Rogerstown Estuary () is a sea inlet and

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. It is situated just north of the

Donabate Donabate () is an outer suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, about north-northeast of Dublin, within the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local government area of Fingal. The town is on a peninsula on Ireland's east coast ...

Portrane Portrane or Portraine () is a small seaside village located three kilometres from the town of Donabate in Fingal, County Dublin in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Barony (Ireland), barony of Nethercross in the north of the county. P ...

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

, and also south of Rush, on Ireland's east coast about north of

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. It is a designated nature reserve, Special Area of Conservation, and a Ramsar site. The main flow into the estuary comes from the Ballyboghil River and its terminal tributary, the Corduff Stream. Other watercourses entering the estuary include one from Portrane, Balleally Stream, and also Bride's Stream and Jone's Stream, from the Lusk area, and a number of small flows. The estuary is made up of saltwater marshes, raised salt marsh,

wet meadow A wet meadow is a type of wetland with soils that are Solubility, saturated for part or all of the growing season which prevents the growth of trees and brush. Debate exists whether a wet meadow is a type of marsh or a completely separate type of ...

s and riverine shallows and creeks. It covers an area of , and is divided by a causeway and bridge built in the 1840s to carry the main Dublin–

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

railway line. It is internationally recognised as one of the most important east coast sites and is vital for wintering wildfowl and waders and birds on passage. Birds come to the estuary from the

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

. It supports an internationally important population of Brent Geese and a further 14 species in numbers of national importance. The former Balleally landfill site located by the railway causeway was landscaped and reopened as Rogerstown Park in 2019. The site is a statutory Nature Reserve and a candidate

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

under the E.U. Habitats Directive. The estuary's mouth separates the beaches of Portrane and Rush, and the mouth is so narrow, it is theorised that a person would be able to cross from Rush to Portrane at a gradual walking pace, within a time span of less than a minute, if there was no water. According to local

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

, there was once a bridge across the mouth, however, it was dismantled after various

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

s. An apparent remain of this bridge still exists today, on the beach at Portrane. The townland of Turvey touches on the estuary. It is associated with the Goban Saor described as the son of Tuirbe Tragmar ("thrower of axes"), a figure whose magical axe would hold back the sea after it was thrown on the strand. This feat was said to have been performed at ''Tráig Tuirbi'', Tuirbe's Strand or Turvey.
n.125 Tráig Tuirbi, in The Rennes Dindshenchas, edited by Whitney Stokes, pages 76-77, Revue Celtiques 16 (1895)

References

{{Reflist Landforms of Fingal Estuaries of Ireland Drainage basins of the Irish Sea Bodies of water of the Republic of Ireland Nature reserves in the Republic of Ireland Special Areas of Conservation in the Republic of Ireland Ramsar sites in the Republic of Ireland Nethercross