A Sailor's Home in Winter

During winter I try to remove from Mekicevica all that can get damage by cold or damp and bring it home. The house and the garage get filled with boat bits and I wonder how does so much stuff fit in a 19 foot-boat. And this does not include the mainsail (at the sailmaker for small repairs) and the motor (being serviced).

What do owners of big boats do?

Beginning of Winter Projects

First task was to build a new mast support. The one I had last year was designed for allowing to steer under motor with the mast down. Unfortunately it more or less broke to bits. So I am giving up that idea. When the time comes for Mekicevica to escape the cold of the North and journey to the sunshine through the French canals I will get something professionally done in stainless steel.
And here is the mast support mark IV.

Simple but it works. The biggest problem became obvious when lowering the mast: it is not high enough and the boom attachment hit the deck before the mast was resting on the support. Luckily Mekicevica is parked near a container (visible in the photo) and we saved the situation by having First-Mate standing on the container and holding the mast while I released the mast foot.
I'll need to find a solution for when we want to step the mast again.

Outhaul

Mekicevica is out of the water for her winter sleep and the usual mile-long list of maintenance jobs.

It was a good season. We did not start until the 3rd of May. This was because of delays in the maintenance jobs, caused by some useless sailmakers who never came to measure the rig.
The last sail of the season was on the 5th of October, which is sort of normal for us.
In between we clocked 57 days of "sailing", if you count the trips from Middelharnis to Amsterdam and Amsterdam to Middelharnis, which were mostly motoring.

The highlight of the season was the trip to the Waddenzee on our own keel, a total of ca. 360 miles. Mekicevica and crew were tested by winds up to 6 Bf, the infamous waves of the Ijsselmeer, and the strong tides of the Wad. We can claim to have passed with flying colours. In the process, the skipper called Mekicevica home for four weeks... and did not miss any of the comforts of life on land.

We are already dreaming plans for 2015...

A Failed Attempt to Prolong the Sailing Season

The end of the season is approaching, but we thought we could fit one more weekend of sailing. The weather forecast was not too bad: we may get a bit of rain but the temperatures are still very mild.
Friday evening we went to Mekicevica, prepared a Japanese-inspired meal on board and went to sleep.

Unfortunately saturday was much worse than forecast: after some moments of sunshine to give us hope, it started to rain. And it rained, and it rained, and more rain was coming.

We packed our stuff and went home. I think the season is finished...

Getting Wet and Cold in Scharendijke

It is not every weekend that we get a forecast of southerlies on Saturday and northerlies on Sunday. Ideal for a trip north, but since we've been to Ouddorp last weekend, now we opted for Scharendijke. We've not been there this season.

Friday 3 October
Friday was warm and hardly any wind, so I went on a bike ride to check the harbour of Bommenede for future trips. It has pontoons for public use but no shore facilities. The nearest village, Zonnemaire,  is a pretty "Zeeuwse dorp" well worth a visit. Maybe next season...

Saturday 4 October
After dinner aboard we got up late on Saturday, as the mornings are getting a bit chilly. As forecast there was a gentle SE breeze, and around 1045 we were happily sailing along under blue skies on the very calm and quiet Grevelingen.

Autumn skies with July temperatures, and a following gentle breeze. Perfect!

Most of the trip was on a broad reach, except for a little bit when we were running goose winged. Too short to bother with the whisker pole, as soon we had to turn east and reach past Den Osse and towards Scharendijke. We never needed to tack, but approaching our destination the wind got a bit gusty, going from nearly nothing to 3 Bf and back in seconds. Since we were close hauled, and the gusts were not strong that made the direction of the apparent wind change wildly. Mekicevica approached harbour in the fashion of a stumbling drunk, following a wobbly douse, and going from flapping sails and swinging mast, to heeling under the gusts of wind.

Shrimper nr. 243...

and Crabber nr. 3, both a long way from Cornwall.

In all it was a rather fast trip: three hours harbour to harbour, covering 11 NM. We had plenty of time for a walk along the coast, finishing with a Belgian beer at the club house.
The forecast storm arrived just as we were about to go out for dinner and it was worse than expected, with heady rain, thunder, and strong wind gusts. We arrived to the restaurant completely soaked.

Sunday, 5 October
On Sunday, true to the forecast the temperature plummeted, the wind veered north to northeast, but was stronger than expected. We put a reef in the main and sailed out, first close hauled and then on a broader course.

The racers were out early.

As the day progressed the wind got weaker and gradually veered east, so that while keeping a straight course of 120 we went from a broad reach with reefed main and three rolls in the genoa, to approaching Bruinisse in a close reach with full sails. Again a fast trip of three hours harbour to harbour. That was a good thing because despite the sunshine it was a bit cold: thermals, two fleeces and sailing jacket.

Another great weekend of sailing. A brilliant way to close the season?

A Trip to Ouddorp

Returning from Croatia was a bit of a shock, but at least here is warm for the time of the year.
After diner aboard on Friday evening and a good sleep, we made a leisurely start under grey, low cloud. There was just a light south breeze, pushing us along the Grevelingen on a broad reach.

RSs in front of Bruinisse, racing very slowly in the light breeze.

After the harbour of Bommemnede we had the wind behind us and could have another try at poling the genoa.

Not completely right yet but it was good enough to push us along in light airs.

Then the wind died completely and we had to motor the last bit to the Goeree little harbour.
In the evening we headed for a restaurant in Ouddorp that served us delicious grilled turbot.

Sunday was even warmer, sunnier and there was a bit more of wind. Unfortunately from the SE, exactly the direction we have to go to. So it was a long but relaxed beat back to Bruinisse. Very enjoyable, except the bit in from of Bommenede where there was not the slightest puff of wind and we had to motor a bit. That spot is either gusty or flat calm.

The safe water marker has a new inhabitant.

Hopefully we'll still manage at least one more weekend of sailing this season.

Hvar without Mekicevica

The crew took a break from sailing for a late-summer visit to Hvar. It was too short, so Mekicevica stayed in Zeeland, while we went swimming in the bay she is named after.

Engraved in stone (not by us).

One day that pink house will be home for the by then geriatric Mekicevica's crew.

The hard life on the Croatian coast: improvised lunch by the blue sea. Freshly-caught, grilled sardines and chilled, white wine enjoyed with family and friends. Just another day in paradise...

Relaxed Sailing on the Volkerak

Mekicevica's rigging got a new addition: a whisker pole. I had to drive around half of the Netherlands until in Naarden I found the right sized pole, just in time to try it in the light airs forecast for this weekend. On Friday I spent some time devising a way to attach the pole to the mast temporarily. I don't want to start drilling holes in my precious mast before making sure I am getting it right. In the evening First-Mate joined for a meal cooked on board: gnocchi with tomato and bacon sauce, green salad and copious amounts of red wine. Yummy!
On Saturday morning, we started only 45 min before the 1100 rush-hour but the Grevelingen lock was very quiet. After passing the lock we sailed the short bit of the Kramer to the next lock, where we went in without waiting with only two other boats. On one of them, crewed by a German couple, the man went below leaving the aft line cleated and emerged a couple of minutes later to find that the water level in the lock had dropped a good meter and his boat was hanging from the cleat with the fibreglass making frightening cracking noises. Of course he was unable to untie the line under such load, and after a few seconds of panic he gladly accepted my suggestion of cutting the line.
We hoisted sails immediately out of the lock and sailed on a deep reach in the light nor'westerly. A perfect occasion to try out the whisker pole. Mistakenly, I tried to pole-out the 160% genoa on the same side as the main and was disappointed that the expensive pole was not helping to keep the genoa full. It only later, after re-reading the literature that I realised my stupid mistake: you are supposed to pole the head-sail well forward to windward, i.e. on the opposite side of the main. Oh well, you never stop learning...

