Overview
Glengad is a scatter of houses and a working pier on the northeast shoulder of the Inishowen peninsula, where Donegal runs out into the Atlantic. It has been a fishing place for as long as anyone can trace, and still is. Stand on the headland at Glengad Head and you can pick out Inishtrahull off the point, Rathlin Island to the east and, when the air is clear, the Western Isles of Scotland on the horizon.
It is a stop rather than a day out. Come for the sea, the rock-fishing marks and the birds, not for facilities.
An unlikely link to the White House
One family that left Glengad went a long way. James ‘Jackie’ McLaughlin emigrated to the United States in 1903; his son Bill became mayor of Wilmington, Delaware, and an early political mentor to a young Joe Biden. Biden gave the eulogy at Bill McLaughlin’s funeral – a thread that ties this small Donegal townland to American politics more directly than most places its size can claim.
What to see and do
Glengad Head
The headland is the reason to stop: wide Atlantic views towards Inishtrahull and, on a good day, Scotland, and easy coastal walking along the cliffs. It is an exposed spot, so mind your footing near the edge when the wind is up.
Rock fishing
The marks around the headland produce pollack, mackerel, wrasse, coalfish and the occasional conger. Anglers work the rocks and the pier, using the strong Atlantic tide.
On the water
Small operators in nearby Greencastle run boat trips out around Inishtrahull and Rathlin, with a good chance of seals and dolphins on a calm day. For golfers, the links at Ballyliffin Golf Club, which has hosted the Irish Open, are a short drive away.
Wildlife and birdwatching
The cliffs and shoreline are good for birds – choughs, guillemots and razorbills among them – and seals and dolphins turn up off the headland on calm mornings.
The pier and the football club
Glengad’s pier is a working one, used by the local fishing fleet. The village also fields a football club out of proportion to its size: Glengad United, founded in 1976, play in the Inishowen Football League and have won its Premier Division four times.
Where to stay and eat
Accommodation is mostly self-catering – cottages and holiday homes around the townland, including The Cove, a six-bedroom house on a three-quarter-acre site with Atlantic views. Most come with parking and Wi-Fi. For food you will head to Greencastle or Buncrana, where the pubs serve fresh Atlantic seafood; the Harbour Bar in Greencastle has live traditional music at weekends.
Nearby
- Famine Village on Doagh Island – an open-air museum of 19th-century life.
- Greencastle Maritime Museum – fishing heritage and local shipwrecks.
- The Guns of Dunree – coastal artillery batteries with wide views over Lough Swilly.
- Derry – the walled city, about 45 minutes away.
Getting there
Glengad is a car trip: from Derry or Letterkenny onto the Inishowen roads and up the northeast coast, part of the Wild Atlantic Way. Parking is free in the village and at most self-catering properties. Public transport is thin – there is a limited bus service into Inishowen, and the Magilligan–Greencastle ferry gives a quick crossing from Northern Ireland – so a car makes life much easier. The cliffs and coast paths are exposed and can be slippery in poor weather, so stay back from the edge and heed local signage about unstable ground.
Pick a clear, calm morning if you can: that is when Scotland shows on the horizon and the dolphins come in close under the headland.