The Kwarner. From Land... For Now

Long weekend with fabulous weather, but the crew was on family duties near the Croatian town of Rijeka.
This charming town, where Italian and Slav cultures blend, is right on the tip of the Adriatic sea, the Kwarner. Sheltered by mountains on three sides, and by islands on the south, this is a paradise for relaxed sailing.

The Kawrner seen from the shore... for now.

This time the crew enjoyed the views from the shore, but we plan to have Mekicevica dip her keel in the Kwarner sometime. 

Mekicevica Goes Back to the Volkerak. 4: Not Rushing Home

Believing the weather forecast we had prepared to sail back in showers and gusty winds. Luckily, all that happened while we were smugly under our blankets in the V-berth and Sunday morning was hazy but sunny.
Boy, was the Volkerak busy! Yachts everywhere and in the shipping lane there were few gaps between the ships. I wish the skippers union stopped them from working on Sunday.
Most of the time we were sailing along the S side, goose-winged with the boom on port side, which was nice because most of the yachts coming the other way were reaching on port tack and so had to give way.
The crossing of the shipping lane was even more nerve-wracking then the day before. With the front view of a container ship looming larger and larger we had to roll-up the genoa and get Yo-yo Ma to give us the whole of his 2.5hp to get us across safely.
Apart from that, the way back to the Kramer lock was relaxing. We even did a bit of a detour looking for a place to lay at anchor but we found at least 12m of water all the way to the limit of the out-of-bonds nature reserve.
In the shelter of the Kramer lock, it was the First-Mate's turn to open her T-shirt season.

In the Kramer lock, finally getting warm enough for T-shirt.

While we were in the lock, a sea-wind started, so that while before we were sailing downwind, on the other side we found ourselves beating into a light wind.
Most of the boats coming out of the lock, just motored past in a rush, not even bothering to take the fenders in. What's wrong with you guys? If the point of sailing was just to get from A to B, than you should know that my bicycle is much, much faster.
Entering the Grevelingen lock we nearly collided with one of these rushed, huge yachts. Ok, we had a small trouble with the bow line, so we pushed off at a bit of a funny angle, but why do these guys wait at the back without mooring and then try to come past everybody else at full speed?
La Vita e Bella, the yacht was called. Then why do you rush through it, mate?

Mekicevica Goes Back to the Volkerak. 3: Dinteloord

The rest of the trip to Dinteloord was relaxing and uneventful. The evening breeze came up just to allow us to have a bit of fast sailing before entering the channel leading into the town.
Shortly after the entrance there is a lock that is regulated by a traffic light but closes only when the algae growth on the Volkerak becomes too much of a nuisance. We have found that it can be a real pain trying to motor through a sort of spinach soup (15 August 2011). As we approach the lock I take a look back and what where there was only quiet water a minute before, there was now a flotilla of yachts coming our way. With wind from behind, the long wait for the traffic light was a bit of a mess. The big yachts with diesel engines go forward gingerly and then gear into reverse and come to a sudden stop, leaving us motoring in circles in the spaces between them.
There are several yacht harbours on the Dintel river, and even public moorings on the town centre.

Free, public moorings close to Dinteloord town centre.

We opted for the comfortable Dintelmond Jachtcentrum.
Leaving Mekicevica resting in the afternoon sunshine, we borrowed some two-wheel contraptions that once must have been bicycles, and wobbled our way to town.
Dinteloord is a "modern" town in Prisenland, which was poldered only in the early 17th century. It was built from scratch using the standard layout of the time, the same that is found in many towns in this area. Wikipedia informs us that although it is in the province of Noord Brabant, it was settled by people from Zuid-Holland, just across the Volkerak. Allegedly, still today, the local dialect is Hollands, and not Brabants. Yes, Dutch can be very discerning on accents and can spot whether somebody comes, for example from Rotterdam or Delft 10 km away.
Sadly, they let builders and decorators loose on the town and everything is so tidy and renovated that the town lost most of the charm. Sorry, Dinteloord, but Oud-Bejerland which has the same layout is much more interesting (9 July 2011).

Dinteloord, a bit too renovated for our taste.

Never mind, we'll have a drink on the sunny terrace in the harbour and dinner aboard.