As usual the Volkerak was tremendously busy with shipping but most of the time there is plenty of water to keep out of the shipping lane. So we were able to enjoy the first relaxed sailing in light winds in many weeks. The only thing missing was the sun, who only made a brief appearance from behind the grey clouds.
The only down-side of relaxed sailing is that you don't move very fast, so it took us seven hours to reach our destination, the pretty village of Ooltgensplaat. We had not been there since the wet summer of 2011 and we had forgotten what a quiet place it is. There isn't even a decent place to have a beer on Saturday evening, so we had to content ourselves with whatever red wine survived from last evening.

On Sunday, my usual weather forecast in the morning turned a nasty surprise: instead of NO wind as was predicted and the whole point of sailing here, it turns out we will have W or NW wind. Still light, moreover. We will have to beat all the way in close to no wind. It is going to be a long day...
We thoroughly enjoyed most of it. Out of Ooltgensplaat we hoisted sails and were able to use a lull in the shipping traffic to cross to the wider, south side of the shipping lane. then came a slow, lazy beat in the hazy sunshine. Absolute bliss!
When it was time to cross the shipping lane again it was too busy and the wind was too weak, so we motor-sailed across and resumed the beating on the other side.
By now it was getting late. In an ideal world, we would have just sopped at the new Galathese harbour or at Oude-Tongue and continue next day. Unfortunately, in the real world there are jobs to go to on Monday morning so we had no choice but to start Yo-yo Ma, our faithful outboard, and put-put the rest of the way. Even so, and with the fastest passing of the Kramer lock ever, we only made it back to Bruinisse well after 7pm, after more than nine hours.
All in all, another great sailing weekend, even if having to motor sort of blemishes the romantic spirit of it.

A Windy Weekend on the Grevelingen

Saturday, 30th of August 2014
Since we returned from the Wadden we have either been busy, or the weather was not encouraging. Finally on the last weekend of August we firmly decided we were going sailing.
Saturday morning was chucking down, but in view of the weather forecast we still set off to Bruinisse.
It eventually started to clear up, but the westerly wind also started to pick-up. We went out in the middle afternoon put a reef on the main, unfurled a bit of the small jib and started beating along the Grevelingen. The wind was a 4 Bf, but with 5 Bf gusts. If we were trying to get to a new, exciting destination we would have carried on, but since this was just a half-day sail in home waters, we soon decided we had enough and turned back to harbour to enjoy the sunshine and dinner aboard.

Sunday, 31st of August 2014
During the night and early morning it rained a bit, but by the time we ventured out of the sack it was dry and with nice sunny spells. Even the wind had calmed a bit, or at least seemed less gusty. So we went out in the spirit of let's see how far we get.
The wind was more NW now, and we had to beat up the Grevelingen. The 18ft skiffs were having a race, the last of the European championship, adding interest to the day.

18ft skiffs racing on the Grevelingen.

The local club also had a race of their own, so there were lots of colourful spinnakers around. If they are racing on handicap, we should join someday. Mekicevica will probably have such a handicap that we will win without even leaving harbour.

After a couple of hours of beating, and with the wind continuing to increase we decided to turn to enjoy the downwind ride back to Bruinisse.

Sailing in demanding conditions is tiring but satisfying. However after the intense days on the Ijsselmeer and the Waddenzee, we wouldn't mind a bit of leisurely sailing...

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Returning Home

Monday 4th of August: Along the North Sea Canal and through Haarlem (20 NM)
Instead of waisting one day waiting for the night crossing of Amsterdam, I decided to try the day route via Haarlem. This involves a long stretch along the North Sea Canal, the modern route from Amsterdam to the North Sea. This turned-out to be wide and even sailable... unless you have the wind right on the nose as I had.
The crux was the bridge under the motorway at Spaarndam, which opens only a couple of times a-day. I made it to the 1200 opening with a few minutes to spare.
Than came the very scenic (but payable) Haarlem crossing, at which the convoy was delayed by a technical fault of the railway bridge. I sketched a plan to stop at an unknown harbour in Hemstede, shortly after Haarlem, and when I saw a sailing boat with British flag turning into it, I decided to follow.

Tuesday 5th of August: Bridges, bridges, and more f... bridges, Hemstede to Boskoop (22 NM)
This is when I re-join the Amsterdam route. It is also, the most boring part of the Staande Mast Route. Bridge, after bridge along straight-line canals through the polders. The Brits started a bit too early for the opening of the Sassenheim bridge and sure enough I met them waiting.
After that, there is clearly no way to cross the Gouda bridge before the evening, so I started making alternative plans. The chart hints at some small yacht harbour in Boskoop, and again I saw the Brits turning into it and decided to follow.
It was indeed a small harbour, in which members rotate the duty of harbourmaster. There was a very friendly couple in a converted tug-boat who directed me to a box and he even offered to go and buy petrol for me. How friendly is that?!

Wednesday 6th of August: Drama on the Ijssel, Boskoop to Schiedam (21 NM)
The next stage was planned together with the Brits over copious amounts of red wine. We need to make the opening of the Gouda bridge at 1027. That was not difficult and we even had to wait awhile.
In the rush to pass the bridges and the lock I seemed to notice that Suzy Q had changed the pitch of her noise, "probably a good sign". We had not been in the Ijssel more than a few hundred meters when Suzy Q went on strike and refused to restart. A slightly sticky situation when several sailboats in the convoy rushed to help. Finally I was towed by a Midget 31 (based in Bruinisse) until I could figure that the problem was the pumping of fuel. While being towed I filled the integral tank, let go of my generous rescuers and resumed the motoring down the Ijssel.
Venturing into the Nieuwe Maas like this would be crazy. Anyway the fuel in the integral tank of Suzy Q would not be sufficient, so when I spotted a yacht harbour in Capelle an den Ijssel I turned in for some checking-up and planning.
Plan A: remove the nozzle from the external tank and manually pump more fuel into the integral tank. While doing that I noticed the tank getting a bit shrivelled. At that moment it dawned on me that the very friendly chap who filled my tank in Boskoop said; "I closed the vent."
Duh! Vent reopened and problem solved. Confidently into the Niuewe Maas to overnight in Schiedam again.

Thursday 7th of August: Back into the Spui with approaching storm (16 NM)
The last worry before the tranquility of the delta is the Botlek bridge. The information in the almanac is a bit sketchy and, as I discovered on the way North, inaccurate. So I decided to go with the tide and hope for the best.
Lucky again, because the bridge opened for us and other yachts coming from the opposite side. The Oude Maas was very quiet and soon we were on the even quieter Spui, happily being pushed along by the tide. Unfortunately the sky to the West was getting darker, and darker, it started to rain heavily and a thunderstorm was getting closer and closer. Even if it was not far to go to Middelharnis, I opted to take shelter at the Brinckvliet yacht harbour.

