Bumpy old day and no wind

Piel Island was a must if we were to return to Glasson the next day. The prospect of a long day lay ahead with the most optimistic journey time being around 8 hours. This was of course assuming conditions were favourable. They were not. Once leaving the safety of the marina we found that there was residual swell from the bad weather over the two days prior. This made the first leg of the journey uncomfortable. Despite the lumpy seas the wind was almost non-existent barely registering at times and peaking at around force 2s.


This lack of wind meant that the entire day was under the power of motor spare a few minutes in which we tried to sail. In these few minutes our speed plummeted resting about the 1knot mark. This would mean reaching Piel Island after sunrise the next day. Soon after switching the engine back on we were prompted by another boat to tune into VHF channel 13. We were informed we would soon be passing through a military firing range. We were assured we “should be fine” passing through but we would be warned if anything was to change.

The sea became calmer later in the day and made for a fairly uneventful journey and arrival at Piel. The water was perfectly calm in the protected bay around the island which made the evening meal very comfortable in comparison to some of the others we have eaten at sea.