Clonakilty

Clonakilty, often shortened to "Clon", is a town on the coast of County Cork in southwest Ireland, 50 km southwest of Cork city. It's a seaside resort, with a population in almost 5000 in 2022. It has a museum about its most famous son was Michael Collins (1890-1922), often spoken of as "Ireland's lost leader".

Understand
Clonakilty in Irish is Cloch na gCoillte, castle of the woods. It has fertile farmland but a shallow harbour. It was destroyed in the rebellion of 1641-42, and battles were fought nearby in 1691 and 1798; it also suffered during the famines. In the late 19th century it became a holiday resort, while continuing as a traditional market and agricultural town.

Collins was born at nearby Woodfield, and aged 13-15 he stayed with his older sister in Clonakilty during the week while attending school. He moved to London and studied law, and fell in with the Irish Republican Brotherhood, who spotted his talent and gave him a senior position. At the Easter Rising of 1916 he fought at Dublin Post Office, was captured and would surely have been executed, but he managed to mingle into another batch of prisoners who were sent to Wales for a few months then released. In 1918 Collins was elected MP for Cork South, but did not take his seat in Westminster, as his party Sinn Féin had pledged instead to set up their own parliament in Dublin. A War of Independence broke out between Britain and this unrecognised republic, with Collins a senior (and ruthless) figure, often the effective ruler in de Valera's absence. In Nov 1920 he was the instigator of the Bloody Sunday murders of several British agents, for which the British retaliation was the massacre at a GAA game at Croke Park.

By 1921 both sides saw no military solution and peace talks began, with Collins sent (reluctantly) to negotiate in place of de Valera. The Anglo-Irish Treaty proposed the "Irish Free State", a sort-of-Canada for Ireland, part of the Commonwealth under the British Crown, but with Northern Ireland remaining in the UK. Collins acceded to this, seeing it as a stepping-stone to full independence as a republic, international recognition, ending the war, and with a non-viable north eventually joining the republic. Two out of four isn't bad. An anti-treaty faction of the IRA mobilised, and Ireland became convulsed by civil war. Collins was the "generalissimo" of the pro-treaty Provisional government, and quickly dislodged anti-treaty forces from Dublin, but they hunkered down in Munster and even administered it as a break-away republic. The government pressed on and over the next year regained control. So the civil war was winding down by 22 Aug 1922, and Collins made an inspection tour of recaptured territory in west Cork, when his convoy was ambushed and he was shot dead. He's buried in Glasnevin in Dublin. Collins had been the big mover and shaker in Irish politics: de Valera was often the man who wasn't there, but he now ascended towards power.

The tourist information centre is on Ashe St in town centre.

Get in
Bus Eireann 237 runs from Cork via Inishannon and Bandon to Clonakilty (1 hour) and continues to Rosscarbery, Leap and Skibbereen, where the service branches for Baltimore or Schull. They run daily every two hours. The westbound bus sets down on Pearse St in the one way system, the eastbound stop is on the main road opposite the distillery.

Local Link Bus 253 runs from Kinsale via Ballinspittle and Timoleague to Clonakilty. There are 5 M-Sa and 3 on Sunday.

Clonakilty is about an hour's drive southwest along the N71 from Cork.

Get around
The bus connects Timoleague, Clonakilty and Rosscarbery, but most places of interest are some distance off the main road, so you need wheels.

Taxi firms in town are Clonakilty Hackney Services +353 23 88 34130 and ABC Cabs +353 86 1754 777.

Clonbike is a community bike-share scheme with four town locations.

See

 * at Woodfield is a reconstructed farmstead, there's little left of the original farmhouse. Free.
 * or Lisnagun hill fort: good luck finding this in the back lanes near Darrara Agricultural College. It's an authentic hill fort which in modern times was reconstructed as a late Iron Age farmstead, with souterrain and thatched hut. This flopped as a visitor attraction and fell derelict; the site became covered in shrubs, and access was blocked. So if you do locate these ruins in the jungle, it's perhaps not as thrilling as Eldorado, but you can gaze upon the Lost World of early 21st century tourism and try to imagine the civilisation of those times.
 * 3 km south of town was a tidal island, until modern times when two causeways connected it leaving a wetland between. Its south side has a long sandy beach divided by the small Virgin Mary promontory, and accommodation. Swimmers must beware the strong tides. The surf school came too late to assist defeated Irish rebels in 1641, who tried to flee to Inchydoney but were drowned by the rising tide.
 * has a ruined friary, founded by the Franciscans in 1240.
 * is the village on the Point south of the river. Abbeymahon midway along R601 from Timoleague was a Cistercian abbey, founded 1172.
 * has a ruined friary, founded by the Franciscans in 1240.
 * is the village on the Point south of the river. Abbeymahon midway along R601 from Timoleague was a Cistercian abbey, founded 1172.
 * is an attractive little town on N71 west, with a tiny 17th-century cathedral. The estuary here is shallow so it never developed as a port, people come for the beaches. Warren Beach east of the estuary is closest but has suffered from erosion; Owenahincha further along is better and adjoins Long Strand stretching to Galley Head. Castle Freke (built 1780) is closed for restoration in 2020. Bohonagh Stone Circle is 2.5 km east of the village but it's on private farmland.
 * is a circle of 12 stones, 4 km north of Rosscarbery.
 * 10 km west of Clonakilty along R597 is a closely-spaced group of 17 stones, astronomically aligned, from around 1000 BC. It's free to stroll round any time. One km east, Coppingers Court is the shell of a tower house.
 * is a scenic little village and harbour 2 km west of Drombeg. See Skibbereen for Leap and other places further west.
 * is a scenic little village and harbour 2 km west of Drombeg. See Skibbereen for Leap and other places further west.

Do

 * on the Waterfront produces whiskey and gin. Tours are W-Su at noon, 2PM and 4PM and cost €15.
 * The Wild Atlantic Way runs through the area, from Old Head of Kinsale to Timoleague, Clonakilty, Rosscarbery and on west to Skibbereen, eventually to Donegal. There's no set route so either follow the direct road or divert around the headlands and coves as the mood takes you.
 * Clonakilty International Guitar Festival is in September.

Buy

 * Farmers Market is every Friday 9AM-2PM in Emmet Square.

Eat

 * Clonakilty black pudding is a pork blood-sausage, usually fried or grilled. No Irish breakfast is complete without a slice.
 * The Whale's Tail is next to the distillery.
 * The Whale's Tail is next to the distillery.

Drink

 * Oodles more pubs: take your pick from Shanley's, Scanell's, The Courtyard, Aris Cafe & Wine Bar, Fiddlers Green, GG's Gin Bar, Con and Maura's, Fahey's, Casey's and Brewery Bar.
 * Look out for products of the town distillery.
 * Look out for products of the town distillery.

Sleep

 * Clonakilty Park Hotel is south of centre on Park Rd, +353 23 883 6400.
 * Bay View House B&B on Old Timoleague Rd didn't open in 2020.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.
 * Clonakilty Park Hotel is south of centre on Park Rd, +353 23 883 6400.
 * Bay View House B&B on Old Timoleague Rd didn't open in 2020.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.
 * Celtic Ross Hotel is in Rosscarbery, +353 23 884 8722.

Connect
As of March 2023, Clonakilty has 4G from Eir and Three, and 5G from Vodafone. Coverage is patchy in the surrounding countryside.

Go next

 * East brings you to Kinsale then Cork, which needs a few days to explore.
 * West the coast becomes very rugged beyond Skibbereen.