I'm just back from a fortnight pottering around Lough Derg and, if our experience is anything to go by, the Celtic Water-Tiger is dead. Traffic (both private and hired) seemed to be way down on normal levels, although that comment is based on anecdotal evidence: I haven't seen the Waterways Ireland traffic figures yet.

Some people blamed the weather, but we didn't think it was too bad. We had some heavy rain, but for some reason none while we were navigating: I didn't have to don my serious waterproofs once. There was even some sunshine from time to time, which is always a bonus, and the only strong winds seemed to be at night.

Our fortnight spanned the August Bank Holiday weekend, which we spent in Portumna Castle Harbour, and admittedly that was crowded. There were boats moored on the approach walls every night and at one stage eight boats were rafted inside the harbour. And that's not to speak of the herd of camper vans...

Except for one night in Dromineer, we spent our other nights at quieter harbours without pubs (Kilgarvan, Dromaan, Rossmore) and maybe things were more crowded elsewhere, but I was surprised to find that, on one night in Dromaan, ours was the only occupied boat in the harbour. Even Dromineer was quiet on a Friday night; perhaps the closure of the hotel is making a difference.

We had a visit in Portumna from the Waterways Ireland warden, who was checking up on things and ensuring that best use was made of the space available. This sort of presence, whether by land or by water, is a very good thing, using low-key persuasiveness to make improvements. Mind you, I suspect that WI will have to use the heavy hand sometime soon: I have the impression that there has been an increase in harbour-hogging by owners who won't pay for moorings and who prefer to privatise sections of public harbours (at taxpayers' expense).

The Boyne
The Industrial Heritage Association of Ireland (http://www.steam-museum.com/ihai/) organised a tour of sites in Monaghan recently, and I went with some friends. The tour included mills, the startling remains of Great Northern Railway viaducts and several sites on the Ulster Canal: the summit feeder, a bridge and milestone, Templetate Lock (in the middle of a field) and Ireland's only canal tunnel.

On the way home, we called in at Oldbridge to see how IWAI Boyne Navigation Branch's restoration project (http://boyne.iwai.ie/) was getting on. Tommy McLoughlin, the Project Manager, had kindly agreed to stay behind after a hard day's work on the sea lock to show us around. I must admit I was very impressed: this is a very professional operation on a lovely navigation.

Like the Barrow, the Boyne is a river navigation with several long cuts — which are not all on the same side of the river. The sea lock, providing entry to the lowest cut, is at Oldbridge Lower, very close to the Battle of the Boyne site, and there is a second lock (Oldbridge Upper) on the same cut. This second lock is a rare turf-sided lock with sloping sides; a horse-bridge crosses the upper end.

Restoring navigation on that stretch means replacing gates and removing dams (and no doubt some dredging); success would open the navigation from Drogheda almost as far as the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre, with only one other lock in the way. And that means that it would be possible to offer a water-bus service from Drogheda to the two visitor attractions, the Battle of the Boyne site and Brú na Bóinne.

So this is a restoration project with some point to it. A restored Boyne Navigation, cut off from the connected inland waterways system, may never attract large numbers of cruisers, but it could justify itself in other ways. A water-bus service would be an attraction in itself; it would also relieve the traffic congestion on the area's minor roads — and perhaps make the other attractions easier to find. Furthermore, the navigation itself is extremely attractive and some sections of towpath are well used by walkers and anglers; a day-boat service might complement those activities.

Unfortunately the Boyne Navigation Branch's trailer was stolen since our visit. It is a twin-axle 8' x 4' steel galvanised trailer with a mesh tail ramp. It is unusual in that it has high sides, of which the top 15" drop down to form a shelf hanging on chains. It has lights and black plastic mudguards. This trailer was custom built by T.R. Trailers and is used to transport equipment on to the site on workdays. If you see it, contact Tommy McLoughlin at 087 277 1591.

The Munster Blackwater
The Munster Blackwater (and its tributary, the Bride) are always included in lists of Irish inland waterways, but I had never seen them. They are not connected to the main system, so getting there requires a car journey, and I had never got around to it until a few months ago, when we drove over the Vee to Cappoquin and on to Youghal.

Nineteenth century travellers described the Blackwater as the Irish Rhine, which is a bit of an exaggeration, but it is certainly very scenic and full of historic interest. There are several 'big houses' along the route; people associated with the area include the Knights Templar, Walter Raleigh, the Duke of Devonshire, the von Thyssen family, Katharine Countess of Desmond (said to have died at the age of 140 after falling from a cherry tree), Claud Cockburn, Molly Keane and Richard Boyle (1st Earl of Cork and father of the man who gave us Boyle's Law).

