July 14, 2022
Saunter (ˈsȯn-tər): to walk about in an idle or leisurely manner; stroll (Merriam-Webster).
Northern Ireland’s County Antrim northern coastline consists of secluded beaches, dramatic cliffs, and ancient castles. It also includes the Causeway Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), and the Giant’s Causeway, a World Heritage Site. The Causeway Coast Way trail runs from the towns of Ballycastle to Portstewart, providing easy access to all of these locations.
After averaging about 100 miles on each of our first four treks, our latest hike totaled only 32 miles. The book I purchased recommended a hiking duration of two to three days for the entire Causeway Coast Way trek. But because there was so much to see in this part of Northern Ireland, we decided to turn this hike into more of a “saunter” and take a leisurely four days to complete the distance. We joked that this was our “vacation trek” of sorts as some of our days would be comprised of more time sightseeing than actually hiking.
Our trekking route along the Causeway Coast Way
Travel to Northern Ireland and a Dark Hedges Visit
Our sightseeing began even before the first steps of the trek. After arriving in Belfast, Northern Ireland by ferry, we traveled on a train and bus north to the village of Armoy. Before checking into a B&B for the night, we transferred to another bus, which dropped us off at an intersection of two country roads. From there, we began a mile walk to the Dark Hedges.
In the late 18th century over 150 beech trees were planted along an entrance road to impress visitors as they arrived at the country estate of Gracehill House. We came to experience the beautiful “green tunnel” that the trees formed, but many visitors also flock to the site because it was a filming location for Game of Thrones.
As we walked deeper into the trees, we could see quite a few people ahead of us. Since we had time, we waited until most of them left, and then continued forward.
At the end of the trees we could see Gracehill House, the country estate. We retraced our steps back through the Dark Hedges and to the bus stop where we had disembarked. Our visit was well worth the time that it took us to walk a mile each way.
Starting with Provisions on a Short but Busy Stage
After a night in the Armoy B&B, we took a mid-morning 20-minute bus ride to the town of Ballycastle. It is on the north-easternmost coastal tip of the island of Ireland. We exited the bus at the Diamond (center) of the city, where two trail signs intersected.
The Ulster Way is a long distance walk of over 600 miles encircling Northern Ireland. It is comprised of a series of standalone trails, and we stood at the end of the Moyle Way and the beginning of the Causeway Coast Way.
Before we could begin our first hiking stage, we needed to walk across the street and buy some provisions. We bought food for dinner and breakfast, as we would be staying in a remote location on our first night. And since it would be a few days before we would have access to a grocery store, we purchased a couple of lunches to eat on the trail.
Sign at the Ballycastle Diamond where the two trails meet; Buying groceries for the trek
After filling our backpacks with the groceries, we posed for a photo and set off toward the coast.
We started our trek by walking down the main street of Ballycastle.
Just a half-mile later, we turned off to visit Ballycastle Beach.
The beach was almost a mile long and not very crowded, considering it was a Saturday. We sat on the sand and watched the waves for a time, and then went back to hiking.
The path continued on street sidewalks as we climbed up to leave the town behind. As we left Ballycastle, we entered the Causeway Coast AONB. Extending 18 miles along the coastline, we would hike through this area for most of our trek.
After about a mile, the sidewalk ended as the road became a highway. For the next 1.5 miles (broken up into two sections) we needed to walk along the busy road with very little shoulder. Many hikers skip this section (as well as another stretch that we would walk the next day). But we were pretty confident in our skills, given that Darren had run across the United States in 2015 in similar conditions.
We worked together to choose the best side of the road to walk on, based on the amount of traffic and potential jumping off points onto the grass. This meant that we needed to cross the highway a couple of times, but we felt fairly safe while walking.
About halfway through the 1.5-mile highway walking section, the trail turned to a half-mile respite on an overgrown dirt road. We found that it wasn’t much better than the busy highway because the grass was tall and uneven to walk on, and we were surrounded by clouds of flies. It was almost a relief to be back on the highway for the last section of road walking.
