The Giant's Causeway in Winter

Back in early December we had family over and so treated them to a guided Bus Tour of the North Antrim Coast to take in the scenery and to visit the Giants Causeway.

The tour we ended up choosing was an Allen's Causeway Tour. We went on a Sunday, it was a day tour and the guide was excellent though the coach could have done with a bit of modernisation. Oddly we got pretty much every weather you can think of during the trip (well, except for fog), thankfully most of it we could just watch through the window. Overall it was very good and well worth the web fare of £16.

However, as good as the tour was, with this post I'm just going to stick with the Giant's Causeway as I took some photos at the time which I intended to share with you all but never got the chance to what with the family visits, Christmas, New Years and all that jazz. So here goes...

Despite the traditional hoarding of food at the stop in Carnlough, we were hungry when we arrived at the Causeway visitor centre. So from the coach we headed to a pub called the Nook.

The food and drink was a little pricer than your average in N.I but it is in the middle of no where, at the entrance of one of the worlds famous natural features. Warmed by the open fireplace, a good pint and some soup we headed on out and made our way down to the Causeway on foot.

The views along the 10 minute walk down to the causeway were great as ever. Even in the cold and with the rain clouds looming, this part of the North Antrim coastline is captivating.

As spectacular as the Causeway itself is, I do like the walk down.

We tend to get the bus back up though, especially as in the end we were in a bit of a hurry to get back to the coach on time.

We did eventually make it down to the Giants Causeway.

And even in the crazy wind, we still had to clamber on the stones and look out to sea and across to the 'Organ' from our vantage point though it was easier said than done when fighting against a gale.

The sea was pretty rough with some rather impressive waves hitting the headland and indeed the splash zone of the Causeway.

And this was creating quite a bit of foam that was then blowing across the Causeway like giant snow. Can't beat a bit of seaspray, clears out the pores... or so I'm told *cough*.

But when in Rome! Sadly these are not pictures of us... just people as nuts as us.

I do love being at the Giants Causeway. It's maybe not as spectacular or unique as the tourist board might make it out to be on TV but it is a pretty awesome place and I can now say well worth a visit even if the weather is lousy. For in winter the experience is different but just as fun as it is in summer... it just means a few more layers of clothing and being extra careful on the rocks.

What a difference a wave makes, 2.4 little seconds.

When heading to the coast, sometimes you need to be prepared. For instance, sun cream isn't something you'd often consider taking with you on a trip to the Giants Causeway - such is the usual weather around this part of the world... however maybe it should be. In a Sherlock Holmes style of deduction, the pinkness of our necks and faces was narrowed down to either one of two possibilities; either the government had created a giant S.A.D lamp on a very tall tower somewhere off the coast in an attempt to reduce suicide rates, or the sun was actually unobscured by cloud. Having then worked out the odds on the powers that be up at Stormont being able to agree, yet alone follow through on anything - even a crazy mad capped scheme - it became clear that the ball in the sky had to be the mythical orb others call the sun.

So there we were, surrounded by not just one, but two of natures wonders - a basalt wonderland bathed in a stream of sun light.  It was in this setting where we discovered another natural phenomena to look out for when on a trip to the North Antrim coast, but thankfully for us sunburnt eejits, it wasn't us demonstrating what happens this time.

There were hundreds of other people out on the rocks with us, clambering about making the place look like a busy multicoloured bee hive. Like all good worker bees we eventually made way for the masses, went about exploring parts of the hive largely neglected and at the tip of the causeway where it dips into the sea, there just so happens to be a large chance of unexpected waves - as widely advertised around the shores of the national trust sites such as this.

Enjoying the sight but wary of the undulations of the water and overly happy people with jazzy hands, we preceeded with caution to areas of the causeway which are subject to the waves. Around us were yet more adventurous people doing the same. The natural beauty of it all was awe inspiring - as you'd expect from one of the natural wonders of the world - but we all headed back to higher columns as the sight of a swell appeared... well I say all... all but two. Some say love is blind, well on this evidence I'd go so far as to say it's at least a little distracting as this couple in the photos below found out the hard way when an unexpected wave probably put a slight dampener on their day after giving them a rather salty cold shower.

As the 1st wave hit the Causeway

By the time the 2nd hit

And thus we all learnt a valuable lesson that those signs about unexpected waves aren't just an excuse to sneak up on people, wave your hand close to their face and point at the sign. An expected wave can be an awesome sight, but an unexpected wave could lead to your significant other being plucked from the sea by a Scottish Trawler, hampered by a mystery amnesia and you might find them years later playing the bagpipes for a Salvation Army band. You have been warned!