Tollymore Festival of Orienteering
You are warmly invited to the Tollymore Festival of Orienteering 2022.
The festival is now in its 13th year and is recognised across the island of Ireland as being a true celebration of our sport and community. The Tollymore Festival of O is about bringing the people of our sport together to connect, reconnect, enjoy the craic and, of course, enjoy quality orienteering!
For 2022, LVO have an exciting weekend of orienteering and activities based in the Newcastle area with camping and Barbeque at Tollymore Forest Park. The events and activities will take us beyond our base camp, we even have two brand new maps for you to explore!
Everyone is welcome to attend, from any club, anywhere.
Schedule of Activities
Orienteering
Friday 24th June 2022 Urban orienteering at Dundrum, Co.Down
This is the first event to be staged on a new map of Dundrum village with its splendid scenery of Dundrum Bay with the Mourne Mountains as a backdrop. More information and to enter click here.
Saturday 25th June 2022 NIOA Colour Series, Castlewellan Forest Park
We return to Castlewellan with a new map. The addition of additional mountain bike trails, felling and changes in undergrowth meant that it has been a few years since we were able to host larger orienteering events in the forest. For more information and to enter click here.
Sunday 26th June 2022 – Score, Tollymore
The Sunday morning sees a fun score event adjacent to the campsite at Tollymore, free to enter. There will also be a separate fun event for younger juniors (white/yellow standard). More information and to enter click here.

MapRun6
If you want even more of an orienteering fix, then there are also three MapRun6 courses available in Newcastle, two linear courses of orange standard and a Scatter Course (like a score but without a time limit), for details see: https://www.niorienteering.org.uk/diy-orienteering-in-co-down/
Camping
Camping is available in the Tollymore Forest family camping field from Friday through to Sunday at a reduced cost of £7 per adult with under 16s free when accompanied by an adult.
Toilet and shower facilities are adjacent to the campsite.
Barbeque
The Barbeque will be at 18:00 on Saturday and will be provided by The Mulberry Tree. Please indicate on SI Entries your preference for meat or vegetarian. We encourage you to bring your own cups, plates and cutlery to reduce single use plastic.
Barbeque costs £14 for adult and £7 for juniors under 12.
Boules
There will be a Boules knock out tournament – if you have a set of boules please bring them with you and we can run several matches at the same time.
Booking and Entry
Booking for the BBQ and Camping are available by clicking the Enter Online button below. If you are just attending the Social then select “Social Only” at the bottom of the course list on the first page. You do not need to enter the event. If you are entering NICS4 event as well then you can select a course first then add any number of camping and/or BBQ tickets at the end of your entry.

Location
Tollymore Forest Park
Campsite
Newcastle
BT33 0PW
Hope to see you there!
This Week’s Events – 28/02/22

Have a look at this week’s events!
This Sunday we have 4 events all over the country! Starting off in Cork there is an event at Knockakeo Wood & Leahy’s Open Farm with some lovely runnable forest.
Western Eagles are putting on a Come and Try It event in Galway at the beautiful Roscahill Wood, click here for a taster of what you can expect!
At Belmont Demesne in Wicklow there is another Come and Try It event, perfect for beginners and improvers, there will be friendly helpers at these events to help get you started.
SEVO have an event at Tower Hill in Waterford, there are Long, Medium and Short courses for regular orienteers. Score event for scouts.
Newcomers are most welcome at all events and there’ll be helpers to show you the ropes! Be sure to dress for the outdoors as the weather is very chilly and windy.
Don’t forget to register online for all events! Details can be found on each of the fixtures.
DATE | VENUE | COUNTY | EVENT TYPE | CLUB |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
6th | Tower Hill | Waterford | Other | SEVO |
6th | Knockakeo Wood & Leahy’s Open Farm | Cork | Other | Bishopstown |
6th | Belmont Demesne | Wicklow | Come and Try It | Great Eastern Navigators |
6th | Roscahill Wood | Galway | Come and Try It | Western Eagles |
Anytime | All over | Ireland | DIY orienteering | All clubs |
If there isn’t an organised event near you then do try out our DIY courses around the country, details can be found here. Print out your own map and off you go!
Orienteering is the perfect sport to try as you can participate on your own or in your own family group. It’s perfect for runners, walkers or joggers.
Do share your photos on social media and tag us!
FB :@Irish.orienteering Twitter: @orienteering.IRE Instagram: OrienteeringIreland
See Facebook and twitter feeds for any last minute changes to events
Orange Orienteering Cup

