Back to Bantry and on to Lawrence Cove Republic of Ireland

Early sun views sailing across to Bantry

Friday 30 May needed an early 0600hrs alarm call to get us across to Bantry for when the laundrette opened. With everything tidied away on Blue Velvet, we raised anchor at 0640hrs and set off for the short passage eventually dropping anchor again off Bantry Harbour at 0805hrs. Sails stowed, we immediately kicked into gear inflating the dinghy and putting the outboard on it so that we could get ashore promptly. It was just as well that we did, because we were at the head of the queue when the doors opened and there weren’t enough washing machines to look after everyone waiting. Making the effort to arrive on the dot of opening had been well worth it!

The fabulous market cheese stall 

With the laundry on, we had time to retrace our steps and visit the Sunday market which had just been setting up as we walked from our dinghy into town. There were a few gems; notably the cheese stall, and also a couple of stalls selling freshly baked bread. We indulged at those before moving on to the supermarket to pick up a couple of extra store cupboard items we’d missed during our last visit plus a bag of local mussels.

Dropping off the laundry, food shopping and bouncing back to the laundrette to rotate the washes and get everything into driers, meant there wasn’t much time for taking photos. But whilst the tumble driers ran through their cycles we did have a good chat with Allan and Claire on board Moonstone of Aberdour who miraculously had decided to do their laundry at the same time as us. They were planning to stay for the next week or so whilst the bad weather goes through, maybe taking in a bus trip to Cork for a few days.

Beating west in Bantry Bay

Back at Blue Velvet we got underway as soon as we could, consciousthat teh moderate winds wouldn't be with us for long.

Beating west in Bantry Bay

The red line showing our zip zag route beating from Bantry to Lawrence Cove

The forecast had been for the wind to back southerly but that was not to be, so we beat our way west towards Berehaven and anchored off Lawrence Cove Marina on Bere Island at the end of the afternoon.

Looking south into Lawrence Cove

Wild Atlantic Glamping 

Looking east from the anchorage with Bere Island to the right

It was lovely to enjoy the late afternoon sunshine at anchor, though frustrating to think that if the laundrette had been operational on Wednesday we could have made full use of the day’s favourable winds and got around the corner into the Kenmare River, or beyond.

Moule a là Reg

But such is life, and we enjoyed the beautiful afternoon…..and an evening meal (Moule a là Reg) in the cockpit. The first meal al fresco for a long time!

Lawrence Cove, Bere Island, West Cork, Republic of Ireland

Back to Glengarriff West Cork Republic of Ireland

Weather forecast for 0400hrs on 29 May

This was the weather forecast that got us questioning whether it was wise to stay in Bantry overnight. During the previous evening, we had found that the wind had funnelled down Bantry Bay and that whilst the anchorage had shelter, there was an unsettled slop that pushed the boat about and made things uncomfortable. The forecast showed a stronger wind coming with gusts of up to 30knots. Despite the faff of stowing the dinghy and moving anchorages, we both felt that moving was the right thing to do.

Back in Glengarriff in almost the identical spot

So at 1605hrs, after stowing all of our food shopping, we raised anchor in Bantry and set off for Glengarriff. The sky was overcast and grey but the wind wasn’t particularly strong. However, as we motored the last mile into Glengarriff Bay we immediately noticed how smooth the water was. Another yacht, Marguerite, was just ahead of us entering the bay and happily she did the rounds of the mooring buoys and the channel close to Garinish Island to find a space they liked, which meant that we could hightail it to our favoured anchorage and settle down there with plenty of chain out to allow for the forecast winds. We dropped anchor at 1650hrs in almost the identical spot that we had been in before…

Marguerite, our close neighbour for the blow

… and 10 minutes later we were joined by Marguerite who had also decided that the western side of the bay was the most sheltered anchorage for the imminent blow.

And so it proved to be. It wasn’t until early on Friday 30 May that the wind abated enough for us to feel it was prudent to return to Bantry, but we were perfectly safe and secure anchored in Glengarriff and the pause did gave us a bit of time to catch up on admin. We subsequently spoke to Allan and Claire on board Moonstone of Aberdour and they had found that even being on a mooring buoy outside Bantry Harbour was uncomfortable.  They had spoken to the harbourmaster and a couple of the yachts in the marina had moved slightly to allow them to squeeze in for a few days. We were very glad we had decided to move back to Glengarriff.

