Inverness Firth to the River Deben, Suffolk

Rainbow and cloud in the Moray Firth

Greetings from Suffolk, England, UK! We made it. Our second circumnavigation of the world in Sal Darago is now complete. So, how did we spend our last three weeks on board?

On leaving the Caledonian Canal, our first anchorage was in the Moray Firth at Cullen Bay, where we spent a peaceful night. 

 

Cullen Bay

Next was Peterhead. We motorsailed into a light easterly headwind. Optimistically, I said, “No problem, we’ll be able to sail on a beam reach when we turn south at Fraserburgh.”The wind had other ideas and promptly turned south. We had choppy seas for a while at Rattray Head, which calmed as we approached Peterhead. The marina in the sheltered port was very welcoming and affordable at £21 per night. We enjoyed a walk around the harbour to the Waverly Arms Hotel. 

 

Eyemouth

The winds continued to be light and variable, so we motorsailed all the way to Eyemouth, 95nm further south, avoiding two wind farms and arriving in the dark at 0200. All the spaces on the visitors’ pontoon were taken and most were rafted up. Jeremy managed to squeeze Sal Darago on the shallow end of the pontoon, almost underneath the bows of a private motor yacht. Prices were increasing as we made our way south. Here we paid £30.50 per night plus £2 for eight minutes in the shower. We had lunch in the Contented Sole on the waterfront and shopped at the nearby Co-op.

 

Lindisfarne Castle, Holy Island

It was only 20nm to Holy Island, just over the border in England. The tide was with us, the winds were light again, but the weather was cold and cloudy. We anchored off The Heugh, with a lovely view of Lindisfarne Castle. The following day we had time to explore Holy Island, a favourite place of ours from our distant Durham days. We had lunch in The Ship. Stronger SE winds were forecast, from which there was little shelter, so I persuaded Jeremy to weigh anchor and head for Amble. We had left our departure a little late and needed to make good time if we were to enter the River Cocquet and have enough water over the cill at Amble Marina. 

 

Jasper's Bistro, Amble

Soon we were bashing into a headwind in wind over tide conditions, but first we were able to admire the beautiful landscape around us, which included the Farne Islands, Bamburgh Castle and Dunstanburgh Castle. We cleared the sandbar at the entrance to the River Cocquet with less than a metre beneath our keels; motored through Warkworth Harbour and cleared the cill into Amble Marina with only 15 minutes left before the last possible entry. Whew!

 

Bamburgh Castle

Prices per night in Amble were £38.50 plus £5 for 24 hours of mains electricity. We stayed for two nights to let the effects of Storm Betty pass by. We also filled up with 87 litres of diesel. We explored the town, had a lovely meal in Jasper’s Bistro and shopped at Tesco Extra. We made arrangements to meet up with our friends, Andy and Moira in Sunderland and to spend a day with Jeremy’s brother Gavin and his wife, Eileen. Andy has recently published a book. It’s about No4. Sheep Street, a bookshop in Stratford upon Avon and Andy’s eccentric grandfather. It was started by Andy’s father, Gerald and completed by Andy. The book is available on Amazon. Look for “Shakespeare Press – The Memoir of Gerald Jaggard”.

 

Sunderland Marina

We were due to leave Amble on Saturday 19^th August. I did not feel well. The wind was gusting and whistling around the marina. The inshore forecast was for SW 4 or 5 occasionally 6 at first, decreasing 3 later. Jeremy was confident that we should leave. I wasn’t so sure. However, we were not leaving until mid afternoon, because of the tide, and it was only a six hour journey. I took Stugeron, just in case. I was so glad I had because the wind did not die down until we reached the mouth of the River Tyne. We had uncomfortable, short seas and sustained gusts of over 30 knots. In addition, we had a wind farm to avoid, one of many close to the coast in the North Sea. In lighter winds, as we approached Sunderland, the spinlock lever that holds the main halyard broke as we were about to take down the double reefed mainsail. We were very happy to motor gently into Sunderland Marina at 2120 and tie up in a berth, but first we had to remove a large tree branch, which was stuck under the pontoon.

