Isles of Scilly
19 July 2024 – Kinsale, Republic of Ireland
Before leaving for the Scillies, we visited two more French islands: Île de Sein and Île de Molène, where we had a picnic with a great view of the ocean. Both had stunning views and beautiful weather.
Picnic lunch – Île de Molène, France
Picnic lunch – Île de Molène, France
We then spent almost a week in the Isles of Scilly, a small archipelago off the coast of Cornwall. It took us about fifteen hours to get there from Île de Molène and the journey was practically flat calm. Many small dolphins visited Festina Lente and we enjoyed watching them playing in the bow wave even though Sirius was screaming at them.
Dolphin watching – English Channel
We had visited the Scillies briefly last summer but couldn’t stay long due to the weather, and even after spending more time on the islands recently, we still have a list of things to do there next time.
The islands are sunny and rural, with rolling green hills and beaches. We anchored off of St Martin’s, then re-anchored on the other side where more islands protected us from the swell. St Martin’s is beautiful, with many paths along the coast and a walk through the small town. There is a grocery store and many honesty boxes by the side of the road where you can buy fresh produce, eggs, and jam. We made sure to stop by the bakery in the morning before they ran out of pasties.
St. Martin’s, Isles of Scilly, England
St. Martin’s, Isles of Scilly, England
We ended up not moving from St Martin’s for the majority of our stay in the Isles of Scilly, though we took the dinghy to nearby Bryher and also stopped briefly in Tresco. Unfortunately we ran out of time to visit St Agnes and Hughtown, so we’ll have to see them the next time around.
Bryher, Isles of Scilly, England
Tresco, Isles of Scilly, England
We are currently sailing to Kinsale on the southern coast of Ireland. The original plan was to leave early this morning and arrive the following midnight, but we ended up leaving last night instead to avoid having to outrun a storm that is coming. We will probably arrive mid-afternoon.
Tea and biscuits – Irish Sea
I will be flying home to Toronto from Ireland, so this is sadly the end of my blog. I had a great time travelling around Europe this year, especially Greece. The rest of the crew will continue sailing in Ireland and Scotland until the end of August, so there may be more updates coming from them.
