Road trip - Londonderry

Monday 7 October 2013 

Beautiful morning to start our 3 day trip to and around the north and east coasts of Ireland. It was already 16 degrees at 7am – VERY unusual warm for this time of year. However a BIG change was predicted for next day or so.

We drove west via where we stopped at Castle Archdale – the big Manor House/castle is no longer there but ‘the Square of 3 storey buildings, arched entry way and bell are there. Once again it is set on acres of beautiful woodlands and parks.

We continued on through Castlederg, Victoria Bridge, Sion Mills (very prosperous & beautiful BIG newish light coloured stone church) and Strabane – all quite big towns – few big high schools & colleges, ruins of houses, castles, monasteries. All surrounded by farms – small GREEN fields with hedged borders & busy farmers – baling hay or fertilising ploughed up fields! David Keys told us all the fertilising has to be completed by 14 Oct because of

We went onto Londonderry – lovely drive up eastern side, beside Lough Foyle then the River Foyle.  Derry (original name) one of oldest continually inhabited places in Ireland, founded by St Columb when he built a monastery here in 564.

The stone wall around the city (26 ft high, 30 ft wide) built to defend the Plantation (in early 1600’s) City – now known as Londonderry - from the ‘wild maraurding Irish tribal chieftains’. Wall completed 1618.

Siege of Derry in 1688 – 89 when 13 Protestant Apprentice Boys closed the city gates against the Catholic Jacobite forces of King James (Scotland later England). They held out for 9 months, until 3 ships sailed up the Foyle with food for the starving people & broke the blockade, ending the siege.

Wall today still over a mile around with 24 original cannons (from later troubles) in place.

Londonderry still affected by the later Troubles – the civil rights riots, Bloody Sunday massacre and murders of the 1970’s. City is divided by the river - mainly Roman Catholic ‘half’ of town around the old city & Bogside on the western side (surrounded completely by Republican Donegal!) & where lovely new shopping & entertainment area is; houses older, mainly terraces all joined together in rows ( still fenced barricades & barbed wire visible & Irish tricolour flags flying), wall murals depicting ‘troubles times’ & themes – you cross the only double-decker traffic bridge in Europe (next to the new Peace Bridge)) to Protestant Derry ( big individual houses, more prosperous looking, English flags flying).

The commentator on our Hop on / Hop off bus, insisted over & over again how united they all are now & past forgotten – city known as ‘Legen – derry’ now.

We went onto Strabane – drove the scenic drive beside the River Bann – believed to be earliest settled part of Ireland – artefacts date back up to 7,700 years.

We drove north west around the coastline via Limavidy & Downhill Demesne (Domain) where the ruins of the long blonde sandstone house, Lion Gate, & Mussenden Temple overlook 7 mile Benones beach – often used in film sets..

We stayed overnight at the farm stay ‘Heathfield’ owned by a friend of Molly’s.