
Omeath is located on the southwest shore of the Carlingford Lough inlet that is set into Ireland's northeast coastline. It offers an anchorage off a small town with a drying slip from which a passenger ferry operates across to Warrenpoint Port at high water.
Omeath is a good anchorage for shallow draft vessels. Like most locations in Carlingford Lough it is exposed to southeasterly conditions where the opposite Warrenpoint would be a better option. The entire inlet is also subject to heavy squalls descending from the hills in northwest winds. The area may be accessed via Warrenpoint Port’s illuminated deep water shipping channel that runs the entire length of the lough. Careful navigation is generally required for this location owing to exceptional currents in the lower lough and at the entrance.
Keyfacts for Omeath
Last modified
January 7th 2021 Summary* Restrictions apply
A good location with careful navigation required for access.Facilities
Nature
Considerations
Position and approaches
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Haven position
Approximately 500 metres west of the number 22 marker in the Warrenpoint Port channel, in a metre of water at LWS.
What is the initial fix?
The following Carlingford Lough Entrance Initial Fix will set up a final approach:

What are the key points of the approach?
Offshore details are available in eastern Ireland’s Coastal Overview for Strangford Lough to Dublin Bay
.
- Use the directions provided for Warrenpoint
for approaches and the run up the lough.
- Plan the approach to be at slack water, preferably low water. Tides in the entrance attain rates of up to 5 kn making it virtually impossible for a displacement leisure craft to enter or leave against the tide.
- Carlingford Lough's entrance channel and the dredged channel to Warrenpoint are both narrow channels where sailing vessels of less than 20 metres in length cannot impede ships in transit.
- From the entrance follow the well buoyed and lit commercial channel up the length of the inlet.
- When Warrenpoint's entrance channel marker is drawing near break off for the pier and anchor out to the northeast of the pierhead.
Not what you need?
Click the 'Next' and 'Previous' buttons to progress through neighbouring havens in a coastal 'clockwise' or 'anti-clockwise' sequence. Below are the ten nearest havens to Omeath for your convenience.
Ten nearest havens by straight line charted distance and bearing:
- Warrenpoint - 0.3 nautical miles NNW
- Greer’s Quay - 1.2 nautical miles SSE
- Rostrevor - 1.7 nautical miles E
- Killowen - 2.3 nautical miles ESE
- Carlingford Marina - 3.1 nautical miles SE
- Carlingford Harbour - 3.7 nautical miles SE
- Newry - 5.6 nautical miles NW
- Greencastle - 6.1 nautical miles ESE
- Giles Quay - 6.4 nautical miles S
- Dundalk - 6.9 nautical miles SW
These havens are ordered by straight line charted distance and bearing, and can be reordered by compass direction or coastal sequence:
- Warrenpoint - 0.3 miles NNW
- Greer’s Quay - 1.2 miles SSE
- Rostrevor - 1.7 miles E
- Killowen - 2.3 miles ESE
- Carlingford Marina - 3.1 miles SE
- Carlingford Harbour - 3.7 miles SE
- Newry - 5.6 miles NW
- Greencastle - 6.1 miles ESE
- Giles Quay - 6.4 miles S
- Dundalk - 6.9 miles SW
What's the story here?

Omeath is a small village with a slip located on the Cooley Peninsula near the head of Carlingford Lough inlet and on its southwestern shore. Omeath had a population of 600.
The slip and surrounding area dry out completely at low water. Vessels either have to take to the ground close-in or anchor well out in limited water. 1 metre of water, in excellent mud holding, will be found about 300 metres east by northeast of the head of the slip.
How to get in?

Why visit here?
Omeath, in Irish: Ó Méith, name comes from the Ui Méith tribe that settled here around the 11th century.
When the Vikings first came to Karlingfjord, as they named it, they laid upon the shores for some time in harmony with their Irish neighbours. However, this changed when they become more aggressive and territorial. They plundered and destroyed the early Christian monastery of Cillansnimh, ‘Church of the Swim’, at Narrow Water in 841 A.D. and then the Viking leader, Horn, established a permanent naval base in Omeath around 851 A.D.
This caused considerable friction and an uneasy relationship with the natives from that time onward. The Viking Omeath stronghold held out for more than 70 years and they ruled the lough area from this seat. In 928 A.D. Muirchertach mac Néill, called Muirchertach of the Leather Cloaks, in old Irish Muirchertach na Cochall Craicinn drove them out of the area. Muirchertach's brother became High King Of Ireland and later his son Domnall ua Néill was crowned High King in 956.


