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.
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| The Paard van Marken never fails to provide some excitement, no matter which way the wind blows. |
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| The beautiful harbour of Hoorn. |
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.
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| A 'Drie-Mast-Schooner' sailing along the coast. |
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.
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| De Waag of Makkum. |
