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  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 21

    Inishbofin or Clifden ?

    June 13, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    We woke early and got the dinghy and outboard aboard before lifting the anchor.
    The anchor had dug in too well and we thought at first it might have got caught in a mooring chain but it finally came up with plenty of sticky mud.
    It was still a bit damp this morning but visibility was much better.

    On the way out we checked for the visitors mooring and found them on the other side of the bay. We wouldn’t have gone ashore if we had moored to them last night as they are too far away from the harbour except in fine settled weather and an outboard would definitely be necessary.

    We hoisted the main with a reef and soon after unfurled about 80% of the genny and set off on a course to take us 2 miles south of Slyne Head as we didn’t have the bottle to chance the Joyce’s Pass.
    It was strange experience to be passing places that normally you only hear of in the weather forecasts.

    The forecast had been for a Force 4-5 but it felt more like 5-6. Being slightly off the wind ‘Eureka’ took it in her stride.
    Due to the conditions we went well past the headland before turning north towards High Island, now on a reach but the wind was slowly increasing.

    The new forecast at midday gave us a westerly Force 6 later today and Force 7 or 8 tomorrow so I was having second thoughts about continuing onto Inishbofin.
    Brian had the wheel while I studied the charts and sailing directions for options.
    I told Brian that it was basically Clifden, which was off our starboard bow or continuing on to Inishbofin, where holding was described as ‘indifferent’.
    We quickly agreed, put another reef in, changed course and had a nice broad reach surfing the waves into Clifden Bay.

    Clifden offered more shelter from the forecasted westerly winds and had visitor moorings. Once inside the wind dropped and so did the sails as we headed up the bay and picked up a mooring.

    Shortly after we arrived we went ashore to the small landing pontoon near the lovely clubhouse of Clifden Bay Boat Club. Unfortunally due to covid its restaurant wasn’t opened so we had a nice scenic walk into Clifden town, just 1.6 km away.
    We spent the evening strolling around the lovely town before stopping to quench our thirst.

    The owner of the pub on seeing our oilskins began chatting with us and it turned out that he had seen us come in when he was down checking his own yacht.
    We were offered a lift back with our provisions to the mooring which we gladly accepted as the rain had returned, quite heavily this time.
    The heating was turned on as Brian cooked the dinner and the skipper wrote up the log.
    Someone should have told the weather that it was the middle of June!

    We knew from the forecasts that we’d be spending at least another night and maybe two in Clifden so we settled down to make the best of it.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 22

    Great weather except for the wind

    June 14, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    The overnight rain had stopped by the time we woke the next morning and it was warm, even in the strong breeze.
    Only for the forecast I'd be casting off and heading out to sea.
    Today is Monday and it looks like we'll be staying put till Wednesday when the wind is due to drop in the morning but otherwise the weather is pleasant.

    When we went ashore we met Jackie Ward who is the 'welcoming committee' for the boat club.
    He appears in the book I'm reading at the moment which is on loan from Jim and it seems he meets most boats that arrive in Clifden.
    He opened up one of the rooms so that we could leave our oilskins and lifejackets safely inside and showed us where they hide the key but we're sworn to secrecy under pain of a keelhauling.

    It was nice and warm once we were out of the breeze. We walked into Clifden taking it in turns to carry the empty gas cylinder.
    I found a coffee shop and had a coffee and doughnut, Brian had the healthy option, just a cup of tea.
    We rang the man with the gas and organised to collect a bottle from his shop which was closed due to covid, before we did the provisioning and then got a taxi back to the club.
    We left our shopping inside until we were ready to collect it later and returned in the taxi back into Clifden where we found a lovely traditional pub and sat outside it in the sun…..yes sun!

    Bernie, the barmaid took a shine to Brian and the slagging between them had me holding my sides with the laughter.
    In fairness she treated most of the customers in the same friendly way, but Brian was giving as good as he was getting which only encouraged her.

    We wandered further down the town and had dinner outside before returning to ‘Eureka’ and almost straight to bed.

    Clifden is a great place to be weather-bound!    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 23

    A quite day afloat

    June 15, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    We stayed onboard on our third day in Clifden, relaxing and getting ‘Eureka’ ready as it looked like the winds were due to ease by tomorrow afternoon.