Glengarriff Bay, West Cork, Republic of Ireland

Bantry County Cork Republic of Ireland

With a lull in the wind forecast we raised the anchor in Glengarriff at 1510hrs on Tuesday 27 May to make our way over to Bantry ready for the morning. We hadn’t realised just how sheltered the anchorage in Glengarriff is until we were outside of the bay surfing down small waves with up to 10 knots of speed. We had 20-25knots of wind throughout and gusts of up to 30knots; certainly a little livelier than we had expected.

Anchored off Bantry

The 7-mile trip around to Bantry was very quick and in what seemed like no time at all we had dropped our anchor just west of the town pier. As we approached we could see that there was no space for us at the little marina, so anchoring overnight was the only option. Whilst the anchorage was quite open to the west the forecast did suggest that the wind would back to the southwest overnight perhaps giving us a little more shelter.

Bantry entrance and Town Quay 

On the plus side, we were close the harbour entrance so it would be a short dinghy ride and we were in position ready for an early start in the morning to get the laundry going as soon as the laundrette opened. 

Bantry House – and a useful transit (yacht mast and windows) to check that BVoS wasn’t dragging her anchor

We also had an excellent view of the rather grand Bantry House.

Walking into Bantry

In the morning we walked into town lugging a heavy bag of laundry and 2 rucksacks ready to be filled with food shopping after we had dropped off the laundry.

The first stop, however, brought a bit of a shock.  The laundrette’s doors were open but they were having all of the washing machines replaced so it was closed for business! We chatted and the staff suggested that the machines might be ready by 1600hrs and that they would keep the shop open for us as we had explained that it was going to blow strongly overnight and we really wanted to be back in the shelter of Glengarriff overnight. Fortunately, they were happy for us to leave our heavy laundry bag so we didn’t have to lug it around.

The eastern end of Bantry harbour and a useful run of free-of-charge recycling bins, but only
for glass and cans unfortunately

So, the next task was a food shop. The Supervalu supermarket was on the opposite side of the harbour so we took a stroll there, on the way spotting glass bottle and can recycling; a good find as getting rid of rubbish and recycling is remarkably difficult in Ireland. 

After a successful trip to the supermarket we marched back to the dinghy laden down with full rucksacks and shopping bags. With those victuals stowed on Blue Velvet, we set off again but this time for a 30-minute walk to the northern edge of the town where there is a Lidl supermarket. Fortunately, we came away from Lidl with a smaller and lighter shopping load, which was easier to carry back, so on the way we diverted back into the centre of town to check on the laundrette.  Sadly, progress fitting the new washing machines was going much more slowly than they had anticipated and our 1600hrs wash was now impossibility.

The little marina at Bantry where we left our dinghy whilst we were ashore

So we lugged the laundry bag back to our dinghy in the marina and got everything back on board Blue Velvet. We checked the latest weather forecast which showed that it was going to blow very strongly overnight. Neither of us felt it would be comfortable where we were anchored and so, after dropping our rubbish ashore (4€ a bag at the marina), we got Blue Velvet ready to go and set off back to Glengarriff. We dropped anchor at 1740hrs in almost exactly the same spot as last time and were quickly joined by another yacht who anchored just behind us. The contrast from being outside in Bantry Bay ‘proper’, indeed from being anchored outside Bantry Harbour, was very marked and we joked that it was like a millpond inside Glengarriff Bay.  It was a real faff making the move because we would need to return to Bantry to get the laundry done in a day or two, but if the forecast proved to be correct we would have a much more relaxed night in Glengarriff than if we had stayed outside of the harbour at Bantry.

Bantry, County Cork, Republic of Ireland

Glengarriff Bay County Cork Republic of Ireland

On Saturday 24 May we woke to the beginnings of rain and the early sounds of increasing winds; a day on board doing chores was the plan. After my previous work changing the seals, the aft heads seemed to be working well but before committing it to full use I thought I’d do a final test with a blob of toilet tissue…. a very silly mistake as whilst the pump was working fine, the blob of tissue completely blocked the outflow pipe (aaaaarrrrgggghhh!!!). So working on that became the top priority. I spent the morning removing the end of the efflux hose from the stopcock, after which it was quite easy to clear the blockage. Unfortunately, I had to cut the end off the hose to reconnect it to the stopcock, which means that it is now too short for that to be done again should the heads block once more.  We will have to source some marine sanitary hose as a spare (not an easy task in Ireland). The rest of the day was spent with much nicer admin and minor maintenance chores.

