Waterways Ireland wishes to recruit permanent part-time lock and bridge keepers for lock operations on the Shannon Navigation during the peak boating seasons.

The successful applicants will be based at a specific location and will assist inland waterways users in lock and bridge passage, collect tolls and carry out essential maintenance functions in and around the lock.

Visit the Waterways Ireland website for the full job description, application form and more information for applicants. The closing date for applications is Wednesday 23 March.

​Waterways Ireland has announced details of its partnership with the St Patrick’s Festival that will see, for the first time in the festival’s history, a floating pageant in the annual St Patrick’s Day parade.

Supported and inspired by Waterways Ireland, the installation will be on the River Liffey near O’Connell Bridge in Dublin city centre as a key feature of the parade on Thursday 17 March.

The festival’s creative team has designed the floating water garden as a visual interpretation of the biodiversity and sustainability of Ireland’s inland waterways.

In keeping with the overarching theme of this year’s festival, ‘Naisc/connections’, the floating garden shows how the physical waterway network connects Dublin to the rest of Ireland.

It will celebrate the inland waterways; the unrivalled access they give to our cultural and natural heritage and the network of towns and villages that line the banks; the connectivity between people who love, protect, and enjoy the lakes, rivers, and canals, managed by Waterways Ireland; and the connection to the outdoors.

Speaking at the announcement today, Thursday 3 March, Waterways Ireland chief executive John McDonagh said: “We are thrilled to have this wonderful opportunity during the St Patrick’s Festival to celebrate our waterway network in the capital city and its links to hundreds of communities across the island.

“Many of our poets, artists and lovers of heritage, nature and culture have drawn inspiration from the Royal and Grand canals. Reaching out to our communities in Ireland and abroad to share our story of the unexplored outdoors is the very essence of Waterways Ireland and well captured by the festival organisers through this innovative floating pageant.”

For more on events during the St Patrick’s Festival this month, visit stpatricksfestival.ie.

With spring in the air, thoughts will be turning to weekends away with the family to get a break from it all — and few places are better than Ireland’s inland waterways.

Waterways Ireland and Fáilte Ireland have enlisted travel writer Thomas Breathnach to compile a series of special 48-hour, family-friendly itineraries to ensure that “everyone has a blast” in Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands.

The guides take in the waterways hubs of Athlone, Carrick-on-Shannon, Cavan and Lough Derg and feature plenty of things to see and do, and places to eat and stay, whether on or near the water.

Waterways Ireland advises masters and owners of vessels of issues affecting navigation on the Shannon-Erne Waterway this week.

Following Storm Franklin, the Woodford River was completely blocked to navigation by two partially submerged fallen trees immediately upstream of Old Aghalane Bridge.

In addition, there are high-water levels in all areas of the waterway. Masters should consult with the water patrollers prior to undertaking a passage.

The by-pass current across the navigation on the lower side of Lock 15 is strong and could affect low powered vessels.

Air draft under bridges has been reduced as a result of the high-water levels and masters of craft are advised to navigate with additional caution in the vicinity of bridges.

Elsewhere, users of the Royal Canal towpath in the Maynooth area are advised that the section from Lock 13 at Deey Bridge to Pike Bridge east of Maynooth has been closed due to flooding from a blocked culvert.

The cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways says it is working with Kildare County Council to resolve the issue as soon as possible and apologises to users for any inconvenience this may cause.

President Michael D Higgins was treated to a display of a wealth of waterways-related artefacts from Waterways Ireland’s archive when he visited the North-South body’s headquarters in Enniskillen today.

The President was accompanied on the visit by his wife, Mrs Sabina Higgins. They were briefed on the organisation’s work by chief executive, John McDonagh, and also met with a number of personnel.

Chief executive of Waterways Ireland, John McDonagh with President Michael D Higgins Photo: WI via Twitter

Waterways Ireland archivist, Nuala Reilly gave the President and Mrs Higgins a brief history of each artefact. These included the engineer’s record of a project at Meelick, Co Galway, a Shannon toll book and some images from the Waterways Ireland Digital Archive.

Launched last year, the digital archive provides global access to more than 3,000 drawings, sketches, maps, artefacts and records of Ireland’s inland waterways.

