Unfortunately, we are well behind in posting our travels around Ireland last summer. This post covers time spent in Derry, Northern Ireland from August 18 to August 22. We will try to recap the rest of this amazing trip soon. We left Echo in England last fall and have been enjoying time in Bellingham Washington with our kids and granddaughter. We will return to England in March.
Prior to our arrival at the marina in Derry, Jeff had sorted out immigration details for our travel between the Republic of Ireland in the European Union and Northern Ireland which remains part of the United Kingdom. Pre Brexit both countries had been members of the
European Union and crossing borders was seamless. Post Brexit things are a bit unclear when traveling by water and we wanted to be sure of following proper procedures.
It is a 20 mile journey up the River Foyle with a transit under a fixed bridge which we don’t often experience, somewhat stressful with an 80 foot tall mast. We had winds of 20 Knots, a strong current, waves and rain during which we managed to secure Echo safely on the dock without any assistance or drama. We have become pretty good at the planning and execution of this process as there has seldom been anyone to toss lines to when arriving to a pontoon in Ireland or England. Jeff maneuvers Echo’s transom close while I step off to quickly secure lines. With two lines secured we’re safe and can then work on getting more lines in place for the duration of our stay. Continue reading