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Cushendun is situated on the northeast coast of Ireland about eight miles south of Fair Head and five miles northward of Garron Point. Vessels may anchor off the small village at the mouth of the river which lies at the southern end of Cushendun Bay and shallow vessels may cross the sandbar at high water to dry out inside the River Glendun.

Cushendun is situated on the northeast coast of Ireland about eight miles south of Fair Head and five miles northward of Garron Point. Vessels may anchor off the small village at the mouth of the river which lies at the southern end of Cushendun Bay and shallow vessels may cross the sandbar at high water to dry out inside the River Glendun.

Cushendun is an exposed anchorage that only affords shelter in settled conditions or from westerly component conditions round to the north-northwest. However, in the latter case in any developed offshore winds, tidal streams may cause a vessel to lie beam onto the wind and induce an uncomfortable roll. The location is completely exposed to anything with an easterly component. Access is straightforward thanks to the absence of offshore dangers or any tidal restrictions.



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Keyfacts for Cushendun
Facilities
Shop with basic provisions availableHot food available in the localityPublic house or wine bar in the areaMarked or notable walks in the vicinity of this locationPleasant family beach in the areaShore based family recreation in the area


Nature
No fees for anchoring or berthing in this locationRemote or quiet secluded locationAnchoring locationJetty or a structure to assist landingQuick and easy access from open waterNavigation lights to support a night approachScenic location or scenic location in the immediate vicinitySet near a village or with a village in the immediate vicinity

Considerations
Note: strong tides or currents in the area that require consideration

Protected sectors

Current wind over the protected quadrants
Minimum depth
3 metres (9.84 feet).

Approaches
4 stars: Straightforward; when unaffected by weather from difficult quadrants or tidal consideration, no overly complex dangers.
Shelter
2 stars: Exposed; unattended vessels should be watched from the shore and a comfortable overnight stay is unlikely.



Last modified
January 6th 2023

Summary

An exposed location with straightforward access.

Facilities
Shop with basic provisions availableHot food available in the localityPublic house or wine bar in the areaMarked or notable walks in the vicinity of this locationPleasant family beach in the areaShore based family recreation in the area


Nature
No fees for anchoring or berthing in this locationRemote or quiet secluded locationAnchoring locationJetty or a structure to assist landingQuick and easy access from open waterNavigation lights to support a night approachScenic location or scenic location in the immediate vicinitySet near a village or with a village in the immediate vicinity

Considerations
Note: strong tides or currents in the area that require consideration



Position and approaches
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Haven position

55° 7.620' N, 006° 2.280' W

This position is in about 5 metres of water situated at the south side of the beach and approximately 200 metres east of the mouth of the River Dunn.

What is the initial fix?

The following Cushendun Bay Initial Fix will set up a final approach:
55° 7.620' N, 006° 1.850' W
This is approximately 400 metres out from the anchorage and 600 metres out from the mouth of the River Dunn. A bearing of due west or 270°(T) will lead to the anchorage from here.


What are the key points of the approach?

Offshore details are available in northeast Ireland’s Coastal Overview for Malin Head to Strangford Lough Route location.

  • Approach the hotel from due east and anchor just north of the mouth of the River Dunn off the southern end of the beach.


Not what you need?
Click the 'Next' and 'Previous' buttons to progress through neighbouring havens in a coastal 'clockwise' or 'anti-clockwise' sequence. Below are the ten nearest havens to Cushendun for your convenience.
Ten nearest havens by straight line charted distance and bearing:
  1. Cushendall - 3.1 nautical miles S
  2. Red Bay Pier (Glenariff Pier) - 3.7 nautical miles S
  3. Torr Head - 4.1 nautical miles NNW
  4. Murlough Bay - 5.6 nautical miles NNW
  5. Carnlough - 8.2 nautical miles SSE
  6. Ballycastle - 8.4 nautical miles NW
  7. Glenarm - 9.9 nautical miles SSE
  8. Church Bay - 11.2 nautical miles NNW
  9. Ballintoy Harbour - 13.4 nautical miles WNW
  10. Portbraddan - 14.3 nautical miles WNW
These havens are ordered by straight line charted distance and bearing, and can be reordered by compass direction or coastal sequence:
  1. Cushendall - 3.1 miles S
  2. Red Bay Pier (Glenariff Pier) - 3.7 miles S
  3. Torr Head - 4.1 miles NNW
  4. Murlough Bay - 5.6 miles NNW
  5. Carnlough - 8.2 miles SSE
  6. Ballycastle - 8.4 miles NW
  7. Glenarm - 9.9 miles SSE
  8. Church Bay - 11.2 miles NNW
  9. Ballintoy Harbour - 13.4 miles WNW
  10. Portbraddan - 14.3 miles WNW
To find locations with the specific attributes you need try:

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Chart
Please use our integrated Navionics chart to appraise the haven and its approaches. Navionics charts feature in premier plotters from B&G, Raymarine, Magellan and are also available on tablets. Open the chart in a larger viewing area by clicking the expand to 'new tab' or the 'full screen' option.

