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Cornashamma Bay is located on the north coast of Ireland a mile to the southwest of Inishowen Lighthouse on the eastern side of the Inishowen Peninsula. It offers an anchorage within a protected rock fringed inlet set into the coast.

Cornashamma Bay is located on the north coast of Ireland a mile to the southwest of Inishowen Lighthouse on the eastern side of the Inishowen Peninsula. It offers an anchorage within a protected rock fringed inlet set into the coast.

The anchorage lies under the lee of the peninsula and affords good protection in winds from south-southwest through north to north-northeast, but is exposed to easterly winds from east to south. Due to offlying rocks on either side of the bay, it requires attentive navigation in daylight, and although tidal streams are strong outside, Cornashamma Bay is accessible at all states of the tide.
Please note

Good visibility is required to circumnavigate a sunken rock in the entrance path. Vessels operating in the Lough Foyle area should maintain a listening watch on the primary Foyle VHF Channel 14.




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Keyfacts for Cornashamma Bay
Facilities
Marked or notable walks in the vicinity of this locationPleasant family beach in the area


Nature
No fees for anchoring or berthing in this locationRemote or quiet secluded locationAnchoring locationBeach or shoreline landing from a tenderQuick and easy access from open water

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

Protected sectors

Current wind over the protected quadrants
Minimum depth
2 metres (6.56 feet).

Approaches
4 stars: Straightforward; when unaffected by weather from difficult quadrants or tidal consideration, no overly complex dangers.
Shelter
4 stars: Good; assured night's sleep except from specific quarters.



Last modified
July 19th 2018

Summary

A good location with straightforward access.

Facilities
Marked or notable walks in the vicinity of this locationPleasant family beach in the area


Nature
No fees for anchoring or berthing in this locationRemote or quiet secluded locationAnchoring locationBeach or shoreline landing from a tenderQuick and easy access from open water

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



Position and approaches
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Haven position

55° 12.742' N, 006° 56.972' W

This is the middle of the inlet situated on the southwest corner of the bay. It is in approximately 2 metres of water.

What are the initial fixes?

The following waypoints will set up a final approach:

(i) Lough Foyle North Channel Initial Fix

55° 14.155' N, 006° 53.700' W

One mile east of Inishowen Head and 400 metres northwest of Red Tuns Light (port hand) Buoy F1. R.3s. It is set on the 222° line of bearing of the Martello tower on Magilligan Point that leads into the North Channel.

(ii) Lough Foyle South Channel Initial Fix

55° 11.760' N, 006° 57.084' W

Midway between the shore and the southern edge of the Tuns Bank in the narrowest part of the South Channel in approximately 10 metres of water.
Please note

Initial fixes only set up their listed targets. Do not plan to sail directly between initial fixes as a routing sequence.




What are the key points of the approach?

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

  • Lough Foyle’s approaches, the run up the lough to the River Foyle and beyond are detailed in the Foyle Port Marina (Derry City) Click to view haven entry.

  • Approach Cornashamma Bay from the east, between its rocky outcrops, taking care to locate and circumvent its sunken rock.


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 Cornashamma Bay for your convenience.
Ten nearest havens by straight line charted distance and bearing:
  1. Silver Strand - 0.5 nautical miles SW
  2. White Bay - 1.2 nautical miles NE
  3. Greencastle - 1.4 nautical miles WSW
  4. Portnocker - 1.4 nautical miles NE
  5. Magilligan Point - 1.5 nautical miles SSW
  6. Portkill - 1.8 nautical miles NNE
  7. Kinnagoe Bay - 3.4 nautical miles NW
  8. Moville - 3.5 nautical miles WSW
  9. Carrickarory Pier - 4.1 nautical miles WSW
  10. Tremone Bay - 5.5 nautical miles NW
These havens are ordered by straight line charted distance and bearing, and can be reordered by compass direction or coastal sequence:
  1. Silver Strand - 0.5 miles SW
  2. White Bay - 1.2 miles NE
  3. Greencastle - 1.4 miles WSW
  4. Portnocker - 1.4 miles NE
  5. Magilligan Point - 1.5 miles SSW
  6. Portkill - 1.8 miles NNE
  7. Kinnagoe Bay - 3.4 miles NW
  8. Moville - 3.5 miles WSW
  9. Carrickarory Pier - 4.1 miles WSW
  10. Tremone Bay - 5.5 miles NW
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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How to get in?


Cornashamma Bay is rocky bight set into the Inishowen Peninsula close outside the entrance to Lough Foyle and a mile to the southwest of Dunagree Point that is made conspicuous by its lighthouse.

Convergance Point Set just off the entrance channel to Lough Foyle, approaches to the area are detailed in the Foyle Port Marina (Derry City) Click to view haven entry.

Steer to approach Cornashamma Bay’s south western corner from the east. The inlet is fringed by exposed rocky reefs extending on either side about 100 metres apart. The rocks continue north-eastward from the shoreline with the northern side continuing foul underwater.

The key rock to observe is in the middle of the entrance. It is an unnamed rock with 1.2 metres of water over it at LWS. It should be clearly visible against the white sands of the bay’s floor.


Haven location Once past this covered rock, anchor according to draft in sand that provides very good holding. Land by tender on the beach.


Why visit here?
Cornashamma Bay, known locally as "Sweet Nellie", is a secluded beach and another anchoring opportunity along the eastern Inishowen shoreline.

Silver Strand, White Bay and Portnocker also provide access to this coastline but Cornashamma Bay offers the best protection of the anchorages outside of the lough. This makes it a useful passage anchorage for boats en route east or awaiting a tide to enter Lough Foyle.


What facilities are available?
Cornashamma Bay has no facilities and the nearest supplies can be found in the separately covered fishing village of Greencastle Click to view haven or the small town of Moville Click to view haven. An alternative is the small village of Stroove a few miles north of the village of Greencastle off the R238.


Any security concerns?
Never an issue known to have occurred to a vessel anchored at Cornashamma Bay.


With thanks to:
Bill McCann, Londonderry Harbour Master. Photography with thanks to Andrew Hurley and Patrick Mackie.










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Please note eOceanic makes no guarantee of the validity of this information, we have not visited this haven and do not have first-hand experience to qualify the data. Although the contributors are vetted by peer review as practised authorities, they are in no way, whatsoever, responsible for the accuracy of their contributions. It is essential that you thoroughly check the accuracy and suitability for your vessel of any waypoints offered in any context plus the precision of your GPS. Any data provided on this page is entirely used at your own risk and you must read our legal page if you view data on this site. Free to use sea charts courtesy of Navionics.