Celtic Mist

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In fact, as the group’s CEO Dr Simon Berrow points out, when the IWDG first started out it was quite radical for the Irish general public to conceive of even one dolphin in our waters — nevermind the hundreds that we know of today. “In 1990 we formed the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, and it was around this time that word about a Dingle Dolphin was spreading,” he remembers. “Indeed I think to most people Fungie was the ONLY dolphin in Ireland!” Monday night also revealed to us a great evil that had been walking, talking and working among us. Gathered around the table to play a round of Quirkle, a game that can only be described as the unexpectedly lovable child of scrabble and Uno, the crew discovered to our great horror the competitive and sly gameplay of First Mate Pearse who was both relentless and apathetic in his pursuit of victory. Only one man could assuage the barrage of entirely innocuous suffering put upon the crew by Pearse. Our saving grace, Paul, who made sure to humble Pearse at each turn and did so without even breaking a sweat. His thankless efforts ensured a sound night of sleep for the crew despite the roll of the boat on the waves. Ron Holland a disarmingly frank New Zealander has a remarkable record as a yacht designer. Soon after his arrival in Ireland he had designed and built ``Golden Apple'' for the late Hugh Coveney and John McWilliam, the noted sail maker, and later secured a worldwide reputation after his designs won a number of prestigious international regattas. In the cool blue light of a Malahide morning, Celtic Mist didn't look quite as pretty as she had in the flattering Spanish sun. She needed refurbishment, a good overhaul and a paint job. In nautical terms she needed a refit, a vital bit of housekeeping to keep a vessel safe and seaworthy and to protect the significant initial investment.

After a long but successful day, with arguably the most beautiful scenery we had seen so far on the trip, we sailed past Hook Lighthouse (one of the oldest lighthouses in Europe, or so I was told) and into Dunmore East.There is a great interest amongst younger people,” Fiacc says. “There seems to be a lot more students in the third-level marine area than there were a few years ago, which is fantastic to see. The courses in our universities have improved enormously too, and become much more accessible. It’s very promising for the future.”

Dunbrody.The State sail training brigantine Asgard II sank off the French coast in 2008, while neither of the other tall ships has been entered.Meanwhile, the last ocean-going wooden ship built in Ireland is due to be launched formally at the Baltimore Wooden Festival in Co Cork on Saturday after a long-term community restoration programme. She's not too nimble either and unless there was a decent wind to really fill the sails, the best option was a gutsy, utterly reliable, diesel engine to drive its single prop a modest seven or eight knots. Fiacc O'Brolchain, IWDG Director, says a lot more need to be done for marine protection in Ireland.

A detailed programme of work will be agreed with the successful candidate at the outset. The successful candidate will report to the IWDG Science Officer and work closely with other IWDG Officers, especially the Celtic Mist and Education and Outreach Officers. Situated on the ground floor this room is furnished with twin beds (that can be zipped and linked to form a super king size bed), bedside tables, lamps, a chest of drawers, mirror, built-in wardrobe and dressing table The maiden voyage proved very successful as the team encountered twelve species of cetaceans from harbour porpoise to blue whales off the continental shelf edge. Growing up to 33 metres in length and weighing up to 178,000 Kg, the blue whale is the largest animal ever to have lived on earth. The north Atlantic population of this iconic great whale suffered massive persecution at the height of the whaling boom. Estimates suggest that the north Atlantic population may have dropped to as low as 400 animals. Numbers are thought to be recovering slowly, but they are still a rare sight. with the IWDG estimating that perhaps 30-50 individuals pass through Irish waters each year based on acoustic data.

From 30,000 acorns to mighty oaks — with luck and a little help

The yacht was officially relaunched in August 2012 and set sail offshore from Dingle in September with a team of IWDG members onboard in search of Cetaceans. To sail on the Celtic Mist recording and identifying individuals from the genetically distinct Bottlenose Dolphins populating the Shannon Estuary and nearby locations.

Our scientific programme on Celtic Mist is still in full force, with leg 11 (already!) sailing from Fenit to Dingle. Our fantastic crew enjoyed sightings of marine mammals, such as common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, many grey seals around the Blasket Islands, and even a minke whale in Dingle bay. We also had sightings of breaching tunas, a sunfish and diving gannets feeding with common dolphins. We really appreciated watching wildlife in action! One of the other highlights of the week was our funny nights teasing each other while playing board games. This week, we had onboard our own famous writer, Adelaide, a funny ironical young woman who offered to write out weekly blog. Here is her narrative of this great week on Celtic Mist (and at the end, a bonus we really wanted to share with you!) – Hélène, Celtic Mist Biologist Conor Haughey is expected to accompany Fiacc Ó Brolcháin for the whale and dolphin group on the delivery run to the Waterford coast in time for the Tall Ships race, which starts at the end of this month. And as a bonus, here are two poems of our beloved bilingual Poet Laureate of Celtic Mist, Pearse (and OpenAI): For many Irish people, however, it wasn't so long ago that the entire ocean itself held an all too mythical quality and that even its very real creatures — ones that we know and love today — were considered unimaginable. Mr Desmond, by now truly a multi-millionaire, paid up with, what was to him at least, loose change. It was, he insisted at the Moriarty Tribunal, ``an insignificant financial matter.''Coordinate with other marine biologists during the season to ensure consistency in data collection. It didn't quite work like that. By the time the canon roared to get the race underway, the Irish racing yacht had half an Irish crew made up with some of our most experienced sailors. A contemporary shower room situated on the ground floor with large walk-in shower cubicle, hand basin, mirror, heated towel rail, WC and hairdryer Contract: This is a part time role running from May – September with an average of 14 days a month. You will be required to work weekends and bank holidays. Full details on the working hours and schedule will be provided before starting the role.