More pics from our journey home

Amsterdam canal trip

G&T before lunch

Oldest house in Amsterdam

Amsterdam book market

North Sea crossing

Summer weather!

The Journey Home

 We left Odden on 11^th July. Our destination was Kerteminde Yacht Haven on Fyn on the west side of Store Sound. We decided to anchor off the island of Romso as the wind had died away to nothing. We tried both anchorages to the north and south of the old lighthouse and dragged. At our third attempt north of the lighthouse the anchor held, but there was an alarming smell of hot oil coming from the engine. When Jeremy checked the oil filler cap wasn’t there. Fortunately, it was nearby and must not have been put on properly the day before. Anyway, no harm was done and there was no oil over the engine or in the bilges.

Peaceful scene on the Gieselau Kanal

We left Romso at 5.00am the next day and motorsailed through the Wester side of the Store Bridge. The 18m clearance didn’t look high enough for the mast, even though we knew it was. The wind increased and was directly “on the nose”, only freeing up a little as we approached Langeland. We spent the night at Spodsbjerg Harbour, where friendly neighbours helped us with our shore lines. Jeremy went on board a Dutch yacht, Verandi, and was given a guide to the Staandmaast Roote from the River Ems to Amsterdam and beyond. Although we had not yet decided, this inland waterways route was to be a significant part of our journey home.

180 degree turn into the ferry dock

We left Spodsbjerg at 5.00am and had a good motorsail with full sails very close hauled all the way to Kieler Fjord. We had to wait an hour to lock into the Kiel Kanal at Holtenau at lunchtime. We had crossed the border into Germany on the way. Once in the canal, we motored 60km to the Gieselau Kanal, where we spent the night. We considered continuing along the Gieselau Kanal to avoid the River Elbe estuary, but it looked like a long, torturous route that might be less than 2m in places. Our draught is 1.5m.

River Ems side of Delfzil

We had a lie in the next day, leaving at 7.30am and motoring to the end of the canal at Brunsbuttel. We were wearing shorts by the time we arrived four hours later and joined the flotilla of yachts waiting for the lunchtime lock to catch the tide to Cuxhaven on the River Elbe. Here we bought diesel and spent the night in the American Haven. For one euro a metre, we had a secure pontoon berth, the loan of bikes and a key to the clubhouse where we used the hot shower and the honesty bar. We helped ourselves to beer at one euro a bottle and put the money in a tin.

In the sea lock at Delfzil

We left Cuxhaven at 3.00am in order to take the tide out of the estuary with light winds of force 2-3 forecast. We kept outside the busy shipping channel. The wind increased to 24 knots and rough seas were kicked up for a while. Sal Darago bounced like a kangaroo and log speeds were down to 2 knots or less at the strongest part of the ebb. Conditions improved with the dawn and once we were out of the Elbe the dark clouds were replaced by sunshine and we changed into shorts. We crossed the entrance channels for the Rivers Weser and Jade and as we approached the safe water buoy for the entrance to the island of Nordeney, we had to decide whether to go to the harbour or keep going to Vlieland in The Netherlands. Gales were on the way and I was tired. We turned into the Dovetief Channel and followed a large sailling barge to Nordeney Yacht Haven. Nordeney was a holiday island, full of hotels, tourists and naturally - bicycles. We ate out at the marina.

Lifting bridge

After checking with the harbourmaster, we left Nordeney the next day at 8.30am on a rising tide. We followed the inshore route to the River Ems. We almost took a wrong channel and slid across a sandbank to the right one. Here we followed a ferry, and behind us was a huge coaster-type ship, so there must be enough depth of water, we reasoned. Wrong! Both vessels went aground and so did we. Afloat again, we moved closer to the channel marker buoys, which soon became withies (thin tree branches with top twigs going up) that marked the northern part of the shifting channel. We had about 10cm of water under our keel for quite a while; finally breathing sighs of relief when we reached the deeper Oesterems Channel. We had a few more sandbanks to navigate before we reached the river, where we turned south and followed the edge of the ship channel to Delfzil. On our port side we could see Germany and on our starboard side we could see The Netherlands.

Home time

We entered the Staand Maast Roote and motored to Groningen Yacht Harbour for the night. There were no canal fees to pay and the locks and bridges were all controlled by traffic lights. The privately run yacht harbour charged 18 euros per night. It was very interesting the following day to motor through the city, where lock keepers lifted the many bridges for us.

