Swimming Squirrels

June 30 - Crew, Pat and Frank, have arrived!  They successfully navigated their way to the boat with King's "if all else fails this is how you find us" email instructions.  Best laid plans to prepare phones for travel went astray resulting in dashed expectations for worldwide phone service.....hmmmm we have certainly heard that story before.... .  It gave King the opportunity to call up the phone company and pull their chain.  An activity he has always enjoyed. It was somewhat sorted out before bedtime....

July 1 - We gave Pat and Frank a day of rest and then set our sights for The Hague.  Two destinations.  First, the Mauritshuis Museum, home of The Girl With the Pearl Earring.  The second, the International Courts of Justice.  Both were iffy.  The Mauritshuis Museum had just reopened on June 27 after a major refurbishment and the painting had just returned from being on

wow! she is stunning

loan for two years.  We figured the likelihood of getting in was slim.  The Courts of Justice was even more doubtful.  The web site requested that you apply on line for a time to visit.  Dates in September kept coming up.  Good luck with that.  Let me just say, it was a perfect day.  We arrived at the ferry 1 minute before it left the dock.  The train left 5 minutes after we found our seat.  At the museum we waited for 15 minutes in line before we reached the front doors and had tickets in our hot little hands.  Afterwards, we ate at a sweet restaurant in the town square....and the food was

Enjoying a perfect day in The Hague

wonderful...and they had bathrooms!  We arrived at the Courts of Justice to be told "no tour but in the visitor center is an exhibit that provides the history, complete with a movie"  and it was free!  And you know we love free!  Even gave us headsets.  When we completed the brief tour (frankly, just enough), we walked to the tram stop just outside the grounds and a minute later the tram appeared and whisked us to the BIG train station...........

International Courts of Justice

 .....as opposed to where we had arrived.  No problem, the Amsterdam train leaves in 2 minutes....yikes!  run, run....We ran as fast as 4 old farts can run and hopped on the train seconds before it pulled out of the station.  Fabulous!  As we climbed the steps huffing and puffing to find seats, the conductor was waiting for us with his little handheld computer.  Pat... check,  Frank.....check, King....where did he go?....Sue...no check!  "Did you touch in at the gate?" he asked.  "I did, I did" I responded.  "Did you read the message?"  "No"' I said. "You have to read the message"!  he exclaimed.  "I couldn't understand the message even if I had read it"  I responded.....with that, the teenage boys sitting down next to where I was being grilled began to snicker. Where was King?!  The conductor then advised me, using a frowning face, that I was traveling on an ILLEGAL ticket..."what was he to do with me?"  I told him about the 2 minutes we had to reach the train and that we had to run.  He looked at me and said...."you ran?".....as if that was a ludicrous thought.  And then he smiled and said "next time swipe your ticket...and read the message!"  Without explanation, King has finally shown up now that my drama has ended. The conductor immediately asks for his ticket.  King begins searching all his pockets....no ticket.  The teenage boys have started to guffaw.  The conductor has had enough of these Americans.  He sends us to our seats like 2 wayward children and retreats down the aisle shaking his head.

waiting for our turn in the sluice

July 2 - Destination Lelystad.  First, we must cross Amsterdam.  Dodging the ferries and barge traffic is not for the faint of heart. At the waiting dock for the first sluice, yachts are already 3 deep awaiting the next opening.  We must wait until the second wave to get through so we chat with other folks heading out on their sailing holiday.

 The wind is nice and King and Frank set the sails.  Ahhhha,  a lovely sail to Lelystad.  We are entertained by three square rigged ships cruising about near our course.  What fun, we get to pass right by them on our way to the next sluice. At least that was the thought until we were shooed away by man with an stern look (we seem to get a lot of those these days) racing toward us in a large black inflatable.   From another angle, along with the billowing black smoke coming from the ship's cannons, it was clear that we had stumbled into a movie.  No confirmation, but I'm thinking Johnny Depp in "Pirates of the North Sea"!

Pirates of the North Sea! Johnny Depp must be out there somewhere

Another sluice and we turned the corner into a sea of masts.  The harbour master had said "take any slip"....we passed row after row of skinny box slips. The wide girl was never gonna fit.... King kept going.  I'm counting the rows now, calculating how long its going to take us to back out of here cause there is certainly no place to turn around.....and King keeps going.  Ostinato also means stubborn!  The end of the canal is coming up fast.  Heads on the docks are starting to turn and stare.  The boats are getting smaller and smaller. We round the corner and to every one's surprise (including King's) there's side-tie dock space, a yacht club and a lovely crane that will lift off Ostinato's mast!  Who wouda thunk it.

