Giants Causeway- the most famous landmark of Northern Ireland.

I have long wanted to see her, and for me the Giant's Trail has become the strongest impression of the whole.

Imagine a rocky shore, breaking off towards the sea, which consists of individual faceted basalt columns, closely pressed against each other. The columns are predominantly hexagonal. Sometimes at the base of the column there is an almost regular hexagon, sometimes it is skewed - and not a six-, but an eight- or pentagon.

The columns were formed as a result of a series of volcanic movements, cooling and horizontal compression of lava, which included basalt.

The columns have different heights. Their accumulations form figures, for example, in the form of an organ, a palisade, a pedestal, a staircase. And the most remarkable site is a paved road that goes into the sea and disappears under water.

Actually, this section is called the Bridge of the Giants, or the Path of the Giants.

Path of the Giants(Giants Causeway) and the coast Causeway Coast were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1986 UNESCO.

The Legend of the Origin of the Bridge of the Giants

There is a local legend about the origin of this pavement. It tells about two giants who wanted to measure their strength.

One of them is the Irishman Finn McCool, the other is the Scot Goll. To meet his rival, Finn McCool paved a road through the Irish Sea from driven into sea ​​bottom pillars. The laying of the road so tired the giant that he fell asleep soundly.

Meanwhile, Goll crossed the bridge across the sea to Ireland to fight by force with an opponent. The cunning wife of Finn passed off her sleeping husband as their baby son, and Goll, afraid of meeting with the father of such a giant, ran away, destroying the road behind him. Only a small piece of pavement remained.

Trail of the Giants - how to get there

The Path of the Giants is located in the north of the island of Ireland, a hundred km from, 3 km from the town Bushmills.

How to get there:

By car– along the B147 Causeway road.

On public transport - from Belfast by train to Coleraine, then by bus 172.

In Belfast, local travel agencies can book an excursion (there are even excursions from Dublin).

Visit the Giant's Trail

The trail is open from 9 am, and closes depending on the season:

• January, February, November, December - at 17
• March, April, May, June, September, October - at 18
• July, August - at 19. Last entry - one hour before closing.

The entrance to the National Park is through Tourist centre. It houses a museum, a toilet, a cafe, a gift shop and ticket offices.

Admission to Giants Causeway National Park costs £10.50 for adults (half price for children).

Along with the ticket, a route map and an audio guide are issued.

The audio guide doesn't make much sense. In the scheme, to be honest, too. Everything is intuitive. When I was preparing for the trip, I read that there are several routes along the rocks, which are divided according to the level of difficulty. In fact, the difficulty is about the same everywhere, and in a couple of hours you will pass all the routes marked on this map.

The logic is this: first everyone goes along the lower path along the sea. There is also a bus that takes you directly to the Giant's Trail. It is about 800 meters from the office. You should definitely go on foot (if you can), because the road is beautiful, and the bus goes fast - you won’t have time to take a picture or admire it ..

After the Path of the Giants, the road goes along the sea for some time, and then the serpentine begins, which leads to the upper path. Further, those who wish go along the rocks along the upper path: first to the east, then return to the office. Behind the office there is also a section of the trail that leads to the cape. From the cape, you can look at the Giants' Trail from a different angle.

Walk in the National Park

In the morning we left Belfast and in a couple of hours we were already approaching National park Giant's Causeway.

The weather was overcast. I read that it often rains here, and I usually came across photos from the Giant's Trail with rain.

The tourist center is inscribed in the rock and surrounded by dark columns imitating basalt columns on the Giants' Trail.

The first section is along the sea

After passing through the Tourist Center, we descend along the rocks along the road.

So far, everything looks ordinary, but strange, as if ordered stones are already appearing.

Pavement of the Giants

And here she is Pavement of the Giants. The tops of the columns form a kind of paving stones. In most cases, the columns are of different levels, but in some places they are aligned and merge into a single surface.

The coast consists of numerous faceted columns. The booklet says that there are over 40,000 basalt columns here.

Leg - for the scale of the columns

Here is a paved road

Side pavement looks like this

The trail takes you higher

steep Shepherds stairs climb to the edge of the cliff

and find ourselves on a green meadow with grazing calves.

View of the Bridge leading to the sea

You can clearly see the trail that we climbed. The path in the middle of the slope goes into the distance and leads to the so-called Organ - a rocky area with a number of tall columns. But in our time, the passage to the Organ was closed, we saw it only from above.

Upper trail

then among the heather fields,

it approaches the edge of the cliff.

