The island is sometimes known in English as Carrick Island. According to Wikipedia, the island is called Carrickarede but the bridge is written as Carrick–a–Rede. The name – Irish for 'Casting Rock' – was presumably coined by the fishermen who used to catch salmon from the island and are believed to have been building bridges to it for at least 350 years.
The bridge has taken many forms over the years, and has been rebuilt three times in the 21st century alone (up to 2020). It is owned today by the National Trust, and there is a charge of £9 (€15) for crossing the bridge.
The salmon come through the area to spawn in the River Bann and the River Bush. The fishing season used to last from June until September; Wikipedia reports that in the 1960s almost 300 fish were caught each day, but by 2002, only 300 were caught over the whole season. According to Wikipedia, "[i]t is no longer used by fishermen"; it's not clear whether "it" refers to the island or the bridge.
Seamus Heaney wrote about the bridge in 1978, in his poem A Postcard from North Antrim:
A lone figure is waving
From the thin line of a bridge
Of ropes and slates, slung
Dangerously out between
The cliff-top and the pillar rock.
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