Using our walking technique, the last busy road section went by quickly, and we came to a turn-off toward the coast. We had a cottage booked for the night on a working farm just down this road. But before we checked in, we wanted to visit the ruins of Kinbane Castle, perched on a white chalk promontory jutting out to the sea.
The word Kinbane comes from the Irish An Cionn Ban which means “white head,” and refers to the white chalk promontory that the structure was built upon. The two-mile walk to the ruins and back was almost as long as our entire 2.9-mile stage of hiking from Ballycastle.
The castle was constructed around 1547 by the MacDonnell clan. Kinbane was one of a chain of castles along the coast belonging to the family. It later passed to the MacAlister clan and was inhabited until the 18th century. After that the castle was abandoned and left to the elements.
To reach the castle remains, we needed to climb down about 140 steps, descending a slope on the side of a hill.
There were just a few others at the site beside us. Darren wanted to continue exploring the promontory, so he left his backpack with me and ventured out further.
I found a secluded place to sit and watch the multitude of birds flying along the cliffs leading down to the water.
As we both climbed the 140 steps back up, there were several opportunities to admire the coastline.
Our overnight accommodations at the farm cottage were just a short walk away from the top of the castle climb. We settled in to make dinner with our grocery provisions and enjoy a relaxing night.
On the Road Again to a Bridge
Our second day’s hiking distance was just 4.3 miles, but we had another stop planned toward the end of the stage. After leaving our overnight cottage stay, we rejoined the highway for about eight-tenths of a mile of road walking. Trail signs then directed us down a quiet country road for almost two miles. While on the country road, we did not encounter any cars.
As we walked, we had nice coastal views and could occasionally hear the steady vehicle traffic on the parallel highway.
At the end of the two miles, the road went steeply downhill toward the highway. It was only 11:45 am, but we could already see the village of Ballintoy, where we would be spending the night.
After a final half-mile of highway walking, we were finished navigating the busy roads. The trail turned off toward the Carrick-a-Rede Bridge.
In the early 19th century over 100 men were employed in the area’s fishing industry. Each summer fishermen constructed a crude bridge crossing a 60-foot chasm that linked the mainland to a tiny island so that they could check their salmon nets. The fishing industry declined over time, and the bridge was rebuilt as a tourist site.
When we reached the intersection of the Causeway Coast Way trail and the path toward the bridge, we had a decision to make. In order to walk across the bridge, we needed to purchase timed tickets in advance. With our trekking schedule, it was difficult to determine exactly when we would arrive. Now that we were at the site, it might be possible to get a spot. But we had nowhere to stash our backpacks, and we were concerned about walking across the bridge with them on.
We could also see that the path was very crowded, with many people walking to and from the bridge. With our focus on trekking and capturing the natural beauty of the place, we decided to go ahead and walk along the bridge trail as far as we could and take photos.
As we hiked toward the bridge, the sun peaked out of the clouds. We marveled at the turquoise colored water as we gazed down from the clifftop.
We were also fortunate to see some nice blooming flowers along the trail.
After about three-quarters of a mile, we reached the point where tickets were needed to walk across the bridge. Retracing our steps back to the Causeway Coast Way, we hiked another mile to the village of Ballintoy, where we checked into a room above a pub for the night.
A Rocky Scramble and a Giant View
After our first two days of hiking just 7.2 leisurely miles, our third trekking stage was a more normal distance of 12.4 miles. Soon after we began walking, the path descended down to the Ballintoy Harbor. It was originally built in the mid-18th century for export of the local area’s mining and quarrying.
A short distance later we came to White Park Bay. In order to hike on the 1.5-mile long beach, we had to time our entrance and exit to low tide, as some rock scrambling was involved on both sides of the sand. We consulted the tide tables the night before and were good to go.
The initial scrambling to reach the beach involved navigating around some slippery rocks and seaweed. We were glad to have our new trekking shoes that we had just purchased the prior week in Glasgow.
After making it past the rocks, we were almost the only ones on the entire beach.
We took our time hiking this section and thoroughly enjoyed the solitude and beauty of the beach.
