Dave Byrnes

Round Ireland - 2016

Overview Planned Schedule Map Diary Pictures

Day:	073
Date:	Sunday, 5 June 2016
Start:	Coleraine
Finish:	Bushmills
Daily Kilometres:	28
Total Kilometres:	2011
Weather:	Very warm, humid and sunny all day. The warmest yet.
Accommodation:	Finn McCool's Guest Inn
Nutrition:	Breakfast: Fruit & yoghurt, cereal, toast & jam Lunch: Bacon, cheese & tomato baguette Dinner: Hamburger, chips & mushy peas, fruit trifle.
Aches:	None
Highlight:	Watching thousands of the Northern Irish enjoying a beautiful sunny beach day.
Lowlight:	In my blog yesterday, I sang the praises of Icebreaker clothing, saying that although expensive the quality was worth it. While in the outdoors store in Coleraine yesterday, I bought some cheap 'generic' rubber tips for my trekking poles, as that was all they stocked. I only had one original (Leki) left (kept losing them in bogs) and it had partially worn through to the metal after more than 1,000km. Anyway, I attached my new rubber tips to my trekking poles, hoping that they will see me through to Dublin and the end of my walk. After three hours, both had worn through to the metal. You get what you paid for!
Pictures:	Here
GPS Track:	Here
Journal:	David, the B&B host, joined me for a continental breakfast (his wife, the cook, was away) and we had a great chat while I demolished prodigious quantities of toast and jam. His life has had parallels to mine in that he has lived and worked in a number of countries, and coincidentally, his daughter-in-law's parents live in Terrigal, my home town. I left about 9:20am and walked back through part of the Coleraine central pedestrian mall before following a busy road to the start of the Causeway Coast Way, part of the Ulster Way, in Portstewart. Happily, in Northern Ireland, many of the main roads seem to have pedestrian footpaths (sidewalks), particularly where towns and villages are not far apart, as was the case this morning. It makes the roadwalking so much more relaxing when I don't have to worry about traffic. It was a beautiful warm sunny morning, and I encountered a few runners and many cyclists out for their Sunday exercise. I reached Portstewart after an hour and a half and turned onto a paved beach path that followed the coast eastwards past the town. Looking back, I could see along the busy Portstewart Strand with many cars parked on the beach and a few people in the water. A local man, walking in my direction, joined me for a kilometre or so for a pleasant chat, then he stopped for a rest and I continued. On the other side of town the path alternated between grass and gravel as it wound along the coast occasionally crossing a fairway on one of several golf courses that also paralleled the coast. There were many people out walking, playing golf and exploring rockpools, and the path and rocky outcrops were frequently adorned with beautiful pink and yellow wildflowers. After three hours of walking, I was approaching Portrush West Strand (beach) which was also very busy with families. Although getting tired and thirsty, I decided to keep walking until I found somewhere I could get a sandwich for lunch. The town is on a narrow peninsula and I walked along the western side, past funfairs and ice-cream vans, and out to Ranmore Head before returning along the eastern side of the peninsula. At this point, I detoured to the very touristy main shopping street, which also hosted a number of busy games arcades, in the hope of finding some lunch. I finally found a bakery, bought a baguette and ate it on a bench overlooking the town's eastern beach, also full of families, mostly very pale, taking advantage of the brilliant day. I chatted with a family on the next bench, who had visited Australia, before resuming my walk, this time along the beach (Curran Strand). I definitely felt out of place with my pack and heavy boots amongst the hordes of beachgoers. At the end of the beach I reached the White Rocks Coast, a series of white cliffs extending eastwards and climbed up to a path that was part of the busy coast road. It was pleasant, if noisy, walking with superb views along the coast and out over the translucent green and very calm North Atlantic. The road passed the delicately poised and extensive ruins of Dunluce Castle, some parts dating from 1305, along the way, and then I followed it inland to Bushmills where I had booked accommodation. The village was really buzzing with tourists (it's the closest village to the Giant's Causeeway) on what had become a very warm day. The innkeeper expressed amazement that I could walk in such heat, and it had been my warmest day so far. I would prefer it cooler, but can't really complain. I bet they get some really lousy weather along this stretch of coast. As I went out to get some dinner around 6pm, the local Loyalist parade came through the small village's main street. I don't really know enough to have an informed opinion about these marches. I can understand the pride the marchers have in their heritage, but I can also appreciate that it is seen by some members of the Catholic population as provocative.