Qualla: Blackrock Island, County Mayo

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: Introduction

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

From the air, Blackrock Island looks exactly like what local fishermen have always called it: the one that looks like a volcano. It rises seventy metres straight out of the Atlantic, twelve miles west of Blacksod Bay, a steep-sided column of basalt topped by a white-painted lighthouse and almost nothing else. Seventy-two inches of rain fall here in a typical year. Mist shrouds the summit for weeks at a time. The Irish name is Tor Mor - the great tower - and for most of the last hundred and sixty years, that tower has been a place where solitude met responsibility and sometimes outlasted it.

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: The Most Westerly Light

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Blackrock Lighthouse was built in 1864 from stone quarried directly out of the rock it stands on. The fifty-foot circular tower attaches to a single-storey keepers' dwelling; both are painted white against the dark basalt. It is one of the most remote lighthouses in Ireland and t...

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: The Stranded Keepers

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

In the winter of 1942-43, during the Emergency in Ireland's neutral wartime, the routine of ten-day relief broke down completely. Storms destroyed the landing stage and the derricks used to swing supplies ashore. Three lighthouse keepers - Walter Coupe, Michael O'Connor, and prin...

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: Attacked from the Air

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

On 20 August 1940, with Ireland officially neutral but the Battle of the Atlantic raging just offshore, a German bomber attacked the SS Macville as the cargo ship passed close to Blackrock Island. The aircraft also damaged the lighthouse itself - several panes of the lantern were...

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: What the Rock Means

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

On 14 March 2017, Blackrock Island became the site of a different kind of tragedy. Rescue 116, a Sikorsky S-92 of the Irish Coast Guard, struck the island in the early hours of the morning while approaching Blacksod to refuel. All four crew - Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, Chief Pilot...

Blackrock Island, County Mayo: Around the Rock

Sat, 23 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The seabed off Blackrock drops away quickly - 40 metres within a kilometre of the island, deeper toward Achill. The Blackrock fishing grounds attract serious sea anglers chasing blue shark, porbeagle, halibut, and bluefin tuna. A small islet sits 125 metres to the east, with abou...