Friday 8th of August: The last bit alone across the Haringvliet (5 NM)
Only a little bit to go. Don't want too leave too early to wait for the tide, but there is a warning of thunderstorms in the afternoon. I hung around a bit, went for a run, and finally set off. First on motor, for a while downwind with full genoa and finally motor again into Middelharnis harbour canal, where I was directed to a box in the inner harbour and tied-up under the pouring rain.
First-Mate arrived in the evening and we headed for the Greek restaurant again.

Saturday 9th of August: Windy ride on the Haringvliet, motor down the Volkerak (24 NM)
It blew really hard all night, but the SW windy was forecast to gradually ease during the day. We had a leisurely start but it was still windy. With reefed main only, mostly on a beam reach and staying close to the weather side of the Haringvliet, the wind gusts were manageable by constantly tweaking the sheet.
After the Volkerak lock we would have to turn straight into the wind, and given the discouraging forecast for Sunday we decided to motor all the way to Bruinisse.
It was nearly 8pm when Mekicevica tied-up back in her cosy berth in Bruinisse harbour, after four weeks and more than 360 nautical miles. The longest journey ever on a Manta 19?

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Back to the Ijsselmeer

Wednesday 30th of July: Start of the return trip, Texel to Medemblick (23 NM)
It is sad but we need to start the return trip. We left Oudeschilde with favourable wind and tide and took a shortcut over the shallow waters, almost in straight-line to Den Oever. (While most yachts, out of pure mental laziness of their skippers, follow the marked shipping lane.)

Trawler in front of Oudeschilde.

Approached the lock in a series of gybes, and then went through together with a stink-pot and a ship of the Bruine Vlote. Then on a broad reach straight to Medemblick. The landfall was much easier this time.

Thursday 31st of July: Windy, short passage from Medemblick to Enkhuizen (11 NM)
We had hoped to go further but another beat against a gusty 4-5 Bf got tiresome. Moreover, for some reason I could not figure the reefed main was not setting properly, so we stopped at Enkhuizen.

Friday 1st of August: Back in the Markermeer, Enkhuizen to Edam (16 NM)
Motored the short distance to the lock, and after that a few tacks keeping out of the shipping lane. We left Hoorn behind with a straight line reach towards Edam. The wind picked-up forcing us to take a few rolls in the genoa, and then suddenly died and chafed direction so much that we continued on the same heading but now on a broad reach.
We remembered Edam as a beautiful, small, and typically Nord-Holland town; those memories were  confirmed in a short visit for food shopping and a drink at the Dam.

Saturday 2nd of August: Running for shelter, Edam to Uitdam (10 NM)
We left Edam in a bright morning, with an intense blue sky decorated by small clouds. As usual that came with a gusty 3-4 Bf from the SE. We sailed under full-main and reduced genoa, roughly along the coast past Vollendam, but having to tack a few times. Under the lee of the Marken peninsula we needed full genoa and still the lighthouse was only slowly getting closer. Than of course passing in from of it was a case of reefed main and reduced genoa, and still heeling like mad.

Windy enough around the Paard van Marken to make big ships trice the main.

After that we neared away a bit towards Uitdam and things got quieter. Too quiet, as the wind died just before Uitdam, while a nasty squall loomed in the SE. So motor on, and we were just tying-up wham all hell broke lose, with thunder, lightning, strong wind gusts, hail, everything a Summer sorm can throw at you. Very glad we were not caught outside.

Dying wind and this monster approaching persuaded us to stop at Uitdam.

Uitdam harbour is not great; we rate it second worst ever, close to Krimpen an den Ijssel. But the gargantuan dover sole in the restaurant was good.

Sunday 3rd of August: Past Pampus to Durgerdam (7 NM) 
Another bright morning with a gusty 3-4 Bf, varying crazily in strength and direction between S and E. Under full main, reduced genoa and constant tweaking of the main sheet we keep a more or less straight line towards the island of Pampus. On this island there was once a fortress that defended what was then the approach to Amsterdam from the sea.

Pampus, with the modern part of Amsterdam in view behind.

The wind gradually calmed and we headed towards the Ij and Durgerdam with as much sail as we could.
The Old Gaffers Association were having a meeting in Durgerdam, so there were lots of beautiful boats in the harbour as well as at anchor in front. It also meant a bar crowded with British toffs.
For us it was time to change the motor back to Suzy Q, say farewell to First-Mate and prepare for the solo return to Zeeland.

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Waddenzee

Friday 25th of July: First Passage on the Wad, Makkum to Vlieland (23 NM)
From now on we have to plan around the tides, so we had an early start to ride the ebbing tide to Vlietland. Moreover we would have to cross a shallow patch, only accessible until 1300. We motored the mile from Makkum marina to the Kornwerderzand lock in the grey early morning, and finally enter the Waddenzee.
At first we had little wind and from the wrong direction. We started to fear we would not make it across and would have turn back. Eventually the wind backed and picked-up in strength, so much so that for a while we had to reef the main.

Waddenzee sailing: a bit disconcerting when people walk past your boat while you sail.

We passed the shallow patch in good time sailed around the sandbank of Richel and entered the harbour of Oost-Vlieland. As we were to find out, the harbours on the Wad are spacious but usually crowded and rafting along other boats is the norm. Here we were directed to join a Leisure 17 crewed by a young Dutch couple.
That evening we celebrated our first Wad passage.

Saturday 26th of July: Vlieland, the jewel among the Wadded islands
We spent the day cycling around the island, visiting the town, taking the views from the lighthouse, and admiring the beautiful, wild beaches on the "outside". The charming town of Oost Vlieland was the home of Willem De Vlamingh, the leader of the first Europeans to discover Australia. (Although the Portuguese may have been there before but kept quiet about it.)

The main street of Oost Vlieland. Until recently the whole island was car-free, and bicycles are still the primary form of transport.

We went as far East on the island as the Dutch army would allow us, since they use that bit as firing drills area.

The wild, natural beauty of Vlieland.

From a map we learned that there was once a town os West Vlieland but it is now in the bottom of the North Sea. Erosion or a firing drill gone wrong?

Sunday 27th of July: Terscheling (8 NM)
We planned to cover only the short distance to the next island to the East, Terschelling, but because we need to cross a shallow bit we had to play with the tides and get up early, again.
The massive tidal race and the weak wind made it difficult to sail the marked channel and we ended-up motoring... like all the other boats. At high water there is a convoy of boats of the Bruine Vlotte rushing across the narrow, shallow channel.

Keeping N of the cardinal buoy under sail with strong tide and weak wind just was not going to happen.

After came a short beat and then on beam-reach towards the harbour of West Terschelling.
We arrived early enough to spend the rest of the day sight-seeing by bicycle.
Terschelling is much larger than Vlieland. The town of West Terschelling has had a lighthouse since the 14th century, named Brandaris. The modern successor is still the dominating building on the island and houses the control post for shipping on the Waddenzee.
Willem Barentsz, the 16th century Arctic navigator was born here.
Out of the town, sand dunes dominate the landscape, with the occasional village or group of holiday houses scattered around.

