Ireland (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Fionn Davenport [584]
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WALK: CAUSEWAY COAST WAY
The official Causeway Coast Way (www.walkni.com) stretches for 53km from Portstewart to Ballycastle, but the most scenic section – the 16.5km between Carrick-a-Rede and the Giant’s Causeway – can be done in a day and offers one of the finest coastal walks in Ireland.
There are cafes and public toilets at Larrybane, Ballintoy Harbour and the Giant’s Causeway, and bus stops at Larrybane, Ballintoy village, Whitepark Bay Youth Hostel, Dunseverick Castle and the Giant’s Causeway. Note that parts of the walk follow a narrow, muddy path along the top of unfenced cliffs, and can be dangerous in wet and windy weather. Also, high tides can temporarily block the way at either end of White Park Bay; check tide times at any tourist office.
Begin at Larrybane, the car park for Carrick-a-Rede. The path starts off along a cliff top with views of Sheep Island, then cuts inland straight towards Ballintoy church. At the church turn right and follow the road down to the harbour. Continue along the shoreline past a series of conical sea stacks and arches, and scramble around the foot of a limestone crag to reach the 2km-long sandy sweep of White Park Bay.
The going here is easiest at low tide, when you can walk on the firm sand. At the far end of the bay (the building with the yellow gable above the dunes is Whitepark Bay Hostel), scramble over rocks and boulders at the bottom of a high limestone cliff for 250m (slippery in places) to Portbradden. If you’ve timed it wrong and the way is blocked by high tide, you can detour up to the hostel and reach Portbradden by walking along the road.
Beyond Portbradden white limestone gives way to black basalt, and the path threads through a natural tunnel in the rocks before weaving around several rocky coves with the high cliffs of Benbane Head visible in the distance. At tiny Dunseverick Harbour you follow a minor road for 200m before descending steps on the right at a waymark. The path then wanders along the grassy foreshore, rounds a headland and crosses a footbridge above a waterfall before reaching the car park at Dunseverick Castle.
From here the cliff-top path, narrow in places, climbs steadily, passing an old salmon fishery (the little rusty-roofed cottage on the shore far below). Near Benbane Head, the highest and most northerly point on the walk, a wooden bench marks the viewpoint known as Hamilton’s Seat (William Hamilton was an 18th-century clergyman and amateur geologist from Derry, who wrote one of the earliest descriptions of the Causeway Coast’s geology). Soak up the spectacular panorama of 100m-high sea cliffs, stacks and pinnacles stretching away to the west, before you set off on the final stretch. If you want to visit the causeway itself, descend the Shepherd’s Steps (signposted), about 1km before the visitor centre and the end of the walk. Total: 16.5km. Allow five to six hours.
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The main attraction on this stretch of coast is the famous (or notorious, depending on your head for heights) Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge ( 2076 9839; Ballintoy; adult/child £4/2; 10am-7pm Jun-Aug, to 6pm Mar-May, Sep & Oct). The 20m-long, 1m-wide bridge of wire rope spans the chasm between the sea cliffs and the little island of Carrick-a-Rede, swaying gently 30m above the rock-strewn water.
The island has sustained a salmon fishery for centuries; fishermen stretch their nets out from the tip of the island to intercept the passage of salmon migrating along the coast to their home rivers. The fishermen put the bridge up every spring as they have done for the last 200 years – though it’s not, of course, the original bridge.
Crossing the bridge is perfectly safe, but it can be frightening if you don’t have a head for heights, especially if it’s breezy (in high winds the bridge is closed). Once on the island there are good views of Rathlin Island and Fair Head to the east. There’s a small National Trust information centre and cafe at the car park.
Sleeping & Eating
Sheep Island View Hostel ( 2076