The Atlantic Pond is an artificially made, lake alongside the Marina. The pond is reached by a short walk from Blackock village or from the old railway line and also from Ballintemple village, and it is always worth a stroll around.
The pond has fantastic biodiversity; including mallard ducks, swans, herons, moor hens, and egrets. The new Pairc Ui Chaoimh is constructed to the east of the Atlantic Pond. The Pairc is now a 45,000-capacity stadium, and replaced the earlier stadium opened in 1976, which in turn replaced the Athletics Ground, known to generations simply as “the Park”. Pairc Ui Chaoimh hosts National League, Munster, and All Ireland Hurling and Football Championship matches, as well as concerts.
The Atlantic Pond itself dates from the 1840s, with the building of the Navigation Wall (now known, as the Marina), which separates it from the nearby river. This pond located on the great eastern marsh of Cork used to be a mosquito filled swamp. The term, Atlantic Pond, was used in print by 1909, in a discussion of drainage problems affecting the then existing Cork Park Racecourse.
Improvements were made on the Atlantic Pond in 1941 and 1945, on a public works programme which transformed the water body, some drainage work in the 1990s and enhanced maintenance has improved the water quality and made it into the attractive sight it is today.
It is a great place to introduce children to Nature, with several families of swans, the heron island and the mallard ducks going about their daily business. Dogs are to be kept on leads and there are notices warning people, not to feed bread to the birds.
The Atlantic Pond is well worth a visit.
The historic information came from the The Ring of Blackrock. A Walking Guide & History by Diarmuid O’ Drisceoil (Published 2018) and My Home by the Lee by Richard T. Cooke (Published 1999).
All photographs were taken this week at the Atlantic Pond.
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