    We started the engine for some hot water for a shower and to feed the batteries.

    The rest of the day was spent relaxing and catching up on some reading and we watched a DVD or two later that evening after dinner.
    Except for the rain on the first night and the wind, the weather had been nice during our stay in Clifden. It was a good place for provisioning and the natives were friendly.

    We're keeping our fingers crossed that the forecast is correct and that we'll be in Inishbofin tomorrow night.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 24

    Finally the sun arrives

    June 16, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    The next morning we sat in the cockpit having a leisurely breakfast as we listened to the wind beginning to ease. It was nice and bright and fairly warm and life was good.

    The forecasts, Force 5-6 dropping to Force 4-5 with the coastal reports confirming that the wind was dropping so it looked like we were going to be on our way to Inishbofin about noon.
    We got the sails ready for hoisting and prepared for sea like two excited youngsters on their first adventure.

    We left the mooring at 11.53, hoisted a reefed main and headed out.
    There was a big swell outside, bigger than any I’d seen since the gale off Brest while bringing ‘Eureka’ home and I didn’t like it one little bit.

    The west coast is a different beast to what we're used to down south and has to be treated with respect.
    Having the mainsail up as we left stopped us from rolling until we were able to change course NW and onto a reach when we unfurled about a third of the genny.

    We made good time and went through High Island Sound, one of many of the same name on our coasts where we changed course NNE straight for Inishbofin.
    The swell was now on our port quarter as we surfed along almost on a run.

    We didn’t have a huge distance to run but the large swell made steering difficult as ‘Eureka’ twisted when we lost some of the wind in the bottom of the swell.
    We dropped the main to help steady the boat and as it had been smothering the genny a bit and we continued under genoa and turned on the engine to give us a bit of drive when we slowed in the bottom of the waves and things became much more comfortable as well as giving a badly needed charge to the batteries.

    The entrance to Inishbofin harbour looked very narrow as we approached and it was difficult to keep the leading marks in line in the swell that was breaking off the nearby rocks but we were soon inside and under the shelter of Cromwell’s Barracks, an impressive ruin to starboard.

    It took three attempts before I was happy with the anchor.
    The first try had our anchor getting caught on a mooring chain. By freakish luck the tip of our plough got caught in a link of the chain and we were able to pull it up just enough to get the boat hook on the chain and free the anchor.
    Our second try brought up half the seabed and I had to chop away the weed to find the anchor before trying to reset again but eventually we were happy.

    Satisfied at last we went ashore and did a good bit of exploring in the sun, discovered we had to climb the hill beside the harbour for a phone signal to report home and when all that was done, we settled back with a pint or two in the sun as we eat ashore.

    Summer had arrived on the west coast. We had started in oilskins when we left Clifden and arrived in Inishbofin in shorts and t-shirts. We are looking forward to having a good luck around tomorrow as the sun is supposed to stay with us.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 25

    So showers, no food but great weather!

    June 17, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Next morning the sun was still around and it was lovely and bright.
    I found after a change in wind direction that we were too close for comfort to another mooring. I shortened the chain but it didn't make any difference.
    When Brian got up, up came the anchor yet again and we found another spot with more room and good holding and wondered why we didn’t anchor there yesterday.

    After breakfast we went ashore to pay a visit to Cromwell’s Barracks or Fort as it's sometimes called and while there I had a eureka moment.
    I realised we were near the top of the tide not the bottom so our anchorage was too shallow and that’s why we hadn’t gone there yesterday!
    We luckily didn't have to rush back and while we were moving the boat yet again a local in a passing rib offered us the use of his mooring as he wasn’t using it at the moment which we gratefully took up after we had gone into the old pier to fill with water.
    It was Brian's idea seeing that we were moving the boat anyway.

    Once we were tied up we went ashore again for more exploring etc.
    The community centre did showers and we hoped to take them up on the offer but it turned out that the advertised opening hours were not the ones being kept by the community. Probably with the good weather had sent them all to the beach.

    We stopped at the hotel for lunch but were too late so had a pint on the lawn instead and checked about dinner for non residents. No problem!
    Oh yes it was, when we went back, so we had to go elsewhere. Pity, they had a nice menu.

