Slieve Binnian North Top

About Slieve Binnian North Top

Occupying the northern end of one of the Mournes' most dramatic ridgelines, this granite-topped sub-summit offers a rugged, airy alternative to the main peak. Its terrain is defined by impressive tors and weathered rock, providing a front-row seat to the Silent Valley and the steep, dark slopes of Slieve Lamagan across the water.

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Did You Know?

• •The name Binnian is derived from the Irish 'Sliabh Binneáin', meaning 'Mountain of the Little Peaks'. This refers to the fantastic granite tors that decorate the summit ridge, making it one of the most distinctive profiles in the range.
• •The North Top sits at the opposite end of the high plateau from the main summit. Hillwalkers typically traverse the two via a spectacular high-level path that skirts around massive granite towers, some of which require a steady head for heights if you choose to scramble them.
• •From this specific vantage point, you look directly down onto the deep blue waters of the Ben Crom Reservoir, with the jagged 'H' shape of the Silent Valley dams visible to the south.
• •While the famous Mourne Wall—a 22-mile dry stone boundary built in the early 20th century—crests the main summit of Slieve Binnian, the North Top offers the superior view of the wall's dramatic descent into the Col of the Meels.
• •The granite tors here are so numerous and strangely shaped that local tradition and walkers alike have spent decades debating which rock formation looks most like a sleeping giant or a ruined castle, usually without reaching a consensus.