Low bridges now restrict access by masted vessels, but well into the last century schooners came up the Blackwater with the tide as far as Cappoquin. Much of the trade was with Wales, carrying coal in and timber (for pit props) out. There are several quays along the river; schooners would discharge part of their cargoes in the lower reaches, reducing their draught for the upriver section. They could discharge the rest in Cappoquin and take on part of a load, completing it further downriver. The Bride, a tributary, was also navigable and schooners went up there too, and a short canal carried goods to Lismore, where the Dukes of Devonshire own the castle. Furthermore, steamers went as far as Cappoquin and excursions were popular.

Amongst the schooners that used the Blackwater were the De Wadden, a steel three-masted schooner built in 1917 and now in Merseyside Maritime Museum, the recently-restored wooden three-masted schooner Kathleen & May and the ketch-rigged flush-decked trow Jonadab, whose remains are in the Purton boat graveyard near Sharpness.

There are some boats on the river, but traffic was very light when we were there: a few fishing boats, a small sailing-boat going downriver with its mast lowered, the occasional jetski and power-boat, but not much else. Some of the old quays are used for swimming, but on the whole the river seemed to be under-used.

We went with the tide all the way from Youghal to the Kitchenhole just above Cappoquin, and also did some exploration of the Bride and the Lismore Canal by road. Tony Gallagher runs a trip-boat, the half-decker MV Maeve, from Youghal, although his scheduled trips don't go as far as Cappoquin. Tony (087 988 9076) is a mine of information about this wonderful river and he brings old photos and documents to show to his passengers: highly recommended.

For a photo tour of the Blackwater, see http://www.pbase.com/bjg/blackwater

Published in Afloat September//October 2008

Brian J Goggin offers some essential dos and don'ts for the first-time inland boat-owner

DO ...
• Consider the needs of the whole family
• Take your time and talk to owners
• Get training
• Start early to look for a marina berth
• Join the IWAI
• Respect other waterways users

DON'T ...
• Spend too much money on a first boat
• Skimp on safety equipment
• Buy a second-hand boat without a survey
• Ignore the canals and the Barrow
• Buy a 'project'
• Damage the waterways environment

Much of the content of this excellent magazine is about happenings on that nasty lumpy salty wet stuff you get on the outside of the island. Here in this corner, we deal with boating for sane people: people who have more to be doing than to be worrying about tides and multidirectional currents and how to avoid ramming an oil-tanker. All that Man Against Nature stuff is rather tiresome: I'd prefer to be sitting on the boat, tied up in a nice harbour, with a weissbier in my hand and some interesting people to talk to.

DO
Consider the needs of the whole family
But there's another difference between inland and (much) coastal boating: inland is much more a family recreation. You don't get 15 hefty men sitting on one side of your motor-cruiser; your crew may be parents and children, possibly quite young children.
That has all sorts of implications:
• who's going to be the skipper (on our boat, it's whoever fixes toilets)?
• will children participate actively, ignore what's going on or argue about everything?
• are they old enough to be given responsibility?
• have you room for a dinghy or a kayak the children can use in harbour?
• who's going to do the cooking and household tasks, probably in a smaller space and with less equipment than at home?
It's probably as well to think about some of those issues in advance. Going to the boat has to be enjoyable and relaxing for everyone, not just the skipper.

DON'T
Spend too much money on a first boat
If you have no previous experience of boating, how do you know you and the family are going to like it? You will learn a certain amount by hiring and by talking to other boaters, but some aspects just won't sink in until you're responsible for every aspect of your own boat.
There are lots of issues of layout, equipment, engine size, furnishing, systems and so on that you can't really get to grips with until you've had some practical experience. Then you find that someone else's boat has an alternative set-up, or a different way of doing things, and you're in a better position to compare the two approaches. But it's very hard to do that with a first boat.
For that reason, it may be as well not to spend too much on a first boat. Treat it as a training boat: you'll enjoy it, yes, but you won't expect it to be perfect, and you'll intend to move on to another one after a few years.

DO
Take your time and talk to owners
Before you buy, talk to people who already own boats. Most inland boaters are both chatty and friendly, and are only too delighted to talk to potential new recruits to the ranks of inland boaters. They're also convinced that their own boat has the perfect layout, fit-out, engine, equipment and so on, and will explain its virtues to you at great length. You can pick up a lot of information by looking at, and learning about, other people's boats — and by observing how they handle them.

