The interaction between inertial oscillations generated by a storm and a mesoscale eddy field is studied using a Southern Ocean channel model. It is shown that the leakage of near-inertial energy out of the surface layer is strongly enhanced by the presence of the eddies, with the anticyclonic eddies acting as a conduit to the deep ocean. Given the ubiquity of the atmospheric storm tracks (a source of near-inertial energy for the ocean) and regions of strong ocean mesoscale variability, we argue that this effect could be important for understanding pathways by which near-inertial energy enters the ocean and is ultimately available for mixing.