Pics of Zierigzee to Willemstad (click to enlarge)

Being overtaken at 8 knots



Lots of wind farms - made on the IOW





A harbour scene





The small one in front is a 51ft Nelson





Keeping in touch





Astern

 






7 July, another memorable day



Thursday 7 July—Zierigzee to Willemstad - 27nm and 2 major locks

Engines 856, fuel 1/4-1/4, forecast F3, with sun & showers.



Leaving the Zierigzee berth



0900 Cast off,  with  friendly goodbyes, and following  overnight neighbours, into a beautiful bright, and somewhat breezy morning.  We emerged from the entrance canal into a sea shoing some white-crested waves, which evidently persuaded our neighbours to return and wait for calmer conditions. There was a short delay due to some maintenance work on the normally-open flood gate, but only a few minutes.

0920   1.5 kn of foul tide. 1500/1800 giving 6.6sog/8.6log. Short chop on sea. AOK

1000 AOK. In main channel at KT14. Quite busy, with v.large barges and yachts. Calm and bright, and heading towards a large wind farm, all rotors still.

1030 Just off the entrance to “Krabbenkreek” (I wonder what the translation of that is?).  Perfect conditions. AOK. Fuel still 1/4-1/4 (We should do more low-speed cruising). On a course of 040 through Zijpe. Phone call from P&J, all OK.



At the harbour exit



1100 Approaching the somewhat confusing entrance to Krammersluis, a large lock and high bridge. Tie up on waiting pontoon while a large contingent of v.large motorboats muscle to front of queue.

1115 Mayhem entering lock!. The v.large cruisers were so beamy that smaller boats (like us) had to literally squeeze past with flattening fenders. However, everyone was relaxed, friendly and very helpful.



Looks like it could be busy....

 

         1145   Exit lock, noting that 12 vessels were waiting to enter.



 1200  At buoys ZV3&4.  1400/1700 7.2sog/8.1log. AOK. Fresh breeze, slight sea, sunny. 

   

What a squeeze

1230  At ZV15&16, and now beyond the detail range of the sea navigation software, giving good practice at using paper charts and compass (how novel is that?)

1300 At HG4, in sight of bridge. Fuel now 1/8—1/4, but reserve tanks still available. This time we are determined not to be last in! The weather is still fabulous, and the scenery still breathtaking. AOK.



1345 Have lunch while tied up on waiting berth. Stiff breeze astern makes docking tricky entering lock.

1400 Exit lock, which was much larger than previous, giving no problems. 9 boats out, 9 in.

1430 Arrive at Town Quay in Willemstad, and tie up  (underneath a windmill!) rafted one out alongside similar size boat which is leaving tomorrow.

Sort out ropes and stuff. Organise boat. Have a halting chat with our neighbour (the exception to the rule that everyone speaks English). Then a very pleasant short stroll around the town and harbour to get our landbearings plus some supermarket bits and an extra paper chart for the next leg to Stellendam. Enjoy yet another lovely port. Sign into free wi-fi on board (courtesy of one of the quayside cafes), and relax, relax, relax. Dinner on board, a round of  cards, and a dreamy bed.

Berthed in Willemstad

Some recent pics

Cab for hire

"The thick tower", Zierigzee

It must be Holland

Mussel Power

The Boat Museum, Zierigzee

A close manoeuvre

Tuesday & Wednesday 5 & 6 July --There's an exception to every rule....

Ask any sailor who has struggled to find his way back to the boat in a strange port, and he will tell you the golden rule -”It’s always down the hill to the water”. Well, today, we walked uphill from the town to the quay in Zierigzee, where parts of the  town are a couple of metres below high tide.

