Geology & Landscape

Have you ever wondered how the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Croob formed into such a stunning landscape, shaped by geology?

The answer lies deep in the prehistory of the earth, beginning when the surface of the earth looked very different. If you stand in the Deer’s Meadow near Spelga Dam, you are standing on the sedimentary rock formed in the earth’s ancient oceans that once covered the Mourne peaks. It took the shifting of continents, volcanic activity and the effects of the various Ice Ages to shape what we now appreciate as the Mourne AONB. This transformation took thousands of years to complete.

For more information on how the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Croob formed, check out this link:

https://mournegullionstrangfordgeopark.com/about-our-geopark/our-geopark/

The landscape we see today is not just a natural wonder but has been moulded by centuries of human activity. Nature has combined with man’s influence to produce a living, working landscape with special traditions.

The area is renowned for its many dry stone walls that help to divide the land into a “patchwork quilt” of fields. The most famous of these walls is the magnificent Mourne Wall, which celebrated its centenary in 2022. Owned by NI Water, it was designated as a listed structure in 1966. In recent years, the wall has undergone significant repairs. The Trust is represented on the working group that oversees this important work.

The Trust’s Ranger and Countryside Teams maintain access to important heritage sites such as Legananny Dolmen and the Granite Trail at Newcastle Harbour. They also monitor and carry out repairs to features such as dry stone walls. Their knowledge and skills are often shared with volunteers and landowners so that they too can make a positive contribution to the landscape.