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Displaying items by tag: Glamping

#Glamping - Kayaking and yoga on the Loop Head Peninsula is among the coastal offerings included in The Irish Times’ selection of Ireland’s top ‘glamping’ spots.

Aside from the aforementioned Purecamping experience on the Wild Atlantic Way, perhaps a stay in a seaside yurt on Cape Clear Island — or a modernist pod on Inis Mór inspired by the Aran Islands’ iconic beehive stone huts — might take your fancy.

And don’t forget the unique Quirky Nights village in Enniscrone, the centrepiece of which is ‘The Big Yoke’: a converted Boeing 767 jet that made headlines when it was transported by barge to the Mayo coast two years ago.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Published in Coastal Notes
Tagged under

#PlaneSailing - The Boeing 767 that wowed Ireland as it sailed by barge from the Shannon Estuary to a Sligo coastal town arrived at its new home, according to RTÉ News.

Preparations were being made last night (Saturday 7 May) to move the aircraft fuselage from its barge to the nearby site of Enniscrone entrepreneur David McGowan's ambitious Quirky Nights Glamping Village – where it will be converted into unique accommodation alongside converted buses, boats and black cabs.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the aircraft set sail from Shannon on Thursday on the barge after being lifted from the airport grounds earlier in the week using a specially commissioned cradle.

Today FM's Anton Savage Show, which has regaled listeners with McGowan's 'plane sailing' adventures over recent weeks, even broadcast from Enniscrone hours before the Boeing's arrival to mark the event.

Published in Coastal Notes

#PlaneSailing - Video has emerged of the Boeing 767 being sailed by barge from the Shannon Estuary up the coast to Enniscrone for its new life as part of a 'glamping' site in the Co Sligo seaside town.



Local funeral director and entrepreneur David McGowan has kept listeners to Today FM's Anton Savage Show updated on his plans to make the decommissioned plane – nicknamed 'The Big Yoke' – the centrepiece of his Quirky Nights Glamping Village concept.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, McGowan hopes for the aircraft to arrive in Enniscrone by tomorrow (Saturday 7 May).

And what's more, The Anton Savage Show will broadcast live on location from 11am on Today FM to celebrate its arrival - follow the hashtag #PlaneSailing on Twitter for live updates.

Said Savage of the incredible story: “First we thought David was funny. Then we thought he was crazy. Now we’re sure he’s a genius.

"Any man whose business plan is a plane, train and a teapot in a field is our kind of guy. It’s an honour to be there to see the Big Yoke land.”

Published in Coastal Notes

#PlaneSailing - A funeral director's ambitious plans for a unique 'glamping' site in Enniscrone will move a step closer to fruition later this week as he prepares to sail a passenger jet by barge up the coast from Shannon.

That's right, a passenger jet – a Boeing 767 to be precise, which David McGowan picked up for a song from a liquidating Russian airline, as the Irish Examiner reports.

McGowan is the entrepreneur behind the planned 'Quirky Nights Glamping Village' in his Co Sligo seaside town, where the former airliner will be the centrepiece of a development that will also feature repurposed train carriages, dry-docked boats London black cabs.

All will be refitted to accommodate a new kind of camper inspired by boutique festivals like Electric Picnic, people seeking the beauty of the outdoors and the comforts of hotels with a twist.

Quirky Glamping Genesis Skywalker Design

"I’m surrounded with death every week," McGowan told Today FM's Anton Savage Show of what prompted his imaginative idea to boost his coastal community's economy. "You need something to give you a buzz. You need to out and do something unusual.”

But getting the plane from Shannon Airport to Enniscrone posed a problem, as it's simply too big to transport by traditional means.

Hence the need for a barge to sail it by sea along the Wild Atlantic Way, and a specially engineered 'cradle' to lift it onto the barge.

That didn't come cheap – more than double what McGowan paid for the aircraft itself – but it did the job, and the plane is now ready at Knockbeg Point waiting for the weather to clear before the barge sets off this Thursday, expected in Enniscrone on Saturday 7 May.

A previous version of this article incorrectly attributed Independent.ie as the source of quotes from The Anton Savage Show on Today FM.

Published in Coastal Notes

The Star keelboat is a 6.9 metres (23 ft) one-design racing keelboat for two people designed by Francis Sweisguth in 1910.

The Star was an Olympic keelboat class from 1932 through to 2012, the last year keelboats appeared at the Summer Olympics at which Ireland's representatives were Peter O'Leary and David Burrows.

Ireland has performed well in the class internationally thanks to some Olympic campaigns including a bronze medal at the Star World Championships in 2000, won by Mark Mansfield and David O'Brien.

The boat is sloop-rigged, with a mainsail larger in proportional size than any other boat of its length. Unlike most modern racing boats, it does not use a spinnaker when sailing downwind. Instead, when running downwind a whisker pole is used to hold the jib out to windward for correct wind flow.

Early Stars were built from wood, but modern boats are of fibreglass and carbon construction.

The boat must weigh at least 671 kg (1,479 lb) with a maximum total sail area of 26.5 m2 (285 sq ft).

The Star class pioneered an unusual circular boom vang track, which allows the vang to effectively hold the boom down even when the boom is turned far outboard on a downwind run.

Another notable aspect of Star sailing is the extreme hiking position adopted by the crew and at times the helmsman, who normally use a harness to help hang low off the windward side of the boat with only their lower legs inside.

At A Glance – Star Specifications

Designer Francis Sweisguth
Year 1910
Crew 2 (Skipper + Crew)
S + 1.5 C ≤ 250 kg (550 lb)[1]
Draft 1.016 m (3 ft 4 in)
Hull Type keelboat
Hull weight ≥ 671 kg (1,479 lb)
(including keel)
LOA 6.922 m (22 ft 9 in)
LWL 4.724 m (15 ft 6 in)
Beam 1.734 m (5 ft 8 in) at deck
1.372 m (4 ft 6 in) at chine
Hull appendages
Keel/board type bulb keel
401.5 ± 7 kg (885 ± 15 lb)
Rig
Rig type sloop
Mast length 9.652 m (31 ft 8 in)
Sails
Mainsail area 20.5 m2 (221 sq ft)
Jib/genoa area  6.0 m2 (65 sq ft)
Upwind sail area ≤ 26.5 m2 (285 sq ft)

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