Saturday, Dec 10, 2011

Gulf News

A perfect day trip away from belfast

The frothing green and blue waters of the North Atlantic roared 30 metres below me, craggy rocks waiting to shatter my bones in shards and sweep me away into the tide, gone forever.

The Carrick-a-rede rope bridge lay open for 30 metres ahead of me, a long queue of visitors waiting behind me. My moment of truth.

“It’s like bungee jumping for softies,” the friendly woman at the Discover Northern Ireland tourism office assured me the previous night. “Sure I’ve done it three times.”

I’m sure she meant six. Because once you decided to cross the swaying rope and plank structure out to a small island outcrop on the Antrim shore, you have to cross it back — unless, of course, you want to end up in the spuming sea below.

Sure enough, one step out onto the bridge and it began to sway.

“Go on, son,” a voice called out from behind me, as visitors gathered on the metal steps bolted to the cliff face, waiting for their turn to cross. “Get on with it.”

Then my other foot. More shaking.

All of the guide books said not to look down. But I did. Frothing sea, jagged rocks surfacing from cresting waves. A long way down.

Let’s put this in context — I’ll get vertigo walking up steps, and my stomach gives way if a lift moves too fast. So what am I doing here in the middle of this swaying rope bridge 40 miles (64 kilometres) north of Belfast?

Well the Giants Causeway had always beckoned me. That’s the most unique formation of hexagon-basalt rocks formed 60 million years ago on the Antrim coast. It’s a Unesco heritage site. And visiting there it’s easy to see why. When molten lava quickly cooled as it hit the cold Atlantic waters sweeping around the north coast of Ireland, it formed millions of hexagon-shaped pillars. The entire site gives the impression of being culled from piles of angled coins, waiting for someone to come and count them. The coast of Scotland is just 25 kilometres away, and you can see its hills clearly.

Sea birds such as fulmar, petrel, cormorant, shag, redshank guillemot and razorbill make the cliffs home.

Earlier that morning, we stopped off in Carrickfergus, more a suburb of northern Belfast now than the fishing village and bastion it was for centuries. It was here that King William of Orange landed in 1690, setting the island of Ireland on a march of history that still reverberates — today, very quietly.

But that’s the thing about this small piece of Ireland — the emirate of Abu Dhabi is bigger — it has little geography and lots and lots of history.

In every field, it seems, history is waiting to be uncovered. This small corner of Ireland lays claim to being the home of at least ten American presidents. If true, it’s remarkable, given that the population of the British-ruled area is about 1.5 million.

Driving up Antrim also offers visitors the chance to detour off into any of the nine glens that cut through into spectacular fashions down to the sea.

At Dunluce, an imposing ruined medieval castle sits precariously perched on a headland, conjuring up images of forlorn maids tossing themselves into the sea below as their lords and masters came and went like the tides.

This is an area where only links golfing is considered to be sport, and the championship courses at Portrush or Portstewart will have you snapping your clubs in frustration as the wind whips away your perfectly aimed drive.

Take a walk along the strands with those same winds wisping through your hair, or simply watch surfers with more agility than sense ride the waves offshore.

Bushmills is famous for being the largest beverage distillery in the world, and the sea air, fresh mountain streams and wind-swept barley malted over peat hewn from the boggy mountains adds to its spirit.

Take your time driving here. Distances are short, effortless, so enjoy the nuances of every village. In no time at all, you’ll find your way into the city of Derry.

For many years, the two communities of Northern Ireland have spatted over whether the correct name of the city is indeed “Derry”. plain and simple, or “Londonderry”, favoured by the Protestant guilds to which the city charter was given back at the closing years of the 17th century.

Come 2013, however, the only wholly walled city in Europe will be the UK’s “City of Culture”. In pragmatic fashion, however, both communities have taken to calling it “Legenderry”. If only that simple and positive attitude was applied to life everywhere else.

But back to the Carrick-a-rede rope bridge. Yes, I crossed. Twice. It’s not so much bungee jumping for softies. More like trampolining for leprachauns. Nothing to it!

— M. O’R.

By Mick OReilly Senior Associate Editor

Gulf News 2011. All rights reserved.