Portsalon

Portsalon is a great spot for visitors to base themselves while staying in Fanad. It has a wealth of holiday accommodation wrapped around a quaint harbour and sheltered beach. The beach is extremely popular with families and water sport enthusiasts alike. There is also a pub and restaurant located at the beach and is the perfect place to while away the hours on a sunny day. For golfers Portsalon also has one of the most popular and exhilarating links golf courses in the country, weaving its way between the sand dunes of Ballymastocker bay, with glorious views of Lough Swilly and the Knockhalla Coast road. It is worth a look to visit the Small Church of the All Saints which houses the bell from another famous wreak, The Laurentic which sunk of Fanad Head in 1917.

The armed military merchant ship struck two mines off Lough Swilly near Fanad Lighthouse and sank within an hour. Only 121 of the 475 aboard survived. In addition to her passengers and crew, the ship was carrying about 35 tons of gold ingots (bars) held in its second class baggage room. At the time the gold was valued at £5 million, approximately £250 million in 2007. Royal Navy divers made over 5,000 dives to the wreck between 1917 and 1924 and recovered all but about 1% of the bars. Still to this day 22 bars of gold remain on the sea bed, a tempting challenge for experienced scuba divers.

On your way from here towards Doaghbeg it is certainly worth calling in to the Ballydaheen Gardens, a glorious five acre Japanese style garden with breathtaking views of Lough Swilly. It is also possible through a private entry point in the gardens to go down to the shore to see the wonderful rock formation known locally as the seven arches.