Colourful fishing gear in West Terschelling harbour.

Monday 28th of July: Long, windy and dramatic passage to Texel (30 NM)
The wind remains from E to NE, which explains the wonderful weather we are having. It is also ideal for the long passage we have planned for today. It will start moderate and will pick-up later to 5Bf, possibly 6Bf. We are going to sail with the big genoa only, started with the whole of it and probably reducing to handkerchief size by the afternoon.
There was no way to avoid a mile against the tide out of West Terschelling, and not even the full genoa was enough, so we had to get Yoyo-Ma to give an extra push.
After that was sailing with wind and tide. Except for a bit when we had to come closer to the wind and tack. That was when the starboard sheet was caught in a riding turn. A few minutes of panic followed when things were definitely not under control. Finally First-Mate suggested we turn into the wind, let the genoa flap, and use the moment to free the sheet. It worked.
With all this distraction we passed the point we needed to be at the turn of the tide spot on time. The wind continued to pipe up but now we were going downwind again and the waves here do not build-up as much as in the Ijsselmeer. At a point we were doing 7 to 8 kn over the ground we just about  quarter of the genoa out. Just as we moored in the spacious and modern harbour of Oudeschilde, the display was flicking between 5 and 6 Bf.

Tuesday 29th of July: English-like countryside and Costa del little Sol in Texel.
Morning entertainment was provided by a 52 ft, modern sailing yacht skippered by a moron whose idea of manoeuvring in a harbour is to keep moving downwind until the boat is stopped by hitting something. Why do people without sufficient experience charter or buy such large yachts?
For the rest of the day we went cycling around the island. This is the largest of the islands and in some places you cannot feel the presence of the sea. The slightly hilly landscape looks almost like rural England.

In some spots of Texel you can almost forget the sea.

Seaman's church in Oudeschilde.

After the wild beauty of Vlieland, the beaches in Texel are a bit disappointing: crowded, too civilised,  and near villages full of the tacky stuff you see often on seaside resources. For that type of beach, then why not go to costa del something where the weather is nicer?

Enjoying local produce in the old fish market of Oudeschilde.

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Across the Ijsselmeer

Saturday 19th of July: Downwind Sailing to Hoorn (20 NM).
I have now been joined by First-Mate and the crumpled space inside Mekicevica feels nicer when shared with the Loved One. In the morning we set off from Durgerdam, motor across the busy bit and then under genoa only with the SW wind pushing us towards our destination for the day: Hoorn.
We soon started to feel the infamous choppy waves of the Markermeer. As usual, it was very lively going around the Marken lighthouse.

The Paard van Marken never fails to provide some excitement, no matter which way the wind blows.

The beautiful harbour of Hoorn.

Sunday 20th of July: Hoorn to Enkhuizen in light airs (12 NM)
Sunday morning we wait for the light showers to clear and then cast away. Hazy sunshine and not much in the way of wind. For the last couple of miles, already following the buoys towards Enkhuizen we really had to go on motor. Worth noting that we have passed the lock and are now out of the Markermeer and in the Ijsselmeer.

Monday 21st of July: Enkhuizen to a scary landfall in Medemblick (10 NM)
A grey morning, and blowing a 4Bf from the SE, forecast to pick-up to 5Bf. With a reefed main, and half of the little jibby up, Mekicevica feels like a dolphin playing with the waves. Except when we approached the harbour. That was one of the scariest landfalls ever! Beam-on to the waves was not an option, so we had to zig-zag, with poor, little Yoyo-Ma protesting now and then, and hoping we did not sway so much that one of us would go overboard.

Tuesday 22nd of July: Bike-ride along the coast.
We are a little to shaken to try to get out into those scary waves again, so we borrow two bikes and go for a ride along the coast.

A 'Drie-Mast-Schooner' sailing along the coast.

The weather and wind forecast are a bit worrying; the NE wind will persist, kicking-up the same nasty waves into this side of the Ijsselmer. We either waste the rest of the vacation here or take some bold action.

Wednesday 23rd of July: Daredevil dash across the Ijsselmeer (12 NM)
On advice of the harbourmaster, we got up early to leave by 0630 hoping for a lull in the NE wind. It may have been a tad less windy, but the monster waves were still there. For half an hour Mekicevica bashed directly up the 1m+ waves and crashed on the other side. Yoyo-Ma was pushing along protesting loudly every time his little propeller started spinning in the air.
Eventually as we left the coast behind the waves got a bit less scary and we were able to hoist sail and bear off the wind. The problem was the wind was more easterly than we thought and we kept being pushed North, too close to the coast. Our plan of a direct run E to the shelter of Vrouwenzand was not going to work. Instead we had a laborious series of tacks with painfully slow progress eastwards. Eventually we had Stavoren in sight and the waves became more manageable, even if the wind piped up further to a 5 Bf. A few more, shorter tacks and we entered the harbour of Stavoren. Soon we were through the lock and bridge and setted in the smallest free box we could find.
We were feeling a bit shaken, but the daring effort saved us from being stuck in Medemblick for the rest of the holidays.
The rest of the day was spent resting, looking around Stavoren and finally dinner out.

Thursday 24th of July: Great reach from Stavoren to Makkum (12 NM)
Sunny, still stiff NE wind, 4 Bf, maybe gusting 5 Bf. With jib and reefed main we could keep on starboard tack in straight line to Makkum. Still choppy but nothing compared to the previous days. Mekicevica was flying, and we were pleased to see a slightly larger boat going the same way being left well behind. (They didn't reef and were further out where the waves were larger.)
Makkum has several marinas and we opted for the large one, simply because it had a wasserette, something our clothes are in urgent need of. We were welcome by harbour staff speaking in such a Frisian lingo that I pretended not to know any Dutch so they had to speak English.

De Waag of Makkum.

After a visit to the town and dodging a nasty thunderstorm, we had dinner onboard looking forward to entering the Wad next day.

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Staandemast Route Solo

The Staandemast Route is an itinerary that allows sailing yachts to travel between Zeeland and the Ijsselmeer, via inland waters, and without lowering the mast.
We have done it before, in 2011. The crew were still green, the weather was lousy, but we still had fun with the novelty of having a long vacation on a tiny sailboat.
This time I am doing it solo.

