Tuesday, July 27th, 2004 - Greg

There is nothing....absolutely nothing half so much worth hearing .......as the early morning sound of a Maine lobster boat heading into the bay........enjoyed from a firm mattress on a steady foundation through open windows!

We'll be back August 16th from Crosshaven!

Sunday, July 25th, 2004 - Christopher

We are sailing our last leg today heading for Crosshaven so I just wanted to submit my Naturalist's Log. I brought a Petersons Guide for the Birds of Britain and Europe and also wishfully thinking a field guide for Whales and Porpoises. I used the former extensively but the only ocean going mammal we encountered was a single large seal cruising the shore near our anchorage at Sherkin Island.
The most common birds we watched were Northern Gannets which fold their wings and plunge from impressive height after fish. Off shore we also saw Terns (probably common), Common and/or Herring, Black Backed and Black Headed Gulls. We saw Manx Shearwater, Cormorant, Shag. Of Auks we saw Black Guillemot and Puffin. Closer to shore there were Oystercatcher and Grey Heron and on shore were Crow, hooded Crow, Pied Wagtail, and fabulous iridescent Magpie.

Friday, July 23rd, 2004 - Greg

Sun again. We have had unbelievable weather. A little rain or sprinkle every day but always some sun and wonderful winds of 8-15 knots. The wind isn't always in the right direction but then we aren't always headed in the right direction either. Ireland is an amazing place to cruise. I've traveled to Ireland several times always by land, bus and car but I've never experienced it so intensely as by boat. We are surely Yanks with our large Stars and Stripes trailing us but we are much more than gawkers. We are part of the maritime life; sharing the harbors, channels, docks and floats with the rest of sea-going Ireland. We interact with the fishermen (trying not to run over their nets), sailing schools (which are everywhere), and other yachtsmen. With the exception of Kinsale, which was lovely, few of the ports we've visited are tourist traps. Why, we haven't seen any Waterford crystal for days!
Coastal cruising has certainly been different from doing the transatlantic passage. There is a daily routine to coastal cruising whereas the transit was one 480-hour-day broken up into two hour watches. On the passage, the light hours were definitely more active than the dark hours but there was also regular activity which went on round the clock for 20 days. Supplies of water and fuel were matters of survival rather than matters of convenience and weather is a far bigger factor when you can't take a "lay day" in the middle of the North Atlantic. On the flip side, there are no rocks to hit in the Ocean and the perils of drift nets and mismarked buoys are far between. It is really like two different adventures.
Christopher continues his remarkable meals, the tempestuous French baker has been sneaking shop-bought apple tarts aboard and serving them heated...as his own!.....and Jesse, currently captain of the foretop, has been doing dishes for weeks. Tomorrow night we return to Kinsale and then head to Cork on Sunday morning. Thunderhead is going to "summer camp" for three weeks at the Crosshaven Boat Yard where a list of 23 (so far) items-to-do..........awaits the team there. The sailmaker has a list of 8 items and Justin's work list for the period is multi-paged.
I am ready for a little shore leave. I've been aboard since June 8th and ready for a level, solid bed. I'm also very happy that I'll be back in three weeks to keep sailing. This past winter I often wondered if I'd get here and just think "Enough" But I'm glad to say that I'm still looking forward to the year and to the coming adventures. Justin is turning out to be a great asset on this journey and I look forward to sailing with the others who have signed up for various legs. The other thing is that I have come to love writing this Log! So for those of you who will continue to read, we'll be back on line August 16th and maybe Justin tomorrow!
All are well.