Today, nestled at the foot of the large ranges of the Carlingford Mountains, chief amongst them the 512 metres high Clermont Cairn and the 589 metres Carlingford Mountain, Omeath is a quiet sleepy village overlooking the beautiful Carlingford Lough. At low tide, the drying sandy shore, with stones and seaweed, makes the area popular with commercial winkle collectors. The small summertime ferry provides a close link to Warrenpoint across the border where small variances of local laws or currency exchange rates provide the occasional incentive to cross over.
Steeped in Irish history, and with an abundance of spectacular scenery, Omeath is another quiet stopover for a shallow draft vessel’s tour of Carlingford Lough.
What facilities are available?
Omeath is very small village that has a restaurant, pub, basic provisions and a petrol station. It has good road access located on the R173 regional road approximately 6 km from Carlingford and about 8 km from Newry.Any security concerns?
Never an issue known to have occurred in Omeath.With thanks to:
Brian McJury, Warrenpoint Harbour Master. Photography with thanks to Henry Clark, Oliver Dixon, Albert Bridge and Sandin Photography.




 sweep down to the sea, pictured across Carlingford Lough from Omeath James Wims via cc by 2.0.jpg)
An informative overview by the Northern Ireland tourist board
About Omeath
Omeath, in Irish: Ó Méith, name comes from the Ui Méith tribe that settled here around the 11th century.

When the Vikings first came to Karlingfjord, as they named it, they laid upon the shores for some time in harmony with their Irish neighbours. However, this changed when they become more aggressive and territorial. They plundered and destroyed the early Christian monastery of Cillansnimh, ‘Church of the Swim’, at Narrow Water in 841 A.D. and then the Viking leader, Horn, established a permanent naval base in Omeath around 851 A.D.
This caused considerable friction and an uneasy relationship with the natives from that time onward. The Viking Omeath stronghold held out for more than 70 years and they ruled the lough area from this seat. In 928 A.D. Muirchertach mac Néill, called Muirchertach of the Leather Cloaks, in old Irish Muirchertach na Cochall Craicinn drove them out of the area. Muirchertach's brother became High King Of Ireland and later his son Domnall ua Néill was crowned High King in 956.


Today, nestled at the foot of the large ranges of the Carlingford Mountains, chief amongst them the 512 metres high Clermont Cairn and the 589 metres Carlingford Mountain, Omeath is a quiet sleepy village overlooking the beautiful Carlingford Lough. At low tide, the drying sandy shore, with stones and seaweed, makes the area popular with commercial winkle collectors. The small summertime ferry provides a close link to Warrenpoint across the border where small variances of local laws or currency exchange rates provide the occasional incentive to cross over.
Steeped in Irish history, and with an abundance of spectacular scenery, Omeath is another quiet stopover for a shallow draft vessel’s tour of Carlingford Lough.
Other options in this area
Click the 'Next' and 'Previous' buttons to progress through neighbouring havens in a coastal 'clockwise' or 'anti-clockwise' sequence. Alternatively here are the ten nearest havens available in picture view:
Coastal clockwise:
Greer’s Quay - 0.7 miles SSECarlingford Marina - 1.9 miles SE
Carlingford Harbour - 2.3 miles SE
Giles Quay - 4 miles S
Dundalk - 4.3 miles SW
Coastal anti-clockwise:
Newry - 3.5 miles NWWarrenpoint - 0.2 miles NNW
Rostrevor - 1.1 miles E
Killowen - 1.4 miles ESE
Greencastle - 3.8 miles ESE
Navigational pictures
These additional images feature in the 'How to get in' section of our detailed view for Omeath.





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An informative overview by the Northern Ireland tourist board
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