Our anchorage looking much brighter on Sunday

Having spent Saturday on board sheltering from the rain and wind we wanted to get ashore and were very pleased to wake up on Sunday to see the weather looking much brighter. After breakfast we bailed out the dinghy and went ashore to do the walk recommended to us by Allan and Claire on board Moonstone of Aberdour.

Looking out across the bay from the coastal path.  Blue Velvet is the furthest yacht (left of centre)

From the steps where we left our dinghy we followed a lovely coastal path that took us up to Glengarriff village; much nicer than walking along the busy road. 

The Blue Pool

Just before we reached Glengariff, the path took us to the Blue Pool, one of the stopping points on the Wild Atlantic Way.  We could see across to the dock where the Garinish Island ferry picks up its passengers and a small bridge got us onto the rhododendron covered promontory.

The Garinish Island ferry leaving the Blue Pool

It was well worth the 10-minute detour to walk around the promontory…

Blue Velvet at anchor with Garinish Island just behind her

… and we were spoilt with more views out across the bay towards where Blue Velvet was anchored.

The view from Lady Bantry’s Lookout

But our real objective was to walk a few kilometres west and up to Lady Bantry’s Lookout, so we walked through the village and out to a small road leading to Glengariff Woods where we found there’s a lot of work ongoing to remove the non-indigenous spruce trees and rhododendrons and to replace them with oak and other native deciduous trees. Along the way we met a surprising number of people, including Allan and Claire who were doing ‘our’ walk in reverse.  The scenery was lovely, ranging from rugged, rocky hills, to ‘oceanic deciduous woodland’ to open meadows and small rivers.  There was something for everyone and we were very lucky that the forecast showers generally held off for the day.

Back in the village we checked out the bus stops for the local bus to Bantry and blacked our noses at Quills, a well-known chain of woollen shops, but we weren’t tempted to make a purchase.

We got back to Blue Velvet just before a big rain shower hit after which there was a full rainbow visible. Beautiful!

The forecast continues to have strong winds and rain but we are hoping to find a window which will allow us to move over to Bantry to restock the fridge and do the laundry.  

Glengarriff Bay, County Cork, Republic of Ireland

Sailing to Glengarriff Bay County Cork Republic of Ireland

Heading out of Crookhaven

After lifting our anchor 0635, we quietly slipped out of Crookhaven.  The wind was very light and our wake stretched out a long way behind us in the calm sea.

The morning light brought a beautiful golden tinge to the vista but we could also see the slow buildup of clouds; the weather was definitely changing.

Mizen Head

The early start was necessary to catch the morning tide that would help us get west and past Mizen Head. That worked and we avoided counter-tide but it wasn’t until we had motored for 2 hours and were abeam Mizen Head that the wind had built sufficiently for us to switch off the engine and sail. It wasn’t fast going; with a poled out genoa we drifted ENE along Bantry Bay making 3-4 knots. However, we used the time to flush the watermaker to get it going again and to refill our tanks. The system had sat idle over the winter except for periodic pickling to preserve the membranes, so it was good to know that it was working again (after changing one of the filters) and that the water output tested as pure as it had done last year.

Approaching Glengarriff Bay with Garinish Island in the left of the picture

When we were in the outer part of Glengarriff Bay we dropped our sails to make our way past Garinish Island. We had visited the island during our last visit in 2021 and it is beautiful but looked very drab today in the grey light from the overcast sky.

Friar (L) and Bark (R) Islands

Bark Island and the Eccles Hotel

Once past Garinish Island, Friar and Bark Islands stood out with their colourful rhododendron bushes and we could see the large Eccles Hotel buildings on the shore.

Our most likely anchorage ahead

We needed to pick a spot to anchor that would be sheltered from the strong southwesterly and westerly winds forecast over the weekend. Our favoured spot was tucked in on the western shore…

Otter Rock and the channel behind it where we last anchored

... but before committing to that we took a look in the area immediately to the north of Garinish Island where we had anchored during our last visit.

Otter Rock (which does look rather like an otter) – with resident Common Seals.  
Apparently there are 400 seals resident in Glengariff Bay!

The resident seals on Otter Rock kept a close eye on us as we passed. It was nice to have close up look at Garinish Island, but we decided that the channel would not be as sheltered in the strong winds forecast so we went back to the western shore and dug our anchor in well, also letting out some extra chain.

