Grainne is getting a bit of freshening up prior to her launch next week. New bottom paint, a good wash down, and she will be ready to go. Except of course, the two years of maintenance needs inside the boat. I’m sure I will have my work cut out for me as I arrive next week. Looking forward to getting back onboard and underway again!

Grainne is getting a bit of freshening up prior to her launch next week. New bottom paint, a good wash down, and she will be ready to go. Except of course, the two years of maintenance needs inside the boat. I’m sure I will have my work cut out for me as I arrive next week. Looking forward to getting back onboard and underway again!

It has been almost two years since we put GRAINNE up on the hard in Kappeln. COVID obviously has prevented our timely return, and we are hopeful that as folks become vaccinated, we will return in June.

I imagine that there will be more than a few surprises that will require attention when we get back to the boat. We are really fortunate to have friends like Janet and Horst, who have been checking in on GRAINNE. We had a few repairs completed last year when it was obvious that COVID was going to keep us shore bound. The hatches onboard are all original, and have been the source of drips for awhile now. New hatches were installed before the winter, and I'm looking forward to having to pay less attention to the constant cycle of repairs that was needed on the old hatches.

So, plane tickets are purchased, supplies are ordered, and my backpack is full of new parts. If all goes well, I'll be onboard mid-June with plans to head north up the Swedish West Coast.

Fingers crossed!!!!

Our sail from Delfzijl to Cuxhaven through the North Sea was uneventful. We had a quick passage downstream the Emse, out past Borkum, and turned east towards the Elbe. The wind had been decreasing over the past week, so the sea was fairly calm as we motored along the Frisian Islands. With our draft of 2 meters, we had to stay outside the islands, so didn’t get to visit these remote places. We arrived at Elbe 1 (sea buoy) around midnight, so had just made slack before ebb on the river, which meant that we could make it upstream before the current against us got too strong. Even with that timing, we were down to 4 knots by the time we reached the entrance to Cuxhaven marina. About an hour before we arrived, we could see all of the boats departing the marina to ride the current downriver. Good for us, as there were lots of vacant berths at the marina. We tied up for the morning, and finally got to bed after a long night of transit.

The next few days were spent visiting friends in Germany, cleaning the boat, and getting it restocked. Arriving at the grocery store, I was amazed to find a store dedicated entirely to beer. Good German beer! It was difficult to choose between beers, and even more difficult to not buy too much. Fortunately we had rented a car to go see our friends in southern Germany, so it was easy to haul our fresh supplies back to the boat. And yes, we got more than just beer.

Joining us for this leg of the trip was my friend Doug, who had been on the Atlantic crossing with me. This sailing would be quite a contrast to the wind and waves we had for that passage. With everyone back onboard, we caught the afternoon tide up the Elbe for the Kiel Canal. A nice easy sail to the locks, and then a quick lock through with a half dozen boats going our way. There is no sailing on the Kiel, and recreational boats are not permitted to be underway after dark. We made our way east, and found a nice waiting float on a side channel to spend the night. Perfect place to try out grilling some of the tasty German sausages we got in Cuxhaven. And to test out some of those beers.

A lazy start the next morning saw us in Rendsburg before noon, when cousin Lars and his daughter Anna Kirstina, would meet us. The yacht club was nice to let us tie up for a couple of hours while we went to the train station to fetch them. Then a few more provisions, and we were back on the canal headed east to Kiel. We have a final lock to transit to get into the Baltic, and the only one on this trip that we had to pay. The last canal where we paid was the Corinth canal at about €240 (about €80/mile), so paying €12 (€1/mile) wasn’t bad at all. We locked through with a few other sailboats and a freighter, and were soon tied up in the marina Laboe.

We enjoyed a nice visit here, as this is the center of German submarine history. A visit to the navy memorial (1918) filled in many details missing from my knowledge of German naval history. There is a U boat from WW2 that we walked through, and having seen Das Boot, were reminded of just how cramped and dangerous life was on a submarine. We took a bus into visit Kiel. Though to be honest, it was too hot during he heat wave to do much walking around. We settled for cold beers, and took the ferry back to Laboe.

