Administrative Boundary of Causeway Coast and Glens

About Causeway Coast and Glens

Causeway Coast and Glens is a district council area in Northern Ireland. Covering approximately 1,994 square kilometres of dramatic coastline, volcanic upland plateau, and wooded glens, Causeway Coast and Glens had a population of approximately 145,000 at the 2021 Census. The district — created in 2015 by the merger of the former Ballymoney Borough Council, Coleraine Borough Council, Limavady Borough Council, and Moyle District Council — contains some of the most spectacular natural and heritage scenery in Ireland, including the Giant's Causeway, one of only two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Ireland. The Giant's Causeway The Giant's Causeway — on the north Antrim coast near Bushmills — is Northern Ireland's only UNESCO World Heritage Site (inscribed 1986) and the most famous natural landmark in Ireland. The causeway consists of approximately 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, mostly hexagonal, formed by the rapid cooling and contraction of basalt lava following a volcanic eruption approximately 50 to 60 million years ago during the Palaeogene period; the columns, ranging from 15 centimetres to 1.5 metres in diameter, rise in steps from the sea, creating one of the most extraordinary natural landscapes in the world. According to Irish legend, the causeway was built by the giant Fionn mac Cumhaill (Finn McCool) to allow him to walk to Scotland to fight his Scottish counterpart, Benandonner. The National Trust manages the Giant's Causeway visitor centre and surrounding area and it attracts approximately one million visitors per year. Coastal Highlights The Causeway Coastal Route — the 120-mile scenic driving route from Belfast to Derry — is regarded as one of the most scenic coastal drives in the world, passing through Causeway Coast and Glens along its most dramatic section. Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge — originally erected by salmon fishermen — spans a 20-metre chasm between the mainland and the small island of Carrickarede, providing vertiginous views of the north Antrim coast. Dunluce Castle — the spectacular ruins of a medieval and Plantation-era castle perched on a basalt stack above the sea, home of the MacDonnell lords of Antrim — is one of the most dramatically sited castle ruins in Ireland. Old Bushmills Distillery, licensed in 1608 (though distilling may have been practised on the site since at least the 13th century), holds the distinction of being the world's oldest licensed whisky distillery and produces the celebrated Bushmills single malt and blended whiskeys. The Dark Hedges — an atmospheric avenue of gnarled 18th-century beech trees on the Bregagh Road near Armoy — became internationally famous after featuring in Game of Thrones as the King's Road. The Glens of Antrim and Rathlin Island The Glens of Antrim — nine scenic river valleys carved through the basalt Antrim Plateau to the sea between Larne and Ballycastle — are areas of outstanding natural beauty, their wooded lower slopes and upland heather moorland contrasting dramatically with the coastal cliffs. Rathlin Island — Northern Ireland's only inhabited offshore island, lying approximately eight kilometres north of Ballycastle — is an RSPB nature reserve famous for its seabird colonies, particularly the large puffin population at the West Lighthouse. GIS and Boundary Data The administrative boundary of Causeway Coast and Glens District Council is available for free download in GeoJSON and KML formats, sourced from the OSNI Open Data portal (Crown copyright 2024). Compatible with QGIS, ArcGIS, Mapbox, and Google Earth, the dataset supports UNESCO World Heritage management, coastal tourism planning, whisky heritage mapping, geology research, and demographic analysis across the local authority area.

📍 Administrative boundary of Causeway Coast and Glens county