 

Kathy, Moira, Andy and Jeremy on Sal Darago

The next day we learned that Gavin and Eileen had Covid. They had just returned from a family holiday in Spain and were not feeling well. It was agreed that we should not visit them. Fortunately, Andy and Moira were fit and well. We enjoyed lunch together at Cafe Six facing the beach followed by tea/coffee on Sal Darago back at the marina. It was lovely to catch up with each other’s news.

 

Sculpture at Sunderland seafront

We paid our marina bill the following day - £62 for two nights. We left the marina at low tide and almost got stuck on a sandbank before reaching the channel in the River Wear. Jeremy reversed off and into the channel. We stowed the fenders and lines and put up the mainsail in the shelter of the river. We had gusty winds from the SW of 14-16 knots, occasionally reaching 28 knots. The tide swept us southwards at speeds of 6.7-7 knots.

 

Runswick Bay

Originally, we had planned to sail to Whitby and meet up with our nephew, James, his wife, Juliette and children, Alice, Anna and Daniel. However, westerly winds were forecast and it made sense to anchor at Runswick Bay. Having avoided numerous fishing pots, we dropped the anchor at 1920 and sat in the cockpit enjoying sundowners. A speedboat came by with a boy water skiing behind. We waved. Minutes later they came alongside and gave us a lobster and two mackerel.

 

Lobster for supper

We had an early start the next day leaving Runswick Bay at 0630. The winds were gusty around the headlands and cliffs. We saw the skeletal ruins of Whitby Abbey followed by the beaches of Robin Hood’s Bay and Scarborough as we passed. It wasn’t far to the anchorage in Filey Bay. We arrived at 1120, in good time for our fresh mackerel lunch. It was very pleasant in the sunshine but we couldn’t enjoy it for long. Both the car and house insurance were due for renewal, so we had to spend time on the internet looking for the best deals and making arrangements. Then we had to plot our course to the River Deben with stops at Spurn Head and perhaps, Wells by the Sea or Lowestoft. Our lovely lobster supper was our reward for our afternoon’s efforts.

 

Spurn Head

We left Filey Bay at 0620 and rounded Flamborough Head. As we passed yet another wind farm, we made good speed with the tide towards Spurn Head. We decided to anchor for lunch and let the adverse tide pass by. We chose to anchor off Kilsea in a calm offshore breeze. At 1600 we weighed anchor and headed for the River Humber. As strong S-SE winds were forecast, we set a course for a southern anchorage across the river. Small boats have to follow a designated route when crossing the river. We needed to pass a pipe layer or dredger with a vessel standing by. Jeremy called on VHF channel 16 to ask which side we should pass. There was no reply. Then the vessel started blowing its hooter at us so we turned away. VTS Humber called us and told us there was a 500m exclusion zone that we had entered. We had been listening to the safety broadcasts on VHF14, but no mention had been made of this. We were informed that the anchorage we were heading towards was commercial only and we must anchor at Spurn Head. We turned round, retraced our course and anchored at Spurn Head at 1850 with two other yachts and a catamaran.

 

Woodbridge Haven

We were up at 0500 the following day to check the inshore forecast. There was a strong wind warning for force 6 southerlies. We went back to bed. After lunch, the new inshore forecast had no strong wind warning. It seemed we had a 24 hour window of opportunity. We weighed anchor at 1410, called VTS Humber for clearance and motored across the river in misty/hazy calm conditions. We identified wind farms in the mist. The light wind shifted northerly and we flew our genoa, but we needed to use the engine as well. The mist cleared before the sun set at 2005. The half moon set two hours later. Lights of all colours and descriptions flashed ahead and to each side. Fast ferries going up to 20 knots overtook us within a quarter of a mile. More wind farms showed their red lights and service catamarans zipped back and forth. We were on watch for two hours each throughout the night. I had to call Jeremy up a couple of times to help me identify various lights. One turned out to be a lighthouse on land!

 

Ready for lift out, Melton Boatyard

We decided not to stop at Lowestoft as we could make Woodbridge Haven in time for the afternoon tide. I was on watch at first light as we approached Lowestoft soon after low water. I saw the depth sounder drop to 4m from the expected 24m and again called Jeremy up. There were vessels of all types waiting to enter the harbour including a warship. Fishing vessels were going in and out of the harbour and the direction of buoyage had changed. We found our way across the shifting sandbanks and continued towards the River Deben, actually sailing under genoa alone for 90 minutes. All went well with the entry to the Deben even though there were many yachts and power boats. It was Friday afternoon of the August Bank Holiday weekend. By 1600 we were in the river passing the moorings at Felixstowe Ferry, where we saw "Kimochi", the Feeling yacht we had been with in the Caledonian Canal. We tied to Nick’s mooring, the same mooring we had used before we started out in 2016. Our second circumnavigation of the world ended where it had begun.