The last few days had been windless, and a turn in the weather was forecast. The next morning, after filling water tanks and getting a few more stores, we bid Tracy goodbye, as she headed back to the States. We have another week to get the boat put up for the season, so took advantage of the wind and sailed for Flensberger Fiorde. And I do mean sailed! We had perfect wind conditions as we had a long, single tack sail all the way to the anchorage on the Danish side of the fiorde. Very nice. We anchored up in the lee of the Danish headland, our first visit this far north. I hadn’t actually planned to get to Denmark on this trip, so hadn’t purchased a Danish courtesy flag. Fortunately, one of the code pennants from the flag bag looks almost exactly like a Danish flag. Improvisation worked well.

The next day, we again had beautiful weather and winds, and we got underway and were quickly back under sail headed up the fiorde. Flensberg is at the head of the fiorde, and we had lots of sailing company as we hoisted Big Red for the first time since the Med. Great that Doug was onboard, since the spinnaker is named by him for his alma mater, Nebraska. We managed to sail almost the entire way to town, and were soon tied up in the city famous for Flensberger beer. Probably famous for other things as well, but not sure what that might be.

I really enjoyed Flensberg, as it is a traditional German town with an active waterfront and walking center. We spent a couple days here waiting on the wind to shift, doing some exploring, and having just a few Flensbergers on the pier. Lars and Anna Kirstina felt the tug of home, as Denmark was only a mile north of us, so they caught a train back to Copenhagen the next day. We waited another day for the weather to improve, and then we also got underway for our final destination of Kappeln in the Schlie.

Tacking our way out of the fiorde (5 tacks to get to the mouth of the fiorde) we had a quiet and fun day. The wind eventually died down, and we motored the last ten miles to the mouth of the Schlie, where we anchored in just over 2 meters of water. I think we might have had 6 inches under the keel when we dropped the hook. A boat nearby failed to swing to the wind, as they discovered that they had no water under their keel. Seems to be a new normal here for us, so we adapt and drift off to sleep. The next day it is a few miles into Kappeln, where we motored at the town quay to start preparing for our haul out. We will leave the boat at Ancker Marina, which is where our friends Horst and Janet kept their boat for years. They arrived in town the next day, and were really helpful making sure we were set up for our haul out and storage. Particularly helpful, since Tracy is the German speaker, and she is already back at home.

We had a great visit from our friends from Bavaria, who drove up to see the boat and have dinner with us. And drop off some good Bavarian Weiss beer! The remaining few days were spent getting the boat in order, stowing sails and running rigging, doing laundry, and of course, cleaning the boat from stem to stern. Haulout day was fortunately uneventful. A bit scary to watch, as this is the first haul out by crane, instead of a travel hoist. Ancker has a really professional crew, and they conducted a gentle ballet of picking the boat and placing it on the cradle.

And then we were done for the year. The boat is up on the hard. Work is on order for next year. We have the boat prepped for the winter, and we have our bus, train, and plane tickets in hand. It has been a really enjoyable journey these past months, and we have enjoyed the sights, the people, the food, and of course, the great German beer. Here’s to next year exploring Denmark, Sweden, and Norway!

Amsterdam was a good stopping point to do some local exploring, and get off the boat for a bit. From the Amsterdam Marina,it was an easy ferry ride over to the Central Station and the heart of the city. We had an excellent walking tour, exploring the history and culture of Amsterdam. Too much to see in the short time we had available. We took a day to go to Den Hague and the miniature city of Madurodam. Unfortunately, we experienced that in a downpour, so were a bit wetter for the visit. A visit to the Escher museum, and then the Peace Palace, were worth the trip.

We headed north through the Isselsjmeer to continue our canal transit. The wind has been blowing from the north, so we didn’t get an opportunity to sail on our way to Stavoren, via Enkhuizen. Lots of folks headed the other direction were enjoying the downwind sail, while we had to push through it. Stavoren is one of the canal entry points, as well as a major yachting center for sailors sailing in the Isselsjmeer. We had lots of company as we continued east in the canals towards Leeuwarden. Mixed wind on this leg allowed us to sail a bit with the Genoa, and we got to see lots of traditional Dutch sailing barges plying the waterways. The Dutch watermen are very confident in their close quarters sailing, which reinforces the saying that the Dutch are born in boats. Helps a bit that they draw only one meter, compared to our deep draft of two.

