054:42.612 N
005:48.717 W

Carrickfergus, Belfast Lough, Northern Ireland

Portaferry’s super-friendly berthing master popped by late night to check we were comfortable, so kind.

After saying we were leaving first thing, he explained, in no uncertain terms, when and how to leave the marina. Coincidentally last night’s HW was 1950 and this morning’s HW was 0750, so he recommended we sit on deck last night and just watch what happens in the build up to the top of the tide, explaining about a back eddy.  This proved invaluable as our calculations has set us to leave about 2hs earlier which would have ended very badly!

We were up, dressed, breakfasted and pacing the pontoon waiting for 0710; a small push and TC moved back, Bol then reversed out into the main stream and we were underway, no problem at all. The flood was easing so we motored out towards the entrance and watched, transfixed, as our speed increased from 2.6 knots to 6 knots as the flooding tide turned to slack, and then to ebb. The Lough was as calm as a millpond to begin with, beautiful. We spotted the sobering sight of some boats who had got their calculations wrong and were high and dry, this kind of focussed the mind.  

We were ejected out of the mouth at the turn of the tide and swept up by the north bound Irish Sea stream; it had been very cool to watch nature play out as calculated.

This second day of champagne sailing was most welcome after days of mist and chill. Yacht and ferry alerts on the Automatic Identification System (AIS) kept Bol busy at the chart table but we made fast and enjoyable progress north.

Plenty of Gannets, Arctic Terns and Guillemots fishing around the boat, tucking their wings in and dive bombing into the sea. A solitary Dolphin paid a visit, and one particularly determined (and very cute) Black Guillemot circled TC about 20 times trying to land on our spreaders, its bright red legs came down to land, but it would change its mind and circle around TC again.

As the wind held we sailed through Donaghadee Sound, right across Belfast Lough to the entrance to Carrickfergus. Sadly we noticed some black smoke billowing to windward and have since learnt it was a massive fire at a metal recycling site in Belfast Docks, 60 firefighters and nine fire engines were fighting it at one stage. The putrid smell of burning reached us for a while but seems to be under control now, fortunately no injuries.

Now tucked up in Carrickfergus Marina.

Finally gloriously hot!