About to leave Lough Swilly, our anchorage after Tory Island, we discovered a serious water leak from the engine which delayed our
departure by a couple of hours. The problem was diagnosed as failure of the internal seal of the fresh water pump, so cooling water was
steadily being pumped into the bilge. We rigged up a makeshift solution – plastic bottle and spare tubing led into the water filler so we could top up frequently from the cockpit with water recycled by bucket from the bilge. With gale force winds forecast to arrive overnight we wanted to make safe harbour at Portrush, where a replacement pump ordered by phone will be delivered in a few days time. The delay caused us to miss-time the tidal gap at Inishtrahull Sound, which boasts the strongest tides on the whole of the Irish coast, and run into some of the stronger evening wind. Consequently it was a hard day’s slog motorsailing at reduced revs under full sail, and topping up the cooling water every ten minutes when the temperature alarm sounded, with one three hour spell seeing no forward progress against the tide between Malin Head and Inishtrahull. We eventually made Portrush at 9.30pm, noticing but not fully able to appreciate the fine sunset.