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Displaying items by tag: STS Pogoria

#TALL SHIPS – The first of the Tall Ships has arrived, the barque STS Pogoria, an A-class tallship which berthed in Dun Loaghaire Harbour this afternoon, albeit earlier than expected due to bad weather, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The steel hulled 49m long vessel encountered bad weather in the Bay of Biscay, while taking part in the final race leg from Coruna, where on Thursday night, as previously reported on Afloat.ie, the official finishing line was off Tuskar Rock.

She made her entrance to Dublin Bay, albeit without setting sail and as she motored passed the Kish Lighthouse, she set a course for the South Burford buoy near Dalkey Island. She then headed for Dun Laoghaire rather then Dublin, from where a pilot cutter departed to board the vessel.

STS Pogoria was built for the Steel Workers Union in 1980 and her current status as 'flagship' of The Sail Training Association which is based in Gdansk, and from where she was built. She has a crew of 11 officers and a trainee crew of around 40 personnel.

Over the next few days the fleet of tallships numbering more than 40 vessels, are to arrive in Dublin Port. The next caller is expected to be the  Ecuadorian Navy's sail-training ship Guayas with an ETA of 18.00hrs today. The tallship is also rigged as a barque, yet she is considerably larger, measuring nearly 80m in length and a crew complement of 112 officers and 63 trainees.

Published in Tall Ships

Dun Laoghaire Baths Renovation

Afloat has been reporting on the new plans for the publically owned Dun Laoghaire Baths site located at the back of the East Pier since 2011 when plans for its development first went on display by Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. 

Foreshore consent was applied for in 2013.

Last used 30 years ago as the 'Rainbow Rapids' before falling into dereliction – the new site does not include a public pool.

The refurbished Dun Laoghaire Baths include the existing Baths Pavilion for use as artist workspaces, a gallery café and for the provision of public toilet facilities. 

Work finally got underway at Dún Laoghaire on the €9 million redevelopments of the old Dún Laoghaire Baths site in June 2018 under a contract with SIAC-Mantovani.

The works have removed dilapidated structures to the rear of the Pavilion to permit the creation of a new route and landscaping that will connect the walkway at Newtownsmith to both the East Pier and the Peoples Park. 

Original saltwater pools have been filled in and new enhanced facilities for swimming and greater access to the water’s edge by means of a short jetty have also been provided.

The works included the delivery of rock armour to protect the new buildings from storm damage especially during easterly gales. 

It hasn't all been plain sailing during the construction phase with plastic fibres used in construction washing into the sea in November 2018

Work continues on the project in Spring 2020 with the new pier structure clearly visible from the shoreline.

A plinth at the end of the pier will be used to mount a statue of Roger Casement, a former Sandycove resident and Irish nationalist.