Waiting game... Not really the Dunkirk spirit!

Having decided to catch up with some old French friends over the weekend, and to allow our new crew member to catch the boat, our planned departure to Dover was to have been Sunday 19th at 16.00h to catch a fair tide. Unfortunately the storm forecast for Monday arrived early, so no sooner had we left port, we decided to return as were met with 25 knots on the bow with wind over tide creating short steep sea of about 2m, not what we wanted for the next 7hrs.

So we remain in port, the salon has been turned into an office for the day and we take advantage of port wi-fi for office duties.

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Plan A is to leave Dunkirk at 05.00h on 21st, any later and we won't have depth of water as Mr Blue Sky is sat on the keel at LW +-1h. The Direct route will be approximately 40M but we will have to cross the separation zone at right angles and avoid designated deep water channels so will add 5miles.

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The Dunkirk Spirit

The remaining two crew members now had a free day with which to explore Dunkirk.  A lot of the buildings are modern, as 80% of Dunkirk was destroyed during WWII. Below is our day in pictures .........

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Lights, camera, action.....

Another 4am start to catch the tide south to Dunkirk, a passage of approximately 40 miles from Zeebrugge, and our final foreign port. A trip of no real excitement as the motor was needed for the whole passage for the second day in a row, a south westerly kept us in irons for our approach to the English Channel. Our last port of call certainly was always going to be an emotional one, not only because our journey was nearly over and able seaman Bob was leaving the boat, but sailing into Dunkirk and all it stands for makes a fitting end to our overseas voyage.

Every good tale has a twist and this one is no exception, as we found ourselves sailing into a Warner Bros blockbuster. "Dunkirk" the movie was being filmed right inside the harbour and we were in the middle of it. Producer Christopher Nolan, with his star studded cast of Kenneth Branagh, Harry Stiles, Tom Hardy and Mark Rylance were nowhere to be seen, but for us the real heros were the little ships of the evacuation which were tied up all along the visitors pontoon.

The harbour had wound the clock back to 1940, with classic war ships, torpedo boats, and the heroic little ships of "Operation Dynamo" taking pride of place amongst the GRP constructed modern craft.

The sky was buzzing with a mock dog fight between a model Spitfire and a Messerschmitt, and as we wandered around the marina film extras in battle fatigues loitered, giving a strange sense of being caught between differing times.

During a dog walk along the beach we came across an extension to the film set, with thousands of cardboard cutout soldiers lined up to give the impression of mass evacuation, and buildings transformed with false facade to represent 1940's Dunkirk.

During the walk we bumped into our pontoon neighbours, a German couple that had also cruised the same route south from Rugen in the Baltic. We discussed the film and history of Dunkirk, then out of the blue they confessed to their parents being members of the Natzi party, and taking an active role during the War. Harmuts's father worked on the V2 rocket program, and Christa's mother was a spy in the SS. Harmut & Christa are a lovely couple and we thank them for being so honest of the shame and veryrespectful with their history.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3604876/PICTURED-Soldiers-cut-figures-warships-line-beach-film-Harry-Styles-new-World-War-Two-movie-Dunkirk.html

Maas centre this is Mr Blue Sky....over.

"Mr Blue Sky.....Maas centre, state your intentions please" "Maas centre this is Mr Blue Sky, we would like to cross the main Europort channel in the small vessels channel please"

"Mr Blue Sky.....Maas centre you will see two container ships on your starboard bow please pass behind those vessels and maintain a listening watch on channel 03"

"Many thanks Maas centre this is Mr Blue Sky out"

And that was pretty much it for crossing the entrance to one of the busiest ports in the world. The Europort is the destination of most of the shipping going up and down the English Channel and we had just managed to cross it in one piece, looking at pilot books and charts about crossing busy port channels and Traffic separation schemes can often fill you with dread but with good visibility and a keen watch it is never quite as much of a nightmare as you would have imagined.

An early start again

Once again it was a day on the engine with little or no wind, with the reputation of the North Sea I don't think that we mind that too much especially at this stage of the voyage. One more day and we will be in Dunkirque where Bob will leave and Tom will rejoin the crew to take Mr Blue Sky to the Solent where he will stay for a couple of weeks enjoying the Hamble river and the Solent cruising grounds.

