Bleck Cra on Carn Mountain

Horses did neigh, and dying men did groan and ghosts did shriek and squeal about the streets and ranks and squadrons from the north drizzled blood upon our Capitol brother upon brother and seven and ten fierce fiery warriors were yielded up by the PSNI in innocent celebration of their heritage. These things are beyond all use. And weaving squiffily towards another baffling Ides of March, the strangest of all was to find the crock of gold, not warmed under diminutive green breeches, but right here in one’s own back yard. Carn, named after a carpenter, hangs strange and aloof at the edge of the Mournes world as we know it Jim. Like Vandal and Goth bouncers to Caesar, so Carn is to the Mournes: an alien outrider guarding her paymasters in the East; her heart and allegiances in the West. She is the dot part of the semi-colon that she and Muck stamp on the range fronted by Meelmore and ending in tarmac south of Ott-not. Her kinship is with the hugger-mugger west of the Whitewater, Pigeon Rock and the Land of Damp. She oozes bog where there is none; she up-ends the unwary with spring-loaded surprises and presents a profile with as much aplomb as a brick. But where she knocks the rest into a deep, wide, cocked hat, is the view on her NE flank. There is simply no better spot in the world, to take in the Mournes in toto - a vista from the Meels and Bearn, through Cor, Com and Don to all of Beg, Cove, Lam and Bin, even shy Chim and further perhaps, to the ends of the earth itself. This is the kind of thing you get in a plastic shaky snow thing. It doesn’t exist. Except on Carn. Linkback: mountainviews.ie/summit/300/comment/2244/

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wicklore on Carn Mountain

My approach to Carn was from Doan. I left Doan and followed a track NW until I met the SW-NE track below Slieve Loughshannagh. I turned left to follow this SW up to the Mourne Wall at B (J291 268). I followed the wall up to the summit of Carn which was straightforward. The clouds, which had abated over the last couple of hours, were back to obscure my view. The summit arrived quickly and the cloud magically lifted to give me a view of Slieve Muck. I also got the opportunity to follow the route of the Mourne wall as it veered west from the summit before veering south to climb up to the summit of Muck. Unfortunately the cloud rushed back to deny me the views that, in Bleck Cra’s words, were the best to be had of the Mournes. However I was more than satisfied with all I had seen so far today and I set off into the clouds for Slieve Muck. Linkback: mountainviews.ie/summit/300/comment/3385/

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darrenf on Carn Mountain

While it seems most skip from Ott to Slieve Loughshannagh, Ott to Carn was the obvious route for me. The snow conditions made the walk extra special. Carn offers great views over Lough Shannagh and also offers the option to skirt across to Slieve Muck. Given the snow conditions on the day we decided to use the security of the mourne wall as a handrail feature and trek across to Slieve Loughshannagh. There is a stile at the coll between Carn and Loughshannagh which can be usd to cross the mourne wall and gain access down toward the lough shore. The photo goves a good indication of how high the snow had drifted at this stile...the wall is nearly 6ft at this location!! Refer to Slieve Loughshannagh for the rest of the route. Linkback: mountainviews.ie/summit/300/comment/4345/

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pablo_diablo on Carn Mountain

The hike up Carn Mountain was enjoyable—even though it wasn’t the summit we planned to climb at the outset. The original idea was to go up Slieve Muck by the route suggested in Paddy Dillon’s 'The Mournes'; unfortunately the course was so waterlogged that it became more frustrating than it was worth. After some backtracking, we then moved toward Carn...

At the very beginning we started from the Banns Road and followed it to the Mourne Wall. After a short distance, the wall diverges in two directions – one heading up the steep side of Muck (this is the route Dillon suggests, and the one we eventually abandoned), the other toward Carn. The ascent to the mountain is moderate with one particularly steep, but short, section where the wall meets Miners Hole River. As usual, the wall is a perfect guide to the summit. As mentioned in a previous comment, the summit of Carn would be a good stepping stone to Muck (just follow the branch of the wall that goes west / south along the ridge).

On our descent from Carn, we followed the wall north toward Slieve Loughshannagh. Upon reaching the stile at Loughshannagh’s base, we took the track that heads down between Lough Shannagh and Doan. Though the OS map shows that the path nearly reaches the Bencrom River, we found it disappeared into the boggy flats around the Lough (however, it was quite wet the past week, so maybe the track is more evident when it’s dry?). We picked our way slowly through a boggy patch toward the cement shelter (where the Shannagh River meets the lough), and then eventually found a firmer track that merged with Banns Road. We took the road back to the small car park where we began.

The views on the route are great... the descent we took from Carn offered a good vista of Lough Shannagh, Binnian, and especially Doan. It may not be the most difficult hike in the Mournes, but satisfying due to the views and access it offers to other summits. Linkback: mountainviews.ie/summit/300/comment/1764/

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Alex92 on Carn Mountain

The ascent to Carn is easy enough. My favourite approach would be from the Ott track. Park at the Ott/Blue Quarry car park and make your way up the Ott track. Gaiters are essential no matter the weather, as it is boggy the whole way up the track, especially at the final stage where you ascend through peat bogs. Follow the track untill you come to the Mourne wall, pausing maybe to take a break at the style! Then head rightwards, up the northern slopes of Carn to the summit. The reward in views is excellent, especially over Loughshannagh which Carn bathes its feet in. Try to extend your walk further, by maybe descending to Loughshannagh, and following its shores to Doan. Or alternatively, head south to take in Slieve Muck, then follow the path to the road, and follow it back down to the Ott car park. Linkback: mountainviews.ie/summit/300/comment/2668/

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