Madam, - With reference to Roger Garland's letter of January 8th, walking in Northern Ireland can be equally difficult. Here is what Robert McCahan, the local historian born in Ballycastle in 1863, has to say in a 1923 pamphlet about getting the short distance between Ballintoy harbour and Whitepark Bay (now National Trust property) in Co Antrim:
"Whitepark Bay can be reached from the harbour (at Ballintoy) along the foot of the chalk cliffs during the ebb tide passing several caves in the limestone and also viewing the large number of partially submerged rocks which strew the coast."
In fact the route on foot is only marginally tidal, but this is the not the main issue. A local farmer is now attempting, possibly for reasons not directly to do with access, to block the shoreline at each end of this section of the North Antrim Cliff Path, which includes the Giant's Causeway, and close the existing stiles across two wet green fields. Moyle District Council states publicly that it has no legal right to intervene and has passed the buck to the CAAN (Countryside Access and Activities Network). This demonstrates the apparent inability to protect even traditional, well-established footpaths.
How far Northern Ireland lags behind the rest of the UK can be read (on the internet) in the paper on access to the Northern Ireland countryside by the Council for Nature Conversation and the Countryside.
This is not to overlook the active goodwill and generosity of most farmers in this area. - Yours, etc,
STEWART HOLTERMAN, Moycraig Road, Bushmills, Co Antrim.