DON'T
Skimp on safety equipment
The waterways have a good safety record, but they do have their own dangers. Although the big lakes tend to be deep, rivers and canals can be shallow, and can hide hazards that the seagoing skipper doesn't have to worry about, things like weeds and shopping trolleys. Currents can be strong after heavy rain; markers can be blown out of position; big lakes can be very rough at times; a moment's inattention can mean a limb squashed between boat and quay wall; floating debris (e.g. branches) can be a hazard.
So don't skimp on safety: proper lifejackets for everyone on board, including some for visitors; lifebelts; flares; a VHF radio (the Coastguard does monitor the Shannon and there are lifeboat services on the Shannon and Erne); a first-aid kit.
Children are required by law to wear lifejackets, but the best way to get them to do so is for the adults to wear them as well. Modern self-inflating lifejackets are very comfortable to wear, and it soon becomes second nature to put them on. But check them regularly and do a major check once a year.

DO
Get training
If you haven't handled boats very much before, invest in some training: the Irish Sailing Association's Inland Waterways Motor Boat Training Scheme provides courses for both skipper and crew.
You may also need a course in handling VHF radio, and it is useful if at least one person has some knowledge of first aid.
Finally, don't forget the engine and other systems. Keeping that hunk of metal going is vital to your safety as well as to your peace of mind, so it's worth learning more about the beast.
Various IWAI branches (see below) and other organisations offer courses in VHF and engine maintenance over the winter months.

DON'T
Buy a second-hand boat without a survey
Before you buy a second-hand boat, get it surveyed properly. A good survey, done by a surveyor who is working for you and not for the seller, is well worth the money: you don't want to sink your cash into a boat that's suffering from severe osmosis (GRP) or has hazardous gas or other systems. Anyway, your insurers may well insist on seeing a survey.
Don't panic if the survey finds faults (no boat is perfect): if the list is manageable, you may be able to get the price reduced and you'll know what work has to be done on the boat and how urgent each item is.
If the surveyor will allow it (and they may hate my suggesting this), you could try to be there during the survey: you can learn a lot by watching the surveyor in action. And if there's anything you don't understand, you can seek enlightenment straight away rather than having to ask questions about the written report.

DO
Start early to look for a marina berth
Once you've bought a boat, you'll have to find somewhere to moor it. On the Shannon, that will almost certainly mean a berth in a marina, and in some areas — especially on Lough Derg — berths are getting scarce. There is no register of vacant marina berths, so there's no alternative to ringing around. The sooner you get started (possibly even before you buy a boat), the better.
On the Grand, Royal and Barrow there are few marinas; most boats are left at locations where boats congregate (e.g. Sallins, Lowtown, Hazelhatch, all near Dublin, and Shannon Harbour at the western end of the Grand). There is no formal security and there are few services but, on the other hand, the annual charge (payable to Waterways Ireland, the navigation authority) is purely nominal, although that may change when the byelaws are revised.

DON'T
Ignore the canals and the Barrow
Most people seem to think of putting a boat on the Shannon or the Erne, and most modern cruisers seem to be designed for those waters. But the canals and the Barrow offer gentle get-away-from-it-all cruising; they are well underused and could handle far more traffic than they get. They also present their own challenges to the skipper's skills and offer some fine scenery and other delights.
Obviously a steel narrowboat or broad-beam narrowboat will be able to handle those waterways, but many displacement cruisers can also cruise them quite happily. A high flybridge would rule you out, and you have to be able to cruise at four miles an hour. Some (especially older) cruiser designs will open up the whole of the waterway system to you, rather than just confining you to the Shannon and Erne.

DO
Join the IWAI
The Inland Waterways Association of Ireland is a voluntary body of waterways enthusiasts, and the nearest thing to a users' association that there is. Join it to help in lobbying Waterways Ireland (and other powers-that-be), to meet other users and join in social and boating activities, and to get access to its services.
IWAI runs the biggest Irish waterways website www.iwai.ie with a huge amount of information on it. Waterways Ireland also has a site at www.waterwaysireland.org

DON'T
Buy a 'project'
A "project" is a boat that has been badly neglected but that would be absolutely gorgeous if it were properly restored. It costs practically nothing — in fact the current owner seems to be glad to be rid of it — and you could save a lot by doing most of the work yourself.
So you buy it and park it somewhere (usually on the Grand Canal, where there is no electricity supply) and, in September, you start going down to it every weekend to do a bit of work. You also sign up for classes in welding.
The first few wet weekends don't deter you; friends occasionally come to help and you find that there are a lot of people (none of whom bought it, you notice) who know every aspect of the history of the boat, including where it was holed the last time it ran aground and what sort of bus the engine was taken out of and why there is a washing-machine hose on the water intake.

