Maghera Beach and Caves

Maghera lies at the end of a valley road west of Ardara, where a wide pale strand runs below the bulk of Slievetooey with a large dune system between the car park and the sea. At the northern end of the beach a cluster of sea caves is cut into the cliff, around twenty of them, several large enough to walk well into at low water. Local tradition holds that villagers hid in one of them from Cromwellian soldiers in the seventeenth century and were discovered and killed when someone left footprints; only one escaped. The caves fill on the rising tide and there is no way out of the deeper ones once it does - this is the practical point, and people have been trapped. Check the tide, go in on a falling one, and take a light. The dunes are extensive and fragile, and the walk across them takes ten minutes each way.

The landscape

• The caves - around twenty in the northern cliff, several walkable at low tide.
• The strand - wide pale sand under Slievetooey.
• The dune system - large and fragile, crossed on the way in.
• The valley approach - past Assaranca waterfall from Ardara.

When to go

May to September, and only on a falling tide for the caves. Check tide tables before setting out - the caves flood completely and trap people.

What to expect

The caves are genuinely dangerous on a rising tide. No lifeguards on the beach and strong currents. Ten minutes across the dunes each way. The car park charges and is small.

Nearby

Assaranca waterfall is on the road in; Ardara and Glengesh are east.