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County ClareBlue Flag

Cappagh Pier, Kilrush

Cappagh Pier, Kilrush is one of the waters the EPA tests and grades in County Clare, 1.7 km south-west of Kilrush. The Environmental Protection Agency classified it excellent for water quality for the 2025 season. The register records a lifeguard, toilets, parking, bins, a lifebuoy, first aid and an information board.

Excellent
water quality, 2025
Yes
Blue Flag
Yes
lifeguard
1.7 km
from Kilrush
Water quality
Excellent, 2025
Seasons before
2024 Excellent, 2023 Good, 2022 Good
Water testing
Tested by the EPA sampled through the season and given a water quality grade
Season restriction
None in place
Pollution after rain
Prone to short term pollution, closed 24 days last season
Awards
Blue Flag · the register does not say which year's award
County
County Clare
Managed by
Clare County Council
Nearest town
Kilrush, 1.7 km south-west of it, in a straight line
From that town
2.3 km by road, about 3 min drivingor 2.3 km on foot, about 29 minutes at 4.8 km/h
Lifeguard
Yes, hours not recorded
Toilets
Yes
Parking
Yes
Access
No
Dogs
Before 11 am and after 6 pm during summer season, otherwise not allowed at all times onto beach during the summer.
Cars on the beach
No
Public transport
No
First aid
Available at Lifeguard hut
Protected area
Recorded as a natural sensitive area
Position
52.6284° N, 9.4995° W
Record changed
2026-03-31
Cappagh Pier and slipway geograph.org.uk 1088776
Cappagh Pier and slipway geograph.org.uk 1088776·Bob Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Cappagh Pier and slipway geograph.org.uk 1088776·Bob Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
S.S. Shannon (8203181040)
S.S. Shannon (8203181040)·National Library of Ireland on The Commons, no restrictions via Wikimedia Commons
S.S. Shannon (8203181040)·National Library of Ireland on The Commons, no restrictions via Wikimedia Commons

What the EPA says about it

Cappagh is a rocky beach with stones of up to 30cm and is located on the northern side of the small pier. Due to the stony nature of the beach, the number of plants and animals, which are found on the shoreline, is low, however there is a substantial bird population. Cappagh lies in the Lower River Shannon Special Area of Conservation (SAC 2165). Activities include swimming and bird watching. Beach bye-laws are in place with horse riding and dogs prohibited between 11am and 6pm during the summer season.

Cappagh Pier, Kilrush is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Cappagh Pier, Kilrush achieved and Excellent Water Quality rating in 2024 and a Good Water Quality rating in 2023 and 2022. Annual water quality ratings are generally calculated using monitoring results over a four-year period and are assessed against stringent bacterial limits to protect bather health.

The EPA’s own beach profile

Where it is

Cappagh Pier, Kilrush, and the other places to swim in County Clare. Share your position and the map will show how far each one is from you.

Getting to Cappagh Pier, Kilrush

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About these directions

Public transport times come from National Transport Authority. Timetables cover 2026-09-18 to 2027-09-19. These are scheduled services; check with the operator for cancellations and changes before travelling.

Walking and driving times are estimates. A town search starts at its centre; choose your location or a point on the map for a more precise starting point. Eircode search is not available.

How journey planning works
Destination, access and nearby stops

Cappagh Pier, Kilrush is in Kilrush, County Clare. Routes here end at the point the map records for this place. The entrance has not been verified, so the last few metres are for you to judge.

The nearest settlement is Kilrush, 1.7 km south-west of the beach. The register records parking here. Getting to the town is not getting to the beach, so the journey below is worked out to the beach itself and the last stretch on foot is measured rather than left out.
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Stops near it

The nearest scheduled stop is Kilrush (10907), 1.2 km away in a straight line. Use the planner to check walking connections for your journey.

  • Kilrush 1.2 km
    bus 335
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Vandeleur Garden 1.6 km
    bus 337
    Scheduled departures from this stop
  • Aldi Kilrush 1.8 km
    buses 335 and 339
    Scheduled departures from this stop

Getting to Kilrush covers the journeys into the town itself.

Other places to swim in County Clare

Questions people ask

Is the water clean at Cappagh Pier, Kilrush?
The EPA classified it Excellent for the 2025 season, which is worked out from four years of samples. Cappagh Pier, Kilrush is classified as achieving Excellent Water Quality in 2025 based on the assessment of bacteriological results for the period 2022 to 2025. Cappagh Pier, Kilrush achieved and Excellent Water Quality rating in 2024 and a Good Water Quality rating in 2023 and 2022. Annual water quality ratings are generally calculated using monitoring results over a four-year period and are assessed against stringent bacterial limits to protect bather health. A classification is a record of seasons that have finished; it is not a reading of the water today.
Is swimming restricted at Cappagh Pier, Kilrush?
The register records no season-long restriction. That is about the season, not about today: a short notice after heavy rain would not appear here, and this water is recorded as prone to short term pollution. Check with Clare County Council before swimming.
Does Cappagh Pier, Kilrush have a Blue Flag?
The register records one. It does not record which year's award, and the flag is awarded each season, so it is worth checking the flag is flying when you arrive.
Is there a lifeguard at Cappagh Pier, Kilrush?
The register records one, without giving hours. Outside those hours nobody is watching the water.
How do you get to Cappagh Pier, Kilrush without a car?
The nearest stop in the national timetable is Kilrush, 1.2 km from the beach in a straight line, and bus 335 call there, run by TFI Local Link Limerick Clare. The planner on this page works out the walk from that stop over real footways, and the whole journey from wherever you are starting, for the day and time you pick. Where no footway joins the stop to the beach it says so rather than making a number up.
Where does this come from?
The Environmental Protection Agency's list of places people swim, which it calls the bathing water register, read on 2026-09-20, where this record was last changed on 2026-03-31. Water quality, awards, lifeguards and facilities are the EPA's own fields, and a field it leaves blank is shown as not recorded rather than as a no. The distance to the nearest town is this site's own measurement, in a straight line.

Water quality, awards, lifeguards, toilets, parking and access are the Environmental Protection Agency’s own fields, from its bathing water register, read 2026-09-20. The classification covers four years of sampling and is not a reading for today: after heavy rain the water can be worse than the classification suggests, and the EPA and the local authority post notices when it is. Positions are the EPA’s grid references, projected to latitude and longitude. Journeys are the National Transport Authority’s published timetable.

Beaches and bathing waters in Ireland·Beaches in County Clare