HOW SILENT VALLEY BECAME THE NEXT MOURNE PEAK GRAPHIC TEE

225 VOTES. ONE LOCATION. ONE COMMUNITY-LED DESIGN.

At Mourne Peak, we don't just want to create clothing inspired by the Mournes. We want to create something that means something to the people who know them, walk them and keep coming back.

So, instead of choosing our next Graphic Tee ourselves, we asked our community to decide. What happened next became one of our favourite Mourne Peak stories so far.

WE ASKED OUR COMMUNITY

On 23rd July 2026, we launched our first community-led Graphic Tee competition, asking the Mourne Peak community to nominate one location in the Mournes they would like to see turned into an Official Mourne Peak Graphic Tee. The competition was shared with our Peak Subscribers and wider Mourne Peak community, giving people the opportunity to influence what we created next.

The response was brilliant. People nominated places they walk, explore, photograph and return to, from well-known peaks to quieter corners of the landscape that meant something to the person suggesting them.

When entries closed on 29th July, 2026, five locations had emerged as finalists: Silent Valley, Slieve Bearnaigh, Kodak Corner, Slieve Martin and Slieve Binnian. Each put forward by someone in our community, and now it was time for the wider community to decide.

THE COMMUNITY CHOSE SILENT VALLEY

Voting took place across the Mourne Peak website, Peak Community subscribers and our Instagram community, with the results combined. In total, 225 community votes were cast, with Silent Valley emerging as the clear winner with 101 votes. Slieve Bearnaigh followed with 60 votes, while Kodak Corner and Slieve Martin each received 21, with Slieve Binnian on 20.

Silent Valley had been chosen, but for us, that was only the beginning. We didn't want to simply take the name Silent Valley, create a graphic and put it on a T-shirt. We wanted to understand what Silent Valley actually meant to the people who had chosen it and use that personal connection as the starting point for the design.

This is where the competition became a genuine collaboration rather than simply a community vote.

ABOUT SILENT VALLEY

Set within the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Silent Valley Mountain Park is one of the area's most recognisable landscapes. Surrounded by some of the Mournes' most distinctive peaks, including Doan, Slieve Binnian and Slieve Lamagan, with Ben Crom and Silent Valley Reservoir at its heart, it's a place where mountains, water and walking trails come together.

For those who visit regularly, Silent Valley is about more than the landscape. It's about the people you're with, the views you remember, the wildlife you spot and having somewhere to escape for a while. That personal connection is exactly what made it the right story for our community-led Graphic Tee.

Planning a visit? You can find visitor information, directions and more about Silent Valley Mountain Park on Discover Northern Ireland's Silent Valley Mountain Park guide

"Silent Valley means peace and quiet away with the most important people"

-Tiny Trail Trekkers

OUR COLLABORATION WITH TINY TRAIL TREKKERS

The winning nomination came from Tiny Trail Trekkers, a family group made up of Rachel (@littlerach17), her son Harrison, cousin Rebecca (@beckiboo999) and her daughter Florrie. They've been exploring the Mournes together from an early age, building a real connection with the mountains and the places that make them special.

Rachel represented Tiny Trail Trekkers throughout the design process, with Harrison and Florrie also playing an important role in helping us understand what Silent Valley meant to them. Once Silent Valley had been chosen, we wanted the design to reflect their experience of the place rather than simply creating our own interpretation.

You can follow Tiny Trail Trekkers and keep up with their adventures in the Mournes over on Instagram: @tinytrailtrekkers.

FROM THEIR WORDS TO DESIGN

Before putting together any concepts, we created a tailored survey to capture Tiny Trail Trekkers' ideas. We asked what Silent Valley meant to them, which features should appear in the artwork, which season best represented the place and whether there were any local stories or history that should influence the design.

For the artwork, the key feature was the reservoir view from the Mournes towards Doan. The season that best represented Silent Valley was late August, when the heather has bloomed.

When we asked about local history or folklore, there wasn't a particular story they wanted us to recreate. Instead, they talked about what makes a visit special: the silence, the beautiful Mourne scenery, the easy walking and the wildlife.

That gave us a clear starting point for the design.

FROM A PLACE TO AN IDEA

With the brief in hand, we could start designing. Working closely with Rachel, we began translating those ideas into the Mourne Peak design style.

The first concept wasn't the final answer. We went through several iterations with Rachel, exploring different compositions, colours and ways to represent Silent Valley while keeping the Mourne landscape at the heart of the design.

We wanted the finished graphic to feel unmistakably Silent Valley without simply turning a photograph into a T-shirt. With each iteration, Rachel's feedback helped shape the direction and bring the design closer to what the place meant to them.

The final design brought together the elements that kept coming back throughout the process: the Mournes, the reservoir, Doan, late-summer heather, the feeling of quiet and a place worth returning to.

FROM CONCEPT TO FINALISED DESIGN

The final design captures Silent Valley at sunrise in autumn, bringing together the warm colours of the rising sun, the reservoir and the surrounding Mourne landscape.

We took the details that mattered most to Tiny Trail Trekkers, including Doan, the reservoir and the quiet character of the valley, and interpreted them through the Mourne Peak design style rather than simply reproducing a photograph.

The design began with a suggestion from our community, was shaped through the input of Tiny Trail Trekkers and was brought to life by Mourne Peak.

MORE THAN CLOTHING. A STORY.

For us, this project shows how clothing can carry a story. 225 people helped choose what we created next, and Silent Valley is now part of the Mourne Peak story because our community chose it to be.

The design began with a community suggestion, was shaped through close collaboration with Tiny Trail Trekkers, and brought to life by Mourne Peak. The finished tee brings together the landscape, memories and ideas shared throughout the collaboration.

The Silent Valley Graphic Tee is now entering production as part of the Mourne Peak Graphic Tee Collection, with Peak Community members getting first access when it launches.

We're grateful to everyone who nominated, voted, shared the competition and followed the journey. Silent Valley is the first Graphic Tee we've created through this community-led process, but it won't be the last.

Maybe future designs shouldn't come from us. They could come from you.

Subscribe to the Peak Community to get the Silent Valley release date and first access, or explore the Mourne Peak Graphic Tee Collection and discover the stories behind our designs.

ABOUT MOURNE PEAK

Mourne Peak is an independent clothing brand inspired by the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland. We're rooted in the Mournes, and everything we create starts with the landscape around us. The mountains, trails, places and stories that make them special.

Our Graphic Tee collections are designed in the Mournes and built around those connections to place. Every design has a reason for existing, whether it's a familiar view, a favourite walk, a local landmark or a memory made in the mountains.

Mourne Peak is about the people who know and love the Mournes. We're building a community around the brand and giving them a genuine say in what we create. The Silent Valley Graphic Tee was the first time our community helped shape a design from the very beginning, from choosing the location to influencing the final artwork.

It's something we want to keep building on. Designed in the Mournes. Inspired by the people who know them.

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