The journey from Scheveningen to Zeebrugge was fairly uneventful other than a brush with the Belgium Navy SBS

“Quick Pagey leg it it’s the Rozzers”

Entering Zeebrugge we tied up in front of a 20 Metre catamaran headed for the summer in the Med, prices start at €38500 for the week if anyone's interested!

It certainly wouldn’t win any beauty competitions

A day off in Den Haag (The Hague)

No rush this morning, as due to the continuing southerlies hampering our progress, we'd opted for a day in port.  We made good use of our time by jumping on a bus to The Hague.  Rain arrived as we did, so we found some nice comfy chairs where coffee was being served.  The sun came out and we enjoyed a couple of hours exploring the city.  

We jumped onto a tram and sped back to the marina where our skipper had some passage planning to think about.

Poor Øyvind missed out on our jaunt, as Vikings are not welcome on the Dutch public transport.  He was consoled with a gift of new, local footwear.

Shaken but not stirred

Leaving Ijmuiden

A later start was on the cards for our trip from Ijmuiden to Scheveningen it was only 25 miles, a grey and forbidding looking sea greeted us as we turned around the breakwater of Ijmuiden with winds from the South and SW.....the exact direction we wanted to go! Once again engine on and bash out the 25miles, we were resigned to a 5 hour passage on the engine. Then the sun came out the the sea suddenly looked a much happier place to be, up went the sails and with a bit of a tack out we got a good angle to head into Scheveningen, the wind picked up to approaching 25 knots and Mr Blue Sky, with 1 reef in was starting to really enjoy this close hauled romp into Scheveningen.

Arriving at Scheveningen

Grey skies

Approaching the outer breakwater a call to Scheveningen Traffic Centre is required on VHF 21 to make sure there are no vessels leaving the harbour, then once inside a call to the harbour master on VHF31 for berthing instructions........only we hadn't got 31 the set jumps from 28 to 60. More problems? No......apparently 31 is exclusive to the Netherlands and it is only Dutch VHF sets that have channel 31. It isn't a problem as there is a large clearly marked visitors area with plenty of room for visiting yachts.

Once tied up alongside it was time for a "small sweet sherry" and a very pleasant Dutch bar was found and we sat done to peruse the extensive beer menu

Nice session beer 8.5%

Suitably refreshed and fed we walked around to the yacht club to see if we could eventually swap one of our Brixham YC burgees for a local one. What a reception we received, the yacht club commodore was sent for and drinks were supplied, we were treated like visiting royalty. The commodore arrived but unfortunately he didn't speak a word of English (our Dutch being a little rusty) but there were translaters on hand to tell him about Willem III  who set sail from Holland and landed in Brixham in 1688 hence the orange on the Brixham YC burgee. Burgees were swapped and we were loaded up with gifts.

Our representative from Brixham meets the Commodore

They came bearing gifts

An excellent evening was had by us all and our thanks go out to Scheveningen yacht club for the warm welcome they gave us. If Carlsberg did yacht clubs.............

Great stash from our night out……where did those glasses come from?

Saving the best until the end of the day

Leaving Vlieland

Another early start, 0630hrs and a grey sky as we exit Vlieland marina

As we exited the marina the command to hoist the sails was issued and the trusty crew  obliged. The sails filled and it seemed that this was to be the sailing day of the passage, sadly as soon as we rounded the headland the wind dropped and the sails sagged. Perhaps the local yacht coming out with us and motoring knew more than we thought!  It was to be another day of motor sailing. The sea become quite roly and not a pleasant ride so it was decided that the ability to stand unsupported at the helm was an excellent exercise for the core...........that's what Adrian told Sue.

Building core strength

Just as we were going slightly mad with the noise and drone from the iron sail the wind picked up and we shut the engine down and the last 10 miles was knocked off at a tremendous pace (max 9 knots SOG) with 14 knots of apparent wind appearing from nowhere we powered our way towards tonights berth in the Sea Port Marina in Ijmuiden. Amsterdam is a mere 10 miles inland. It is a massive marina, bigger than anything any of us have seen before but the facilities are excellent and yet again the staff were very helpful.