Ostinato is now a power boat!

 July 3 - The mast is off!
The next 4 days are spent wrapping, measuring, sawing, drilling and padding to prepare for the mast's return to Ostinato...on a horizontal axis.  The bridges on the Rhine and Danube do not open. Maximum clearance on some is as little as 15 feet above the water line.  With her mast up, Ostinato is 60+ feet.

Before I move on, a few words need to be said about this wonderful location.  First, the staff is wonderful.  The removal of the mast was perfect.  No request was too bothersome.  Always ready with a wonderful smile.  Part of the club houses a very nice private restaurant over-looking the marina.  We spent several evenings enjoying a well deserved beer/wine after a hard days work.  The shower facilities appear new and are well maintained ......and they didn't nickle and dime you to take a shower.  I really hate that.  Laundry....right around the back of the building.  €3 wash and €2 dry....and I'm talking a good 50 minute dry!  Yep...its the little things.  Last, but not least, the members.  Many dropped by just to say hello and have a chat.  When Holland played Costa Rica in the World Cup, we were all invited up to the club to watch the game on the big screen TV.  King and I lasted to the end of regulation time...0 to 0, then slipped out.  Patty and Frank, however, stayed on till the bitter end and were rewarded with fireworks and blowing horns as the room celebrated.  You might think, lying in bed 50 yards away from the festivities, that King and I might have been kept awake by the reverie but no ....snoozed right through it.  The crew was also invited to a going away party at the yacht club for 2 new live-aboards, Coen and Jose aboard SY Wildeman, a 37 ft. Halberg Rassey, who are preparing for a round the world cruise.   Friends, neighbors, children and grandchildren came out to celebrate their exciting adventure.  How grand it was to be able to join in.

July 7 - The day has come, it's time to lay the mast on her new location.  The guys have done a superb job of building the cradles that will keep her secure.  Patty and I did important things like stand on the wood when it was being sawed, fetching tools from the workshop, and wrapping up the mast with cling wrap like a big deli sandwich to keep the lines and wires from flailing about and, of course, keeping tummies filled and clothes clean.   We motored up to just underneath the crane and within minutes the mast laid horizontally in her new cradles, pretty as a picture.   After a few final adjustments, along with recommendations from the crowd, everything was crocheted to the deck......we were ready.....but the weather, unfortunately, was not.  A storm was rolling in.  We would be there a few more days.  Time to wrap a few more lines on her.

• Final step, placing the boom aboard.

July 10 - We were up late last night watching Holland play Argentina at the Lelystad Yacht Club along with a room full of its members.  Consequently, waking up at 5:30 was not my plan...but I was excited.  We were finally departing for the Rhine today.  Many thanks to everyone we had the pleasure of meeting at the yacht club for making our stay such a pleasure and a success!

First bridge as a power boat

Going under the first bridge was very strange.  Your first thought is to start the "bridge drill", find the bridge tender's phone number, look for a place to tie up, check signs for opening times, are the lights red and green?  But wait....we don't need to do that.  Yippppeee!  Ohhhh.  Are you sure we can fit?  Everyone aboard watches carefully as we slide beneath the bridge floor with a good 5 foot clearance.  The rain from the last two days is showing up in current, resulting in a 3 knot loss of speed already.  This does not bode well.  The river is now back to March levels when King first started his daily tracking.

The sun was hot and the chocolate brown water swirled and bubbled, pushing Ostinato one way, then another.  The big ships come close but most seem to try to give us plenty of room.  King and Frank are doing 2 hour shifts dodging ships and trying to keep us near the banks where the current is a little weaker.  The rivers are running fast due to the recent rains.  Marinas are few that can handle Ostinato's size....especially now that she is 10 feet longer with her mast sticking out like a battering ram, shooting out both front and back.  We decided that Hattem would be a good spot for our first docking with our new size.  Because of our 7 meter beam, we have successfully avoided box slips over the past 2 years.  My blood ran cold when the marina manager informed King that he had a box slip that would accommodate us.  A new addition of 10 feet to your boat is not the time to be attempting a box slip with a 7 meter beam for the first time.... King

Not sure what she was but the kids liked her!

was game but after two attempts, a guy from the docks yells to us that there is a side-tie just around the corner....zoom, off we go.  Our new neighbor, the one that has our mast up his back side, did not look thrilled to see us.  A storm blew through a an hour after our arrival.  25 knot winds with hail.  But it was over quickly, giving us plenty of time for a trip into the village to visit the fair so Patty and Frank could pick up some great mustard and aged Gouda cheese.

