BERE ISLAND

A Place Apart

bere island

Bere Island Events 2019

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For further information on any of the events please contact 027 75099 (Please note this number is operational Mon-Fri 9am to 5pm, for queries outside these times contact the Bere Island Heritage Centre on 027 75956).

Lonehort Festival
Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th June
Saturday 29th June: 9.30am Bere Island parkrun takes place around the eastern end of Bere Island, overlooking Lonehort Harbour, the site of a former Viking incursion.

Saturday 29th June: 12.30pm Lecture Theatre, Rerrin.  Sykoni Celestine, an expert on all things seaweed will give a talk and tasting session on seaweed.  In this session you will learn all about this superfood growing on our shores and how to incorporate it into your diet without making any big changes.  seaweed nibbles included.

Sunday 30th June: 11.30am Island historians Barry Hanley and Teresa Hall will lead a guided walk around Lonehort Battery, the largest of seven gun batteries constructed on Bere Island during World War One.  Numbers are limited for this tour and booking is essential on 027 75099 or bereconservation@gmail.com  Meet outside Lonehort Battery.

3.00pm Family cycle around a 5k route overlooking the historic natural harbour of Lonehort.  Meet outside Murphy’s Shop, Rerrin.  Helmets must be worn.


Talk by Dr Michael Kennedy on the Treaty Ports
Saturday 6th July – 6.00pm at the Heritage Centre
Dr Michael Kennedy will give a talk on the Treat Ports (of which Fort Berehaven, Bere Island was one).  Dr Kennedy is the Executive Editor of the Royal Irish Academy’s documents on Irish Foreign Policy series.


Children’s Summer Camps
Tuesday 9th – Thursday 11th July
11am to 2pm. Children’s Summer Camp at the GAA Pitch with sports, games and arts and crafts. For ages 6+ years. Contact Tim 027 75099 for further info.

Midsummer Run
Saturday 13th July
The annual 5k and 10k midsummer run organised by Bere Island GAA Club.

Swim Week
Monday 15th – Saturday 20th July
Swim Week with Irish Water Safety.  Learn to swim and also life saving skills.

West Cork Fit Up Festival
Saturday 20th July
Further details of the performance to be announced.

GAA Cul Camp
Monday 22nd – Friday 26th July
GAA skills camp for children at the GAA Pitch.

West Cork Fit Up Festival
Saturday 27th July
Further details of the performance to be announced.

Sailing Week
Monday 29th July – Friday 2nd August
Sailing Week.  See the Bere Island Watersports Club Facebook page for further updates. (Fully booked)

Children’s Summer Camp
Tuesday 30th July – Thursday 1st August
11am to 2pm. Children’s Summer Camp at the GAA Pitch with sports, games and arts and crafts. For ages 6+ years. Contact Tim 027 75099 for further info.

West Cork Fit Up Festival
Saturday 3rd August  
Further details of the performance to be announced.

West Cork Fit Up Festival
Saturday 10th August
Further details of the performance to be announced.

Bere Island Festival
Tuesday 6th – Sunday 11th August
Bere Island Festival.  A week of activities and events to suit all the family, including the Bere Island biathlon, sports day and watersports.

Children’s Summer Camp
Tuesday 13th – Thursday 15th August
11am to 2pm. Children’s Summer Camp at the GAA Pitch with sports, games and arts and crafts. For ages 6+ years. Contact Tim 027 75099 for further info.

Heritage Week
Saturday 17th – Sunday 25th August
Further details of events taking place on Bere Island to be announced shortly.

Taste of West Cork Festival
Friday 6th – Sunday 15th September
Further details of events taking place on Bere Island to be announced shortly.

Bere Island parkrun

Every Saturday morning at 9.30am from the GAA Pitch.  Click here for further details.

  

Community Groups

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Bere Island Active Retirement Group

The  Active Retirement Group  hold fortnightly coffee mornings. The next coffee morning will be held on Wednesday 24th April at 11am.