Then you notice that the work the previous owner began all has to be undone: he used non-marine plywood, which is delaminating, and windows that he got cheap from a car-dismantlers. There is mastic everywhere and the inside of the boat is getting mouldy. So you dismantle all that and invest in a large tarpaulin.
By Christmas your friends are not taking your phone calls and your spouse and children haven't seen you at a weekend for some months, so you take a break and do a few jobs around the house. Then there are two very wet weekends in a row, and you're afraid that if you take off the tarpaulin it will blow away and the inside will get soaked again. So you decide to leave it until the weather improves in the spring, which it does around July, by which time you have an angry note from the Inspector asking you to remove the sunken boat from the canal.
There are people who have, after much effort, successfully restored very old boats. But far more people have started in hope only to abandon the project. Unless you are absolutely sure that you have the resources and skills to do the job properly, and you and your family find working on boats at least as enjoyable as boating, don't do it: buy something that is already in working order.

DO
Respect other waterways users
So you've bought your new boat with twin 500hp diesels and you're bombing down the river from Athlone to Portumna. Round the corner there is a canoeist, paddling slowly into the teeth of a strong southerly breeze. You see him and slow down, but it's too late: your wash overturns him.
Although cruisers are the most visible users of the waterways, they're not the only ones, and they don't own the place. There are anglers on shore and in boats, swimmers, canoeists, rowers, children in sailing dinghies .... As we get more boats on the system, the potential for conflict increases. It can be avoided by giving some consideration to other users and their needs.

DON'T
Damage the waterways environment
Finally, respect the waterways themselves. Keep the water clean: get a holding tank for your toilet waste and don't dump oil into the water. Keep your wash down on river sections and near the shore, especially during the birds' nesting season. Respect the waterways heritage and learn about their history. We want the next generation to be able to enjoy the waterways too.

Published in Afloat April//May 2008

BEFORE ARDNACRUSHA power-station was built, writes Brian J. Goggin, there was another waterway route from Killaloe to Limerick, with some very interesting features

The old route had five sections: three of canal and two of river. The old canal at Killaloe originally had three locks, two of which were submerged when Ardnacrusha was built. Below that, boats used the river for the next section, which brought them past the village of O'Briensbridge, where again strong currents were a problem. Then, about 2km further downstream, they turned right into the Plassey–Errina Canal, although it was also possible to go a little further downstream to a quay at the upper end of the village of Castleconnell.

The Plassey–Errina Canal had six locks, two of them doubles. The uppermost lock, at Errina, was originally a triple-chambered lock, unique in Ireland, but it was later converted to a double. This canal rejoined the Shannon at Plassey, where the University of Limerick is now.

At this point, horses were originally ferried across the river; a bridge was built later. The navigation used the river briefly until it met the short Park Canal on its left: this cut off a loop of river leading through the rapids and weirs of Corbally. The boats went through one lock to reach the Limerick canal harbour; another lock, just above where Abbey Bridge is now, allowed boats to go downriver to the Limerick docks and the estuary.

The unique Nonsuch
The navigation was built by the Limerick Navigation Co. Construction was difficult, lengthy and costly, and after 40 years the Directors General of Inland Navigation took it over and completed the work; it eventually passed to the Shannon Commissioners. According to VTH and DR Delany in 'The Canals of the South of Ireland', in 1836 the navigation carried 36,018 tons of cargo, collected £1,117 in tolls and carried 14,600 passengers.

In the 1820s, steamers were introduced on the Shannon, but they were too big for the 74' x 14' locks on the navigation downstream from there, so horse-drawn boats were used from Killaloe to Limerick.

Charles Wye Williams, who ran the Irish Inland Steam Navigation Company, was aware of Scottish trials that showed that long and narrow horse-drawn boats could reach higher speeds with less effort. He therefore constructed the iron Nonsuch, 80' x 6'6". He told the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1840 that "The boat thus constructed has been found to answer perfectly... it is capable of carrying 60 passengers, travelling at a speed of nine miles per hour, with the same power that was required to draw a 60ft boat with a less load, and there is much less action on the canal bank in consequence of the increased length... this boat has been working without intermission for three years between Limerick and Killaloe, traversing twice daily a distance of 15 miles, on a navigation of considerable intricacy, and passing 11 locks, without any incident having hitherto occurred."

