Fiacc O’Brolchain is a man who likes to look at things in an unconventional way.
With nearly 50 years of sailing experience under his belt, the Dublin native has spent a majority of his life at sea, and in that time he’s gotten to experience Ireland from a unique vantage point that few others could even imagine.
Perhaps most unconventional of all, though, is the fact that he’s done it all while dealing with the many pitfalls of unpredictable Irish weather, and loved it all the more as a result.
“Sailing around Ireland is a wonderful challenge, because if you were to go right around the island in a ‘loop’ of sorts, the weather will change so frequently and all the circumstances will change over and over again,” he explains. “I used to do a lot of offshore racing in various parts of the world, and I’ve done quite a number around Ireland now. I’d have to say the race around Ireland is the best offshore race in the world, bar none, because of how much variety you’ll get.
“You can’t do anything about the poor Irish weather, so you have to just accept it. I spent quite a lot of time sailing in the West of Ireland and you’d meet a lot of Americans in particular over there. They’re delighted with themselves to visit Ireland and find it pouring rain, because for them it would typically be 30-something degrees back home and they would be miserable [with the heat]. It’s a matter of perspective, but I think if you accept that the weather is what it is and just work with it then you’ll have a lot more fun.”
That sense of fun has always remained important to Fiacc, since day one. What first began as a teenage hobby has practically become his way of living, with sailing playing a huge role in the architect’s career to date — especially his work in hydropower, as well as stints as director of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) and as editor of the Irish Skipper magazine. Through it all, however, he’s never seen his time at sea as a chore or just another part of the job.
“It is very much a hobby still, and a passion. You get to see the world very differently through sailing, and I’ve definitely gotten to appreciate Ireland more, especially the unique challenges and the difficulty of sailing here. I’ve met some people who think I’m absolutely mad to go sailing around Ireland, particularly some challenging parts along the west coast, but I’ve had some great times. I’m still getting plenty of fun out of it.”
Naturally, one of the most enjoyable aspects of being an accomplished sailor is the wealth of international travel opportunities it can bring about. Despite his many incredible adventures across the globe, however, Fiacc insists there’s still no place like home.
“There have been lots of highlights. I’ve been lucky enough to [sail] in Iceland, in Norway, a lot of places around the Mediterranean and so on, and I’ve even sailed in Australia. I actually once got to spend six weeks out in the Caribbean on a vessel, sailing around there, and bringing people on board and teaching all the youngsters how to dive. Those were all great experiences, but I would definitely rate Ireland as being as interesting, good and challenging as anywhere else in the world — anywhere I’ve ever been anyway.”
Fiacc is so passionate about all that Irish sailing has to offer, in fact, that he’s spent much of his career working on projects that aim to open the wider public’s eyes to the topic.
“I was very heavily involved with Asgard II [the Irish national sail training vessel, which sadly sank in the Bay of Biscay in 2008] and that was a fantastic programme. It’s a shame that we don’t have anything like it nowadays, because the beauty of it was that you’d bring about 20 youngsters together, all from different backgrounds, and you’d set off for a week or 10 days at sea with them. None of them knew each other beforehand, so seeing them gaining confidence and developing their friendships with each other and so on was a great privilege.
“In more recent years I’ve been very working closely with the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group organising cruises on our Celtic Mist vessel [late Taoiseach Charles Haughey’s former yacht]. Those are usually week-long cruises, with people of any and all ages, where we teach them to do survey work and help us collect important data on the different marine life in Irish waters.”
Introducing more and more people to the joys of sailing is something Fiacc cares deeply about. He himself first fell in love with it almost by accident, following a lucky break as a youngster.
“I initially started sailing sometime in the 1960s, when I managed to get some work on a Galway Hooker bringing turf out to the Aran Islands. So it was quite a long time ago,” he laughs. “It wasn’t at all something that was done in my family up to that point. I think I probably partially took it up because nobody in my family knew anything about it — it was a good way to get away from them.”
If you might be hoping for your own sailing adventures to be more of a family affair, however, there are plenty of ways to go about it on an Irish staycation. Fiacc advises that there are many great sailing organisations throughout Ireland who can provide training for people of any and all ages.
“Just the other day I was on board with an organisation called Sail Training Ireland, who take on people of all different ages. They have these fantastic old traditional vessels they bring people out on. They’re a great group.
“The Irish National Sailing & Powerboat School are very good too. They have a lot of small boats that you can rent for half a day or so and they provide really good courses on how to sail each of them.
“Kinsale is a particularly good spot if you’re looking to learn more about sailing too. There’s lots of different day trips and training programmes out there. They’re good, as it’s not a terribly expensive way to spend the week and it’s just a great thing to do, particularly for children. You can have a lot of fun starting out on canoes and small sailing boats, which a lot of the [sailing] clubs and so on will use as part of special courses designed for juniors.”
It’s not just the young ones who’ll be surprised by how much they might learn about Irish waters, however. After all, over five decades since he first started sailing, Fiacc says he’s still learning plenty.
“[Sailing] is a great educational experience, whatever age you are. Especially through the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, you can learn a huge amount. The reality is that we know just a fraction of what there is to be known about the sea; about what’s in it, and how it’s surviving and being looked after. It’s of huge importance that we keep learning.”