But this is Holland, where motor cyclists can choose whether to wear crash helmets, where every adult we have spoken to speaks perfect English,  where they don’t actually wear clogs any more, and where whole families go out for the day on their bicycles (sometimes an adult and 2 children on one bike)



Keeping in touch by internet when possible



A tourist attraction in Middelburg



A "tombstoning" sea-scout

The harbour is constantly changing. Huge mussel boats are berthed, and every inch is gleaming with fresh paint, giving a pleasant anaesthetic aroma to the quayside. Summer is in full swing, and several dozen young sea-scouts (15-18 yr olds) have arrived on three tiny 18-ft dinghys .(How they sleep is hard to imagine). Anyway,  they are full of high spirits and home cooked  meals which they prepare on the pontoon in between filling up the shower booths and  diving from the nearby bridge.  In the town, the “tourist market” is set up in the square, and youngsters are performing high acrobatics on bungee-ropes attached to large trampolines (without protective gear or warning notices). There’s too much to see!

Awaiting a lock

A disturbing little incident happened overnight. Our new bikes were targetted by vandals, who were presumably caught in the act, thankfully. They had removed one of the saddles, maybe trying to find a way to extricate the bikes from their locks. Luckily, most of the bits were left strewn around, and after straightening out a bent screw, and using a few washers to replace a missing spacer, they were as good as new. The lesson is learned, however, and from now on the bicycles sleep on the boat!

Independence Day - and how independent is this?

All the way to the horizon

Middelburg to Zierikzee is a passage of about 20 nm, with a speed limit of 8kn, and with 2 major locks, so we  had reckoned on about 5 hours, which turned out to be more like 6, but what a great day it was! The morning wascool, but fine, and the forecast was fine. We started on engine hours 852, fuel 1/4-7/16 and with a full tank of water.

0930 Exit Middelburg haven after a longish wait—last out due to having been blocked in by a very impatient skipper of a large motorboat. Moving up the canal, dodging some rowers, at 5kn (700/1200 rpm), creating virtually no wash. Breathtaking scenery, and waves from the crew of a convoy coming from the opposite direction.

0955   Passing Walcheren canal 12 km marker.  Very little traffic, and not a soul in sight. Clouding over somewhat, still dry and mild.

1000 Arrive at Sluis Veere. Hang about (sorry, hold station) for about 20 minutes, then tie up on waiting rail. Chat with Dutch neighbours who were very enthusiastic about their solar panel (Should we get one?)

1001 Into a very congested lock, made worse by the last-minute arrival of a monster pleasure barge.



A congested lock

 1100 Exit lock into Veerse Meer. Sea calm, and rippled. Overcast a little, with a bit of a breeze (F3?). 1300/1600, giving a speed of 7kn. Lots of dinghys, and the occasional pedalo! Lots of campsites on the shore.

1       1130  Off Speering Plaat. Fantastic open scenery Views to the horizon all around. Not much traffic now, and what there is is mixed, moving along sedately. GPS dongle for PC giving no fix, which is surprising, with the unrestricted view of the skies. Restart PC and Imray software, and OK. (There is no detail on the chart, but it confirms position when compared to the paper chartsmentiond earlier.) Navigation is a doddle -  large buoys every couple of hundred metres.

1200  Passing Geersdijk.  Loads of yachts and dinghys enjoying the fabulous day. AOK

1230  Approaching Zandkreeksluis. Tie up straight away for lunch.

1300 Finally into  large lock, which seemed almost empty even with 10 vessels.

1330 Leave lock. 1300/1500 7kn. Now in the tidal Ooosterschelde, which is flat calm.

Approach to Zierikzee

The spectacular Zeeland Bridge

1400 At Buoy no O8. Fantastic cruising grounds being enjoyed by dozens of yachts. Approaching the awesome Zeeland bridge.

14  1430  Under the bridge and at the entrance of the Zieriksee canal.  AOK.

1500 Tie up , in the town centre, practically, on the last available  berth (otherwise it would have been another box mooring  more distant). Marina fee Eur 15.50 per night, including shower, electricity, and on-board internet.

Strolling around Zierikzee

Explore the beautiful town, sunbathe, relax. Ice-creams in the Square.  First-class dinner in nice restaurant. Friendly people .  According to Gill, who “loves everything”, this is “the best holiday ever”.   

