| Sligo Bay | |
|---|---|
 Sligo Bay from Knocknarea | |
 | |
  Sligo Bay | |
| Location | County Sligo |
| Coordinates | 54°17′56″N8°38′43″W / 54.29889°N 8.64528°W |
| Ocean/sea sources | Atlantic Ocean |
| Basin countries | Ireland |
| Islands | Coney, Oyster, Maguins |
| Settlements | Sligo, Rosses Point, Ballysadare, Drumcliff |
Sligo Bay (Irish : Cuan Shligigh) [1] is a natural ocean bay in County Sligo, Republic of Ireland.
Sligo Bay is opened between Aughris Head (South side) and Roskeeragh Point (North). [2] The inner part of the bay is divided into three smaller bodies of water, hosting the estuaries of three rivers: Drumcliff, Garavogue and Bonet. [3] The river Garavogue reaches the bay in its central part, named Sligo Harbour, which is divided from the outer part of the bay by three small islands: Coney, Oyster and Maguins. On the southern branch of Sligo Bay also has its mouth the Ballisodare River, near the village of the same name.
The bay is characterised by the peninsulas jutting out into it, which create vast areas of sandy beach at low tide, along with the tidal islands which are only accessible at low tide. The notable landforms within the bay and its peninsulas are:
Large beaches and tidal plains located around the bay are a good habitat for shellfish. This kind of food attracted settlers since the Stone Age, as demonstrated by a number of middens discovered in the area by archeologists. [4]
During the centuries in waters of the bay occurred several shipwrecks. Quite well studied is the wreck of Labia (25 September 1588), a 728-ton Venetian ship. [5] Shipwrecks became almost common during the following centuries [6] and their number started to decrease with the decline of the port of Sligo in the 20th century.[ citation needed ]
Sligo Airport is located on the bay's shore, at the foot of Knocknarea, a hill which overlooks the peninsula between Sligo Harbour and Ballysadare Bay (Bonet estuary).
There are four lighthouses in Sligo Bay.
The 25m high Blackrock lighthouse 54°18′28″N8°37′4″W / 54.30778°N 8.61778°W in Sligo Bay is notable for having external steps until halfway up the tower. [7] [8]
Sligo Bay hosts three lighthouses near Rosses Point, the Metal Man, Lower Rosses and Oyster Island lighthouses.
Sligo Bay is concerned by the Donegal to Mayo section of the Wild Atlantic Way. [9]
Ballysadare Bay hosts a well known seal colony. [10]
The estuaries area is protected under European legislation being listed as a NATURA 2000 site; it is also a Natural Heritage Area , defined and managed by the Irish National Parks & Wildlife Service. [11]
County Sligo is a county in Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county was 70,198 at the 2022 census. It is noted for Benbulben Mountain, one of Ireland's most distinctive natural landmarks.
Dublin Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea on the east coast of Ireland. The bay 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 sand banks lay, 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.
Sligo is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of 20,608 in 2022, it is the county's largest urban centre and the 24th largest in the Republic of Ireland.
A tidal island is a raised area of land within a waterbody, which is connected to the larger mainland by a natural isthmus or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide, causing the land to switch between being a promontory/peninsula and an island depending on tidal conditions.
Lough Swilly in Ireland is a glacial fjord or sea inlet lying between the western side of the Inishowen Peninsula and the Fanad Peninsula, in County Donegal. Along with Carlingford Lough and Killary Harbour it is one of three glacial fjords in Ireland.
Ballysadare, locally also Ballisodare, is a town in County Sligo, Ireland. It is about 7 kilometres south of Sligo town. The town developed on an important crossing of the Owenmore River.
Rosses Point is a village in County Sligo, Ireland and also the name of the surrounding peninsula.
The N15 road is a national primary road in the north-west of Ireland. It runs from Sligo to Lifford, County Donegal. It forms part of the proposed Atlantic Corridor route. It also goes to the border with Northern Ireland.
The Mullet Peninsula —also known as the Mullet and sometimes as the Erris Peninsula—is a peninsula in the barony of Erris in County Mayo, Ireland. As of 2016 it has a population of 3963. It consists of a large promontory connected to the mainland at Belmullet, a town of about 1,000 inhabitants, by a narrow isthmus. There are several villages on the Mullet peninsula including Aughleam, Elly, Corclough and Binghamstown. The Peninsula is about 33 km (21 mi) long and ranges from 200 metres (660 ft) to 12 km (7.5 mi) wide. Its northernmost point is Erris Head. The peninsula's doglegged shape forms two bays, Blacksod Bay and Broadhaven Bay.
Tralee Bay is located in on the west coast of County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated between Kerry Head on the north side and the Maharees on the west and extends eastwards as far as the bridge at Blennerville. Several small rivers feed into the bay through the town of Tralee. Villages around the bay include; Ballyheigue, Fenit, Kilfinora, Spa, Blennerville, Camp and Castlegregory.
The Garavogue or Garvoge (Irish: An Gharbhóg is a river in County Sligo, northwest Ireland, known historically as the Sligeach or Sligo River.
The R292 road is a regional road in Ireland that runs from Sligo town via Strandhill to Ballysadare, all in County Sligo. A more direct road from Sligo to Ballysadare is available using the N4 road.
Saint Muiredach mac Echdach, also known as Murtagh, was the founding Bishop of Killala, Ireland in the 6th century.
Killala Bay is a bay on the west coast of Ireland, between County Mayo and County Sligo, with Kilcummin Head to the west and Lenadoon Point to the east, which is the estuary for the River Moy. The village of Killala is at the southwest corner of the bay.
Blacksod Bay is a bay of the Atlantic Ocean in Erris, north County Mayo, Ireland. The 16 km (9.9 mi) long and 8 km (5.0 mi) wide bay is bounded on its western side by the Mullet Peninsula. Its eastern side includes Kiltane Parish, which extends southwards from Belmullet towards Gweesalia and Doohoma.
Coney Island or Inishmulclohy, is an island between the Rosses Point and Coolera peninsulas in Sligo Bay, County Sligo, Ireland. It is one of several islands of the same name off the coast of Ireland. It is an island of approximately 400 acres and is named after the vast quantity of rabbits which can be spotted on the island at any time, the Irish for rabbit being coinín..
The Wild Atlantic Way is a tourism trail on the west coast, and on parts of the north and south coasts, of Ireland. The 2,500 km driving route passes through nine counties and three provinces, stretching from County Donegal's Inishowen Peninsula in Ulster to Kinsale, County Cork, in Munster, on the Celtic Sea coast.
The Metal Man is a beacon off the coast of the Rosses Point Peninsula in County Sligo, Ireland.
The Rosses Point Peninsula is a small peninsula in the centre of Sligo Bay, County Sligo, Ireland. The peninsula shares its name with the village of Rosses Point, a popular seaside resort located on the peninsula's southern coast, roughly 7.5 km (5 mi) west of Sligo town.
The Coolera Peninsula is a peninsula in Sligo Bay, County Sligo, Ireland. It is the most populous of County Sligo's peninsulas, and the second-largest by land area. The primary population centres on Coolera are the coastal town of Strandhill on its western shore, and Magheraboy, a suburb of Sligo town.
