Drumshanbo Lock

Drumshanbo Lock, at Blackrock beside the town, is the last of the three Lough Allen Canal locks and the only way onto the lake by boat. Lough Allen became a storage reservoir for the Shannon hydro scheme in the late 1920s, which left the old canal unusable until it was restored and reopened in the mid-1990s. A lock-keeper works it during the Shannon hours, on the same phone line as Battlebridge and Drumleague, so call ahead on +353 86 812 7522 or +353 71 964 1552; the chamber is 19.5 m long and 4 m wide. The OPW gauge at the lock is the best guide to the level of the lake, which can vary by well over a metre between dry and wet spells. Above the lock, keep to the marked channel into the lake and check Met Éireann’s Lough Key and Lough Allen forecast before heading out.