Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: War of Independence

Last Wednesday (24 August), an Army Bomb Disposal Team was tasked to investigate a suspected grenade found at Balbriggan Harbour.

Following a request from An Garda Síochána, the team arrived at the scene in Balbriggan at around 2.10pm and a cordon was set up for the safety of the public in the north Co Dublin town.

The concerning item was assessed to be a grenade dating from the War of Independence era 100 years ago, and it was rendered safe at the scene.

“Should members of the public encounter suspicious items, or hazardous substances, they are advised to maintain a safe distance and inform An Garda Síochána,” a spokesperson for the Defence Forces said.

Published in Irish Harbours

Dublin Port has highlighted An Post’s issuing of a €1 stamp to honour the Dublin Dockers’ Society and their strike during the War of Independence.

The stamp, of a set of two designed by Ger Garland, reproduces a headline in the Freeman’s Journal on 21 May 1920 — ‘Dockers Down Tools’ — and refers to the Munitions Strike whereby dockers refused to discharge British munitions from a vessel in Dublin.

The strike action — which continued until December 1920 — quickly spread across Ireland, with rail-workers also refusing to handle munitions.

Issued on 24 September, the new ’N’ rate stamps covering postage in Ireland and accompanying First Day Cover envelope are available from main Post Offices, Dublin’s GPO and online at www.anpost.com/shop

Published in Dublin Port

Marine Wildlife Around Ireland One of the greatest memories of any day spent boating around the Irish coast is an encounter with marine wildlife.  It's a thrill for young and old to witness seabirds, seals, dolphins and whales right there in their own habitat. As boaters fortunate enough to have experienced it will testify even spotting a distant dorsal fin can be the highlight of any day afloat.  Was that a porpoise? Was it a whale? No matter how brief the glimpse it's a privilege to share the seas with Irish marine wildlife.

Thanks to the location of our beautiful little island, perched in the North Atlantic Ocean there appears to be no shortage of marine life to observe.

From whales to dolphins, seals, sharks and other ocean animals this page documents the most interesting accounts of marine wildlife around our shores. We're keen to receive your observations, your photos, links and youtube clips.

Boaters have a unique perspective and all those who go afloat, from inshore kayaking to offshore yacht racing that what they encounter can be of real value to specialist organisations such as the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) who compile a list of sightings and strandings. The IWDG knowledge base has increased over the past 21 years thanks in part at least to the observations of sailors, anglers, kayakers and boaters.

Thanks to the IWDG work we now know we share the seas with dozens of species who also call Ireland home. Here's the current list: Atlantic white-sided dolphin, beluga whale, blue whale, bottlenose dolphin, common dolphin, Cuvier's beaked whale, false killer whale, fin whale, Gervais' beaked whale, harbour porpoise, humpback whale, killer whale, minke whale, northern bottlenose whale, northern right whale, pilot whale, pygmy sperm whale, Risso's dolphin, sei whale, Sowerby's beaked whale, sperm whale, striped dolphin, True's beaked whale and white-beaked dolphin.

But as impressive as the species list is the IWDG believe there are still gaps in our knowledge. Next time you are out on the ocean waves keep a sharp look out!