Dunmanus Bay is a bay

Bay

A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

 in County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

. The bay lies between Mizen Head

Mizen Head

Mizen Head , is located at the extremity of a peninsula in the district of Carbery in County Cork, Ireland. It is one of the extreme points of the island of Ireland and is a major tourist attraction, noted for its dramatic cliff scenery...

 to the south and Bantry Bay

Bantry Bay

Bantry Bay is a bay located in County Cork, southwest Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km wide at the head and wide at the entrance....

 to the north with the small village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...

 of Durrus

Durrus

Durrus is a village located in West Cork, six miles from Bantry, County Cork, Ireland. It is situated at the head of the Sheep's Head and Mizen Head Peninsulas. A number of public gardens have been established in the area, including 'Kilvarock' and 'Cois Abhann'...

 at the head of the bay. The bay is out of the main tidal flow with no significant river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

s flowing into it and is little frequented by vessels. On the eastern shore of the bay are the ruins of Dunmanus Castle built by the O'Mahony

O'Mahony

O'Mahony or O'Mahoney, or simply Mahony or Mahoney, without the prefix, is an Irish surname, and may refer to:The O'Mahonys were Cenél nÁeda princes of the ancient Eóganacht Raithlind...

 clan

Clan

A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...

. To the south, Dunlough Castle

Dunlough Castle

Dunlough Castle, standing atop the cliffs at the northern tip of the Mizen Peninsula, looks at the Atlantic Ocean from the extreme southwest point of the Irish mainland...

, an earlier O'Mahony fortification, stands atop the cliffs at the northern perch of the Mizen peninsula.