Brian Goggin's Inland Blog
Having had a new engine — a JCB, marinised by Mermaid — installed over the winter, we've been out and about on Lough Derg, trying it out and getting used to the new set-up and ancillary equipment. We'll be heading…
Waterways Ireland is set to move boats on from moorings, writes Brian Goggin Shannon Harbour, where the Grand Canal meets the Shannon, is usually full of boats: a fascinating variety of them, including barges, narrowboats, wooden cruisers, fibreglass cruisers and…
In January, Waterways Ireland (WI) opened its magnificent new headquarters building in Enniskillen and confirmed its mastery of the waterways, reports Brian J. Goggin Also in January, the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland (IWAI) declared a mid-life crisis, shot itself…
Brian J Goggin looks forward to the reopening of the Royal Canal As I write, various IWAI branches are preparing for end-of-season cruises. Some intrepid inland boaters (equipped with wheelhouses and heaters) keep going all year round: one group of…
I'm just back from a fortnight pottering around Lough Derg and, if our experience is anything to go by, the Celtic Water-Tiger is dead. Traffic (both private and hired) seemed to be way down on normal levels, although that comment…
Waterways Ireland had applied for planning permission to extend the Shannon Navigation upriver from the head of Lough Allen to Annagh Upper, near the village of Dowra. The plan included dredging of the river and the construction of a 16-berth…
Brian J Goggin offers some essential dos and don'ts for the first-time inland boat-owner DO ...• Consider the needs of the whole family• Take your time and talk to owners• Get training• Start early to look for a marina berth•…
BEFORE ARDNACRUSHA power-station was built, writes Brian J. Goggin, there was another waterway route from Killaloe to Limerick, with some very interesting features The old route had five sections: three of canal and two of river. The old canal at…
