Friday 18 May 2012 - Following the
Causeway Coast. Casey Stoner calling it quits, so glad we are seeing him now.
Day 36 and 123 to go
The alarm went this morning with both
of us reluctant to get up. I got up briefly before retreating back to bed where
it was warm and cosy.
Knowing breakfast would be served at
8.30am we got out and sorted before heading downstairs. We were met by Jeff again
who served our hot breakfast. YUM.
Paul was ready to get going soon after
and was up and down the staircase with our cases. We checked our Ireland map to
work out where we would head and then we thanked our host before heading on to “The
Dark Hedges”, a tree lined street that has not been looked after and as such
the trees have grown over and meet in the middle of the road creating a hedge
like shape with the road heading up the middle. This is a well-known area, as
it was a street used by the Dunlop’s when out riding their motorbikes, as such
there were many people there taking photos.
Ballycastle was our next stop, this is
a seaside town that would be lovely on a warm day but this morning it was blowy
and cold. We were back in the car quick and heading on to Carrick-A-Rede, but
first we stopped at Kinbane Castle, an old ruin at the bottom of the cliff.
Being so cold and blowy we didn’t walk down to it, instead we just enjoyed the
views from the top.
Carrick-A-Rede our next stop on the
coast was an old Atlantic salmon fishing spot, where they erected a rope bridge
to reach the best place to launch their boats.
The place is very rugged with black and
white cliffs that meet the sea. We parked at the ticket office and then walked
the kilometre up and over the rolling hills soaking up the views. We were then
met with a steep staircase before crossing the rope bridge suspended 30m above
the sea below. I let Paul cross first as I didn’t want him bouncing me across
it.
The other side was a small island
inhabited by birds. We walked around, attempting to stay out of the muddy
spots. From where we were you could see the Mull of Kintyre. After our wander
in the cool breeze we returned over the rope bridge and back to our car. The up
and down walk warmed us up thankfully.
We continued along the coast road to
Bushmills, the home of the Irish Whisky.
We located the distillery and organised to do a tour. With it being an
hour and a half away we continued on to Dunluce Castle.
The castle sits on the cliff edge. The
roof is long gone but many of the walls are still in tact and you get a real
feel for what it may have been like. The castle was a busy centre with many
visitors, many coming from Scotland as it was easier for people to come by sea
than overland.
We had electronic guides to tell us
about the building and what would have occurred in the different rooms. It was
very interesting.
We returned to Bushmills, stopping
first for a sandwich and then on to the Distillery. We were taken on a 30 min
guided tour through the plant, seeing the different stages of the distilling
process before being given a sample. I took a sip that made my eyes water and
my nose and lips curl so it was given to Paul, much to his delight. We wandered
through the shop before returning to the car and the road.
We drove back through Portstewart, a
slow drive, continuing on the Causeway coast road through Coleraine and on to
Londonderry just inside the Northern Ireland boundary. This is a walled city.
Unfortunately many of the old buildings were destroyed in the fighting during
the 60s – 80s. We walked s short distance through the town, stopped for a pint
and then got back in the car.
Our final stop was Letterkenny 30 min
away. We attempted to stop at the Tourist Information but it had already closed
so we returned to a B&B we had passed on the way in. Meeting Michael the
owner we were shown a room and decided to take it, even though it was somewhat
more basic and not as homely as where we had stayed last night.
We brought in our things, set ourselves
up and then drove back into town. We located the central bar where we stopped
for a drink and ordered a pizza for dinner. Lucky for us, they forgot the pizza
in the oven so it was super crispy and they needed to make us another, so in
the meantime we were given another drink for our troubles. With dinner done it was time to return to the
Lark Hill B&B.
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