Sailing Trip Round Ireland, Leg 2: Rathlin Island -> Greystones
We had survived and now with a passage under our belts
There was a sense of pride and connection among the crew. Wherever we started two days ago, we had together sailed over the the north of the Island to a new Island, that of Rathlin.
We were clear on our heading, if not on our destination, into the Irish Sea heading straight south. It was an afternoon 1400 UTC+1 cast off and we were well fed and ready for whatever was next.
Starting slowly
The wind was low was we started motor-sailing to keep our cruising minimum. And the weather was turning in our favour. The weather is a constant threat and hope when you sail, it changes every moment of the coming time ahead.
We know the theoretical route with all our apps and charts but the reality was ahead of us.
Driving ahead to get through these tidal gates was our main purpose. And to prepare for another overnight set of watches.
New Watches
So you think that you have just adjusted to something and it gets changed straight away.
- Watch 1: 10pm to 2am, Team 2 (flipped from Team 1)
- Watch 2: 2am to 6am, Team 1 (flipped from Team 2)
- Watch 3: 6am to …, Team 2 (flipped from Team 1)
Honestly, it was done with idea of fairness, that the different team would be up in the middle of the night but there was still the idea of shifting our body-clock. Ready or not here we come!
The beauty before us!
Little did we realise the wonders that we were to see ahead…
As a golden evening closed our day, the best was yet to come. We team 2 headed off to sleep to charge our batteries for the 2pm wake-up call! And I did ask that someone would not be afraid to give me a good ‘push’ to wake up this not-so-light sleeper!
The night never felt so good!
We were woken again by Team 1 so we would come up on the deck and steer us through the middle of the night. As I came up the companionway, the sky was so clear with the moon, the planets and the stars out in their full majesty that it lightened my heart and the conversation of the Team.
Moonrise was a concept that I hadn’t really thought about until recently. Does the moon rise every night? When does it rise? When does it set? And id it doesn’t it would be great to know when it would be there. And it would be great to know if it would be visible or blocked by our all to friendly clouds.
We started the conversation on the Moon and how it can support our voyage and then we ventured onto the topic of Celestial Navigation and the use of sextants which is required for the YachtMaster Ocean Exam. It is such a fascinating subject and really helps us connect to the rest of the Universe in a way. Astronomy starts to have a practical use and when you are curious, you can simply look and wonder about what is up there! The idea that technology is not really needed on a boat is very appealing.
The Golden Globe is one such race that asks a man or woman to circumnavigate the globe without GPS and to use the traditional navigational tools of sailors. And the day before we set sail, the race finished on the east coast of France with a woman winning it for the first time Kirsten Neuschafer. And a very handy app for following sailing races is YB Races (Yellow Brick) IOS ¦ Android.
No more than turning off the engine and just sailing has its appeal, not bringing electronics and sailing by the sun, the moon, the constellation of Aries, 4 planets (Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn) and 57 stars has a similar appeal. And to do this, we learn the concepts of the universe and how we use it to determine our position on earth with the help of a sextant and the Nautical Almanac Sight Reduction Tables.
It just could be a more beautiful evening, as we shared our thoughts on what sailing is and could be for us. The night was now becoming more appealing.
Team 2 headed off to bed satisfied having began a new relationship with the night. A night that never got so dark between sunset and sunrise but was light up by the moon and our wonderings on possibilities
Becoming aware of different headsails
We started the voyage with a Jib which is the most common head sail and this is an area of knowledge that comes with experience of different types of sailing. The are two main headsail types:
- The Jib — It is s a triangular staysail set in front of the mast. It’s the same size as the fore-triangle.
- The Genoa — It is a large jib that overlaps the mainsail a.k.a. an overlapping jib.
And now we were about to extend our knowledge to an additional sailtype known as a Code Zero. A Code Zero is used in light winds for improved performance of the boat. It is a cross between the genoa and the asymmetrical spinnaker (gennaker). And what we had looked impressive and was allowing us to sail much faster.
This new Code Zero sail was giving us the speed and momentum to keep up a decent pace down the Irish Sea. We all started taking turns to see how she handled.
We were about to pass by the largest city in Ireland with a completely different perspective. Legs out over the side we watched and enjoyed this new view.
The Capital City from the Sea
Dublin is known to us all to some degree, yet each time we look at something from a new angle, our relationship with it changes. We were slipping down the east side of Dublin looking on it from afar. And it seems even more pleasant from here!
My Coastline
This was the beginning of the coastline that I knew in detail from the land and more recently from the sea. Once we glanced the Baily Lighthouse, I felt at home. I said out loud that this was my home turf, but it didn’t seem right. And from the Team, the Navigator, upgraded my wording to ‘home surf’ which felt right!
The Kish its Lighthouse, its bank and all the contours of the land behind felt close because I had travelled, walked, cycled, driven, bused, trained them, so with delight I pointed out to the crew the parts that I thought may interest the most. This one little coastline felt miniscule in comparison to what I dreamed to see but it was a start.
As we ventured south towards County Wicklow, the intensity of my awareness of what we were looking at hit its peak, as I was looking at my ‘home turf’ in the truest sense.
It is funny to have lived a life so close to something and yet never have been there! That something was simply the sea looking onto the land where I normally live.
Entry into a new Harbour
We were looking forward to another stay of rest, washing, eating and respite. Our Skipper had mentioned here as one of his points of refuge on previous voyages and we were nearly there!
We made it in but it was a little more complicated to find a ‘home’ for the boat.
Leg 2 was complete, great progress in 3 long days!
Next: Sailing Trip Round Ireland, Stop 2: Greystones
Previous: Sailing Trip Round Ireland, Stop 1: Rathlin Island
