne Wall.

(7) From here follow an obvious bouldery track which gradually veers right (downslope). This path is linking with the forest edge.

(8) At the track junction, turn left onto Dunnywater Track and then at Head Road turn left to the start point (S/E).

Start : Top of Quarter Rd at the junction with Head Rd, beside Rourke’s Park. (J360224)

Driving to start : 1 Km North of Annalong turn inland on the Quarter Rd. Continue to the end and the junction with Head Rd. The walk begins from here beside Rourke’s Park.

Parking : Limited parking is in a small layby at the top of Quarter Rd at the junction with Head Rd, beside Rourke’s Park. (J360224) Please park sensibly.

Terrain : Stoney and uneven off road paths

Public Transport : Translink

Dog Policy : Dogs must be kept on leads

Note : 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. Please close all gates.

Find more information and walk ideas at Walk NI here.

(A) Beginning with the most easterly mountain peaks, a westward sweeping panorama encompasses Slieve Binnian’s outcropping summit and (further right) North Torrs, with the rugged crown of Ben Crom visible (right) in the distance.
Continuing inland, the broad back of Slievelamagan and the precipitous faces of Upper and Lower Cove can be seen.
Further right, Rocky Mountain partially hides Slieve Donard standing above the undulation ridge formed by Chimney Rock, Blaeberry and Spence’s Mountains. Ahead lies the crest of Long Seefin. Just below its top note the small (dumpling like!) tower which marks the intersection of the Mourne Wall (and its impressive stonework) with the wall which links back to Round Seefin.

(B) Central Mournes panorama from west side of Rocky Mountain. The Blue Lough can be seen at the foot of Slieve Lamagan with the jagged alpine crown of Slieve Bearnagh cutting the skyline further right. Nearer the sea, the twin giants of Slieve Commedagh and Slieve Donard dominate. On clear days look for the line of the Brandy Pad straddling eastwards across the lower slopes of Commedagh and Donard to reach the coast at Bloody Bridge.

The Mourne Mountains, also called the Mournes or Mountains of Mourne, are a granite mountain range in County Down in the south-east of Northern Ireland. They include the highest mountains in Northern Ireland, the highest of which is Slieve Donard at 850 m (2,790 ft). The Mournes are designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and it has been proposed to make the area Northern Ireland's first national park. The area is partly owned by the National Trust and sees many visitors every year. The Mourne Wall crosses fifteen of the summits and was built to enclose the catchment basin of the Silent Valley and Ben Crom reservoirs.

Source and more information about Mournes Mountains here !

Everywhere stone walls enclosing small fields are a picturesque feature of Mourne farmland. Besides making field boundaries, granite stone provided ideal building material and local quarries (as on Round Seefin) were active during the early part of the last century. The extensive coniferous plantations of the Annalong Valley are of more recent origin. Above 250m tree growth is restricted by strong winds and infertile terrain so that, with increasing altitude, man’s influence on the landscape gives way to natural heather vegetation and an unspoilt panorama across the heart of the Mournes.