Inspiration.  If Arne can make it to the Black Sea surely we can

July 12-14. After 7 hours averaging only 3k speed, we finally left the Ijssel and entered the Rhine into Germany. This much current so soon was not expected. The champagne toast to celebrate our arrival in a new country helped ease the tension out of the first day of dodging the big ships on the Rhine. We departed at 0700 the following day in hopes of reaching Duisberg. It was not in the cards. The current was even stronger today. At one point a squirrel, swimming across the Rhine, was making better time than us.  No rain today but overcast and cool. We are all back in our coats.  In 6 hours, we only traveled 35 k.  The following day, we did a punishing 55k, passing by Duisberg, on to Krefeld.  In Krefeld we met Arne, a Swede on a 21 ft sailboat, doing the same trip as us.....so if you think we are not quite right, just know we are not alone!

July 15 - At long last, we crawl into Dusseldorf.  First stop, the fuel barge, 105 liters in the starboard and 160 liters in the port tanks.  We also pulled out the jerry cans and topped them off with another 40 liters.  Ouch! On to the marina.  A nice surprise to learn we were city center, right in front of fantastic architecture.  We enjoyed a walk through the old town with a brief stop for some good German beer and sausage.  Later in the evening we were serenaded by a jazz band playing just above the quay where we were tied.  David and Wendy on Amusant, friends from St. Katharine's, arrived while we were out exploring the city.  They will be doing the trip down the Rhine/Danube along with us on their 58 ft Krogen Express.  Amusant can travel twice our speed without breathing hard and carries several times our capacity of fuel .....which it really needs at those speeds.  She also has goodies aboard that we don't....like a french press which is now on loan to Ostinato so Frank can enjoy a decent cup of coffee.  She will be lovingly known as "The Mother Ship".

Ostinato beneath Dusseldorf eye popping Frank Gehry designed buildings

Cologne Cathedral from the Rhine

7/16-17 The following day we departed for Cologne via Hitdorf and Zundorf.  No marinas for us in Cologne so we passed on to Zundorf and took a train back to the city to visit the famous twin spire cathedral and have a beer in its old town.  The Mother Ship was at the dock when we returned.  Soon after, Arne, the Swede also arrived.  It's always good to know that everyone is tucked in safe for the night.


Early departure the next morning with our sights on the Hersel  to set us up for a quick bus ride into Bonn to visit Beethoven's home.  Amusant would stay another day to visit Cologne and Arne would chug on toward Koblenz.  The bus....what were we thinking?  It was like entering hell....or maybe Tallahassee in late August. Beethoven's home was ....well, old.  It was surprisingly moving to stand next to a piano that he actually played and see original compositions.  We all especially enjoyed an interactive 3 D experience of Beethoven's Fidelio Opera.  Besides being fabulous music and great visuals......it was air conditioned!  Tomorrow we head toward Koblenz.....but that will be another story.

Now what to do with 55 ft of mast!

Pat and Frank on day 2 ......don't even look jet lagged

Taking down the flags before the mast is removed.

Outdoor view of the World Cup on the Rhine.  Germany vs Argentina

Big boats bring along all the toys including a play ground for the kids

Fighting current early in the trip. Speeds as low as 1.6 k 

Amusant, aka "The Mother Ship", catches us in Zundorf

And the Band Played On

Crew, Karen and Bruce head back to the UK

 Belgium's coastal tram
A great way to explore the coast 

June 9 - Only 5 days in Belgium. Certainly not enough time to take it all in but.. we do our best!  A tram runs up and down the coast connecting all the beach towns between Knokke and Adinkerke.  Nieuwpoort was in the middle.  We chose to do the trip to the East, getting off occasionally to have lunch or a snack.... basically eating our way along the coast.  Our crew, friends from our Atlantic crossing, Karen and Bruce, had to fly back to the UK on Wednesday so we rode the tram with them to the Ostend train station before saying goodbyes.  They headed to Brussels while we hopped the train to Bruges.  It was love at first sight!