Beam reach all the way into Ijmuiden

Borkum to Vlieland farewell to Germany

Bob on watch

A later start today but still the first ones to exit the marina at 0700hrs, sailing out of the channel with a 3 knot tide saw us making 7 knots.......was this to be a great days sailing, first time with the engine off since leaving Cuxhaven. A gastronomic masterpiece was produced from the galley, sausage sarnies and tea. Everything going well.

Then the wind drops and it's back to the dreaded engine, with the drone of the engine a passage of on a yacht doesn't quite hold the same appeal. Sue managed to start her career as an artist as she sat down below with her watercolours.......quite what she was painting will no doubt be revealed later.

Our 1st Northsea offshore platform

After lunch we headed towards a black looking sky and the rain soon appeared. A bored study of Reeds Almanac  informed us that in the Netherlands, motor sailing without a cone is not tolerated and apparently a rule that is strictly enforced......so up it went.

I’m sure it’ll be seen from miles away!

We arrived at Vrieland at 2000hrs and yet again were warned about the dangerous cross current entering the marina ......to be honest it was running at 3 knots and unless you decide to enter at rowing boat speed you will be ok. Vrieland is a lovely marina and our first stop in the Netherlands has shown the Dutch to be very welcoming. Looking forward to more cruising in Holland. Although we only spent a short time in Vlieland we were immediately struck by the friendliness of the locals and fellow boaters. The beaches really are beautiful and it is definitely a place we would like to return to in the near future

Not only was Vlieland and pleasant stop but we also found this beautiful old motor yacht that was part of the fleet of little ships involved in the evacuation of Dunkirk

Amazone of London one of the fleet of “Little Ships” that helped in the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from the beaches of Dunkirque in 1940

The Longest Day(so far).

Early morning departure

An 0500hrs departure from Cuxhaven (now we realise why you left Lisa) was a bit of a shock to the system after a few days of being stuck in port.

Leaving the River Elbe we were greeted by a mass of shipping queued up and at anchor in what we assumed to be the wait to get through the Kiel canal, there must have been approximately 30 ships waiting with pilot boats circling like Sharks.

View from the galley

Luckily for the rest of the crew Adrian was kept amused for most of the day trying to re-establish AIS connection that seemed to have been lost when the B&G engineer came aboard to fix the windex, it seems to be that we get one gremlin resolved for another to raise its ugly head. If you want to follow Mr Blue Sky we are now exclusively available on www.vesselfinder.com, quite why this seems to be Mr Blue Sky's favoured AIS app is a mystery! I'm sure all will be revealed once back in the UK.

We were at 65miles, off the island of Nordeney when we decided to go on past another two islands to the island of Borkum. We had spoken the previous day with a Dutch skipper in Cuxhaven who had warned us of the approach to Nordeney harbour in certain situations tides and weather conditions. Borkum was an easier entry and was accessible 24hrs a day.

Skipper passage planning whilst dog sitting.

The day continued with little to distract us other than cups of tea, lunch and the occasional passing ship.

Look what you’re missing Lisa

By 1900 hrs we realised that unless we ate it would be 2300hrs before we would get anything, so Sue managed to conjure up an excellent bowl of Thai Curry and rice (1st rate bowl of slop).

We have realised that going in and out of harbours takes out a huge chunk of your sailing day and when you can see your favoured port of entry it is often a long way off,  with negotiating channels and following the correct buoyage, remember there is a lot of shallow water around the Frisian Islands, don't be tempted to cut corners. We finally tied up alongside a Dutch boat in Borkum Harbour at 2215 hrs.

Rafted up in Borkum Harbour.

116.6 Nautical Miles

Losing a member of crew

Time to say goodbye

Today, was the final day for Lisa, she had to return to the UK as work, the boys (Marley the dog Sam and Luke) were ready for her return. The train station at midday was the time to say our goodbyes

Next stop Hamburg airport

All trains planes and automobiles were on time and she landed back in the UK at 1830 hrs at the Caliphate of Luton. Tomorrow we leave Cuxhaven headed for one of the Frisian islands   We need to get a decent passage in and we are all ready for the next stage of the journey home.