Mekicevica Goes Back to the Volkerak. 2: The Two Sides of the Volkerak

It rained a bit during the night, but Saturday morning was sunny and could almost be described as warm. As forecast, there was a light SW wind. Perrrrfect!
After breakfast, we made our way to the Grevelingen lock, just around the corner from our harbour. Apparently, so did everybody else who has a boat around here. It was busy with boats of all sizes (Mekicevica being the smallest) and crews of all skill levels.
On the other side of the lock there is the usual confusion of boats turning right towards the Oosterschelde, boats turning left towards the Kramer, boats coming from the opposite directions and pushing to be first into the lock, and a background of large ships passing by.
We adopted our usual tactic of slowing down until everybody passes so we can have peace to enjoy the sailing.
It was not far to the Kramer lock and we could go straight in without waiting. Once on the other side the real sailing for the day started. At this end of the Volkerak, the South side is busy with shipping and the bank is a dike with farms behind it. The North side is a nature reserve, dense with vegetation and birds. In part, the busy side is kept out of sight and hearing by an island. A really quiet and pleasant place to sail.
The only occurrence disturbing the peace was even entertaining: a police boat giving chase to a motorboat that was illegally fishing in the area marked as nature reserve.

Police chase of the Volkerak.

During the day it got warmer and, for the first in 2012, at the late date of the 19th of May, I am sailing in short sleeves!

Sailing in short sleeves at last. (I had to put a fleece back on shortly after the picture was taken.)

Sailing NE along the Volkerak, the space between the N bank and the shipping lane gets narrower and narrower. In our previous visit (12 June 2011) it was quiet enough to allow us to sail along the port side of the shipping lane. This time, since our destination was on the S side anyway, we decided to cross to the other side of the shipping lane. Eyes well open and with motor ready to start, we cross from a red to a green marker.
So much more space to sail on the other side!

Mekicevica Goes Back to The Volkerak. Interlude

Friday, working-day after a Thursday holiday. Most people are taking the day off, but First-Mate is on a diet preparing for summer: she is saving as much annual leave as possible to have a long summer vacation.
That leaves me a day for odd-jobs on Mekicevica. One of them is checking the depth sounder, that seems to think we always have 2.5m water, even when throughout the cycle of a 3m tide in a harbour! Quick inspection reveals that there is no oil in the transducer holder. Where the oil could have been gone is a complete mystery.

Mekicevica Goes Back to the Volkerak. 1: Quiet Sailors, Noisy Lubbers

Thursday started sunny, but it is still unbelievable cold for mid-May. The weak to moderate wind is from the SW, but it is expected to back to the E later in the day. Good to sail up the Grevelingen. We'll have to beat against the wind all the way back, but how bad can that be? Pretty bad, it turned-out! Read on...
We've never sailed on the Hals, a narrow channel on the W corner of the Grevelingen. It is too narrow to do against the wind, but today we'll have the wind behind us, so let's explore.

The Hals was one of the few bits of the Grevelingen still unknown to Mekicevica.

As we had hoped, as soon as we veered from the main channel we left all the traffic behind. Sunshine, a gentle wind from astern, only the sound of the birds on the shallow banks, the Sikken van Flakkee, a nature reserve.

Hard work, sailing downwind on the Hals.

It was so quiet, that when we got to the public pontoons where we planned to have a break, we were reluctant to start Yo-Yo Ma, and decided to approach under sail. Huh, how was that manoeuvre again? First attempt failed and I nearly ran Mekicevica aground. Oh, yes! I remember now: when you have the pontoon a bit aft of the beam you tack and approach under mainsail only.
And then THEY arrived! The boy-racers with their over-decorated cars, with far too noisy motors. Some five of them, revving-up their infernal machines, making all sorts of stupid stunts on the gravel, and generally being a nuisance for people and birds. How can somebody behave so stupidly in a place like this is beyond comprehension.

How can anyone prefer a noisy, polluting car to one of these beauties?

Since the peace is destroyed, let's find a place where they cannot drive to. The Archipel, a quiet spot reachable only by boat.
We found it infested by a type of caterpillar that - according to the warnings posted everywhere - produces a toxin that can cause a serious allergic reaction. Never mind, rather dying of anaphylactic shock, than having to bear the boy-racers.

The monsters on the Archipel.

