Delphinus

A good wind took us over to Neiuwpoort, Belgium in one tide and we moored up that evening before dark. The following day we headed into the beautiful city of Brugge, were the girls spent time stocking up our chocolate supplies in the most amazing chocolatier in the city, a choccy heaven. We had a great time exploring the beautiful streets and for evening meal found ourselves munching take away pizza in a candle lit Irish bar!

The following day was a hop along the coast to Zeebrugge and then into the Inland waterways of Holland. Unlike the French waterways we could leave our mast up, which was great as there are some fabulous large open waters inland and we had some amazing sailing. There are a few locks and lifting bridges to contend with but all in all things ran very smoothly, well almost. We came across a bridge closed for repairs. A phone call to the relevant bridge persons and we were advised of a small diversion which we could make as the power cables were 30 meters high, we are around 20 meters high so in luck. The route took us through a pretty village were a lifting bridge opened, as we heading through a wooden clog suspended from a fishing rod swung out in front of us, we had read somewhere that local tradition is to pay for the bridge keeper, 2 Euros, it was worth it for the giggles. So on we go, heading towards some very low looking electricity power cables, Jayne ran down below to check the charts and found they were 20 meters high, in a panic she ran up to say stop at exactly the moment we passed under them, phew, now that was close!

On 17th May the eve of Paul's birthday we arrived on the outskirts of Amsterdam, we had decided on a route through the city which due to a lifting motorway bridge close to Schippol airport, only opens during the quiet night time hours. By 11.30pm around a dozen boats had gathered to wait for the bridge and there was an air of excitement in the atmosphere as the opening time neared. At midnight we sang 'Happy Birthday' to Paul, gave him his birthday gifts (including lots of Belgian chocolates). Then we were off, through the motorway bridge and into a huge lock lit by orange street lights, it felt very surreal. The convoy of boats headed on the 3 hour journey through the canals of the Amsterdam suburbs towards the city, queueing awkwardly for the many lifting bridges en route. We finally settled down at 3am, ate beans on toast and slept until mid morning. We spent a few days exploring the city and loved the vibe there.

We spent a few more days heading up through the canals, photographing windmills and stopping off at quaint little towns and nature reserves. Finally we arrived at the Lauwersmeer, close to the last lock back out to sea and the Friesian Islands beyond. We decided on taking the 24 hour long passage straight to the Kiel canal and staying at a marina just inside the first lock. We were moored by the huge commercial lock and were amazed by the huge ships towering over us. The following evening we found an idyllic anchorage in a beautiful lake beside the canal, it was a perfectly calm night and great to get the anchor out after months sitting in its cradle. The following day we made the hour long journey to the last lock before entering Baltic waters and onto the meeting point of the other OCC Baltic Rally participants.