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Dunmanus Bay, Co. Cork
Dunmanus Bay lies between Mizen Head to the South and Bantry Bay to the North. It is out of the main tidal flow and has no significant river flowing into it. Hence it has above average visibility and little silt. The isolation of Dunmanus Bay should be taken into account when planning dives as there is little other traffic in the bay to help you if you run into problems. The small village of Durrus lies at the head of the bay on the R591. The North side of the bay is more populated with a couple of villages and gentle shoreline.
Turn off in Durrus on a smaller road to reach Kilcrohane after 16km. The South side is very isolated with towering cliffs and a dramatic coastline. follow the R591 towards Goleen about 16km beyond Durrus until reaching a junction to the right signposted "Goleen via Coast Road" which brings you to Dunmanus Harbour after a further 1.5km.
1. Kilcrohane Pier
Turn left at the Western end of Kilcrohane village by the children's playground
and follow the road along to the small pier and slipway. Boats can be
launched here above half tide to access dive sites further West along
the coast. The area around the pier is suitable for shore diving for the
less experienced and also night diving with depths of 5-15m.
2. Dooneen North
Head West out of kilcrohane for 3km until you spot a solitary bar on the
left side of the road. After a further 200m take a turn to the left by
a large red barn. Follow the narrow road down to a substantial pier. There
is no possibility of launching boats here but they can easily be brought
from Kilcrohane Pier only 1km away. With a boat you can explore the area
around the headland where intermediate dives with depths of 20-30m can
be reached.
The area in the vacinity. of the pier is well protected from the prevailing Westerly winds and can be dived when other sites are too rough. If shore diving the area out and to the right of the pier are the most interesting with rocky outcrops and ridges. Depths of 20m can be obtained after a reasonable fin before the bottom runs into sand. Watch out for subsurface mariculture frames and ropes. About 25m to the left of the pier there is a narrow cleft which runs back 50m into the cliff.
The cave is never narrower than a metre wide and has an air space above it at all times. At high water the cave is 10m deep and there is extensive vertical walls which are carpeted with jewel anenomes, particularly near the entrance.
3. Ballybroom Pier
About 5km West of Kilcrohane there is a small museum by a junction where
the road splits, straight on heads towards Sheep's Head, and right continues
along the "Goat's Path" back towards Bantry. A small road leads
down to the left here and runs to a surprisingly large pier and slipway
after about 1km. This is the last access point on the Northern side of
Dunmanus Bay, high cliffs run on from here to Sheep's Head 7km away.
As the little bay faces South-West it offers little shelter and is only useful in calm weather, when shore dives and short distance boat dives are rewarding without being too demanding. Diving under the high cliffs close to the headland is not as exciting as you would expect and hardly worth the effort involved in getting to this very remote place.
4. Dunmanus Harbour
The substantial pier is used by local fishermen and has just enough water
off the head for a boat at low tide, but at low springs it may be necessary
to paddle a short distance before lowering the engine. Boats may be launched
across a hard gravel shore via a short track about 100m East of the pier.
There are no steep gradients and boat trailers can be easily manhandled
into the water. However for the larger boats launching would need at least
half tide. The harbour is sheltered except for strong North-West and it
should be safe to moor a boat if several days in the bay are planned.
The harbour itself is suitable for snorkelling or training, but for diving it is best to head West out of the harbour. There is good intermediate diving close to the headland there is deep water close in where advanced divers can easily find depths of up to 40m. It is wise to drop a shotline to assess the depth before diving as the deep water comes very close to the shore in places!
It is possible to shore dive this general area on a calm day by driving 1km West along the coast road where there access points down to the shore across the fields for the nimble footed diver.
The Carbery Island, about 2km out in the middle of the bay may look promising but in fact have nothing special to offer the diver.
5. Canty's Cove
Head West along the Coast road from Dunmanus Harbour for about 5km until
the small hamlet of Dunkelly is reached. The road takes a sharp turn to
the left after the 4th house on the left which has a direct lean-to. Turn
down to the right 20m before the sharp bend onto a charming cove with
pier and slipway. The steepness of the access road demands a vehicle that
can pull the boat easily. If you did run into problems, the boat could
be recovered at Dunmanus Harbour 4km away.
The bottom of the cove is coarse sand and the water is usually crystal
clear with loads of life on the rocky sides of the cove. Access into the
water is very easy and it is the ideal spot for trainees, snorkellers
and night dives. On the left of the cove there are three fissures in the
rock that lead to a open space with a hidden waterfall. One entrance is
2m wide and open to the sky, another is narrower, closed overhead but
with ample air space. The third is quite a wriggle but is dry at the highest
spot at low water and it makes for interesting exploration.