 

Hatchling on our satellite dish at home

The next day we moved upriver to Simon Skeet’s mooring nearer to Woodbridge. On Sunday, we left our dinghy at Everson’s pontoon and caught the train home. We had been away for seven months. The following Thursday, we motored up to Melton Boatyard. Simon lifted Sal Darago out of the water and power washed her bottom. Two days later, she was placed in the boatyard and we began the process of preparing her for winter.

So, where do we go from here? We’ll let you know when we decide to “travel hopefully” again.

 

The Caledonian Canal

 

Mist and fog in Loch Linnhe

The next day we motored out of Loch a Choire in mist and fog, which lifted as the day warmed up and lay in streaks along the mountains. It was very beautiful. I had a phone call from the Caledonian Canal soon after 0800. I’d left a message the previous day. Did we know we had to book online at the scottishcanals website? We didn’t. We learned the canal was open but the sea lock would close at 1430. Jeremy found the form on the website, booked a transit of seven days and paid £270.

 

Corpach basin

Corpach sea lock opened at 1100. We entered and tied up. A yacht called Ibis tied up behind us. After lunch, we went up Neptune’s Staircase, a flight of 8 locks. Many tourists lined both sides of the locks. We tied up at Banavie for the night. Ibis tied up behind us. We had supper at The Lochy pub and bought a few groceries at the local Co-op.

Day 2. We had to telephone ahead to the lock keeper at Gairlochy and check the opening times for the swing bridges at Moy and Gairloch. Just before Moy bridge we came across the hotel barge, Scottish Highlander, which had stopped in the middle of the canal waiting for the bridge to open. We asked permission to go past and tie up to a waiting pontoon. Two yachts were tied up on the opposite side. The lock keeper said Scottish Highlander and three yachts could proceed through the open swing bridge and into the lock. We were the last yacht. Ibis had to wait until later. We spent the night tied up above the loch and used the excellent toilet and showering facilities provided. Ibis tied up behind us and we enjoyed chatting to Ian and Jan.

Kathy steering along the Caledonian Canal

Day 3. We passed through Laggan locks and entered Loch Oich. There was a pontoon near a picnic area. We tied up, went ashore and had a barbecue in sunny weather. In the afternoon, we continued to Cullochy lock and had to wait for Scottish Highlander to enter first. Next, we passed through Kytra lock and tied up for the night above the Fort Augustus flight of 5 locks.

 

Scenic reach on the Caledonian Canal

Day 4. Two barges had to take the first locking. We were next with one other yacht. We tied up below the locks. Jeremy went to the nearby Spar for groceries. We had lunch at the Lock Inn. When we returned, Ibis was tied up behind us. After chatting to Ian and Jan, we set off into Loch Ness, unfurled the genoa and sailed gently towards Urquart Castle, where we anchored for the night. We launched the dinghy and explored a woodland area ashore. Nessie came to visit on our return.

 

Look who popped up!

Day 5. We continued through Loch Ness to Dochgarroch lock, passed through and tied up about half a mile below the lock. We had a barbecue on the side of the canal. Later on, Jan and Ian came on board for sundowners and a long chat. 

 

Sharing a lock

Day 6. It rained as we motored towards Torvean and Tomnahurch swing bridges. We had to tie up and wait for Scottish Highlander and another barge to pass through first. We followed to the Muirtown flight of 5 locks. As before, the two barges filled the first lock. We waited at a stone wharf. Four yachts shared the next locking. One was Ibis. Opposite us was a Feeling yacht from the River Deben in Suffolk, which is our home river. Small world! After the locks and a swing bridge, we tied up to a previously booked finger berth at Seaport Marina. The first night was free and the second night cost £10. Ibis was tying up behind us on a different pontoon. Someone shouted, “Person in the water!” It was Jan. She’d slipped on the finger berth and fallen in. Unfortunately, she hurt her shoulder and a visit to A&E confirmed she had broken her arm.

