Displaying items by tag: La Surveillante

6th October 2022

Blackwater Divers Photograph Shipwreck in Bantry Bay That Lay Undiscovered for Nearly 200 Years

A diving team based in Fermoy have captured up-close images of a shipwreck that lay undiscovered in Bantry Bay for nearly 200 years.

The French naval frigate La Surveillante was deliberately scuttled by its captain in 1796 during the failed landing that proceeded the 1798 Irish rebellion against British rule.

It was not seen again until 1979 during clean-up operations that followed the Whiddy Island tanker disaster.

Blackwater Sub Aqua Club member Timmy Carey told The Corkman that he and his fellow divers had wanted to visit the wreck of La Surveillante for more than 20 years.

Finbarr Mulchay and Susan Vaughan on the dive expedition to La Surveillante in Bantry Bay | Credit: Timmy Carey

“During the dive we saw numerous cannons, timber pulley blocks from the rigging, its anchors, cooking utensils, the high raised bow and even piles of small musket balls,” he said.

“We also saw the long sheets of copper plating that had been nailed to the outside of the timber hull for protection.”

The Corkman has more on the story HERE.

Published in Diving

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Forty Foot Swimming Spot on Dublin Bay

The 'Forty Foot' is a rocky outcrop located at the southern tip of Dublin Bay at Sandycove, County Dublin from which people have been swimming in the Irish Sea all year round for 300 years or more. It is popular because it is one of few spots between Dublin city and Greystones in County Wicklow that allows for swimming at all stages of the tide, subject to the sea state.

Forty Foot History

Traditionally, the bathing spot was exclusively a men's bathing spot and the gentlemen's swimming club was established to help conserve the area.

Owing to its relative isolation and gender-specific nature it became a popular spot for nudists, but in the 1970s, during the women's liberation movement, a group of female equal-rights activists plunged into the waters and now it is also open to everyone and it is in the control of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.

Many people believe that swimming in extremely cold water is healthy and good for the immune system.

Is it safe to swim at the Forty Foot?

The Forty-Foot is a great place to swim because there is always enough water to get a dip but like all sea swimming, there are always hazards you need to be aware of. For example, a lot of people like to dive into to the pool at the Forty-foot but there are submerged rocks that can be hazardous especially at low water. The Council have erected signs to warn people of the underwater dangers. Other hazards include slippy granite cut stone steps that can often be covered with seaweed and of course marine wildlife including jellyfish that make their presence felt in the summer months as do an inquisitive nearby Sandycove seal colony.