Our latest Curiosity of the Week is a spooky treat, just in time for Halloween. This rather eerie and unusual avenue of beech trees can be found in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
The avenue is widely known as The Dark Hedges and is one of the most scenic natural landmarks in Northern Ireland. Situated on the Bregagh Road, near Ballymoney, the trees have unsurprisingly gained their own ghost stories. One spooky tale is of a grey lady who glides along between the gnarly trees.
The trees were first planted to mark the entrance to Gracehill House by the Stuart family. Created to impress guests as they travelled up the avenue to the house, the trees now enthral visitors from all over the world. Helped no doubt by their recent appearance in the Game of Thrones.
Today, the trees are protected by a tree preservation order and looked after by The Dark Hedges Preservation Trust. The avenue can be visited (when lockdown restrictions permit, of course) but please be careful to park away from the avenue and leave no trace behind.
If you enjoyed reading about The Dark Hedges, you might like some of our other suitably topical Curiosity of the Weeks. Discover a Poison Garden, or a ghost village; find out about body snatchers, an unusual burial ground or a gruesome landmark.
We are always on the lookout for interesting customs, hidden places, and unique buildings and landmarks, to share with our readers. If you have an idea for Curiosity of the Week then please do get in touch, we welcome suggestions from everyone. You can contact us by emailing info@contrarylife.com or send us a message via Facebook.
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