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SIXMILEBRIDGE

CO. CLARE · IE

Sixmilebridge
Droichead Abhann Ó gCearnaigh, Co. Clare

The Ireland's Hidden Heartlands
STOP 08 / 08

Droichead Abhann Ó gCearnaigh · Co. Clare

A working river-port village halfway between Limerick and Ennis, with an All-Ireland hurling pedigree and a station that came back from the dead.

Sixmilebridge sits on the O'Garney River, midway between Limerick city and Ennis, just off the fast N18 that most people take instead. The name is literal - it is six Irish miles to Limerick, and the bridge over the river was the reason the place existed. For two centuries this was the main crossing for traffic between the two towns, and the village grew into a small river port with a brewery, a market house and water-powered mills that sent goods downriver toward the Shannon.

It is bigger than it looks from the road - close to three thousand people - and it works for a living rather than for tourists. There is a Catholic church from 1812, a tidy main street, two primary schools, and a GAA club with a name that carries weight well beyond the county. The bridge still stands. The river still runs under it.

Don't come expecting a postcard village. Come for a pint in one of the bars on the street, a look at the bridge and St Finnachta's, and the convenience of a place you can reach by train from Limerick or Galway. The east-Clare hills are close, Bunratty and the Shannon estuary are a short drive south, and Ennis is twenty minutes north for the music and the market. Sixmilebridge is a base and a pause, not a destination - and it knows it.

Population

~2,832 (2022)

Pubs

3and counting

Founded

Market town around a 17th-century river crossing

Coords

52.7414° N, 8.7836° W

01 / 08

At a glance.

Three things every local will eventually mention. Read these and you've already understood more than most day-trippers do.

01 The bridge

Six miles from Limerick, named for the crossing of the O'Garney.

The name is the distance - six Irish miles to Limerick - and the bridge over the O'Garney River was the crossing point for everyone travelling between Limerick and Ennis for two centuries. The village was a river port with a brewery, a market house and water mills. The Irish name, Droichead Abhann Ó gCearnaigh, means the bridge of the river of O'Kearney.

Stories & lore → 02 The hurling

All-Ireland club hurling champions, 1996. The first in Clare.

On St Patrick's Day 1996 Sixmilebridge beat Dunloy at Croke Park to win the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship - the first Clare club ever to do it. Four months later the county won the All-Ireland itself. In this part of east Clare, hurling is not a pastime, it is the local religion.

Stories & lore → 03 The line

A station that closed in 1963 and reopened in 2010.

Sixmilebridge station opened in 1859, closed in 1963, and came back on 29 March 2010 with the reopening of the Galway-Limerick line. For a village this size to have an intercity train at all is unusual. It is twenty minutes either way to two cities.

Getting there →

02 / 08

The pubs.

None of these are themed Irish pubs, because they don't need to be. A few that earn the trip:

McGregors Bar & Bistro

Food and weekend live music

Bar & bistro, main street

The bar that does both jobs in the village - drink and a plate of food. Kitchen runs from Friday afternoon and through the weekend, and there are live music line-ups at weekends. The most reliable single stop in Sixmilebridge for an evening.

Casey's Bar

Family-run local

Traditional pub, in the village

A family-run traditional Irish pub in the heart of the village. A locals' bar rather than a gastropub - the kind of place you go for a pint and the talk, not the menu.

Old House / Brandon's Bar

Old, plain, local

Old-world pub, in the village

An old-world village bar, plain and unrenovated in the way the good ones are. A pint and a fire, not a destination - which is exactly the point of it.

03 / 08

Stories & lore.

The reason to come back. The things every local will eventually tell you about, usually after the second pint.

Six Irish miles to Limerick

The bridge and the river port

The village takes its name from the crossing over the O'Garney River - six Irish miles, roughly twelve kilometres, from Limerick. The bridge dates to the early 17th century, and for two hundred years it was the primary crossing for everyone travelling between Limerick and Ennis. Around it grew a working river port: a brewery, a market house, and water-powered mills that exported goods like rapeseed oil and soap by boat down toward the Shannon. The trade has long gone, but the bridge is still the centre of the place and still carries the road.

Six dead at the ballot office

The election of 1852

On 22 July 1852 a magistrate and soldiers of the 31st Regiment escorted tenants into Sixmilebridge to vote in the general election. A crowd of protesters, including two Catholic priests, had gathered near the ballot office. An affray broke out, the soldiers opened fire without reading the Riot Act, and six people were killed and eight wounded. A coroner's inquest returned a verdict of murder, which was later overturned. It was one of the more notorious incidents of election violence in 19th-century Ireland, and it happened on this small village street.

