What's the story here?

Cooncrome Harbour is a deep rocky bay situated immediately within the southern entrance to Dingle Bay. It is located in the dip that lies to the northeast of Killelan Mountain, which rises to 276 metres a ½ mile within Doulos Head, and to the southwest of Slievagh Mountain, rising to 206 metres 2½ miles to the northwest of the former. A rocky bay separates these two mountains with a Cooncrome Harbour set into a gully that runs nearly southward into the land in its southeast corner. The harbour has a substantive old pier and a slipway, beach and car park at its head.




The bay offers only fair-weather and settled condition protection owing to wave refraction that occurs around the headland. It is best not to venture too far owing to uncertainty regarding the ground holding which is best tested when visited.

How to get in?

Use Ireland’s coastal overview for Mizen Head to Loop Head for seaward approaches. Follow the rocky sea cliffs around from Doulos Head around to where the bay leading to Cooncrome Harbour opens about 2 miles east by northeast. The outer bay is almost a ½ a mile wide through which a central path is deep and clear of outlying dangers. The entrance to the harbour in its southeast corner then narrows to 150 metres wide.




The best water is then found on the middle-to-east side of the cut as it dries beyond the head of the pier along the eastern shoreline.




Anchor according to draught and conditions to the northeast of the pierhead. Land by tender on the slip. The beach is stony, so those landing on it will have to pick their way across the rocks at high water but at low water, it exposes a hard sand bottom.

Why visit here?

Cooncrome Harbour, first recorded in 1654 as 'Countrohinna', takes its name from the Irish 'Cuas Chrom' by which its beach is more commonly known if slightly shortened to 'Cuas Crom' and pronounced 'Coosecrown'. The name is derived from the Irish words 'cuas' meaning 'cove, cavity or caves' and 'cuan' meaning 'bay, harbour, recess'. The name here is believed to mean 'bay of the caves' as Cooncrome and the neighbouring Coonanna harbours have an abundance of sea caves along its rocky shores.




The old pier seen in this isolated little bay was built to support the first transatlantic telegraphic cables. Prior to the telegraphic cable, it took approximately two weeks, weather permitting, for a message to reach North America from Europe as all communications were sent via boat. The reply then took a further two weeks to return, weather permitting. The idea of laying a transatlantic cable was first proposed in 1845, and Atlantic Telegraph Company began the process in 1855 with the SS Niagara and H.M.S. Agamemnon. The first attempt to lay the transatlantic cable from the White Strand, on the opposite side of the peninsula, ended in failure in 1857. This happened when the cable snapped in a storm at the edge of the continental shelf, 300 miles out to sea, nearly taking with it H.M.S. Agamemnon. This was followed in 1858 by a briefly successful cable to Knightstown.




It wasn’t until 1866, that a cable was successfully laid that revolutionised international communications overnight. This was between Valentia's Foilhommerum Bay to Heart's Content, Newfoundland. The cable was under the auspices of the newly-formed Anglo-American Telegraph Company, which replaced the Atlantic Telegraph Company in early 1866.




But by 1887 the transatlantic telegraph cables at Foilhommerum Bay were being damaged by weather and corrosion caused by copper ore in the seabed. In that year the Anglo-American Telegraph Company, using the Cable Ship Minia, diverted their three functioning cables of 1873, '74 and '80 from the bay to enter Cooncrome Harbour and set up a telegraph hut to connect them to the landline. This went southwest for 3 km via a trench to the original White Strand landing point where they continued underwater to the Knightstown Cable Station building on Valentia Island. But over time Cooncrome's rocky shore proved too harsh for the cables and, by 1898, only one cable remained here. The others having been diverted directly through to Valentia Harbour and into Knightstown.




It was not only the natural environment that threatened the critical and newly established infrastructure. In 1867 a green flag raised on Ballycarberry Castle signalled the Iveragh Fenians to assemble and join a long-planned Fenian Rising. Their intention was to attack the Cahersiveen Constabulary Barracks and to destroy the Cable Station at Foilhommerum on Valentia. As it happens HMS Gladiator was in the bay and it dissuaded the rebels from attacking the cable station. Instead, the assembled Fenians marched towards Killarney but before reaching there they heard that the rising had been deferred and they dispersed. Many of which were rounded up and jailed. Seeing the exposure the new Constabulary Barracks in Cahersiveen was built in the 1870s to deter any further attack on the Cable Station at Knightstown.




The Anglo-American Telegraph Company would become the Western Union International which in 1911 took over the Valentia cables. In 1934 all their functioning cables were diverted to Lacknabau on the north side of Valentia and Cooncrome Harbour ceased to be used. These were then routed to the Knightstown station in an underground trench. Western Union International continued to operate from Valentia Island until it finally terminated its cable operations in 1966.




From a boating perspective, Cooncrome Harbour is not the best anchorage due to the ocean wrapping around Doulus Head and sending refracting waves along this coast. But in settled weather, it is a lovely spot very far from the tourist crowds during the season. It is the perfect place for a family boat to anchor off and have a swim as the water here is surprisingly warm and clear and the beach is beautifully enclosed. It is also a short 10-minute walk, (850 metres) to the two wonderful historic ring forts of Leacanabuaile and Cahergal set on crowning windswept bluffs overlooking the river Cahersiveen. These are covered in the Cahersiveen entry from which it is a much further walk, 40 min (3.7 km) walk each way. On a fine day to anchor up have a swim and a visit to these forts would be a spectacular experience.

What facilities are available?

There are no facilities here save for the pier, slip and road access. There are toilets and changing rooms in the car park above.

With thanks to:

eOceanic Research