‘The rules are there but nobody is listening’

The winding Inishconnell roads give way to the historic Clough Ougther castle, an attraction for tourists and locals alike.

As one makes their way to the castle viewing point, they are met with a large sign that asks visitors to respect the area. Camping, fires, littering, alcohol and loud music are prohibited. Dogs are also asked to be kept under control.

The Anglo-Celt met Tony Dunne and Stephen Smith of the Clough Oughter Catchment Association to speak about ongoing anti-social behaviour along Cavan’s lakeside hotspots.

Upon reaching the area, the issue presents itself. A broken mirror, bottles, food containers and clothing lie by the lakeside.

It’s Saturday afternoon, despite unannounced brief showers, the sun beats down. Across the way at the Rann Point amenity, smoke presumably from a barbecue fills the air and campers have already begun assembling their tents for the night ahead. A sign with the exact same regulations as that at Inishconnell is located at the entrance to Rann Point.

A brief walk around Innishconnell reveals more bottles, some broken, the remnants of fires, cigarette boxes, empty toilet roll holders and tissue thrown among the foliage and hung from the trees. Trees have been damaged, sawn or pulled down in areas and a smell of urine lingers in the air.

Bye-laws, which will give the authorities power to penalise those participating in anti-social behaviour, are currently being drafted by Cavan County Council.

A spokesperson from the council said: “when the drafting process is concluded, the new bye-laws will be presented to councillors for approval.”

Tony Dunne who is treasurer of the Clough Oughter Catchment Association called the bye-laws a “waiting game".

“We’re still waiting,” he said, pointing out how signage was erected around 18 months ago with little impact.

“There’s nobody paying any attention to them [sings].”

“The rules are there but nobody is listening.”

The Clough Oughter Catchment Association was set up last year to protect the natural environs of Clough Oughter castle.

The group's aim is to make the area “a nice beneficial place for everyone to enjoy".

“It’s lovely like,” Tony said, looking across the water to the stone castle.

“We have a lot of issues to address,” the Ballinagh man continued.

“There's a lot of antisocial behavior for a start,” he said, mentioning the poaching of fish, littering and even the killing of birds and swans and “intimidation of other people coming around fishing".

“There’s people coming up here from Kildare and Dublin and everything for the weekend and just having a party.

“Human excrement in the woods, leaving a load of litter and stuff behind them, leaving fishing lines behind for the birds to get tangled in, drinking, going mad, fighting with people even,” he claimed.

“It’s not just here, if you look around the corner at Trinity Island, it’s exactly the same,” he said, adding that landowners are “going mad".

“It’s a very delicate issue, there’s a lot of things that need to be done.”

“There’s a lot of camping,” he added.

The avid angler is the founding member of the Cavan Pike Anglers, founded in 2018. He acknowledged that, like many spots in Cavan, Inishconnell is “a lovely place” to visit.

“Just look after it, that’s all we’re saying.

“Take your litter home, it’s not a big thing to do.”

“It’s like talking to a wall sometimes,” he said, explaining that he has on occasion tried to approach people to speak to them about their actions, with a “hit and miss” reaction.

“Sometimes you get a good reception and sometimes you don’t.”

Stephen Smith, also a member of the Clough Oughter Catchment Association, is originally from Killeshandra but is now living in Newtownbutler in Fermanagh. He added that the situation is the same in tourist hotspots in his local area.

Asked what they would like the bye-laws to include, Tony asked people to obey the signs that are already in place.

“Just obey the sign, everything that’s on the sign.

“Just obey what’s on it,” he reiterated.

“Don’t just wreck the place, leave it tidy for the next person,” he continued.

The association picked up 14 bags of cans from the amenity a few years ago, which the council collected after two weeks.

“They have to play their part too, the council,” he said, adding that they have to enforce regulations.

“There’s just not enough eyes on the water and not enough eyes on what’s going on.”