Some people blamed the weather, but we didn't think it was too bad. We had some heavy rain, but for some reason none while we were navigating: I didn't have to don my serious waterproofs once. There was even some sunshine from time to time, which is always a bonus, and the only strong winds seemed to be at night.
Our fortnight spanned the August Bank Holiday weekend, which we spent in Portumna Castle Harbour, and admittedly that was crowded. There were boats moored on the approach walls every night and at one stage eight boats were rafted inside the harbour. And that's not to speak of the herd of camper vans...
Except for one night in Dromineer, we spent our other nights at quieter harbours without pubs (Kilgarvan, Dromaan, Rossmore) and maybe things were more crowded elsewhere, but I was surprised to find that, on one night in Dromaan, ours was the only occupied boat in the harbour. Even Dromineer was quiet on a Friday night; perhaps the closure of the hotel is making a difference.
We had a visit in Portumna from the Waterways Ireland warden, who was checking up on things and ensuring that best use was made of the space available. This sort of presence, whether by land or by water, is a very good thing, using low-key persuasiveness to make improvements. Mind you, I suspect that WI will have to use the heavy hand sometime soon: I have the impression that there has been an increase in harbour-hogging by owners who won't pay for moorings and who prefer to privatise sections of public harbours (at taxpayers' expense).
The BoyneThe Industrial Heritage Association of Ireland (http://www.steam-museum.com/ihai/) organised a tour of sites in Monaghan recently, and I went with some friends. The tour included mills, the startling remains of Great Northern Railway viaducts and several sites on the Ulster Canal: the summit feeder, a bridge and milestone, Templetate Lock (in the middle of a field) and Ireland's only canal tunnel.
On the way home, we called in at Oldbridge to see how IWAI Boyne Navigation Branch's restoration project (http://boyne.iwai.ie/) was getting on. Tommy McLoughlin, the Project Manager, had kindly agreed to stay behind after a hard day's work on the sea lock to show us around. I must admit I was very impressed: this is a very professional operation on a lovely navigation.
Like the Barrow, the Boyne is a river navigation with several long cuts — which are not all on the same side of the river. The sea lock, providing entry to the lowest cut, is at Oldbridge Lower, very close to the Battle of the Boyne site, and there is a second lock (Oldbridge Upper) on the same cut. This second lock is a rare turf-sided lock with sloping sides; a horse-bridge crosses the upper end.Restoring navigation on that stretch means replacing gates and removing dams (and no doubt some dredging); success would open the navigation from Drogheda almost as far as the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre, with only one other lock in the way. And that means that it would be possible to offer a water-bus service from Drogheda to the two visitor attractions, the Battle of the Boyne site and Brú na Bóinne.
So this is a restoration project with some point to it. A restored Boyne Navigation, cut off from the connected inland waterways system, may never attract large numbers of cruisers, but it could justify itself in other ways. A water-bus service would be an attraction in itself; it would also relieve the traffic congestion on the area's minor roads — and perhaps make the other attractions easier to find. Furthermore, the navigation itself is extremely attractive and some sections of towpath are well used by walkers and anglers; a day-boat service might complement those activities.
Unfortunately the Boyne Navigation Branch's trailer was stolen since our visit. It is a twin-axle 8' x 4' steel galvanised trailer with a mesh tail ramp. It is unusual in that it has high sides, of which the top 15" drop down to form a shelf hanging on chains. It has lights and black plastic mudguards. This trailer was custom built by T.R. Trailers and is used to transport equipment on to the site on workdays. If you see it, contact Tommy McLoughlin at 087 277 1591.
The Munster BlackwaterThe Munster Blackwater (and its tributary, the Bride) are always included in lists of Irish inland waterways, but I had never seen them. They are not connected to the main system, so getting there requires a car journey, and I had never got around to it until a few months ago, when we drove over the Vee to Cappoquin and on to Youghal.
Nineteenth century travellers described the Blackwater as the Irish Rhine, which is a bit of an exaggeration, but it is certainly very scenic and full of historic interest. There are several 'big houses' along the route; people associated with the area include the Knights Templar, Walter Raleigh, the Duke of Devonshire, the von Thyssen family, Katharine Countess of Desmond (said to have died at the age of 140 after falling from a cherry tree), Claud Cockburn, Molly Keane and Richard Boyle (1st Earl of Cork and father of the man who gave us Boyle's Law).
Low bridges now restrict access by masted vessels, but well into the last century schooners came up the Blackwater with the tide as far as Cappoquin. Much of the trade was with Wales, carrying coal in and timber (for pit props) out. There are several quays along the river; schooners would discharge part of their cargoes in the lower reaches, reducing their draught for the upriver section. They could discharge the rest in Cappoquin and take on part of a load, completing it further downriver. The Bride, a tributary, was also navigable and schooners went up there too, and a short canal carried goods to Lismore, where the Dukes of Devonshire own the castle. Furthermore, steamers went as far as Cappoquin and excursions were popular.Amongst the schooners that used the Blackwater were the De Wadden, a steel three-masted schooner built in 1917 and now in Merseyside Maritime Museum, the recently-restored wooden three-masted schooner Kathleen & May and the ketch-rigged flush-decked trow Jonadab, whose remains are in the Purton boat graveyard near Sharpness.
There are some boats on the river, but traffic was very light when we were there: a few fishing boats, a small sailing-boat going downriver with its mast lowered, the occasional jetski and power-boat, but not much else. Some of the old quays are used for swimming, but on the whole the river seemed to be under-used.
We went with the tide all the way from Youghal to the Kitchenhole just above Cappoquin, and also did some exploration of the Bride and the Lismore Canal by road. Tony Gallagher runs a trip-boat, the half-decker MV Maeve, from Youghal, although his scheduled trips don't go as far as Cappoquin. Tony (087 988 9076) is a mine of information about this wonderful river and he brings old photos and documents to show to his passengers: highly recommended.
For a photo tour of the Blackwater, see http://www.pbase.com/bjg/blackwater
Published in Afloat September//October 2008
