The southern Comeraghs, and why nobody calls them that
The Monavullagh Mountains are the southern half of the Comeragh range in County Waterford, and hardly anyone uses the name. Locals talk about the individual summits, or just say the Comeraghs; Monavullagh – from the Irish Móin an Mhullaigh, ‘bog of the summit’ – has sat on Ordnance Survey maps since the 19th century without ever settling into everyday speech. The upside of that obscurity is space. These hills draw a fraction of the walkers who make for Coumshingaun and Mahon Falls a few miles north, and on a weekday the ridge is often empty.
This is a serious hill day, not a stroll. Paths fade to nothing on the tops, the going is boggy, and cloud can drop over the plateau in minutes. Fitness matters less here than being able to navigate off a map when you can’t see fifty metres.
The walk to Seefin
Seefin is the high point at 726m, and the ridge that runs up to it is the reason to come. The usual circuit climbs from the Mahon Falls road, takes in a short spur to the Coumfea corrie lakes, then works north along the tops – over Farbréaga, the ‘false man’ – to Seefin itself, where a fallen trig pillar and a derelict concrete hut mark the summit. From up there the ground falls away to the Mahon valley, Dungarvan Bay, and the sea beyond.
If you only have half a day, walk in to the Coumfea lakes and back rather than committing to the full ridge. It’s the best of the scenery for a third of the effort, and you keep an easy line of retreat if the weather turns.
A Bronze Age hillside, and a coin from Central Asia
The western foothills hold more than they let on. Archaeologists have mapped a Bronze Age settlement and ritual complex spread across roughly four square kilometres of these slopes – one of the larger prehistoric landscapes in the south-east. And on the same western ground, someone once turned up a Kushan coin, struck by a dynasty that ruled in Central Asia two thousand years ago. Nobody can say how it reached a Waterford hillside. Even as a hint of long-distance contact, direct or third-hand through a dozen sets of hands, it’s a strange thing to find in the heather.
The Colligan River rises up here too, then runs south off the range down to Dungarvan.
Wildlife
The birds are the draw for anyone carrying binoculars. Hen harrier quarter the moorland, and peregrine, raven and buzzard all work the crags and open ground. Keep dogs close in spring and early summer, when ground-nesting birds are on eggs; the rest of the year they’re welcome on a lead near livestock.
Getting there and staying safe
The range is reached from the Mahon Falls road, signposted off the R676 north of Dungarvan. The car park is small and shared with everyone heading for the falls, so it fills fast on fine summer weekends – come early, or use the lower layby and walk up.
Carry the OS Discovery Series Sheet 75 and a compass, and know how to use both: the ridge is unmarked, with sheer drops on the coum edges and peat hags that hide deep water. It’s no place for young children or for anyone new to mountain navigation. Sturdy boots, waterproofs and spare warm layers go in the pack whatever the forecast promises.
Nearby
- Comeragh Mountains – the higher northern half of the range, with Coumshingaun’s cliff-ringed lake the standout.
- Copper Coast Geopark – a drive south to sea cliffs, fossil beaches and coastal walks.
- Mahon Falls – visible from the lower road, an easy add-on before or after the hill.
Check the mountain forecast the night before, not the morning of. Up here the difference of a few hours often decides whether you see anything at all.