The Ice Age left its mark in a spectacular and dramatic fashion, leaving the wide mouth of Clew Bay dotted with such an amount of sunken drumlins in the eastern part of the bay which, having been stretched away from the mainland by the glacial ice, rise up out of the water like a giant’s stepping stones. It is said to have an island for every day of the year, some of which are cultivated. The bay is approximately 25 km long and 16 km wide.
Mayo’s coastline is by far the longest of any county in Ireland The shoreline is varied with a mixture of hard or rocky shore, soft shore with sandy beaches and island beaches. To the south, Croagh Patrick’s distinctive conical peak can be seen from all around the bay. As it curves around taking in Newport and Mulranny, it extends westwards to Achill Island. There are several ways to get out into the bay and experience its unspoiled beauty. Scheduled ferries travel daily to Clare Island (and Inishturk, south of the bay) from Roonagh Pier and there are several opportunities to cruise the bay and sightsee, fish or just marvel at the antics of seals with their noses out of the water or basking on the rocks. John Lennon was so taken with the charms of Clew Bay that he bought an island here called Dorinish in 1967, which for a time thereafter was known locally as Beatle Island. One of the most westerly islands in the bay, it looks north at the Nephin Mountain range and Inishgort Lighthouse; east at the mainland with Westport Quay and myriad small islands en route; south to Croagh Patrick and west to the sunset with Clare Island as its centrepiece.
With evocative names, such as Atticlea Island, Cahernaran Island, Stony, Rabbit or Green Island, these outposts both lure and strike fear in the boatman. In the 1800s, dedicated marine pilots lived on islands in the bay, guiding ships as they entered Westport Harbour.
The bay’s long history has seen much traffic from prehistoric people settling on both the mainland and islands, the Celts and pre-Christians, Christians, and a long history of maritime activity, including British, Spanish, Irish and French ships. The bay was a landing spot for Anti-Treaty forces during the Irish Civil War, in the effort to overpower free State forces. It has seen its share of tragedies, including the 1894 Achill Tragedy, where 34 people drowned in Clew Bay when their hooker capsized en route to Westport Harbour where they were to set sail for Scotland to go potato-picking. Only a matter of months later the Westport to Achill Railway line was opened, making the journey safer, but too late for these victims who are buried in Achill's Kildavnet Cemetery and to whom a memorial stands on Achill Beg Island.
A diverse, beautiful and island-strewn, Clew Bay has drawn people to its shores and islands for thousands of years, as megalithic remains will attest and approached from ocean or land it is easy to see why.