Right! It is now mid-afternoon, we are eight nautical miles NW of Bruinisse, and there is a SE east wind blowing. We have a long upwind beat ahead of us. We know that Mekicevica points higher with the genoa reefed a few rolls, but on this occasion the winds were so light that we needed all the canvas we could get to gain some speed.
Then the wind picked up, as it usually does here in the late afternoon. It was still no more than a 4 Bf, but with the now overcast sky and the temperature dropping, it felt like a long, cold, miserable beat.
I had always wanted to do some evening sailing, but what I had in mind was a warm evening with pink sky, light winds abaft the beam, and a sea so flat that we would be able to balance a glass of wine on the cockpit seats. That is definitely not what we were getting.
We made it to Bruinisse well past 20:00, cold, thirsty, and hungry. Luckily the friendly staff of the Sailor's Inn, the restaurant in the Bruinisse marina, were able to provide adequate treatment for these ailments.

Mekicevica Goes Back to the Volkerak: Prologue

Thursday is a holiday here, and we had hoped to (finally) get to the Oosterschelde. Unfortunately, those waters seem to be trying everything to keep us away. This time the wind was forecast to come from absolutely the wrong direction; we would have to beat amidst commercial shipping, both on the way out and returning.
So, plan B: Thursday we will potter about the Grevelingen, and in the weekend we'll head NW to the Volkerak, aiming to explore the town of Dinteloord.

The Oosterschelde demons keep blowing Mekicevica away.

Krabbenkreek. 2. Creek Crawling

During the night I had the strange feeling of being awaken by the silence. I had never experienced a yacht harbour in complete silence, but this night the wind had died down completely and there was not a sound.
Sunday started very sunny but also very little wind. After breakfast the crew went for a stroll in Sint-Annaland, a very pleasant, "Zeeuwse" village, with the typical windmills and church.

One of the two windmills in St.-Annaland.

Back to Mekicevica, and it is time to explore further up the Krabbenkreek.
Have you ever tried to sail against a 1 kn tidal stream with wind that must have been 3 kn max?
At moments we had the genoa full, but we were moving backwards.
Not that this disturbed us. The sun was shinning, it got warmer, and the Krabbenkreek is a beautifully quiet  place.

Because it is tidal, narrow and leads nowhere, it does not interest the average "cruising from A to B" crowd. 
Eventually we had to accept that we had to start returning to Bruinisse. Beating down the narrow channel in light airs, more drifting than sailing, was a bit challenging. It was hard to gain enough speed between tacks to actually steer Mekicevica. In the last 200m before the harbour, where the channel narrows and does a right turn, we finally gave up and engaged the noisy help of Yo-yo Ma.
After that, the waters got a bit wider and the wind picked-up a little bit, so it was enjoyable to beat back to the Zijpe. The only annoyance were the motor boats and (even worse) sailing boats on motor, that insist on taking the middle of the channel, forcing us to either do short tacks or aggressively try to enforce our right of way as a sailing boat.
The rest of the trip was slow and uneventful. Downwind sailing on light airs, crossing the lock, and park Mekicevica on her berth.
Next weekend is a long one. Hopefully Mekicevica will continue her exploits to the South. Oosterschelde, this time?


  

Krabbenkreek. 1. Slow Lock, Fast Sailing

The weather forecast for the weekend was not too bad. Still very cold for the time of the year, but dry, some sunshine, 4 Bf NW wind on Saturday, backing to the SW and decreasing speed on Sunday. That is just right for us.
Friday evening we had dinner aboard and woke up on Saturday to find the wind blowing harder then expected. For a warm-up we did a bit of sailing on the Grevelingen. Full main sail, a couple of rolls on the genoa and we did the first upwind beating of the season. Mekicevica behaved brilliantly. The new centre-plate and the extra ballast, improved a lot her upwind performance. We stopped for a rest at the Mosselenbank, the island in front of Bruinisse.

Mekicevica having a rest at the Mosselenbank.

