Saltee Islands
At a Glance
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Contacts: For organised boat trips around Great Saltee contact Declan +353 (0)53 9129684
These two islands to the South of Kilmore quay belong to the
Neale family who purchased the Islands in 1943 and the, then,
Michael Neale declared himself "Prince Michael the First" of the
Saltees. The family still own the Islands and his son, Michael, is
now "Prince Michael the Second." Prior to that the Little Saltee
was the property of the Grattan-Bellews and Sir Henry returned to
Little Saltee in the late twentieth century to refurbish and
restock Little Saltee and has since died and his children have
taken over custodianship of the Island.
The two islands are famous for their bird populations and day trips
out to Great Saltee are organised at Kilmore Quay; landing is not
permitted on Little Saltee and, whilst the public are welcome to
visit Great Saltee, it is strongly suggested that you only do so in
settled weather. Having said that, if you get caught out in strong
Westerlies on passage past here, the anchorages under the cliffs of
Great Saltee provide a welcome haven out of the wind. 
Our chartlet of the Islands shows the various options for anchoring around the Saltees but it should be noted that the only landing place on Great Saltee is at the landing anchorage on its NW side; there is no access up the steep cliffs on the SE side. It must be said that you are unlikely to have Gilert Bay on Great Saltee to yourself on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the summer as it is probably the most popular of the available places to anchor
There is a website hosted by the owners of the Islands which provides much historical, ornithological and geological information about the islands at:-
http://www.salteeislands.info/Index.htm
Saltee Islands
Approach
Tidal Information:
To the South of Great Saltee the beginning of the
..... flood curls NE an hour before HW Cobh but as it
strengthens it straightens out to follow the coast and then as it
dies off towards the turn of the tide it goes round to the SE. The
ebb then leads SSW at about five and a half hours after HW Cobh
and, as it strengthens, it again straightens along the coast and
finally as it goes towards LW it bends NW before the turn is
complete and it goes back to NE for the next flood.
In Saltee Sound the streams can be up to 3.5kts at springs but the
direction is unpredictable due to the many eddies.
Across St Patrick's Bridge the flood runs through at up to 4.5kts
and starts just under three hours before HW Cobh.
There is a period of about an hour slack water between ebbs and
floods and vice versa.
Before you visit here it would be wise to study AC 2740-0
carefully; the area inside the 5 meter contour is scattered with
rocks, named and un-named, drying, awash and submerged. Also make
sure your echo sounder is working and the tanks have enough fuel
for the trip as there is no fuel on the island.
You should be very careful in your use of GPS; all underwater
hazards should be given a wide berth as experience has proved that
positions derived from GPS systems are not compatible with the
chart and can be as much as a cable out in some cases. You only
have to look at the top left hand corner of AC2740 to realise how
accurate the information is, based on Admiralty surveys in
1847!!!
So, "Caution" is the watch word but as long as you are reasonably
careful you should have no problems and it is fun brushing up your
old navigation skills; the chart shows some useful clearing sight
lines and you can work out some of your own. Watch out for the
rocks off the South end of great Saltee as they stretch out for
about three cables from the cliffs and outside that there is that
rock about half a mile off with its "ED" (Existence Doubtful)
notation.
Some of the rocks have been added to AC2740 as a result of reports
by various sources, specifically those three to the NNE and NE of
Whitty Rock but locals have been unable to substantiate their
existence which, of course, doesn't mean they are not there
somewhere; though exactly where is the problem.
Euro GMT
Waypoint
Charts
Rules & Regs
Hazards
Tides
Berthing
The locations of the various anchorages around the islands is shown on our extract of AC2740.
Be aware that landing is permitted only on Great Saltee and that from the landing anchorage on its NW side. There is no overnight camping allowed on the island and no fires permitted. Further information can be found at the Saltee Islands website at:-
http://www.salteeislands.info/Index.htm
STAY AT LEAST 6 METRES CLEAR OF NESTING BIRDS. PEOPLE TAKING CLOSE UPS ARE SCARING THE BIRDS OFF THEIR NESTS.
What to Do
Take your own food, make your own entertainment and don't disturb the birds.