A&R Lener

Managed to scrape ourselves away from Pwllheli after two great months there - lovely place for a break! Lagertha got some serious rigging TLC sorted while we were docked: a brand new standing rigging, new chain plates and a few shiny upgrades - including a stay sail furler and a new spray hood and cockpit enclosure is up too 🙌🏻 the old one took quite a battering in 2024 December's storm! Now heading back to the IOM with 20 knots of true wind on the nose barrelling through the Bardsey Sound 📍 off North Wales. Let me tell you, the waves weren't cooperating much today - all over the place and definitely not showing their proper height in these videos! It felt a bit like being tossed around in a washing machine out there 🤪. After we got out of that churning section though - switched off the engine after getting the genoa up. Put the gearbox into reverse (classic Max-Prop fold task)... and then couldn't seem to wrestle the gear lever back into neutral 🤯! Had to turn the prop shaft manually with my hands just to get it sorted, which was definitely a bit of an emergency moment 😐. Added 'gearbox investigation' to our to-do list. Next up, while we're at it - the genoa didn't quite furl completely! Seems like there were a few missing turns on the drum after all that rigging work, especially when it's rolled tight in stronger winds. Anyway, arrived at Porthdinllaen anchorage 😌 and it was a beautiful sunny evening - perfect for recovering from the sea, getting some extra turns on the genoa furler drum and planning our next leg back to the Isle of Man. Sailing life? Never seems to get boring! 😉

Left the lovely anchorage at Porth Dinllaen and set course for Pwllheli, where Lagertha’s getting new rigging. Although the sun was out, we saw nearly nothing, thick fog all the way. 😶‍🌫️🌞 Bardsey Sound was a proper test! Known for ripping tides, overfalls, and wild currents. Made even more exciting by near-zero visibility but luckily nearly no wind and a rather calm sea. The radar got a workout, and the boat turned sharply more than once as the very strong tidal streams took hold. Definitely kept us on our toes! 💨🌊 Our planning was right, we wouldn’t like to be there in unfavourable conditions. Had to keep a sharp lookout for lobster pots, too. Hard to spot when you’re sailing in a cloud. 🦞 Just before we arrived at St Tudwal’s Island for our lunch stop, the fog cleared and the sun came out in full. Beautiful sunny day to anchor and breathe before timing the tide into Pwllheli Marina. Great sailing day and adventurers. #SailingLife #BardseySound #FoggyPassage #RadarTest #PwllheliBound

Up at 4am and off from Port St Mary to catch the fast tide round Anglesey. Timing was spot on to reach the stunning anchorage at Port Dinllaen well before sunset to enjoy a sundowner⛵🌅 A proper adventure: beautiful sunrise, dolphins riding the fast streams, whirlpools swirling past and long stretches of motor sailing under the sun at calm seas. 😎🐬 Not much wind but enough for a good tan and plenty of sea spray! #SailingLife #TidalAdventure #PortDinllaen #SeaEscape

Today’s sail from Peel to Port St Mary was a cracking little shakedown trip! 😎 We slipped through the Sound of Calf – a narrow stretch with some tricky currents to keep you on your toes – but totally worth it for the stunning view of the Drinking Dragon rock. 🐉 The weather played along nicely too: cool, dry, and just enough breeze to keep things interesting. 🌬️ Now tucked in and set up in a good spot for the next leg over to North Wales. ⛵ #SailingLife #IsleOfMan #CalfSound #ShakedownCruise #DrinkingDragon

⛵ Bangor to Peel, Isle of Man: Rolling to Rest Early start today to catch the Donaghadee Sound tide just right. We had some nice downwind sailing, but the Irish Sea was seriously rolling! Had to keep the pace up to make the flap gate at Peel Marina, where Lagertha will get a well-deserved rest—and so will we! Both down with a cold, so we’ll be taking some time off. Our next adventure awaits next season. Can’t wait to set sail again! #sailinglife #bangortopeel #irishsea #rollingwaves #sailinglagertha #westerlyyachts #westerlyoceanlord #iom #peelmarina #segeln #restandrecover #nextadventures

⛵ Belfast to Bangor: Change of Plans We had grand plans to anchor in Bangor and catch the tide in the morning, but the swell had other ideas. After a quick rethink, we decided the marina life wasn’t so bad after all. With the wind and tide playing hard to get, we’ll sit tight, enjoy the comforts, and wait for Mother Nature to cooperate! #sailinglife #belfasttobangor #sailingadventures #sailinglagertha #westerlyyachts #westerlyoceanlord #segeln #marinalife #swellproblems #flexiblesailing

⛵ Chasing the Summer: Glenarm to Belfast City Marina Set off from Glenarm with full sails, but had to reef early due to some squalls with a bit of rain. Thankfully, the rest of the journey was mostly dry and sunny. Enjoyed some lovely days in Belfast, soaking up the sunshine and even fitting in a pub crawl! 🌞🍻

⛵ North Channel Crossing to Glenarm: A Lesson in Patience and Timing Good planning is everything when crossing the North Channel—wind and tide need to line up perfectly. We set off with a southerly wind, knowing it would turn westerly by the time we reached the tide running in our favor, from north to south. The sea state was rough at the start, with the tide and wind against us. But Lagertha, our trusty boat, handled the challenging conditions like a champ. We were tacking south with our stay sail, making little progress and fighting the tide. Then, just as we were about to complete a tack, we noticed we were still on the same heading. For a moment, we were confused—had something gone wrong? But no, it was the wind shift we’d been waiting for, arriving so abruptly that it took us by surprise. With the shift, we enjoyed a smooth 45°-60° sail down to Glenarm, this time with our genoa. The final stretch was a mixed bag of calm winds, squalls, heavy rain, and bursts of sunshine. We’re glad to be safely in Glenarm now, prepping for our next leg to Belfast.

After days of hiding from stronger winds and gales in Ardfern, it started to feel like a prison. The constant battle of wind against tide was wearing us down. Today, the wind was lighter but still right on the nose and against the tide—at least we were spared the rain and had some sunshine! We decided to give our stay sail a try, thinking the gusts around 20 knots were ideal for testing. And wow, we’re in love with it now! We set the autopilot to 30° on the wind, and Lagertha sailed like a dream. If only we’d tried it earlier on this trip 😅. Now, we’re back to hiding from the next gale in Port Ellen, sipping on whisky and waiting for a good weather window to cross the North Channel to Ireland. If you’re looking to train for heavy weather sailing, West Scotland in August is the place to be! We’ve only had a couple of nice days between all the strong winds and gales. We’ve learned a lot and are grateful for the experience, but a bit more of that holiday vibe from the start of our journey wouldn’t have been so bad either.