The Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland

Giant's Causeway

On the northern border of Northern Ireland is the picturesque Antrim Coast.  Our first stop was at Giant's Causeway, a geological formation of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, each with five to seven sides, formed about 50 to 60 million years ago.  

The locals insist that this is not true, but instead the causeway was made by an Irish giant, Finn McCool.  Finn built the causeway to scout a potential adversary from Scotland he heard about, another giant named Benandonner.  When he arrived in Scotland, he saw that Benandonner was much bigger than himself so he retreated home and in a panic his quick thinking wife dressed him in baby's clothes and told Fin to pretend he was an infant. Benandonner arrived shortly after and he saw the size of the giant baby and was terrified of the thought of the size of the father so he retreated back to Scotland even more hastily as ran to Ireland.  Finn immediately broke up the causeway and that was that.

The pipes of The Organ

The Chimney Stacks

Dunluce Castle

Dunluce Castle is just a few miles from Giant's Causeway on the Antrim Coast and was built in the 13th century by the 2nd Earl of Ulster (Ulster is a province in Northern Ireland).  It changed families only a couple of times in documented history, first to the McQuillan family then to the MacDonalds, who defeated the former in battle in the late 16th century.

View from the castle

It is difficult to avert one's eyes from the captivating beauty of the Antrim Coast, but taking a minute to turn 180 degrees one notices the beauty of the farmland and countryside.  If you have mental images of Ireland, these probably fit them... minus the sun.  We have noticed that every section or property seems to be bordered with a stone wall or hedge.