Sun 19th – Wed 22nd April
On the Sunday night we passed by the north of Cornwall and said goodbye to the coast as we pushed away up St Georges Channel towards Wales and Ireland. I felt incredibly lucky on the night watches to be able to experience the night sky from sea. As you would expect there is hardly any light pollution and you can see a lot more stars than you can on land. It’s not the most detailed view you can get, but I could make out a dusting of the Milky Way. The main task on the boat, as you would expect, is steering, something that needs someone manning every second of the day. I was able to take the helm and experience the concentration needed to keep the boat going in the right direction. You generally have a baring to follow, a degree off north, which you can follow on the compass, or on the electric reading devices. There are lots of other readings on the electric devices which help at different points, but the main ones I found us using were generally the wind angle, which helps you know where to position in order to fill the sails to the best affect, the wind speed and boat speed, and the water depth. The electric device readings are always delayed, as they read after you have actioned. You move the wheel, it detects where you moved it to, therefore delayed, not instant. On this basis, the compass is the best source to navigate with. Although another source to utilise is the old-fashioned method of natural sources. During the day you can use the sun and cloud positioning to keep a steady direction, and at night you can utilise the stars. It also saves you looking down at the compass every couple of seconds. With the clouds and the stars, you pick an area between the mast, shroud and stable, and see an image, almost like framing a picture, and you keep this ‘picture’ in the ‘frame’. Obviously, this image has to change as time goes by and the clouds/stars/sun move. I really enjoyed using the stars to navigate, it felt like a connection to the past, how the old sailors from before technological advancements did it. I started to have so much respect for how they were brave enough to get out on the sea with basic navigational equipment, battling weather and unknown lands.
As we moved up St Georges Channel into Monday evening, we passed Arklow in Ireland, which has a port, and a couple of the crew had been to previously. We passed a sea windfarm and got some great views of the Irish mountain ranges as the sun was setting. On our change of direction north up St Georges Channel we had the benefit of the north easterly winds to keep us going at a good speed, which also created an active sail, and during the Monday night we had a bit of a storm approaching. The waves had picked up while I was on the 11pm-3am watch, but while I was asleep the other watch were battling stronger winds and had to reduce the main sail by putting in a second reef (having already had one in). The main sail has two reefs at the wide, bottom end of the sail, meaning you can reduce the size of the sail during strong winds. First reef brings the sail down about 15% and the second reef brings it down a further 15%. This stops the boat being overpowered by the wind. The boat was bouncing up and down during the storm, battling the waves, and the watch that was on had to call on Adrian and Will from my watch to help. Ideally, we should have changed the foresail from a 3 to a 4, but skipper didn’t want to risk this during a stormy night with poor visibility. No-one had called on me for my help, so I kept quiet and out the way while the action happened above, listening to the waves smacking the bowe of the boat. It can be quite unnerving as it sounds like the boat is going to snap in half or have a hole pummelled in the front, but I had complete trust in the guys sailing that this was normal and not to be alarmed.
Coming on watch at 3am the bulk of the storm had passed, but the winds were still strong and made for a tiring sail. While the winds were strong, I stayed off the helm, it can be a very tiring job, physically and mentally, and rotation is important. The boat is at a tilt when using the wind to its best advantage and standing at the helm while not only holding the wheel, but maintaining accurate direction, takes its toll. It can also be tiring sitting on the deck, again with the boat at a tilt, you are maintaining balance to sit at around a 45-degree angle. I mean it’s not a workout, but you are using core muscles, you’re not lounging sunbathing!
After checking out the route, wind directions and tides, Skipper decided it would be best to moor at Bangor Harbour for the Tues night. We had to try and judge it so that we came into Tarbert Marina in the day. We could arrive in the night, but things were so much easier in the daylight. So, judging which harbour to best stop at enroute we chose Bangor. We arrived at 5.30ish with more brilliant sunshine and were thankful for the stop and rest, first bit of firm land under foot for 4 days. First stop was the pub and the guys all had a Guinness, well would be rude not to in Ireland. Most of us took advantage of the fantastic showers, spending extra-long just standing under the warmth, enjoying being clean after 4 days of limited washing. And after another hearty meal, this time provided by Will, of chicken casserole, we got an early night ready to embark on the next day with a 6am set sail.
The day started with brilliant sunshine again, I can say we had been truly blessed with the weather while on this trip, sunshine every day! It was calm in the shelter of the marina, so we changed the foresail to the number 4 sail. Once we headed out onto the open sea again the wind was strong. Battling across the North Channel we contended with a very choppy sea. The waves weren’t massive, but with the wind going in north easterly direction and us sailing hard against the wind, it was hard going with the boat smacking against them. But with the sun out and knowing the destination was in reach we all enjoyed the last day. Once we were in the shelter of Isle of Arran the wind died down slightly but would rear its head again depending on what shelter we had from which part of Arran. The views were fantastic, seeing Goat Fell and Arrans mountain range in such clarity on the beautiful day it was, I felt very privileged. Skipper had estimated we would be pulling into Harbour about 5ish, and we ended up motoring in at around 5.30pm, perfect timing. A celebratory beer, another brilliant homecooked meal from Will of Chilli Con Carne, and a nice hot shower at the marina’s brilliant facilities, and we were off to the pub for a few more celebratory drinks.
It has been an experience I will never forget and totally appreciate the generosity of the rest of the crew in taking me under their wing, allowing me to come along, and sharing all their valuable knowledge along the way. They are a great group of guys, and so easy to get on with. As with most of these experiences, the fun and memories of these life events are made by the people you share them with.