Monday 14th of July: Middelharnis to Schiedam (25 NM)
A bright and windy morning. Perfect to hang-out all the wet gear from the weekend, while I was busy replacing Yoyo-Ma with the dirty, but powerful, smooth and (relatively) silent Suzy Q.
I cast off at 1030, still wondering if the motor is going to pack-up before the end of the harbour canal. It didn't, but I found the lock closed. I thought it was always open! This gave the opportunity for my first drills at manoeuvring with Suzy Q. I won't go into details, but we are still getting to know each other and we did not do any serious damage. Another good thing was there were no witnesses, unless the harbourmaster, who arrived to open the lock saw our struggle to come alongside a pontoon with wind from the back.
Outside, the West wind had kicked-up a fuss on the Haringvliet and the motoring across was a wild ride. But Suzy Q started to show her trumps. I was too busy holding-on for dear life and navigating to check the speed, but once we turned into the Beningen I could see 5 to 6 knots on the GPS. Ok, that was with the wind and about 1.5 kn of tide, but still good.
Once on the Spui I could sail under jib only. It was mostly quiet and relaxing, except crossing a cargo ship and several motoryachts, all at the same time. The crossing of the ferry didn't cause any trouble, even if I had to jibe right in front of it.
Approaching the end of the Spui it was time to roll the jib and start motoring and face the Oude Maas with its busy shipping traffic. I stopped at De Rhoonse Grienden yacht club for a break and tactical deliberations. Next I would have to pass two bridges, of which the second was just about too low for Mekicevica's mast. According to the almanac, that bridge would not open again until 6pm. What to do? Stay in this harbour overnight? In a moment of bravado, I decided to "go and see". The rest of the ride up the Oude Maas was a choppy affair, with wind blowing against the stream, but as I approached the bridge I found a yacht going in circles, obviously waiting for the opening of the bridge. In a few minutes we were through and continuing towards the Nieuwe Maas. Boy, is it busy! Cargo ships, container ships, ice-breakers, ferries, everything. But Suzy Q did a good job of taking us to the Schiedam Yacht Club, where we were welcome by a very, very friendly harbourmaster. Not the kind that gets really chummy, but the kind that really treats you like an old friend. He even drove me to the petrol station to fill Suzy Q's tank!

Tuesday 15th of July: Schiedam to Gouda (20 NM)
The timing of the start on Tuesday was a compromise between the ideal from a tide point of view (4am) and what I could get myself to do. It ended up as 7am, still with 3 h of favourable tide to go.
The crossing of Rotterdam was memorable. The shipping was not so intense, since we had left the big ports behind, but instead there were the fast water buses and taxis. As a treat, I could see the landmarks of this city from the water: the old dockyard buildings (the few that survived the WW II bombing) and the Erasmus bridge. At a point I thought I was having olfactory hallucinations, because I could smell roasted cumin, but then I noticed I was passing a ready meals factory.
Soon I was at the mouth of the Ijssel, sticking a finger at the Ijsselmonde yacht club (see previous adventure).
The height scale of the Algera bridge showed that we could just about pass, but to be honest we (Mekicevica, Suzy Q, and I) needed a break. It had started to drizzle and I was feeling cold. So we stopped at the waiting pontoon. An old man who lives just in front of it spotted Mekicevica's Portuguese flag and came out of the house to talk to me, who he imagined a solo adventurer sailing the world in a small boat. I was tempted to play along with it but I am a lousy liar, so I admitted that the big journey started only in Zeeland.
The negative side of the wait was Mekicevica slammed hard against the pontoon by the wake of a small mobo driven by a moron.
Up the Ijssel I got a bit bored with motoring, so tried to sail. Headsail only was a bit too slow, so I tried with mainsail as well. This allowed me to find-out that sailing up a busy, winding river, with variable winds and both sails up is a bit too much So I reverted to jib only and after a while Suzy Q came back on. A bit reluctantly, as a punishment for having forgotten to close the air vent causing the carb to flood with fuel.
We arrived to the lock in Gouda with still a lot of time to spare but decided that was enough for the day.
During the night I was attacked by a whole squadron of mosquitoes. Even after closing the companionway, they just kept coming in through the vent on the washboards. They were ferocious and organised: one would go bzzzz around my ear as a diversion while other munched me all over.

Wednesday 16th of July: Gouda to Westeindeplassen (21 NM)
After a walk to town to buy some deet, I left Gouda harbour in time to catch the opening of the railway bridge. It opens at 1027 sharp and stays open for exactly three minutes.
So far I had encountered few sailing yachts, but here waiting for the bridge the convoy started to assemble. To my surprise, Suzy Q kept us with the convoy all the way to Alphen an den Rijn, and beyond to the Brassemmeer. After the last bridge I eased the throttle, and looked for a place to rest. Briefly considered one of the many marinas but finally opted to drop anchor in a quiet bit of the lake.
I could easily have made it to Schiphol in time for the night-crossing of Amsterdam, but after the mosquito-night I did not feel in shape for it, so I picked a small marina to spend the night. More or less randomly I ended up at the Residence, situated on a small island on the lake. The very friendly club members made me feel welcome and allowed me to stay until late next afternoon without extra charge. They even allowed me free use of their rowing boats to go ashore to do the shopping.
Well impregnated in deet, I had a good night sleep.

Thursday 17th of July: Westeindeplassen to Nieuwe Meer (8 NM)
Thursday was hot, sunny and windless. I spent the whole day doing nothing much. At the end of the afternoon quietly left the pontoon under sail and sailed to a corner of the lake where there was a petrol station not very far away. Well, half a mile each way in the hot sun carrying Suzy Q's 12-liter tank.
After that it was time to give gas towards Schiphol, past the Aalmeerderbrug (being shouted at by the operator because I passed before the green light). Here I was right at the end of the Schiphol runway and airplanes were passing so low their wind gusts made Mekicevica heel, even with no sail up.
The Bosrand bridge opened as I approached and I settled to wait at Schiphol for the opening of the bridge. For this, traffic on a 2x6 lane motorway leading to Amsterdam needs to be stopped, so it does not open very frequently. I was waiting for the single opening of the evening, anytime between 8 and 9 pm.
Unlike the previous time here, I did not have to wait long and soon I was crossing the Nieuwemeer, which was incredibly busy in this warm summer evening. Motorboats, sailboats, jet skis and a flotilla of beautifully kept Vrijheids were crisscrossing the convoy of yachts heading for Amsterdam.
During the wait, I had a coffee and a sandwich and tried to rest a bit, while my neighbours were making a grill and drinking wine.

Friday 18th of July: Nieuwe Meer to Durgerdam (11 NM)
As normal, the convoy started moving around 1am, and then for over two hours it was bridge, after bridge trough the centre of Amsterdam. In the previous passage, with a little experienced skipper and reverse gear-less Yoyo Ma as propulsion, Mekicevica was hesitantly staying at the back of the convoy. This time with Suzy Q we were confidently in the middle.
After the railway bridge, most yachts carried on, while Mekicevica and other three tied-up for the night.
After a short night, I hung around a bit, as the last bridge does not open until 9am, and soon after followed a yacht past the bridge and into the Ij. The sun was shinning and the traffic was not more intense than on the Maas.
In the Oranjesluis I had to lose my zen and shout at an idiot on a motor sloop, who came from behind and jumped the queue in, than on at he exit found it cool to let go of the lines too early and of course found himself unable to control the boat. That would have been his problem if he didn't come against Mekicevica pushing her against the sides. Idiot!
The rest of the day was spent at Durgerdam, tidying-up the boat, washing clothes and more importantly waking-up Yoyo-Ma from his sleep to take over from Suzy Q. I got attached to that engine. We'll be working together again in two weeks, on the return to Zeeland.

