Aleria's Adventures

Crosshaven from our B&B We'd been in Crosshaven for a week. We'd cycled the Greenway, visited the Fort at Camden, taken a bus trip into Cork, done our laundry in Carrigaline, and made Cronin's our home away from home where we met up with OCC members from Persephone (David Ball & Trudie) and Aragorn (Robert & Caroline Jollye). We also made friends with Canadian single-hander Dirk from Footloose who will be joining OCC and Damian owner of a classic Fife yacht that he just inherited from his uncle and he's going to restore. Our lead mechanic at CBY, Hugh Cassidy, is a fascinating character. He gave us a tour of his boat, a cruiser converted lovingly from a lifeboat. He reminded me of a cross between Hugh Laurie and Crocodile Dundee. We really liked him, and he was very good and trustworthy. The guys who work for him, Dennis who worked on our boat, are also terribly nice and good at their jobs. We had landed in the right place at Crosshaven Boat Yard. ...

Cronin's in Crosshaven We took our laundry to Carrigaline yesterday and the kind man got it done by 2:30pm. We had to kill a few hours which we did with lunch at the Gaelic bar. That meant just a light dinner at Cronin's, the only game in the town of Crosshaven. They stopped serving at 8 pm and another couple got turned away. We squeaked in just under the wire. It was a slow day yesterday, with computer work while a gentle rain fell most of the day. We got a call this morning from Hugh, mechanic extraordinaire, that our parts had arrived yesterday evening and the guys were already on board installing the new gear. We packed up our stuff and searched out our hostess, Cathy, at the Compass Rose B&B, to let her know we'd be leaving a day early. Down the hill, with our bags, we trudged. The guys were already more than half done. For a finale in Crosshaven, we got on our bikes and rode the Greenway along the river. It turned out to be a fine day and we enjoyed the r...

Dick, Carol, Alex, Sue and Mike We'd had a slow day, spending the time banking, emailing, and blogging. Mid-day we went to lunch at the River Cafe (very nice and good food) then sauntered back to the B&B by way of the boatyard. It was hot and sunny - summer had arrived. We got the news that the part was due in on Thursday so if all goes well, our boat will be put back together then and we'll be on our way. We were invited to dinner at Mike and Carol Hodder's house not far from Crosshaven in Fountainstown. Mike, the OCC Port Officer, picked us up at the marina and gave us the scenic tour en route. We arrived at Fountainstown House, a Georgian on 100 acres which has been in his family for 400 years. Mike was a dairy farmer until he couldn't make it work anymore, at which point he scaled back and switched to beef, which is now difficult at best. Alex and Mike, who reminded us both very much of Robin Williams, had a lot in common. Invited to dinner were also Di...

Fort Meagher in Camden is on the promontory under which we anchored under sail. It's a short ride from Crosshaven so we thought we'd do a bit of exploring. Once again, it was a beautiful day. We asked Google Maps to show us the way. We rode our bikes along the shore road until it stopped, then hiked the short distance up the hill to the fort. The fort is quite interesting, as is its history, although it's not very pretty. Originally built in the 16th century, the current structure dates back to the 1860s. Much of it is underground, with miles of tunnels, some still closed, and massive stairwells. The views over Cork Harbour are stunning and there was an amazing exodus of yachts to a nearby anchorage since it was 'shocking hot'. The fort is being restored by volunteers and the County Council. It's entirely made of concrete, built shortly after concrete was invented, in a star configuration. The volunteers are very knowledgeable and helpful. There's a lov...