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What's the story here?
Cushendun at the mouth of the River Dun
Image: Michael Harpur


The picturesque Cushendun Bay is entered 4.2 miles south of Torr Head and 5 miles northwest of Garron Point. It hosts a small coastal village with a population of fewer than 150 people clustered around the mouth of the River Dun that sits at the foot of the beautiful Glendun, one of the nine Glens of Antrim. A sheltered harbour lies at the river mouth that is only suitable for small craft.


The anchorage is in the south side of the bay just off the river mouth
Image: Michael Harpur


Cushendun Bay offers a temporary fine-weather anchorage off the hotel at the south end of the bay. Although it can provide shelter from strong onshore winds the bay is subject to a strong eddy that runs north during the latter part of the south-going stream in the North Channel. This could cause a vessel to get tide rode in strong offshore winds and make it uncomfortable.


The small boat area on the north bank of the river
Image: Michael Harpur


Shallow draft vessels drawing 0.5 metres or less that can take to the bottom have more options. They can achieve very good protection by crossing the bar of the River Dun at high water and drying out inside off the north bank of the river just below the road bridge.


How to get in?
Red Bay and Cushendun Bay separated by Cross Slieve pushing out to the sea
Image: Michael Harpur


Convergance Point Offshore details are available in northeast Ireland’s coastal overview for Malin Head to Strangford Lough Route location. The prominent 265 metres high peak of Carnaneigh stands 2 miles north of Cushendun Bay. As it rises almost vertically from the sea to its summit it is a prominent seamark. Immediately south, the 262 metres high Cross Slieve pushing its way out to the sea separates Cushendun Bay from Red Bay.


Carnaneigh, in the back, as seen from Torr Head
Image: Tourism NI


Vessels converging on Cushendun will find no outlying hazards north of Hangman and Maiden Rocks situated 14 miles to the southeast. Stayin 400 metres out from the slopes of the Antrim Mountains, which push out almost vertically to the coast in the vicinity, clears all dangers. The direction and velocity of the tide should be the central feature of any navigation planning in this area.


Cushendun Bay
Image: Michael Harpur


The approaches to Cushendun Bay are clear but it is inadvisable to anchor no further north than 200 metres from the south end of the bay. There is a sunken wreck near the middle of the bay, approximately 400 metres offshore. It has 4.2 metres of water over it but it is foul and the foul ground also exists on either side of the wreck for a distance of 400 metres to the north and south. The north side of the bay is also foul out to a distance of 450 metres. By contrast, the south side is clear and shoals gradually to the shore. Consequently, the south side of the bay is the only clear area to anchor.

The approaches to Cushendun Bay are clear
Image: Lindy Buckley via CC BY 2.0


Initial fix location From the Cushendun Bay initial fix the anchoring position is approximately 400 metres due west. It is situated just north of the mouth of the River Dunn and off the southern end of the beach.

A yellow outflow marker Fl(4)Y. 12s on approach plus a conspicuous terrace of houses will be seen nearby on the south side of the River Dunn. Pass to the north of the buoy and anchor off a hotel at the south end of the bay.


Anchor according to preference off of the river mouth
Image: Michael Harpur


Haven location The bay's sandy bottom shoals gradually to the shore on the final approach where it is possible to anchor according to draft and preference.


The mouth of the River Dun
Image: Michael Harpur


Land on the beach or at the slips within the river. The first of these slips is inset into the wall that extends along the south side of the river and it is located opposite the rockpile breakwater that extends from the north side of the river entrance.


The slip on the south side of the river
Image: Michael Harpur


A larger inner slip will be found on the north side of the river before the bridge where local small boats are moored.

The inner slip on the north bank of the river
Image: Michael Harpur



Why visit here?
Cushendun derives its name from the Irish 'Cois Abhann Duinne' that means 'foot of the brown river'. This stems from the River Dun, commonly known as the Glendun River, which rises close to Trostan Mountain and which has also given its name to its glen, Glendun, one of the nine Glens of Antrim.


