The Knockmealdown Mountains sit in the South East of Ireland close the towns of Cahir and Cashel. It is a wonderful scenic part of Ireland with a great variety of walks from forest loop trails to more demanding mountain treks. The mountain range is on the Tipperary and Waterford borders traveling east to west. The highest point is called Knockmealdown Mountain.
The town Cahir where we will be staying gets its name from the Irish word meaning stone ring fort and today one of Ireland’s finest castles stands here on the river Suir. The castle is well worth a visit and you can get guided tours also. As with much of this area in the South east of Ireland the Butler family (Kilkenny Castle) had a great influence being the first Barons of Cahir and owned Cahir castle. The Quakers also had a great influence later in the 1800s particularly in the milling industries and there is also a beautiful Swiss cottage that you can visit just outside the town.
Highlights: The town of Cahir, Knockmealdowns, Waterford’s highest point, Liam Lynch trail, Swiss cottage, Cahir Castle.
Includes
- 1 nights BB with breakfast in Cahir House Hotel in Cahir
- 1 Evening meal
- Guided walk on Knockmealdown Mountain
- 2 Guided walks with qualified guides.
- Transport from Dublin.
Pickup: From the Molly Malone statue on Suffolk Street (Dublin) at 09:00am and Dundrum at 09:30am
If you are making your own way down we will meet you in our hotel in Cahir at 13:00
Itinerary:
Day 1) Transfer from Dublin to Cahir – walk on Knockmealdown.
In the morning we will leave Dublin and make our way to Cahir, where we can leaves our bags before making our way towards the “Vee” to begin our walk. Our hotel is in the heart of this friendly town, and you have a great range of shops, restaurants and pubs within a few steps.
Sugarloaf and Knockmealdown Mountain: We start this walk from the car park where there are unusual stone buildings, which were used for horses to rest after ascending the long haul up to the mountain pass. In front of us there is Bay Lough where it is said that “Petticoat Loose” a local witch who would pull you under if you swam in its waters. Yes this place is steeped in local folklore and stories. To begin our walk we take a well worn track that immediately rises from the road following a county border wall built during the famine. The wall reaches all the way to the summit of the Sugarloaf. We will take this trail at an easy pace to suit the group. We then continue to follow this wall along the top to the summit of Knockmealdown Mountain. From the summit there are fantastic views in all directions of the Knockmealdowns, Galtees and the south Irish coastline.
Grade: moderate Length 8.5 km, Duration: 3.5 hrs, Ascent: 610m, Terrain: Open mountain tracks.
Afterwards we will return to Cahir to enjoy dinner together and check out the nightlife in this lively town and perhaps enjoy some music in one of its traditional pubs.
Day 2) Walk the Liam Lynch trail – Lop walk
This morning after breakfast there will be sometime to visit Cahir castle if you wish before we travel out towards Goatenbridge to start the Liam Lynch walk. From the car park here we will be taking the purple route and part of the Munster Way trail. After approx 4Km we will reach the Liam Lynch memorial which overlooks the Golden Vale of Tipperary. We continue on this forest trail around the side Crohan Mountain to the top of a valley at which point we cross a bridge and start to make our way back to where we started.
Liam Lynch was an officer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the commanding general of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish Civil War. After hiding out in a house in the Knockmealdowns his unit were suddenly surrounded by the Free Sate Army and its here that Liam was shot while trying to escape. He was the Chief of Staff of the anti-Treaty IRA, its commander in chief and his death signalled the effective end of the Civil War.
Grade: easy moderate Length 11.5 km, Duration: 2.5 – 3hrs, Ascent: 120m, Terrain: Forest trails.
Afterwards we can travel somewhere to enjoy a coffee before we make our way back to Dublin.
This trip is open to those who have appropriate footwear and rain gear. We have had great fun on previous weekends away so are hoping for a lively, easy going gang who love walking, and exploring some of the hidden treasures in this country.
A non-refundable deposit of €35 is required to secure your place and due to the limited accommodation options, we are capping numbers initially at 20.