Friday, July 23rd, 2004 - Christopher

Shep's log: Stardate July 23, 2004.
File under Land Lubbers Logs.
Still moored this morning at the anchorage here a Sherkin Island north of the Pier off the Abbey ruin on Sherkin awaiting the decision of the crew and skipper of today's destination.
Yesterday's short transit from Schull afforded us time ashore to explore more closely the wonderful coastline we have appreciated from a distance dictated more by what we couldn't see (but with the depth finder) than what we were peering at through binoculars. Our Mooring on the east side of the Island we walked west toward the 'Tra' (accent over the 'a') 'beach' in English. When the others turned back favoring land accommodations like showers I continued on in hopes of adding species to my log of bird sightings (the kind with feathers) and the promise of crepes (would walk that mile for a Camel). The crepes proved to be just over the next bend in the lane and just off one of the beach heads protected on either side by fingerlike rock outcrops.
The young woman at the caravan crepe stand and her family are transplants from Brittany and live on the island year round. She is also the Postwoman and delivers mail and packages to the 120 year round residents before 2pm when she opens her creperie at the beach 'till 6pm. They came to the island because they couldn't afford a house on the mainland. There is a new looking grammar school we passed that probably has one or two rooms and the older prefabricated classroom looks like it is still being used.Schooling her small child here will be fine but older children will have to ferry to the mainland.
There is a Marine Science center garrisoned at the end of the lane on the north east end of the Island and I walked along with a young couple returning there with mussels they had collected for an aquarium they were maintaining. Returning I spied mockingbirds for the first time and I up to a winding grass driveway to a house pretty two story house advertising artichokes for sale as well as interior design services and Self-catered lodging. Ingritt, The woman of the house, invited me in as it a passing cloud was dropping some rain and she explained the artichokes were passing but she would change into her trousers because of the nettles and try to pick some we could eat aboard Thunderhead. While the rain was passing she showed me around the house she and her husband had extensively modernized and finished themselves. The 'wreck' of the Dutch Lu Lugger (a herring boat turned house boat) they arrived on was beached and rotting partially disassembled against the steep bank of a tidal basin below their house. She explained her husband had intended to repair her but... She pointed to two long logs atop a stone wall that looked more like driftwood artistically hung with old fish nets and flower pots indicating that they were to become the masts and sort of looked away in the way you would from something you know was past hope. Their efforts had clearly been turned to the house and the restoration of the indigenous stone outbuildings they had restored and converted into rentals and which with the house enclosed a partially rock paved natural garden which stepped to the back of the main house.
The simple monolithic form of the stone house's gabled ruins we've seen belie a simplicity of life I am given to fantasize. Its a different sort of romance than the one that comes with the sagging New England farmhouse. The abandoned stones don't instill the same sense of urgency of care, they will stand a long time as they are, the materials will not rot away or move far from their place save what rain and gravity can do. They also take forms a modern palimpest would incorporate with glee.
And the thump whirr is not always the sound of the iron milkmaid but is frequently the thump-'harrumph!' of a certain land creatures crown on one of two low bulkheads below.

