Tag Archives: Shannon

Barge sinks on Lough Derg

Posted on Monday 25 April 2011 | Leave a comment

Killaloe Coast Guard story here.

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Posted in Extant waterways, Irish inland waterways vessels, Irish waterways general, Operations, Water sports activities, Waterways management

Tagged barge, boats, Coast Guard, Ireland, Killaloe, Lough Derg, Operations, pollution, Shannon, sink, vessels, waterways

Killaloe

Posted on Thursday 21 April 2011 | Leave a comment

The installation of the new pontoon, the flood control gates (flash lock) and the walkway continues apace.

Walkway (left) and pontoon from the lockhouse

The lower (nearer) section of pontoon may be for the lakeboat hire business

Boats mooring on the lower end of the pontoon, and turning to approach upstream, may get quite close to the bridge. The navigation markers may confuse too: perhaps they’ll be relocated.

The flood control gates (flash lock?)

From upstream (and uphill)

It all looks very nice. There are lots of people working on site.

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Posted in Ashore, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Restoration and rebuilding, Tourism, Water sports activities, Waterways management

Tagged Ballina, boats, bridge, canal, Clare, flow, Ireland, jetties, Killaloe, L & M Keating, lock, Lough Derg, moorings, pontoon, Shannon, vessels, walkway, water level, waterways, Waterways Ireland, workboat

Need a project?

Posted on Thursday 21 April 2011 | Leave a comment

Waterways Ireland intends to remove some sunken boats from the Grand Canal at Shannon Harbour. The wooden boats will be broken up and sent to landfill; the steel and GRP boats will be sold off. Perhaps, if anyone were interested (and rich) enough, WI would sell one of the wooden boats to be restored.

I can’t find the notice on WI’s own website; here it is on the Afloat site.

Here are pics of the wooden boats.

Béal na Bláth, 7m wooden cruiser

Béal na Bláth in June 2009

No Name

Described as “Wooden Cabin Cruiser (Green) South Bank East of Griffith Bridge 7m”. Could this be the one they mean?

Unidentified green-hulled cruiser in June 2009

Paloma

Paloma under way in 2003

Paloma in Shannon Harbour in June 2009

More about Paloma here.

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Posted in Irish inland waterways vessels, Restoration and rebuilding

Tagged boats, canal, Grand Canal, Ireland, Shannon, Shannon Harbour, vessels, Waterways Ireland, wooden boats

Clontarf to Clondra II

Posted on Wednesday 20 April 2011 | Leave a comment

Maark Gleeson of Clontarf Yacht & Boat Club has kindly given me details of the Club’s recent trip along the Royal, with notes on the time taken and some useful advice, especially about the tides in Dublin.

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Posted in Built heritage, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, People, Restoration and rebuilding, Scenery, Tourism, Water sports activities, Waterways management

Tagged 12th lock, Abbeyshrule, Blanchardsstown, boats, bridge, canal, Clondra, Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland, Liffey, lock gate, lock key, patroller, Poolbeg, Richmond Harbour, Royal Canal, Shannon, tide, waterways, Waterways Ireland, yacht & boat club

Keeping Galway dry

Posted on Tuesday 19 April 2011 | Leave a comment

A page about the ESB pumping stations on the embankments above Portumna.

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Posted in Ashore, Built heritage, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Industrial heritage, Operations, Waterways management

Tagged Ardnacrusha, embankment, ESB, floods, Galway, Ireland, Lough Derg, Meelick, Operations, Portumna, Shannon, water level, waterways, workboat

Royal steam

Posted on Friday 15 April 2011 | 6 comments

How many steamers were used on the Royal Canal? The standard answer is five, but the right answer might be nine or ten. Read about Fishbourne, the unknown carrier, here.

Posted in Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Forgotten navigations, Industrial heritage, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, Steamers, The cattle trade

Tagged Abbeyshrule, Ballymahon, boats, bridge, canal, Carrick-on-Shannon, Clarke, Conqueror, Dauntless, delany, Drogheda, Dublin, Fishbourne, Grendon, Ireland, Ireland canals Grand Royal, Lefroy, Longford, Mermaid, MGWR, Operations, Pioneer, Rambler, Rattler, Royal Canal, Shannon, steam, steamer, tug, tug-barge, vessels, waterways

Power play

Posted on Thursday 14 April 2011 | Leave a comment

The ESB owns or controls certain parts of Hayes Island, in the middle of Portumna Bridge, on the Shannon at the upper end of Lough Derg. Many boats moor to the island: some had long-standing agreements with ESB and others had indirect arrangements. ESB has now, by posting a notice on a gate, given the boat-owners 21 days to remove their boats. It seems that the ESB was officially unaware that it had boats moored on its land, although it certainly made agreements with some of the boaters and it supplied electricity to others.

I have asked the ESB press office for information but it has not yet replied.

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Posted in Ashore, Economic activities, Engineering and construction, Extant waterways, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, Tourism, Water sports activities, Waterways management

Tagged agreements, boats, bridge, electricity, ESB, Galway, Hayes Island, Hayes's Island, Ireland, Lough Derg, moorings, notice to quit, Operations, Portumna, Shannon, vessels, Waterways Ireland

Lough Ree

Posted on Wednesday 13 April 2011 | Leave a comment

Unlike Loughs Derg, Erne and Neagh, Lough Ree does not have a Coast Guard approved declared-resource rescue service, although Athlone Sub Aqua Club, Waveline/Quigley’s and no doubt others have provided help to boats in trouble. Now, it seems, Damien Delaney is hoping to set up a formal, approved service, according to the Wesstmeath Examiner.

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Posted in Extant waterways, Operations, People, Tourism, Water sports activities, Waterways management

Tagged Athlone, boats, Coast Guard, coastguard, Erne, Ireland, IWAI, Lough Derg, Lough Neagh, Lough Ree, Operations, rescue, Shannon, vessels, waterways

ESB cuts

Posted on Saturday 9 April 2011 | Leave a comment

My spies (who are everywhere) tell me that the ESB has issued notices to owners of some boats moored at Hayes’s Island, Portumna, telling them to remove their boats within some short period. At least one owner has a long-standing legal agreement with the ESB, although it does allow ESB to issue short notice.

Further information would be welcome.

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Posted in Ashore, Economic activities, Extant waterways, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, Tourism, Waterways management

Tagged boats, bridge, ESB, Hayes's Island, Ireland, Lough Derg, moorings, Operations, Portumna, Shannon, Waterways Ireland

Killaloe collision

Posted on Sunday 3 April 2011 | Leave a comment

The Irish Times reports that six people and a dog were rescued from a cruiser after it hit Killaloe Bridge. The cruiser was found to be taking in water. Killaloe Coast Guard report here, with photo of the Emerald Star cruiser being beached at Ballyvalley to stop it from sinking.

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Posted in Ashore, Extant waterways, Irish inland waterways vessels, Operations, People, Tourism, Water sports activities

Tagged boats, bridge, Clare, Coast Guard, coastguard, collision, dog, Emerald Star, Ireland, Killaloe, Lough Derg, Operations, rescue, Shannon, vessels, Waterways Ireland