A Great Day!

What a fabulous day we had. It was a sixty mile drive to the Giant’s Causeway, but we set off early and there was not much traffic. We had three National Trust cards between four of us and they let us all in for free which was great. We walked down to the Causeway and it was fabulous. The waves were huge and crashing in. It was awesome watching that much power pounding the coast. The waves were mesmerising. I’ve been told by some people that the Giant’s Causeway is over hyped and a bit of a let down….well, I totally disagree. It was absolutely fantastic. The unusual rock formations and the crashing waves in the sunshine blew me away, I could have stayed all day watching. I climbed up on it and went as close to the sea as possible, you could feel the force of nature.

We eventually tore ourselves away and climbed the steep path up to the top of the cliffs and right round the headland back to the visitor centre. The views from the top were breath taking.

I then drove along the coastal road and we stopped at Ballintoy. They filmed Game of Thrones there. I’ve never watched it, but it is on my list. The waves were even bigger there and they surged over the huge rocks.

We continued on the coastal road to the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge. It was lovely sunshine as we walked the path down to it. As we neared I started to feel a bit nervous. The wind was very gusty and it then started to drizzle. I was the first in our group and I took a deep breath and stepped on it. It swung around in the wind and I held on tightly, but I did it. My hands were shaking as I got off the other side and my legs went very wobbly. The trouble is you psyche yourself up and cross and then feel relief but then you have to go back again.

By the time our group had all crossed it started to pour down and the wind blew even stronger. I had taken pics of Pat and Ellen as they crossed and Pat said she would get one of me going back. I just about managed to let go of the rope for a quick ‘thumbs up’ photo. But…I did it and I got the certificate to prove it too.

We walked back up the headland to the car. It was a good climb and I had control of my jelly legs by then. We went on to Ballycastle where we had fish and chips…we absolutely deserved them after all our steps and scary rope bridges. In fact we then treated ourselves to an ice cream as we sat watching the sea.

It was a longer drive back along the coastal road and we went through the Peace Gates on Shankill Road. I was shattered after all the walking and the driving, but it was such a great day.