Canty's Cove is the most Westerly launching point for boats for those
heading for the spectacular dives along the cliffs running West to 3 Castle
Head 10km away. It is also possible to collect divers from piers further
West for those groups with more divers than boat space. There are interesting
intermediate dives from a boat close to the shore, particularly around
to the left leaving the cove, where depths down to 30m can be selected.
6. Dooneen South
Head West from Dunmaus Harbour as for Canty's Cove but at the sharp bend
do not take the gravel road, but take a tarred road to the right 20m further
on. After 1.5km turn down right again at a group of farm houses and head
for a large solitary white house by the shore about 1.5km away. A small
pier and slip is reached just before the house. Parking is tight here
and the track is often used by local farmers, so do be considerate. the
slipway is very rough and only suitable for the smallest inflatables.
Larger boats can easily be brought from Canty's Cove only 2km away. however
the pier is very handy for shore diving as the little cove faces NE and
is quite sheltered.
The bottom is very interesting with depths of 5-15m to the right of the pier or across towards the point opposite and is ideal for intermediate divers. For those with even the smallest of boats, there is excellent diving around the headland to the left.
7. Dooneen Wall
Just 50m off the cliff that forms the outside of the promontory that protects
Dooneen Pier is a spectacular wall that plunges from 25m to 43m. For those
coming by boat direct from Canty's Cove, the white house at Dooneen is
clearly visible as you approach. there is an archway through the headland
which can be used by boats when it is very calm, however, to find the
wall ignore the archway and carry on around the headland to it's NW point.
Drop divers about 25m due North of this point to land in about 20m of
water. Swimming due North will bring you rapidly to the edge of the wall
after a distance of about 50m and at a depth of around 26m. The rim of
the wall is quite abrupt and actually overhangs in places. Since it is
17m straight down and below 40m at the bottom, going "over the edge"
is a dive for the experienced only. For those using computers it is possible
to swim back up the wall and return gradually to shallow water, finishing
up with an ascent from only 10m without incurring any decompression requirement,
thus making for a satisfying and safe, deep dive.
Continuing around the headland a little more, close to the exit of the
archway, there is very good intermediate diving close to the rocks if
there is no Westerly swell.
8. The "Iberian"
The 2,000 ton cargo ship, the "Iberian", was en route from Boston
to Liverpool when she sank on November 20, 1885 after getting lost in
fog and striking a reef South of Bird Island. She was carrying cattle
and general cargo along with 54 passengers and crew. No lives were lost
in the accident and the ship slipped back into deeper water after two
days, where she lies today in 30-38m. Due to the depth the wreck has not
been totally flattened by a century of storms and some sections still
stand several metres clear of the rocky bottom. The underwater scenery
is also very good at this site, making this an ideal spot for a group
of divers with varying aspirations! As this wreck is now over 100 years
old a permit is required to dive it.
9. Toor Pier
This site has been described under "Mizen Head" as far as shore
diving is concerned, but it is a handy place to collect divers if diving
the towering cliffs that run West towards Castle Head, rather than make
the long journey from Canty's Cove with an overloaded boat. Having a boat
at Toor Pier also allows you to dive on the outside of the island without
having to worry about a long swim back to the pier.
The coast just to the west of the island is not exceptional, but if the weather is calm a trip of 3km brings you to the very end of the bay and some spectacular diving.
10. Three Castle Head
The Southern end of Dunmanus Bay is reached at 3 Castle Head where the
50m depth contour almost touches the shore and in fact the drop off is
so fast that it is hard to find water shallow enough to drop anchor!
The last 100m of the bay offers the best of diving with massive cliffs
above and below water.
Below the surface extensive rock faces are covered in every kind of life and large shoals of fish abound. The best of the scenery is in the 25-35m range, with rocks tumbling down a further 25m below this again. A strong tidal current flows across the point so be careful not to venture into it if the tide is running. This site is exposed and isolated and requires calm weather, experienced divers and reliable boats to be dived safely. However, the rewards well justify the extra effort.
11. South Bullig Reef
This very tricky site is actually an underwater extension of the cliffs
of 3 Castle Head. A narrow reef runs south West about 1km from the headland
before finally giving way to the deep waters off-shore. The last rock
rises to within 6m of the surface with rock faces cascading down on three
sides to 50m and beyond. As this is a very high energy site the marine
life and scenery are spectacular, but can only be dived in calm seas.
It is also critical to dive only at slack water, as with the steep drop-offs
the consequence of drifting off the rock on the descent means an aborted
dive as you will never see the bottom before you reach your depth limit!
By lining up Bird Island and the cliffs at 3 Castle Head so that they just touch, you will have the line of the reef, and for those without an echo sounder the end of the reef can be found by dragging an anchor. Do not guess and be sure to use a shotline when divers go down. the nearest access point for picking up divers is Dunlough Pier which is about 1 km South East of the headland.