Sixmilebridge 5-10, Dunloy 2-06

1996, and the first All-Ireland

On St Patrick's Day 1996, Sixmilebridge beat Dunloy of Antrim at Croke Park, 5-10 to 2-06, to win the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship. They were the first Clare club ever to win it. It was the 18th club to take the title, and the win sat at the front of a remarkable run for Clare hurling - the county itself won the All-Ireland Senior Championship that same summer of 1996. In east Clare the 1996 club win is still talked about as if it happened last year.

04 / 08

Things to do outside.

Wear waterproofs. Bring a sandwich. Tell someone where you're going if it's the mountain.

The bridge and village walk A short loop taking in the bridge over the O'Garney, the main street, and St Finnachta's Church of 1812. Not a scenic hike - this is a working village - but it shows you the river crossing the whole place is named for, and the quiet riverbanks above and below the bridge.

1.5 km loopdistance

30-40 minutestime

Cratloe Woods A short drive east toward Cratloe. State-owned forest on the hills above the Shannon, with looped trails through old sessile oak, some climbing, and viewpoints down over the estuary and Limerick. The nearest proper walking to Sixmilebridge.

2-6 km forest trailsdistance

1-2 hourstime

05 / 08

Tours, if you want one.

The ones below are bookable through our partners - pick one that suits, or skip the lot and just turn up.

via Viator

Private Transfer between SHANNON & DUBLIN | Premium Vehicles

private tours

Private transfer between Shannon Airport and Dublin in a luxury sedan, SUV, or minibus. Around 2 hours door to door, flight tracked, meet and greet included.

2 hours From €565

See tour → via Viator

Clare to or from Dublin Private Transfer

private tours

Door-to-door private transfer between Dublin and County Clare, with a knowledgeable driver, air-conditioning and WiFi on board. No shared coaches.

2-5 hours From €661

See tour → via Viator

Dublin Airport Or Dublin City To Ennis County Clare Private Chauffeur Transfer

private tours

Private chauffeur transfer from Dublin Airport or Dublin City to Ennis, County Clare. Air-conditioned vehicle, WiFi on board, all fees included. Free cancellation.

2-3 hours From €1200

See tour →

We earn a small commission when you book through our tour pages. It costs you nothing extra and keeps the village hubs free. All Co. Clare tours →

06 / 08

When to go.

There is no bad time. There are different times.

Spring

Mar-May

Quiet and green, with Cratloe Woods at its best. The hurling championship is building - if the Bridge are playing, the village empties toward the pitch.

◉ Go

Summer

Jun-Aug

Long evenings, the train to Limerick or Galway running, and Bunratty and the Shannon estuary an easy drive south. A practical base for the wider region.

◉ Go

Autumn

Sep-Oct

Good walking in Cratloe Woods in October, and county hurling finals season - the time of year this village cares about most.

◉ Go

Winter

Nov-Feb

The village is functional year-round and the Sixmilebridge Winter Music Weekend, running since 2000, brings traditional music into the pubs in the dark months.

◉ Go

07 / 08

What to skip.

Honestly? Don't bother.

If a local was sitting beside you, this is the bit where they'd lean in.

Expecting a tourist village

Sixmilebridge is a working commuter and market village of nearly three thousand people, not a scenic stop. There is a bridge, a church, a few bars and a famous hurling club. That is the honest list. Come for those or pass through.

The N18 fly-by

The dual carriageway between Limerick and Ennis bypasses the village completely. If you stay on the N18 you will never see the bridge the place is named for. Take the village exit if you want to actually stop.

Mistaking it for Bunratty

Bunratty Castle and its tourist village are nearby to the south, but they are not Sixmilebridge. This is the plainer, more lived-in place a few minutes inland. Don't come here looking for the medieval banquet.

Getting there.

By car

Off the N18 Limerick-Ennis road, on the R462 and R471. Limerick is about twenty minutes south, Ennis about twenty minutes north. Take the signposted village exit off the N18.

By bus

Bus Éireann route 316 links Sixmilebridge with Shannon Airport, and route 317 runs Limerick to Ennis. Check current timetables on buseireann.ie.

By train

Sixmilebridge railway station is on the Galway-Limerick intercity line (the Western Rail Corridor). Trains run to Limerick and north toward Ennis, Gort, Athenry and Galway. Services are limited - check the Irish Rail Galway-Limerick timetable.

By air

Shannon Airport (SNN) is roughly fifteen minutes south by road, and Bus Éireann route 316 connects the two directly. It is one of the closest villages to the airport in Clare.