Monthly Archives: July 2019

Now that we’re back on land after a 1,200 mile passage, it’s time to tackle all the things that weren’t working while we were at sea.

Remember on our passage when we’d try to cook meals in the oven, only to have the burner continuously go out on us? We’ll now that the boat isn’t constantly rocking back and forth, it’s time to take it apart to see what’s causing the problem. Maybe Matt will have it fixed in no time….or maybe we’ll be eating sandwiches for the next week.

We also rent a car for 2 days to explore what we can of County Cork. After getting some errands out of the way (checking in with immigration at City Hall; visiting marine stores; and many stops to Aldi), we get our hands on one more big chore…the 80 pounds of laundry we’ve had building up since Thailand.

But then it’s time for fun. We spend an evening walking through the streets of Cork, and the next afternoon going through the even cuter town of Kinsale. The highlight of our exploring is when we stop at an area called The Old Head. Staggering cliffs of a peninsula.

This spot showcases thousands of birds on the cliffs and in the water; forts dating back to the 3rd century; and is even the site of the sinking of the Luisitania in 1915. Steeped in history and beauty, it’s a spot we’re happy to spend a few hours just wandering around in.

Much love from Ireland!
Jessica, Matt & Georgie

Thank you SO MUCH to our Patrons. These amazing supporters help keep us on the boat, our camera equipment up to date, and the videos coming. Without our patrons, these videos would not be possible.

To join the Patreon ranks, please visit http://www.patreon.com/mjsailing

or

Buy us a beer through PayPal!
https://www.paypal.me/MJSailing

Thank you!,
Matt & Jessica

We pick up on the last few days of our 1,200 mile passage from the Azores, to Cork Ireland.

On our approach, about 36 hours from making landfall, we realize at our current speed we’ll make a midnight arrival. Slowing ourselves down by only sailing with a reefed headsail, we decided to do a bit of fishing to catch ourselves a nice dinner. Besides, we were just about done with the trip and I still had a few fishing accessories I was looking to test out. Once we were done we were quite close, so we tried to keep a speed of 4 knots to make sure we won’t arrive before sunrise.

We also begin to encounter all kinds of ship traffic, but mostly fishing vessels which continue to cut back and forth across our path in the middle of the night. We experience a little more heavy weather on our last full day at sea….with some more big waves that are having fun tossing us around.

But…we finally make landfall just at sunrise and have beautiful views as we motor into the harbor of Crosshaven. Our arrival deserved a fine Irish welcome, so we celebrated that night with Irish sirloin steaks and cold Guinness to drink.

Much love from the Ireland!
Jessica, Matt & Georgie

Thank you SO MUCH to our Patrons. These amazing supporters help keep us on the boat, our camera equipment up to date, and the videos coming. Without our patrons, these videos would not be possible.

To join the Patreon ranks, please visit http://www.patreon.com/mjsailing

or

Buy us a beer through PayPal!
https://www.paypal.me/MJSailing

Those 4 meter seas we had been expecting? Yup, they finally made their appearance.

On Day 4 of our passage from the Azores to Ireland, the remnants of a nasty depression just east of us finally made their way over to where we were sailing. Winds gusting up to 30, not too bad, but the waves did start to build as well, becoming very frothy and topping out at a little over 4 meters. By that same afternoon though the storm passed and we were back to our usual 2 meter seas.

We still haven’t quite got out of our passage ‘blahs’ yet, and we’re not sure if it’s just taking us this long to adjust to a life back at sea, or if the constant gray skies are keeping us in a subdued state of being.

We do hit one more milestone though, where we sail the furthest north we’ve ever been…47 degrees! Plus it marks our halfway trip to Ireland.

Much love from the North Atlantic!
Jessica, Matt & Georgie

Thank you SO MUCH to our Patrons. These amazing supporters help keep us on the boat, our camera equipment up to date, and the videos coming. Without our patrons, these videos would not be possible.

To join the Patreon ranks, please visit http://www.patreon.com/mjsailing

or

Buy us a beer through PayPal!
https://www.paypal.me/MJSailing

We’ve now entered into the 40 degree latitudes.

But wait? Am I thinking of the wrong ocean with all the terrible weather I’m expecting?

Our passage from Terceira to Ireland is well underway now, but conditions have picked up just enough that we’re not feeling so hot.

Our departure from the Azores was kind to us, but by day two the seas are growing and we’re feeling a little queasy in our stomach. Not much else to do but sit around and wait for it to pass.

We expect heavier conditions to come, although on Day 3, things aren’t as bad as they’re supposed to be. The winds and waves have calmed down a little…but now we have a new problem of the oven not wanting to cook our dinner!

Oh well, at least it’s only a 10 day passage instead of 25!

Much love from the North Atlantic!

Jessica, Matt & Georgie

Thank you SO MUCH to our Patrons. These amazing supporters help keep us on the boat, our camera equipment up to date, and the videos coming. Without our patrons, these videos would not be possible.

To join the Patreon ranks, please visit http://www.patreon.com/mjsailing

or Buy us a beer through PayPal! https://www.paypal.me/MJSailing

Thank you!, Matt & Jessica