BEACH

Portarthur Beach is located to the West of Gweedore, approximately 7km South of Bloody Foreland, on the West coast of County Donegal. The beach is situated in a rural area and not directly beside any towns or villages; with the nearest villages being Derrybeg (5km) or Bunbeg (6km). It is located in the Northwestern Atlantic Seaboard Coastal waterbody (NW_100_0000) within the North Western River Basin District. The designated bathing area is approx. 0.225km2 and the extent along the water is approximately is 1070m.

Portarthur beach consists of a long sandy beach; confined by a rocky outcrop east of Inishmeane Island to the North and a small estuary to the south. The beach faces west onto the Atlantic Ocean and get a relatively strong wash of water onto the beach but is protected to an extent by the network of small islands in the area.

Facilities

Limited parking is available at the pier, for all other facilities Derrybeg and Bunbeg (5km & 6km) have shops, pubs, hotels, toilets, banks, restaurants, etc. Other facilities are also present at Carrickfinn Blue Flag Beach (beside Donegal Airport, 16km drive) such as a larger car park, toilets (seasonal), information boards, though Carrickfinn Beach operates a system of Pack It In, Pack It Out (PIIPIO) which does not provide refuse or recycling facilities; recycling facilities can be found at Molloy’s Supermarket in Derrybeg.

Visitor Numbers

Visitor numbers to the beach vary throughout the season. The maximum number of visitors to the beach during a high season day has been estimated at approximately 300 people with a large proportion if users using the beach for walking and other for boating activities. Throughout the season approximately 5,000 people have been estimated to visit the beach. Visitor numbers are representative of the visitors observed by the water quality samplers and from local information. Activities: Activities at Portarthur beach include swimming, kayaking, boating, sailing, power boating, jet skiing, diving and other land based activities on the beach. The area is prominent locally for walkers.

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LOCATION

PHOTOS OF THE BEACH