Fulmar Concerto Sail Round Britain part 10 Carrickfergus to Douglas

This is the tenth part of my singlehanded Round Britain trip in my 32ft Westerly Fulmar "Concerto" that was built in 1980. This part starts leaving Carrickfergus near Belfast and finishes in Douglas, Isle of Man. It is a good pictorial record covering the sailing and places I visited.

The sail from Carrickfergus was very uneventful but with nice sunshine and too far off the coastline to video anything interesting. Entering Strangford Lough Narrows required a little bit more concentration as I was just after low water and was carried quickly in by the tide. There seemed little time to prepare the fenders for berthing before approaching Portaferry. I certainly did not want to get down tide of the entrance. Fortunately, the tide slackened closer to the shore and marina entrance but was still about 1 to 1½ knots in the marina. Turning to berth into the tide was not a problem and was quickly tied up securely. The marina was a good stopping place as I could take my bike ashore to explore and by taking the ferry this meant both sides of the lough entrance. The next place I visited was Quoile Yacht Club. What a delightful place that made me very welcome. The following day I was invited to join the club members for a wedding reception being held there.

From Quoile I was heading for Down Cruising Club, but I never made it. There was a northerly wind so decided to motor the short distance. This proved my undoing as I had forgotten to check my diesel tank and ran it dry. This meant I hoisted sails quickly and started beating. Then I checked where I could buy diesel from locally. There was nowhere to fill the tank, it would have to be carried aboard. Then checking the places where there were pontoons and fuel stations close by, there was only Portaferry or Killyleagh to choose from. Killyleagh was closer and easier to sail alongside a pontoon, but the sailing guide said no visitors. Needs must and I sailed on to the end pontoon with a small motorboat just ahead of me. Not too difficult and just over stood by about 3m. Once tied up I found the gate ashore was locked, so called to some people nearby and then explained my situation. They could not help me, but shortly a man came ashore and said he had some fuel cans in his car and took me to the local garage where I bought 42 litres. He then helped me to transport the full cans to Concerto. He refused a donation for his assistance but said just help someone in need in the future. The following day the engine was bled and fully serviced.

Leaving Killyleagh, the wind was strong enough for single reefs on both sails. Concerto slipped along easily, and I had timed my leaving to arrive at the entrance to Strangford Lough narrows at low water. There is only a period of 20 minutes of slack water and allows for a more comfortable exit according to the Portaferry harbour master. Heading for Peel in the Isle of Man, the pace was brisk and later the wind increased meaning double reefs for main and genoa. The final approach was a quite rough and lumpy lee shore, and I finally managed to drop the mainsail behind the breakwater.

Peel was a nice place to visit, and the marina has good facilities. Then leaving mid afternoon due to the tidal access, I headed south for Calf Sound. This turned out to be a stiff beat and the adverse tide in the Sound made it very tight, so I ran the engine as a precaution. The run north to Douglas was quite rolly and the wind dropped a lot as sunset approached. Entry into Douglas was quite easy but finding the holding pontoon was difficult as it was unlit and finally tied up at 22.30. Then I had to wait to enter the marina. I was advised the earliest it would be 02.30, but it was later and finally berthed at 03.15 in a very tight berth. Later that morning, I could not believe the onshore facilities were all stainless steel and would not look out of place in a prison, made even worse as the marina only opened in 2000. Douglas is worth visiting, but I would recommend taking a bus from Peel than using Douglas Marina.

Full detailed written account of this part of the trip starts here.
https://forums.ybw.com/index.php?thre...

The trip has been completed and the next part will cover leaving the Isle of Man for Conwy, then the Menai Strait and the Swellies to head for Caernarfon and Pwllheli. If you have enjoyed this video and some of my other videos, then subscribe to my channel you will be immediately notified when the next videos are loaded. The photos and videos on this trip were taken on an iPhone SE 2020 and the aerial videos on a DJI Mini 2 drone. The editing was completed using OpenShot Video Editor.