Days 6&7 Hell and Heaven

Day 6 Troon to Girvan.
Friendly Girvan fisherman

Emblem in Girvan
We set off just after 11.00 from Troon to Girvan, which should have been a nice four hour sail but turned into a very unpleasant (for me) 5 1/2 hours. We had stronger winds than forecast, up to 22 knots and "on the nose" and against the tide. It was very choppy so a lot of banging up and down and general unpleasantness. (The only interesting thing about the trip was the Trump Turnberry golf resort which we passed, topical because of Trumps concurrent visit to the UK. We wondered if he was in residence?) I was not happy with the weather and sailing conditions. Josh couldn't see what all the fuss was about so when we finally tied up in the pretty little Girvan harbour we were about to divorce. Being very hungry I decided to go up into the village and find fish and chips for myself and battered sausage and chips for Josh (his favourite.) This being Scotland, the land of healthy eating, they insisted on giving me two battered sausage. There was a very frosty atmosphere when I returned to the boat but after eating the chip supper from real newspaper (brought back childhood memories) the thaw had taken place and all was forgiven! After a tiring and trying day we had no trouble falling sleeping that night.

Shores of Loch Ryan
Day 7 we had a choice of a longer trip to Port Patrick or a shorter one to Stranraer at the end of Loch Ryan. The shorter one got my vote and in fact it turned out to be a very pleasant trip. We had a gentle breeze behind us and managed a bit of sailing. The iconic Ailsa Craig kept us company for most of the journey and we could see the coast line of Ireland in the distance. (Ailsa Craig is a, now uninhabited, island in the outer Firth of Clyde formed from the volcanic plug of an extinct volcano. Blue hone granite is mined here for making curling stones!)

We passed two ferry ports on the way along Loch Ryan, P&O and Stena Line, who both operate fast ferries to Ireland. This seems to me a tempting way of getting there after yesterdays trip! However I have to say that today we have had a very enjoyable sail. We tied up in Stranraer Marina at 17.00 to a sudden squall, always the way it seems. The promised storm Miguel has hit the South today but we seemed to have escaped it, all but the very edge perhaps. We are going to stay here for the weekend and all being well, make the crossing to Ireland on Monday.

Sign at an unnamed marina, don't want to embarrass them!

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