 

Urquart Castle, Loch Ness

Day 7. We shopped at the nearby Co-op in the morning. In the evening we had drinks on Ibis. Later, Mirek and Jasper, two crew who are helping Ian take Ibis down the east coast, slept the night on Sal Darago. Jan went home by bus and has been advised to go to her local fracture clinic for further assessment.

 

The Moray Firth

We left the Caledonian Canal on Sunday morning, 13^th August and started our journey down the east coast to Suffolk.

Tobermory, Isle of Mull to Loch a Choire

 

Cuddles on Sal Darago

We left Loch Aline at 0700 on Monday 24^th July and motored up the Sound of Mull in cold, light WNW winds. Jeremy steered through the Narrows between Calve Island and Mull with only one metre under our keels. He blew his grandfather’s WW1 bugle to sound our arrival. We picked up a Tobermory Harbour Association mooring buoy and went ashore. The usual daily charge for a buoy is £17 per night for an 11m boat. We decided to buy 10 nights at the discounted price of £14 per night. We paid our fee at the Harbour Office in Tobermory Aquarium building near the marina at Ledaig.

 

Swimming at Loch na Droma Buidhe

Afterwards, we walked up the steep Prison Brae to the cottage. We had bags of laundry and our showering gear. Em, Ben and the girls had gone camping for a few days, so we had the cottage to ourselves. We made good use of the washing machine, the new electric cooker and the super duper new shower in the totally refurbished bathroom. Jeremy’s brother, Gavin, and his wife, Eileen, had sourced everything needed for the new bathroom. Our next door neighbour, Hughie, agreed to supervise the job of stripping out the old bathroom and putting in the new one. Thank you Gavin, Eileen, Hughie and the other tradespeople for an amazing transformation.

 

Kathy emerging from Loch na Droma Buidhe

In addition, Gavin and Eileen sourced a new electric cooker to replace the old calor gas one, new pans, a new electric water heater and a new electric towel rail.

Em, Ben and the girls returned the next day. We joined them for supper. It was wonderful to be reunited again after seven months apart. We had missed the lovely night time cuddles from Ellie and Sophie.

 

Setting out on our trek

The following morning we collected the family, their many bags and four body boards at the marina and motored over to Loch na Droma Buidhe. We explored the burn and the beach leaving our names in cockle shells on the rocks on the shore. Later on, we all swam from Sal Darago wearing wet suits, except for Jeremy. The water was cold.

 

Fabulous views from the top of the hill.

Em had booked a session for four of us at Mull Pony Trekking for the afternoon of Thursday 27^th July. Liz Henderson runs the centre. She had broken her collar bone in a fall from a horse only 3 weeks before, but was still managing to work as she had a number of helpers. Jeremy came along to lead Sophie. Em, Ellie and I joined Sophie and a couple of other riders in a peaceful and enjoyable hill trek.

 

Family reunion at Macgochans, Tobermory

The next day we collected the family from the marina once more. This time they had even more bags as they were going to spend two nights on Sal Darago. The weather forecast was not good, so we decided to go to the head of Loch Sunart. We anchored just before the Narrows off Eilean Garbh, where Em saw a sea eagle. Jeremy booked us all into Kilcamb Lodge Hotel for Em’s birthday lunch. We were able to pick up a mooring for a £5 donation at Strontian and walk about a mile to the hotel. It rained, but nobody minded as we were warm and cosy in the Driftwood Bistro and the lounge at Kilcamb Lodge. We could stay as long as we wanted.

 

Em's birthday at Kilcamb Lodge

As we motored from Strontian to Salen Loch Sunart, the rain lashed down and the wind strengthened. Ben phoned ahead and booked a berth at the marina for the night. After a walk in sunshine in the forest the next day, we had lunch at the Salen Hotel before returning to Tobermory.

Meanwhile, our nephew Jamie, his wife, Juliette, daughter, Anna and son, Daniel had arrived in Tobermory. We had two great days out with them. There were 10 of us on board Sal Darago for a day trip to Loch na Droma Buidhe, where we had a picnic lunch. Ellie, Sophie, Jamie and his family braved the cold water for a swim.

