The Boyle River is a river in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Forming part of the

Shannon River Basin The Shannon River Basin consists of the area containing Ireland's longest river, the River Shannon, and all of its tributaries and lakes. The official Ordnance Survey Ireland length of the Shannon from its Shannon Pot source is made up of tid ...

, it flows from

Lough Gara Lough Gara () is a lake in Counties Sligo and Roscommon, Ireland. It is an Important Bird Area protecting 1,788 ha of which most (1,742 ha) is covered by a Ramsar Site. History Lough Gara was known in ancient times as Loch Techet, but the O’ ...

on the

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who built ...

border and thence through the town of

Boyle Boyle is an English, Irish and Scottish surname of Gaelic, Anglo-Saxon or Norman origin. In the northwest of Ireland it is one of the most common family names. Notable people with the surname include: Disambiguation *Adam Boyle (disambiguation), ...

Lough Key Lough Key ( gle, Loch Cé) is a lake in Ireland. It is in the northwest of County Roscommon, northeast of the town of Boyle. The lough is believed to be named after a mythical figure named Cé. Name The name ''Lough Key'' comes from the Irish ' ...

. From there is continues eastwards through the village of

Knockvicar Knockvicar () is a village in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is located on the R285 regional road, between Boyle and Carrick-on-Shannon near Lough Key Forest Park in the north of the county. Knockvicar lies on the Arigna Scenic Drive off the ...

to the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Shan ...

at Lough Drumharlow, near

Carrick-on-Shannon Carrick-on-Shannon () is the county town of County Leitrim in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county of Leitrim. A smaller part of the town lies in County Roscommon. The population of the town was 4,062 in 2016. It is situated on a stra ...

. The length of the Boyle River (from its source in

Mayo Mayo often refers to: * Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo" * Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States Mayo may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land Australia * Division of Mayo, an Aust ...

to the Shannon) is 64.4 km (40mi). The area of the Boyle river basin is 725 km² Urlaur Abbey on Lake Urlaur Co

Boyle River Basin

The Upper Shannon catchment, above

(area: 1,301 km²), has two distinct reaches, the River Shannon (basin area: 576 km²), which rises in

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...

, and the Boyle River (basin area: 725 km²), with its source in

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

, which have their confluence at Lough Eidin/Drumharlow, approximately 4.7 km upstream of Carrick-On-Shannon. The Boyle River has its origins in the rivers Lung and Breedoge, which flow into

. The 29 km (18 mi
Lung River
is fed by

Urlaur Lough Urlaur Lough is a freshwater lake in the west of Ireland. It is located in east County Mayo and is one of the Urlaur Lakes. Geography Urlaur Lough measures about long and wide. It lies about north of Ballyhaunis near Lough Nanaoge and Loug ...

and

Errit Lough Errit Lough () is a freshwater lake in the west of Ireland. It is located in west County Roscommon in the catchment of the Boyle River. Geography and natural history Errit Lough is located about southwest of Ballaghaderreen. The lake forms t ...

on the Mayo/Roscommon border. The river flow from the furthest reaches of the Boyle catchment to

Limerick city Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 c ...

has a measurement of 290 km (180ml). When added to the Shannon's 102.1 km (63.5ml) estuary, this gives a total river length of 392.1 km (243.5ml), which makes it the longest river within the

basin (from source to mouth), 31.6 km (19.5ml) longer than the

Shannon Pot Shannon Pot () is a pool in the karst landscape in the townland of Derrylahan near Cuilcagh Mountain in County Cavan, Ireland. An aquifer-fed naturally fluctuating pool, it is the traditional source of the River Shannon. The pool itself is about ...

source.

Lung River at Crunnaun Bridge near Ballaghadereen, Co

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyle Rivers of County Roscommon Tributaries of the River Shannon

Boyle River Basin

See also

References