County Mayo - Geography and Political Subdivisions

Geography and Political Subdivisions

Mayo is the third largest of Ireland’s 32 counties in area and 15th largest in terms of population. It is the second largest of Connacht’s five counties in both size and population. The main population centres are Castlebar and Ballina, located in the centre and in the north-east of the county respectively. There is a distinct geological difference between the north and the south of the county. The north consists largely of poor subsoils and is covered with large areas of extensive Atlantic blanket-bog, whereas the south is largely a limestone landscape. Agricultural land is therefore more productive in the south than in the north.

• The highest point in Mayo and Connacht is Mweelrea, at 814 m (2,671 ft).
• The river Moy in the northeast of the county is renowned for its salmon fishing.
• Ireland's largest island, Achill Island, lies off Mayo's west coast.
• Mayo has Ireland's highest cliffs (second highest in Europe) at Croaghaun, Achill island while the Benwee Head cliffs in Kilcommon Erris drop almost perpendicularly 900 feet (270 m) into the Atlantic Ocean. There is a spectacular viewing point on the top of the cliffs opposite the entrance to the Céide Fields near Ballycastle in North Mayo.
• The north-west areas of County Mayo have some of the best renewable energy resources in Europe, if not the world, in terms of wind resources, ocean wave, tidal and hydroelectric resources.