The days are long, so we chose to continue on late into the afternoon with the goal to get to the other side of Leeuwarden before the bridges close for the night. When we entered the canal approaching the town, we discovered just how shallow it can get. As we approached the first bridge, the depth was get shallower by the second. In not time at all, we had zero under the keel. We weren’t stuck, but we definitely were in the mud. We had been warned about this by others with similar boat drafts, so weren’t very concerned. We found that we could easily push through the mud, and it held us nicely in place while we waited for a bridge to open. The depth increased to a nicer margin after that bridge, and we were on our way into Leeuwarden. There are nine bridges to get through the town, so we would rather be on the other side of most of them so we can get a good start in the morning.

We passed easily through the town before the bridges closed for the night and were keeping an eye open for a marina or waiting platform to stop for the evening. There was a marina listed on the far side of town, and we soon discovered that the marina was actually just spots lining the canal. As we were arriving later than most, there were few spots left to moor for the night. In addition to the usual issue of channel depth, we also now had to watch for overhanging trees. The first attempt to moor was too shallow, and we couldn’t get within five feet of the shore. We continued around another bend, and found a spot just before the last bridge that was deep and open enough in the tree canopy for us to slip into for the night. Nice spot, and close to the old part of town. The harbor master came round to collect the fee for mooring, and we were set.

Leeuwarden was a quiet town, with an interesting leaning church. We had seen it on our way through town, and was amazed at the angle it was tilted. It looked to be leaning as much as Pisa, and this was built from brick so it looked like it should have fallen over long ago. From the sign in front, we discovered that it was started as the original cathedral tower. There were several attempts to complete the building, but eventually the town decided that a different site for the cathedral was needed. On a site that a solid foundation could be built. Probably a good idea.

We continued our trip towards Groningen when the last bridge opened in morning. Unfortunately, we forgot about the tree canopy, and brought a few small branches and leaves with us as we departed our mooring. No damage, no worries. The canals wander through farmland and small towns, and then into a an estuary adjoining the North Sea. I had read that boats need to convoy through Groningen, so we hoped to get close enough to town in order to make the nine o’clock convoy the next morning. The bridges close at 7 for the night, and we were hoping to get through one last bridge before finding a place for the night. Hope faded as we were in sight of the bridge at 6:58, and as we got closer, the lights changed to double red, indicating they were now closed for the night. We tied up at the waiting platform on the north side, opposite town, and started on dinner. I had been texting friends on Tutinui earlier in the day, and discovered that they weren’t far in front of us. I let them know that we had stopped for the night, and that we might see them the next day. Not long after, we heard someone calling from the shore. Turned out to be Horst off Tutinui, and they were just on the other side of the bridge. Amazing timing! Horst had already spoken to a tug tied up on the town side, and they let us tie up outboard so that we could get off the boat (most of the waiting platforms have no connection to the shore). Great to see Horst and Janet again, and we celebrated with a few beers in the local restaurant.

Still planning to make the morning convoy through Groningen, we got underway early when the bridge opened, and headed for the first bridge through town. We got there as a few boats were gathered, and did a lot of backing and filling while waiting for the bridge to open at 9. We waited and waited, and then one of the Dutch boats called the bridge and discovered that it was broken and they were working on fixing it. With no ETA for the repair, we tied up at a platform and waited for it to open. A short time later, the bridge light changed to green, and the boats were moving back to the bridge. We got underway again, and quickly chased the other boats through the bridge. The timing of bridges through town was not as smooth as the convoy through Amsterdam, though this was partly because the bridge tender had to ride ahead on his bike to the next bridge to open it. Not sure if he was the only tender, but he probably got his exercise. We continued on our way out of town on our way to Delfzjil, which will be our exit from the Standing Mast Route and from the Netherlands.

In Delfzjil we lost Connor, who is headed home through Amsterdam. Kieran went with him to see friends and will rejoin the boat when we get to Cuxhaven in Germany. We have a good weather window to transit the North Sea to the Elbe River, and have figured out the tides to enable us to get down the Eems and up the Elbe rivers. Leaving an hour before slack should give us good speed both ways, and if we time it right, will have minimal current to fight on our way up the river to Cuxhaven. The skies are finally clearing a bit, and we are looking forward to the next stage of our journey to Germany.