    Brian took off up the hill for a long phone call making me think he had jumped ship but he arrived back as if he had only been gone a minute or two.
    We settled for dinner in 'Day's on the beach' and headed back to Eureka as the sun went down.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 26

    Granuaile we're on our way!

    June 18, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    It was flat calm this morning and hot. No, I wasn’t complaining!
    I had woken early deciding to leave Brian sleeping and tiptoed around as I got ready to leave but just as I left the mooring he stuck his head up to see if he was needed.
    He wasn't but was soon on deck anyway as we left the harbour.

    The wind never appeared as we motored around the east side of Inishbofin and then north in a flat calm.
    We left Inishturk to port. I'd have liked to have stopped but the days were moving on and I needed to get Brian to Sligo town by the 24th.
    As we headed for Clare Island the scenery was becoming more spectacular the future north we went.

    We arrived at Clare Island at 12.20 and picked up what looked like a brand new visitor mooring buoy.
    We went ashore, visiting Granuaile’s castle before continuing on along the south side of the island as far as the abbey where she is reputed to be buried. Unfortunally it was locked so we could only look in the windows.
    It was lovely to be in shorts and t-shirt but later while we had a late lunch / early dinner at the hotel it began to get cold as the breeze came up and the sun went down. So much for showing my legs to the sun!

    While we were having dinner we had a front seat view of the Life boat and Coast Guard helicopter arriving out at the island for a medical emergency.

    Later when we went back to the boat. I had to have a quick shower to warm up and I discovered that one of the rubber end caps on the heat exchanger on the engine had split.

    Disaster! Would we be able to carry on?
    We were miles from civilisation as far as spare parts were concerned. Would I need a mechanic?
    Right, calm down I said to myself and get out the engine manual.
    After reading the manual I had a good hand on what needed to be done and was happy I could do it myself.
    I used some self-amalgamating tape as a bandage and it slowed the leak to a drip.
    Then Brian reminded that I had a roll of heavy duty self-amalgamating tape onboard and even better he knew where it was.
    Crew like that………………………..priceless.

    I later used that when we got to our next anchorage which stopped the leak, the rest could wait till Sligo.
    Maeve was going to order the spare parts and bring them to Sligo, if she was able to make it to Sligo and if they arrived in time.
    A lot of ifs but at least the repair was holding and I’d be able to flush the system properly when I got to Sligo.

    While I had been playing with the engine, Brian returned to the island to use the laundry and was delayed in getting back as the dryers were taking their own bloody time.
    Unfortunally there was no phone signal ashore so I got a bit anxious but he later appeared out of the dark. All was well.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 27

    Hiding from the weather . . .again

    June 19, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    A swell came straight into the harbour on Clare Island during the early hours and woke me at 06.30.
    I got up to check the mooring but everything was ok, I didn't know how Brian was sleeping through it. I couldn’t get back to sleep so I decided to leave early.

    Brian was awake and up when I was ready to slip the mooring and we headed out at 08.40 with the main already hoisted
    Luckily there was a nice easterly breeze so I didn’t have run the engine for long. I didn't want to test our repair too much. It was dripping but not losing much water.

    The forecast was for a N / NE Force 7 for the next two days so we decided head for Black Sod Bay before the winds arrived.
    We probably would have got as far as Broad Haven if not further but Broad Haven looked open from the north and the next harbour, Killala, was totally open. I had heard that the Navy used Black Sod Bay to shelter from gales so I decided to do the same.
    The sailing directions said that Elly Harbour in Black Sod was the best shelter for northerly winds so that's where we headed.

    We had a nice reach at 5 to 6 knots until we reached the massive cliffs of Achill which blocked the wind until we got to the mouth of the bay and picked it up again.
    Later as the wind died we motored north up the bay to Elly Harbour passing lovely beaches which makes this area so popular for holidays. We found a spot to anchor in the shallow sandy inlet and dug in well leaving out plenty of chain. We had the place to ourselves.

    Rather than a harbour as we know it, it was just a large shallow sandy bay surrounded on three sides by low lying land.

    We went ashore and began walking to find a shop and some petrol for the outboard then a Landover stopped beside us and offered us a lift to the nearest petrol station…….in the opposite direction and brought us back again.
    For some reason, probably because we had nothing else to do we walked to the shop and back again. Jim would have been proud of us, a total of 12 kms.