President Higgins previously had responsibility for inland waterways in his role as Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands.

Commenting, President Higgins said: “As an all-island body, Waterways Ireland is succeeding in its quest to reawaken Ireland’s waterways – they are truly a symbol of vitality in our shared culture and have become more appreciated in recent years. It was gratifying to play a part in this rejuvenation, as Minister with responsibility for our inland waterways in the mid-1990s and more recently as President of Ireland.”

The President was accompanied on the visit by his wife, Mrs Sabina Higgins

Chief executive of Waterways Ireland, John McDonagh added: “On behalf of Waterways Ireland, I was honoured to welcome the President and Mrs Sabina Higgins to our headquarters today. President Higgins, when Minister of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht, and the Islands, set out a vision for the future of the inland waterways, one that preserved and enhanced their heritage and culture. I wish to thank the President for his enduring support and passion for the waterways.”

He added: “I was delighted to share with President Higgins and Mrs Higgins today, the achievements of Waterways Ireland since its establishment in 1999, and how we intend to build on his vision, through our second Heritage Plan, Climate Action Plan, and our new vision for the future.”

Waterways Ireland advises of a number of temporary closures and scheduled works across the inland waterways in the coming days.

On the Grand Canal, masters of vessels should note that there will be no boat passages permitted on the Nass Branch (NCB2) for six weeks from Monday 14 February to facilitate breast gate replacement and associated works.

On the Shannon Navigation, Athlone Lock will be closed to boat traffic from Wednesday 16 to Friday 18 February to allow for the relocation hydraulic and electrical services as part of recent flood relief works.

Further north, essential dredging works will see the closure of Portna Canal on the Lower Bann Navigation to boat traffic from Monday 14 to Monday 21 February.

And in Dublin, masters and users of the Royal Canal should note essential tree works taking place between the 12th Lock and Granard Bridge (Castleknock Road) from Monday 14 February.

These works are expected to last for 10 working days which may not be consecutive, weather and staff resources allowing. Vessel owners moored on the north band are asked to cooperate with the tree works contractor to access the bank area for tree removal.

While closure of the towpath is not foreseen, towpath users are asked to be mindful of the works ongoing.

On behalf of Waterways Ireland, KPMG have created an online survey to capture canal boaters’ views on use of Ireland’s inland navigations, with a particular focus on sustainable on-water living.

“The purpose of this survey is to capture the experience and knowledge of users of the canals and the views of long-term residential moorings on the canal navigations’ ‘liveaboards’,” it says.

All permit holders should already have received this survey directly. If you did not receive it or if you do not hold a permit for the canals, you can still complete this survey by including your Shannon vessel registration number in the permit number box.

“This survey is completely anonymised and no responses can be identified, the permit number is just used a verification for eligibility,” it adds. “This is to encourage survey participants to provide responses which are completely transparent and which reflect the interests, views, outlooks and recommendations of survey respondents in an honest way.”

The closing date for the completion of the survey is next Thursday 17 February at midnight.

Waterways Ireland advises masters of all craft on the Shannon-Erne Waterway that there is a fallen tree obstructing the navigation arch on the bridge at Foalies Cut, which connects Upper Lough Erne with the River Erne between Belturbet in Co Cavan and Crom in Co Fermanagh.

Masters are requested to follow an alternative route at this time as the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways works to clear the obstruction this week from Monday 7 February.

Waterways Ireland advises masters and owners on the Erne System that the Erne Head of the River rowing race will take place in Enniskillen on Saturday 5 March.

The event will run from noon to 3pm, with the official race start at 1.30pm, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways says.

The route will start upstream of the Killyhevlin hotel and will race through to Enniskillen Royal Grammar School boathouse, a total length of 6km.

Entries are open until 7pm on Wednesday 23 February. For more see the race’s Facebook page.

Waterways Ireland advises that the towpath on the south bank of the Grand Canal adjacent to Church Avenue in Sallins, Co Kildare will be closed from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 26 February.

This closure is to facilitate tree removal works for the new Grand Canal Greenway route, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways says. It follows a similar closure from Lucan to Hazelhatch that continues until this Sunday 6 February.