June 2013 long weekend CIC

Our June long weekend CIC was a big success this year, with 22 boats in attendance, and we were lucky with the weather, which was bright and sunny throughout, although at times very breezy.

Commodore: Paul king

The fleet assembled at Hodson Bay on Friday night, for a casual night and get together. On Saturday morning, we departed on our tour of Lough Ree, arriving soon afterwards at Quaker’s Island, where we dropped anchor and rafted off to have a spot of lunch, and to explore the magnificent history of the island. Everybody had great fun as we brought the ribs as close to shore as possible, with piggy backs the rest of the way for the ladies provided by Gerry Macken who was unfortunate enough to have waders!

A landing party at Quakers Island

Then it was a short trip across the lake to the much under visited Barley Harbour, where the fleet rested overnight. The wind was quite strong, which made mooring a little difficult, but our usual sense of camaraderie saw us tied up safe and snug before too long. After our marquees were erected, we had the commodore’s wine and cheese, then everyone got down to the business of socialising and playing lawn games, and we enjoyed a communal barbeque. As dusk came, we fired up the campfire and parraffin lanterns, creating the perfect atmosphere, and Peter Lee lit up the trees with his LED’s. We finished the evening with some great music and song.

On Sunday morning it was on to Saint’s Island for a historical tour which was enjoyed by everyone, and our guide and host, Kieran Crowley deserves a special word of thanks. Time restraints meant that we didn’t get to cruise the river Inny, so it was straight on to our last destination, Coosan Point. A great night was had by all, and we danced the night away to an acoustic session by local band, The Smokes. A perfect close to a perfect weekend!