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: Casting Off

Friday 11th of July 2014
It is always the same with sailing adventures: no matter how long you spend preparing and planning, there are always issues that wait till the last minute to pop-up and try to delay you.
I will not delve in the details. Friday was a bit hectic, but by the time First-Mate joined for dinner aboard in Bruinisse everything was as ready as it could ever be.

Saturday 12th of July 2014

The start of the adventure on Saturday morning was not very auspicious: grey and windless. The new sail got hoisted just out of the Grevelingen lock, but no luck: not enough wind.

It did not get any better in the Volkerak, so we stopped at Oude Tongue to do some last-minute provisioning and wait for some wind. It did eventually come, along with a shy sunshine, so we set off to sail towards Dinteloord, which included some of the scariest dodging of ships to date.

New main sail and good, old, little jibby goose-winged towards Dinteloord. 

At Dinteloord we were welcome by a very friendly harbourmaster, had dinner in the harbour restaurant and hit the sack.

Sunday 13th of July 2014

Wet and miserable! Motor across the shipping lane (Yoyo-Ma still on duty) and under sail towards the Volkerak lock. After a break for some warm soup it took a lot of determination to put the wet oilies back on and sail West along the Haringvliet. We did get some sunshine and really enjoyed beating along the S side of Tiengemeten... until a squall came down which made-us set a new record for the time it takes us to put a reef in the main sail when very scared: about five seconds.

Just a few minutes later we were becalmed and had to motor the last bit to Middelharnis.

We had a delightful dinner in the Greek restaurant. First-Mate has left, the rest of the world is watching the final of the football world cup, and I am tidying up Mekicevica in preparation for the second part of the adventure: solo to Amsterdam.

Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure: The Master Plan

After much deliberation and consideration we finalised the plans for the 2014 Sailing Adventure: Mekicevica is going to the Waddenzee. This is the shallow and strongly tidal expanse os water between the Afsluitdijke that closes the Ijsselmeer and the row of islands on the North of the Netherlands.
The Waddenzee, sometimes called just shortened to Wadden or even Wad is the location of Chandler's classic Riddles in the Sand, from which we got the inspiration for the trip.

The ambitious plan is that Mekicevica will get there and back by her own means, i.e. no trailering!
If you think that is a crazy plan for a tiny boat than you will love the posts that follow.

Suzy Q, oh Suzy Q...

Yoyo-Ma got an assistant! If you haven't been following Mekicevica's blog, Yoyo-Ma is not a cellist, it is our faithful 2.5hp Yamaha outboard.

As part of the preparations for Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure (details T.B.A.) we needed a motor with a longer range between fuelling stops, and I just happened to come across a for-sale advert, for precisely the right thing and not far from here, just across the very fuzzy BE-NL border. At a very attractive price, moreover. So let me introduce Yoyo-Ma's new helper: Suzy Quatro.

Suzy Q ready to take over from Yoyo-Ma for Mekicevica's 2014 Sailing Adventure. 

Suzy Q can sip fuel from an external tank and has reverse gear, just what the doctor ordered. I still needed to get the tank, for which I had the wisdom of going to an official Suzuki dealer. Good job I did, because by picking his brains I discovered that Suzy Quatro is actually Suzy Dois: I got a two-stroke motor!

The 4 hp power still justifies the name and a two-stroke motor is lighter and even more reliable than a four-stroke.

New Headsail Cars

In the last month life has been getting in the way of sailing. While the sun was shining, and the winds were perfect for relaxed sailing, I was busy with a house move. Why can't we live on a boat?! Moving would be so much easier...
At least I managed to repair the damage from the last cruise to Tholen and back: the headsail cars.
I had never noticed, but the track is rubber and of a very non-standard size. The best I could do was getting 25x4 cars and then use a sanding machine to thin the tracks. A very dirty job to do...

The new adjustable headsail cars. Very racey.

But I am pleased with the result. While I was at it, I set-up the headsail cars so that their position can be tweaked on-the-go. Gosh, am I turning into a racing sail-trimmer?

Mekicevica's New Main Sail

Today I went to Wolphartsdijk to collect Mekicevica's new main sail. It looks great in the new, crisp Dacron. It has no sail number or logo, no tell-tales. Just plain whiteness (apart from the unavoidable sail-maker's logo) and hopefully a beautiful shape when it fills with wind.
We are getting in shape for the 2014 Sailing Adventure.

Tholen to Bruinisse

Mekicevica was left to spend the week in Tholen, under the care of the harbour-master, a friendly lady who even pulled Mekicevica to a sheltered spot when it became available.
The weather was lousy all week, but I managed two visits to Mekicevica for cleaning and maintenance.

Then on Friday the sun came-out and the weather-man was promising summer conditions for the three-day weekend. I left the car in Bruinisse and cycled to Tholen, plus a bit to check the new Oosterdam marina. In the evening First-Mate joined for a short sight-seeing tour of Tholen and dinner in Mekicevica's cockpit.

Historical buildings in Tholen.

Saturday: Beating Down the Tholense Gat to Goes
The weather-man cheated us: Saturday was hot but cloudy and with squalls around that threatened heavy showers and strong gusts of wind. We'll have to look-out for them.
We sailed to the lock and were lucky to fit-in immediately. On going-out a little mobo next to us couldn't start the 40hp motor, so our Yo-yo Ma with his 2.5 hp towed them out of the lock. In the meanwhile the wind picked-up a bit to a 3 Bf but also turned westerly, which means we had to tack up the Tholense Gat. On the North side we tacked at the red markers, but tacking on the green markers on the South side would be a waste, as there is a lot of water out of the navigation channel, especially at high-water. So we plotted a latitude at which the shallow waters start and used the GPS to find-out when to tack. It worked perfectly.
Approaching Wemeldinge the wind died-down again to nearly nothing, so we rapidly motored across the busy shipping lane and resume the game of cat-and-mouse with the wind again. This brought us to the lock of the Goesche Saas, from where we motored along the narrow channel past Wilhelminadorp to Goes.

Motoring up the Saas, with the telecoms tower that is the landmark of Goes right ahead. 

With the wait for the lock and the two bridges we were too late to find the harbour master in the town harbour, so we settled for the small and busy yacht club De Werf.
After a short walk through town we had dinner outside on a cafe at the Markt. Under cover, because it started to rain.

Sunday: Oosterschelde Sailing at Its Best
Sunday morning: more rain and hardly any wind! Where is the summer weather we were promised? The forecast says it will improve, so out we go for the 11am opening of the bridge, the last one of the morning, together with what felt like the whole population of Goes on boats plus a few visitors like us.
The timing was perfect to reach the Oosterschelde at high water, which also meant that the lock was open. This is to flush all the dirt of Goes and the Saas into the mussels and lobster farms of the Oosterschelde.
Meanwhile the sun came out and out of the lock there was some wind. But not a lot of it and from the wrong direction, which meant we had to make slow, lazy tacks. Luckily we had the tide to push us along. This would change after the vicinity of the Zeeland bridge where we would have to turn up-stream. So we decided to make a stop in Kats to wait for flood-tide. The harbour master found us a place where to wait and didn't even charge us. Really nice guy!
When we resumed out tour around 1630, the sea-wind had picked-up to a NW 3 Bf, so that after two tacks immediately out of Kats we were on a beam to broad reach towards the Keteen.
What a wonderful sailing this was: the gentle wind was with the tide making the water really flat, few boats around, the mellow late-afternoon sunshine, and Mekicevica going along at her hull speed and helped by the tide. Bliss!
We made such good progress that instead of reaching Stavenisse at half-tide, we were in front of the entrance to Stavenisse shortly after low water. We do know that Mekicevica can get in through the narrow channel at low water, but only with centre-plate up, a few bumps on the bottom and a lot of damage to the nerves of the crew. So we decided to carry on, reaching along the Keteen and than downwind up the Krabbenkreek to St.-Annaland. We got there around 2000 when the harbour master was just about to go home. After settling Mekicevica for the night we headed for the club-house to celebrate a great day with a beer and then cooked dinner aboard.

