Oileáin is an evolving guide to the Irish islands written by David Walsh.
“Oileáin” as it used to appear on your local bookshop, but being now sold out, it appears only on your bookshelf at home.
Latest News. Oileáin has continued to grow since its publication as a book in June 2004, and now as of 10th September 2012 includes 571 islands. The most recent inclusion is Hog’s Head Island, Iveragh, Kerry. My personal tally of landings on these reached a milestone figure 500 on 7th September 2012. Oileáin also deals with parts of 10 of the 15 mainland coastal counties. This version of Oileáin will continue to grow and expand on this webpage but this version dated April 2013 will form the basis for a second edition of Oileáin which all going well will hit the bookshelves in October 2013. Apart from the additional 250+ islands (mostly in bays and close enough to the shore, the big wild stuff is mostly already there), there is a lot of additional local flavour, anecdotes, historical stuff as well as more flora and fauna than you could shake a stick at. Oileáin has grown to 145,000 words from the 90,000 as published in 2004. It seems it may be too big for commercial viability and the hard copy version to be published 2013 has been pared back to 125,000 words, but not at the expense of quality! The “finished” edited version went to the publisher Pesda Press on 28th May 2013 and confidently I would hope we should be on the shelves with O2 the first week in October 2013.
Browse (by cut and paste) or download PDF the text version of Oileáin (always right up to date, the current version having
been uploaded as of 10th September 2012 but no maps, no colour, no photos.
Link for Irish Sea Kayaking Association.
Recommended kayak excursions on the Irish coast
Irish Marine Weather Forecasts from Met Eireann
Irish Tide Times (add 1 hour in summertime)
I have compiled a list “First Known Kayak Landings” of many remoter, harder Irish offshore islands and rocks,
and on which kayakers are identified who are thought at present to have landed there “first”. This hopes to reflect in an obscure way an interesting insight into a small part of what Irish sea kayakers were at in the late 20th century / early 21st.
Books and Further Reading on Irish islands and Irish sea kayaking. These include source material for Oileáin.
“Oileáin” deals with landings on islands, camping spots, availability of drinking water, tidal streams, history or natural history where known or researched, birds and wildlife as available, and general information. It is intended to be similar in purpose to a nautical Pilot or Sailing Directions, but dedicated to sea kayaks and other very small craft, with a lot of extras.
“Oileáin” is an Irish word meaning “islands”, and is pronounced roughly “ill-aw-in“.
This site formerly hosted the Irish Sea Kayaking Association www.irishseakayakingassociation.com, a voluntary association which independently represents Sea Kayaking / Sea Canoeing in Ireland. ISKA is my home. I was its Chair from 1995 to 2003. On its website you will find additional information to do with current activity inside modern Irish sea kayaking. 
Here you will find “What’s On”, a hyperactive Bulletin Board, a photo gallery, details of our extensive library (members, in Ireland, only), and of course our newsletters going back to 1996.
Oileáin - ISBN 0-9531956-9-4 Pesda Press
Oileáin is distributed Cordee in Ireland, the UK and worldwide.