Our busiest day of the trip started early Monday morning, as we worked to be ready for our departure for the Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland at 8:00 a.m. sharp. We had lined up a half dozen sites for the day, starting with a walk across the iconic Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge and ending with a drive through the picturesque Dark Hedges.
I successfully acquired the rental car, and Amanda and Gee Gee had the kids ready to go, but we ran into a snag: the place I’d planned to purchase car seats for our trip did not open for another hour. (We often rely on rental car seats but this was not an option given we were renting from a small branch of Enterprise located within Belfast proper.) I made the most of the downtime, filling up the car with diesel and buying drinks for each passenger, before entering the doors at Halfords promptly at 9:00 a.m.
When the car seats and boosters were installed and ready to go, I returned to our Belfast home and parked on a nearby side street. We loaded the car with the kids, our technology for the trip (phones, camera, and a new GoPro), and our diaper bag/backpack. There was a wee bit of traffic leaving Belfast, but once we were on the motorway, it was mostly smooth sailing as we made the 90-minute drive to the north.
Our first stop was Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, one of several stops along the Antrim Coast Amanda and I made during our 2009 visit to Ireland and Northern Ireland. The current iteration of the rope bridge is only a decade old, but bridges of similar style have been in place since 1755. For nearly 250 years, these bridges were used to assist with salmon fishing; however, a declining population led to the end of fishing from the bridge, with the last salmon caught at Carrick-a-Rede in 2002.
We hadn’t left the car park before Emmie found and picked a yellow wildflower.
Amanda and Noah also posed at the car park.
Though tickets were sold on a first-come, first-serve basis, and our trusty Rick Steves guidebook warned the next available ticket may require a return later in the day, the Monday morning crowd was modest and we were able to buy tickets to visit the bridge immediately. It’s a bit of a hike from the car park to the bridge itself, meaning Eilidh had the Tula treatment for the journey. Noah and Emmie were initially apprehensive about crossing the bridge, but after some encouraging words from the friendly attendant, they had no problem crossing to the adjacent island.
Emmie and Gee Gee pose along the walk to the bridge.
Pre-bridge-crossing selfie.
Noah was the second family member to cross the bridge. (I crossed first to serve as photographer.)
After a slow start, Emmie was anxious to complete her walk across the bridge, walking so quickly I was unable to get a dedicated Emmie photo.
Post-bridge crossing group photo (minus me.)
We spent roughly 45 minutes exploring the craggy island and taking photos at nearly every opportunity. Eilidh even got a chance to break free from her Tula and roam a bit, picking up and smelling a handful of wildflowers along the way. When we’d wrapped up our exploration, we made the return trip across the rope bridge and reverse walk to the car park. This time, I wore the Tula, and Eilidh.
Gee Gee supervised the kids in the car in nearby Bushmills, while Amanda and I picked up food for a planned picnic lunch along White Rocks beach. Unfortunately, a film crew for Disney’s upcoming movie Artemis Fowl had reserved the beach for the entire week, referring would-be visitors to the East Strand beach in Portrush.
We tried new orange “Smarties” (the UK’s M&Ms equivalent.) Noah, Emmie, and I enjoyed.
Emmie shows off her picnic-style lunch.
Eilidh also had lunch near the beach.
Though the detour was nominal in terms of time required, the alternative beach was a little less picturesque and completely lacked picnic tables or any area conducive for eating lunch. We did find a few stairs to sit on before meticulously distributing the pieces of ham, salami, and cheese we’d purchased from the market. Once we wrapped up our meal, I took care of our rubbish, while Amanda, Gee Gee, and the kids, began exploring the sandy beach.
Amanda was disappointed there were no white rocks to be found, but Noah and Emmie were still more than happy with their haul of shells. We had to encourage them to pare down their findings to reasonable amounts and everyone emptied their sandy shoes before returning to our rental van.
Noah showed off his shell collection.
We took yet another brief trip down memory lane with a drive through the town of Portrush, where Amanda and I spent two nights in 2009. The modest guest house was possibly the most unremarkable lodging from our stay, but it still was fun to drive by a place we remembered.
It’s great to see big smiles on every face! (And a thoughtful Eilidh in the grass with flowers).