Castlewellen Peace Maze

 

Created in 2001 on the grounds of Castlewellan forest park located in County Down it was designed not just as a tourist attraction but rather as a symbol of peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland.

The maze covers a large 2.7 acres, and it roughly took 6,000 yew trees to be planted for it to become the size that it is today, many of which were planted by school children and prominent members of the local community as a gesture in reconciliation and looking ahead to the future. It is because of all the hard work undertaken by the community that in 2004 it was recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as being the largest and longest maze hedges in the world.

When I entered the maze, I found it very challenging and disorientating like you would expect most mazes to be, but that did not stop it from being any less fun.  I can only describe it as a mental rollercoaster.  When you feel like you are about to complete the maze you are almost always hit with another dead end bringing you back down to earth again and making you regroup and retrace your steps to find the correct route. I would also recommend doing the maze as a group or with some of your friends as it may require multiple minds to be able to figure it out and you will definitely share some confused looks and laughter along the way.  If you are concerned that once you enter the maze that you will not be able to get out, you shouldn’t worry as there are a number of emergency exits and staff on hand to help reduce your possible panic. If you are like me and can complete the maze, then you are given the bonus of being able to ring the Peace Bell which echoes across the grounds symbolising an epic victory and gives you a sense of accomplishment.

Once you complete the maze you are free to explore the grounds even further with the main attraction being Castlewellan castle which is often open to the public for free. The 17^th century castle is still in good condition and provides the perfect landscape for photos or to sit at the top of the balcony and just relax.

At the nearby lake you can add to your enjoyment by taking part in the many water-based activities that the local council provide. Potential activities include canoeing, waterboarding and water skiing but these are all weather permitting but are perfect to take part in on a warm summers’ day.

In my opinion Castlewellan Peace maze and the surrounding grounds should be in the conversation for one of the best tourist attractions in all of Northern Ireland, but for whatever reason it seems to be that it is not that widely known. The story and history behind it make it more of a local curiosity but I believe that if more people knew about it then it may go from being a local hidden gem to a tourism hotspot. Therefore, based on my experience I would currently rate it a solid 7/10 with room to improve massively in the future if advertised in the correct manner.