Thursday, July 22nd, 2004 - Jesse

If an offshore passage develops a rhythm and a theme for the sailors, so does an inshore cruise. I sit at the keyboard at the nav station (a first for me), having been designated scribe for this log, but I'm surrounded by the familiar- the creak of the halyards and the quiet thwop thrunk of the iron milkmaid, as the watermaker with its continuous rhythmic pumping has been designated. Thunderhead is enjoying the sunset off Shelkin Island on the outer rim of Baltimore Harbor, and much is like Maine- a quiet cove, birds and a seal, a green shore and a lighthouse getting ready to shine. What's different is the lighthouse is shaped like a cross between a bowling pin and a milk bottle, the shore has a ruined Franciscan Abbey somewhere around 500 years old, and the surrounding hillside has more cattle than houses. Today was mostly sunny and the weather in general has been benign and beautiful, more so than normal the locals say. The nearby Cape Clear Island has mounted an exhibition this summer dedicated to the 25th Anniversary of the 79 Fastnet Race, the archetype modern ocean race disaster when a number of sailors died during an exceptional summer gale that caught them in these waters. Difficult to picture on a night like tonight.
We spent time ashore today, walking the narrow lanes of Shelkin. It seems to be a place for artists, with 120 residents supporting at least the two galleries we saw and the ones we saw signs for, as well as the requisite restaurant and pub; and the crepe shop that Christopher found just two bends beyond where the rest of us gave up after following signs from the landing (note to crepe store owner- mileage to shop would do wonders for turnover). The mainland is kept at bay by the 10 minute ferry ride, yet looking across the mainland shore appears much the same, just as quiet and rural and just as beautiful. I'm hard pressed to figure out just why this island would be more conducive to art than 95% of the coast we have seen.
We have three days left, and only a short distance to Crosshaven where the boat will await Greg's return, so harbor hopping is the plan. The Skelligs will have to wait for another time, as the barbeque at Schull just came at the wrong time and place, yet was the most logical event to attend so we could skip several of the others. In kindness to our Irish hosts, let's just say about the food served at the barbeque--that Uncle Billy has nothing to fear, Norm's is safe. Frankly any yahoo using ketchup and grilling in the pitch dark and so drunk he's having trouble feeling the difference between the meat and the charcoal with his fork, would serve better food even if he did include the occasional odd bit of hot coal. But let's also say that the people here are really gregarious and fun- I met up again with a group of British doctors we met in Cork, who sailed the first half of the cruise on a lovely varnished sloop, and took off this morning for Cowes and home. At least one of them has made the pilgrimage to Graceland, so I don't think the barbeque has put them off on the States.
The log editor has asked for a conclusion, something all the economists in the world placed end to end have yet to reach, but this humble scribe will offer the following: Just ponder an Irish monk of the 5th century, settling down in his beehive hut on a lonely outcrop after a day of manuscript copying and compare his life with ours onboard one of the finest yachts produced in the 20th century, with all the immaculate instantaneous communication capabilities available in this young 21st century . . . . . . . . and please---remember to send us updates on Lance and the Tour de France.

Wednesday, July 21st, 2004 - Greg

We left Glengariff this morning and headed back to Schull. Because we had a deadline, we powered up Bantry Bay but soon had a fair enough breeze to sail down around Mizen Head...... then a hard left along Crookhaven and back to Schull which we passed two days ago. After the turn at Mizen Head, the wind was astern and it was quickly decided to fly the spinnaker. Jesse organized the foredeck and within minutes (ok... a few minutes) the great purple sail was leading us down Long Island Bay.
Not that we would want to grandstand or anything....but. there are two ways to get to Schull, an inside and an outside passage. The wind was favorable for a spinnaker run down either, but the inside passage was......well........okay ....just a touch more flamboyant. But in order to get into the inner passage though, we needed to gybe the spinnaker which we weren't really set up to do. Or dowse the spinnaker briefly and motor
through a small cut (St Peter's Passage...just next to St. Catherine's Cleavage).However, with a little Irish Luck and two novenas to St. Swithen's the wind came forward enough to let us scooch through then head back up to run down the inner passage. With Justin at the helm we ran down (down... not over) two boats which were way ahead and then once we were clearly in view of the entire fleet headed down into the anchorage and smartly dowsed the spinnaker, went head to wind to furl the main and then motored through the fleet with all the pride that this narcissistic vessel could muster.
The entire fleet has gathered here for a BBQ on the grounds of Schull Community College. It is a large harbor with plenty of anchorage. We are right on the edge of the ferry "fairway" so depending on the hours of the ferry service we could be doing lots of rocking and rolling tonight.
I heard from a friend of mine from Blue Hill today, answering my latest boldfaced request for email. He has been reading daily since we began but was maintaining "radio silence". ..........but half the fun is knowing who I'm writing to........So, Rich, nice to hear from you.........glad you are enjoying the Logs........anyone else lurking out there!
All are well.