    We returned to Eureka which lying in the middle of the bay nice and calm as the sun started to go down.
    Dinner over, we watched a dvd to pass the night away before going to bed.
    It was hard to believe the weather is to change.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 28

    Blow wind blow

    June 20, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    I woke up early, checked the forecast and went back to sleep.
    It was after 10.00 before I woke up again.
    All was fairly calm as we had breakfast and caught up with some chores.

    We were wondering about going ashore but that thought was soon put to bed as the wind started to increase at noon.
    By 13.00 it was clear that we weren't going to be getting off the boat today.
    At 15.00 I was leaving out more chain and we had dragged a little. Luckily we had plenty of room.
    In the space of 3 hours the wind had gone from a Force 3 to a 7!

    We have a small generator which we used for the first time in Clifden but we needed it again today as we wouldn't be running the engine until we were leaving Black Sod.
    We left it on until the batteries were fully charged again. Would love to have solar panels but need an arch to make it worth our while.

    Brian spent the afternoon reading in the cockpit while I did some chartwork and passage planning down below.
    It was quite warm under the spray hood but as soon as we stuck our heads outside it, we were nearly blown away and cooled down rapidly.

    Later as I was inspecting under the aft berth I discovered about five litres of water around the rudder stock.
    Having checked to see if it was fresh or salt, I found it was the latter which meant that the rudder seals were leaking.
    The Moody Owners Assoc. has a great technical forum which is a great help and I discovered we didn't need to put out a mayday.
    Hopefully it won't get worse but shows that a boat needs constant minding.

    Eureka swung around on her anchor all day while we just chilled out and discussed how we were going to get Brian to Sligo.
    He didn't mind delaying a day but I had told Brenda that I'd have there on time and on time he'd be.

    Brian made a mismash for dinner consisting of mashed spuds, sausages, carrots and peas which was lovely. As they say, hunger is a great sauce.

    We are thinking of doing an overnight to Killala Bay tomorrow as the forecast is for the winds to drop later tomorrow. If we are successful then we'll be in Sligo the day before Brenda arrives to take Brian home.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 29

    Turn right at Erris Head

    June 21, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Time was running out for Brian. The plan was that Brenda, his wife, would collect him from Sligo town on the 24th and this was the 21st.
    While Brenda was willing to delay, both Brian and I wanted to paint the Sligo pink if not red on our last night

    I woke up at 01.00 and the wind had died. I thought for a few seconds about leaving and making run for it but the forecast said no.
    By 07.00 the wind was back up but not quite as strong as yesterday.

    After lunch I was passage planning and then we just settled down for the afternoon and waited for the wind to die down.

    I had planned an overnight voyage to get north around Erris Head and then east to Killala Bay with the final leg up into Sligo on the 23rd.
    We hoped to leave at 19.00 if conditions allowed.

    We had our dinner and all was looking good and we left on time, motoring down Blacksod with the wind behind us.
    I was a bit worried about the conditions what we’d find when we got out of the shelter of the bay.
    We hoisted the main but in doing so Brian tore a muscle in his chest and was in pain anytime he moved.

    At the mouth the seas were surprisingly calm but once in the open waters there was a good swell but the main helped to steady us.
    The wind was right on the nose and didn’t suit sailing so we stayed inside the Inishkea Islands and other rocks which helped keep the swell down on the inside passage and motored north.

    Off Eagle Island we were able to sail for a while on a reach until we off Broad Haven but the light wind and the swell wasn’t doing anything for the sails so we had to drop them and motor the rest of the way to Killala Bay where we picked up a visitor mooring just inside the entrance at 08.50.

    Brian was feeling very uncomfortable anytime he moved and I was thinking of calling a doctor but luckily we had some pain killers onboard and eventually he fell asleep followed soon after by me.    Read more

  • TravelerKeeping Ireland to Starboard
    Day 30

    Pit stop at Killala

    June 22, 2021 in Ireland ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    We didn’t wake up until the afternoon and found when we stuck our noses outside that it had become misty and showery. Didn't entice us to go ashore. We had a very late breakfast, lazed around and read etc.

    Kilcummin where we had moored was the landing place of the French in 1798
    We were still tired after last night journey and at times we just caught up on sleep.
    After dinner we watched a dvd and had an early night looking forward to Sligo tomorrow.    Read more

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