Thomas Rowe

Left Cernarfon and headed up the straits and through the Swellies at HWS. Dodged a regatta racing right over the channel at Beaumaris and then in to Deganwy quickly to avoid getting very wet.

Woke up to a lovely anchorage, lovely weather and calm seas. Motored around the southern tip of Llandwyn island and then through the bar just before high water. Arrived in Victoria Dock, fuelled the boat and then positioned in the mooring.

Left Holyhead and rounded South Stack with Niko on Wiggle. Stopped for some fishing and caught 13 mackerel. Randomly saw a fridge floating so reported it to the coastguard. Couple of beers and a BBQ on the beach.

Left the anchorage at 5:30 and headed south straight to Holyhead. Had to tack around the skerries but a very nice sail in to Holyhead.

Left Carrickfergus at 6:30am and left the channel under motor. Headed through the Donaghadee channel and then set a course for the calf of man. Long crossing with some really changeable conditions, no wind and then 25 knots close hauled. Rounded the calf of man with the tide against us and were very tempted to just head straight for Holyhead overnight but the wind was a little too much to be comfortable. Rounded the bottom of the Isle of Man and grabbed a mooring buoy in Port St Mary. Another early start tomorrow to Holyhead!

Left the marina at Rathlin Island at 5:30am to leave and get the tide all the way down the coast. Some really strong tides and we flew down past Glenarm. Rounded the corner as the tide turned and then had to get out the way of a survey vessel. Waited outside the marina for some wind and rain to pass over and then headed in to the marina. Two nights in the marina and a trip to Belfast is on the cards!

Left Glenarm at 11:30 to get the tide up to the North East corner of NI. Sailed all the way up with between 10-15 knots of westerly wind. Rain came is as we rounded the top of NI. Crossed the Rathlin sound and came in to Rathlin Marina. Lovely little marina but absolutely chucking it down when we arrived.

Lovely day of sailing. Force 5-6 and very calm seas. Tide pushed us nicely up towards Norther Ireland. In Glenarm Marina for the night before heading up to Islay

Left Peel aiming for Portaferry but soon realised we couldn’t make the course and it would have taken us hours and hours to get there so we changed our mind and headed to a sheltered anchorage just behind the Mull of Galway Lighthouse. Force 6-7 with squalls and rain. Swell was between 2-3m.

Left Deganwy around 0530 and headed straight for the IOM wind was a little off at first, slightly off where the forecast was saying so we had to head slightly more north. As we got in to the middle of the channel a fair swell picked up but it soon dropped as we got closer to the IOM. Rounded chicken rock and the calf of man and then a nice slow passage up to Peel as we couldn’t get in to the marina until 1853. Evening in Peel and a few Guinness.