Tuesday, July 20th, 2004 - Greg

We got a guest mooring in Crookhaven last night. There were few other boats in the harbor and a beautiful anchorage.As you might be able to see from the map, it is a narrow long body of water between high cliffs on one side and a rocky peninsula on the other. There are about a dozen houses in the "town" and Christopher and Justin report that there are 4 pubs. They know that because the dishes were hardly dry in their racks last night before the dinghy was launched and the two of them set off...........neither Jesse nor I heard them return but we were told that it was around 12:30. ......... and it was only because of the "live music" that they stayed ashore for so long! I've threatened breathalyzers for the designated rower but as usual my threats are treated with scorn!
The scenery is really unbelievable. Barren rocky islands, cliffed and cragged. There are many places where there are natural rock arches in the formations.We passed one yesterday which Jesse reported with great authority as being named St. Catherine's Cleavage............his authority was quickly called into question. So far we have seen only a miniscule amount of the coast but what we've seen has been incredible. this morning we sailed around Mizen head which was our first sight of land two weeks ago. Beautiful whitewashed lighthouses tower over cliffs and remains of watchtowers dot every high head and peninsula. The coast is bold like Maine and this allows sailing close into the shore........though not nearly as close as some of the little fishing boats we see which are 50 feet or less (a twelfth of a cable) from the crashing waves.
Bantry Bay. Today we sailed to Castletown/Bearhaven where we docked against a large cement pier (hate that) in an attempt to get fuel. We had to wait until the guy finished lunch for him to tell us that his nozzle was too big for a small diesel fill like ours. We then proceeded to Glengariff where the entire Irish Cruise group will tie together in a 150 boat star shaped raft in two days. We will be long gone by then because the idea of being in a 150 boat raft makes concrete piers look pretty good to me! We will try to double back tomorrow for a large fleet BBQ in Schull (Skull) tomorrow evening.
Since we anchored a little while ago, I've observed Justin and Christopher looking at the large hotel on the shore of this harbor. I assume that they are heading in later ..........in search of "live music" now...don't cha
know!
All are well.

Monday, July 19th, 2004 - Greg

We spent last night in Castlehaven up a narrow estuary. It is a small harbor and as we approached I noticed, with a quick wave of panic, that there were buoys stretched from side to side in the passage. We assumed that it was some sort of fishing net. Moments later a very speedy inflatable boat roared up to us to tell us that there were rowing races taking place and that we could either wait ten minutes or hurry down the course--the lanes of which were marked by these inflatable marks so neatly stretched across the channel. It being the end of a day (and a glorious sailing day it was!) we cranked up the engine and sped across the course. Moments later another flight of teams took off from the starting line. the craft were about 16 feet long, quite beamy and there origin from currachs quite obvious. Each boat had 4 rowers and a coxswain. The crowd looked on from shore (quite a distance) and the race was announced over a (very) loudspeaker like a horserace. There were teams of different ages and included teams of "the ladies".
It was a quiet night using Thunderheads new chromed anchor in a lovely narrow, protected harbor. Christopher (chef extraordinaire) stir fried a fine meal of chicken and vegetables over pasta. The brownies that Justin made for lunch yesterday unfortunately didn't make it to dinner......It was a very small batch....I swear!
This morning we headed out about 10ish and are trying to get west to Crookhaven by tonight. The wind is quite light and on the nose so we are doing some battery charging (?). Bird books are out and the most different seen are gannets. We will be hugging the coast during this trip so it is unlikely that we will see any whales or porpoises. Our Northerly goal is to get to the Skelligs off the Kerry Peninsula...more about those when we get there. We are attempting to stay one harbor ahead of the fleet rather than trying to moor among 75 or so other boats. (It is that 'rafting' thing where people trod across our varnish and teak that I am REALLY trying to avoid.)
.........and let me put in a pitch...that if you are reading this....we'd love to hear from you from time to time.
All are well.

