Overview
You can only drive to Island Roy for a few hours either side of low tide. The rest of the time the 1927 causeway is under the sea. The island sits in Mulroy Bay about three and a half miles from Downings and Carrigart in north-west Donegal, and covers roughly 90 acres (36 ha) of green fields, rocky shore and small beaches on low, gravelly ground. In winter the vegetation turns rust-red, which is where the name comes from: Ruaidh means ‘red’. From the high points you can see the dunes at Rossapenna, the Fanad Mountains and the Donegal hills behind.
It is a Discovery Point on the Wild Atlantic Way and a quiet one. About 26 people live here, mostly from farming, shellfish and a little tourism.
History
The island’s older Irish name, Oileán na Bhráighe, means ‘island of the prisoners’. The link with nearby Doe Castle on Rossapenna suggests it may once have held captives connected to the castle’s 16th-century owners. People have lived here for centuries, and many residents trace their families back several generations.
In the early 19th century Lord Leitrim tried to clear the tenants and turn the land over to cattle. A woman holding a 99-year lease refused to go, and the community stayed. The English name ‘Island Roy’ is just an anglicisation of the Irish.
The causeway that links the mainland at Rannach to the islet of Carraig an Ghóilín and on to Island Roy was built in 1927. Before that, children crossed to school on stilts at low tide. The causeway still floods at high tide.
In 2010 NASA’s Opportunity rover named a small iron-nickel meteorite on Mars Oileán Ruaidh, after this island, for its reddish colour. The island is sometimes called the one that is twinned with Mars.
What to see
This is a place for a walk, not a checklist. Gravel paths run through the fields and along the shore, with views back to the Rossapenna dunes, the Mulroy coast and the Fanad Mountains. The rocky shores and meadows are nesting ground for gulls, terns and waders, and the island’s isolation means they are largely left alone. Seaweed grows thick on the low beaches, and locals still harvest it for seaweed baths.
Near the causeway entrance a small information point sets out the island’s history and its recent community projects, and a walk through the village passes traditional cottages. For an overnight stay, Doherty Farm Holiday Homes has self-catering cottages on the waterfront.
Visiting tips
- Tides first: the causeway is only passable around low tide. Check a tide table before you go. The safe window is roughly an hour either side of low water.
- e-bikes: available for hire in Downings, a good way to reach the causeway and get around the island.
- Parking: limited spaces on the mainland side near the causeway.
- Toilets: basic facilities at the information point.
- Accessibility: the causeway is uneven gravel; anyone with limited mobility should weigh the tide and conditions before crossing.
- How long: most visits run 1–3 hours.
The honest caveat is the causeway itself. Misjudge the tide and you are either stranded on the island or, worse, caught on a flooding road, so build the whole visit around the tide table rather than the clock.
Practical information
Access
The tidal causeway links the mainland at Rannach to Carraig an Ghóilín and on to the island, passable only around low tide. e-bike hire in Downings is a handy way to make the trip.
Admission
Free.
Contact
- Phone: +353 74 915 5535
- Email: info@govisitdonegal.com
Seasonal notes
In winter the vegetation turns rust-red, which is the island at its most photogenic and the colour that earned it the Mars connection. Spring and summer bring longer days and longer low-tide windows, which makes the walking and birdwatching easier to fit in.
Nearby
Back on the mainland there is the Rossapenna Golf Resort, the beaches at Downings, the ruins of Doe Castle, and further out the Fanad Lighthouse on the Fanad Peninsula. Carrigart has cafés and walking routes.