During the night there was one of the most spectacular thunderstorm s I have ever seen. I watched it only briefly and slept though most of the rest, although in the morning I could perfectly recollect all the noises I heard during the night. I think I am developing the instinct of a skipper who knows his boat and is able to sleep through all the noises from his boat that he can identify as harmless, but immediately wakes up at the slightest sound that is either unknown or tells him that something is wrong.

Monday: Waiting For the Storm... That Never Came
Monday we just had to do the short hop to Bruinisse. We decided to wait for high water which would be at 1320. When I went to ask the harbour master if we could stay that late, he was all flustered clicking through weather forecast websites with terrible warnings of heavy showers with lots of rain, possibly hale, and very strong gusts of wind heading directly for us. He recommended we stayed put and rushed to find us a sheltered place.
So we sat waiting for the storm. The rain radar of the Dutch meteorological institute did show heavy showers approaching from the south, but these seemed to fizz-out when they reached the Westerschelde and reach-us in the form of a few, warm drops of rain. So while we sat in the sunshine, the people who had not checked the weather forecast or talked to the harbour master were returning from a morning of sailing.

Lazying in the sunshine in St.-Annaland, while the storm clouds gather.

As this pattern repeated we were tempted to risk it. But we kept thinking that we might have the bad luck that the next shower would be the one that wouldn't fizz-out and hit us with the forecast 55 knot winds. It didn't help us the news from last week when a small boat had been sunk in front of Zeebrugge exactly by such gusts of wind during a squall.
Eventually we had to accept that we would not be able to leave St.Annaland that day and First-Mate packed her bags to take the bus to Tholen so she could get to work Tuesday morning.
A silly way to spend what should have been the last day of a very successful cruise.

Epilogue: Solo to Bruinisse
After accompanying First-Mate to the bus stop, I spent the evening and night alone aboard. By the way the Big Storm did eventually arrive... at 3am.
I got up at 6am so I could leave St.-Annaland with the last of the ebb, reach the Keteen at the turn of the tide, and sail to the Grevelingen lock with the flood tide. Moreover the wind was a 2 bf from the SE and veered to SW just as I changed course. Even the morning rain soon stopped and gave way to a morning of brilliant sunshine. Mekicevica running goose winged, sunshine, flat water, no yacht in sight and only the occasional ship passing the other way. When I reached the lock (on which I was the only boat going in) I felt I had spent two hours in paradise.

Tech Notes for Sailing Nerds Only
Mekicevica is now back in her berth in Bruinisse with the feeling of having been on a long voyage. The list of repairs is a mile long. On the top of the list is the replacement of the head-sail sheet cars. One of them broke and is now stuck in the position I use for the "river-jib". This is a jib cut with a high clew, a bit like a storm-jib only larger. So far I had dismissed this sail as too small and used it only for windy conditions or when short tacking was needed. It allows us to point higher into the wind than the 160% genoa and it is easier to tack. Because of the broken head-sail sheet car I was stuck with it in light airs. To my surprise, it performed wonderfully, especially with wind abaft of the beam. When the clew of the genoa would have been under the wind-shadow of the main-sail causing the whole sail to collapse, the small jib does not have this problem. To be used to its full potential, the genoa needs to be poled-out.

Bruinisse to Tholen

The Southeast corner of the Oosterschelde has always been on our list of places we would like to explore. Yeserke, Wemeldinge, Oosterdam and Tholen are beckoning. Now we have a four-day weekend with tides and wind-forecasts just right for the trip.
In the following you can read the detailed blog of the cruise. Or just watch the video summary:

On Wednesday I left the car in Tholen and cycled back to Bruinisse to prepare Mekicevica for the cruise. First-Mate joined late in the afternoon for dinner aboard, which was also the baptism of fire of Mekicevica's new "galley".

Mekicevica's new "galley" can make a brew, a cuppa soup, cook pasta and even one-pot meals.

The weather on Thursday morning was a bit uninspiring, but with faith in the forecast of better things to come we motored-out to the Grevelingen lock.
Once out in the Oosterschelde Mekicevica fell in the groove: broad reach in gentle wind, favourable tide and the sun breaking through. Bliss!
Too soon we reached our destination for the night: Kats. We had never visited this harbour, although we use it all the time for bearings, as the huge cranes that were once used in the construction of the Oosterschelde barrier are in Kats and visible from miles away.

Kaats yacht harbour with the landmark cranes.

At Kats we found the visitors pontoon almost completely taken by a young family living their dream: new, modern, huge sailing yacht, good-looking mom on the deck videoing good-looking husband and lovely child on the tender. The perfect picture of happiness, in a conventional sort of way.
After a little jog we started the serious business of looking for dinner. There are no shops nearby and the only restaurant was fully booked. After a lot of begging and grovelling, the nice Chinese lady who owns the place found us a table and we could gorge the produce of the waters we had been sailing on: oysters and lobster.

This is food at the Kaatse Kaai.

Friday morning, bright sunshine, favourable winds and tide. This is going too well. We'd better make a diversion otherwise we'll arrive in Tholen toot early. So we decided to pop into the Veerse Meer.

The short hop to the Zandkreek was pleasant, with sightings of seals.

The two most civilised creatures we found on the Zandkreek.

But the queue for the lock was gross. Rows upon rows on MoBo skippers who come here to do on the weekend exactly the same they do on their working day: queue on their overpowered vehicles and behave aggressively. Do you ever relax, people?
We sailed a bit down Veerse Meer, had a break on one of the public moorings and started the beat back to Kortegene. The Veerse Meer is narrow and crowded. When beating it is hard not to get into racing mood. Moreover, I was surprised to find that Mekicevica was one of the fastest boats around, probably due to First-Mate's brilliant work at tacking and trimming the jib.

Horse-riders on the banks of Veerse Meer,

We woke up on Saturday to nice weather but no wind. Getting back to the lock was a delicate work of using the little puffs of wind we could get. But as we had hoped, once out in the expanse of the Oosterschelde there was a good wind.
The passage to Yeserke was just heaven: beam reach, full sails, and Mekicevica doing her modest hull-speed with a couple of knots added by the tide. I wish the Oosteschelde had no end; so sad that in just over two hours we reached Yeserke.
What do you have for dinner in Yeserke? Mussels, of course!

Yeserke fishing fleet, the mussels' boats.

