Cranny Falls

Carnlough / Ballymena, Northern Ireland, UK (Great Britain)

About Cranny Falls


Hiking Distance: 3.6km round-trip
Suggested Time: about 90 minutes

Date first visited: 2024-07-19
Date last visited: 2024-07-19

Waterfall Latitude: 54.99724
Waterfall Longitude: -6.01666

Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Cranny Falls is a waterfall situated inland from the coastal town of Carnlough in the scenic Antrim Coast of Northern Ireland.

I tend to think of it as a sort of community waterfall because its trail started from a community centre, and it seemed like one of those public spaces that locals get to enjoy at will.

Cranny_Falls_057_07192024 - Cranny Falls
Cranny Falls

Even the trail involved going between open farm pastures while also skirting past some backyards of suburban homes.

As for the waterfall itself, there’s no official height figure from what I could tell, but it looked to be around 15-20m tall.

Most of the trail to get to the waterfall had lots of development in terms of farm pastures and suburban homes as well as relics of an old quarry operation.

It wasn’t until we got to the waterfall itself at the end of the hike that we started to see more forested terrain (as one might expect for visiting a waterfall like this).

Cranny_Falls_006_07192024 - Following the straightshot 'hurry' that skirted some suburban homes of the town of Carnlough
Following the straightshot ‘hurry’ that skirted some suburban homes of the town of Carnlough

As for accessing the Cranny Falls, we first started from a large car park that also doubles as a car park for the Carnlough Community Centre (see directions below).

From there, a trail went past some large rocks (placed there to prevent people from trying to drive on this path) and onto a straight shot 1km stretch.

This straight path was part of the Old Mineral Railway Path or “hurry”, which was built around 1853 primarily to export limestone to Scotland and England.

These days, this path skirts behind sleepy suburban backyards while mostly dominated by open farmlands with some sporadic tree cover.

Cranny_Falls_011_07192024 - Continuing along the straightshot 'hurry' portion of the hike to the Cranny Falls from the Carnlough Communicyt Centre
Continuing along the straightshot ‘hurry’ portion of the hike to the Cranny Falls from the Carnlough Communicyt Centre

At the end of the “hurry”, there’s some signage with a map describing this trail while the path joined up with an unpaved road.

I followed this road past a circular walk and towards the single-lane Waterfall Road, where the actual Cranny Falls Trail started from.

Noting the road passing before the Cranny Falls Trail, I did consider driving here to bypass the whole “hurry” section, but the reality was that there’s no sanctioned parking around this trailhead.

Moreover, the single-lane road seemed to be more of a locals-only route, and I’m sure they wouldn’t appreciate tourists trying to clog up this road in an effort to cut down the hiking.

Cranny_Falls_024_07192024 - Crossing Waterfall Road to get to the actual trailhead for Cranny Falls
Crossing Waterfall Road to get to the actual trailhead for Cranny Falls

The more I think about it, the signage for the Cranny Falls specifically pointed to the community centre car park and not for the Waterfall Road shortcut.

Anyways, the final 800m of the trail went along a narrower path skirting by some sheep pastures as the path started to skirt the Carnlough River.

The valley narrowed the further the trail went, and it ultimately went past a locked gate that I was able to go around before the path followed a boardwalk that ultimately dead-ended before the Cranny Falls.

Once at the bridge over the Carnlough River, I was pretty much looking against the late afternoon sun (when it wasn’t hiding behind clouds), which made me wonder if this was more of a morning waterfall on a sunny day.

Cranny_Falls_043_07192024 - A locked gate that you are supposed to go around to the left side as the terrain becomes more forested in the final 250m stretch of the Cranny Falls Trail
A locked gate that you are supposed to go around to the left side as the terrain becomes more forested in the final 250m stretch of the Cranny Falls Trail

In any case, I went back the way I came, and I wound up spending about 90 minutes away from the car.

Authorities

Cranny Falls is in the town of Carnlough in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. It is administered by the Mid and East Antrim Corough Council. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, you can try visiting the Antrim Glens Tourism website.

