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Displaying items by tag: Grand Canal Greenway

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and users of the Grand Canal that ground investigation works have commenced Phase 2 of the Grand Canal Greenway between Sallins and Lowtown in northeast Co Kildare.

These Kildare County Council works started on Tuesday 18 April and are expected to last for approximately eight weeks.

The towpaths shall mostly remain open for public use for the duration of the works but intermittent closures will be necessary during trial hole excavations.

Advance warning signage will be erected on the towpath to warn the public of any closure. Boat navigation will not be affected, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways adds.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and users of the Grand Canal in the Dublin area that construction of the greenway is ongoing and will necessitate lowering of water levels west of the city from this weekend.

Following recent works between Lock 13 and Lock 14, the water level between Lock 12 at Lucan Road and Lock 13 at Ardclough will be lowered by 200mm for a period of two weeks from Friday 3 March.

This is to accommodate stone works under Aylmer’s Bridge in Kearneystown as part of the ongoing Kildare County Council Phase 1 Greenway works, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways adds.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and users of the Grand Canal that construction of the greenway is ongoing as previously reported on Afloat.ie.

As part of these works, water levels on the canal will be lowered by 400mm in northeast Co Kildare between Lock 13 at Ardclough and Lock 14 at Devonshire Bridge from Monday 20 February for a period of six weeks.

Waters are being lowered to accommodate greenway works under Henry Bridge, Ponsonby Bridge and Devonshire Bridge.

Further notices will be issued in due course to provide updates as the works progress, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways adds.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and users of the Grand Canal in northeast Kildare that the towpath from Sallins to Naas Golf Club is closed to pedestrian and cycle traffic as of Monday 5 December and will not reopen until 11 September 2023.

This is to facilitate development for Phase 1 of the Grand Canal Greenway, construction works on which commenced in October, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways adds. Afloat.ie has more on the first phase of works HERE.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and users of the Grand Canal that Kildare County Council will begin the first phase of works on the Grand Canal Greenway from Monday 17 October, continuing over the next 12 months.

There will be limited public access to the towpath on the southern side of the Grand Canal from Sallins village to Ponsonby Bridge near Ardclough until 11 October 2023.

Section 1 of the greenway works will take place from Sallins to Devonshire Bridge with the towpath closed until 2 June 2023. Section 2 works will take place from Devonshire Bridge to Ponsonby Bridge with the towpath closed from 19 May to 11 October 2023.

The greenway works includes a footbridge being constructed over the Grand Canal village at the Waterways Ireland-serviced moorings near the primary school in Sallins. The bridge construction works are expected to commence in January 2023 with abutment excavation and construction and then a bridge lift.

Ramps will be constructed for access to the bridge on both sides of the canal. Several mooring spaces at the serviced jetties will be vacated for the duration of the bridge construction works. The bridge works are expected to be completed by May 2023.

All vessels on passage through Sallins from January to May 2023 should proceed with additional caution during the bridge construction works.

Further Marine Notices will be issued in due course to provide updates as the works progress, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways adds.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises that the towpath on the south bank of the Grand Canal adjacent to Church Avenue in Sallins, Co Kildare will be closed from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 26 February.

This closure is to facilitate tree removal works for the new Grand Canal Greenway route, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways says. It follows a similar closure from Lucan to Hazelhatch that continues until this Sunday 6 February.

Published in Inland Waterways

Waterways Ireland advises users of the Grand Canal from Lock 12 in Lucan to Hazelhatch that the towpath on the north bank will be closed from Monday 10 January to Sunday 6 February inclusive.

This four-week closure is to facilitate site investigation works for the Grand Canal Greenway Project, the cross-border body for Ireland’s inland waterways says.

Published in Inland Waterways

A number of greenways along Ireland’s waterways will benefit from a funding package for greenways and national roads worth two-thirds of a billion euro, which was announced today (Friday 17 December).

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan confirmed that Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) has issued funding allocations totalling €676 million to local authorities for 2022.

Out of this, €60 million has been allocated to around 40 greenway projects across the country in 2022, in nearly every single county. This funding is part of an overall commitment to invest €360 million per year in active travel over the lifetime of the Government.

Minister Ryan said the funding will also support extensions of the Grand Canal Greenway in Offaly, Kildare and South Dublin and join the Waterford to New Ross Greenway with the Waterford Greenway, among other projects.

He continued: “I’m particularly happy that agreement has been reached on a Code of Best Practice for National and Regional Greenways. This code has been agreed with the farming representative bodies and other stakeholders and provides us with an approved way to achieve voluntary land sales for Greenways where needed.

“Community buy-in is central to the future of our Greenways, which are one of the big success stories of rural Ireland. Greenways are a wonderful amenity for leisure and tourism, and they are also important for everyday journeys to school, work or the shops.”

