Greeba Mountain, Slieau Ruy and Lhargee Ruy

Another wild day on the hills had us starting from Greeba and heading up through King’s Forest (Greeba Plantation). The ground was sodden with stream running down every path.

We followed the main fire track up the eastern side of the plantation and kept with it as it zig zagged steeply upwards. Near the top is a nice little waterfall on the right but the route heads left.

Eventually we reached the stile where the warden’s path is way marked.

A rough track now heads west above the wall bounding a curious area of broken, ancient-looking trees and then heads up to the summit of Greeba Mountain.

The boats had been cancelled this morning and, struggling to stand at the summit, it was easy to understand why.

The mist was now well and truly down as we struggled onward in the gale, first NE the east to the top of Slieau Ruy. Time for tea and sandwiches in the small amount of shelter provided by the cairn.

We then continued NNE intending to include the top of Lhargee Ruy but actually walked straight past in in the mist, ending up at the gate where we turned sharply SSW down the  Cronk Breck track.

Just before the first gate the warden’s path traverses above the wall to the top of the plantation and the stile we crossed. This is probably the best route but we decided to continue down to the road and then turn on to the footpath to Bawshen.

This passes the Lance Ussher Memorial Reserve – I can’t find any about this on line so please comment if you can help enlighten me as to what this is.

We followed the footpath signs through gates to the grounds of a very nice property.

At the other side of the grounds a footpath sign indicated the way across a field to a rough stone stile and the stream at the eastern side of the plantation.

At first we turned left but this seemed to go nowhere so we headed back up. The only way forward was indicated by motorbike trials signs and involved wading through the stream, going under a fallen tree and then up a narrow gully before reaching a better path and eventually the main track. It seems odd to have such a well sign-posted path that suddenly ends (see the Slieau Managh walk for something similar).

It was then just ten minutes back down to the car in the lay-by at the bottom Greeba.

Another great walk in, at times, challenging conditions. At least the rain held off this time. 3 hours for 11.5km.