North Mayo is an outdoor adventurer’s paradise! Here are just twelve ways to enjoy the great outdoors in North Mayo. Enjoy!
1. Don your hiking boots and head west to Lahardane to climb Nephin
While there is no official marked walking routes, you can follow this guide or alternatively, you can travel from Crossmolina to Lahardane on the R315. Turn right at the 50km sign. Continue for 4km to the parking spaces on the right. Cross the road and continue towards the forest for an enjoyable, challenging climb. Phone Crossmolina Tourist Office on +353 (0) 96 30935 or email [email protected] if you need help.
2. Visit the spine tingling Procession of the Souls in Swinford
‘The Procession of the Souls‘ is a memorial park dedicated to the history of the Great Famine, which is a seminal part of Swinford’s heritage. This small but poignant memorial was designed and constructed by US architect Travis Price and his students from the school of Architecture & Planning/Spirit of Place-Spirit of Design, in Washington USA. The memorial has been constructed on the site of the Swinford Famine and Paupers graveyards.
3. Take a kayak trip with David from Paddle and Pedal
You can take a two-hour paddle on the River Moy, or a more challenging full-day tour along the Moy Estuary, where you can stop at Bartra Island and see North Mayo’s own seal colony. Or you can kayak around gorgeous Lough Conn. Or, you can give David a call on +353 (0) 876808955 to hire a kayak and get some suggestions for other great locations that can be explored on the water.
4. Discover your wild side with Wild Wet Adventures
Wild Wet Adventures provide guided walks & kayaking tours around Lough Talt and the Ox Mountains. Wild Wet Adventure programmes are designed in such a way as to introduce a healthy respect and appreciation for the natural beauty and aura the area has to offer and will reward and challenge all ages and abilities. Call John on +353 (0) 867222750 for more information and to book.
5. Take a look into the past at The Addergoole Titanic Memorial Park
The Addergoole Titanic Memorial Park is located in the village of Lahardane. The serene park commemorates fourteen members of the parish of Addergoole who departed Ireland on the ill-fated RMS Titanic.
6. Explore the sacred tombs and field walls of the first Stone Age farmers at Blanemore Forest Archaeological Walk
Over six thousand years of history lie underneath the ground in this magnificent conifer woodland, which is set on a gravel ridge above the wild and ancient boglands of Moygownagh in North Mayo. At Blanemore Forest Archaeological Walk, you can explore the sacred tombs and field walls of our first farmers, walk among the mysterious standing stones of the bronze age and take in the brooding beauty of Lough Naweela. Guided tours available.
7. Go trail running, cycling or hiking through Bonniconlon or Foxford with Rachel at Rachel’s Irish Adventures
Rachel can take you on a tailored adventure anywhere throughout Mayo or Sligo and beyond. Starting by welcoming you into the heart of her native North Mayo, she will bring you with her on an exhilarating outdoor experience through the wonderful landscapes of the Wild Atlantic Way.
8. Take a shot at being on par with award winning golf courses, Ballina, Enniscrone, Swinford or Carne
Our golf clubs are some of the most scenic parkland courses in the West of Ireland.
9. Explore Wild Nephin Wilderness Park
Wild Nephin Wilderness Park is the first of its kind in Western Europe.
10. Take a stroll through the Enniscoe House Gardens and discover your ancestors at the North Mayo Heritage Centre
Enniscoe House is surrounded by beautiful woodlands, with a network of paths, and there are restored walled gardens (both ornamental and productive – one is run commercially as an organic market garden), which are open to the public, and the North Mayo Heritage Centre boasts a small museum and genealogy centre.
11. Take a walk on the wild side…
There are a large amount of looped walks to choose from in the North Mayo region – and walking is one of the best ways to enjoy the great outdoors in Mayo. Get some air in your lungs, a spring in your step and see everything up close. What’s not to love?
12. Explore golden sands of Enniscrone, Ross and Lacken Strand
Ireland as an island is renowned for its splendid coastline and beautiful beaches, and none are more awesome and magnificent than in the pocket of North Mayo between Ballina and Belmullet, and throughout Erris and the Mullet peninsula where the combination of the wild Atlantic, the soaring cliffs and clean sandy shores make for some spectacular vistas.
