Cliffs at Carrick-a-Rede

Carrick-a-Rede island is a tiny island off the coast of Ballintoy in County Antrim. Probably the only reason to come here would be to see the famous rope bridge at Carrick-a-Rede. Now, that I have finally crossed that bridge, I still wasn’t sure what is so famous about that place. It is just a rope bridge. The fact that it is short makes the rope bridge even more underwhelming. Fortunately, the scenery in the area more than compensates for the rather lackluster bridge. Turns out, the area around Carrick-a-Rede is the remains of an ancient volcano. In fact, Carrick-a-Rede is decsribed as a volcano plug, one which the magma has solidified in the volcanic vents.

While you can’t really see much of the volcano, though you can still try. It is still worth coming here to see the cliffs which are probably the most spectacular feature of the area. Having been around parts of Ireland, I would not be exaggerating if I said that cliffs like these are a dime-a-dozen here in Ireland. True enough, most of the places I have been to here in Ireland features amazing cliffs. The one here at Carrick-a-Rede is not that much different, but at least, you seem to get a clearer view of the cliffs from the island. You can see how the mainland is seemingly chopped like bread leaving behind steep walls of rock which face the sea. I was glad that we have this vantage point since it is not very easy to see them. Most of the time, you would have to hire a boat to better appreciate the cliffs. Having excellent lighting is also very good.

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