We set off in sunny but calm conditions which soon increased to 25 kn from the South providing great sailing at over 10 kn at times, at least we could see where we were going .
W had a few visitors on route , swifts I think , which must have been delayed in France due to the month of Northerly winds, a few came aboard for a ride.
This was a bit of a trip into the unknown as the SE coast of Ireland was missing from the electronic charts , it was a nice change to use the paper chart and have the position verified as we approached the coast and saw the offshore wind farm on the Arklow Bank. The crossing had been made in such good time that we decided to push on to Dun Laogharie ( Dublin) as the Guinness was calling .
The forecast was for rain and a F6 which finally arrived as we docked around midnight with the rigging whistling.
The Sunday morning walk to the showers was interesting as the marina had the longest pontoon I have ever seen 1Km long , and the boats in the marina were on the large side also making us look quite small.
We met up with a friend of mine and were invited for breakfast at the Royal Irish Yacht Club , just the thing before a few pints of Guinness ! The boat was re stocked with fuel and stores, but not over filled due to the exchange rate. £ 2:10 for a loaf of bread and £30 for a pair of sailing gloves that are £ 19 at home.
In the evening we were introduced to the pubs of Dalkey a few miles down the coast and finished up with a superb Thai meal before catching the Dart back to the Marina.
Monday was spent sightseeing in Dublin and visiting Dublina which showed the links to the Viking past of the city
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