Blackhead Coastal Path was high on our list of walks to complete in Northern Ireland. We can see the lighthouse beacon at night from our house, so decided to make the trip to see it up close.
If you haven’t completed the walk, make this short, but beautiful route top of your list too.
Where is the Blackhead Coastal Path?
Blackhead Car Park, Whitehead, County Antrim, BT38 9NE
How to get there
Train
Whitehead is on the Belfast-Larne line, check Translink’s website for times. Once you have left the station head down the hill towards the seafront and turn left, follow the path and this will bring you to Blackhead Coastal Path.
Car
Head for the town of Whitehead on the A2. Once in the town, follow the signs for Blackhead Car Park, this is where the Coastal Path starts.
Cost and Opening Hours
The Blackhead Coastal Path is free of charge and open 24/7. However, there are no lights along the path, so you might want to factor that in when planning the time of your visit.
The Blackhead Coastal Path
The Blackhead Coastal Path has been subject to a major upgrade over the past couple of years, and in July 2020 the path reopened to the public following completion of the restoration works. The path is very popular with dog walkers and families, and it’s very clear to see why!
The path begins just north of the Blackhead car park and weaves along the coastline, before reaching the base of the cliffs at Blackhead.
Along the way we watched the boats come and go through Belfast Lough, and tried to spot landmarks in our hometown Bangor, just opposite.
Once at the cliffs, the walk became even more fun for Daddy and Megan, who dared each other to enter the dark caves, while the waves crashed in below.
Once through the caves and out the other side it was time to start the climb to the top!
The Lighthouse
There are a number of steps leading to the lighthouse. Megan was having serious flashbacks from the ‘Stairway to Heaven’ walk we completed the previous weekend. However, she was delighted when she quickly realised that although steep in parts, there really were not that many to climb!
The lighthouse has been in operation since 1902, once a manual operation which helped guide RMS Titanic out of Belfast Lough, it’s now fully automated.
The views from the lighthouse are absolutely stunning, we were lucky that we made our trip on a clear day and could see as far as Scotland and part of England.
Not to mention the town of Whitehead itself, which is very picturesque from above.
After we took in the view, it was time to start the walk back. We followed a slightly smaller path back down to the seafront, which met the main path back to Whitehead.
The walk from start to finish is around 2-3 miles, and it took us close to 2 hrs to complete.
Accessibility
Most of the walk is flat. However, if you want to visit the lighthouse you must climb a number of steps, which are steep in parts.
What else to do in Whitehead?
Whitehead train museum
Sadly, on the day of our visit the museum was closed, but it came highly recommended by our followers. Whitehead Train Museum is a short and well sign posted walk from the train station. The museum contains steam trains from bygone eras, and would be an ideal spot for train enthusiasts young and old. We will be back to visit it one day.
Would we recommend the Blackhead Coastal Path?
100% . A lot of money has gone into redeveloping the path and making it safe for visitors to walk and very family friendly. The views as you will have seen from our pictures are superb, and well worth the walk.
Thanks for taking the time to read our blog about the Blackhead Coastal Path.
The Lewis Family.
If you enjoy reading about our days out in Northern Ireland. Check out our other blog posts here – Northern Ireland
Found this post useful? If you can please donate below and help with the cost of upkeep for this blog. Unable to donate? We totally understand, but please share our blog with your friends and family. Thanks
