IT’S an `office’ with the best view in Northern Ireland, but the working day of Mourne rangers Marc Vinas Alcon and Katie Taylor starts with a four mile hike.

The pair have to scale the north’s tallest mountain for their two-year project to repair path ways on Slieve Donard and Slieve Commedagh.

The National Trust is investing £250,000 to protect the landscape and improve the condition of paths, with the Mourne Mountains home to a varied range of rare plants and habitats at its highest points.

The delicate montane and dry heath, blanket bog, and specialised species which thrive there are part of why the mountains have been designated as a Special Area of Conservation.

However, as the popularity of the Mournes has grown over recent years, winning accolades such as Northern Ireland’s favourite walking destination, visitor numbers have risen and the delicate ecosystem has started to show signs of wear and tear.

The Mourne rangers will work to create a sustainable path on Slieve Donard, repairing `braided’ tracks, where walkers have created multiple routes and re-landscaping some of upland areas to ensure protection of the surrounding environment.

Mr Vinas Alcon, who began as a volunteer at Murlough national nature reserve, working as a boardwalk ranger last year, said the mountains remind him of his native Catalonia.

“I’m really happy to start this new adventure and new challenge,” he said.

Ms Taylor, who has just finished working on the Mourne wall project with Mourne Heritage Trust, said as the difficult physical work of repairing the paths and bringing the materials to the site each day, there will be other challenges.

“Weather is going to be an issue, we can’t always guarantee the perfect sunshine when we’re up here, and the path needs to be repaired whether there’s a hailstorm or snow.”

Heather McLachlan, National Trust regional director, said they “want to balance conservation with access”.

The rangers are hoping to recruit a team of volunteers to support the project.

They can be contacted on their Twitter account at @NTMournes and more information is available at nationaltrust.org.uk/the-mournes or at Murlough National Nature Reserve on 028 4375 1467.