Captivated by Beautiful Curracloe Beach in Co. Wexford

Curracloe Beach in Co. Wexford

As a family, we’ve visited Curracloe Beach yearly since St. Patrick’s Day 2016. We’ve ventured up and down the Wexford coastline throughout these years too. And there are a number of beautiful beaches and places to visit, which will feature here on The Life of Stuff.

But no matter where we’ve explored we have always returned to Curracloe for its Blue Flag beach, sandy dunes, easy access, space, facilities and natural beauty – you’ll also find The Raven Nature Reserve and Raven Point Woods adjacent to the beach at the south end of Curracloe Beach.

Getting to Curracloe Beach

Curracloe Beach can be found about 15km from Wexford Town. Access to the beach is by car parks at three main entrances. And each entrance has wooden sleeper walkways that take you from the carpark directly to the beach. The three main entrances onto Curracloe Beach, from north to south are Ballinesker, White Gap and Culleton’s Gap, and you’ll find more information on each entrance below.

Ballinesker Beach

 

Did you know that the film Saving Private Ryan was filmed on Ballinesker Beach. It was used to recreate ‘the D-Day landings at Omaha Beach, Normandy, during the Second World War on 6 June 1944’.

Ballinesker Beach entrance has the flattest boardwalk of the three entrances. And because of this it’s a great option if walking uphill is bothersome, you have littles in a pram or buggy, or if you use a wheelchair.

Where: North of the beach.

Boardwalk: The boardwalk at Ballinesker is the best choice for prams and wheelchairs.

Facilities: Toilets.

White Gap Beach

 

White Gap Beach entrance is the largest of the three entrances and has the most facilities. There are also Life Guards on this stretch of beach during the summer months, which is a big advantage for peace of mind when swimming.

Where: Middle of the beach. White Gap has the largest carpark.

Boardwalk: The boardwalk at is on middle ground when it comes to steepness – steeper than Ballinsker, less steep than Culleton’s.

Facilities: Toilets, shower, Surf Shack and café takeaway and arcade.

Culleton’s Gap Beach

 

Culleton’s Gap Beach entrance is the furthest south entrance of Curracloe Beach. It is also the closest to The Raven Nature Reserve and the Raven Loop Walk which takes you through the Raven Point Woods. From butterflies and birds to seals on the beach, this is the part of Curracloe Beach you come to for Irish wildlife spotting.

Where: South of the Beach. Culleton’s Gap also borders and has an entrance to The Raven Nature Reserve and Raven Point Woods.

Boardwalk: The boardwalk at Culleton’s Gap is steep and has steps at the end of the Wooden walkway, these are often covered in sand.

Facilities: Facilities include a Drinks & Snacks Truck parked at the entrance during the summer months.

The Raven Nature Reserve and Raven Point Woods

There are a number of woodland walks that will take you through the woods and onto Curracloe Beach. However the most popular walk is the Looped walk which takes about 1.5 hours on what is considered easy terrain.

 

According to wexfordwalkingtrail.ie The Raven sand dunes have been forming since the 1600’s from sea sand blown ashore and becoming trapped and bound by plants.

Within the woods you’ll find numerous species of tree from Corsican Pine to Sycamore, and wildlife from squirrels and pine martens to butterflies and birds.

Wexford Wildfowl Nature Reserve

To the west of The Raven Nature Reserve and Woods are the North Slob Lands. This area is a protected reserve, managed by Wexford Wildfowel Reserve who has recorded more than 250 species over the years. And for parts of the year this Wexford Slobs and Harbour Special Protected Area is home to 45% of the worlds population of Greenland White-Fronted Goose. For more information visit the wexfordwildfowlreserve.ie

Visiting All Year Round

We all know that the weather in Ireland changes her mind like the wind, and it’s not unusual to witness four seasons in one hour, not alone one day. We’ve visited Curracloe Beach on sunny days when the wind picked up our parasol and covered our picnic in sand. We’ve visited on rainy days when there wasn’t a breeze to be found. Blue skies or grey it’s still one of the most captivating beaches to be.

 

BUT according to our two seaside lovers, the best part is digging holes, jumping in puddles and wading in the sea!

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