Looked like a couple of nice guys

beautiful canals

forever searching for that lost contact

You have to love a place that has a french fry museum

June 12 - Of course, we couldn't leave Belguim without visiting the headquarters of the EU in Belgium. It was also a great opportunity for us to meet Daniel, the staff who is working on proposed changes to Schengen.  I've droned on about our problems with Schengen in previous Blogs so I will spare you the bill analysis.  Let me just say that King has hopes for the draft legislation which provides provisions that will allow non EU citizens to apply for a year's stay and is doing what he can to find support among cruising groups.   Yep, he's found a cause.

 EU headquarters in Brussels

On recess but still impressive

June 13 - The winds looked like they would be increasing and turning to the north so unless we wanted to put down roots in Nieuwpoort, it was time to depart.  Off to the Netherlands.  We decided to do the southern Standing Mast Route beginning at Breskens, across the Westerschelde to Vlissingen where we would enter the first of many sluices (locks) that would take us through Zeeland, the Northern Delta, Zuid Holland and on to our destination, Amsterdam in Noord-Holland.  We had considered traveling this route last fall on our way to London but could never determine if the sluices were wide enough or the bridges tall enough.............we still weren't 100% certain but we had the time to turn around this time if that became necessary.  We learned early on the cost of not joining in the early morning convoys.  Instead of cruising through each sluice or bridge with the congo line of sailboats, we would be required to tie up, or worse, do donuts, waiting for a large working boat to request an opening.  Actually, people took great pains to assist us as we moved along, providing us copies of charts and written directions and interpreting what was being said on the radio.....as in "the bridge will not open for 2 hours" and reminding us that channel 10 is the calling frequency here....not 16! Which is why we didn't know that barge zipping up behind us was yelling at us!  Just as well......We saw him coming.

We overnighted in Middelburg, a beautiful park on the Veese Meer, Willenmstad, and Dordorech,

Go Holland!

before being captured by Gouda.  Yep, where the cheese comes from.  Before I move on to Gouda, let me say that we learned about World Cup Football excitment in Dordorech where we were tied up in town on a narrow canal.  Each time the Netherlands scored, the entire town let our a roar.  This was repeated in Gouda and Amsterdam where we spent games 2 and 3.

June 20 - The trip between Dordorech and Gouda was pretty miserable every bridge we approached was just closing or refused to budge.  Consequently, when we arrived in Gouda, we were not surprised when we heard there might be as much as an hour wait to get through the sluice because of a local celebration.  We tied up with the other yachts along the waiting pontoon and prepared to settle in.  Eventually, you could here music and as the sluice opened out popped an orchestra in two small boats rafted together, playing a toe tapping marching number, followed by decorated canal barges and yachts carrying smiling dignitaries.  Oh, how I love a parade!  Then the sluice closed. Everyone appeared a bit surprised, including the parade participants.  The orchestra floated around a bit then headed toward us...."could they tie up?  they would play for us."  "but of course!"  and so we were treated to a rendition of "Sweet Caroline".  Now, I'm no Neil Diamond fan but I have to say that was a treat.  Before departing, they played a few notes of the American National Anthem and then, they were off.  It was a mad dash to get into the lock!  All the decorated boats along with all of the waiting cruisers raced for the sluice, jockeying for position.  We didn't make it.  Another hour wait, but ahhhha what a sweet concert we had enjoyed.

Ostinato serenaded in Gouda as we waited for the sluice

We eventually found a spot along the wall in town and as we were tying up one of the members of the orchestra stopped by to say hello and invite us to come to their concert later that day.  It ended up being a weekend of free concerts throughout Gouda.  So....maybe out timing wasn't so bad after all. We enjoyed the town and the people here so much that we spent a 3rd day to celebrate my birthday.

June 24 - All good things must end and so it was time to depart.  This involved getting through a bridge and a sluice in time for the 10:30 opening of the RR bridge.  We were there at 8:15.  You don't want to miss those RR bridges!  Our luck has changed!  The bridge opened at 8:30.  YEA!  Off to Leiden.