A Day Boat Cleaning & Fixing

Breakfast in the sun under the new canopy

Due to the fact that we have decided to sit out the windy weather and wait until Saturday before we leave, it means a day of boat cleaning and servicing to make sure everything is in good working order and both above and below deck is ship shape and Brizzle fashion.  It was also a chance to try out the new sunshade purchased yesterday at the chandlers as the sun was back.

Because of the delay it also means that Lisa will be leaving "Mr Blue Sky" tomorrow before we leave on the next leg of the journey around the Frisian Islands.  As a farewell treat while Adrian was on engine maintenance duties, Sue and Bob took Lisa for a farewell trip the local Penguin Park.

SITUATION VACANT - Communications Officer

• Good communication skills essential with IT experience(blogging)

• Must be able to throw and catch ropes.(warps)

• Must have a good sense of humour and must not be of a nervous disposition

• Cooking and making tea an advantage but preparation of gin and tonic essential

• Must be prepared to share a berth with Bob(slightly susceptible to snoring)

Bob’s preferred applicant type

On a more serious note we will all be sorry to see Lisa leave the crew, her mooring skills have improved beyond expectation and her G&T preparation and cooking and role as communications officer will be sorely missed.

In the meantime while suitable applicants are being interviewed these two will be standing in for her.

A Day at Cuxhaven to fix the Windex

Be careful of the daggers in Rosa’s shoes!

Arriving at Cuxhaven at around 1830 and all in need of showers, we checked in with the Harbourmaster immediately. Just a warning to all fellow yachties, do not upset Rosa Klebb (the harbourmaster), the consequences are terrifying as Adrian found out when he asked for a weather forecast.

Once again a technician came to look at our Windex that has not been working for the whole trip. This time he was the local B & G Simrad engineer who seemed to know what he was doing and within minutes of Adrian and Bob hoisting him up the mast (little did he know that he was not being let down until it was working) result, the correct Wind transducer was fitted and it was working.  It was too late for us to leave as we have a 60 mile journey ahead of us, so it was time to do some washing and catch up on some shopping.

Adrian and Bob set off for the Chandlers for new charts.  Well that is what we thought.

Cuxhaven chandlery Erotica shop.                              Bob digging a hole

Unfortunately it was too late to set off for Nordeney and arrive with the water that we need to get in to the harbour.

Yippee working windex

High Spring tide.                         A view of Cuxhaven marina

Before departure Adrian had purchased a number of Brixham  yacht club burgees with the idea of swapping with reciprocal yacht clubs in Germany/Sweden/Denmark up to now we have had no success in finding any Swedish or Danish yacht clubs. The two yacht clubs that we found in Germany,one wouldn't let us in because of a private function 😡 and Cruxhaven despite having numerous burgees displayed didn't want ours!!

Miserable sods!

A study of the forecast and a prolonged discussion between all of us means that we are likely to be in Cuxhaven for another couple of days.........now I know many of you will be very envious of us all stuck in this German equivalent of Harwich/Felixstowe or Dover, but who knows what tomorrow might bring. Happy days!

Baltic to Brixham Part 2 - The North Sea

Gin and Tonic at 6pm

After a relaxing evening at Giesealu, we left at 0815 to complete the last part of our journey towards Brunsbûttel and the lock to take us into the River Elbe Estuary and the next part of our journey in the North Sea.

A passage along the Kiel canal will often entail waiting at traffic lights, there are narrow sections and these are controlled by lights and there is often a build up of ships waiting to get through these narrow sections

Waiting behind a massive crane at the traffic lights

The weather continues to give us blue skies and high temperatures and the remaining journey to Brunsbüttel proved easy and and enjoyable with many interesting sights.

A Kiel barge being filled with Oil Seed Rape (one for the farmers)

We arrived at Brunsbüttel at 1245hrs a bit too early for a favourable tide up to Cuxhaven, a 15 mile journey at the entrance to the Elbe so a berth next to a restaurant was the order of the day.

