Yesterday, Friday, the sun shone and it became warm, yes actually warm, even hot at times. So out came the shorts and tee shirts at last. Dale Bay basked in sunshine.
Some of the natives must have smelled the bacon and eggs and decided to pay us a visit.
Before setting off on the next trip, the one remaining pollock was filleted ready for the evening meal. Delicious quickly fried in butter with garlic, accompanied by cheese sauce. We are grateful to our neighbours Mair and Dic (from Wales as you might guess) in Padstow for that culinary suggestion. Their boat was rafted up against FF for two nights and they gave us many tips about the sailing on N Wales coast.
The tides round the islands west and north of Milford Haven are renowned for their strength. St. George's Channel, which runs between this part of the Welsh coast and the SE coast of Ireland is also notorious for its swift currents. We knew all this but seemed lulled into a false sense of security by the lovely weather. So instead of waiting for the tide to run in our favour, we decided to chance our luck and tackle the passage round the islands of Skomer and Skokholm into St. Brides Bay early, to give us time to fish before entering the tiny drying harbour of Solva for the night. Well this was a serious misjudgement, since the "Wild Goose Race" almost sucked us backwards, and with no wind for the sails to assist the engine, FF could not compete with the sea. Decided discretion to be the better part of valour and retreated to the south haven bay on Skomer Island - a wonderful bird sanctuary - and anchor for the night. Overall a very good decision. Not only had we experienced exactly what FF can and cannot do in the face of such strong currents, but we also found ourselves an idyllic spot, with only puffins, razorbills, guillemots, gulls and a seal for company. Brilliant!
An early start today meant that the tides were in our favour this time and even St. George's Channel could not prevent us from reaching Fishguard at 3 p.m. today. Sailed nearly all the way in strong NE force 4/5, occasionally 6 wind, and managed to steer clear of both The Smalls and The Bishops and Clerks rocks. Below is a distant view of South Bishop, a rock not to be toyed with.
Now anchored in Fishguard Harbour, and await visit from Mick's sister Sally, her daughter Kate and Kate's baby Flynn tomorrow. Should be fun getting them on board for the day!
No comments:
Post a Comment