with four free hours before my flight i wanted to get out and see another part of Northern Ireland, so i arranged for a driver to take me somewhere and then to the airport.

although it was about an hour away, i opted for the Dark Hedges and the Coastal Causeway.

The Dark Hedges are made up of 150+ Beech Trees that were planted along the entrance to an estate built in 1775 by James Stuart. they were planted to create an imposing approach, probably one of the many reason they were used in Game of Thrones as the King’s Road, Transformers and The Last Knight.

after the hedges we moved on to see the Coastal Causeway. the causeway as a whole runs from Belfast to Londonderry and is a little over 80 miles. we didn’t go the full route, we ended the adventure at the Giant’s Causeway named a World Heritage Site in 1986.

it was a pretty dreary morning to head to the coast, but i (probably like a lot of you) think the coast is beautiful during any weather. also, the worse the weather, the less people you have to deal with, which is a good thing. the walk down to the Giant’s Causeway from the parking lot was about 1/4 mile, and the first view from the overlook reminded me of the Sonoma Coast.

the Giant’s Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns which are a result of the way lava cools after a volcanic eruption. in a poll of Radio Times readers the Giant’s Causeway was named the fourth greatest natural wonder in the UK. the tallest columns are 39 feet tall and some are 92 feet thick in places.

ok, maybe not quite like the Sonoma Coast.