Cool double decker bridge as seen through the windscreen leaving Derry

Tuesday, 19th August            DERRY - PORTRUSH

Robyn writes: A busy, very enjoyable day (which isn't always the case with moving day!) We enjoyed a last breakfast at our hotel, then packed our bags and sorted a load of washing. Both of us are starting to run out of clothes and an internet search had revealed one in Portrush, so we decided that that would have to be our first port of call.

We booked out and got away at around 10, then drove down through the Butcher's Gate to the Bogside and out of the city, going over an extremely cool double decker bridge. Have never been over one of those! Portrush is only a short drive, so we knew we had plenty of time, and we took the more scenic 'Coastal Route' rather than the main roads. The beaches up here are lovely. We stopped in the interestingly named Downhill to take photos, as we noticed an intriguing looking temple-shaped building on the cliff above it. As we drove up the hill and out of Downhill, we saw a National Trust sign for the property, named Downhill House, so called in to visit it. The temple is called Mussenden Temple, and it was built (interestingly) by one of the Earl Bishops of Derry in the 1700s, Bishop Harvey. He also built a huge house, which is beautiful mansion-type house at the front, castle at the back! It's now in ruins, but was wonderful to wander through and picture what it would have been like. We couldn't go into the temple, as they were setting up for a wedding there later today (hope the bride didn't freeze to death, poor love; the wind was howling off the Arctic and it was about 9 degrees out there on the headland!) Anyway, we had an enjoyable hour or so wandering around the cliff tops.

Temple

The wall along the front of the cliffs

Lex at the "back door" - the castle bit

The front of the house ruins



Downhill - note the huge wired-off cliffs behind to stop rock falls!



 

We headed on to Portrush, and our first port of call was the laundry, which took some finding. Portrush is set around several inlets and has lots of one-way streets which make driving challenging! It's also the height of their holiday season with parking at an absolute premium. When we did find it, there was no joy anyway - it was just a commercial & dry cleaning laundry - no laundrette at all in Portrush. Oh well, wait for Belfast....

We finally found a park, and walked into the town centre to find some lunch. We had a lovely meal at the "Eglinton", a pub just across from the beach. Then we had a walk around the seafront area, which is really nice (except for the regulation fun-fair which apparently has to feature in British seaside holidays!) We also found our B&B - right across the road from the Town Hall and the pub we'd had lunch in. Couldn't have got more central if I'd tried! It was nearly 3, so we were able to book in. Our room is TINY - however it has everything we need and is only for 2 nights. (On the other hand, the ensuite is quite big so our ports are stashed in there!)

Town centre - the pub where we had lunch is to the right of centre

Lex overlooking the marina

Our B&B, Antrim House

As it was still early, we went out for a drive to see if we could maybe visit the Giant's Causeway today (it being a beautiful day with sunshine even!) However, when we got there, we looked at the crowds thronging the area and chatted to the young lad at the parking gate, who said they'd had a record crowd through. He told us that no-one is ever there at 9 when it opens in the morning, so we instantly resolved to try that instead!

Next we decided that we'd go and have a look at the famous Bushmill's Distillery, just nearby. Again, the parking area was packed (whiskey is apparently quite popular in Ireland), but we found a park and went in for a look. The tastings were hideously expensive (7.50 pounds for 3 tastes) and Lex had already done 2 Scotch Whiskey distillery tours, so he bought a miniature to try to see if he liked it instead. (Verdict is very favourable)

Rainbow at sea

Amazing views as we walked to the bridge

Looking down on it....

Finally, across it!



Windswept on the island on the other side

Then we thought we might as well go and see if we could visit the famous rope bridge at Carrick-a-Rede. It was still quite busy but we easily got a park, rugged up and headed off. This is run by the National Trust so we got in for free, and set off on the one mile hike up and down the hills to the actual bridge. The wind was howling and icy and the day cloudy by this stage, so I was feeling quite smug about the many warm layers, scarf and gloves I was wearing! When we got there, there was about a half hour's wait to actually go across. By this stage it was about 5.30 - I'd hate to be there in the middle of a summer weekend day! Anyway, we finally got our turn and wobbled alarmingly across the chasm, wind howling around us. Minorly terrifying but mercifully quick. Then we explored the little island we'd reached, photographed the views, etc. Right as we were deciding to line up to go back, a rain squall came across so we had a miserable few minutes in it waiting for our turn - and going back across the bridge in light rain and howling wind was fun! Anyway, it was a great experience and a very invigorating couple of miles hike. Fortunately the rain disappeared again so we could enjoy the walk back to the car.

When we got back it was after 7, so we got ourselves organised to head out to find our tea. We had a lovely chat to our hosts, Janice and Mark, who recommended some local restaurants. Unfortunately by the time we got to them, so had everyone else. It's summer holiday time at the beach! The first one we tried had a waiting time of an hour; the second one only half an hour so we said yes, and went off to have a drink in the bar. In the end, it only took about 20 minutes and we did have a lovely meal eventually, though much later than we're used to. I had a chicken Caesar salad and Lex had lamb steaks and Mediterranean vegetable, then we shared an enormous and amazing "Strawboffee Pie" (strawberry and toffee cheesecake). It was after 9.30 and dark by the time we headed home. It was a big day!