Cushendun Harbour, Cushendall and Red Bay
At a Glance
Contacts : Belfast Coastguard Channel 16
These two anchorages are extremely useful if one is caught
out.....
.... on the wrong side of the tides sweeping in and out of the
Irish Sea through the North Channel. Passage making around this
corner of Northern Ireland can be complicated depending on weather,
boat speed, use of engine (or not), availability of watch-keeping
crew so it can be useful planning option to have up one's
sleeve.
It's a spot well sheltered from strong South to NW winds, the
holding is good and one does not have to anchor miles from the
shore, in fact one can even go alongside at Red Bay pier for a
while though the wall structure is such that it would be wise to
deploy your fender boards or an outside breast rope on a
kedge.
The village of Cushendun is very small; there's not much more than
a small shop or pub serving a very small population. Cushendall is
much larger and has a Lifeboat Station, Slip and a very active
Sailing Club which has its own Face Book page
On the whole this length of the coast is fairly sparsely populated;
it's a popular area to "get away to" as the main coast road dives
inland at Cushendall and the villages north of there are linked by
B roads. The main attraction is its remoteness, pace of life and
its dramatic coastal scenery.
Cushendun Harbour, Cushendall and Red Bay
Approach
There are no problems approaching this coast, just work the tides and......
..... stay clear of the headlands at the peaks of tidal flows. There is a fish farm off the cliffs on the south side of Red Bay but it is an obvious structure which is hard to miss.
Notes about the tides:
Tidal streams are the main consideration to any navigation along
this coast. When the ebb is running it reaches up to 5kts at
springs around Garron Point flowing directly towards the headland
just to the north of Cushendun. A back eddy sets up anti clockwise
from Cushendun to Garron Point and is well established by half ebb.
Cushendun itself is affected by these streams but, in the corner
of the bay off Cushendall there is very little flow. The eastwards
counter current along the south shore of the bay continues into the
flood tide giving an eastwards flow which lasts for nine
hours.
The tides to the north of Cushendun are considerable, reaching
speeds of 5kts quite close to the shore and have been seen running
at up to 9kts around Torr Head. It should be noted that the flow
from Torr Head close inshore runs North for virtually the whole
tide cycle with a short slack around LW Dover.
£ GMT
Waypoint
Charts
Rules & Regs
Hazards
Tides
Berthing
The only place to tie up inside is at Red Bay Pier and that is a fairly rough construction with large piers.
The best place to anchor is just off Red Bay Pier in 4m of water
and a springs range of about 1.5 m. After that, off the Cushendall
Lifeboat Slip is a good spot as it is handy for the shops and the
Sailing Club House.
Cushendun Bay is acceptable as an anchorage but will be affected by
the tides and is pretty short of amenities; mind you, it is a
pretty little spot.
Facilities
Cushendall is the main town along this part of the coast if you need to stock up on anything, but remember you will have to row ashore, eggs could be a problem!
There is a petrol station so diesel and petrol can be obtained in cans and of course if you need water you'll need containers for that. There is a public toilet in the car park.
The Sailing Club is next to the Lifeboat slip and they have showers which they are happy for visitors to use. Not far from the slip is a boatyard which can assist in minor repairs.
If you anchor off the wee pier in Red Bay you can find a couple
of pubs, a fish and chip shop and a small convenience store in the
village of Glenariff.
There is an infrequent coastal bus service to Larne covering
Cushendun and Cushendall
What to Do
There is a good selection of pubs, restaurants and takeaways in
Cushendall so you won't have to break out the pemmican if you
anchor here. As in many Irish pubs, several of the pubs have a
music night and there is a wealth of traditional Irish talent in
the area.
The Sailing club also has a bar and is open in the summer
evenings.
Yacht Clubs and Associations
Cushenden Sailing and Boat Club
Coast Road
Cushendall
Co Antrim
BT44 0QW
History
Local Business
Uncategorised
Cushenden Sailing and Boat Club
Coast Road
Cushendall
Co Antrim
BT44 0QW
Tide Information for cushendun
April 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Please note: It is the user's responsibility to ensure that the data is suitable for their intended purpose. VisitMyHarbour must not be used by vessels for navigation.