Almost too quickly, we reached the end of the sand and the beginning of the rocky exit. It looked to be through a narrow section underneath the cliffs.
This area was much longer than our entrance to the beach and looked to be more difficult. I am not a big fan of rock scrambling, so I took a moment to regroup before we began climbing in earnest.
It took some time to get through the section, and on several occasions we had to stop and determine the best way to go. And a couple of times we both had to sit down to transfer ourselves from one large rock to another.
At the very end of the rocks was a wooden bench. We sat and took a break to congratulate ourselves on finishing the challenge.
The path began a series of climbs on the clifftop above the coast. Turning a corner, we passed by the ruins of Dunseverick Castle. It was originally settled as an ancient royal site of the Dál Riada, a Gaelic kingdom. Saint Patrick is said to have visited the castle in the 5th century.
Arriving at the castle meant that we were just a short distance from the highlight of the entire trek – the Giant’s Causeway. As we hiked closer to the site, the clifftop path continued undulating along the coast. Each ascent and descent took us higher and higher above the ocean.
Looking back, we had a clear view of the coastline where we had come.
While the ascents and descents were not as abrupt as those we had experienced during the endless rocky climbs on our recent Hadrian’s Wall Path trek, we still had our share of stairs in this section. Feeling tired after the rock scrambling and the stair climbing, my mood changed when we reached a sign indicating the boundary of the Giant’s Causeway.
For the next three miles, the Causeway Coast Way passed through the length of the Giant’s Causeway. Established as a World Heritage Site in 1986, it consists of more than 40,000 interlocking basalt columns that were created during volcanic activity taking place about 50 to 60 million years ago.
There are two main paths through the area. The one that we were walking on stayed high on the clifftop and looked down at the ocean. From our vantage point we could see several column formations, including the Chimney Stacks.
Turning the corner from the Chimney Stacks, the sun peaked out from the cloudy skies for a moment. We stopped and looked down at the Amphitheater.
Continuing down the path, we came to an intersection. To the right of us was a series of steep stone stairs, known as the Shepherd’s Path. The 162 steps would take us down to the Grand Causeway and the ocean. From there, the hexagonal columns that form stepping stones into the sea were visible.
It was almost 2:00 pm, and we could see many people in both the Grand Causeway area and on the narrow stairs. The weather was becoming cloudier, with little chance of seeing the sun. We could go down the stairs and join the Giant’s Causeway Blue Trail below or stay on the parallel Red Trail up high and continue our hike.
After a quick discussion, we started down the steps. Right away, we had to stop to let people pass us who were climbing up, as it was too narrow to walk in both directions with our packs on. We realized it was going to take a while to climb down and began to question the wisdom of our decision with the crowds and the cloud cover.
We still had four more trail miles left in our stage (plus a mile walk to our hotel). So we reluctantly turned around and hiked back to join the high Red Trail route along the top of the cliffs.
As we walked on the Red Trail we continued to have great views. Turning the corner and looking back, we could still make out the Chimney Stacks in the far distance. We could also see many cliffside columns. One feature we saw was called the Organ.
After we left the World Heritage Site, it stayed cloudy for the rest of the afternoon, making us feel better about staying high on the path.
The path soon turned downhill to the village of Portballintrae. From there, we turned off the trail and walked an additional mile to the town of Bushmills, where we spent the night.
Before dinner we couldn’t resist splitting a flight of three different kinds of Bushmills whiskeys. One of the world’s oldest distilleries, Bushmills has been producing whiskey since 1608.
A Final Castle Visit and a Seaside Resort Finish
After walking back to Portballintrae the next morning, we began our final 12.6-mile stage on Day 4. We climbed up to the clifftop again and followed the trail west. It became foggy and started raining as we arrived at Dunluce Castle, about two miles into the stage.
Even though it was steadily raining, we couldn’t resist stopping at the castle, as it had just opened and was not crowded.
Dunluce Castle was built between the 15th and 17th century, first by the MacQuillan clan, and then expanded by the MacDonnell family. Dunluce became the MacDonnell’s flagship castle, and a town called Dunluce was built adjacent to the structure. The town was destroyed by fire in 1641, and the castle abandoned in the 1680s.