Passing through Groningen

The gale that we were avoiding hit us as we were crossing the Zuiderzee South, perhaps the widest and most exposed part of the whole inland waterways route. Gusts of 30 knots whipped up the water and spray came over soaking me. I almost lost my way in the poor visibility brought by the heavy rain and was very pleased to turn into the channel that led to the next stretch of canal. A Danish yacht had gone aground on a sandbank. We turned around and towed them off, not an easy task in the strong winds. Soon after, it was our turn to be in trouble. Jeremy noticed the bow line was missing. It was over the side and stuck firmly around something. We made our way to a jetty and tied up. Jeremy put on his snorkelling gear and went over the side. He was able to release the line, which wasn’t quite long enough to stop the propeller turning. Had it been, we would’ve been blown aground before we could raise a sail or drop an anchor. Jeremy narrowly avoided crushing his ankle as he tried to push Sal Darago off the jetty and was lucky to escape with a swollen ankle and bruising.

Leafy Groningen

Thanks to our son, Simon, who was able to send an email for us, we found out we were only 8 miles from Mike and Suzie on Nostromo (Antigua and then Skeets Boatyard, Melton). We changed course, anchored near them and spent 4 happy hours enjoying sundowners and chatting. We returned the invaluable cruising guide to Germany and Denmark, which we had borrowed at the start of our adventure.

Windmills and canals

Being so close, we had to go to Amsterdam. We went to a yacht haven in Aeolus just across the river from Central Station. A free ferry took us across to the city, where we wandered through the red light district looking for a particular canal trip operator (Oh, is that what we were looking for {J}). Soon we were slowly motoring through Amsterdam on a converted lifeboat, sipping beer or G&T’s and enjoying the humour of our friendly guide and skipper. After lunch in a Chinese restaurant, we walked along one of the canals, visiting the floating flower market on the way.

A wrong turn had us touching the bottom in Wergen

We checked the weather when we returned to SD. Gales were expected in a few days. We wanted to be back in the UK before the weather changed, so we left  the following morning along the wide and deep Nordzee Kanal to Ijmuiden. We passed through the sea lock and motorsailed close hauled to Scheveningen, where we spent the night. Having stocked up with food, had lunch and made sandwiches, we left the next day for a 24 hour crossing of the North Sea. The NW gale 8 expected later was upgraded to a severe gale 9 and by the time we reached the River Deben in Suffolk, storm force 10 was expected soon. We had a quiet motorsail to the Suffolk coast, switching off the engine to drift with the tide until we could enter the Deben.

The storm rattled the rigging that night and woke us up, but we were on the mooring several miles inshore and very happy not to be out at sea. Emily, Ben and Ellie came for us the following day and took us to our house. Another adventure had come to an end and it was good to be reunited with our family.

Sweden and Denmark 4

It was a short trip across the Sound to Sweden in heavy rain. We tied up in a “box” at Raa Yacht Haven, which is very close to Helsingborg. There was a chandlery on site. Danish kroner were welcome, so a few purchases were made. 

Midsummer's Eve at Odden

Odden Harbour

The damp, cold weather persisted. We decided to try to reach Limfjord in Denmark, leave Sal Darago in a yacht haven and fly to Scotland for Dodo’s funeral. The westerly wind would not let us do that, so we ended up in Odden for Midsummer Eve or St Hans Day, as it is known in Denmark. It was our third choice of destination but proved to be a good one. The weather improved, I felt better and we found ourselves joining most of the local village on the beach, where a huge bonfire was lit. When the sun went down everyone clapped. Sometimes effigies of witches are burnt on the bonfires.

The bridge across Roskilde Fjord opens on the hour

We now had a date for Dodo’s funeral. Simon booked tickets for us on EasyJet. We’d fly from Copenhagen to Edinburgh. We decided to return to Zealand, after talking to fellow yachties. They recommended the harbour at Lynaes. Jeremy phoned the harbourmaster and made enquiries.  The next day, we sailed east with the genoa poled out and a brisk, following wind. We stayed at Lynaes and made arrangements for Sal Darago to be left there for 9 nights. We had a weekend free before we flew to Scotland and decided to go up the fjord and visit Roskilde, which was once the main town of the Vikings.

Preserved Viking ship

It took us an hour to anchor outside the yacht haven in the designated anchorage. Our anchor kept dragging in the soft mud and finally held on the fourth attempt. We had time to go ashore and wander round the outside section of the Viking Ship museum, where replicas of Viking ships had been built using traditional methods and materials.

Roskilde Cathedral

The following day, we went ashore and spent the morning in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Roskilde Cathedral, where 37 kings and queens of Denmark are interred in various chapels. The cathedral is unusual as it is constructed of brick in French Gothic/Romanesque style.  It was very light inside with much of it painted white, although some of the side chapels had decorated walls. It felt more like a mausoleum than a church, but it was impressive.

Ancient and modern altar

After lunch in a rib house, we visited the indoor part of the Viking Ship Museum. Here five original Viking ships, dating from1064ish, were recovered from the fjord and had been painstakingly pieced together. Our guide told us the ships had been deliberately sunk and used to form a barrier in a narrow part of the fjord, probably to protect the town from an invasion in Viking times. We’d had a dry day but the rain began as we left the museum and we had a wet dinghy ride back to Sal Darago.

