NORTHERN IRELAND - Time for a Dawlish moment

The Antrim Coast is rightly famous for it's spectular scenary and the World Heritage Giant's Causeway, less well know though is the coast of County Londonderry. It is equally stunning and known to some in the train fraternity because this is where NI Railways has it's Dawlish moment with the trains running along the beach at Downhill.

On the headland above the beach and the railway line is the Downhill Demesne, a large National Trust property consisting of parkland, gardens, the Mussenden Temple and the ruins of Downhill House. 

Frederick Hervey the 4th Earl of Bristol later became Bishop of Derry in 1768 and commissioned Downhill House to serve as his residence here. Unfortunately the house fell into disrepair after WW2 but today the site provides wide open spaces with views of Downhill Strand, Donegal and of course the trains.

Mussenden Temple served as the Earl Bishop's library, a fire being kept lit in the basement to stop the damp damaging the books! It is perched right on the cliff edge. Apparently when it was built you could drive a coach and horses right round it, that definitely can't be done now. 

The National Trust currently hires the building out as a wedding venue - could be the perfect place for a statue of Dame Vera though?

Well folks that is pretty much the end of my trip here as I am flying to Birmingham tomorrow to visit Mum before returning home. Not long though till the next trip - Oban, Mull and the visit to Glasgow I couldn't do last year should be coming up next month if Nicola and Boris allow it!

NORTHERN IRELAND - Culture in Cultra

Lets start by improving your rolling stock recognition abilities.

Trains run by NI Railways are silver and blue, those operated by Iarnrod Eireann are silver and green. The sight of one of the latter at Belfast's Lanyon Place station today proves that cross-border services are operating normally despite the ongoing UK/EU Sausage War.

The Ulster Folk and Transport museum occupies a sprawling site at Cultra, 7 miles east of Belfast and the best way to get there is by train as the station at Cultra has direct access to the museum.

The folk section is a large open air museum which follows the same format as St Fagan's in Cardiff, Beamish in Northern England and the Black Country Museum in the Midlands. The museum is set in the period around 1900 and has an "urban" section with shops, churches, terraced housing and other village buildings. Then there is a country section consisting of farm, cottage and mill buildings spread out across several acres of parkland.

There were several of these one room dewllings where humans and animals lived together

I was particularly intrigued by the notice in the doctors which gave information on how to deal with someone with Consumption - many of the instructions have a lot of relevance with the ongoing pandemic.

To be perfectly honest, the museum needs more than one day, but with limited time in the afternoon I continued to the transport section. This consists of a series of galleries containing mainly large exhibits relating to trains, trams, buses and cars. There is also a very good section which covers the Titanic. There are additional galleries for air and sea transport but these are closed for refurbishment.

Because Cultra is on the southern shore of Belfast Lough and the evenings here are long at the moment, after the msueum closed I walked along the shore of the Lough for a couple of hours and got the train back from further down the line.

This arch, under Helens Bay station was built so that Lord Dufferin's carriages could gain access via his own private carriage drive to the railway station to collect and drop off visitors to the Clandeboye Estate.

Crawfordsburn Beach

NORTHERN IRELAND - Back to the Giant's Causeway

It's time to revisit the Giant's Causeway, but the weather forecast for today was not that good with rain, or liquid sunshine as the Irish call it, forcast for the afternoon. As it happened though it was a fantastic day. Last time I was here I visited the rope bridge at Carrick-a-Rede and then walked  along the coast path to the Causeway. Today I started at the Causeway and continued walking along the coast path to Portrush.

Now look at these pictures of what is the National Trust's most visited site - very few people - in fact at one point I was standing there with just one other couple. A combination of pandemic and poor weather I guess.

The folk reading this from the lighthouse will be aware of a debate that is raging in Dover at the moment about our White Cliffs - I was thinking today that the end of the Giant's Causeway might be a suitable spot for a statue of Dame Vera ?? !!

The expected rain didn't really materialise this afternoon so the walk along the coast path was great. A blanket of cloud usually improves the general visibility and there were good views of Inishowen, Donegal and I could also be just make out Scotland on the horizion. The walk to Portrush took in a castle and a couple of lovely sandy beaches, sandy beaches that I had almost to myself, just a pity I had to have a hoodie and anorak on!!

Runkerry Beach

 Dunluce Castle

White Rocks Beach

 

 

NORTHERN IRELAND - Derry ~ Londonderry

Hello everyone and welcome back. I have returned to Northern Ireland for a 4 day break, which is one of several that I shall be taking within the Common Travel Area over the next few months.

Today you find me in Derry ~ Londonderry, the province's second city, set on the banks of the River Foyle. Known as Derry amongst Nationalists and Londonderry amongst Unionists, it gets its London prefix from the London Livery Companies who provided the money for the development of the city in the 1600's - it's city walls are the most complete in Ireland.

The city was at the forefront of the struggle for control of the English crown when Catholic King James II was deposed and replaced by Dutch Protestant William of Orange and his wife Mary. Supporters of James II tried to regain his throne via the back door - Ireland. In December 1688 the Earl of Antrim and his army marched on Londonderry in support of James II but a group of 13 apprentice boys stole the keys to the city gates and locked them shut, thus preventing access. A standoff resulted which lead to a seige lasting 105 days in 1689 in an attempt the starve the Protestant residents into submission. Food eventually got through by sea and river and the city did not surrender.

Coming by train you arrive at the city's recently and wonderfully restored Waterside station on the opposite side of the River Foyle to the city centre. You cross the river by walking over the stunning Peace Bridge which was opened in 2011.

This brings you to a point opposite the Guildhall behind which run the city walls, the path on the top of the walls can be accessed at several points. This is a city that has an edginess to it, so don't expect it to be twee like Chester or York

The city's Protestant cathedral is within the city walls and is dedicated to St Columb (also known as Columba or Colmcille) . He was an Irish abbot who went to Scotland and founded the abbey on the island of Iona - so there will be more about him when I return to western Scotland later in the year.

Derry ~ Londonderry is of course famous for it's murals. Most are political but in recent years a number of contemporary ones have been commissioned. If you watch "Derry Girls" on TV you may recognise this!