Sunday, July 18th, 2004 - Greg

We have finally untied from the dock in Kinsale after 10 days and it is good to be sailing again. As soon as we had left the harbor the skies cleared and it is quite beautiful out here. We are sailing in 8-10 knots of wind off the Old Head of Kinsale (see photos). About twelve miles off the Old head is the spot where the Lusitania was sunk in 1915. Just under 1200 lost there lives and many of them and survivors were brought into the local harbors. It is very much part of the local history. the controversy was ( and is) whether the ship was carrying ammunition as well as passengers to Britain (she was) and whether a second explosion was caused by a second torpedo (as the British Admiralty claimed) or detonation of explosives being carried by the vessel (as the German U boat skipper claimed). The other controversy surrounding the sinking was whether the Admiralty (under Churchill) ignored the dangers to to the ship and allowed the sinking (including American passengers) to foment anti German sentiment with the then neutral USA. Nothing much changes, does it!
We went to a fine 'gala' last night. Buses brought us first to Crosshaven where there was a wine bar at the Royal Cork Yacht Club. This club was founded in 1720 and is the oldest yacht club in the world. We were then bussed to City Hall in Cork for (more) cocktails and a dinner of smoked salmon, boiled ham, cabbage, and vegetables. The hall where the banquet (for 600) was held was a 19th century ornate meeting hall. It had been renovated for the millennium and was quite spectacular.
We have met great people from Ireland, Scotland and England; many of whom have sailed together in previous cruises. Justin has made friends with the few people his age who are on the cruise. They too are from the Scotland, England and the US.
Four hours later. We have had an amazing sail westward along the coast. Sunny, crisp day now up to 17 knots with one reef in the main. We have been tacking down the coast and steering to keep land close at hand. Cliffs and farm lands leading to the water are very, very beautiful. A few houses dot the coast and there are some small settlements and fishing coves but mostly farm lands or rocky barrens. We have still not decided where to stop tonight but we have some choices and it is daylight well after 9:00PM. Last night returning from Cork, I was looking at a darkened but beautiful orange blue sky in the west where the sun had set...and then I realized that it was after11PM.
All are well.

Friday, July 16th, 2004 - Greg

Jesse arrived today at noon. Now if we can put some of this socializing behind us we can get sailing.
Yesterday I wrote to complain about the rain.....and shortly after I sent the Log we had (another) visitor wanting to see Thunderhead. I mentioned something about the rain and this kind, crusty old man looked at me with a raised eyebrow and said "St Swithen's day" as if I should understand. Observing my look of total ignorance he proceeded to tell me that whatever the weather was on St Swithen's day, it would remain for the next 40 days. Kind of like Irish Groundhog Day. Great! His tour was cut short!
The opening dinner last night was a nice affair. It was mostly Americans from the CCA but there were some invited guests from the Clyde and Irish Cruising Clubs and the Royal Cork Yacht Club. A wonderful and accomplished group of sailors.
We were given the "annual" of the ICC on registration and their members have logged some pretty extensive miles in the last year. Trips north to the Baltic, south to the Med and out to the Azores. The average age on this
cruise is about 106 but they are most friendly and Justin is a great breath of fresh air for the entire group. He is terrific with people, especially older folks. (He survived us for 20 days!) And I don't mind when people ask me if I'm Justin's father, but I'm getting tired of people asking me if I'm Christopher's father............there is only 14 years difference...forgawdsake.
All are well.

Thursday, July 15th, 2004 - Greg

Rain, rain, rain.
Why is Ireland green?
I really can't complain...though I'm about to............
The day after we arrived was a most perfect sunny drying day. It was terrific for us because everything inside and outside the boat had been hosed down to get rid of the accumulated salt.........so everything got re-stowed dry and clean......but since that day it has been intermittently showering and today is just a steady downpour. I should have seen a day like this coming when, on our second day here, during a very light shower, one of the locals looked at me with an entirely straight face and in all sincerity exclaimed "it's wonderful its not raining". Ah, denial is a beautiful thing!
Many of the other CCA members on the cruise are here now and it looks more like Manchester-by-the-Sea than Kinsale. It is nice to see some familiar faces but it was nice to have the port to ourselves for a few days. opening event is tonight and the carousing etc. continues throughout. We will join some of the events but sailing and seeing some of this magnificent coastline comes first.
Thunderhead is attracting lots of attention. It is one of only a couple of" timber" boats and we have guests frequently who are amazed by the construction and finish. I must say that I too am amazed by the construction and finish. Not one seam is showing and BBY's finish work looks like the day it was rolled out of the paint shop. Justin dutifully raises our battle flag each morning and we have since added the pennant for the cruise. Any more flags and pennants and I'm afraid people will start dropping off their dry cleaning.
Christopher just arrived, wet. Jesse is due tomorrow.
All are well!

