 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Belcoo to Port Stewart
We had another good breakfast at Belcoo and set off at 10:30 for Portstewart. This drive took us three hours, including a stop for a wander around Enniskillen and a detour round scenic lanes, that proved too scenic for our driver. We found a place to park on the front at Portstewart and walked around for a while, and then walked up the hill to to find our hotel, Mr and Mrs Jones, around 2:30. This was too early for them and we returned there at 5 to 3, still too early. So there was a slight dispute when they came out and told us bang on three that the room was miraculously ready, not having even asked us who we were up to the stage. The hotel including the room, was incredibly bling throughout The room otherwise was fine. We had some lunch in the window area and then read for a while before venturing out again.
This time we drove to Downhill house and found that the gardens of this National Trust property that we had visited with Silversea in June, were open free to the public for some reason, so we had a little wander there : not too far as David still has his two pulled tendons. We then continued to Castlerock where we had another short walk, and then drove on to Mcgilligan Point, here we walked to the Martello tower, and then across some dunes to the beach and back to the car. We got back to the hotel about 6:30 and I had a half-hour siesta.
We had a package with the hotel that included two nights plus one dinner so went down for this dinner around eight told them who we were and we’re given the incorrect menus. When we pointed out that we had this package yet again, they returned with different menus. There was a choice of four or five starters and five or six main courses but three of the four we chose were unavailable, somewhat unfortunate. We both had chicken liver pâté to start with which was bland and then I had a black cod on a risotto of barley with salad, and David had Monkfish with chips that he did not like at all . We had numerous discussions with the waiter who kept coming to ask if everything was okay. Eventually the duty manager came along and dealt slightly better with the situation . We asked if a pudding was included, and it obviously was not, but he said we could have one. This turned out to be the best part of the meal crème brûlée and a lemon tart , I wonder what tomorrow will bring.
Port Stewart
An excellent breakfast and a very pleasant waitress. No mention of "guys". We left the hotel at 10:30, and had a stop at Dunluce Castle where we had a long walk round the outside and then went into it. We had a long talk with one of the its custodians , which was interesting. The next port of call was Bushmills Distillery where we went in to the shop and bought a bottle of Black Bush for Paul and Carol. From there there we drove to the Giants Causeway, where there were far too many cars to be able to park - with busses going in both directions along roads only wide enough for one, we decided to give the place a miss..
Along the coast was Ballintoy harbour and beach . There we eventually managed to park and had a very pleasant picnic on a bench and also a short walk within the harbour.
We then proceeded to Carrick a Rede rope bridge, which in fact is no longer made of rope - health and safety and all that. You needed a timed ticket to get there, and we did not have one. But the nice man on the car park let us park in the National Trust car park. We had a long walk in order to see the bridge, much further than we thought, but remarkably the journey back seem quite short.
Proceeded to Ballycastle, where we filled up with petrol and attempted to find the advertised scenic route home without success. So we came back along with coast, stopping at Kinbane Castle and then Portballintrae. Here we got drenched by a one minute shower, which was followed by an impressive rainbow. We had another go at Giant's Causeway on the way back, but this time they claimed they were closed. We drove round Portrush and then back to Portstewart . Back at the hotel we had coffee and the rest of our lunch and then went for a walk round town then had a lager in the hotel before coming up for another coffee
We treated ourselves to a Morelli ice cream on the front, and indeed had ice creams on the next two days - before they were banned
Mr & Mrs Jones Hotel, Portstewart
An oversold PR run hotel. They have clearly entertained a lot of journalists to ge good write ups, and have now handed it over to gormless staff to run. High on bling, low on service. There were no sea view from our room, not indeed from other rooms
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Enniskillen
We parked and walked to the town centre. There was a service in the Protestant Cathedral - the churchgoers were well scrubbed up for attending.
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
Portstewart
The beach town is situated between Coleraine town and the coastal town of Portrush. The location is central to a lot of tourist landmarks around the area such as the Giants Causeway, Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge, Dunluce Castle,
Portstewart was a popular holiday destination for Victorian middle-class families. Its long, crescent-shaped seafront promenade is sheltered by rocky headlands. It is a reasonably prosperous town. Portstewart developed to a modest size seaside resort in the mid 19th century under the influence of a local landlord, John Cromie.
Portstewart Strand has long been famous for its golden sands, tall dunes and panoramic views of the north coast. Proudly ranking among the top 10 most popular visitors’ destinations, the scenic beach attracts 180,000 visitors each year.
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Dunluce Castle
Dunluce is one of the most picturesque and romantic of Irish Castles. With evidence of settlement from the first millennium, the present castle ruins date mainly from the 16th and 17th centuries. It was inhabited by both the feuding McQuillan and MacDonnell clans. The castle is surrounded by extremely steep drops on either side, which may have been an important factor to the early Christians and Vikings who were drawn to this place where an early Irish fort once stood.