Cranny_Falls_002_iPhone_07192024 - Looking across the west side of the community centre car park towards the trailhead for the Cranny Falls hike
Cranny_Falls_001_07192024 - Following the signs up into the start of the 'hurry' portion of the Cranny Falls hike
Cranny_Falls_002_07192024 - During my mid-July 2024 visit to Cranny Falls, I noticed there was supposed to be a play park by the trailhead for Cranny Falls, but the signage here suggested that it was closed due to vandalism (despite the gate being open)
Cranny_Falls_003_07192024 - Big rocks being intentionally placed at the start of the 'hurry' in order to prevent people from trying to drive this road
Cranny_Falls_005_07192024 - Closeup look at some purple flowers blooming by the 'hurry' portion of the Cranny Falls hike
Cranny_Falls_016_07192024 - A rest bench by the straight shot 'hurry' portion of the Cranny Falls Trail
Cranny_Falls_003_iPhone_07192024 - Approaching the end of the 'hurry' and towards the unpaved road connecting with the Waterfall Road and eventually the actual trailhead for Cranny Falls
Cranny_Falls_020_07192024 - Making it up to the unpaved road at the far end of the 'hurry' portion of the Cranny Falls hike
Cranny_Falls_026_07192024 - The signed gate at the actual trailhead for the Cranny Falls right off Waterfall Road
Cranny_Falls_028_07192024 - Getting past the gate and onto the foot trail leading past some sheep pastures towards Cranny Falls
Cranny_Falls_031_07192024 - Looking in the distance towards the Irish Sea from the Cranny Falls Trail
Cranny_Falls_033_07192024 - The valley starting to close in the further along the Cranny Falls Trail I went. Notice the sheep grazing on the hillsides on the opposite side of the valley
Cranny_Falls_042_07192024 - Looking towards some interesting cliff walls as the Cranny Falls Trail was getting close to the end
Cranny_Falls_053_07192024 - First look at the Cranny Falls from the footbridge over the Carnlough River at the end of the trail
Cranny_Falls_056_07192024 - Portrait look at the Cranny Falls and some rapids in the foreground as seen from the footbridge over the Carnlough River at the end of the trail
Cranny_Falls_061_07192024 - Long exposure shot of the Cranny Falls in portrait orientation from the end of the trail
Cranny_Falls_081_07192024 - Last look at Cranny Falls before heading back to the trailhead
Cranny_Falls_084_07192024 - I noticed some thorns on the stems of these plants near the Cranny Falls, which made it abundantly clear that you definitely want to stay on the trail and try not to brush up against the foliage too much
Cranny_Falls_088_07192024 - Along the Cranny Falls Trail, it appeared that there were some wild berries growing near the falls
Cranny_Falls_090_07192024 - Another look at some cliffs by the Cranny Falls Trail as I was heading back after having my fill of the falls
Cranny_Falls_092_07192024 - Encountering some people heading to Cranny Falls as I was leaving the Cranny Falls Trail en route to the Waterfall Road
Cranny_Falls_095_07192024 - Context of Waterfall Road and the unpaved road leading to the 'hurry' after leaving the official Cranny Falls Trail
Cranny_Falls_096_07192024 - Another look at the context of the Cranny Falls Trail and the Waterfall Road as I was heading back
Cranny_Falls_106_07192024 - Looking across one of the large green pastures as seen from the 'hurry' on my way back to the Carnlough Community Centre car park
Cranny_Falls_110_07192024 - Going back among the suburban homes as I returned on the 'hurry' portion of the Cranny Falls excursion
Cranny_Falls_111_07192024 - Looking back at some other families making their way towards Cranny Falls while I was headed back along the 'hurry'
Cranny_Falls_113_07192024 - Context of the 'hurry' and the Irish Sea in the distance as I was heading back to the community centre car park
Cranny_Falls_118_07192024 - Making it back to the trailhead parking for the Cranny Falls at the Carnlough Community Centre


Cranny Falls reside in the coastal town of Carnlough on the Antrim Coast of Northern Ireland.

There are various ways to get to the town of Carnlough (whether by scenic route or inland route, or coming from the north or from the south).

Cranny_Falls_001_iPhone_07192024 - This is the spacious car park for the Carnlough Community Centre as well as the official trailhead for the Cranny Falls
This is the spacious car park for the Carnlough Community Centre as well as the official trailhead for the Cranny Falls

So to keep the driving directions simple, I’ll just punt you to a GPS app (e.g. GoogleMaps) to navigate from wherever you are to the town of Carnlough.

The nearest towns that would be of interest to tourists to Carnlough are Cushendall, Larne, Ballymena, and Ballycastle.

Once in the town of Carnlough, the A42 Road cuts right through the coastal town, and you’ll want to signs for Cranny Falls, which will ultimately direct you towards the town’s community centre car park.

The signed turnoff (Havelock Place) is about 3/4-mile north of the A42 turnoff for Ballymena Road, and it’s the first turnoff to the right when heading south into the town centre of Carnlough.

Drive_to_Portrush_003_MingSung_07192024 - This is the stone archway that the main road through Carnlough goes through.  However, if you're coming into Carnlough from the north with the intent of going to Cranny Falls and you get to this archway, then you missed the signed turnoff leading to the community centre
This is the stone archway that the main road through Carnlough goes through. However, if you’re coming into Carnlough from the north with the intent of going to Cranny Falls and you get to this archway, then you missed the signed turnoff leading to the community centre

Note that if you get to the stone archway by the Londonderry Arms Hotel as you head south, then you missed this signed turnoff at Havelock Place.

For context, Carnlough is about 10 miles (under 30 minutes drive) south of Cushendall, about 13 miles (under 30 minutes drive) northwest of Larne, about 16 miles (under 30 minutes drive) northeast of Ballymena, about 27 miles (under an hour drive) southeast of Ballycastle, about 44 miles (about an hour drive) southeast of Bushmills, about 34 miles (under an hour drive) north of Belfast, about 45 miles (about an hour drive) southeast of Portrush, about 41 miles (about an hour drive) east of Coleraine, about 69 miles (about 90 minutes drive) east of Londonderry, about 174km (about 2.5 hours drive) northeast of Donegal (Ireland), and 220km (2.5 hours drive) north of Dublin (Ireland).

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Downstream to upstream sweep from the bridge fronting the waterfall

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Tagged with: carnlough, ballymena, northern ireland, antrim, ulster, united kingdom, britain, community centre, gortin quarry, hurry



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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
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