Galway Bay Galway Bay Galway Bay (Irish: "Loch Lurgain" or "Cuan na Gaillimhe") is a large bay (or sea lough) on the west coast of Ireland, between County Galway in the province of Connacht to the north and the Burren in County Clare in the province of Munster to the south. Galway city is located on the northeast side of the bay. The bay is about long and from to in breadth. The Aran Islands ("Oileáin Árann") are to the west across the entrance and there are numerous small islands within the bay. The approaches to the bay between the Aran Islands
Galway hooker festival of Cruinniú na mBád is held each year, when boats race across Galway Bay from Connemara to Kinvara on the Galway/Clare county boundary. The hooker refers to four classes of boats. All are named in Irish. The "Bád Mór" (big boats) ranges in length from 10.5 to 13.5 metres (35 to 44 feet). The smaller "Leathbhád" (half boat) is about 10 metres (28 feet) in length. Both the Bád Mór and Leathbhád were decked forward of the mast. These boats were used to carry turf to be used as fuel across Galway Bay from Connemara and County Mayo to