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I am trying to plan a long weekend of walking & Mountain Biking in or around the Mourne Mountains. Was hoping to get some advice as to what to cram in!
Which are the best or must-do trails or routes? I think there are a couple of trail centres nearby.
I enjoy everything from scenic cross country to the less lairy end of downhill (I have 130mm trail bike which gets me down most things).
Was there not a big article in the magazine about riding in this area not too long ago?
Rostrevor is nice for a long XC red route with various Black options. There are also downhill trails (the orange ones) I ride them on a 150mm bike and I'm not particularly skilled. There is an uplift on Sat and Sundays to the tops of the orange trails and if you follow locals you can find all the more gnar unofficial trails. Bigwood is good for enduro style "natural" trails and Castlewellan is also a top shout for XC. With regards to the mournes I have ony done the Banns road trail up to Loughshannah, its worth it for the views.
There is a mountain loop I sometimes do in Louth called the Tain way which is an all day job.
All the above trails are south Down/ Louth
As Dougie says Rostrevor & Castlewellan centres are the ones to do.
http://www.mountainbikeni.com
It terms of walking what sort of length are you talking?
slieve bearnagh, Slieve Binnan, Doan & the Brandy Pad are some of my favourites.
http://www.walkni.com/destinations/mourne-mountains/
Happy to give more details or answer any questions.
I've ridden Slieve Binnean. It was ace! I rather fancy a tilt at the full loop of the Mourne following the wall.
Of the man-made stuff, I really liked Rostrevor.
Cheers
Sanny
Trassey Track up to Hares Gap then over and down to Bloody Bridge (walk)
Alternatively Trassey Track then up to Commedagh and down over the top to Tollymore (hike a bike - the descent is amazing)
Lots of hidden stuff along the Glen River woods - spend a day walking it then ride the next day
If you want someone to show you the area, here are a couple of guides you could try:
www.rockandrideoutdoors.com
www.firsttracksmtb.com
www.mountaingoatguiding.com
loads of very good natural single track in tollymore and donard, great there scenery too, both are in newcastle area and give 2-3 hours riding.also loads of fairly easy to navigate walks up the mountains, especially staring from donard park (in newcastle).
Thanks for all the suggestions & advice. Plenty of ideas to start planning with!