From here, the Bridge of the Giants looks like a sharp cape. Behind her, a green “dinosaur head” peeks out of the water.

The views are breathtaking, and you want to go further and further, following the curves, descents and ascents coastline. I experienced similar enthusiasm in Normandy, on. By the way, the weather has cleared up.

"Organ Pipes"

Heather and bluebells among the grass

Unfortunately, at some point I had to turn back. Returning to the Giants' Trail, we looked at it from above. The population has increased significantly.

Bus to Bridge Giants. Top right is the Causeway Hotel. In the distance (left) is a large sand beach- the rocks have disappeared.

In conclusion, we also walked to this plateau

There are picnic benches. So, if you have saved sandwiches, then you can have a bite here.

This is how our walk ended. There was no time left for the museum, cafes and souvenirs. I wanted to make the most of my time for a walk along the rocks. And at 2 pm we had a ferry to Scotland.

So, if fate brings you to Northern Ireland, try to get to this unique coast. And maybe even overnight.

Attractions near Giant's Trail

Near the Giant's Trail, next to the information center, there is a Causeway Hotel.

If you came with an overnight stay, you can go through the entire Causeway Coast Way(33 miles) - the most beautiful route along the coast. Also nearby (15 km east of the Giants' Trail) is another attraction - a rope bridge Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, stretched between two rocks above the strait. The bridge serves as a good addition to the Giants' Trail: as a rule, these two attractions are viewed together.

You can also visit the ruins Dunluce castle built on a rock. It is located 8 km west of Giant's Trail. The castle inspired Cair Paravel in The Chronicles of Narnia and Pyke in Game of Thrones.

And finally, take a look at Old Bushmills- the oldest distillery in the world (whiskey was produced there in 1608), where you can see the whiskey production process, taste and buy a local drink. The image of this distillery is on the 10-pound note, which is printed in Northern Ireland.

Useful websites to prepare for your trip

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At the exhibition, where you can see in the photo the most Beautiful places Europe or even the most beautiful places in the world, a photo of the Giants' Trail in Ireland will be a must.

Any collection of photos of beautiful places on the planet cannot do without the sight of this mystical, stretching into the sea, an unknown road made of basalt polygons.

Road of the Giants Giant's Causeway- this is also called this natural phenomenon, located near the city of Bushmills on. The British Causeway Coast, where the Road of the Giants is located, was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO (along with the Road, of course) at the end of the last century, in 1986.

One of the most beautiful places in Europe is a set (about forty thousand) of mostly hexagonal basalt pillars up to twelve meters high standing close to each other. However, some of these natural columns have fewer - from four or more - up to eight corners, and the columns can also be made of andesite.

Scientists believe that this form of education arose during a volcanic eruption fifty to sixty million years ago. Hot basalt then broke through to the surface through the waters of the river, so the outer layers of lava instantly solidified as if multifaceted majestic columns were driven into the ground.

But the ancient Celtic legend explains this natural phenomenon, of course, differently. The coast of huge stone slabs and the stone pavement leading into the sea are the most unusual and most beautiful places in Europe, according to many, this is the work of the ancient giants. Or rather, one of them, the warrior Finn McKumal, who lived on the Irish coast. Across the strait from him, on the Scottish coast, the one-eyed giant Goll Mac Morna settled, constantly insulting the Irish hero. The Irishman decided to take revenge on the giant and began to build a bridge across the strait, driving stone pillars tightly together into the seabed. He spent seven days and nights building this bridge. Tired after hard work, Finn McKumal decided to rest and gain strength for the decisive battle with the giant.

The giant, finding this bridge at his side, ran to the Irish coast and began to break into Finn's house. The warrior's wife, frightened by the giant, conceived a trick: she swaddled her husband like a baby and gave him a soft, freshly baked cake. And she also treated the one-eyed giant Goll with fresh cakes, but only baked flat iron pans inside. The giant, who had broken his teeth on iron, looked with amazement at the “baby” Finn, who was eating such a “delicacy” and with horror imagined the father of this child. Realizing that he could not cope with such a giant, the giant Goll fled back to his home, destroying part of the stone bridge along the way.

Therefore, only the beginning of the Road of the Giants has survived to this day ...

The Giant's Trail is located on the northern coast of Ireland, 100 km northwest of Belfast, about 3 km north of Bushmills and is famous for its unique landscape.

A lot of stone pillars standing nearby form a semblance of a road that seems to be paved with unusual paving stones. There are many variations of the legend about the origin of the Giant's Path, and we will tell you one of them.

