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It''s the most famous site in Ireland but the true star is surely the beautiful north Antrim coast itself, the most dramatic and colourful stretch of coast in Europe with huge cliffs of red sandstone, white chalk, black bassalt and blue clay, some with topknots of sea pinks. Come, let us show you a glimpse of our beautiful lands through the next few pages, then search them out for yourself. You could find much more than spectacuar scenary - take your time, relax and you may experience some old fashioned 'Northern hospitality' - the genuine warmpt of our welcome to visitors is legendary!
The Causeway proper is a mass of 40,000 stone columns that form steps leading from the cliff foot and disappearing under the sea. Most of the columns are six sided and some are 40 ft tall. Geologists explain that the Causeway was created during a period of volcanic activity some 60 million years ago but local folklore would disagree and would insist that it was built by the Irish Giant Finn MacCool so that he could cross the Irish Sea to Scotland to challenge a rival giant, Benandoner.
From the temporary Visitor Centre ( a new state of the art building is being planned to replace the original badly damaged by fire) a two mile circular walk takes you down to the Grand Causeway, on past majestic stone galleries up the cliff by pathway and steps with return along the cliff tops to the Centre.
In October 1588 one of the Spanish Armada galleons, the Girona, sank off Lacada Point just east of the Causeway. It remained undisturbed until its discovery by the Belgian explorer Robert Stenuit in 1968. The Girona’s treasure is now on show in the Ulster Museum, Belfast.
The Causeway is two miles from the Bushmills Inn and can be reached by car, walking or by a steam locomotive train with its terminal just across the River Bush from the Bushmills Inn
“When the world was moulded and fashioned out of formless chaos, this must have been the bit left over – a remnant of chaos”
William Makepeace Thackeray
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