Arthur's Coastal Cruise 2017 - Part 2
Read MoreDAY 10 - Wednesday, 5th July, 2017
circa 10:48...Kilrush Marina. We had a relaxing day yesterday, a standard procedure for "Arthur" and her crew after a lengthy passage. Last night we were entertained royally by Neill Barnaby at Naughton's Steak and Seafood Restaurant, Kilkee. Today we are planning to head to Dingle. See Windguru forecast on next slide.
Almost too good to be true! Very low winds coupled with low wave height/swell. And direction of wind and wave not an issue. We even contemplated delaying departure until Thursday. But in the end, and it turned out to be fortuitous, we elected to make the passage to Dingle on the Wednesday. it would have been nice to have an ebb tide as we headed own the estuary but unfortunately it was a rising tide. Well, you can't have everything!
circa 17:15..."Arthur" is making her way through the Blasket Sound and the fog is becoming heavy! Radar is now being monitored with intensity. We've been here before and it's not pleasant when visibility deteriorates significantly. It was because of a similar incident a couple of years ago that I subsequently installed radar. This is payback time.
circa 18:38...We have emerged from the Blasket Sound and rounded Slea Head. The fog has lifted somewhat and the entrance to dingle Harbour lies ahead, just about visible in this photo. It is over ninety minutes since I lifted my camera to take a photo. Navigating through fog is stressful and requires a high level of concentration. The radar was useful and identified vessels in the vicinity but thankfully not too close!
"Arthur" snugly berthed after a long and at times arduous passage from Kilrush. Time to relax. A simple meal on-board tonight. We long ago learned that we suffer from 'sea-motion' after long passages and that detracts from the ability to enjoy dining out. We usually reserve that option for the following day when the 'sea-motion' has vanished and we are able to enjoy a meal in a restaurant.
DAY 12 - Friday, 7th July, 2017
We had a quiet relaxing day yesterday. A visit to Supervalu and a walk around Dingle. On the hammerhead alongside us was 'Aleria' owned and sailed by Alex and Daria Blackwell authors of Cruising the Wild Atlantic Way. They were en-route to Galicia having set out from their home berth in Westport at the beginning of the month.
DAY 13 - Saturday, 8th July, 2017
A Bucket List job! Today we will head for Sneem. A first for "Arthur" and her crew who have never before cruised on the Kenmare River. Forecast (see next photo) looks very good. And we will have an ebb tide as we head across Dingle Bay. And a further bonus will be the last few hours of a rising tide as we cruise up the Kenmare River.
Photo shows the mouth of Dingle Harbour circa 11:00 just before we depart Dingle Marina.What a lucky run we are having with the weather! Another day with extremely low winds and gusts albeit that wave height/swell are higher than on our passage from Kilrush to Dingle. And wind and wave direction not perfectly aligned. But then given the low winds it shouldn't matter too much.
Passage length is approximately 44NM which will take us circa 5-6hrs to complete.