St George kills the dragon every hour

The following week from 29^th June to 6^th July we were back in the UK. We stayed with Simon and Erin in Edinburgh, hired a car and drove to Mull for Dodo’s funeral. It was a moving service with many members of the Spencer family present, supported by friends and neighbours in Tobermory, Isle of Mull. Jeremy hurt his back during the week and could hardly move for the pain by the time we returned to Edinburgh.

Back on Sal Darago, after shoppping and doing a load of laundry, we motorsailed 25 miles back to Odden. The weather had been hot and sunny while we’d been away. Now that we were back gales were forecast and we remained in harbour for the next four days. This gave a little bit of time for Jeremy’s back to ease up and for us to finalise our plans to return home.

Clearly, there was little point in beating against the westerly winds to Limfjord. We would have to go south down Store Sound as soon as the weather was suitable and through the Kiel Canal.

Denmark 3

Store Bridge from Korsor

The gale had ceased at Udbyhoj the next morning leaving a brisk wind and fast sailing conditions. We made 6 knots with just the genoa poled out and 7 knots later with a reefed mainsail and small genoa. It was cold, even with fleeces, full ocean waterproofs and woolly hats. It was 15^th June and felt like October. I wore winter outer gloves over my sailing gloves to keep my hands warm. We took the straightforward north channel to Langor Harbour on Samso and anchored for the night.

We had a good sailing wind from the west the next day. I added a gillet and a Damart balaclava to my sailing wardrobe and I was snug all the way to Korsor, which is just south of the amazing Store Bridge. A friendly welcome awaited us. We were given the phone number of the Harbourmaster at Christanhavns Kanal in Copenhagen. Once again the sailing was good in comfortable seas and a little warmer. The wind increased and the mainsail had to be reefed. By the time we reached the harbour at Stubbekobing, it was raining as well.

The cliffs at Klint

 It was still raining when we left next morning and we knew to expect W-NW winds of 16-20 knots. We were going north towards Copenhagen. We passed a rare sight in Denmark, impressive cliffs at Klint, which we were admiring when the first squall hit us. The mainsail was reefed and the genoa furled as the gusts reached 24 knots. We had uncomfortable seas for a while but made good speed. More squalls and gusts up to 30 knots welcomed us to the bridge across the sound to Malmo in Sweden. Here we took a channel to port and lost sight of the bridge in the next squall. This time the funnelling wind reached gale force at 36 knots. We were relieved to tie up in Dragor Harbour on the island of Amager, close to Copenhagen.

DUCK!

Jeremy phoned the Harbourmaster at Christianhavns Kanal and we were told he had a berth for us alongside a steamboat called Tripiaka. The name, Sal Darago, would be on the boat. It was an amazing experience motoring into the canal system of Copenhagen, after passing many industrial sites on the way. Aircraft coming in to land appeared to almost scrape the mast and ships had to be avoided as they turned into various docks. We passed the Little Mermaid and gasped in amazment at the Opera House, where people were on the roof and diving off into the canal. 

This place was a real dive

Our GPS stopped working just when we needed it most, but we found the right entrance to the canal at the third attempt. We were not expecting a bridge. Luckily for us, it was almost time for it to open and we passed through into a canal congested with boats moored on both sides and lots of river boats packed with tourists.

Spot Sal Darago at Wilders Plad

Jeremy spotted the steamboat down a sidearm of the canal called Wilders Plad. Another yacht was tied to it right next to the sign with our boat’s name on it. Three harbourmasters sorted out the problem and we tied to a motorcruiser for the night.

It was Friday night and everyone said we should go to Tivoli to the free Friday night rock concert. We walked there, paid almost 100kr(10GBP) each for entry, and found ourselves in a large park which seemed to be a mixture of fairground, theatre and places to eat. We ate at Viften, dashed off to see a ballet/pantomime called The Tailor Deceived, wandered round arcades and found a place at the back of a huge crowd to watch Jesse J perform. She put on a great show. We left the audience briefly to watch a fascinating laser and smoke light show over the lake in the park.

When we returned to Sal Darago after midnight, our thoughts were with Jeremy’s aunt, Dodo, and our daughter, Emily. We had received a text message earlier from Em, who was on holiday on Mull with her family, telling us that Dodo was in hospital having fallen in her bedroom during the night. She was comfortable, but exhausted.

The next day we received another text message. Dodo had died peacefully in her sleep during the night. Tears flowed as we phoned Em from the top of the hop on, hop off sightseeing  bus. We looked at the sights, we listened to the commentary but it all seemed unimportant and the rain on the bus windows appropriate for our mood.