A long time ago, when giants lived on Earth, the giant Fin McCool, who lives in these parts, wanted to measure his strength with the giant Benandonner and challenged him to battle. The vain Benandonner accepted the challenge, wanting to teach the impudent Fin a lesson and got ready to go.

The rivals were separated by the sea, and in order to be in the possessions of Fin, Benandonner began to drive huge pillars into the seabed, creating a semblance of a bridge. He spent a lot of time and effort, but still got to the other side and decided to take a nap before the upcoming fight.

Finn's wife McCool was walking along the waterfront when she suddenly noticed the sleeping Benandonner. Assessing that her husband's rival is bigger and stronger, she decided to go for a trick and swaddled her giant husband like a baby.

When Benandonner came to their house and saw such a “child”, he was seriously frightened: after all, if this is just a child, then what a powerful father he has ?! And Benandonner had no choice but to flee back to his lands, destroying the bridge of columns along the way.

The origin of the Path of the Giants was able to explain not only local legends, but also scientists. According to them, the abnormally symmetrical pillars formed during a volcanic eruption more than 50 million years ago. As a result of chemical reactions, pressure and layering, the lava turned into regular hexagons, which we can contemplate at the present time.

Another attraction of the Giants' Trail is the so-called "chimneys". Under the influence of erosion and weathering, some pillars began to rise above the rest and from the side resemble chimneys ancient castle. The Spanish warship "Girona", escaping after the defeat of the "Invincible Armada" in 1588, fired several volleys of cannons at the cliff, as the Spaniards mistook it for an enemy castle.

This picturesque place inspired creative people of the 19th century: artists, writers and even musicians. The naturalist Joseph Banks, who visited the Giant's Trail more than once, once said: “Compared to this, what are the cathedrals and palaces built by man? Just toy houses."

Video - Giant's Path

Once again, nature is showing us one of its phenomenal tricks. On the coast of the northern part of Northern Ireland (forgive the tautology, but that's the way it is) is the Giant's Causeway. This unique phenomenon of nature looks like unusual pillars, the section of which is very similar to a honeycomb.

The pillars (or columns) are so tightly pressed against each other that even a knife cannot be stuck between them. Approximately the same fit large stones in the walls ancient city Sacsayhuaman, with the only difference being that people did it there, and nature here.

Road of the Giants on the map

• Geographic coordinates 55.240684, -6.511417
• The distance from the capital of Northern Ireland, the city of Belfast, is approximately 80 km.
• Distance to the nearest airport Derry about 50 km

It should be noted that Northern Ireland is an administrative part of the UK, and not a separate state.

The Giant's Road is located 3 kilometers north of the town of Bushmills.

This attraction has about 40,000 basalt columns interconnected. Most of the pillars are hexagonal, but there are also four, five, seven and octagonal specimens. Their height reaches 12 meters. The diameter of the pillars is from 30 to 50 cm.

Considering this unusual natural structure, it is hard to believe that it appeared by chance. By official version scientists, such extraordinary columns arose after a volcanic eruption in antiquity. Active volcanic phenomena took place here 50-60 million years ago. Molten basalt flows formed huge lava fields. With rapid cooling, the volume of the substance was reduced, and horizontal compression contributed to the appearance of such geometrically regular structures.

There is another hypothesis according to which the Road of the Giants was formed as a result of convection of a viscous substance under conditions of cooling of the upper layers.

Local residents, of course, associate the appearance of this structure with an ancient legend.
It says that the hero of the Celtic myths, warrior, sage and seer Finn McKumal decided to measure his strength with a huge one-eyed monster named Goll, who lived in Scotland. But by some absurd accident or random absurdity, the heroic hero… was afraid to get his feet wet. Finn had to drive a whole lot of columns into the bottom of the sea - it turned out to be a kind of bridge on neighboring island. He was very tired and decided to sleep before the battle. While our hero was peacefully dreaming, Goll, without waiting for his opponent, himself came to visit him along the already built bridge. He was met by Uma, Finn's wife. Judging by the name, the lady was not stupid. She cheated a little: pointing to her sleeping husband, she said that he was her child. As you understand, this comrade did not at all resemble a child in size. Uma sat the giant at the table and began to treat him with cakes, in which she had previously baked iron pans. Other cakes (already without pans inside) she set aside for her husband. When Goll began to break his teeth, eating his treat, the awakened Finn calmly ate his cakes "on both cheeks." Realizing that if the baby is like that !!!, then his dad will be completely invincible, Goll runs away in a panic and destroys the bridge along the way, cutting off the path for persecution.

