Drake's Pool and the Owenabue Estuary Walk

The town's best hour outdoors

If you only do one thing in Carrigaline, do this. A flat, paved path follows the bed of the old Cork to Crosshaven railway out along the Owenabue estuary, and within a mile or so it brings you to Drake's Pool, a deep, quiet tidal basin where the river widens and the boats lie at anchor. It is the kind of walk Cork people do without thinking, pram in front, dog on a lead, and visitors are forever surprised it isn't better known.

The old line ran from 1904 to 1932, carrying day-trippers down to the seaside at Crosshaven. When it closed, the route eventually became the walkway you use today. The full greenway runs about five kilometres from Carrigaline to Crosshaven, but you do not have to commit to the whole thing: Drake's Pool itself is a comfortable out-and-back of around four kilometres, an hour or so at an easy pace.

The legend behind the name

Drake's Pool is named for Sir Francis Drake, and the story is a good one. As local tradition tells it, Drake slipped a small squadron of English ships up the narrow estuary and hid them behind the shelter of Currabinny hill to escape a larger Spanish fleet that had chased him into Cork Harbour. The Spanish, the tale goes, sailed up the harbour, found no sign of him, and gave up.

It is worth being honest about how solid this is. There is no contemporary evidence for the episode at all. The earliest written version comes from Charles Smith's history of Cork, published in 1750, who placed it in 1589, just after the Spanish Armada. The naval historian Julian Corbett argued in 1890 that if anything like it happened, it could only have been during the Earl of Essex's campaign of 1573 to 1575. In other words, the Drake connection is local legend rather than documented history. That takes nothing away from the place; the name has stuck for the best part of three centuries, and the pool is no less lovely for the doubt.

The route, step by step

The Carrigaline trailhead is off the R612 at the eastern edge of the town, with a large car park. From there the path heads east, hugging the southern shore of the estuary. It is properly flat and properly paved, so it suits buggies, wheelchairs and bikes as much as walkers, and there are benches and water stations along the way.

As you go, the Owenabue opens out beside you. On a falling tide the mud flats appear and the birds get to work: oystercatchers, curlew, herons and little egrets, with the harbour beyond. The wooded slopes of Currabinny rise across the water. Drake's Pool sits opposite Coolmore House, marked by the cluster of moored boats in the deep channel; it is the obvious place to stop, turn, and head back, or to push on.

Carrying on to Crosshaven

If you keep going, the path turns into the Crosshaven section and runs all the way to the village, finishing near the Royal Cork Yacht Club. Doing the full one-way greenway and getting the frequent 220 bus back is a neat way to handle it: bus or drive to one end, walk to the other. Either way you end up beside the water with the whole sweep of the lower harbour in front of you, which is exactly the point.

Practical notes

The walk is free and open year round. Bring a windproof layer, because the estuary funnels the breeze. The tide changes the scene entirely, so it is worth coming twice; a high tide gives you a full river, a low tide gives you the birds. Dogs are welcome on a lead. Park at either the Carrigaline or Crosshaven car park, both of which are large and free.