Sea state was initially calm but rough out on the outer estuary and ocean due to the incoming wind conflicting with the outgoing tide. On these legs Neidin's hull would crash down off the swells three or four times in quick succession and then settle down for a while before doing so again. Lifelines were issued and worn by all. Fearghal and Frieda had not undertaken a night passage before and so were both excited and perhaps a tiny bit anxious at the prospect. But the weather obliged to give a ride which had just the right amount of excitement and intrigue without quite threatening to get out of hand. The full moon and GPS together made navigation most comfortable and, indeed, the lights of DE were visible from Credan Head. A large container ship approached us from the stern and we pulled out of the navigation channel to allow her pass on her way. In the darkness it was not possible to make out her name, but we took some slow exposure photos and, although they were somewhat shaky, they did seem to capture the moment.
Had a great discussion about recovering MOB from the sea at night and decided that, if somebody fell overboard, we should circle to starboard, rather than port, to place them to best advantage in the moonlight. Lots of talk about singlehanded sailors trailing lines behind their boats as a form of last resort life insurance ?? You talk about the strangest things on boats at night.
From Credan Head we made two large tacking movements to position ourselves off Dunmore East and, by doing so, we managed to sail right to the mouth of the harbour. Great feeling of achievement as we entered protected waters, selected a suitable fishing boat, and rafted snugly up against it for the night!Passage: Dunmore East to Waterford City.
Date: Friday 15th April 2011.
Crew: Fearghal Dowling. Frieda Daly. Fia.
Duration: 4.5 hours.
Would have enjoyed the night sail!
ReplyDeleteWas pretty cool Kev.
ReplyDeleteJust the right mix of elements. Fia.