Maganey Lock

Below Levitstown the river splits around a narrow island and spreads out under the long road bridge at Maganey. Here in 1642 an army of some 8,000 men of the Irish Catholic Confederacy was beaten by the Earl of Ormond’s forces. Maganey Lock lies a little downstream, where the small River Greese joins the Barrow. The bridge is the place to restock on this quiet stretch: there is a shop with a petrol station just to the east of it. Like the other locks on the river, Maganey is worked by the crew with a lock key, with lifejackets on for everyone handling the boat; the patroller for Ardreigh, Levitstown and Maganey answers on +353 87 951 0777. From here the river swings south towards Carlow, about 7 km away, passing Bestfield Lock just north of the town.