The only problem was that the boat was too long for the locks. However, Williams had constructed it with hinged ends: "... having the stem and stern ends (each ten foot long) attached by strong hinges to the body, and susceptible of being rapidly raised to a vertical position by means of winches; thus reducing the length to 60ft when required to pass through a lock." Each of the lifting sections could be kept down, when underway, by the weight of one man.

Guinness and sand
In the 1880s, Guinness began sending their porter to Limerick by canal, undercutting the local breweries. Limerick Guinness drinkers maintained that the four- or five-day voyage from Dublin, on the calm waters of the canal, allowed the porter to mature, so that the pint served in Limerick was the best in Ireland, with (according to Séamus Ó Cinnéide) "a delicious nutty flavour".

This trade continued after other traffic on the Grand Canal ceased on 1 January 1960. Guinness needed time to build a depot near Limerick's railway station, so CIE kept 14 canal-boats and two tugs in commission until mid-1960 to serve the drinkers of Limerick. The last cargo was carried by 51M.

By that time, the old navigation was no longer in use. The building of the Ardnacrusha power station, and the weir at Plassey Villa, had flooded an area below Killaloe and blocked access to the stretch of river that included O'Briensbridge, Castleconnell and the entrance to the Plassey–Errina Canal. After that, boats travelled through the headrace canal, the lock at Ardnacrusha, the tailrace canal and the Abbey River. But they continued to use the old harbour at the bottom of the Park Canal so, just before where Abbey Bridge is now, they had to make a sharp left turn and travel up through the tidal lock into the harbour. They used horns to warn the lock-keepers to have the gates open for them; a boom across the river stopped boats from being swept sideways under Baal's Bridge.

The canal boats were not the only users of the harbour: the Shannon Navigation maintenance boat was kept there, as were some pleasure craft. And there too some of the sand-cots discharged their cargoes. These sand-cots were heavy wooden boats, carrying about five tons of sand, which they scooped from the bed of the river at Plassey. Even after the Park Canal was closed, their crews hauled their cargoes down the towing-path [sic] and into the old harbour: LTC Rolt, in 'Green and Silver', describes meeting one such boat.

The navigation today
The old Limerick–Killaloe navigation has left a very rich array of relics, many of which are easily accessible. You can see the quays at O'Briensbridge and Castleconnell; O'Briensbridge also has a reproduction of the capstan used to haul boats up against the flow of the river. And from there you can take one of three looped walks: upriver to Parteen Villa Weir, downstream to Clonlara or (slightly shorter) downstream to the Errina lock.

Going downstream, note the little bridges over incoming streams: they have low walls on the river side, to cater for the tow-rope or track-line, and high walls on the inner side to stop the horses from falling into the streams. The newly-surfaced path follows the river as far as the junction with the Plassey–Errina Canal, then the canal as far as the first bridge. Even if you decide at that point to take the shorter route back along the headrace, divert a small distance down to the Errina lock, the one that was converted from a triple to a double.

In Limerick itself, you can visit the Park Canal and the old harbour, which is close to the Abbey Bridge on the route from Dublin into the city centre. Some of the old buildings are still visible. The harbour and the canal have been dredged recently and new lock gates have been fitted: note the patented mechanism on the upper gates, which is designed to resist high tidal water on the wrong (downstream) side of the gates. It is possible to walk from here all the way to the University of Limerick, passing the second lock and the Guinness footbridge at the Park Canal's junction with the Shannon.

From within the University, you can walk down the riverbank to the old Plassey Mill, which had its own lock for the barges that carried workers and goods to Limerick. There are traditional fishing cots nearby, as well as a reproduction sand-cot. The old horse-bridge still spans the Shannon, and across it you can see the Annaghbeg Lock, the bottom lock of the Plassey-Errina Canal.

It seems unlikely that the whole of the lower Shannon navigation will ever be restored, but the Park Canal is being restored for walkers, cyclists and boaters, and the old harbour would make a better mooring-place than the Custom House jetties. And upstream, navigation could be restored to O'Briensbridge and Castleconnell, providing Killaloe-based boaters with a new destination, simply by providing a lock at Parteen Villa Weir.

Published in Afloat February//March 2008