Antrim Coast and Glens

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Fair Head, east of Ballycastle
View from Tievebulliagh to Glenariff
The Slemish in the southwest of the area

Antrim Coast and Glens (German "Coast and Valleys of Antrim") is an Area of ​​Outstanding Natural Beauty established in 1988 ( German  "Area of ​​extraordinary natural beauty" , (AONB)) in the northeast of the island of Ireland .

location

The area is located in the historic County of Antrim , politically it belongs to Northern Ireland , administratively to the district of Causeway Coast and Glens . It stretches along the coast of the North Channel , part of the Scottish Sea , over a length of almost 50 kilometers, from Ballycastle in the north to just before Larne in the south. The depth is around 15 kilometers, the most south-westerly area marked by the Slemish .

Antrim Coast and Glens is the most easterly of three AONBs that take up almost all of Northern Ireland's north coast. Beyond Ballycastle, immediately thereafter, follows the Causeway Coast and to the west of this, with a gap of around six kilometers between Portrush and Portsteward , Binevenagh .

structure

The area essentially comprises four areas:

  • the sparsely populated Antrim Mountains (other names are Antrim Hills or Antrim Plateau ) with their overlying moors . Remains of mining activities are widespread, especially on iron , but also on bauxite , from the 19th to the middle of the 20th century
  • the Glens of Antrim lying in it , nine valleys formed by glacial erosion during the last glacial period around 17,000 years ago, which extend in a north to east direction to the coast
  • the coast itself, which is flat with beaches where the Glens flow, but otherwise characterized by steep cliffs. This is where the Antrim Coast Road , a popular tourist route , runs as part of the A2 . It connects a number of smaller port cities, from Ballycastle via Cushendun, Cushendall, Waterfoot, Carnlough, Glenarm and Ballygalley to Larne.
  • the northern offshore island of Rathlin

Web links

Coordinates: 55 ° 1 ′ 0 ″  N , 6 ° 5 ′ 0 ″  W.