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We had been comfortably moored in the idyllic Portpatric harbour until I was awoken at 01.00 by the wind howling through the rigging, and then a large bang. I jumped out of bed and threw on some clothes and found as the tide had risen considerably and the long, as we had thought lines had gone slack. Fortunately the boat was still held off the wall by the fenders, but i think the bang was from the fender board slipping off the large fenders provided by the harbour and running up and down on wire cables, and hitting the steel ladder. Fortunately no damage had occurred. I then set about setting up even longer ropes to the next mooring bollards to hold the boats steady.
We departed Portpatrick a little later than planned at 12.30 to avoid the 2Kts of tide flowing South in the Irish Sea. The weather had warmed a little from what it was when we got up. The wind was on the nose for the first mile or so but as the coast turned a little east we were able to fill the sails and start sailing. We continued past Corsewall Point and started heading for the Isle of Arran. The weather ahead was misty and eventually Ailsa Graig came into view. It didnt look big on the chart, but it seemed to be forever ahead of us. Eventually we reached the hugely impressive rock rising from the Firth of Clyde. Once past and approaching Arran the weather deteriorated. The wind got stronger and the rain heavier. We continued on and arrived and the natural harbour behind the towering Holy Island. As it was getting late we changed our plans of anchoring and picked up visitors buoys.
This morning we went ashore to the village of Lamlash and a walk along the coast. We will stay here tonight, but havent yet decided where to head tomorrow.
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