Corbally Harbour has been drained

Images: Herbert Sheehan.

The canal harbour at Corbally, just north of Kilcullen, has been drained, with the photos here from Herbert Sheehan showing the former waterway freight hub as not seen before, writes Brian Byrne. The work by Waterways Ireland involves dredging the space to clear a build up of silt, in order to facilitate the free flow of water supply to the Grand Canal at Naas. The works will continue for a few months.

The long-closed harbour has been the subject of a number of proposals in recent years. In the Draft County Kildare Development Plan 2023-2029, a development of the Naas-Corbally link is an Objective in the Resilient Economy & Job Creation section, described as having potential for a range of tourism-related activities.

Corbally Harbour has a large silt build-up, and the plan says that when this is removed, it will be 'an ideal space for vessels large and small'. The harbour could  be a tourist destination for boating, cycling and walking between Sallins and Corbally — with picnic tables positioned in the large area to the south, 'it will be an ideal stopover for refreshments when the Greenway reaches here from Naas and further south to Newbridge, Athgarvan and Kilcullen' according to the plan.  

The plan also says there are several business opportunities in the proposal – hiring kayaks, canoes and bicycles, barge trips between Naas and Corbally Harbour, refreshments and tourist information. 

The objective has received support and welcome from the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland.

Corbally Harbour was originally the terminus for what was called the Herbertstown Branch from the Grand Canal via Naas and Sallins. The canal branch was built in the early 1800s, with the Harbour being used as a collection and delivery point for goods in the area, including Reeve's Mill in Athgarvan.

The line is currently blocked for boat traffic by the Newbridge Road at Naas, where it was culverted in 1954 by a realignment of the road that bypassed the old bridge over the waterway.

Following two years of representations by Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer, funding of €45,000 was allocated last November for a study of the potential to make the link a greenway. In December, the councillor asked Kildare County Council to carry out a feasibility study into linking Corbally Harbour to Newbridge and to Pollardstown Fen and on to the Milltown Canal feeder as a first step in developing a 50km amenity canal loop centred on Newbridge. 

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