Take to the coast
Summer isn’t summer until you’ve headed for the coast and filled your lungs with that fresh sea air. Make for the Causeway Coast, Donegal or Sligo and you won’t be disappointed, whatever the weather. For those so-so days, hop in the car and tour the sights, stopping off for lunch and tucking into the dishes that make this part of the world a byword for fabulous, fresh, flavoursome fare. Here are our tips for a walk, rainy day tour or drive:
Donegal
Have a stroll: A dozen Blue Flag beaches beckon... and then there are the beautiful Glenveagh National Park and Ards Forest Park if you fancy lush greenery on your walks. For gorgeous gardens, don’t miss Oakfield Park or Bruckless House.
Take cover: At The Triona Donegal Tweed Visitor Centre you can watch master weavers working the loom, tour the thatched weaver’s cottage and finish at the shop with its locally made quality clothes, crafts, hats and jewellery.
Drive time: Among Donegal’s many scenic drives is the Inishowen 100, starting from beautiful Buncrana and hugging the coast of the peninsula with highlights including the Mamore Gap viewpoint, Five Fingers Strand, Malin Head, the most northerly place in Ireland, and the stunning Kinnagoe Bay.
Sligo
Have a stroll: Mullaghmore is among the many jewels of the Sligo coast, with Classiebawn Castle a familiar landmark and Benbulben looming beyond. For a walk with greenery, the gardens at Lissadell House are beautiful and showcase the horticultural talents of former owner Josslyn Gore Booth, brother of suffragist and poet Eva Gore Booth and Countess Constance Markievicz, the first woman elected to Westminster and Dáil Éireann.
Take cover: A famous guest of Lissadell House was WB Yeats and Sligo County Museum houses fascinating displays of memorabilia associated with WB and his brother Jack as well as their contemporaries.
Drive time: The Gleniff Horseshoe is a popular drive or cycle through the mountainous landscape of north Sligo. Its features include a magnetic road and the famous Cave where the legend of Diarmuid and Gráinne has its tragic ending.
Causeway Coast
Have a stroll: Why not start at the obvious and take one of the walking trails from the Giant’s Causeway. The views are spectacular and going with a local guide will add colour to the jawdropping scenery. Or take the ferry from Ballycastle to Rathlin Island and enjoy the peace, broken only by the chatter from thousands of seabirds. The ill-fated Children
of Lir are said to have returned to human form here.
Take cover: The Giants Causeway Visitor Centre has fully reopened. Have a look at the displays, then head down the road to the Old Bushmills Distillery for a tour and a wee dram when it reopens.
Drive time: Ranked among the world’s most spectacular scenic drives, the Causeway Coastal Route is full of joys. Hug the coast or head inland and discover the delights of the Glens. Stop off at Glenariff and drink in the views of the waterfall. With all three coastlines within easy reach, why not plan to see them all!