During this break we discussed our plans. Is it wise to venture out in this wind? After much hesitation we concluded that apart from being blown onto the path of a container ship nothing could happen to us. Encouraged by this positive thinking we headed for the Grevelingen lock.
Maybe it is because it is so cold, but there are not many yachts around. Only one other boat with us in the lock. After the usual excitement of entering the lock with wind from behind and a motor without reverse, we waited eagerly holding the lines. Than we waited some more. Suddenly nothing happened. Than after a while, nothing happened again. After one hour I decided to turn on the VHF radio to check with the control post, and overheard the explanation being given to someone waiting outside that there was a technical problem and they were trying to solve it.

Long wait at the Grevelingen lock.

Finally after one and a half hours, the lock gates started to open and off we go. The long wait meant that my efforts to determine the best moment in the tide to depart were a complete waste of time.
The sailing down the Zijpe towards the Krabbenkreek turned-out to be absolutely delightful. Beam reach, full rig, and the waters not very busy with either pleasure craft or commercial shipping. We could cross towards the East with a jibe midway at our leisure.
Once in the Krabbenkreek it got even better. No other boats in sight, running downwind, watching the birds on the sandy banks and the brilliant afternoon sun shimmering on the water. How can anyone not love sailing?
We pulled into the yacht harbour of Sint-Annaland just in time to catch the harbourmaster before we went home and got a good berth, close to the club house. Another advantage of sailing a small boat is that you are always given the cosiest and best placed berths that big boats cannot get into.
Sint-Annaland yacht harbour was once used to load farm produce onto barges, so we expected something basic. It turned-out to be a modern, very comfortable marina.

The pontoons of the St.-Annaland harbour are patrolled by the most friendly goose I have ever seen. Offer him a morsel and he will eat it from your hand. 

The club house is superb! The wall facing the Krabbenkreek is full glass, and offers a view to the sandy beach. The food is excellent. Highly recommended!

Krabbenkreek - Prologue: Heading South

Last summer Mekicevica explored the waters North of her base in Bruinisse, reaching as far as Stavoren in Friesland.
This year she's heading South to explore the Oosterschelde, the Veerse Meer, maybe even the Westerschelde and the North Sea. That means some tidal waters, sometimes with strong tidal currents, and BIIIIIG ships.
Our plan is to build-it up gradually, and as the first tour of this series we're heading for the Krabbenkreek.

This is an arm of water that used to separate the islands of Sint-Philipsland and Tholen. In the 1970s, a canal connecting the Schelde and the Rijn was built and a dam closed off the East end of the Krabbenkreek. This is our aim for the weekend.

Relaunched: First Trip of the Season

Third Time Lucky
This time the boat yard guys were ready to drop other jobs to attend to Mekicevica immediately. Feeling guilty, no doubt.
Next day is Saturday and the boat yard is closed, but the boss will be there for the sales and brokerage part of the business, and apparently he still remembers how to operate the boat lift.
So Saturday mid-morning, for the third time in two weeks, Mekicevica is relaunched. I dry the bilges with paper and wait. They remain dry as a bone. YES! Mekicevica is afloat again! With the widest grin on my face I motor out.
Suddenly all the tension of the past few weeks catches up with me. The plan was that First-Mate would join me and we would immediately sail the length of the Grevelingen to Mekicevica's new berth in Bruinisse. But I feel very, very tired and the weather is miserable. I just motor to the other end of the harbour, ask the harbour-master for a berth for the night and fall asleep aboard.


I didn't sleep long, as there is still lots to do before we can sail out. But by late afternoon all is ready and First-Mate joins me for a celebration dinner at the club-house.


Sailing Again at Last
On Sunday the weather has improved a bit but it is still unseasonably cold and blowing hard from the NE. Thinking that one year ago we were sailing in shorts and T-shirt...
The direct route from Scharendijke to Bruinisse starts heading NE, before turning SE.

The Grevelingen showing in red the start, break and finish points.

Mekicevica was still to be treated as recovering from complicated surgery, so we did not feel it was wise to subject her to beating into a 4 to 5 Bf wind, so we came up with a plan: Yo-yo Ma, the outboard motor was going to take us upwind to a sheltered bay on the island Archipel. There the by then frozen crew would warm-up with a hot drink, before unfurling sails and sailing on a beam- to broad-reach down to Bruinisse.

After a Winter of intensive surgery, Mekicevica leaves Scharendijke at last, helmed by a frozen skipper. When is the good weather going to start?