The castle was also a filming location for Game of Thrones.
Even with the fog and rain, we had nice views of the coastline from the castle.
After leaving Dunluce Castle, the path continued along the cliffs, which began diminishing in height. We hiked downhill to end up on the East Strand and White Rocks beaches.
After walking on the sand for a time, we approached the town of Portrush.
The Causeway Coast AONB ended as we left Portrush. With just six trekking miles to go to the seaside resort of Portstewart, we continued along the coastline as the weather greatly improved.
The sky totally cleared as we neared Portstewart, and we had the best weather of our entire trek. As we hiked through Portstewart, the sidewalks were filled with people on vacation. We stopped and had a nice conversation with one couple who asked us about our trek.
With just a little more than a mile to go, the trail led us down to the Portstewart Strand beach on the west side of town. The beach was full of more holiday-makers enjoying the sand and sea.
The start / end point of the Causeway Coast Way was a set of trail markers on a light pole. We paused there to take a selfie before turning around and walking back into town. We checked in at a B&B for the night and celebrated the completion of our fifth trek.
Reaching the edge of the Portstewart Strand beach and the pole designating the start / end of the Causeway Coast Way
A Return to the Giant’s Causeway
After we finished the Causeway Coast Way trek, we took a rest day in Portstewart. While reviewing our photos, we began to question why we didn’t hike the lower Blue Trail through the Giant’s Causeway. We realized, by staying high, that we missed some of the best sections of the World Heritage Site.
We discussed whether we should go back, as it was only a 35-minute bus trip away from our B&B. However, it rained steadily for the entire day, ruling out any possible visit.
The next morning we woke up to travel to Belfast. We checked the weather and it looked more favorable. Travel from Portstewart to Belfast (by a bus and connecting train) was only about two-and-a-half hours. We decided to go back to the Giant’s Causeway first, adding just a couple of more hours to our entire trip’s duration. So we caught a bus and were back at the World Heritage Site’s entrance by 10:00 am.
It began to lightly rain as we joined the Blue Trail toward the Grand Causeway. As we walked, we were encouraged that it wasn’t too crowded yet. By the time we reached the Grand Causeway, the rain had stopped and the sun intermittently peaked in and out of the clouds.
Now at the water’s edge, we could truly appreciate the awesome beauty of the place. There were a variety of formations, from the tall columns looming behind us to the hexagonal basalt that rose from the ocean floor.
The recent rain mixed with the sea to fill the tops of some of the columns.
We split up to take photos, and then met up to take in the incredible scenery together.
Keeping an eye on the weather, we walked all over the area. Darren enjoyed venturing down to the waves.
I stayed higher with both backpacks to view some of the taller formations.
Finally, after about an hour of fully enjoying the natural scenery, we decided it was time to leave. Many more people were arriving, and another rain cell was fast approaching.
We asked a passerby to take a quick picture of us before we started our walk uphill to leave the site. The rain came soon after, soaking us. But we were so happy that we didn’t mind being wet for a time.
Shortly after, we boarded a bus to the town of Coleraine and transferred to a train to Belfast. We arrived in Belfast just in time to enjoy a late lunch before checking into our hotel.
Our 32-mile Causeway Coast Way trek was unique in that we did not focus solely on walking each day, but also in diverting to a variety of sites. From the castle ruins, to the cliffside ocean views and sandy beaches, to the awesome beauty of the Giant’s Causeway, we were satisfied with our time on the Northern Ireland coast.
In the end, trying to sightsee while hiking did pose some difficulties with our backpacks. But we agreed that our coastal “saunter” exceeded our expectations. After some time sightseeing and relaxing in Belfast and Dublin, we will return to hardcore hiking for our final three treks in the Republic of Ireland. With about 270 trekking miles to go, our next hike will be the 80-mile Wicklow Way in about 10 days’ time.
That was a great post. Really enjoyed reading about it and the Giant’s Causeway is incredibly unique. You had some amazing scenery on your leisurely hike. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, John. It was truly a special place.