Dublin

We sailed to Howth Yacht Club marina just north of Dublin estuary and so we are now in Ireland for real. Have to use euros!  The yacht club is great, very active and friendly but it looks like we need to stay a few days more as a gale is supplying too much wind and in the wrong direction.

Visited Dublin on Saturday (before the train strike on Sunday and Monday).  A vibrant city - as cities tend to be - but still quite interesting.

 Howth marina from the breakwater.

They have evening racing twice a week at this club and one of the boats they sail is the Howth Sailing Club One Design that is over 100 years old.

One of the club members helped to restore the rig on the yacht Asgard. This is significant yacht in the history of Ireland as is Howth as she was one of the 2 yachts that did gun running from Germany to Howth in 1914 to support the Irish Volunteer Force.  The restored yacht is in a museum in Dublin but we didn't get to see her but we did get to a talk given by this club member which was most interesting.

The Asgard was owned and skippered by Erskine Childers, 'The Riddle of the Sands' author.

Ardglass

Sailed south inside of an Island off Belfast sourthern shore and quietly made our way south in a light breeze doing about 5 knots but with a knot of tide with us.  We were slightly annoyed with other yachts  motoring past when they clearly had wind to sail and we were half expecting them to pinch the best moorings at Ardglass.  Fortunately that wasn't the case and we motored into a suitable slot.

 The AIS was picked up this trip.

 The narrow channel at Ardglass viewed from our marina berth.

We had a go at sailing further south the following morning but were met by seriously lumpy seas and too much wind on our nose.  So retraced our track and snuggled back into out marine berth.  I went up the mast to sort out a lazy jack block that was rotating and winding up the lines.

 

Port Ellen

Had an early wake up at 04:30 to ensure we made the tide gate through the sound between Islay and Jura.  We were surprised that the anchor was holding so well for the few days we were off Bunessan but when we hauled it up we could see why, we had hooked a wharp or cable of some sort.  Put a line round it, unhooked the anchor and slipped the line with ease.  Quite a struggle against the wind to motor out of the loch but once clear, we could lay a starboard tack past the tip of Mull and on the outside of Iona.  We were quickly up to our favourite 7+ boat speed, touching 8 at times with a good force 4 to 5.  Negotiated various rocks as is normal round these parts (thank goodness for the Garmin) and made our way to the north east end of Colonsay.  We had a quite close encounter with what we thought were 2 basking sharks.  There were 2 fins slowly going round in circles a few feet from the boat.  

We approached the Sound of Islay with just over an hour of favourable tide through the sound.  This is rather important as the tide stream can run up to 5 knots in the sound and you wouldn't want to plug against that.  So to ensure we made it through the 11 miles before the tide changed and sucked us back into the sound, we started the engine to supplement the sails ensuring we had a boat speed of about 7 knots.  So we had a wonderful squirt through the sound passing distilleries at up to 11 knots over the ground (sorry Colin, couldn't stop).  Spat out of the end, cut the engine and sailed onto Port Ellen on the south of Islay after missing a significant amount of Islands and rocks.  We had a struggle to get into Port Ellen as the wind had piped up to F6 on the nose so motored tacked into the poorly defined harbour.  Moored up to the almost self service marina.

Electricity and water are free with the mooring but the 2 showers are part of a local guest house and in demand from the many yachts so we went without again for another night.

Sailed in the morning, leaving the harbour and distillery (sorry Colin) behind.

Meeting up with some family

We stayed anchored off Bunessan for several days to meet up with various family members coming over from the Minessota, Brighton and Inverness and also to shelter from local gales.  The anchorage at Bunessan was generally a bit lumpy with a bit of shelter but we were happy to leave.

 The morning before the wind came in.

Had a great get together with the family including visiting Iona just off Fionnphort where they were all staying.  Had a great meal together (14 in total) at the Keel Row Inn at Fionnphort and we were kindly ferried about by car.  Absolutely no phone signal on that part of Mull and minimum O2 so could just communicate by email only. 

N Ireland

It's just a short hop (30 odd miles) from Islay to our next destination Ballycastle in Northern Ireland but reading the books and looking at the chart, it's a bit scary with overfalls and races all round and between Rathlin Island just off Ballycastle. So again the timing was important and again I think we got it right, timing our approach to Ballycastle at slack water.  Our sail down south was nice and fast mostly goose winging the Yankie jib, reefing, un-reefing and reefing again as the wind required it.  7 to 8 knots was the order of the day.  It was of course quite a rolling ride and both Alice and I were suffering from unstable legs when we got onto land. 