From the weather forecast we knew that on Sunday we might have too little wind. So we were prepared for the game of drifting with occasional sailing on little puffs of wind. Fortunately, an un-forecasted sea breeze kicked up and we were able to sail towards the Oosterdam lock. Going through was a lengthy affair, just because the lock has too little capacity for the traffic at the end of a long weekend. Anyway, most people around were locals and behaving in an admirably civilised way. Boats were doing complicated manoeuvres just to avoid jumping the queue.
Soon Mekicevica was tied up at the visitors dock in Tholen, waiting for next weekend and hopefully fair winds for the return home to Bruinisse.

Grevelingen Classic Tour: Bruinisse - Brouwershaven - Bruinisse

The initial plan was to go towards the Oosterschelde, but a forecast of weak winds made us change plans. Dodging cargo ships while drifting with the tide is not our idea of fun, so we decided to stay in the Grevelingen.
The weather was gorgeous and we started off with a SE light breeze. As forecast, in the early afternoon this changed into a NW sea breeze, so we had to beat the rest of the way. Carrying full genoa Mekicevica sailed happily into the 2-3 Bf wind.

In this early season, Brouwershaven was rather quiet and the choice of restaurants has increased since last year. We decided to try the club house, recommended more for the atmosphere and low prices than as a gastronomic experience.

Sunday we had a slow start, hoping for sea breeze again. It never came and again we had to beat all the way. To make the tacks longer, we ventured into the shallows SE of the Veermansplat. The shallow waters and the many lobster pots put off most people, so apart from us there was only one boat at anchor, with kids happily swimming around. The water is real clear and you can see the rich life on the bottom. When the waters get warmer we will return to this spot for some snorkelling.

Another great weekend aboard Mekicevica!

Flag Legalities

It is interesting how the legal status of boats varies widely from one European country to another. On one end there is a group of countries, let me call them liberal, where registration of reasonably sized yachts is voluntary. The UK, the Netherlands and Sweden are part of this group. (All of them monarchies, by the way.) On the other end of the spectrum are the countries I will call bureaucratic, where the tiniest floating contraption has to be registered. The republics of Croatia and Portugal are infamous examples.

In the liberal countries, you get yourself a boat and go out and enjoy being on the water. The overwhelming majority of sailors manage to keep themselves out of trouble and have no dealings with any sort of maritime authority whatsoever. By contrast, in the bureaucratic countries you are obliged to prove that you legally own the boat, that you have paid VAT (if you bought a new-ish boat), that it complies with the dreaded CE regulations... The later is a particularly serious hassle if your floating dream is the product of your own craftsmanship.

Then there is the whole rigmarole with flags. For historical reasons, boats are supposed to have a flag. In posh-British-naval lingo, it is called wearing an insignia. Whatever you call it, it probably comes from the days when ships coming upon each other at sea had no other way of telling friend from foe. It transpires that even then the respectable Royal Navy often misled enemies by flying false colours. They would approach their prey flying a neutral flag, and out of courtesy (they were gentlemen after all) would hastily hoist the Union Jack (in the appropriate maritime flavour, blue, red or white) a few seconds before cannoning the unsuspecting target to the bottom of the ocean.

This was a protracted introduction to the subject of Mekicevica's flag. In the Netherlands, she wouldn't have to be registered and we could wear whatever insignia we felt like. Even if we were not planning to shoot cannonballs at anyone. But to take her to the Adriatic we needed to obey to all the absurd demands of the bureaucratic cultures. Thus it came to be that Mekicevica was dutifully registered in Gent, and received a permission from His Majesty the King of the Belgians to wear the Belgian insignia.

Unfortunately, Mekicevica spends more time in chilly Zeeland that in the balmy Adriatic. Nevertheless, as law-abiding citizens we felt compelled to wear the Belgian insignia. The downside is that we often meet francophone Belgians who naturally address us in French; when it turns-out we don't really speak any French, but are more confident in Dutch we are classified as obnoxious Flemish who are too stupid to learn French.

Enough of that! We are rebelling against meaningless regulations and foolish prejudice: from now on Mekicevica is wearing the Portuguese insignia.

Shake-Down Sail

A short video-clip of this weekend is now on YouTube.

I had forgotten how much work is needed to prepare a wee boat for the season. The long weekend was approaching fast and I will never be ready to sail for Thursday 1st of May holiday. Instead of being on the water, we spent the day cleaning and finishing preparations. Just as well, because the North wind was a bit fresher than advisable for the first sail of the season. Chilly too.

Friday the weather turned wet but on Saturday it was bright and sunny but cold. By noon we declared Mekicevica ready for day sailing and out we went in a gentle wind. This pretty soon turned into a gusty, northerly 5 Bf. It was amazing how quickly the procedure of reefing on-the-go came back to us when the water started coming over the toe-rail.
After a couple of hours of fun beating into this wind, we decided that was enough for a shake-down and ran downwind back to Bruinisse, and to a dinner celebrating the opening of the season.
Sunday's weather was a very different picture: it was still too cold for the time of the year, but the wind had all but vanished, allowing the warmth of the sunshine to linger on us. For the first two hours we found easy, relaxed sailing conditions, but then the wind died completely. We had to rely on Yoyo-Ma, our faithful, little outboard, to bring us back to Bruinisse.

Relaxed sailing on the Grevelingen, with First-Mate at the helm.

A happy sailor, after the first weekend sailing this season.

On the way back we came across the ship Maatje. This large fishing vessel is always moored by the Grevelingen lock. Her bows towering above us are a common sight while we wait for the lock. On this sunny Sunday, it seems that the Bruinisse lads had a few beers, decided to take Maatje for a spin and terrify all the yachts becalmed on the Grevelingen. She ripped among them, well over the Grevelingen speed limit creating a huge wake. We manoeuvred to take the wake head on and even then were well shaken. Than, she turned around and came for another pass. Watching her grow behind us, we gave gas and managed to hide behind the harbour breakwater just before the tsunami of a wake reached us. Other yachts and even two kids on a laser got a tough ride of it.
Bastards! What did they do that for?

Re-Masted and Re-Launched

Finally the winter repairs are finished. There is still a lot of cleaning-up and preparation to do, but that can be done once Mekicevica is in the water.
I prepared all the rigging, including new lower shrouds, and waited for the guys from Van Swaay to give me a hand raising the mast. This turned-out to be a five-minute job: one person lifted the mast from a raised platform, a second guided the mast and I attached the forestay. Done! They didn't even charged for the work, which I found really nice of them.
Then on to the water and to Mekicevica's new berth. This is in a corner, moored bow into a pontoon and with another pontoon on the port side. Really handy to get in and out with gear, without having to balance on a finger pontoon as was the case before. The disadvantage of the new berth only became apparent once I was in the water manoeuvring in: it is a really tight manoeuvre when there is a large yacht moored under the crane. By now I am pretty confident in my ability to manoeuvre Mekicevica, so I was sure I was able to do it. I didn't count that this was the first time I was doing it in seven months. I overestimated how much the wind would help turning the bow around and head-butted the wooden post. The only damage was a big dent in my pride, as the boat yard people moved the yacht a bit to allow me more space for the manoeuvre.

Oh, well! I'll do it better next time...