October 25, 2019
The very best of Northern Ireland is wild and wonderful! I discovered so many tiny towns along the coast like Cushendall, Ballycastle, Ballintoy and Portrush and the people were authentic, kind and fun. This post is mostly a photo documentary of the beautiful coastline. This was a photographer’s dream. I hope you enjoy seeing this rugged side of Ireland that still remains somewhat untouched and preserved.
I spent much of the day hiking along Carrick-a-Rede, which was at one time home to a tiny fishing village. The fishermen caught salmon, but it was quite dangerous work. The salmon were found off a tiny island only accessible by a rope bridge. The fisherman who worked on the Island of Carrick-a-Rede faced very steep cliffs and challenging weather. They would let their boat down into the foaming water and stretch their nets across the “salmon road”, only to carefully winch both the boat and the catch back up the cliffs at the end of the day. I cannot imaging carrying heavy baskets of fish as I retraced my steps across the bridge that sways and ripples in the best of weather!
“For the boiling breakers are forever dashing themselves madly between the rocks hundreds of feet beneath, and the rope bridge if thrown about by the wind like the fabric of thread. Few trust themselves upon this airy fabrication, but Mr. Wilson and I for the honor of Old Kentucky braved all the terrors – and passed to and from the rock.”
Charles Leonard Thomasson, Kentucky, USA writing in 1851 following his visit
Living All In 