{gallery}2016/sneek-lemmer{/gallery}

Part 1. 10th June Medemblik  to Hindeloopen see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/hoorn-to-enkhuisen-8

Part 2. 12th Hindeloopen to Stavorum see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/hoorn-to-enkhuisen-10

Part 3. 13th June Stevoren to Workum see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/hoorn-to-enkhuisen-9

Part 4. 15th Workum to Makkum see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/hoorn-to-enkhuisen-11

Part 5. 17th Makkum to Bolsward see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/makkum-bolsward-1

Part 6.  19th June Bolsward to IJlst see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/makkum-bolsward-2

Part 7. 20th June IJst to Sneek see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/ijlst-sneek-3

Part 8.  23rd June Sneek to Grou see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/ijlst-sneek-4

Part 9.  24th June Grou via Accrum to Joure see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/ijlst-sneek-5

Part 10. 26th June Joure via Heeg to Sloten see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/joure-sloten-6

Part 11. 27th/28th June  Sloten to Sneek see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/sloten-sneek7

Part 12. 29th June Sneek to Lemmer see http://www.ladymartina.com/cruise-logs/2016/east-coast-cruises-10/lfriesland-5/sneek-lemmer-2

A smooth cruise diagonally across the Ijsselmeer from Medemblik to the quaint sailing port and attractive village of Hindeloopen. 

{gallery}2016/medemblik-hindeloopen{/gallery}

I had reckoned that Medemblik was only a venue for a single day and so it was always planned that we leave after one night and the other factor was the wind; which had calmed down to a Force 3 today.  I walked Max to the bakers for some bread and also settled our mooring fee; which amounted to €18 for the night.

Kathleen had been running the washing machine twice to wash clothes and so I got out the hose and filled up Lady Martina’s water tanks from the nearby tap. This water was free but had a ‘pop-out’ timing mechanism and so I had to get a wrench to clamp it in position to make the task much easier! As I did this, I engaged a local man in conversation; he making the usual comment about us having come across the North Sea (it being so 'dangerous!') and he had his elderly mother with him who was wondering about the origins of our boat’s name.

This all done, and the boat prepared, we started the engines and made our way along the Westerhaven, over to the Kwikkelsbrug bridge which opened for us. We then had a very pleasant cruise for two and a three-quarter hours in a north-easterly direction for 16nm at a speed of 6 knots, directly against the wind but the breeze rarely rose above 10 knots (and that was more than the 6 knots forecast) and so the sea was smooth to slight and the passage very comfortable.

We arrived in Hindeloopen and then entered the Hylper Haven (rather than the marina) to find the same old harbourmaster, who tells me that he has been here over 20 years, dressed with his white-badged skipper’s hat and grand mustache. We were directed to the south-east wall, which suited us as we could moor bows-to the afternoon sun and then I walked back to the harbourmaster to introduce myself. Later on, he introduced me to three guys on board a neighbouring old tugboat who reckoned that they had met me 12 years ago when I was with another boat and skipper called ‘Michael’.

A good walk with Max along the flood-wall and foreshore and were able to let him off the lead for a run with two other dogs. There had been a ‘dogs on lead’ sign but the sheep were in other sections which made it possible. Once back, I started writing my ship’s log and journal and then we decided to have an evening meal out; it being the 4th anniversary of our first meeting at the Northampton Ceroc dance event!

I took advice from those guys who said that ‘De Hinde' had the name but 'de3harinkjes’ (the Three Little Herrings) around the corner was the restaurant of choice these days and so we changed and I took Kathleen there later. We had house specials; delicious garlic soup to start with and then baked eel to follow, before the inevitable apple-cake and cream to share.

19-23degC, 39-32%RH, 1013mb pressure steady, good viz, dry, and sunny, F3, slight sea  with a 3-10kn N/NEasterly breeze

Cruise from Hindeloopen down the eastern IJsselmer shore to enter Stavoren, which proved to be a dull place, especially on a June Sunday, but a quiet and pleasant one, nevertheless, in  which to complete some chores and ride our bikes

{gallery}2016/hindeloopen-stavoren{/gallery}

We awoke this morning to another dull and damp day, but a much warmer one and thunderstorms were threatened for later but failed to arrive.  We merrily started washing the boat when the harbourmaster came and pointed out that the supply was for drinking water only but I got over that by connecting the hose to our deck wash facility and then topping up our tank again afterwards!

We soon started our trip on a day so misty that I felt it necessary to start the radar for the journey. It was only six miles and took just an hour as we cruised past the Oude Haven and then pulled into the Buitenhaven entrance further south. The sluis keeper responded on Channel VHF18 and invited us into the southern of the two locks but we could hardly see the entrance until we got there.