Cushendun in the heart of the Antrim Coast and Glens Area
Image: Tourism NI


Cushendun represents the closest position in Ireland to mainland Britain with a sheltered landing location and safe anchorage. The Mull of Kintyre in Scotland is only about 15 miles away across the North Channel and can be seen easily on clear days. This has made it a major landing place since man first settled on the north coast of Ireland some 9,000 years ago. The exact origins of the site are unknown but it most likely began life as a holy place in the Iron Age. Historically there has been a continuous passage of travellers from Cushendun and Kintyre, on the opposite coast, trading black cattle and pigs for Highland ponies.


The ruin of Carra Castle overlooking the beach from the north
Image: Tourism NI


Carra Castle, or Castle Carra in Irish 'Caisleán Carrach' standing to the north of Cushendun strand, marks the strategic importance of the area in the Middle Ages. The exact date of construction of the castle is unclear, but Mesolithic flint workings show evidence of an ancient early fortification on the site. It is thought to have been a Norman outpost at one time with a later rebuild around the 14th century. Its name is most likely a corruption of the Irish word 'carràn', meaning 'a hook', which the curved form of the peninsula suggested originally. The defensive position served as an ideal stronghold for the McDonnells and their clansmen in the late Medieval period, who would land their galleys on the beach below. Their reign brought with them a coloured history to the castle.


Cushendun Beach where the McDonnells would have traded from
Image: Tourism NI


The MacDonnells, the O'Neills, plus the Maguires and O'Donnells from across the river Bann, and the Crown all competed for power here. 16th-Century Northern Ireland was a mercurial shifting landscape of allegiances and open warfare that was, as often as not, strategically manipulated by Queen Elizabeth 1st's agents empowering one clan over another. Sorley Boy sided with the Crown against the 'Gaelic Prince of Ulster' Shane 'The Proud' O'Neill in 1559 but the joint campaign faltered. In return O'Neill decisively defeated Sorley Boy and his clan at the Battle of Glentasie in 1565. After their defeat Castle Carra and Dunluce Castle, the clan's pride fell into O'Neill's hands. He also took James MacDonnell and Sorley Boy as his prisoners. They were held in Dungannon Castle where James died soon afterwards but Sorley Boy remained O'Neill's captive until 1567.


Antrim Coast and Glens Area inland from Cushendun
Image: Tourism NI


However, Sorley Boy seems to have won his captor's confidence during this period. After an unexpected defeat of the O'Neill's by the O'Donnells, supported by the Crown in the battle of Farsetmore, Shane turned to the MacDonnells for assistance. He attended a feast laid on by the MacDonnells here at Castle Carra. Shane brought Sorley Boy out of captivity in a bid to secure an alliance with the Scots. But the MacDonnells only had revenge for the 1565 defeat in mind. It is also said that the English Deputy of Ireland, Sir Henry Sidney representative of Queen Elizabeth in Dublin Castle, was orchestrating events. He had tried unsuccessfully to assassinate O'Neill several times and had an assassin within the MacDonnell party. So the outcome of the feast was not in question and on the third day, a pre-planned confrontation was initiated where Shane O'Neill was stabbed to death along with several of his militia. As if to mark Sidney's hand in events immediately afterwards O'Neill's head was sent to him in Dublin Castle where it was stuck on a pole and placed on the northwest gate of the city.


Drystone field boundaries above Cushendun
Image: Fred via CC01


In the aftermath, Sorley Boy went to Scotland and returned with 600 Scottish mercenaries from the Highlands' Western Isles, determined never to be defeated or leave Ireland again. As it happens this proved to be the case nearly twenty years later at Castle Carra. In 1585 his son Donnell 'Gorm' MacDonnell was besieged by the English in Castle Carra. Sorley Bay, then in his eighties, came from Dunluce Castle and landed on the beaches near the castle. He soon drove off the besiegers. The castle ruin lies overgrown with ivy today in a field overlooking the harbour of Cushendun from the north A cairn to the O'Neill clan was erected on the high ground overlooking Cushendun in 1908.


Cushendun's unique architecture
Image: Tourism NI


But it was more than the McDonnells and their clansmen that landed on Cushendun beach. A regular ferry service operated between here and Dunaverty, a mere 16 miles away on the Mull of Kintyre. This started after the 'Plantation of Ulster' was well established in the middle of the 1600s and ran until the Great Famine in the middle of the 19th century. At this time the harbour had its own customs house and passport office. This was closed following the 'Act of Union' between Britain and Ireland, as it became obsolete.


Mary McBride's pub Cushendun
Image: Michael Harpur


In 1830 plans were drawn up for a commercial port at Cushendun by a local businessman Nicholas Cromelin to serve the surrounding district and the industrial centre of Ballymena. The architect Sir John Rennie was commissioned for the design but the project failed when the government pulled funding from the project uncertain of Cromelin's financial standing. Subsequently, however, several factories were built beside the south quay, including a ropewalk, a long narrow shed for spinning rope, and a starch works, to which later was added a steam-powered flax mill that was the only one in the glens.


