Adrigole is a beautiful harbour set into the Beara Peninsula that is located on the north side of Bantry Bay and approximately three miles east of Bearhaven. It offers an anchorage in a remote and secluded location with a pier on the eastern shore that makes for convenient landings.

The harbour offers excellent all-round protection but may be uncomfortable in heavy southerly conditions when other nearby locations offer a more comfortable berth. Access from Bantry Bay is unobstructed and it may be approached at any stage of the tide. Attentive daytime navigation is however required in Adrigole owing to its moderately narrow entrance and some rocky outcrops extending from the island that lies in the middle of the harbour near the anchoring location.

During heavy westerly or northerly conditions you can experience very heavy squalls coming down from the Caher Mountains to the north of the harbour.

Keyfacts for Adrigole

Position and approaches

Haven position

51° 41.030' N, 009° 43.122' W

Approximately 300 metres northeast of Orthon Island in 3.4 metres.

What is the initial fix?

This waypoint is 300 metres south east of the entrance.

What are the key points of the approach?

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What's the story here?

Adrigole Harbour lies on the scenic south coast of the Beara Peninsula, about 2½ miles northeast of the eastern entrance to Bearhaven, 1½ miles northeastward of Roancarrig Lighthouse and is entered ½ a mile northeast of Bulliga Point. Orthon's Island lies in the middle of the harbour surrounded by sunken rocks and Drumlave Pier lies opposite it on the eastern shore. The channel into the harbour is between the islet and the eastern shore. At the head of the shore is Adrigole village which is scattered along the shoreline where one small grocery shop can be found. The beautiful inlet is loomed over by Hungry Hill (687m, 2,253 ft) with two rock-girt lakes which feed a cascade called the 'Mare's Tail'.




The harbour provides a sheltered anchorage with excellent holding for leisure craft carrying up to 3 metres. Seven seasonal visitor moorings are available in 4 metres. A daily charge of €7.50 may be levied for the moorings.

How to get in?

Use southwestern Ireland’s Coastal Overview for Mizen Head to Loop Head for approaches to and the run-up Bantry Bay. Access to the entrance from Bantry Bay is unimpeded and it is entered northeastward of Bulliga Point, which lies on the north side of the bay, and Pointamore on the east side of the inlet.




Vessels approaching the anchorage from the west should beware of Doucallia Rock located ½ a mile eastward of Roancarrig Lighthouse and 1mile south by southwest of the entrance. It dries to 1.2 metres. Bulliga Ledge, off of Bulga Point, is worth noting as it has 3.7 metres of cover and it could present a problem in a deep through during a spring tide.

Vessels approaching the anchorage from the east should note an awash that lies nearly 800 meters eastward of the harbour entrance and 250 from the shore.




From the initial fix steer northward into the neck of the inlet, where at Pointamore Point, it is only 400 metres wide but carries 10 metres. Favour the east side of the bay on entry as the channel leads to the east of Orthon’s Islet.




There are mussel rafts on the west side of the entrance. But the west side of the inlet is obstructed by rocks and the anchorage is on the east side of the bay. So the mussel rafts may be left to the west side (port) and present no problem to navigation.




Once past the entrance, the harbour opens out but is obstructed by the low central Orthon's Island and its surrounding rocky outcrops reaching out a distance of 200 metres. Keep mid-channel between the islet passing between it and Dromlave Pier seen on the east shore, eastward of the island. Continue keeping to the east shore as unmarked foul ground extends 200 metres south of Orthon's Island and likewise north-northeastward. Although it needs some attention, it is, however, this island that offers protection from southerly conditions.




The preferred anchorage areas are to the east of Orthon's Island or further to the north in the centre of the bay. Stay 200 metres or more north of the island to avoid off-lying northern outcrops and entirely avoid the area between the west side of the island and the bay’s western shore as it is completely obstructed. Do not proceed too far northward as the northern shore of the inlet dries out. The bottom, in all cases, is of soft sand and mud that offers excellent holding.




Seven seasonal visitor moorings are available a ¼ of a mile northeastward of Orthon's Island off the eastern shore in 4 metres. The 15 tons rated moorings are large, coloured bright yellow and labelled VISITOR.


Land at the Drumlave Pier on the eastern shore directly across from Orthon’s Islet.

Why visit here?

The townland of Adrigole, takes its name from Eádargoil. The compound of Eadar-dha -ghabhal meaning 'land enclosed' by two branches of a river or two inlets. It has been used to describe many places in Ireland, in various forms, including Adrigole.