Whether the Road of the Giants appeared as it is said in myth or as scientists suggest is no longer so important. The main thing is that now we have one more unsolved and therefore very attractive natural attraction.

The Road of the Giants runs for more than 270 meters along the coast and about 150 meters along the bottom of the sea. All columns are very hard and have a dark color. This is due to the high content of magnesium and iron in their composition. Such a mixture of substances is practically not subject to the destructive action of sea waves and wind.

Near the Giant's Road there are cliffs with original names. Harp Rock - its columns are curved and descend to the shore. The cliff of the Organ, whose pillars are straight and very similar to this huge musical instrument.
There are also cliffs Giant's Loom, Coffin and Giant's Eyes. Here you can still see the Giant's Shoe. This is a huge cobblestone in the form of shoes and 2 meters high.

• in 1986, UNESCO declared Giant's Causeway and the Causeway Coast where it is located world heritage, and only a year later, the Department of Environmental Protection awarded this place the status of a National Wildlife Refuge
• despite the fact that the Road of the Giants has been here for thousands, and possibly millions of years, it was widely known only in the 17th century from the stories of the Bishop of Derry. And only at the beginning of the 19th century the first tourists came here.
• access for tourists here is nowhere and is not limited in any way
• in Scotland, on the island of Staffa, there is a unique one, the walls of which (like the coast of the island itself) consist of the same hexagonal basalt columns. Perhaps this is also part of the Road of the Giants

Road of the Giants photo

The path of the giants has several names, including the Path of the Giants and the Bridge of the Giants. Located in Northern Ireland, volcanic formations are among the world's natural treasures, which is why a considerable number of tourists seek to look at unusual cliffs.

Description of Road of the Giants

An amazing wonder of nature from above resembles a sloping road that descends from the cliffs and goes into Atlantic Ocean. Its length on the coast reaches 275 meters, and about 150 meters more stretches under water. The size of each column is about six meters, although twelve-meter pillars are also found. If you take a photo from above the cliff, you can see the honeycombs closely adjacent to each other. Most of the pillars are hexagonal, but there are also those with four, seven or nine corners.

The pillars themselves are quite solid and dense. This is due to their composition, which is dominated by magnesium and basaltic iron with quartz content. It is because of this that they are not subject to decay under the influence of the winds and waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Conditionally natural structure can be divided into three sections. The first is called the Great Path. Here the columns have a cascade structure in the form of steps. To the bottom, they are aligned into a road up to 30 meters wide. Next are the Middle and Small paths, reminiscent of protruding burial mounds. Their tops can be walked on as they are flat in shape.

Another unusual area is Staffa Island. It is located 130 km from the coast, but even here you can see columns similar to those that go under water. Another notable place for tourists on the island is the Fingal Cave, the depth of which reaches 80 meters.

Hypotheses about the occurrence of a miracle of nature

In the course of studying the Road of the Giants, scientists put forward various hypotheses about where such columns came from. Among the popular versions are the following explanations:

• the pillars are crystals formed on the seabed, once located in the territory of Northern Ireland;
• the columns are petrified bamboo forest;
• the surface was formed as a result of volcanic eruptions.

It is the third option that seems closest to the truth, since it is believed that the magma that has come to the surface with a long period of cooling begins to slowly crack, which makes the layer resemble honeycombs that go far deep into the earth. Due to the basalt base, the magma did not spread over the ground, but lay down in an even layer, which later became similar to columns.

Despite the fact that this hypothesis seems to scientists the most reliable, it is not possible to test it for truth, since hundreds of years must pass before a similar effect can be repeated in practice.

Legend of the Road of the Giants

Among the Irish, the story is retold of the giant Finn McCumal, who had to fight a terrible adversary from Scotland. To connect the island with Great Britain, the resourceful giant began to build a bridge and was so tired that he lay down to rest. His wife, hearing that the enemy was approaching, swaddled her husband and began to bake cakes.

When the Scot asked if Finn was sleeping on the shore, his wife said that it was just their baby, and her husband would soon arrive for the decisive duel. The resourceful girl treated the guest to pancakes, but she first baked cast-iron pans in them and left only one for Finn without an unusual addition. The Scot could not bite a single cake and was extremely surprised that the "baby" ate it without difficulty.

Thinking how strong the father of this child must be, the Scot hastened to escape from the island, destroying the bridge he had built behind him. The amazing legend is liked not only by the locals, but also feeds the interest in the Giant's Road among tourists from all over the world. They are happy to walk around the neighborhood and enjoy the landscapes of Ireland.