June 2019,when it all began.6 boats took on the challenge of cruising from
Athlone to Baltimore in West Cork.15 locations taken in on the way. Our journey
began when we set off from Athlone down to Killaloe and on out through Ard Na
Crusha Lock. Our first stop over was in Kilrush. Unfortunatly,due to bad weather
conditions, we had to stay in Kilrush for a further 2 nights. Eventually,we set off
towards Fenit, not realising what would lie ahead of us. Winds picked up and we
were faced with 3 metre waves bashing against our hull. For us who were new to
boating on the sea, it certainly was an eye opener but enjoyable at the same
time. We spent 1 night Fenit trying to recover from our “traumatic” maiden voyage
on the sea. Next morning, we were awoken by a trickle of sunlight beaming in
through my bow window. I knew it was time to set sail, our next destination:Dingle. I
was particularly looking forward to visiting Dingle as we could possibly see Fungi
the Dolphin.
Our journey was going great until….we had engine trouble that took 2 days to
resolve. It worked out well as the weather was amazing and it meant we got to do
lots of sightseeing in Dingle, and we got lots of opportunities to see Fungi up close
and personal. It was time to leave Dingle and head towards Baltimore, on the
recommendation of some of our fellow cruisers we stopped off at Crook Haven for
some lunch and before going onwards to Baltimore we cruised along to a must
see place called Cape Clear. Eventually after cruising 120 nautical miles, we
reached Sherkin Island which is right across from Baltimore. We stayed there a few
nights enjoying the peace and quiet of the Island.
After Sherkin Island, we decided to take in a day trip to Schull, where we berthed a
little bit outside and went in on the ribs. We spent the day there and had a lovely
lunch. That night we returned to Baltimore where we stayed a night. Got up early
the next morning to start making our way back towards Kilrush. We decided to take
in Bantry on our way back which is a lovely town. While we were there we got to
visit the cinema and we finally got to do our laundry which was starting to smell at
that stage. It was suggested to us to visit Garnish Island, which contains a beautiful
Italian walled garden.
We then went on to Lawrence’s Cove on Bere Island and stayed there for one
night. The following morning, we woke up to a miserable day, but we knew we would
have to keep to our schedule and head up to Valencia. It was a miserable journey
up and it rained the whole time we were in Valencia. But we did manage to get a
lovely dinner in the local hotel. We returned to Kilrush the next day all pretty
exhausted but we managed to take in a circus that were performing that night. It
was officially the end to the most amazing experience with my family and friends
that I will never forget. We are all ready planning our next sea adventure for 2021!
Watch this space!