 View of Ballycastle from Spring Breeze

The facilities were superb. New, clean and free - wifi, electrics, water, showers, and laundry!  We had to stay a few days with another gale coming through but with such a nice place, we put up with it.

The first full day was a jobs day, 4 loads of washing, shopping and sorting out the lines to ensure Spring Breeze could withstand the gale without damage and it being too uncomfortable and noisy.  The harbour has a bit of ground swell in a gale which pushes and pulls the boat and ensuring there is enough spring in the lines without letting her vere too much and reduce any chafe is the challenge.  

The second day of the gale we visited The Giants Causeway which is just a few miles away by bus.

 With it blowing best part of a gale, interspersed with driving rain made the visit someway dramatic if not uncomfortable.  Nice to get back to the boat, leaning to the wind gusts!

On the third gale bound day we visited Colraine and one of our suppliers that manufactures foil strain gauges.  A very interesting visit with a view of the town thrown in.  Bought another mobile phone because my one had died.

The wind had eased in the morning so departed with a good favourable wind.  Reached across the top end end of Ireland, round the headland and goose winged south.  The wind and swell increased and we had an issue of needing to stop so headed to the lee of north shore of Belfast estuary, removed all sail and motored down to Bangor Marina.

I don't have much to say about Bangor.  The town is large, visited their museum but the marina is large and un interesting.  Sailed further south in the morning.

Ulva Ferry

Sailed out of Tobermory at 12:00 with a SW force 4 to 5 - the wrong direction but had to move on.  Beat over to Coll and thought about anchoring in their main harbour but considered it to be too exposed from the SW wind so tacked back to Mull.  Wiggled our way past rocks and larger islands and sailed up the Sound of Ulva to anchor close to the Ulva Ferry (passenger only as no vehicules allowed on Ulva).  Totally out of touch on phones etc but spied a red telephone box next to the Boathouse restaurant.  We went ashore in a totally still, magic evening to find the telephone box was now a greenhouse for their tomatoes but the proprietor of the Boathouse, that was actually shut, kindly lent us his land line phone and we called Simon to inform him of our position. We rowed back to the boat to be accompanied by an inquisitive Seal.

 The Boathouse.

The wind came up in the night and the following day was F5 to 7 so stayed put trying various ways of stopping the anchor chain snatching in the gusts.  On the last evening we were delighted to see an otter scramble around the sea weed opposite the boat and then swim off.  The next morning we sailed into the loch and I saw an eagle up high above the loch..

Saturday - sailed to Bunessan at the head of Loch Na Lathaich and anchored after rounding Staffa on the way.

 Fingal's Cave

Tobermory

Motored out of Inverie into a nasty chop and a bit of a head wind but eventually we could make a decent starboard tack basically in the right direction missing most of the Ardnamurchan peninsula.  Did a bit of motor sailing round the point and sailed onto Tobermory.  You can see why it is a popular place.   A sheltered and deep bay with options to anchor (free), pick up a mooring buoy (£15 a night) or have a pontoon berth (£2.38 per mtr / night).  We stayed 2 nights on a buoy and the last night on the pontoon to do laundry, buy food, plug into the electric, take on water and use the wifi.

Plockton

We left Inverie after the miday forcast and with a decent wind behind us we sailed up the Sound of Sleat keeping Skye to port.  Sailed past the Sandaig Islands where Gavin Maxwell lived, studied otters and wrote 'Ring of Bright Water'.  Up through the Kyle Rhea narrows onto Loch Alsh where we turned left towards the new Skye Bridge.  Had to ensure we wend under the center as it looked so close but really we had at least 7mts to spare.  Next turned right into Loch Carron and onto Plockton.

 View from the top of the bridge were we went by train the next day.  Plockton is in the distance to the right.

It is a great village and they were having their annual sailing regatta when we were there. They even have their own castle but it is privately owned now.

Stayed for 3 nights and sailed back to Mallaig to pickup the new water pump and take on water.  There was talk of a northerly gale coming in so sailed up to Inverie in the morning to gain some shelter.  We never experienced much wind just a load of rain.  Had 2 nights on a buoy in Inverie for the price of another great meal at the Old Forge.