Magilligan Point

Magilligan Point is the great sandy spit that almost closes the mouth of Lough Foyle, staring across a narrow tidal channel to Greencastle in Donegal, with a fine early nineteenth-century Martello tower guarding the point. It is a wild, windswept, quiet spot with huge skies, and from the air you get the sweep of the dunes, the tower, the Foyle ferry crossing the narrows and the mountains of Inishowen filling the western horizon. Launch from the point car park or the firm beach. Two things demand real caution here. First, the whole area is an internationally important nature reserve (ASSI and SPA) for wintering and breeding birds, so you must keep well clear of flocks, especially in autumn and winter, and avoid the dunes in the nesting season. Second, the Ministry of Defence Magilligan training area lies immediately behind the point and can be active with live firing, so never fly toward the ranges and heed all red flags and warning signs. Sea and estuary wind is strong and near constant, so plan for it. City of Derry Airport is about 21km east, so there is no FRZ, but the ferry and light aircraft use the area and you should keep watch for them.