Published in Inland Waterways

The Grand Canal Greenway will be extended from the 12th Lock in Lucan to Hazelhatch Bridge after Transport Minister Eamon Ryan allocated an additional €1.4 million to South Dublin County Council for the completion of the works by 2022.

The funding forms part of the Department of Transport’s Greenway Programme worth €63.5 million, the highest single year amount ever allocated to this type of infrastructure.

Minister Ryan said: “I am delighted to allocate €1.4m towards the extension of the Grand Canal Greenway from the 12th Lock to Hazelhatch Bridge.

“This key 4km section will provide safe segregated access to people working in Grange Castle Business Park as well as those living in Hazelhatch, Celbridge and the surrounding areas.

“This project is a great example of the role that greenways are playing in providing safe and enjoyable access to schools and workplaces as well as opportunities for leisure and tourism.

When completed, the works “will enable people to walk and cycle from Inchicore to Hazelhatch Bridge, and later in 2023 as far as Sallins in Co Kildare”.

The minister added that additional funding was already provided to Offaly County Council in 2020 to extend the Grand Canal Greenway from Daingean to Edenderry.

“By the end of 2023 we will have nearly 70 kilometres of greenway completed alongside the canal in South Dublin, Kildare and Offaly,” he said.

“Funding is also in place to develop a future route between the Grand and Royal canals which South Dublin and Fingal County Councils are working to progress over the coming years.”

This project will be co-funded by South Dublin County Council to a total of €2.1 million.

Published in Inland Waterways

Round Ireland Yacht Race Information

The Round Ireland Yacht Race is Ireland's classic offshore yacht race starts from Wicklow Sailing Club (WSC) and is organised jointly with the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) and the Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC). This page details the very latest updates from the 2008 race onwards including the race schedule, yacht entries and the all-important race updates from around the 704-mile course. Keep up to date with the Round Ireland Yacht Race here on this one handy reference page.

2020 Round Ireland Race

The 2020 race, the 21st edition, was the first race to be rescheduled then cancelled.

Following Government restrictions over COVID-19, a decision on the whether or not the 2020 race can be held was made on April 9 2020 to reschedule the race to Saturday, August 22nd. On July 27th, the race was regrettably cancelled due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19.

Because of COVID-19, the race had to have a virtual launch party at the Royal Irish Yacht Club for its 21st edition

In spite of the pandemic, however, a record entry was in prospect for 2020 with 50 boats entered with four weeks to go to the race start. The race was also going big on size and variety to make good on a pre-race prediction that the fleet could reach 60. An Irish offshore selection trial also looked set to be a component part of the 2020 race.

The rescheduling of the race to a news date emphasises the race's national significance, according to Afloat here

FAQs

704 nautical miles, 810 miles or 1304 kilometres

3171 kilometres is the estimate of Ireland's coastline by the Ordnance Survey of Ireland.

SSE Renewables are the sponsors of the 2020 Round Ireland Race.

Wicklow Sailing Club in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club in London and The Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dublin.

Off Wicklow Harbour on Saturday, August 22nd 2020

Monohulls 1300 hrs and Multihulls 13.10 hrs

Leave Ireland and all its islands (excluding Rockall) to starboard.

It depends on the boat. The elapsed record time for the race is under 40 hours but most boats take five or six days to complete the course.

The Race Tracker is https://afloat.ie/sail/events/round-ireland/item/25789-round-ireland-yacht-race-tracker-2016-here.

The idea of a race around Ireland began in 1975 with a double-handed race starting and finishing in Bangor organised by Ballyholme Yacht Club with stopovers in Crosshaven and Killybegs. That race only had four entries. In 1980 Michael Jones put forward the idea of a non-stop race and was held in that year from Wicklow Sailing Club. Sixteen pioneers entered that race with Brian Coad’s Raasay of Melfort returning home after six days at sea to win the inaugural race. Read the first Round Ireland Yacht Race 1980 Sailing Instructions here

 

The Round Ireland race record of 38 h 37 min 7 s is held by MOD-70 trimaran Musandam-Oman Sail and was set in June 2016.

George David’s Rambler 88 (USA) holds the fastest monohull race time of two days two hours 24 minutes and 9 seconds set in the 2016 race.

William Power's 45ft Olivia undertook a round Ireland cruise in September 1860

 

Richard Hayes completed his solo epic round Ireland voyage in September 2018 in a 14-foot Laser dinghy. The voyage had seen him log a total of 1,324 sea miles (2,452 kilometres) in 54 sailing days. in 1961, the Belfast Lough Waverly Durward crewed by Kevin and Colm MacLaverty and Mick Clarke went around Ireland in three-and-a-half weeks becoming the smallest keelboat ever to go round. While neither of these achievements occurred as part of the race they are part of Round Ireland sailing history

© Afloat 2020