SWAYING SUSPENSION BRIDGE
But the highlight of the Antrim coast was undoubtedly the walk to the Giant's Causeway and just before that, the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
For centuries, this part of Northern Ireland was a point of Atlantic salmon migration between the mainland and the tiny island of Carrick-a-Rede and nets were hung across to catch them.
To check on their nets and bring in their haul, the fishermen first relied on boats, then decided to set up a rope bridge in 1755. They strung a rope bridge - covered by wooden planks and with a single handrail - 30m above the churning sea to get across a 20m chasm.
The bridge was last used in 2002 with the closure of the salmon fishery. Today, a wire suspension bridge with two handrails spans the same abyss, providing a safer, though no less exciting crossing, especially in gusty winds.
The 30-minute hike to the Carrick-a-Rede bridge from its starting point at Larrybane covers less than 2km. It is a lovely coastal trail overlooking steep, jagged, cove-studded chalk cliffs rising sharply from the sea.
There are views of Sheep Island and, beyond it, the larger Rathlin Island, the only inhabited offshore island in Northern Ireland and famous for its seabirds and seaweed farms.
From afar, the swaying bridge can be seen and the view of people crossing the yawning divide is something to behold and the moment to be cherished.
Then came my turn to accomplish the walk. Steady does it and I was across in no time.
GIANT'S CAUSEWAY
Just 15km from the rope bridge is the highlight, the Giant's Causeway.
The 6km coastal walk there started at Dunseverick Castle, now in ruins. The undulating trail across green meadows offers views of sheer basaltic cliffs with ribbed vertical sides, high bluffs wrapped around sweeping bays and foaming Atlantic waters.
After a few hours, we saw black rocky headlands with people, looking like ants, walking on the ridges ahead of us. That must be the Giant's Causeway, we thought, as we descended to the coast to get to the promontories and beach.
Then, there it was - about 40,000 basalt columns scattered along the shore and out into the sea. From above, they resemble giant hexagonal stepping stones, as if someone had fitted them together into a massive jigsaw puzzle.
Viewed from the side, they appear to be columns of tubes of different sizes that someone had stacked neatly side by side.
But this Unesco World Heritage Site is no man-made wonder. It is the powerful handiwork of nature - the result of a volcanic eruption 60 million years ago, which caused huge lava flows to solidify into basalt pillars as they cooled in the sea.
Local legend attributes the creation of the site to two giants, the Irish Finn McCool and his Scottish counterpart, Benandonner.
The story goes that Finn McCool built the causeway to go over to Scotland to duel with his arch-rival. But when he saw how huge the Scotsman was, McCool scurried back.
Benandonner followed and found McCool sleeping at home. Asking Mrs McCool if that was her husband, the quick-witted wife said no, that was her baby.
The Scottish giant thought that if the baby was that big, the father must be a true giant. Terrified of meeting McCool, he hurried back to Scotland, destroying the causeway along the way.
As I stepped onto the giant stones to get to the farthest pillars at sea, it was not difficult to imagine that perhaps, they had indeed been hurled out by a giant - a magical touch to the end of one of Northern Ireland's best wild walks.
•Tan Chung Lee is a freelance travel writer.