Tuesday, July 13th, 2004 - Greg

Customs: when we arrived in Kinsale I brought all of our documents, passports etc ashore in search of the customs officer. I was told that the Harbor Master served that function and went to see him. He had me fill out two forms, never looked at the passports and then emailed the stamped docs to the customs office in Cork. Yesterday we saw a small imposing gray ship pull into Kinsale with the word "Customs" printed on the side. Early last evening, I heard a wrapping on the deck and went out to discover two stern looking men in uniform announcing that they were from customs and had I registered yet. The two men were aged about 45 and 60. I was going to ask their names but I was afraid they'd be Pat and Mike. I told them that I'd seen the Harbor master and to wait while I went and got the forms. Don't bother, they replied. The sternness gone, what they really wanted to know about was the boat. They declined a tour due to wet shoes but clearly took delight in how much upkeep this boat needs! I think that Thunderhead provides many people with a perverse pleasure in noting just how much LESS upkeep their own boats need!
This morning I went to the Crosshaven Boat Yard where I had tea with the owner while we sympathized about the vagaries of owning a boat yard. We had many laughs as we discovered that the problems are universal; from dead beats to too much work, to too little work, to cranky customers........to the impossibility for the owner to get work done on his own boat. He introduced me to the rigger and varnisher and we reviewed the work plan for Thunderhead's three week stay at his yard. His manager had been by to visit us last week and one of the first things Wally, the owner, said was "I understand that you have a high standard for varnish on your boat.....". I'm glad that was noted!
From there I went to the sailmaker "McWilliams Sailmakers IRL" also in Crosshaven. Again I got the owner Des McWilliam and found him most hospitable and helpful despite the fact that there are an additional 500 sailboats in Crosshaven this week for Cork Week 2004 a huge biannual regatta. He and I discussed plans for repairs and some new canvas work to be done during the three week hiatus. Because of the immediacy of the need of the Cork Week racers, he has his sewing crew (the ladies!) arrive at 4PM and work until 4 AM each day.
It is a real pleasure to do business here. I'll let you know how it all turn$ out in August!
Justin put in a 9 hour day today just trying to get the boat back into cruising shape before the next onslaught. Even with all the work that Jamie, Brian, and Peter did, it takes many hours of constant maintenance to keep up with the endless needs of this boat.
All is quiet!

Monday, July 12th, 2004 - Greg

Well, it is down to two of us for a few days. Peter left on Saturday for a train trip to Belfast to look up relatives. A cell phone call that night revealed that he arrived in the middle of "Marching" season and his hotel, "The Europa" was right on the route. Too damned bad, I told him. T 'was his relatives started it!
After dropping Peter at the bus stop, the remaining four took off in our rental car for Blarney Castle where we obligingly climbed the tower and kissed the stone......even Harris! I did some figuring and determined that a few months shy of 40 years ago, I kissed the stone for the first time. I wondered if I'd be struck dumb by doing it a second time......but figured it was dumb to do it at all. It was the first castle for the others so we had a great time walking the grounds and figuring out how it was built. ..........man, am I traveling with a bunch of cynics..........you'd think that this was only a myth for tourists ...or something. Pictures to follow.
Sunday morning Brian left for Shannon and in the afternoon, we dropped Jamie off at the airport to fly to England where he will meet up with Nancy and travel to Scotland. Justin and I drove down to the Old Head of Kinsale, saw dizzying cliffs and incredible shoreline. The end of the peninsula where the light house is, is now a private golf course so the public can no longer get out to the end....unless you play a round there which is easily arranged for $1200/foursome for 18 holes! I've always thought that golf was WAY too expensive a hobby!
I was surprised by how difficult it was to re-enter shore life. The four old guys all had stiff joints, sore muscles and a half mile walk was an effort. Justin, though, has been out running in the morning and treats our physical
complaints with utter disdain. The ailments are mostly gone now after four days ashore and we are planning to rent some bicycles today or tomorrow and go exploring the fort at the entrance to the harbor.
Christopher arrives on Thursday, Jesse Friday. Two of the other boats we crossed with arrived late last night. The had gone to the Azores and had no wind and head winds to contend with after leaving there. I'm very glad that we made the transit direct.
Both are well.

