Roaring Water Bay

Its a great name isn’t it? And we will tell anyone who will listen what an awesome place this part of Southern Ireland is! You have scenery to die for. Little villages and towns that line the shores and welcome you in. Fantastic anchorages, great Guinness and the worlds friendliest people. What’s not to like?

So we sailed out of Kinsale on a slow breeze and a perfect summers evening to explore this great area and found the perfect anchorage for the night in a place called Broadstrand just south of CourtMacSherry.

The next day we set sail again and entered the narrow entrance of Castle Haven 35 miles down the coast. It was a brilliant sail, force 4 with flat seas and us tacking past the large headlands that jut out from the coast. You can hardly see the entrance to Castle Haven as you approach the coast, but then its entrance widens and round a dogleg lies the town of CastleTownshend, a sleepy pretty little place packed full of history. We anchored in the river outside the town and took a trip in the next day to see possibly the worlds strangest round-about, a bronze age fort and a delightful pub for the obligatory pint of Guinness.

A short sail up the coast took us to a spectacular spot to see the rapids at Lough Hyde. We anchored just outside the rapids at Barloge Creek nestled between cliffs with barely any room to swing. The anchorage was busy too. Lough Hyde is connected to Barloge Creek by a narrow channel which has an underwater sill. The tide flows in and out of the lough, but because the entrance is so narrow, not enough water can get through, and this forms a step in the sea and rapids between the Lough and the creek. Caleb and I took the dinghy and navigated the rapids when the two water levels were almost equal. We could only stay a short while in the lough before we had to get out again to avoid being trapped. It was a fun ride in the dinghy through the narrows going with the flow and getting spun about in the strong stream.

Another short sail up the coast took us to an anchorage just off the town of Baltimore. This place is a mecca for boating. Anchorage etiquette is clearly not observed here though and we were buzzed all day by all manner of high speed ribs and speedboats tearing there way to the dock to take advantage of the numerous bars and restaurants. Speaking of which, not wanting to be left out, we braved the melee too and visited a great pub called the Algerian for burgers and beer and took a hike up the striking navigation mark that guards the entrance to Baltimore Bay

Two nights of Baltimore bay speed boat madness was enough for us and we decided to seek solitude in an anchorage just round the corner off Hare Island. The heat hit us, but not as fiercely as that experienced in the UK. We took the dinghy to shore to enjoy the white sand beaches and have a walk around this pretty island.

With a blow predicted for the next evening, we made sail for an old favourite anchorage with more protection at Schull Harbour. (pronounced Skull). Another sailing mecca in the area and full of boats, many more than we had seen last time. Infact trying to get a space here on the dinghy dock was chaos involving pushing aside many of those ribs we had seen flying around in Baltimore. Our dingy ‘Danny Boy’ just about managed to squeeze in, and the reward for the passengers was fish and chips at the pier and a pint in town at the Bonratty Inn. Our friends Sam and Rosie from Zora were also in the anchorage for the night, so we paid them a visit for another great evening of sunset beers and wine. Thanks guys!

The next day, we took a walk round the headland from Schull via a small hamlet of Colla. It turned out to be a fantastic walk with stunning views of the area. The reward at the end was a visit to ‘Crepe Paradise’

That evening we took advantage of the wind angle and sailed down to another favourite anchorage at Crookhaven with a fine sail down Long Island sound and through Man of War Pass. All names that invoke the history of the area with Spanish Galleons and Pirates. Infact we saw a beautiful tallship pass us on the way.

Crookhaven is a superb all weather anchorage and almost completely enclosed. The place has a lovely feel to it, very relaxed although this time the shore was teeming with holiday makers. Don’t these land lubbers just get in the way?! Ailsa and I decided to try and walk to Mizen head. It proved to be a little too far on a hot day, but we did make it to Barley Cove and sat on the beach enjoying the views before returning to Crookhaven for a well earned ice cream.

Hopefully you get a feel for this area and why we love it so much!