Exploring the North of Ireland – Giants Causeway, Rope Bridge & Dark Hedges

Giants-Causeway-from-above

After living 3 years in Ireland it was about time to explore the North of Ireland during a short weekend trip. 

For the ones who don’t know, North of Ireland actually does not belong to Ireland but UK. Therefore, you also cannot pay in Euros but British Pounds. 

The Giants Causeway

We decided to start our North of Ireland tour with a walk along Giants Causeway, which is a UNESCO Heritage. Basically it is huge stones of different sizes that jut out irregularly from the sea and form kind of a pathway to jump around. It is actually a result of a volcano eruption. Fun fact: From the Giants Causeway you can look all the way over to Scotland.

Giants-Causeway

Once you had enough of climbing up those stones and jumping around, you can afterwards go for a long walk on any of the many hiking trails to get a different view of the Giants Causeway from above.

The legend of Giants Causeway 

As to any famous place, there belongs a legend. The one of the Giants Causeway goes as followed:

Once upon a time there has been a giant in Ireland and one in Scotland. The Scottish one wanted to fight with the Irish, which made the Irish so upset that he started to throw parts/stones of the coast into the water. When the low tide arrived these stones formed kind of a pathway over to the Scottish giant.

Full of confidence the Irish started walking over there. Once he saw how huge the Scottish was though, the Irish got scared and backed out. Fun fact is that the wife of the Irish giant actually saved him from the Scottish because she said to the Scottish that he (the Irish giant) is their baby. The Scottish then thought that if this giant is only the baby, how big will be father be and backed out as well. So, in the end they didn’t fight. 

Kiss-from-Giants-Causeway

Useful tips for the Giants Causeway 

Below are some useful tips in case you are traveling to Giants Causeway:

  1. Car park is expensive, so park further away and walk if you are good by foot.
  2. Bring food and drinks, if you plan on hiking around for a while.
  3. The visitor center is optional and costs entrance, so if you dont want to go there (to get an audio guide), you dont have to pay entrance. The visit of the Giants Causeway is actually free, but many people don’t know that.

Carrick-a-Rede-Rope-Bridge

After the Giants Causeway we continued our North of Ireland tour to the Rope Bridge which is only about 10 min away by car. This bridge was built for fisherman in order to better fish for salmon better.

It is actually not as shaky as I thought, but I still had a weird feeling in my belly when I looked down and saw the waves hitting against the rocks. Also keep in mind that you will have to cross the bridge twice, in order to come back. 

Carrick-a-Rede-Rope-Bride

In order to cross the bridge, you pay a fee of around 8€. Be aware of the closing times as the last entrance might be as early as 4:30pm, depending on season.

Dark Hedges

After the Rope Bridge, we continued our North of Ireland tour to the Dark Hedges. This is for all Games of Thrones fans. It basically is an avenue of trees that grow in curved forms, creating a mysterious atmosphere. 

It literally takes 5-10min to walk up and down the avenue and take a photo. I have to say though, it wasn’t as dark/mysterious as it appears in the series and almost a bit lame for me. The best idea is to go around sunset, so you can catch the light shining through the trees.

Dark-Hedges

Want to explore the North of Ireland a bit more, then check out how to spend 24 hours in Belfast and my YouTube video to see the Giant’s Causeway, Dark hedges and Rope Bridge. Have you already been to the North of Ireland? If yes what was your favourite part? 

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