The group will have an outing to meet with Ardgroom Active Retirement Group on Tuesday 2nd May.  Call Tim on 75099 to book a place.

 

 

Parent and Toddler Group
The parent and toddler group meet every Thursday from 10.30am to 12.30pm in the Community Centre.

 

After School Club
The After School Club is open every Monday from 3pm to 5pm in the Community Centre.

Community Information

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Waste Collection & Recycling

Collections of household refuse will take place on the following dates in 2019:

Tuesday 4th June
Tuesday 18th June
Tuesday 2nd July
Tuesday 30th July
Tuesday 13th August
Tuesday 27th August
Tuesday 10th September

Rubbish stickers are €10 and are available from Murphy’s Shop, Rerrin and the Projects Group Office. Please note, any bags which do not have a rubbish sticker will NOT be collected.

Materials for recycling can be placed in the appropriate containers at the recycling centre on the west end pier.  Donations towards the running of the  centre are greatly appreciated and can be left in the honesty box at the centre.

Clean Coasts bags for collecting rubbish from island beaches are available from Murphy’s Shop Rerrin.  Full bags can be left at Lawrence Cove Marina.

We thank you for your assistance in keeping our island tidy.

Rural Transport Bus

The rural transport bus travels to Castletownbere on Tuesdays and Fridays, travelling out on the 10am ferry from the west end and returning on the 1.30pm ferry.  The bus will pick you up from your home and drop you back afterwards. The bus also transports people to and from Mass on Sundays.The bus is free for holders of travel passes.

If you would like to avail of the bus service please contact 027 75099.

Repair and Leasing Scheme
If anyone has a property on Bere Island, which they would like to rent out for long term use, but it needs work done on it first, the Repair and Leasing Scheme provides funding for property owners to bring a vacant property back to use, in return for the property being leased to a local authority or approved housing body for a period of at least 10 years. Further details are in the link below:

Council Housing
Council housing will soon become available on Bere Island. Please contact your housing officer at Cork County Council if you are interested.

Bere Island parkrun

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parkrun photo

Runners line up at the starting line of the Bere Island parkrun

Bere Island parkrun is on every Saturday at 9.30am.  The park run is a 5k measured course around the eastern end of the island and is open to  runners, joggers and walkers.  

Parkruns are free 5k running events which take place every week. The run is free, although participants are encouraged to register online in order to obtain a bar code, which is scanned at the beginning and end of their run, allowing them to track their progress on a weekly basis.

The parkrun was founded in 2005, with the first run taking place in Teddington, England. The idea quickly took off and there are now parkruns worldwide, with all runs organised on a voluntary basis.

On any given Saturday on Bere Island, you could be running or walking  alongside islanders of all ages, visitors and members of the Irish Defence Forces who have a training base on the island. Past runners of the Bere Island parkrun have included Olympic silver medalist Sonia O’Sullivan, parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt, and the Running Guru, Noel Berkeley.

The Bere Island park run, which is on the Wild Atlantic Way offers spectacular scenery of Bantry Bay with a route which takes in a Bronze Age wedge tomb, remains of a Viking boatyard and a former World War One military battery.  At the end of the run everyone heads to the Bakehouse Cafe in Rerrin Village for a coffee, scone and a chat.

Bere Island Ferries leaves Castletownbere at 9.00am,  and provide bus transport to the starting line.  Call Colum on 086 2423140 to book the ferry and bus for a special deal of €10.   The ferry returns to Castletownbere at 11.15am

Or why not make a weekend of it and stay on Bere Island which has a variety of accommodation on offer.

Runners, joggers and walkers of all ages and fitness levels are all welcome to take part in the Bere Island parkrun. To take part, you need to register at www.parkrun.ie

Once you have registered you will be sent a confirmation email containing your barcode and information on what to do next. You will then need to bring your barcode to the parkrun event on Bere Island, or to any of the parkrun events on offer worldwide.

If you require any further information or would like to volunteer at any of the runs please email bereislandhelpers@parkrun.com.