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Lough Key Developments Posted by John Geary
Bunkum! The place has been vandalised ever since the gombeen council members and their cohorts got their grubby hands on a wonderful inheritance. The lake, the bog gardens, the bridges and the interlacing canals have been destroyed and the area surrounding the harbour has been turned into a "Hurdy Gurdy" which suits the general populace. They would not and could not appreciate the delicate environment created by the King-Harmon's in what could have been a wonderful national treasure. Alas, ignorance has ensured that yet again we the Irish, have shown ourselves up as unworthy custodians of a real treasure. Shame! Mike Lawlor.
Mike, I refuse to use the new facilities up there. I resent the closing of the tunnels and the commercialisation of the place. I don't know who was responsible. I thought private enterprise had some hand in it. A wonderful natural amenity that didn't need improvement. I'm sure there were many other areas that would have benefitted from "improvement". pjn Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 18/12/2011 10:03 by pj norris.
Hi Mike I'm sitting on the fence on this one, but I must admit to having both legs on your side. I miss it as it was and strongly feel it was mismanaged into failure, possibly in order to justify what has happened since, though I feel it's more likely whoever was in charge was getting paid regardless of what happened and didn't react to the signs correctly, if at all. I don't know whether to hope the present arrangements turn out to be a financial success, thus preserving at least what remains, or an unmitigated disaster, in the hope of regaining some of what has been lost! I seem to recall hearing, or perhaps reading, that the park is being run by Coillte, as a commercial enterprise. If this is indeed the case, it explains some of the current state of affairs. Museums, art galleries and heritage in general, are not known for their lucrative financial returns, so the park is unlikely to produce a return on the undoubted investment required to run it as an amenity. I'm saddened to hear the bog gardens are gone. They were a decidedly pleasant way for even a philistine, such as yours truly, to spend an afternoon. Were it to fail, I wonder is there any danger Coillte could be persuaded to sign it over to a more appropriate body. After all, the big danger, namely property development, has passed for the foreseeable future... Oh I don't know Duncan
Les, and the heavy metal boys, I think youll find the New developments in rockingham great for barges, WI ( in consultation with ourselves, left the north most edge of the north main pontoon, clean of fingers, Hence theres loads of space to rack and stack the HMB between it and the protecting north breakwater. The inside of the two main pontoon are being fitted with fingers ( rather like terryglass). Hence these will not be suitable for the big boys. But all in all a good compromise. Dave
Quote: Why - did Les pick up a 'go directly to jail do not pass Killaloe' chance card on the waterways game of chance? If he throws a double six can he escape imprisonment and return to the Shannon again. Lough Key, or lock key - no contest!  OceanFroggie Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 19/12/2011 17:53 by OceanFroggie.
Quote: There you are now Noel, seems your GPS is gone awry again. Gortmore to Lough Key or Mullingar via Killaloe....??? Told ya those techno thingys would fry your brain...!!! M(W&W)F
It would be great to see the Rockingham canals restored to allow exploration by canoe/small dinghy. Last summer I tried taking a canoe up the one that goes under the Fairy Bridge but didn't get too far before I was forced to turn around. Perhaps this might be the sort of project that one of the local IWAI branches could consider? As far as I am aware, the bog gardens are still there (although, with the rainfall over the past few seasons, I haven't ventured through them for a few years now). I noticed last summer that Cloontykilla Castle, on the Rockingham estate, appears to be undergoing some sort of restoration (there were new windows installed and some interior fitting out underway). Anybody know what the plan is here? The new markers on the lake are excellent and have opened it up to greater exploration. In the current financial climate, I think we should consider ourselves fortunate that WI still has the funds available to invest in the maintenance and development of our waterways. Rich COOL BLUE
Richard Whitla wrote : "....I noticed last summer that Cloontykilla Castle, on the Rockingham estate, appears to be undergoing some sort of restoration (there were new windows installed and some interior fitting out underway). Anybody know what the plan is here?....." For some time, I've been intending ask where is it exactly on the Estate? A Google reference says it looks out at Castle Island. Has anyone got it on a map please. Is it occupied? Is it privately owned? Jim BBC BSF
Hi Jim, [travelingluck.com] The above reference gives you a map for the location of Cloontykilla Castle. Basically, if you are coming out of Clarendon Lock, and heading into Lough Key.... you can see Lough Key Marina on the starboard (where Tim Murray used to be based) and there is a headland with trees on the port side - the castle is in those woods. Hope you're keeping well, Zara Why Not
Can you access Cloontykilla Castle from the road? Looking at it from Google Maps there appears to be a little jetty, but perhaps it is just a rocky headland? The castle looks very interesting, quite unlike most Irish castles we're used to seeing, and all the fortifications seem to be intact. Good for keeping the bailiffs at bay! Zara Why Not
Zara, have a look at the OSI.ie site [maps.osi.ie] If you are not familiar with it the menu bar on the right brings up various iterations of the selected area of the map Paul Mc Cann On 20 December 2011 19:04, IWAI forum Zara Brady > Posted at: [www.iwai.ie] > Zara Brady wrote: > > Can you access Cloontykilla Castle from the road? > > Looking at it from Google Maps there appears to be a little jetty, > but perhaps it is just a rocky headland? > > The castle looks very interesting, quite unlike most Irish castles we're > used to seeing, > and all the fortifications seem to be intact. Good for keeping the > bailiffs at bay! > > Zara > Why Not >
I never knew there was another castle in there, always assumed that it was only derelict castles, and thats the way we slip in to the forest park from the north, no gate fee if you like, over Knockvicar Bridge. Although we haven't been there for perhaps 8 years, when the kids were young (well, thats getting on for twenty years) we used to enjoy Lough Key of a Sabbath afternoon in the summer. Never like the concrete tower thing and by all accounts I might not like any of it now. plus ca change. Seasons greetings to all, Alun Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 20/12/2011 21:07 by Alun Goodall.
It doesn't appear on the 6" map which isn't too surprising as it is faux medieval, built in 1839. [www.buildingsofireland.ie] aka [tinyurl.com] scroll down. On Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:46:00 +0000, Paul Mc Cann wrote, in >Zara, > >have a look at the OSI.ie site > >[maps.osi.ie] > >If you are not familiar with it the menu bar on the right brings up various >iterations of the selected area of the map > >Paul Mc Cann > >On 20 December 2011 19:04, IWAI forum Zara Brady > >> Posted at: [www.iwai.ie] >> Zara Brady wrote: >> >> Can you access Cloontykilla Castle from the road? >> >> Looking at it from Google Maps there appears to be a little jetty, >> but perhaps it is just a rocky headland? >> >> The castle looks very interesting, quite unlike most Irish castles we're >> used to seeing, >> and all the fortifications seem to be intact. Good for keeping the >> bailiffs at bay! >> >> Zara >> Why Not > Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum. Online UsersGuests within the past 30 minutes:
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