Ballynacourty (The Pool) is situated on Ireland’s south coast at the start of the channel to Dungarvan Harbour. It is a relatively deep anchoring position in a rural setting adjacent to an old drying pier and hotel.

Situated in the mouth of the bay, but nestled in sheltered channels, it offers a tolerable anchorage in most conditions. However, it is exposed to a good deal of sea at high water during southeasterly winds. Should this occur, proceeding onward to Dungarvan Town Quay would be a natural choice. Navigation is straightforward, night or day and at any stage of the tide, as the entrance channel is well marked by ample closely spaced lit channel markers, which are easily picked up and leave little to confuse.

Dungarvan estuary is a broad, shallow entrance with channels between sandbanks. Care must be taken to use the established marked channel, which is corrected on a regular basis.

Keyfacts for Ballynacourty (The Pool)

Position and approaches

Haven position

52° 5.061' N, 007° 34.482' W

200 metres west of Ballynacourty Pier in the north end of a deep hole known locally as 'The Pool'.

What is the initial fix?

This waypoint is between Carrickapane and Carricknamoan rocks, slightly to seaward and on the Carricknamoan side of midway between both.

What are the key points of the approach?

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What's the story here?

Ballinacourty, officially Ballynacourty, overlooks Dungarvan Bay from a rural part of the shore. It is fronted by a drying 19th-century pier and boathouse, with a hotel and golf course adjacent.




The Pool is a deepwater part of the channel leading across the bay to Dungarvan Harbour. It can be found abreast and about 200 metres to the west of Ballynacourty Pier. The Pool is relatively deep (it has from 2.3 to 3.5 metres of water at LWS), steep and surrounded by shallow water. Three or four leisure vessels may lie here in perfect safety, sheltered by the Deadman Sand.

How to get in?

Use the directions provided for Dungarvan Town Quay for approaches to Ballynacourty and the pool.

By night the lighthouse on Ballynacourty Point is sectored and the channel markers are lit. Street lights on the pier and the hotel's lights make the location just as obvious.




Carefully sound out the position of The Pool. The Pool is relatively deep, steep and surrounded by shallow water, so sound it out carefully. It is important to get a good feel for its extent so that the scope of the chain does not allow the vessel to swing out over the surrounding shallow ground. The area has excellent sand and shale holding.

At high water land by tender at the pier, which dries out beyond its head, or at the inner slip.

Why visit here?

Ballinacourty, officially Ballynacourty, takes its name from the Irish Baile na Cúirte, meaning ‘town of the court/mansion’ or ‘Mansion Village’. The ‘Mansion’ was the residence of the Osbornes, to whom this property passed from Roger Dalton in the early part of the 17th century.




Ballynacourty’s central feature has to be its elegant pier, which dates back to 1832 and is a reminder of the maritime heritage that traditionally supported the village’s economy. The pier is made up of high-quality limestone masonry, which has stood the test of time.




Novel features by today’s standards, such as the cut-stone mooring bollards and stone cobbling, are as serviceable now as when the pier was first built. It presents an attractive focal point to the village hotel and golf course behind.



A mile to the southeast, set back from the road in its own grounds, is the picturesque Ballynacourty Point Lighthouse. Built as part of the Irish Lights Building Programme, the light was first established in July 1858. It was subsequently converted to acetylene operation in 1929 and electrified during February 1964. Throughout these changes it retained its original form and character and, together with its lighthouse keeper's house, makes for an appealing point of focus to Ballynacourty Point. It can be accessed via a long, narrow lane between holes 6 and 7 of the golf course.




The championship parkland golf course dates back to 1939 and was originally a 9-hole course. It has recently been extended to 18 holes and offers mature tree-lined fairways with panoramic views of Dungarvan Bay and the Comeragh mountains. Needless to say, the Gold Coast Hotel located alongside provides a welcome rest to tired and thirsty sailors. So, despite its rural locale, Ballincourty has plenty of interest to occupy a shore visit.




From a boating point of view, this is an ideal holding anchorage for boats awaiting a tide to get to the jetty off the Boat Club in Dungarvan Harbour, and is much used as such by local boatmen. But the haven itself serves as a secure, easily accessed stopover for a good night’s sleep while making passage along the coast. It likewise provides a good place to sit out an adverse coastal tidal stream without having to go too far off track to slip into the next tide.

What facilities are available?

Land at the pier or slip, where a tap can be found. The hotel offers food and drink. Basic shopping is to be had in the village, while Dungarvan Harbour provides better provisioning opportunities.

Any security concerns?

Never an issue known to have occurred to a vessel anchored in The Pool.

With thanks to:

Burke Corbett, Gusserane, New Ross, Co. Wexford.