Email Request

Friends
If you mailed us between noon and 8PM (EDT) on Friday the ninth, could you resend?
Mail was garbled and we are unable to read the messages...though we know they were sent.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
GREG

Friday, July 9th, 2004 - Greg

We could barely make it through dessert last night before 5 tired guys stumbled (for most it was the equilibrium not the Guinness) back to the boat for 9 solid hours of sleep.
A really beautiful day in Ireland today, sunny, good drying weather and as you can see from today's photos...we have alot to dry! We look like the Beverly Hillbillies!
Kinsale is a wonderful little town. Lots of little shops, bookstores.....COFFEE SHOPS.........and victualers. Windy little streets surround the harbor, ancient castles and forts protect it. Like all of the "New" Ireland, prosperity abounds.
Putting the ship back together continues; Mechanical, electrical, plumbing. Nothing major, just tweaking and greasing and replacing changeable parts. The team of Harris and Houtz continue their feats of boat maintenance excellence. Thunderhead will be at the Crosshaven boat yard for three weeks while I'm in Maine and the yard manager is coming over this afternoon to review our work list. Varnish is at the top of the list but it will have to be done outdoors due to my reluctance to unstep the mast.........and this is Irish weather! the rest of the list are small problems which will overall make the boat and rig safer and more convenient for offshore sailing. I've learned alot in the past three weeks about the offshore needs of a sailboat.

Thursday, July 8th, 2004 - Greg - Part II

We are tied up in Kinsale at the Yacht Club. We have passed Customs (they even let Harris in) and our yellow "Q" or quarantine flag has been lowered and the flag of IRELAND now flies from the Starboard spreader.
At 0700 we were abeam Fastnet Rock. The log read 2800 miles exactly. Pictures were taken and we enjoyed a final sail up the coast to Kinsale. Ireland is still an incredibly rural and beautiful country. Two of our crew have never been to Europe and for them, seeing this country for the first time was an amazing experience. The last time I saw this bit of coast from a boat I was 13 years old and it was from the deck of the SS Nieuw Amsterdam a Holland American Line ship in the waning years of the Atlantic to Europe passenger trade.
Emotions are clearly mixed.It was an amazing, safe, comfortable and fast crossing.I'm now thinking that I should never do this again.....it will never be this good. This is an incredibly strong and seaworthy vessel. There were glitches but no major problems. One of few regrets was that had we known how well the freezer would work, we would clearly have stuffed it with Ben and Jerry's.
This afternoon, while I did paper work and found suitable Re$taurants for tonight and tomorrow, the rest of the crew began cleaning the boat. Salt is nasty on varnish and we had little rain for three weeks, The rails looked
like Pringles and what looked like large sheets of bubbled paint on the white top sides turned out to be nothing more than chunks of salt, drying on the hull for days. Everything is getting washed in fresh water; Equipment, sails, foul weather gear, cushions included. The brightwork has been washed in soap and water and chamoised dry.......Thunderhead is looking GREAT once more. One thing that was amazing to me was that with all the pounding we did for 20 days, not one seam is showing on the hull. It still looks like a fiberglass boat................those Germans knew how to build!.............and NICE paint job Brooklin Boat Yard!
I didn't intend too write this log everyday but through my sister-in-law Liz' initial encouragement and all who wrote, it was an easy and looked forward to task.
So here is the plan.........I will continue to write for the Irish cruise and our position will be updated daily..........then I'll be back on Aug 16th to resume the cruise to the med..and to resume the logs........I hope
that some of you will continue to follow.
Thanks you all for your support and for being faithful followers of our venture....keep checking in.
All are well.