In 2011, major archaeological excavations found significant remains of the "lost town of Dunluce", which was razed to the ground in the Irish uprising of 1641. Lying adjacent to Dunluce Castle, the town was built around 1608 by Randall MacDonnell, the first Earl of Antrim, and pre-dates the official Plantation of Ulster. It may have contained the most revolutionary housing in Europe when it was built in the early 17th century, including indoor toilets which had only started to be introduced around Europe at the time, and a complex street network based on a grid system. 95% of the town is still to be discovered.
Dunluce Castle served as the seat of the Earl of Antrim until the impoverishment of the MacDonnells in 1690, following the Battle of the Boyne. Since that time, the castle has deteriorated and parts were scavenged to serve as materials for nearby buildings. The castle is now in the care of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Flags
We passed through a number of towns and villages with "flags" still on display. I think they were still up from 12th July. Flags are highly significant in Northern Ireland. The basic Union Jack declares an area to be Protestant, then as other symbols get added, it declares the area to be more hard line
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Bushmills
Bushmills Distillery uses water drawn from Saint Columb's Rill, which is a tributary of the River Bush. The distillery is a popular tourist attraction, with around 120,000 visitors per year. It produces the Bushmills brand of Irish whiskey. The company that originally built the distillery was formed in 1784, although the date 1608 is printed on the label of the brand – referring to an earlier date when a royal licence was granted to a local landowner to distil whiskey in the area. After various periods of closure in its subsequent history, the distillery has been in continuous operation since it was rebuilt after a fire in 1885.
In June 2005, the distillery was bought by Diageo for £200 million. Diageo has also announced a large advertising campaign in order to regain a market share for Bushmills. In November 2014 it was announced that Diageo had traded the Bushmills brand with the Beckmann family of Mexico in exchange for the 50% of the Don Julio brand of tequila that Diageo did not already own. In April 2023, Bushmills opened its second distillery, the "Causeway Distillery".
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
Ballintoy
The small fishing harbour can be found at the end of a small narrow steep road down Knocksaughey Hill, which passes by the entrance to Larrybane and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. The village itself, which is just one kilometre from the harbour, has a charming array of small shops, two churches
Ballintoy Harbour, meaning ‘Town of the North’, is built with limestone blocks in a roughly triangular shape. No matter the weather, the crowd of small boats and surrounding rocks make for a fantastic photo of the Northern Irish coast, which extends to Ballycastle on one side and Whitepark Bay on the other
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Carrick a Rede Bridge
The Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge links the mainland to the tiny island of Carrickarede . It spans 20 metres and is 30 metres above the rocks below. The bridge is now a tourist attraction and is owned and maintained by the National Trust. In 2018, the bridge had 485,736 visitors. You pay to cross it on a timed ticket, such is the demand
It is thought salmon fishermen have been building bridges to the island for over 350 years. It has taken many forms over the years. In the 1970s it had only one handrail and large gaps between the slats. There have been a number of bridges since, and the current wire rope and Douglas fir bridge dates to 2008. There have been many instances where visitors, unable to face the walk back across the bridge, have had to be taken off the island by boat.
It is no longer used by fishermen during the salmon season, which used to last from June until September, as there are now very few salmon left. In the 1960s, almost 300 fish were caught each day, but by 2002, only 250 were caught over the whole season. The salmon come through the area to spawn in the River Bann and the River Bush.
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Kinbane Castle
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
The name comes from the Irish for "white head", referring to the limestone of the promontory. Nowadays, the castle is largely destroyed. Kinbane Castle is a State Care Historic Monument sited in the townland of Cregganboy. The area surrounding Kinbane Castle is a Scheduled Historic Monument.The site also has views of Rathlin Island and Dunagregor Iron Age fort.
In 1547, a two-storey castle was built at the headland by Colla MacDonnell. The castle was damaged and partly destroyed due to English sieges under Sir James Croft in the 1550s. Rebuilt afterwards, Colla MacDonnell died at the castle in 1558, and his son Gillaspick MacDonnell subsequently inherited it. Sorley Boy MacDonnell, brother of Colla, later acquired the castle when trading property with Gillaspick. He later handed it to the MacAlisters because of their loyalty. The castle remained in the descendants of the MacAlisters of Kenbane until the 18th century.
Portballintrae
Portballintrae is a small seaside village, four miles east of Portrush and two miles west of the Giant's Causeway. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 734 people, a decline of 10% compared to 1991.
Between 1967 and April 1968 a team of Belgian divers, located the remains of the wreck of the Girona off the coast of Portballintrae and brought up the greatest find of Spanish Armada treasure salvaged up until that time. The recovered artefacts are now on display in the Ulster Museum in Belfast.
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
 |
 |
 |
 |
Misc places along the coast
To get a larger photo, please click on thumbnail below
.jpg) |
 |
 |