Friday to Sunday July1 -3, Tourists in Middelburgh

A Middelburgh visitor

Excellent facilities at the Yacht Club, including free wi-fi in the bar.  Bicycles removed from the lazarette and made ready for action. Surprised to see so many yachts with resident dogs (some large). Locate supermarket and stock up.

Entering a box mooring

We also found the “ANWB” shop (Dutch equivalent of AA), and determined that we only needed “Wateratlas Z-Zeeland” to complement the guides and pilot-books already on board.

A coffee stop

Doing a bit of  calculation, we are, surprisingly, 124 road miles from Amsterdam. At this leisurely pace we might never get there by the planned route, but that would be no disaster. However, looking at the charts, etc, and discussing the matter with a couple of friendly marina neighbours there are other  possibilities.  One would be going out  into the North Sea, and re-entering again further North at Ijmuiden, or, apparently better, at Scheveningen - (nicer place and close to The Hague for sightseeing).  We will see.

  

The Binnhaven bridge opens

Middelburg in the sunshine is perfect for lazing around, watching boats, bikes, and people. Our own bikes are proving useful for shopping and getting around. The weather is fabulous, the local people very friendly, and everyone seems happy to speak English.

We will probably stay the weekend, then move to Zeriksee.

Gill applauds the winning solar boat

Cheerleaders in action



Gill reports that she has gone to Heaven, except, perhaps for a bit of bike envy. The tannoys erected on the Quay in the early morning were to give commentary on the Dutch National solar-powered boat trials on the Binnhaven directly in front of our boat. Meanwhile in the main square, about 10 brass band and cheerleader teams were giving an all-day concert, with a finale played by the massed instruments of 7 bands. Stirring stuff, indeed. Sunday, another super day, lazing, coffees in the square, cycling around (not much!), and a final dinner in the Yacht Club.  Marina fee Euro 51 for 3 days.

Seven brass bands play together



Tomorrow, an early-ish start, perhaps to fuel up, depending on queue, and off up the canal towards the Veerse Meer and Zierikzee.

Thursday 30 June - Bridges, locks, boxes and 10 million bikes

Morred at Vlissingen

A tranquil scene

7am local time, and it’s a still and soundless awakening—no sway, no lapping, no tinkling of shrouds nor creaking of ropes. Outside, the sun is rising through a cotton wool sky, perfectly reflected in the mirror surface of the water. The only interruption is the sound of perhaps the same gulls who practically invaded our dining table in the cockpit yesterday.

Faced with such tranquillity, what else to do but turn over for another hour or two’s snooze…. Later, we paid up the Euro28 (for 2nights and 2 persons, inclusive , even with wi-fi), and then, when we saw yachts assembling in front of the lifting bridge, we fired up the engines and set off  on the first leg of the Dutch Inland Waterway adventure...

Ship’s log  -Vlissingen to Middelburgh, 30 June  - less than 3nm.

Engine 850, fuel 5/16—7/16, water 7/8

1145 Follow 4 yachts through Keersluisbrug. 1000rpm 3.5k. Try running on one engine, but lots of hanging about needs more manoeuvrability. No GPS fix(!) (temporarily, not that we need it here, but very unusual for main antenna to drop out)

1146 Through Sloebrug

1147 Clear passage for a mile or so. Overtake yachts at 6k. Beautiful day , great scenery.

1148 Temporary tie-up at Schoebrug—50 minutes. 2 Bridges, only 1 will close at a time.

1149 Hanging about on a tie-up at Stationsbrug—20 minutes, but where’s the rush?

Through the bridge

1150 Enter Middelburg, and straight through lifting bridge into Binnhaven. All the excitement of a first-time box-mooring.

The Walcheren canal

Calm down, cool down.  Sort out boat and ropes (“A good cowboy always looks after his horse”, my mum would say.) Explore the lovely town of Middelburg, its canals, its squares, and its cafes. (Including coffee and apple pie in the Market square while the weekly market is packing up. We have never seen so many bikes. Home for dinner, a nightcap at the Yacht Club, then a few rounds of cards, and retire.