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FORKHILL AND MULLAGHBAWN |
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You might expect FORKHILL to lie in an elevated position, but this
tiny village nestling in the southwestern foothills of Slieve Gullion
derives its name from the Irish foirceal ("trough"). It's a simple,
quiet and remote-looking place though dominated by the massive army
encampment stacked upon the crown of an overlooking hill. The village is
strong on traditional culture: O'Neill's Welcome Inn has a well-known
storyteller , John Campbell, and sessions most Tuesday nights (and other
music at the weekends); there's weekend music too at The Forge .
Neighbouring MULLAGHBAWN ( an mullach bán - "the white summit") to the
north, has O'Hanlons' Bridge House which holds regular sessions on
Fridays and Saturdays, and the innovative Tí Chulainn cultural
activities centre (tel 028/3088 8828; www.tichulainn.ie ), dedicated to
the promotion of the area's culture and literary heritage. South Armagh
has a powerful song tradition and the centre hosts both the Stray Leaf
singers' club (every second Saturday) and a number of annual events,
including the Tommy Makem International Song School in the second week
in June. The Slieve Gullion Festival of Traditional Singing takes place
in both villages on the first weekend in October.
If you want to stay , there are a couple of B&Bs in Forkhill: Lakeview ,
34 Church Rd (tel 028/3088 8382; £33-40), with fine views of the
mountain, and Greenvale , 141 Longfield Rd (tel 028/3088 8314; £26-33),
which also offers pony trekking . In Mullaghbawn there's Lar Na Tuaithe
, 89 Maphoner Rd (tel 028/3088 8897; £33-40), very close to the Tí
Chulainn centre. Near here, the Ring of Gullion Centre on Lough Rd (tel
028/3088 9311) also provides pony trekking and riding lessons.
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