We rafted against another large motor boat and saw three more vessels cram in behind us before the gates closed the 0.3 meter drop commenced. This was all very uneventful until it was time to leave when the stupid skipper of a German all-male boat tried to push through a gap which was not wide enough and scraped all along our vessel. I was furious and let him know by my signals that I thought so. There was no damage but the contact between us on the motor boat inside deposited a thick layer of antifoul on our hull transferred by the pressure, which took a while for us to remove later.

We moored on a pleasant grassed island in the Stavoren Buitenhaven with access to the shore by a small bridge and other boats with friendly dogs on board for Max to play with. We unloaded the bikes and went for a long ride around the town. Now, it was a Sunday out of season in June but, having said that, the best conclusion you could come to about this place is that it is a mere over-night stop-over location when en-route to somewhere more interesting!

It is a quiet and pleasant enough place, and the Buitenhaven moorings are comfortable with unlimited electricity and a communal water point, but there is really nothing to recommend the place for tourism. Even the Tourist Information place specialised to selling tickets to leave the place by ferry, opened on and off through the day and had no stickers of Savoren.. I decided that we would just stay the night and leave along the canal inland tomorrow and see if we could get along to Workum. The moorings were nice and low and so we could get at Lady Martina’s port side; where the deposits from that incident were at their worst, and we successfully cleaned them off and polished the side accordingly. 

30-31degC, 40-32%RH, 1006/7mb pressure steady, poor viz, slight drizzle, F1/2, smooth sea  with a 1-6kn breeze starting SWly and backing SEly

A full day cruising from Stavoren via the Friesian Meeren, stopping for a picnic at Paardenhoek polder and then visiting Heeg before carrying on to Workum

{gallery}2016/stavoren-workum{/gallery}

This was a very full day of cruising, much more than in recent times, as I opted to take Lady Martina inland from Stavoren through several of the Friesian Meers until we could stop on an isolated meer at Paardenhoek for a lovely lunch-time picnic with Max who was very relaxed and behaving himself even though a number of walkers and cyclists came by.

With thunder clouds threatening, we pressed on back onto the De Morra, along and across the De Flussan mere until we approached Heeg. I look around for somewhere suitable to moor but the place was quite busy and so we turned back, cruising along the Koarte and Lange Fliets until we could pass under the three lifting bridges and approach Workum. I was then able to find a space at the same place I moored in 2004, which was then known as Kuperus Watersport and is now just known as Workun Watersport but still had un-metered electricity for us to connect to. 

Earlier on, we left Stavoren, turning inland and along the Johan Friso Kanaal. The first bridge lifted without delay of need to call them on VHF 85 and then we cruised along with another motor boat in a general north-easterly direction  across the De Morra mere. I had wrongly interpreted the charts and thought we had gone much further than we had when we came to Galamadammen and so it was understandable that it did not look like Heeg! I turned back and went north west up what I thought was the Yntemasleat but it was actually the other end of the canal that led back to Hindeloopen and was restricted to 3m headroom! In the event, we just went a little way along, found an excellent informal grassy mooring and could let Max roam whilst we sat on chairs outside and enjoyed a picnic. Another boat joined us eventually and I sought their advice but they spoke no English and so they could not warn me that I had turned off of the meres too soon!

In the end, I realised and we embarked upon the rest of the journey across the De Morra and then through the De Fluezen mere, passing our turning at first as I wanted to check out Heeg. It looked like a nice place but it was mid afternoon by then and all of the better moorings were taken and I did not want a marina box or to raft up to another vessel with my dog Max on board and so I turned back and we followed out original course towards Workum. It was about then that I noticed that there was a track on my MaxSea chart plotter from 2004, when  I had cruised through the Freisian Mere from top to bottom. I followed this course along the canal through more meres and then under three lifting bridges to find that mooring.

Thus ended a busy cruising day

20-30-25degC, 75-37-49%RH, 999-9977mb pressure falling slowly, good viz, slight drizzle showers but warm, F2/3, smooth sea  with a 2-8kn SWly breeze

A  cruise in good conditions from Workum and up the East coast of the IJsselmeer to Makkum; staying outside of the red and white buoys for deep water, negotiating sea locks and bridge lifts with the cost of €5 at both locations, until we moored up in Makkum's lovely Gem. Binnenhaven. The entrance to Makkum always has to be taken carefully in the buoyed channel from the north-east  without cutting the corner due to the sand spit.

{gallery}2016/workum-makkum{/gallery}

The cruise was very straightforward and I made it the more so by deciding that we would ship the ropes and fenders and take the folding chairs and bicycles down below. The Ijsselmeer was benign today but there was a beam sea again and it was a little choppy at times, but this meant that we did not have to worry. The bridges and sluises opened easily for us both leaving Workum and the same at the other end, as we cruised into the Binnenhaven at Makkum to find a space in the very centre of the town.

