Belfast Trifecta... Part Three
Also considered part of the Causeway area, our drive was a short 7.5 miles. More winding, narrow roads. More roundabouts. Upon our arrival, we decided to take advantage of the small snack shop just before the entry to the walk. Enjoying the sunny day, we sat at a bench and gazed at the ocean before us.
Antrim Coast between Causeway and Derry is ranked one of the most beautiful scenic roadtrips in the world. With our ship waiting in the opposite direction, we took a different coastal route. Truly can’t imagine the other way could be more beautiful that what we saw… but that just means we will have to drive it at another time… if I can get Barry in a car with me driving again. At this point, that’s debatable.
Must be something tasty in the water… birds from near and far hovered over. Diving in the water, coming back up… definitely a feast!
Across the footpath… away from the ocean… beautiful rolling hills with sheep. Looking happy in their home, they are marked like all the others in Ireland. Years back, I learned that the color is to identify who owns the sheep. If they get out of their pen or otherwise escape, they can be returned to the owner who marked theirs with the corresponding color.
Having used up my allotment of selfies for the day… I was resorted to doing solo shots. Sometimes, you just like to have evidence that you actually visited a place rather than grabbed photos off the internet. So there I was… walking the path along the Antrim Coast.
Dramatic coastlines… walls leading from a cliff to the water intrigue me. As a fan of coastlines in general, I am most drawn to unique coasts. There are many basic beaches, waves roll to shore, etc. However, places like Napali coast, Big Sur and now I add to that, Antrim Coast, are definitely unique and photo worthy! From this angle, it’s easier to tell the walls are approximately 330 feet. Driving along the coast back to Belfast is much easier because it is not used as often.
Mostly a dirt path, there were areas (like this) that had rock steps. Down, down, down only meant up, up, up later but it was the path so we moved on. To be honest, we almost stopped a couple of times but decided we would see the oft talked about site. The fact that it wound along the jagged coastline was a good motivator, as we had nonstop beauty!
As far as we could see, the path continued. Uneven pathway was a bit diffiicult for my foot. After being in the boot for seven weeks, I realize this is pushing it a bit much but when you’ve traveled half way around the world, you do what you have to do to see it all! Basically, if I had to crawl, I would…
Though it seems like I’ve been pushing it, we have taken it more slowly than usual. A couple of our ports we opted to hang back at the ship. Belfast has been our most action packed day. Planning to do a repeat of this cruise, we can do the ports we’ve missed because they are actually all good stops. Anyway… back to the walk… notice the change in the cliffs.
Wildflowers growing on the sides of the rocky hills created such beauty. These series of small islands and the surrounding waters were popular fishing areas for hundreds of years. Salmon fisherman worked these waters.
From atop the hill, looking toward the mountain we would soon descend, was the bridge… the rope bridge. Known as the Carrick-a-Rede, this was built in 1755 to allow the fishermen to carry their catch from the small island to the mainland. Over 100 feet above the crashing waves, fishermen crossed this bridge with only one rail… not nearly as stablized as it is now.
Time to conquer my fear of heights… I walked slowly toward the bridge. Inching closer to the opening, there is a metal door. Through the door is a steep set of stairs leading down to the bridge. That alone had me scared… it the top step, I looked out… it took my breath away. Open seas, waves crashing far below and the bridge I feared… before me. So, I mustered up the courage to cross… Barry behind me repeating the words, “Look up at the mountain”! He wanted me to focus on the green, flowered hill on the other side. I did… and I reached the other side. My legs were shaking so much I could barely stand. Luckily, there was a bench on the far side… I allowed several people to cross before taking my turn. I just wasn’t ready! For a second, I thought I’d have to be picked up by helicopter because I didn’t think crossing back was an option! Finally, I put my mind to it… we walked across so quickly. Before crossing, I stopped to take a photo from the scary side haha. And that was our day… we headed back to the ship and arrived with an hour to spare! What a great day!