Very Little Mermaid

 In the afternoon we walked around Christiana, which was once a military base and was now a self-governing area of central Copenhagen. It was originally occupied by squatters in the early 70’s and was now an experiment in alternative, ecological living. In the Green Zone the smell of pot smoking was heavy in the air. Beyond this, alternative houses bordered a huge lake and we enjoyed walking through the woods and back to Sal Darago in Wilders Plad.

One of Christiana's eco houses.

We had planned on visiting the Museum and a Round Tower on Sunday, but I was very sick all through the morning and into the afternoon. Jeremy had to move the boat for the third time; this time by himself. On Monday morning I had recovered sufficiently to help Jeremy reverse out of Wilders Plad and after waiting for the lift bridge, we set sail for Sweden.

Denmark 2

We woke to a howling wind and wondered whether it was sensible to go cycling. The bikes were standing together with a box for the money (70kr or 7pounds each for the day). It was 7^th June and Robert said he’d never worn so many clothes to go cycling in June. It was cold. We went north to Norby where we had lunch and on to the most northerly tip of Samso. There were fabulous views but it was hard work cycling on gravel and grass tracks up and down hills. We detoured on the way back to see the remains of a canal built by the Vikings across the narrowest part of the island so that they could escape from their enemies in either direction.

Robert and Kathy at the Viking Canal

The next day we had a pleasant sail to Begtrup Vig on Jutland and anchored behind Ronnen Island. We had a calm and peaceful night. As Robert had to return to work on the following day, we motored in warm and sunny conditions to Aarhus and berthed at a sailing club in Lystbode Yacht Haven. Lene drove over from Randers and collected Robert. We would see them again soon when we sailed up Randers fjord. Meanwhile, there was cooking gas to buy, laundry to do, charts to purchase and the sights of Denmark’s second city to see.

Jeremy and Kathy in the Rainbow Walkway

 We used the free town bikes. I went to the laundry and Jeremy cycled to Ega Yacht Haven, about 10 kilometres north. He arrived back absolutely exhausted and without the chart he wanted! Being a beggar for punishment he was soon on his bike again for a circuitous route round roadworks and pedestrian area to the world renowned ARoS Kunstmuseum. Careful how you say it! The building is topped by a Rainbow Walkway with super views over Aarhus in all colours of.....yes, you’ve guessed...the rainbow. We walked down 9 floors of exhibitions including art galleries displaying different genres, a video creation on 4 screens in a dark room, a rainbow fog experience and a stunning larger than life sculpture of a boy. When we returned to the bike park our city bikes had gone. We had to walk 2 kilometres back to Sal Darago, pausing only for Danish pastry and cake.

He's a big boy

We arrived in Randers fjord two days later having spent a night in Grenaa Yacht Haven. About half way up the fjord we were flagged down by two men who had gone out fishing in a small boat. Their outboard engine had broken down and they were 3 or 4 miles from their harbour. We towed them almost to the entrance of their harbour.

Rescue in Randers Fjord

Robert suggested tying up at Uggelhuse, which was about 10 miles from his house. We had to tie to the outside berth as the yacht haven was tiny and shallow – under 1m. At 80kr a night it was the cheapest so far. We were invited to the club’s lunch the following day. Robert and Lene came for us that evening and treated us to a lovely salmon dinner in their bungalow. We had hot showers and Lene insisted on doing another load of laundry for us.

Lene, Jeremy and Robert at King Hamlet's grave

At Uggelhuse the next day, the Commodore, who spoke no English, arranged for a young couple to sit next to us. We chatted to Ann and Christian, enjoyed our fish platter and copied the locals by placing the fish on half a slice of bread and eating it with a knife and fork. Live music was provided by 3 men playing guitar, accordion and keyboard and singing folk and classic pop songs mainly in English. Later, Robert and Lene came for us and took us to see King Hamlet’s grave and other sights. A delicious roast lamb dinner at their house ended a wonderful day.

Jeremy, Julian at the wheel, Robert and Lene

The next day was Sunday and it was quite windy. Robert, Lene and Julian came to Sal Darago and we motorsailed up the rest of the fjord to Randers. Lene helped me shop at two supermarkets and saved me money by checking my bill. We should have stayed at the wharf for lunch but Jeremy was determined to anchor and nearly ran aground several times looking for a suitable place. We enjoyed a huge picnic with wine on board SD before motoring back to Uggelhuse in an increasingly gusty wind. Here, we said our goodbyes and Jeremy and I motored on to Udbyhoj North Harbour at the mouth of the fjord with a small genoa flying and a gale blowing. Tying up was a nightmare. No-one came to help. Somehow, I managed to climb over the pulpit and thread a line through a staple which was low down below the pontoon.  Jeremy had managed to put a loop of line over a stern post, so with much pulling and pushing with and without engine power, we finally had SD tied up about an hour later. 

Berthed at Randers