Set into the Beara Peninsula, Adrigole is an extraordinarily picturesque anchorage. Nestled into the Caha Range of the Ring of Beara, that have been listed as a Special Area of Conservation, it and its surrounds offer some of Ireland's most spectacular scenery. Adrigole is loomed over by magnificent Hungry Hill (687 metres, 2,253 ft) which is the highest of the range and part of the range that forms the spine of the peninsula. The hill gave its name to the Daphne du Maurier novel about the local copper-mining barons of the 19th-century.




Hikers will be in their element here. The stunningly beautiful mountains offer fantastic hill-walking opportunities at all grades. Hungry Hill itself provides a rewarding challenge for the energetic hillwalker who may discover on their way the hidden rock-girt lakes of Coomarkane and Coomadavallig, that feed the 'Mares Tail' waterfall, the highest in Ireland. The head of the inlet also forms part of Ireland’s longest national waymarked trail the Beara-Breifne Way.




This follows the legendary fourteen-day march taken by the last great Irish Chieftan Dónal Cam O’Sullivan Beare and his thousand soldiers, men, women and children in January 1603. The trek occurred in the aftermath of the 1601 defeat of the Irish Chieftains and Spanish at the Battle of Kinsale, Elizabeth's forces advanced west to capture O’Sullivan’s lands in Beara. Following a series of battles and the loss of his stronghold at Dunboy, O’Sullivan withdrew with his troops to Coomerkane Valley, west of Glengarriff. When the English then seized his cattle, O’Sullivan knew his people were faced with almost certain starvation and that they had no option but to flee to his allies the O’Rourke’s of Breffni (now Leitrim). This involved an unsupported winter march over hostile territories over a distance in excess of 300 miles.

In a bid to survive he and his supporters crossed mountains, bogs, the River Shannon in boats they made at the water’s edge, all the time being pursued by English and Irish enemies. Despite his best efforts the epic endeavour turned out to be a march into oblivion. They lost casualties to the enemy, to the harsh weather, to the terrain, to starvation, to exhaustion and to sickness all the way. Others simply gave up and settled along the route of what they called the 'trail of tears'. When O’Sullivan Beare finally marched into Leitrim Castle only 35 of the souls from 1000 that had left Beara remained.

Undaunted, O'Sullivan sought to then join with other northern chiefs to fight the English and organised a force to this end. But resistance ended when Hugh O'Neil, 2nd Earl of Tyrone, successfully sued for peace and swore an oath of loyalty to the crown. O'Sullivan then sought exile, making his escape to Spain by ship. Soon after, 1607, in Hugh O'Neill and Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, with about ninety followers, also left Ulster in Ireland for mainland Europe. This departure of the ancient leaders and their permanent exile became known as the Flight of the Earls.




It was a watershed event in Irish history, symbolizing the end of the old Gaelic order. Today the Beara-Breifne Way follows the epic 14-day march of Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare through some of Ireland's most beautiful and untouched countryside.




From a boating point of view, this is one of the most beautiful anchorages on the west coast of Ireland and an excellent night stop. It is well protected in bad weather, save for heavy southerly conditions when Lawrence’s Cove, just to the west on Bear Island, would be ideal. Outside of this Adrigole is the perfect place to enjoy some natural beauty in a quiet, secluded and remarkable setting that can be shared with the seals on the surrounding rocks.




The central small grassy and ferny Orthan’s Island makes for a nice picnic venue on a fine summer’s afternoon having a small sandy area to land on its northern side. The scattered village strung along the head of a lovely inlet has a small shop where basic provides can be purchased to spend some extra time.

What facilities are available?

There are no facilities in this remote bay. It has a sparsely distributed population of about 450 people. The village has a shop known locally as "Peg's Shop" which also offers certain postal services, such as the purchase of stamps and mailing of letters, and there are also four pubs. A sea training school for sail and power boats operates from the pier on the east side of the Harbour.

These are all available on the road on the north side of the bay but that’s a dingy ride at high water and a short walk across the fields. Supplies can be obtained from the village of Drumlave ¾ of a kilometre to the east of the pier.

Adrigole is centred around the junction of the R572 regional road with the R574 on the main Cork to Castletownbere (approximately 15 kilometres) road. The proximity to the town of Castletownbere makes other services such as banking easily available. The nearest airport is Cork Airport.

Any security concerns?

Never an issue known to have occurred in Adrigole.

With thanks to:

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