Trying to keep the mast out of the trees in Leiden's park 

Why Leiden?  The Pilgrims lived in Leiden prior to their journey to America.  William White, one of King's relatives, was among the group.  Also, a leading researcher on the Pilgrims lives in Leiden and manages a tiny Pilgrim museum. It simply became a great opportunity to have an interesting chat. Getting there was the first challenge.  Leiden is not on standard the Standing Mast Route so the guide books....the ones in English that we could actually read at least, were of no help.  Of course that does not stop King when he has a mission.  We squeaked through sluices the size of pin holes.  I stand on the port side calling out how much space we have as we squeeze through each opening bridge.  As they become progressively smaller and smaller, our fenders drag across the cement walls...on each side.  YIKES!  Even the bridge tenders came out to watch. The question is...Will we be able to get out once we get in?  Of course, why was I worried....we were rewarded with a lovely tie up in a pretty little park. And yes!  King got to meet with Professor Jeremy Bangs to discuss pilgrim history and learn details about his ancestors.   He could tell us where William White and his family had lived.....standing on the corner where the house had been was a lovely treat. As we were in the museum, a lady from Michigan joined us.....relatives! another of Whites descendants.

A no passing zone.....It seemed like "forever"!

June 26 - Back through the skinny bridges.  We are headed to Haarlem, our last stop before Amsterdam where we will meet our Rhine crew, Patty and Frank Hankins.  We got up early at 0600 to make the early morning bridge opening so we wouldn't get trapped by the morning "rush hour" which closes the bridges to boat traffic.  We moved along quite smartly arriving at the first RR bridge at 9:30.  You have got to be kidding! Next opening.... 12:30!  Thankfully I have a good book to read, so I settle in for the duration.  Surprise! A government sponsored convoy boat arrived about 30 minutes after us and began organizing a tiny convoy of 3 sailboats, magically opening each bridge as we approached.  The only problem was that it moved at a mind numbing 3 knots which drove King crazy.  However, after a large container vessel, who wanted to pass ahead, tangled with the female captain of the convoy lead boat ....and lost....he decided to behave and follow suit.  You didn't have to know Dutch to know the canal barge captain had lost the battle.....badly.

Friend Margaret who, along with her wonderful husband David, first got us hooked on the idea of

Cruquius Polder...I'm thinking you had to be there.

doing the canals in the Netherlands, sent me a note to make sure we stopped at the Cruquius Polder Museum on our way to Haarlem.  So we pealed off from the convoy at the Cruquiusbrug.  First, they made it easy by offering free dock space for yachts.  We love free.  The staff's enthusiasm for the museum is infections. Our €4 provided us with our own personal tour guide to view the first (and still functioning) pumps used to reclaim the land. Pretty impressive and with global warming, certainly knowledge we may need in the near future!  I also got to tell Huub, ABYCs resident Netherlander that "yes, we did stop at the Cruquius Polder....and it was way cool!"

In Haarlem, Peter, an OCC Regional Rear Commodore, came by to share information he had gathered for us on a location that can remove our mast for the trip up the Rhine.  He came bearing gifts of charts, books and lots of great information.  It was like having Santa Claus visit in June!  Thank you Peter!

A busy morning at the L9
between Haarlem and Amsterdam

June 28 - time is running short.  It's time to get Ostinato to Amsterdam.  Only a day left to visit Mr. Kingsley's hair dressing salon and get the boat presentable for crew prior to Patty and Frank's arrival on the 30th....assuming the "Standby" god's smile on them.  Thankfully, the trip was non eventful so nothing exciting to report.  Mr. Kingsley did a lovely job on my hair, per usual. Afterward we moved into high gear changing oil and impellers, the making of beds and seeing how many clothes I could stuff into the very expensive washing machines.  I think is was a new record.  At 22:00, I finally mopped myself into a corner by the couch and crashed and burned.  Are they really arriving at 5:55!

Willenmstad was nice but a bit tight for the wide girl

Our favorite bridge 

Every orchestra needs a conductor.....

The Dutch really love their bicycles!

We are going in there!?

No description needed!

That bull looks excited to see us

A look at what would be left of the Netherlands w/o the dikes

This Blog is in memory of our wonderful friend David Hide.  Thank you for your generous sharing of knowledge about sailing in the Netherlands and your unreserved offer of friendship to two strangers from the State's.  You will be missed.  We love you Margaret!