Cockle Island Boat Club may be in the minority in Northern Ireland as it doesn’t have its own clubhouse, but for the 50 years of its existence, it has used the local Council facility, the original lifeboat house on the pier in the small village of Groomsport on the North Down coast.
The first of the celebrations was held recently with an illustrated presentation with stories, milestones and insights into the Club’s journey by three original members – Jim Howel, Willie Wickens and John Cleary. Also marking the Golden Anniversary, the club has produced new branded clothing.
Neither is Cockle Island one of the larger clubs in the region, with 135 members, but it has grown steadily over the half-century to a hub of year-round activity, with regular twice weekly racing and offshore races from May till September, and weekly club nights in the Boathouse during the winter.
Three of the original members of Cockle Island Boat Club (from left to right) John Cleary, Willie Wickens and Jim Howell
The harbour was first built in the 9th century, probably by the Vikings, but now it is a safe haven behind the rocky Cockle Island, after which the club is named, for the boats owned mostly by members as well as the very reduced number of fishing boats, down to two from about 20 in the late 1800s.
Groomsport Harbour on the North Down coast of Northern Ireland Photo: Paul2000ni
Benefitting from harbour improvements in the 70s, the boat club had a new slipway and dinghy park as well as more car parking space.
Commodore Harry Patterson reflects, “Many of our members have been sailing since before GPS and electronic navigational aids became affordable and available. Because of this, they sailed using the traditional methods of the time. I always think that because of this, they are more *sailorly' compared to today’s generation of sailors. What I mean is, I think they maintain a link to the traditional past by keeping these skills alive and by passing them on to today’s sailors”.
This busy club can look forward to the remainder of the Winter programme talks and then weekly local racing as well as offshore passages to Glenarm on the Antrim Coast and Portpatrick on the Mull of Galloway.