The motoring bit turned-out a bit longer than intended, as being a windy Sunday the racers were out in large numbers, and we tried not to get in their way, put-putting along.

RSs racing on the Grevelingen.

We found the small bay on the Archipel to be a lovely spot. The sun came out, and the wind eased a bit. Mekicevica was joined by a Kolibri, a Dutch, wooden boat about the same size.

Mekicevica basking in the sunshine in the company of a Kolibri.

The stop was longer than expected as Mr. Roller-Reefing had one of his usual tantrums and decided to wrap the genoa halyard around the forestay. But we know his tricks by now, and a tweaking of the tension of the standing rigging sorted him out.
The sailing to Bruinisse was delightful and thanks to the careful planning we did not have to change tack at all. Mekicevica is sailing better than ever, even if the Skipper spent nearly the whole of the trip worrying that the mainsail was not setting properly until he noticed that he had forgotten to ease the topping-lift...


Mekicevica is now in her new berth in Bruinisse, ready for a season of sailing that will include exploring the Oosterschelde and a few weeks on the Croatian coast.

Relaunched: Prologue

Installing a Bilge Pump 

After having coated the keel and the new centre-plate so that they never get in contact with water, Mekicevica can now safely stay in the water throughout the year.

For the sake of my peace of mind, I decided to install an automatic bilge-pump... which saved Mekicevica from floundering just a few days after installation. Was that 100 quid well-spent or what!? Read-on.

I found the best way to install a bilge-pump is in the lowest, forward part of the bilge. This involved raising the the front part of the floor boards by about 1in, so they they slope up towards the front. You really only notice it when you sitting on the loo, because now there is a little step there. The hose goes under the floor boards, behind the shelving under the companion-way, and discharges into the centre-plate box, well above the water-line. I needed to cut a hole in the back part of the shelving, but after all is assembled you would have to look carefully to notice anything.

Sketch of Mekicevica's bilge-pump set-up. (Click image for larger view.)

New Centre-Plate - Coup de Teatre 1

Thursday, 26th of April and the newly coated keel is installed with the new centre-plate. All has been generously coated with anti-fouling (including my clothes). The boat-lift is booked for tomorrow and I am doing the last checks. Does the new centre-plate still raise and lower smoothly? It comes up with a bit of scratching noises and... it is well stuck!

I think the boat-yard guys were a bit over generous with the Sikaflex and the polyester and some of it is bulging inside of the centre-plate box and now the centre plate is well stuck. No amount of pulling from underneath seems to help. I finally manged to release the centre-plate by sticking a broom stick from the top and hitting with a mallet.

Carefully pushing up again I find that I can nose raise the centre-plate fully. It sticks about 10 cm. I don't dare to push it in further, least it gets jammed again.

What the hell, it has to stay like this. It will make falling dry on mud a bit tricky, but how often have we done that? In the water she goes.

Launching 1st Try - Coup de Teatre 2

Friday 27th of April. The boat lift is booked for the unchristian time of 8am, which means I have to get up at 0530 to be there on time. Mekicevica is already hanging from the slings, and I did the last bits of anti-fouling.

Stepping the mast with the crane is easier than by hand, but not less nerve-wracking. With trembling hands I go thought the usual fiddling with the standing rigging. The boat lift operator is in a hurry because he has to launch a 40 footer next, so we lower Mekicevica to the water and I tie up at the pontoon to continue preparing the rigging.

The new bilge-pump starts working which for a moment pleases me - it works.

Hey, wait a minute! Why is the bilge pump working?

I lift the floor boards and find water sloshing there, and coming in fast. I shout to the boat-yard guys: "She is leaking! Badly."

Mekicevica has to lifted out again, and the owner of the Bavaria 40 will have to wait a few minutes longer.

It turns-out that my enthusiastic use of the mallet to release the centre-plate has slightly split the joint of the box and water was gushing in.

Launching 2nd Try

One week later, the gap in the centre-plate has been sealed and Mekicevica, now with standing mast, is ready to be launched again. This time I managed to book the crane for a more decent time, but when I get there the operator is already waiting for me.

The launching goes smoothly, and this time the bilge pump stays quiet. There is a bit water in the bilges but it is fresh water. I dry everything up and wait a few minutes.

Damned! There is still a small trickle of water from the centre-plate box. Out she goes again!