Having decided the day before that we would not be able to make the long passage north to Ardglass in NI because of the weather we awoke to a lovely sunny morning.  In a classic error of judgement Benj thought we should just get off and go for it despite having missed the optimum tide.  We stopped to refuel and were strongly advised by the man at the pump, an experienced local seaman who fishes for prawn on this coast, that we would not get very far against the ebbing near-Spring tide and that we should instead go as far as Howth and do the rest on the better tide the next day.  What great advice that turned out to be!  We did battle the tide to Howth, but only for 2hours, arriving in this lovely charming seaside/fishing harbour by lunchtime.  We berthed in the 300 berth marina and had a beer at Howth Yacht Club, one of the premiere clubs in Ireland, then did the tour of the town, market and harbour, and Benj gave the boat a scrub down while Cate hiked up to Howth Village, returning with more provisions.  Unfortunately we then had to move berths twice in rapid and unprepared succession because we had been twice incorrectly allocated by the staff, in fact ending up where we had first stopped on our aririval.  After a bit of sunbathing, we headed back into the main street for excellent fish and chips, which we cheekily sneaked onto the balcony of the Yacht Club and ate with our Guinness and Erdinger Alkohol-frei Wheat Bier!  We repaired inside and had a good look round the beautiful club, with stylish modern furnishings and a large horseshoe-shaped bar, separate lounges and interesting pictures and trophies, some from major international events. Back aboard we watched a spectacular sunset over the harbour, looking out towards Ireland's Eye, a small unpopulated islet with a dramatic rock stack and Martello tower, which guards the harbour entrance.