The day started really well. We slipped Peel breakwater at 0840 and pointed WNW. With the wind South of west, the cruising chute (screecher) got its first run of the season and we made a steady 7 knots plus in moderate beam seas. Great sailing and we covered over 30 miles effortlessly, deciding to push North to Glenarm instead of hanging a left into Belfast Lough and Carrickfergus.
The wind freshened steadily and by 1430 was steadily over 15knts over the deck, the drop-it speed for the screecher, (which by then had been living up to it's name, singing away happily for over an hour) so we carried on with full jib and main. The wind backed steadily until the Main was blanking the jib so we goose winged, closing the Copeland Islands at a good rate.
Then it started to rain, the wind got up to around 27 knots, more in the gusts, I gybed to get offshore and the heads'l popped out of the track, so we dumped it and carried on under main alone.
It became very cold, like winter, which combined with the rain made the last few miles past the Maidens a bit of a drag. By now we had lost the last of the ebb (which runs north on this coast) and the wind over tide off Larne gave a couple of miles of tumbling 2.5 metre seas although, as we were running, they were more spectacular than hurtful and we kept up a steady 6 knots over the ground despite the adverse current.
As we rounded Glenarm's headland, we got into the lee and all was quiet. Grey Dove glided serenely into the Marina as if to say "what was all the fuss about?" The sun came out, we opened up the boat to dry her out (see picture) and we went ashore in search of sustenance.