 

Kilninian Kirk near the black sands beach

That evening, back in Tobermory, Em, Ben, Ellie, Sophie, Jeremy and I had a meal at Cafe Fish. Jeremy and I took the girls back to the cottage and put them to bed. It’s a long time since we read bedtime stories together. 

 

West Highland Race yachts rafted up at Tobermory Marina

The next day was the last day of the holiday for Em, Ben, Ellie and Sophie. It was a dry day so we all set off for the beach along with Jamie and family. Three barbecues were set up and everyone ate and drank heartily. Jeremy and I went for a walk and later joined everyone back at the beach for a swim and a game of cricket. We had a great day.

Eating out at The Western Isles Hotel

On our return the West Highland Race had arrived in Tobermory. The wind was blowing strongly from the NE and all the yachts were pitching and rolling in the bay and in the marina. We had difficulty clambering on to Sal Darago and had a fairly uncomfortable few hours before the wind changed direction.

Glensanda Quarry, Loch Linnhe

The next couple of days were spent doing laundry and tidying the garden at the cottage. We said goodbye to our neighbours, Fiona and Hughie and to John and Eilidh. It’s always sad to be leaving Tobermory but we still had a long way to go to our home in Suffolk.

 

The Boathouse Restaurant, Loch a Choire

We weighed anchor at 0645 on Sunday 6^th August and motorsailed to Loch a Choire near Loch Linnhe. Jeremy had booked us into the Boathouse Restaurant. We had some difficulty anchoring and later learned that we could have used one of the new moorings which we saw nearby. The meal was delicious.

Isle of Man, Northern Ireland and Scotland

 

Pat, Jeremy, Sara, Kathy and Gaynor

We left Holyhead Harbour on Thursday 13^th July. Our repaired autopilot, Neco, was working again. Thank you Ed and the team at Holyhead Marina. Great job. The 55nm crossing of the Irish Sea was very wet. It rained all day. The winds were light and cold. We motorsailed the whole way to the Isle of Man. We put out two fishing lines, one each side. Some dolphins swam past the stern and soon afterwards, the lines tangled with each other. Jeremy spent two hours untangling the mess.

 

Jeremy and Kathy in windy Port St Mary

We tied to a visitors’ mooring buoy in Port St Mary outer harbour at 1735. It was still raining. When the tide was high enough, we moved to the inner harbour and secured ourselves to the New Quay. The water was clear enough to see that the bottom was not level which was no good for Sal Darago’s two keels to stand on when we dried out. Fishing boats had taken over the quay and the smell of rotting fish was overwhelming, so much so that it stayed on Jeremy’s shirt and gloves even after a hot wash in a washing machine. We untied all our lines and moved to the quay opposite. We secured ourselves once more. I noticed that the seawater pump tap in the galley was dribbling when the engine was in tickover. This had never happened before. The raw water pump in the engine was dripping.

 

Port St Mary inner harbour. Can you spot Sal Darago?

We spent five days in the Isle of Man. My sister, Pat, let us have the use of her house, car, washing machine and shower. Wonderful; thanks, Pat. She cooked cock au vin for supper. Delicious. Port St Mary Yacht Club offered us the use of the club and its showers. Neil, the Harbourmaster, offered us water, electricity and showers for £22 a night. We met up with Pat and sister, Sara for late night drinks on Saturday night at the Albert pub near the harbour.

 

Isle of Man steam train

During our stay, Pat arranged for family to get together at her house for a buffet and burger supper. It was good to see Nicky, Morgan, Lochie, Pherick and Ryan again and catch up on their news. Later on, I went to a music quiz with Pat, Sara and her husband, Geoff. Our team came fourth out of ten.

 

Nicky and Morgan

We used Pat’s car to fill our diesel cans at the local garage. Jeremy scrubbed Sal Darago’s hull when she dried out and checked all was well underneath. In the engine compartment, he found the rubber impeller in the raw water pump had broken fins, which blocked the flow of cooling water. This was also the cause of the seawater backing up and dribbling through the tap on the sink. He replaced the impeller and we were good to go again.