Motoring up to our chosen anchorage by the bungalow

On the other side of the bay, on a mooring buoy, we saw another OCC yacht, Moonstone of Aberdour, with Allan and Claire on board. We had met them at an OCC gathering in Falmouth a couple of years ago and wanted to say hello before the weather turned grim, so we inflated the dinghy and zipped over.

Seals on Sunken Rock

On the way we took a look at our new seal neighbours on Sunken Rock. They didn’t seem to mind the tripper boats passing closer by but were very suspicious of us in our unknown dinghy.

It was nice to catch up with Allan and Claire on board Moonstone of Aberdour and discuss sailing plans over a cup of tea. They also gave us some top tips on walks ashore and where we could leave our dinghy. All we needed would be some gaps in the forecast rain; perhaps Sunday.

Glengarriff Bay, County Cork, Republic of Ireland

Crookhaven County Cork Republic of Ireland

Heading out past Rabbit Island and into Squince Harbour

We had been thinking about visiting the Baltimore Wooden Boat Festival (Friday 23 to Sunday 25 May), but the forecast was for strong southwesterly winds and rain starting from Friday evening. Baltimore doesn’t have great protection from that direction, so we decided to go to Crookhaven for Thursday night and then, probably, to Schull the next day to sit out the long run of windy and wet weather that had been well forecast to hit over the weekend and into the next week.

The Fastnet Rock ahead

Again, the wind was against us but it was pretty light. The aft heads had been playing up over the previous few days, so I took the opportunity with Blue Velvet being gently heeled on port tack to drain the heads bowl via the winterising drain to check that there wasn’t anything blocking the pipe between the bowl base and the pump mechanism. There wasn’t. So, I again checked the joker valve (perfect), changed the base valve/gasket which was slightly swollen (surprising as it was new in March) and did some work lubricating the pump mechanism. Who knows what the issue was but the heads seemed to be working okay when I had finished.

The Fastnet Rock up close

Meanwhile, up on deck, Nicky had made good progress towards the Fastnet Rock.  By this time the wind had picked up, so we dropped a reef in and carried on southwest.  We got pretty close to the Rock so we snapped some pictures for friends Carol-Anne and Richard, who hope to do the Fastnet Race double-handed this July.

Approaching Crookhaven

Further Horizons’ AIS paint on the plotter

Then we carried on to Crookhaven, which we hadn’t visited before. Amazingly, at anchor at Crookhaven was the only Rustler 57, Further Horizons, which is owned by Ian Robson, a friend of Peter Saxton, the Race Officer for the Island Games sailing event that Nicky organised in 2023.

Sails down and motoring into Crookhaven

Crookhaven lighthouse to our right as we entered the harbour

The entrance is wide and easy, and we took the opportunity to drop our sails before the inlet started to narrow and get cluttered with mooring buoys.

Blue Velvet anchored behind Further Horizons

We anchored just behind Further Horizons and as we finished putting our sail cover on and stowing kit after our sail, Ian came over and offered us drinks on board and then to take us ashore in his dinghy for a meal to save us from having to inflate ours. We gladly accepted and had a lovely evening with him and his crew for the next few weeks, Tim. We had previously seen Further Horizons at the Southampton Boat Show, but it was lovely to be shown around her by her (very proud) owner and to hear first-hand his deliberations during the build to get her exactly how he wanted. She is absolutely beautiful but she is HUGE. As you would expect, she is extremely comfortable at anchor, but it would be interesting to see what she is like at sea. She’s a Rustler so she’s sure to sail well but with such large sails there’s a lot of power there and, with just 2 crew on board, operating her in a blow could be hard work. To make her manageable when lightly crewed there are a lot of power assisted systems to keep on top of and maintain.

The small town of Crookhaven

The most southerly pub in Ireland and the Nottage restaurant to the right

After a delicious meal of Dover Sole at the Nottage restaurant attached to the pub ashore we then repaired back to Further Horizons (via Blue Velvet to pick up some additional supplies) for a cheese board, red wine and coffee. It was a lovely evening and Ian provided lots of useful information about places to visit as we head further north.

Views from Crookhaven looking out over the harbour

The plan for the morning was a 6am alarm call to catch the morning tide to make our way around Mizen Head, Three Castle Head and then Sheep’s Head into Bantry Bay.

Crookhaven, County Cork, Republic of Ireland