We took our dog Max and walked to the harbourmaster’ office, overlooking the Schutsluis , paid for two days and then had a beer in the town square before finding the recommended bakery for some lovely cakes. Kathleen then used the supermarket as I walked Max on a nearby green cycle track and then we relaxed on the boat for the afternoon; Kathleen catching up on some sleep whilst I worked writing. I let her sleep for quite a while and then called her with some tea rather later and she was worried that she might not be able to sleep tonight, but she need not have worried!

We then took a walk together later, seeing the rest of the Binnenhaven, the town and taking pictures of things. There was a pretty house just beyond the moorings and with a fine English style garden with climbing roses and the gentleman owner was out there later dead-heading the roses and appreciated our praise. He loves his place and we could see why.

After this, we came back and I sat outside in the evening sunshine and Kathleen made our ‘gala dinner’ of a prawn cocktail starter and then grilled cod and minted vegetables. We had found the excellent bakers, bakker 'Kluft', which enjoys a regional reputation and bought some cakes which we enjoyed for our desert.

A nice view from our boat and we dined outside late into the evening under our porch and thundery showers completed the day before a fine sunset.

21-27 degC, 47-29%RH, 997mb pressure steady, good viz, slight drizzleand  showers but warm, F2/3, smooth/slight sea  with a 2-8kn SWly backing Sly breeze

Fine day after a wet start for our cruise from Makkum to Bolsward along the Van Panhuyskanaal and Warkumer Trekvaart to pass by water under the big Kruiswaterbrug, spanning the A7 dual carriageway to enter Bolsward basin and then mooring up at the shady lime-tree lined staithe on a hot afternoon for a brief look around the town. 

{gallery}2016/makkum-bolsward{/gallery}

The night was marked by the huge amount of rain that fell but fortunately it cleared up by around 9am when I woke up Kathleen with her morning tea and then went out to walk Max. I did not take him very far in Makkum but he was relieved and exercised so that I could make the call for the preparations to be made for moving on.

Luckily, all of the showers that had been forecast had already happened for the rest of the day was warm and dry. I had timed our departure some fifteen minutes early as so we had to wait at our first bridge, Ophaalbrug, until the lunchtime closure finished but the time soon lapsed as we tied up and enjoyed our coffee and cake. A very small and interesting section of the Van Panhuyskanaal then greeted us and we were flanked by old moorings for retired cargo vessels, now being lived upon, on one side and by fields of dairy cattle on the other.

We cruised on via several bridges that opened until we turned left on to the Warkumer Trekvaart and on past the small settlement of Tjerkwerd and on towards Bolsward. I was impressed that the large A7 dual carriageway trunk road traffic was stopped immediately for both bridges to be raised so that we could cruise through to the Bolsward basin, where there were lots of boats moored and additional mooring spaces available. We stopped first at the 15m free zone usable for taking on water and so filled out tanks before moving further down and tying up under the impressive row of lime trees that lined the sides of the canal.

There was unrestricted 6amp electricity and I also managed to immediately connect to Wifi via my KPN-fon arrangement. Max was a bit restless and so we took him with us to the centre of Bolsward to look at the shops and complete a few chores. We were further impressed with the size of the high street, the big City Hall; both bearing witness to the past importance of this Hanseatic Town. 

26-30 degC, 45-29%RH, 1004/5 mb pressure steady, good viz, sunny intervals but warm, F2, with a 2-8kn WSWly light breeze

This was a fine day after a wet night for our trip on from Bolsward, intending to go to Sneek but stopping instead on the way to the friendly and intimate old town of IJlst where we walked around with Max and took him on our tender around the waterway for a better view later. No internet or power tonight and therefore no news to report

{gallery}2016/bolsward-ijlst{/gallery}

We continued our plan of cruising inland through Friesland today, leaving Bolsward and fully intending to go to Sneek but we were taken with the little historic town of IJlst and found a friendly local to come aboard and so stopped there for the rest of the day and night.

The cruise began in a bit of an unsettled way as we had prepared Lady Martina and had just made some toast and honey with a mug of tea, when I saw two boats leaving and thought that perhaps I should get going to catch the same bridge. This thought was wrong as the first vessel went straight under Kruiswaterbrug without need to lift and the second hung around just off the water berth; reminding me that we should top up our water too! I stayed there for a while, eventually noticing that the boat moored at the water staithe had only just started to fill and we had to wait for that to complete, and the next one to fill, before we could go alongside ourselves. There seemed to be little wrong with the water flow (once Kathleen had turned it on fully!) and so we did not know what delayed the other boats and so we were soon underway, the bridge lifting to order and letting us cruise into the main navigation and turn left, or south-east, heading towards IJlst.

