County Derry / Londonderry · Ulster
Coleraine
Cúil Raithin
'nook of the ferns'
The story
A crossing of the lower Bann near where Mount Sandel stands — the oldest known human settlement in Ireland, dated to about 7900 BC. The town itself was laid out by the Irish Society of London during the plantation.
Worth seeing nearby
- Mount Sandel · Ireland's oldest known settlement — where hunter-gatherers built huts above the Bann around 7900 BC. There is nothing to see but the view; that is the point.
- Dunluce Castle · MacDonnell stronghold on a sea-stack; in 1639 the kitchen fell into the sea, cooks and all. The lost town beside it was only found in 2011.
- The Giant's Causeway · Built by Fionn to cross to Scotland and fight the giant Benandonner — who fled back and tore up the road when Fionn's wife showed him 'the baby' (Fionn in a bonnet).
All of these are pinned on the Hidden Ireland map.
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