Page 269 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Ireland

NOR THERN IRELAND  267

VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Practical Information
Road map D1. Co Antrim.
Visitors’ Centre Causeway
Head (028 2073 1855).
∑ nationaltrust.org.uk
Open daily. Closed 24–26 Dec.
7 limited. 8 on request. & -
Giant’s Causeway Bushmills
Railway heritage steam trains:
Giant’s Causeway and the North Antrim Coast Tel 028 2073 2844.
Millions of years of geological activity can be witnessed in the eroded Open call for times. 7 & =
cliffs flanking the Causeway. The striking band of reddish rock is the
inter-basaltic layer, which formed during a long period of temperate Transport
£ to Portrush. @ from Portrush,
climatic conditions. The high iron content explains the rock’s rich
ochre colour. Bush mills or Coleraine.
Shape of the Columns
Most columns are
hexagonal, but some
have four, five, eight or
even ten sides. They
generally measure about
30 cm (12 in) across.
Middle Causeway
This section of the Middle
Causeway is known as the
Honeycomb. Like other unusual
rock formations along the coast,
it was christened by local
guides during Victorian times.
Giant’s Causeway Today
It has been estimated that 40,000 basalt
columns extend from the cliffs down
into the sea. Close to the shore,
they have been eroded
to form the Grand,
Middle and Little
Causeways.

Wishing Chair
Myth has it that this rocky seat was made for Finn
MacCool when he was a boy, and that wishes
made here will come true.
Sun setting over the spectacular Giant’s Causeway

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