Leaving the busy centre of Bangor I continued on around the North Down coast via Donaghadee where there is also a fine harbour with a lighthouse at the end of its pier. This part of the Mourne Coastal Route travels down the east side of the Ards Peninsula and back around Stangford Lough to the village of Strangford. There is of course a ferry from Strangford to Portaferry, but I decided to go around the Lough (which takes about 50 mins) rather than take the short cut.
The southern tip (Ballyquinten Point) of the Ards Peninsula is not accessible by road, but you can get pretty close at Barr Hall. I had visited this area many times while a student at Trinity on Marine Biology Field Trips to Portaferry. Coming into Portaferry I first stopped at the local church to visit the grave of my Aunt Breda who was also my Godmother, and then met with my Uncle Seámus and Cousin James. Somehow I managed to forget to take a photo of the three of us.
Overlooking Portaferry is a ruin of an old windmill, built in 1771 but destroyed by fire on Christmas Day in 1878. At one time there were no less than 82 windmills stretching the length of the Ards Peninsula. Indeed it must have looked much as the Netherlands does today, and it was undoubtedly this feature of the Peninsula which gave rise to the acronym “Little Holland” (WonderfulIreland.ie). There are fantastic views of Portaferyy, up Strangford Lough, and across to the Mourne Mountains from the Portaferry Windmill.
It was back heading northwards again leaving Portaferry to tour around the inside of Strangford Lough. At Kircubbin I stopped for petrol and spent a long time chatting to a fellow Harley rider about bikes and touring. At the top of Strangford Lough is the town of Newtownards (where I was arrested, but not charged, in 1982!). Overlooking the town is Scrabo Tower which is visible from most of north Down. It was built in 1857 as a memorial to Charles Stewart, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry who was one of the Duke of Wellington's generals during the Napoleonic Wars.
Downpatrick is the county town of Down, and also the reputed location of where St Patrick is buried. It leads to the final part of this section of my tour to the village of Strangford. Along the way I stopped at the magnificent 18th century Castleward. One interesting thing about this grand house is that one side is designed in Classical Palladian style (as in my photo), while the other side of the house is designed in Georgian Gothic style. Apparently Lord Bangor and his wife could not agree on which style to use, and each got their own way!
Tomorrow - the final part of my Causeway and Mourne Coastal trip.
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