Overview
For a few years in the early 1800s Urris more or less governed itself, and it did so on poitín. This valley on the western edge of Inishowen is walled in by the Urris Hills and Binion Hill and reached by only two roads – the steep, hairpinning Mamore Gap and the lower pass through Crossconnell – which made it easy to defend and hard to police. That same seclusion is the draw now: sea cliffs, quiet beaches and hill walks a long way from the tour buses, on the eastern shore of Lough Swilly in County Donegal. It’s still an easy hop off the Wild Atlantic Way from Buncrana or Clonmany.
If you’ve one thing to do, drive up and over the Mamore Gap, stop at the grotto near the top, and walk out along the Urris Hills ridge for the view down the lough.
History
The valley’s isolation runs through its whole story. In the early 1700s it came under Colonel Daniel McNeill, a Scottish planter whose enforcers, the “Yowmen”, held the locals to heel; his rule is remembered in folklore, and he ended up buried in Straid churchyard after a botched abduction at Pollan fair. Later the coast caught the edge of national history: Theobald Wolfe Tone was captured by the Royal Navy off Dunaff Head in November 1798, at the collapse of the United Irishmen’s rising.
The best-known chapter is the Poitín Republic. By the early 1800s the Urris Hills were the centre of an illicit poitín trade, and with only the Mamore Gap to guard, locals posted scouts, built rock barricades and threw up roadblocks at Crossconnell to keep the revenue men out. The self-run spell ended in May 1815, when General Dalziel’s troops moved in and broke up the stills.
Two older and one more recent layer are worth knowing. Dunaff Bay, at the mouth of Lough Swilly, is the site of Ireland’s oldest known Mesolithic campsite, where flint tools and waste flakes of the Early Larnian tradition have been found. The Irish nationalist Sir Roger Casement studied Irish at the local language college in 1904–1905. And on 11 April 1941 a Vickers Wellington bomber crashed on the Urris Hills, killing all six crew; a small cairn marks the site (grid ref C296 414).
What to see & do
Beaches and coast
- Lenan Strand – a small, sheltered sandy beach with a picnic area, and the starting point for the Urris Lakes Loop. Calm and family-friendly.
- Tullagh Bay – a wide horseshoe that catches consistent Atlantic swell; the established local surf and windsurf beach, with hire sometimes available in season.
- Dunaff cliffs – a dramatic stretch of sea cliff with a tall sea stack offshore and clear sightlines across Lough Swilly, best in early light.
Hills and walks
- Urris Lakes Loop – 6.5 km from Lenan Strand, graded moderate to strenuous, about 2–4 hours, past the hill lakes with the lough below.
- Urris Hills ridgeline – a roughly 6.8 km walk from the Mamore Gap grotto along the ridge, about 3.5 hours with around 345 m of climbing. Unmarked in places, so it needs settled weather and a map; watch for peregrine falcons and ravens on the crags.
- Mamore Gap – the narrow pass that is the valley’s front door, with a holy well and grotto near the summit. Steep and winding, and the reason the “republic” held out so long.
Heritage
- Irish college – the modest building where the language revival took hold here in the early 1900s; it still hosts occasional Irish-language and community events.
- Thatched cottages – several restored cottages let as self-catering, a practical window on how the valley was built and lived in.
Practical information
- Getting there – from Buncrana or Clonmany, follow the R238 to the Crossconnell turn, then climb through the Mamore Gap into the valley. Public transport is very limited, so a car is effectively essential.
- Parking – there’s free parking at Lenan Strand for the Lakes Loop, and at the grotto at the top of the Mamore Gap (grid ref C319 429) for the ridgeline. Both fill on summer weekends, so come early.
- Food & accommodation – the Rusty Nail pub serves food, and there are self-catering thatched cottages and a few B&Bs. Beyond that there’s little in the way of shops or restaurants in the valley, so it’s wise to bring supplies or book a cottage with a kitchen.
- Best time to visit – the Urris Lakes Loop is signed as best from February to September, and late spring to early autumn gives the most reliable hillwalking and surfing conditions. Winter brings storm-washed cliffs that photographers love but that need careful planning.
- Safety – the Mamore Gap road is narrow and can ice over in winter. Hill routes cross uneven, boggy ground and exposed ridges: carry a map and waterproof footwear and check the forecast. Keep off the cliff edges at Dunaff in high tides or strong onshore winds.
Time your Dunaff Head walk to the tide, which shortens and exposes at high water, and give yourself long enough to leave the road – the old trackways off it are where the valley is at its quietest.