Broken impeller

On our last night in the Isle of Man, we had a meal at the Shore Hotel. Gaynor our niece, was able to join Pat, Sara Jeremy and me for another family get together. We were sorry to miss Miki, Chris, Isaac and Abigail who would be arriving in the Isle of Man soon and Ryan’s wife, Becky. 

 

Ardglass Marina

On Tuesday 18^th July, we had a wet motorsail in light winds across the other half of the Irish Sea to Ardglass Marina in Northern Ireland. It was still raining when we tied up at 1820. In the morning, we paid £35 for one night, enjoyed good, hot showers, walked into the village and bought a few groceries at the shop and post office. We just had time for a look at two of the historic castle keeps (I believe there are six) before returning to Sal Darago. We took the afternoon tide north in showery weather and anchored off Copeland Island, near Belfast Lough, in the evening.

 

Glenarm Marina

The next day we took the afternoon tide again and motored northwards in sunshine and showers to Glenarm Marina. Jeremy prepared a course for the island of Mull in the Western Isles of Scotland. We could see the Mull of Kintyre, which we hoped to pass on our way north. Our stay in Glenarm Marina cost £38 for one night with all facilities available. On Friday morning, we had showers and went for a short walk into the village popping into the well-stocked village shop for supplies.

 

Glenarm Castle

It’s 70nm from Glenarm to Crinan in the Scottish Highlands. It was important to leave at the correct time for the north going tide as it flows strongly across the North Passage, around the Mull of Kintyre and beyond all the way to Crinan. We decided to take the tide as far as Gigalum Sound in the island of Gigha and anchor while the adverse tide flowed past. Once again we motored in misty, hazy, drizzly conditions with little or no wind and flat seas. We swept past the Mull of Kintyre recording 7.8 knots on the Garmin GPS. The rain came down steadily in the evening. We anchored off the old ferry pier at 2045. We grabbed a few hours’ sleep before setting off again at 0300 in the dark. The bow navigation lights would not work, so we used our tricolour.

 

Passing Duart Castle, Sound of Mull

When it was light Jeremy mended the navigation lights by cutting and reattaching the wire. Unfortunately, he cut his finger on his Stanley knife in the process. We recorded speeds of 7.5 knots in the Sound of Jura. At 0830 on Saturday 22^nd July, we tied to the fuel berth at Crinan Boats and took on 100 litres of red diesel. Customs regulations allow a 40% discount for heating, but we found the diesel was marginally more expensive than white diesel from the garage in the Isle of Man.

We anchored off the Crinan Hotel near the Crinan Canal sea lock. We were able to have a few hours’ sleep before setting off for the Dorus Mor. It’s advisable to go with the tide through this narrow passage. We recorded speeds of 10 knots as we zipped along, motorsailing into the Sound of Luing. The tide swept us up through whirlpools to Fladda Lighthouse and into the Firth of Lorne. 

Our daughter, Emily, husband, Ben and children, Ellie and Sophie had driven to Oban and were boarding the 1815 Isle of Mull ferry. We thought we might see them at Craignure but it was not to be. As we approached Loch Aline in the Sound of Mull, we saw the ferry in the distance, passing Lismore Island. By the time we anchored towards the head of Loch Aline, they were on their way to Tobermory.

 

Jeremy steering on our way to Loch Aline

Today, we have had a rest day in peaceful Loch Aline. Tomorrow, we hope to sail to Tobermory, which is only about 2 hours away. We’re looking forward to being reunited with Em, Ben and the grandchildren whom we have not seen for six months.

Terceira, Azores to Holyhead Harbour, Wales

 

The Azores High

We were in the marina office at Angra do Heroismo before 0900 on Wednesday 28^th June. Customs and Immigration were already there. We paid our marina bill and were stamped out of Europe by Immigration. We expected easterly winds (we wanted westerlies) but we did not expect 16-24 knots blowing in the outer harbour as we stowed our fenders and lines. I started taking Stugeron.

We decided to head east along the south coast with the wind behind us, go round the west end of Terceira and set a course northwards. The winds were fluky at first. When we were off the west end we found ourselves in an acceleration zone with variable winds up to 45 knots. We hoped this would be short lived. S/V Vagabond, whom we’d spoken to on our way from Bermuda to the Azores appeared on our AIS (Automatic Identification System). Jeremy called them on the VHF radio to warn them of the conditions. They were on their way to Angra do Heroismo.

