Overview
The cairn on top of Mullyash is roughly 6,000 years old: a kerbed burial mound raised around 4000 BC, when someone decided this 317 m hill in County Monaghan was worth the effort of hauling stone to the summit. On a clear day you can see why – the view opens across nine counties. The rest of the time it’s a boggy, breezy drumlin-country hill with a good archaeological site on top, a stop on the National Waymarked Monaghan Way, and a modest but satisfying half-day walk.
The cairn
The summit is crowned by a kerbed cairn, a National Monument (ref. 564) now in the care of Coillte. It’s a bowl-barrow about 16 m across and 1.85 m high, ringed by a kerb of set stones, and most archaeologists reckon it hides a passage tomb of the kind early farming communities built for their dead. Raised around 4000 BC, it’s among the older things you can stand beside in Ulster.
About 200 m west stands a broken standing stone, once some 3.6 m tall. Both sit on the boundary between the townlands of Mullyash and Tavanaskea, in the parish of Muckno, hard against the Armagh border.
Folklore
Local tradition kept the hill busy long after the tomb-builders:
- Crom Dubh’s Sunday – into the mid-20th century people climbed Mullyash on the last Sunday in July, a survival of the harvest festival of Lughnasadh, with dancing at the cairn and a walk out to the standing stone.
- The marriage stone – young people are said to have come to the standing stone to find a match, leaving a small token at its base as a pledge.
- Fionn’s throw – one legend has the giant Fionn mac Cumhaill hurling a stone from Slieve Gullion, some 16 km off, to land where the standing stone now sits.
Walking the Monaghan Way
Mullyash sits directly on the Monaghan Way. The usual approach is the climb from Clontibret to the summit – about 8 km, roughly two hours, rising steadily through open countryside. From the top the trail carries on as a longer descent towards Castleblayney and Lough Muckno, following old railway alignments and quiet lanes. The route is walked but not heavily waymarked, so carry a map or a GPS track, especially if you’re doing the far side back on your own.
Practical information and access
There’s no charge and no set hours; the hill is open all year. The usual start is near Clontibret village on the R185, where there’s a small car park by the community centre. From there, a marked forest track feeds onto the Monaghan Way.
Key walk details
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Height | 317 m (1,040 ft) |
| Prominence | 100 m |
| Nearest village | Clontibret (≈ 5 km) |
| Clontibret to summit | about 8 km, ~2 hours |
| Recommended map | OSI Discovery Map 28 |
The ground is straightforward, but the heath and peat turn soft and slippery after rain, so sturdy boots earn their keep. The cairn and standing stone are protected monuments: stay on the paths, leave the stones where they are, and keep dogs on a lead near the archaeology.
Nearby and before you go
The Clogher Historical Society and the Mullyash Community Group run occasional guided heritage walks, usually in spring, pairing a talk at the community centre with a guided ascent; dates go up on the Monaghan County Council heritage pages, and numbers are capped to protect the site. Pair the climb with Carrickmacross and its lace gallery, or carry on south to the lakeside town of Castleblayney.
One thing decides the day here: visibility. The nine-county view is the whole point, and on a grey Monaghan afternoon you’ll get cloud instead – check the forecast and go when it’s clear. For current walk dates, the county heritage office is on 047 73722.