Launching the boat in Dunkerque provided a dramatic reminder that we were back in the tidal Atlantic. Looking down from the pier and the travel-lift, it was a drop of almost 6 meters (20 ft ) to the water. It was pretty obvious that we would need to launch towards the top of the tide.

The boys and I got the boat prepped, while the riggers were hard at work getting the mast and rigging together for the launch. It was very impressive to watch the team at Bleu Marine re-step the mast as the boat was hanging in the straps of the travel-lift. I’m glad that these guys knew what they were doing, as they juggled the 18 tons of our boat.

The boat went in the water quickly, and we had to scoot out of the lift as the tide was rapidly falling. We planned to lock through to the Dunkerque basin, but had missed the 1630 lock opening. We moored at a waiting platform upriver, the first of many waiting spots on this trip. Later that evening, we went through our first lock and were lifted about 5 meters up to the basin where we would moor behind the Bleu Marine shop. Nice spot to moor and continue to prep the boat for the voyage north. I also had time to work out the navigation plan, and tides for the following day. Final purchases included paper charts for the North Sea, some required sailing guides, and courtesy flags for Netherlands and Germany.

We had plans for an early start to make the first lock opening of the morning, but I had misread the schedule, so we were a bit delayed past our plan. We also needed to fuel, and I had made arrangements to fuel at the yacht club on the tidal side of the lock. My abrupt reminder of the consequences of being in tidal waters was being aground 3 meters from the fuel pier for an hour. Not to worry, it was all mud, and apparently a daily event at the fuel pier.

Soon enough, we were off and heading north up La Manche (what the French call the English Channel). The channel was well marked, though I was glad that I had purchased the additional paper charts to see the buoy layout. The channel zig zags through the Zuide Coot passage, and it is not wise to wander out of the channel as we saw a similar size boat aground as we transited through. We had light winds so we motor sailed the distance to Vlissingen. With the current we were making 9 knots, so we made up for the delay at the fuel dock. Beautiful day, with lots of boats out on the inshore channel. I was hoping to make the flood tide, as the ebb current can get quite strong in this river. We were fortunate to catch it just before slack, so made good time up to the locks. We made it to the locks at Vlissingen about 7 PM, and were soon tied up at the local marina in the Netherlands.

Tracy and nephew Connor had flown in that date, and their train arrived about 15 minutes after we tied up. Great timing! Soon they were aboard and we had our full complement for the trip through the canals. We spent the next day looking around and restocking the boat with provisions for the next few days. Vlissingen was an interesting town to start our travels in, and was topped off by a festival in the town square.

The next day, we headed through the first of many bridges and locks on our way through the rivers and canals of the Standing Mast Route. We spent a night in the town of Zierikzee, which was particularly fun as the Women’s World Cup match between Netherlands and USA were playing that night. The boys were the only ones cheering in the bar that evening, and we were glad that the Dutch patrons didn’t set us adrift in the night.

We traveled next to Dordrecht, where we had a cozy berth inside a side canal for the night. Beautiful town which we explored a bit the next day. The leg north from Rotterdam requires timing due to the many bridges, and we managed to get stuck behind a slow barge and ended up mooring for the night at a waiting float. We continued north the next day to arrive at the south end of Amsterdam in the early afternoon. This gave us some time to look around the city before the night convoy through the thirteen bridges to the marinas on the north side of the city. We made time to enjoy the Rijk Museum and the Heineken tour, before heading back to the boat.

The convoy was called just before midnight, and there were seven boats lined up for the transit through town. Kieran chose to make the trip up on the mast spreaders. It should have been a Birdseye view, but as the canal is lined with apartments, he was mostly seeing into second story apartments. The bridge tenders did a nice job of timing the bridges for us, though we all ended up milling about smartly in the small pool before the last bridge, waiting for it to open. Then we were into the main channel of Amsterdam, and we motored over to the Amsterdam Marina and tied up for the night. Great spot, and the ferry is nearby so we can go visit the city.

It has been fun going through the canals, seeing the extensive farmlands, natural areas, and the little towns lining the sides. We have all gotten quite a bit of practice handling lines and maneuvering the boat in and out of the locks. We are looking forward to exploring Amsterdam before we continue our voyage north to Germany.