 

The spiral driving cable fits inside a tube

The forecast easterly wind blew from the ENE, so we were sailing close hauled with two reefs in the main and a tiny genoa. The wind gusted from 16-34 knots, the sea was rough and boisterous and the sky was grey and cloudy. The barometer climbed from 1026mb to 1041mb in 24 hours. We had forgotten to close a cock in the heads and consequently we had quite a lot of water in the bilges when Jeremy checked.

 

The stern end of Neco's steering arm

Gradually, the wind eased to 17-20 knots but remained stubbornly ENE. The grey clouds cleared and the sun shone. The barometer continued to rise steadily. At long last on Friday 30^th June the wind shifted to the E and calmed down so much that we were motorsailing by 1000hrs. Having reached 1045mb the barometer started to fall slowly and the wind shifted to NNW.

We were still motorsailing the next day in calm weather. Then our autopilot, Neco, that steers Sal Darago when she is under engine, broke. It was my watch. I hand steered and called Jeremy up to the cockpit. He investigated and found that Neco’s steering arm had a broken spiral driving cable. With great difficulty, working under the stern berth, Jeremy removed the steering arm. He accidentally dropped the stern hatch cover on my hand, cutting the knuckle of my little finger. Neco could not be fixed at sea. A new spiral driving cable was needed.

 

Wind and waves lashed Sal Darago

Fortunately, we still had the Hydrovane, our wind vane steering device. When the winds were light and we were motorsailing, we helped Heidi to keep on course. When we were sailing, Heidi steered by herself. This process continued all the way to Holyhead. Better weather followed for a few days, but the barometer continued to fall steadily.

On Thursday 6^th July we were back to strong winds gusting to gale force from the SSW, big seas and breaking waves. However, it eased overnight and in the morning we made 2 loaves of bread. In the evening the barometer dipped to 999mb. We began to pick up the weather forecast from Valencia Coastguard Radio. We were about 50nm from the SW coast of Ireland when we heard the first gale warning. We had 2 reefs in the mainsail, close hauled with Heidi steering. Waves broke over Sal Darago and we sheltered in the saloon, mopping up as water came in through the main hatch and heads vent. It was a scary night. 

 

Several sail slides broke in the gale

Winds of gale force 8 reached severe gale force 9. One wave almost took off our starboard side dodger. Jeremy went into the cockpit, rescued the dodger and tied it back on. The barometer bottomed at 993mb on the morning of Saturday 8^th July. Two hours later the wind dropped from gusts of 43knots to 16knots. The barometer rose 13mb in two hours and the sun shone. The difference was stunning. By the afternoon we were motoring in light winds. Jeremy found the second reefing cringle and block had parted on the mainsail. We had also lost a man over board light from one of the stern horseshoe buoys.

 

Many letters need to be sewed back on

At 0600 on Sunday 9^th July we took the inshore passage between the Tasker Rock and Carnsore Point. We were in the Irish Sea. Hurray! A pleasant, sunny, day sail followed all the way to Holyhead Harbour. We motored in at midnight and tied to a yellow buoy. The next day we learned that we were not on a Holyhead Sailing Club mooring. We moved in wind and rain across the harbour and secured ourselves to a visitors’ buoy. Jeremy began to make enquiries to find out if anyone could fix Neco. Holyhead Marine suggested we try the marina and soon we were talking to Ed, who thought he might be able to help.

 

Lunch at the Waterside Bistro, Holyhead

Ed and his team rose to the challenge, sourced a new spiral driving cable, made adjustments so that it would fit the steering arm, took everything apart and put it together again. We were impressed and delighted. As I write this, Jeremy is tackling the challenging job of fixing Neco’s steering arm back in place.

 

Jeremy with Holyhead Harbour behind

We have been impressed by the hospitality shown to us by Holyhead Sailing Club and Holyhead Marina. The hot showers in the club were most welcome and the laundry facilities in the marina were good. Our mooring fee of £27 per night included the use of the SC launch, driven by either Chris or Nick. They came out to the mooring in all weathers to take us ashore and we appreciated it.

 

Putting Neco's steering arm back in place

Tomorrow, we set sail for Port St Mary, Isle of Man, 55nm away.