We found ourselves in a convoy and so I adjusted our speed to keep it together as I lead them through three lifting bridges to approach IJlst. There was then the railway bridge at which we pressed the button and then called the bridge-keeper on the quoted mobile and learnt that they would swing in 6mins. They were true to their word and we went through this bridge, turned left into a wider section and then got the Ophaalbrug into IJlst to swing and then proceeded through.

I spotted a central mooring free and so stopped immediately, causing some congestion, until we were safely moored and could relax. An old lady was at the moorings and I chatted to her when mooring and then she tried to get us a sticker for IJlst and arranged for her brother, the duty harbourmaster, to come by with one later, as he collected our berthing fee. We had invited her on board when we moored and given her tea and biscuits as we chatted together.

This done, Kathleen and I took Max for a look around on foot until we got to the edge of it and could let him run. Later on, after lunch and a rest for us both, we launched the tender, loaded Max aboard and took a magical ride around the edge of the old town on the canal that borders it. We stopped and let Max run and relieve himself again. Once back, we cleared up the dinghy lifted it up with the davits and then I loaded everything back aboard and let Max rest for a while as we did some chores

18-26 degC, 65-34%RH, 1022/3 mb pressure steady, good viz, sunny intervals but warm, F3, with a 4-11kn Wly breeze

A wet trip from IJlst to Sneek and,  although the day had started wet and windy, (and then ended up very wet), we managed to keep the ‘porch’ extension canopy in place as we cruised and so kept reasonably dry. It was a very short trip from IJlst to Sneek, just 3nm and much less than an hour, but we had to pass through three bridges that all lifted easily and so it was an easy trip

{gallery}2016/ijlst-sneek{/gallery}

The most startling part of the cruise was passing over a new aqueduct when twelve years ago my track showed us passing over what is now filled in land! Once we arrived at Sneek, I just about circumnavigated the town, found a place to top up with water for €0.50c and then we moored in a part of the Simmerrak that was right close to the town and had un-metered electricity as a key benefit.

The rain then poured and poured and still I could find no Internet connection and my phone was still not working properly and so I was quite frustrated. Fortunately, upon leaving Max in the boat and shopping in the town in the pouring rain, we managed to find a Vodafone shop and get my phone packages reconnected, also find an electrical components shop to find what I needed to be able to use my Pure Evoke radio and then a pet shop where we could buy a bag of dog food for Max. This was therefore quite a refitting stayover..

We also bought a new low-wattage kettle but later on I excelled myself and took the old kettle apart, found the problem and fixed it! I was able to get my internet radio working too later; which will be great to receive Uk broadcasts. The best thing of all was that I was opposite a marine engineer who specialised in cables and I was able to find what I needed in order to renovate my davit wires and was even introduced to an engineer who will come the next day to fit them!

After another nice meal made by Kathleen, I changed and went off in a search of a sport pub that would have the England football match on and I duly found one and watched them fight out a draw to progress to the next round of Euro 2016

18-24 degC, 78-68%RH, 1014-1017  mb pressure rising, good viz, wet and windy, F3/4, with a 4-15kn SWly breeze

Both Kathleen and I slept until quite late this morning as we had been disturbed by last night’s very heavy rain and were still catching up after our disrupted evenings of late. We drank our morning teas and then I took Max for a walk as Kathleen cleared up and prepared the boat. We had some long and emotional farewells with our new Aussie friends, Cathy and Craig, who followed us along the quay as we left and even to the water-point in the nearby facilities where it took us ages to fill up. 

{gallery}2016/sneek-grou{/gallery}

The rain had just about stopped by this time, but resumed as we cruised on past the numerous  havens and marine businesses that lined the Simmerrak and then the river banks opened out for us to experience the splendid expanse of the Sneekermer and then closed in again as we cruised through the open doors of the massive Schutsluis; only closed during periods of floods and water control.

We were still on the Stadmaast route and so the remaining bridges would have opened but their clearance closed was over 7.1m and our greatest aerial height was 6.6m and so we could just cruise underneath. Soon we steamed into the open Pikmar of Grou and then spent some time cruising up and down to choose our most comfortable mooring before choosing a hammerhead in the Gemeente Boarnsterhim. This had  very good WiFi but just delivered some 1.1Kw/$.50c which gobbled up quite a lot of our coins, given that it was by now a heatwave and I needed the air conditioning on to work!

We made a good tour of the town on foot, which was close by these moorings, enjoying niuwe haring and ice creams before buying some fine fish for dinner. The evening cooled and turned into a fine and sunny one, which made the Pikmar a splendid place upon which to be moored 2016

25 degC, 78-68%RH, 1017  mb pressure steady, good viz, rain showers, F2, with a light 4-7kn NNWly breeze