#3: RATHLIN ISLAND Prepare to be charmed on an Irish island

INDULGE YOUR INNER GOLDILOCKS

Not too large and not too small,

Rathlin Island is just right. Shaped like a boomerang, this dramatically beautiful place – just off the Causeway Coast between Co Antrim and the Mull of Kintyre – is Northern Ireland’s only inhabited island.

While nearby Giant’s Causeway is all glossy black basalt, the sheer cliffs on Rathlin’s south coast are a less indulgent Dover-white – courtesy of a vein of limestone that cuts through the earth’s crust just here. Rathlin is a beguiling sight from the mainland, beckoning you over from the bustling cheer of Ballycastle on a 15-minute ferry ride.

Rathlin Festival Week runs from July 8-15 and the fact that it’s the high point of the island calendar tells you all you need to know. Expect traditional music, children’s activities, guided walks, model boat races and plenty of island eccentricity.

RUN AWAY FROM LIFE LIKE ROYALTY

Rathlin has a tempestuous history.

The Vikings made their first appearance in Irish waters here in AD 795, raiding the island monastery, and in 1306, Robert the Bruce fled to the island from Scotland after being defeated by the English. As the exiled king took refuge in a cave on the craggy north coast – feeling more than a little sorry for himself – he watched a spider try to spin a web and fail repeatedly. Relating, as a King would, to the plight of a spider, it would seem that Robert the Bruce took away a lesson in persistence from that peaceful cave on Rathlin, inspiring his return to his kingdom and his famous victory over the English at Bannockburn. If a little time out from reality here can work for a King...

The waters of Rathlin are rich in marine life and shipwrecks – perfect for

divers

IT’S SEABIRD TIME

This is an excellent time of year to visit. The sun doesn’t set until 10pm in June, giving you long days to explore. But best of all, this is seabird time – and Rathlin is one of the most important bird habitats in these islands. The RSPB station at West In 1898, Guglielmo Marconi broadcast the world’s first radio transmission from the lighthouse at Rue Head. Bernie McGill’s wonderful novel

(Tinder) dramatises this historic event.

Check out local pottery and paintings at Breakwater Studio (breakwaterstudiorathlin. com), and bring home a memento of this lovely island.