Ballyness Bay — Wild Atlantic Wild Camp, County Donegal

The road out past Falcarragh toward the Ballyness headland on Donegal’s north coast is the kind of drive that makes you question whether you took a wrong turn — and then rewards you with a wide, flat headland above an Atlantic bay that most overlanders roll straight past. There’s no designated campsite here, just grass, rock, wind, and salt air. Pull well clear of the road, respect the land, and you’ve got one of the finest wild sleeps in the northwest of Ireland. Leave no trace — this is Open Access land under Ireland’s informal access principles, not a managed site.

Access is via the R258 west of Falcarragh, then local roads toward Meenlaragh or Machaire Rabhartaigh. Road surface is tarmac but narrow. The Gweedore and Falcarragh towns, roughly 10 km east, are your fuel and grocery stops. Blustery year-round — summer gives you the best window but even June can see horizontal rain off the Atlantic.

Wind, salt, and zero company — Donegal at its rawest.