Lunch stop at Brunsbüttel waiting for the lock

Having read all the passage planning books we elected to take 2 hours of foul tide up the Elbe, so that we arrived at the entrance to Cuxhaven Marina without the feared 5 knots of cross current. However looking at the many yachts coming in whilst the tide was running at it's peak I'm sure we would wait for a fair tide next time.

Waiting for the lock

An 0730 start out of Stickenhörn Marina meant that we were at the canal entrance within 10 minutes. We circled around the entrance trying to contact the canal controller on VHF 04 (that was the channel to call Kiel canal according to the various  Internet forums). We then pulled up against the waiting pontoon and finally got through on VHF 12. Apparently the wait was to be over an hour. They are currently altering the method of payment from climbing up a ladder in the lock to pay at a machine, but due to H&S rules that was deems too dangerous. Payment will now made using an app, but fortunately due to the system not yet being ready KIEL CANAL PASSAGE IS FREE!!! Not sure how long it will be to roll out the app but free passage up the canal will do for us.

After a short wait and a chance to have some breakfast, we were told that the small ships lock was not operating and that we would be going in the Commercial Lock with all the very large container ships. This happened very quickly and by 9am we were in and going.

In the Commercial Lock

We then set off on the 100km journey through the Canal, stopping for victuals and a beer at Rendsberg about 35km along, then we continued for a further 15km to Gieselau Lock on the River Eider. A lovely remote setting which made for a very peaceful evening.

Gieselau Lock - Overnight Stop

Dead Calm

  After a very pleasant evening at Heiligenhafen, with a nice walk around the town square and then back to the boat for a bbq and a few more drinks,  we left at 8am this morning with no wind and full sunshine enroute for Kiel and the entrance to the canal that will take us through Germany and into the North Sea.

As we were leaving the marina, keeping to the channel, we were tempted to cut the corner copying the boat in front but when we saw him suddenly grind to a halt stuck in shallow water we thought better of it and kept in the channel. An important tip for anyone thinking of cruising in the Baltic don't be tempted to cut corners as there's a lot of shallow water!

Beached As!

No wind whatsoever so we were on engines all the way, the journey was endless in oppressive heat and no shade.  We were all quite happy though sunbathing on deck.

Dead Calm!

Øyvind tried his hardest to entertain us with a few on board drills to refresh our seamanship.

Main Sheet                                               On Watch

Man Overboard                               Checking the Windex

On arrival at the Kiel Estuary we were immediately surrounded by boats of all shapes and sizes, they were coming at us from all directions, one in particular decided to turn into our path and it was a bit close for a while.

Thanks Color Line Cruises!

Eventually we arrived safe and sound in our Marina, ready for departure early tomorrow morning into the lock at the start of our 60 mile journey through the       Nord -Ostsee-Kanal.

It was still very hot and we all needed a little respite from the sun, so we set about making our own canopy out of duvets and sheets, very classy.

Mr Blue Skies plush new Bimini cover.

Off to Kiel and the start of the Canal

The Windex was more of a problem than we thought and so we were stuck in the Mola Marina in Großenbrode until lunch time leaving us short on time to get all the way to Kiel, which is 40 miles away.

Unfortunately the Windex proved more of a problem than anticipated, and the departure had to be put back  a couple  of hours, we finally left at 1500 hrs. Windless conditions saw  us making a mere 1.5 knots........time for the dreaded engine to get us out to the Fehmarnsündbrücke ( a bridge).

Once in the fairway the wind picked up and we started to sail making a good 6.5knots, suddenly the police launch that had been following us started loudhailing us "Achtung achtung".............followed by a lot of angry sounding German orders, we were prepared to be boarded but he sped by obviously chasing someone far more dangerous than us!!

The Kriegsmarine

We eventually made a mere 10 miles and ended up in Heiligenhafen marina which is a pretty commercial and pleasure port. The entrance to the yacht haven is well buoyed and an easy harbour with good depth of 2.1 - 3.3 metres, it makes a change in the Baltic to enter a harbour without the depth alarm chiming in the background. Disappointed to be refused a welcoming drink as visiting yachtsmen at Heiligenhafen yacht club ( German yacht clubs definitely aren't as welcoming as our own). Still managed to steal a picture in their Strandkorb seats!!