Mary McBride's pub Cushendun
Image: Tourism NI


Today the picturesque fishing village with its quaint, whitewashed houses built in Cornish style is an architectural oddity. It owes much of its character and unique architectural heritage to Ronald John McNeill who became the 1st (and last) Baron of Cushendun in 1927. He had the village designed for him by the architect Clough Williams-Ellis, best known for his Italianate town of Portmeirion in Wales. McNeill's wife Maud was Cornish and this may have had some bearing on the design style of the houses. He developed the village square with seven houses in 1912, and later in 1923, he built Mauds Cottages and Glenmona House built in the regal neo-Georgian style. Cushendun’s houses are of rugged, rough-cast whitewash with slate roofs in a Cornish style that clearly weathers the sea storms as efficiently here as in Cornwall. In 1980 this unique architectural inheritance in a picturesque coastal setting in the heart of the Antrim Coast and Glens Area resulted in Cushendun being designated a Conservation area of outstanding natural beauty to be preserved by the National Trust, and it shows: it’s a tiny and well-tended place.


Johann Sculpture
Image: Michael Harpur


An unusually famous character of Cushendun is Johann the goat, a sculpture of which is situated close to the mouth of the river. The goat lived in the harbour area for many years, grazing the river bank and providing a particularly good welcome to visitors bearing apples or carrots. In 2001 Johann was the last animal to be culled during the foot and mouth outbreak. His statue remains a poignant memorial to the farmers in the district who lost their livestock due to the terrible disease. Today, another goat carries on his tradition beneath the feet of Johann's sculpture.


Goat in Cushendun today
Image: Tourism NI


Those planning on striding out will find a beautiful and varied glen awaits them here. Glendun ascends from the shore past deciduous and evergreen woodlands to the forested and tundra-like slopes of Slieveanorra Mountain. The small Glendun Road provides an excellent pathway to explore Glendun. It follows the river and then continues for the entire length of the glen to the Bryvore Bridge where it joins with the Glenaan Road.


The Glendun Viaduct shortly after completion
Image: National Library of Ireland on The Commons


The path passes underneath one arch, and the river under another bridge, the Glendun Viaduct, which carries William Bald's famous Coast Road across the valley towards Ballycastle. The bridge was completed in 1839 and designed by a young 22 years old county surveyor Charles Lanyon. Lanyon went on to become a famous architect of many fine buildings including Queens University in Belfast.


Cushendun caves that were Storms End in the Game of Thrones
Image: Tourism NI


Fans of Game of Thrones will be interested in visiting the Cushendun Caves the east end of the village fronting the headland. The 400-million-year-old caves provided the perfect rocky, coastal landscape to represent the Baratheon homeland near Storm’s End. It was here that Sir Davos Seaworth and Lady Melisandre landed ashore in Season 2 and where Melisandre, on the orders of Stannis Baratheon, gave birth to a terrifying and utterly unforgettable shadow baby assassin.


Sentinel rock outside the caves entrance
Image: Michael Harpur


It was a pivotal scene that showed how powerful Melisandre was and how far Stannis Baratheon would go to sit on the Iron Throne. The caves also featured again in season 8 with the famous battle between Jaime Lannister and Euron Greyjoy.


In settled conditions Cushendun offers a wonderful place to explore
Image: Tourism NI


From a purely boating point of view, Cushendun offers another stop-off point for boats bound in either direction through the North Channel or indeed crossing from the Western Isles of Scotland. Access to Cushendun is straightforward as it is non-tidal, available at all times, and free of off-lying dangers. Hence it serves as an excellent tide wait lunch stop location to allow mariners to rest refuel or take full advantage of favourable tidal streams that are a dominant feature of this area of the coast. Ashore Cushendun is today a quiet location with some small leisure boating and fishing. In settled conditions, it offers another wonderful place from which to explore this beautiful coastline at the mouth of the River Dun with Glendun, one of the nine Glens of Antrim, above the town.


What facilities are available?
Cushendun is a small coastal village with a population of less than 150 people and as such has only basic provisions, a post office, but no fuel ashore. It is situated off the A2 coast road about 20 kilometres to the southeast of Ballycastle. Nearby Cushendall, a slightly larger village which is a two to three miles walk, has more shops, pubs and a hotel. Cushendun is served by buses from/to Cushendall (Mon–Fri 6 daily, Sat 3; 15min).


Any security concerns?
Never an issue known to have occurred to a vessel anchored off Cushendun.


With thanks to:
Burke Corbett, New Ross, County Wexford.


































Aerial views of Cushendun Bay



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