SLYC to Carrickfergus.

24^th June 2012

Strangford Lough has 12 sailing clubs so we left Quoile (QYC) and headed for Strangford Lough Yacht Club (SLYC).

We anchored outside SLYC, carefully positioning ourselves in the centre of the Sunday youth topper training fleet.  We flubbered ashore and met a very nice club member called John.  John was incredibly welcoming and helpful, showing us around the club, giving us a set of keys and inviting us to use not only the full facilities of the club, but even his own flubber berth.  Indeed, when after a nice meal at Daft Eddy’s Pub, we returned to find that our flubber had managed to spontaneously remove its own bung and deflated, John even helped us pump it up again.

Daft Eddy apparently succumbed after being shot by a customs officer many years ago, however his name lives on in the Culinary Atlas of Ulster.

25^th June

Next stop, Audley’s Castle anchorage, just up from the famous Strangford Narrows.

A lovely peaceful place, just across from Portaferry.

 Audley's Castle Anchorage and view to Portaferry

 A nice walk around the castle grounds.

 26^th June

Up early (who cares?) and off through the Narrows and out to sea again.

Next stop Carrickfergus on the northern coast of Belfast Lough.

A modern marina with a statue of William III just outside and Sainsburys across the road.  All very civilised and comfortable.

Remind me never to try to get in here at low water springs, or in a swell. It’s not as deep as they say at the entrance, nor inside the marina.  We had 0.2M at the entrance 90 minutes after LW.

You get 2 nights for the price of one here.

We decided to stay for 2 nights.

We watched the Carrickfergus Yacht Club Tuesday Evening Race. 

There was absolutely no wind. 

Doesn’t anyone over here know how to rock a boat?

 Carrickfergus Marina

But the Sailing Club appears to have had a nasty fire.

 Carrickfergus Sailing Club

Rainy night.

27^th June (Thursday?)

Up early (again) and off to Glenarm

Glenarm has a very high BSA* and apparently a free launderette!

Rainy day with fog and no wind.

Despite this, had easy trip to Glenarm.

We motored past the spectacular high cliffs “The Gobbins” of Islandmagee.

Spectacular if you can see them, but it was foggy.

Apparently they are 80 metres high and almost vertical. 

Back in 1641, the (English) garrison at Carrickfergus, in reprisal for what we would now call “a terrorist incident”, threw the entire population of Islandmagee (300 people) off theses cliffs.

Yesterday, our Queen shook hands with a former leader of the IRA.

(Please note, this blog now contains historical facts subtly linked to modern politics, in addition to sailing and canine psychopathology.)

Anyway, back to Glenarm.

A very friendly welcome. 

The harbour master took our lines.

The showers are free and so is the launderette!

Footnote:

Still no news from home. 

I worry about Bonzo and his carer.

It seems unlikely that they are entirely happy together.

Has one of them succumbed (to the other)? 

If so, which one? (and to whom, and how?).

The only question not worth asking is “why”.

*BSA.  See previous blogging for precise definition and calibration of this important Marina Approval Index.