Sail from Hesnaes to Großenbrode on the German Mainland

The weather was favourable at 6am so we made an early start as we had a 60 mile journey ahead of us. We had a fantastic sail with winds of 15 Knots from the North East making perfect conditions for a broad reach and the cruising chute. This was the first time it had been out, so a little unsure how we would sail but it instantly increased our speed with a maximum speed of 8.6 Knots!

A perfect days sail was made even better by being accompanied by a dolphin for a short part of the trip and brilliant sunshine.  Then after a bit of a nervous approach to the marina with very little water and alarms ringing everywhere to say we had actually run aground we managed to get ourselves into the allocated berth.

The day was topped off with a few German beers and an XXL Currywurst and chips.  What more could you want.

We are grounded tomorrow morning as a few alterations are needed on the boat before we leave The Baltic.

The Waiting Game

Bradley Page, Sue Pendleton, Taff and Jim

An early rise expecting to leave the island of Mons saw near gale force winds with gusts of 30knots, time to revert to plan B........The Tour de Mons!! The bikes were hired and off we set.

After lunch the wind eased enough for us to make the 14 mile journey from Klintholm to Hesnaes on the Island of Falster. We had a great sail and managed to find a beautiful remote marina that had just 3 visiting boats.

A Beach among the Beeches

First Day Heading for Home

Beautiful dog walking for Taff and Jimmy

Playtime in the Baltic is over and we now need to sail in the right direction for England. We have visited some beautiful places and experienced the local cuisine in Denmark and Sweden. We have swam in the sea and sunbathed on the beaches.

Klintholm beach

Today started as planned with a great sail in the direction of Hesnaes, crossing a very busy shipping lane with a roundabout!

A part built ship about to negotiate the middle channel roundabout

All was going well, we were sailing perfectly at 7knots and making good time, then the wind picked up with gusts of 30 Knots plus at the same time we were trying to get around the headland of Mon. At this point Adrian said "whale oil beef hooked!" Reefs were quickly put in as the waves became huge and it felt like we were on a roller coaster!

Are they speaking to each other?

Needless to say, after quite a few minutes of silence and worried faces we decided to divert into Klintholm rather than have a couple more hours of being in a washing machine. So we are a few miles short of our first chosen port of call on the way home but better safe than sorry!

Køge Bugt, Denmark to Sweden

An early departure from Brøndby with grey skies and winds F4-5 ensured that we had an excellent close hauled sail across the Køge Bugt to Skanör a very pretty harbour on the Swedish Peninsula of Falsterbo.

Along for the ride on Mr Blue Sky we have a new ships mascot which we have named Øyvind(after his previous owner) the lovely young couple that we met in Brøndby Havn had given us a little Viking wood  chopper with a message of good luck and fair winds, I'm sure that we will meet many other lovely people but Øyvind and Maria will take some beating.

Øyvind the Viking our new mascot

Coming into Skanör harbour we had the novel experience of pulling up alongside, which was a refreshing change from stern poles. After one aborted attempt trying to get a 12 metre boat onto a 6 metre berth we were soon safely tied up and the kettle was on. The heavens promptly opened with an almost biblical downpour. Within 2 hours the sun was out and it was time to explore. A walk along the beach seemed the order of the day  , pretty beach huts and not a soul in sight, blue skies and warm winds what could be better.........when out of the dunes appeared a naturist couple, I have to say I wanted to drop my shorts and carry on but I was dragged away by Mrs Wheeler.

Skanör village green

Skanör church

The village of Skanör has little bits that remind us of the East coast of England but is it easily distinguishable as Scandinavian. A trip to the chemist for antihistamine got us talking to a Swedish lady who had spent 35 years in the UK and had recently moved back home she told us that the most she missed about the UK was Sainsburys and Ant and Dec (there a few things that we will all miss but Ant and Dec won't be on my list).

Red fat bloke on the beach

Back to the marina and another swim in the refreshingly bracing Baltic and the harbour master had hoisted the the Union flag in our honour.

Skanör harbour master’s office flying the Union flag

Paradise in the Baltic

Dinner of BBQed fresh fish kebabs done!