Some folk get bored by the Shannon between Athlone and Portumna. I don’t share that feeling, but those who do might like to be able to make a guess at how far they are from the next major feature.
Waterways Ireland’s numbering of its assets, including navigation markers, provides one possible way of assessing progress. The numbering of the markers is not quite sequential but it’s pretty good. I think that WI has GPS locations for all its assets, but GPS takes all the fun out of things; wouldn’t it be much better to try to photograph and tick off all the markers on paper? Far more exciting than train-spotting!
As a start, here are some rough locations. These are not the nearest markers to the places mentioned but they’re in the right general area:
- 827 above Shannonbridge
- 848 just above the Shannonbridge speed limit signs
- 1014 above Shannon Harbour
- 1029 above Banagher Bridge
- 1036 below Banagher
- 1065 green above Meelick cut
- 1101 green just below high-level power cables
- 1110 above Portumna Bridge
- 1122 below Hayes’s Island
- 1128 goalposts lower green.
Isn’t this exciting? Any more numbers for locations?
Irish waterways history 