Another event to put on the calendar, the Orange Orienteering Cup, a three stage orienteering competition event from 23rd – 24th April 2022.
2 Days, 3 Stages – Long, Middle and City Sprint Race.
The competition will be held in central part of Slovenia, well known by it’s beautiful and diverse continental terrain. Perfect Pre-season Orienteering Weekend in the Heart of Europe.
SATURDAY, 23.4.2022 | MIDDLE | JURČKOVA DOBRAVA | first start at 10:00
SATURDAY, 23.4.2022 | CITY SPRINT RACE | MENGEŠ | first start at 17:00
SUNDAY, 24.4.2022 | LONG DISTANCE | KRIŠKI BAJER | first start at 11:00
More information can be found HERE.

The Junior Home Internationals- Where/ When/ Who?
For many Junior Orienteerers the JHI’s (Yes, yes, so many acronyms), the Junior Home Internationals are where out Juniors first cut their teeth on the international stage. They are held every year in either Wales, Scotland, England, and on occasion Northern Ireland. We attend under the kind invitation of the NIOA.
Always fun, and challenging these competitions encourage friendships between Juniors of these countries. But don’t take my word for it.
I asked Ruairi Long, to tell me why he liked going to the JHI’s:
“The JHI has been a feature of my Orienteering calendar ever since I was 13. It’s no laughing matter as a junior with little international experience. But looking back after 2 EYOC and 1 JWOC experience, I can say that it’s a defining moment for anyone. Getting to know the British Juniors that you will spend the rest of your competitive career with has been a highlight, but in a sport as individualistic as Orienteering nothing beats the team spirit. The team is really just a family of 24. Oh, and pulling on a top with the word ‘Ireland’ on the back is something else too. “
If you think this is something that you would like to be involved in, please contact me.
We are holding a final selection race on the 9th of September in Gortalunghay, Florencecourt, Co Fermanagh.
If you have any questions I would be delighted to answer them. In the meantime, happy running…
April Orienteering Events
DATE | VENUE (click on venue name for more details and location map) |
EVENT TYPE | Suitable for … | |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
||||
10 | Portumna Forest Park, Galway | ‘Come-and-try-it’ Event | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
10 | Rosskerrig, Cork | Munster League | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
10 | Knockaun & Coolbeggan Woods, Waterford | Cork Spring League / Family Day | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
10 | Djouce Woods, Wicklow | ‘Come-and-try-it’ Event | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
17 | Templehouse Demesne, Sligo | ‘Come-and-try-it’ Event | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
17 | Warrenscourt & Kilmurry Woods, Cork | Cork Spring League / Family Day | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
17 |
Carrick Mountain, Wicklow more details here |
Leinster Championships | Experienced orienteers | |
24 | Mountbellew Forest Park, Galway | ‘Come-and-try-it’ Event | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
24 | Ross Castle & Island, Kerry | Kingdom League / ‘Come-and-try-it’ | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
24 | Spike Island, Cork | Cork Spring League / Family Day | Newcomers, Families, Experienced orienteers | |
24 | Brockagh Mountain, Wicklow | Leinster League | Experienced orienteers | |
29 | WIT Main Campus, Waterford | Irish Orienteering Championships / Sprint | Experienced orienteers | |
30 | Coumshingaun, Waterford | Irish Orienteering Championships / Middle Distance | Experienced orienteers | |
1 May | Mahon Falls, Waterford | Irish Orienteering Championships / Long Distance | Experienced orienteers |