Most people with a passion, or even a passing interest, in the Great British outdoors could likely have a stab at naming the highest mountains in England, Wales and Scotland – namely Scafell Pike, Snowdon and Ben Nevis.
But could you name the highest in Northern Ireland without falling back on Google? I’d never heard of Slieve Donard, part of the Mourne mountains, but I’m now an evangelist for it: it’s one of the finest mountains I’ve walked in the British Isles.
I pick up the baton from Simon McGrath, who wrote a blog about our successful ascent of Snowdon, which was the first summit in Club Director General Robert Louden’s Four Peaks Challenge to raise money for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in its Diamond Anniversary year.
After a bite to eat at Drufferin Arms in Killyleagh – and one of the creamiest pints of Guinness I’ve been lucky enough to taste – we slept soundly at Delamont Club Site, before rising early to tackle the peak.
One of the first things that impressed me about Slieve Donard is its popularity among locals and its accessibility. We’d done a recce on parking the night before, and found space for hundreds of cars in Donard Park, most of which were taken with walkers, fell runners, and day trippers of all shapes and sizes.
With a clearly marked path from start to summit, it’s a peak anyone can tackle, and they do – we walked alongside people in trainers who looked like they’d come straight from sunbathing on the long stretch of Newcastle Beach, literally across the road from Donard Park.
The first part of the climb is a glorious forest path, alongside the babbling Glen River. It threads through old woodland of Scots Pine before spilling out onto a plateau, and a track that leads to the saddle between Donard and Commedagh.
It’s quite a steep ascent then to the saddle, where the Mourne Wall – a long, dry stone wall about 6ft tall – leads up the steep incline toward a stone tower next to the summit cairn. As the sunshine of the foothills disappeared behind cloud cover, and wind blasted in off the sea, we were certainly glad of the shelter it gave us.
Every ten or so minutes for the next hour, as we hunkered down for the final, steep climb to the summit, we passed walkers coming down who cheerfully told us we were just 20 minutes from the top.
And finally we reached it. After a pork pie or two we set about pitching our Vango Ostro 300 tent in the teeth of a gale.
That’s right, we pitched a tent. Why? We’d decided early in our planning that we wanted to link the partnership the Club has already forged with the DofE Award in its Diamond Anniversary year to Robert’s Challenge. Back in May we’d joined forces to create a world first press stunt, in which Club President Julia Bradbury camped overnight on top of the O2 in a tent, to kick start National Camping and Caravanning Week.
It was the perfect fit – the theme for NCCW was Get Kids Outdoors with Camping, and the DofE Award’s own aim for the Diamond Challenge to change the lives of young people. And that’s why we brought the same tent Julia camped in on top of the O2, and to help the DG’s 4 Peaks DofE Challenge illustrate that camping is the perfect base for exploring the Great British outdoors.
Pitching the tent at the summit took some doing, but we managed it for our photos and video. Then we packed it up in half the time, and began the trek back to the car park.
One interesting development from the 4 Peaks Challenge so far: I’ve had to re-learn how to walk. We’ve been joined by mountain leader Dave Ascough, who recommends short steps, being sure to plant the whole foot and not walk on the balls of the feet when climbing. It’s how Sherpas walk, is to do with centre of gravity and economy of effort, and it works!
Finally, a word of thanks to our supporters: the walkers in Robert’s team are well kitted out by partners Keela (who supplied trousers, jackets and fleeces), Vango (who supplied the rucksack, hydration pack and summit tent) and Hi-Tec (for walking boots and socks).
I write as we cross on the ferry from Belfast to Cairnryan, with the sun shining over the hills, and I hope that kit isn’t going to be tested to the extreme on Ben Nevis, which we tackle tomorrow.