The wedding of Liv Williams and Eric Leeds /
Headed to Portrush
Want to read Part I first? Click here.
We picked up two rental cars in Belfast and began making our way north along the Causeway Coastal Route.
Our first major stop was Carrickfergus Castle, a Norman castle that has guarded Belfast Lough for more than 800 years. If you are making the drive from Belfast to the Causeway Coast, it is an easy historical stop before the scenery begins getting increasingly dramatic. It was not open for a tour when we were there, but it was interesting to see the outside.
From there, the road hugs the Antrim Coast through little towns and villages with the Irish Sea on one side and mountains rising on the other.
This was one of those drives where getting to the destination was every bit as enjoyable as the destination itself.
We also included Glenariff Forest Park, known as the “Queen of the Glens.” The park includes waterfalls, forest and walking trails through one of the nine Glens of Antrim.
Giant’s Causeway
No trip to this part of Northern Ireland would be complete without visiting Giant’s Causeway.
The UNESCO World Heritage Site consists of tens of thousands of mostly hexagonal basalt columns created by volcanic activity roughly 60 million years ago.
That is the scientific explanation.
The better story involves the Irish giant Finn McCool building a causeway across the sea to Scotland to fight the Scottish giant Benandonner.
I will let you decide which explanation you prefer.
Giant’s Causeway
The formations really are one of those natural wonders that look even stranger in person than they do in photographs.
Eric and Liv at Giant’s Causeway
| Helpful hint: Wear shoes with some grip. Wet basalt and Irish rain are not necessarily the ideal combination for maintaining one’s dignity. |
By the time we reached the north coast, Belfast seemed a world away.
Our Home in Portrush
For the remainder of the trip, we stayed at the Bank Apartments in the little seaside resort town of Portrush.
Portrush on the Atlantic Ocean
I always enjoy staying in historic buildings, and this one certainly checked that box.
The building opened in 1898 as the Portrush branch of Belfast Bank and included both the banking operation and living quarters for the bank manager and his family. The original safe room had thick brick walls and a massive steel door and frame weighing more than two tons.
Bank Apartments in Portrush
The building later became Northern Bank and then Danske Bank before closing as a bank in 2012. It had already been listed for its architectural and historical significance in 1977 and has since been restored as apartments.
The Williams and Leeds families occupied four of them.
Around the Causeway Coast
We had set aside the day before the wedding for exploring the coast and for the bride and groom to meet with Dr. Chris Agnew of Coastal Church, the minister who would be performing the wedding ceremony
Whiterocks Beach stretches beneath dramatic limestone cliffs just outside Portrush, while nearby Portballintrae is the kind of little harbor village that causes you to start wondering about the price of real estate in Northern Ireland.
A few minutes away is the Old Bushmills Distillery.
Old Bushmills Distillery
Bushmills traces its whiskey-making heritage to a license granted in the area in 1608, and whether or not you are a whiskey drinker, it is an interesting stop simply because distilling has been part of the economy and culture of this region for centuries.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge
If you are in the area, you should reserve some time to visit Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
For more than 250 years, fishermen used a bridge here to reach the tiny island of Carrick-a-Rede during salmon season. Today’s National Trust bridge hangs nearly 100 feet above the Atlantic.
Here comes the bride
The rest of the family getting ready as Liv heads to the castle
The Houses of Williams and Leeds
On Wednesday, Sept. 3, the Houses of Williams and Leeds officially united on a cliff overlooking Dunluce Castle as their families looked on.
Dunluce Castle
Dunluce Castle sits on a basalt outcropping along the Causeway Coast. Separated from the mainland by a deep chasm and connected by a bridge, it makes a beautiful backdrop for a wedding.
It is frequently suggested that Dunluce Castle was at least some of the inspiration for C.S. Lewis’ in the creation of Cair Paravel in “The Chronicles of Narnia.”
Also, a shoutout to Hannah Moore with Gathered Floral Co. who created the brides bouquet, Becca with Becca Cakes and Bakes NI, who made the wedding cake and Sean McKinley and team for providing a great Irish pre-party at Dunluce Farms and transportation to and from the wedding site.
One of a Dad’s greatest honors
As I walked my daughter across the field, we could see the rain heading our way across the Atlantic Ocean. In some ways, the rain that fell during the ceremony made the Liv and Eric’s vows even more special.
Chris Agnew is a pastor and physician serving at Coastal Church in Portrush, Northern Ireland. Commissioned by the Methodist Church in Ireland in 2022, he and his wife, Hannah, established Coastal as a community centered on faith, family, and local mission. His marriage ceremony and litrugy for Liv and Eric centered on their upcoming “good conversation.”
“Marriage is difficult to describe easily, but the best way I’ve heard it described is that marriage is like a 50-year-long conversation; it’s a chat that goes on for decades.
And this is going to be a good conversation.
Where you’ll talk about anything and everything. A conversation full of laughter, of prayer and banter. A conversation peppered with the voices of family and friends who you cherish. A conversation of sitting side by side in silence, a conversation where hopes are spoken out and memories are celebrated.”
You can download a copy of Dr. Agnew’s words during ceremony here.
As expected, Liv made a beautiful bride, and Eric was a handsome groom.
Fortunately, months earlier, Liv had selected Caragh Camack of Caragh Isla Photography as their photographer. Caragh proved to be much more than the person behind the camera. She played an instrumental role in nearly every aspect of the wedding and helped make the day run smoothly. If you are planning an elopement wedding in Ireland, our family highly recommends Caragh. We were gratful Caragh joined us at the reception.
Wedding photographer/planner Caragh Camack
After the wedding, we headed to Dunluce Lodge near Royal Portrush Golf Club for the reception dinner.
The restaurant at Portrush Lodge
The food was delicious, the service impeccable and the mood celebratory as our two families celebrated the union of their children.
Farewell, Northern Ireland
Early the next morning, we loaded everything back into the rental cars and headed for Belfast City Airport.
As was the case with Scotland, Northern Ireland left me feeling like we had experienced a lot while barely scratching the surface.
Belfast was energetic, historic and constantly surprising. The Causeway Coast offered some of the most dramatic scenery I have ever seen. Portrush was the kind of small seaside town where I could happily have added several more days to the itinerary.
And everywhere we went, the history seemed layered on top of itself — ancient Irish kingdoms, Scottish clans, Victorian industry, religious and political conflict, literature, shipbuilding, television and tourism.
But when I think about the trip years from now, I suspect the thing I will remember most clearly will be standing on that cliff above the Atlantic with our family and all our new friends, watching the clouds finally part over Dunluce Castle as Eric and Liv Leeds begin their new lives together.
Sometimes even Irish Mother Nature knows when to cooperate.
For more of my genealogy research, visit rscottwilliams.info.
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