2018-10-10 Hiking

After hearing about the Troubles, the group decided that they needed a nature day.   Luckily, the HHR was available for questions.

HHR:  How was the day?

Larry:  It started out cold and very windy.  Debbie went in full 4 layer mode.

Debbie:  We were going on a rope bridge.  I was afraid that it would be blowing in the wind.

Joyce:  I had the day planned out.

HHR:  Where did you go?

Jerry:  We went to Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (locally pronounced carrick-a-reedy).  It is a famous rope bridge in Northern Ireland. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny island of Carrickarede. It spans 66 ft and is (98 ft) above the rocks below.

Joyce:  It is so crowded that you have to buy a ticket and are assigned a time to cross.  It was hard but I had my group there when it opened so we didn’t really have to wait.

Debbie:  Joyce did make us run to beat a bus.    It is a good thing that Larry and I trained before we went on this trip.  We were able to bypass the bus load of retirees by fast walking.

HHR:  What exactly is the island?

Debbie:  Well, the definition of an island is….

HHR:  Really?

Debbie:  Oh, okay – Salmon fishermen used it for more that 300 years.  Now, the big deal is just to walk across the bridge.  It is a one way bridge and the guard yells at you if you stop on the bridge.

HHR:  What exactly does he yell?

Debbie:  He yells “Get off the bridge”.  Some people wanted to pose for pictures on the bridge.  I tried to help the guard by jumping up and down on the bridge.  I think he liked that.

HHR:  What did you do next?

Larry:  We ate lunch before we left.  We did need to anchor  our food to keep the food from blowing off the table.

Debbie:  Joyce told us that was part of the ambiance.

HHR:  Was that your day?

Larry:  No, next we went to the Giant’s Causeway.   The most characteristic and unique feature of the site is the exposure of some 40,000 large, regularly shaped polygonal columns of basalt in perfect horizontal sections, forming a pavement. This dramatic sight has inspired legends of giants striding over the sea to Scotland.

Jerry:  It was pretty impressive.  How often can you work polygonal into a sentence about hiking?

Debbie:  We could have taken a bus.  Sometimes it is hard being Les Cheap girl especially if you wear 4 layers of clothes.

Joyce:  We had an audio guide but noticed that Debbie kept looking the wrong way and taking pictures of odd things.

Debbie:  I really don’t want to talk about this.  40,000 columns threw me off.  You know, people were not supposed to be on those rocks.  There was a sign about staying off the rocks.   I was taking pictures to help security.

Larry:  We ended our day by going to Dark Hedges.  We had to give Debbie some ice cream since she didn’t get to ride the bus.

HHR:  What is Dark Hedges?

Jerry:  Well, I am glad that you asked.   Dark Hedges is actually an avenue of beech trees along a road and it forms an atmospheric tunnel where cars pass through.  Game of Thrones was filmed there.

Debbie:  Technically, cars can’t go down the road because people are all over the road taking pictures.  It is also not that dark.  I didn’t feel any atmospheric tunnel.   I walked down the middle of the road giving stink-eyes out.

Larry:  We think Debbie may have over indulged in hiking today.