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Displaying items by tag: Royal Canal Amenity Group

16th April 2019

Tributes Paid On Death Of Royal Canal Campaigner Ian Bath

The Royal Canal at Kinnegad, Co Westmeath

Shannonside FM reports that veteran inland waterways campaigner Dr Ian Bath has died aged 90.

Beginning in the 1970s, Dr Bath led the charge to revive the Royal Canal between Dublin and the River Shannon as a tourism amenity.

Through the efforts of Dr Bath and other volunteers in the Royal Canal Amenity Group, 74km of the waterway between Blanchardstown and Mullingar were reopened to navigation by 1990.

And another 20 years on, in October 2010, some months after Dr Bath’s history of the canal with Ruth Delany was published, the full length of the canal from the Shannon to the Liffey was officially reopened — an achievement for which Dr Bath was recognised with Afloat’s Sailor of the Month award for December 2010.

Shannonside FM has more on the story HERE.

Published in Inland Waterways
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19th May 2017

President Michael D. Higgins To Commemorate Royal Canal's 200th Anniversary

The Royal Canal's 200th anniversary will be celebrated at Clondra, County Longford on May 27th

The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, will commemorate the Royal Canal's 200th Anniversary in the presence of Waterways Ireland, the Royal Canal Amenity Group and invited guests in Clondra, Co Longford on the 27th May 2017. The event takes place on the anniversary of the day when the canal was completed all the way to the Shannon in 1817.

The Royal Canal closed in 1950 and remained closed for 50 years. The extensive lobbying and volunteer work of the Royal Canal Amenity Group and the work of Waterways Ireland staff and their predecessors in OPW was rewarded in 2010 when the Canal was reopened to navigation.

President Higgins has been a significant supporter of the Royal Canal and the inland waterways for many years. As Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, the President drove the re-vitalisation of the canal networks, including the redevelopment of the Royal Canal.

Now a vibrant recreational location, investment by Waterways Ireland and Longford County Council in conjunction with Fáilte Ireland has revitalised Richmond Harbour, Clondra, now a Blueway hub. Additional investment by local authority partners along the length of the Royal Canal has seen the upgrade of the towpath to international trails standard. Only a short section in Co Longford remains to be upgraded before the entire 144km towpath can be promoted internationally.

Dawn Livingstone Waterways Ireland Chief Executive spoke saying "I am delighted that the Royal Canal Commemorations will be honoured by the presence of President Higgins. The volunteers and staff worked so hard to reopen this navigation. They have provided a valuable service to the people of Ireland by their fight to keep this wonderful recreational amenity in public hands. As a result it is here providing opportunities for every community to freely use for work, visit, play and thrive"

Should people wish to attend the commemorations on the 27th May, they are welcome to come to the harbour. The village will be closed to traffic from early on the day and so invited guests should park in Tarmonbarry where a small coach will bring them to and from the harbour.

Attendees can expect to see the unveiling of commemorative plaques, traditional crafts and special arrivals by boat and horse & cart. Following the speeches, walkers from Irish Famine Trust at Strokestown House will set off to walk to Dublin in the steps of the 1490 people who left the Mahon Estate to walk to Dublin and the boat to America 175 years ago this week. Music will be provided by the Garda Band who will perform on the quayside.

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1st October 2010

Waterways Ireland Celebrates Restoration of the Royal Canal

Waterways Ireland Celebrates Restoration of the Royal Canal
Waterways Ireland celebrated the completion of the restoration of the Main Line of the Royal Canal on the inland waterways today. Celebrations began at 2pm in Richmond Harbour, Clondra, Co Longford. The official part of the event at 2pm involved the arrival of a flotilla of boats, short speeches, music and a reception This weekend there is a two day festival organised by the Clondra Branch of the Royal Canal Amenity Group.
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16th September 2010

Celebrations for Royal Canal Reopening

Celebrations for Royal Canal Reopening

Waterways Ireland in conjunction with a working committee will mark the completion of the main line of the Royal Canal on the inland waterways with an event that will take place in Richmond Harbour, Clondra, Co. Longford on the 1st October as part of a weekend of festivities. This event is the culmination of not only 36 years of campaigning by the Royal Canal Amenity Group (RCAG) but a summer of waterside events moving East to West; boaters and waterside communities have been celebrating the reawakening of the Royal Canal each weekend leading up to the main event.

The formal event will take place on October 1st at 2pm, with a flotilla of boats arriving into Richmond Harbour. The flotilla will include boats from each branch of the RCAG as well as the Heritage Boat Association, Inland Waterways Association of Ireland, the supporters of the Canal d'Nivernais, representatives of the Wilderness Boats. The flotilla will be lead by Royal Canal Barge no 3 (also known as the Killucan Barge). The formal event will be followed by a weekend of celebrations organised by the Clondra Branch of the RCAG and supported by Waterways Ireland. The weekend festivities are open to all.

The Royal Canal is a highly significant and historic public amenity. 145.6km long, the Royal Canal stretches from Dublin to the Shannon passing through Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Westmeath and Longford. 1.2 million people live within this catchment making the Royal Canal one of the largest public amenities on the island.

Published in Inland Waterways
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Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

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