Wednesday 14 May
Thursday 15 May
Friday 16 May
Saturday 17 May
Sunday 18 May
Monday 19 May
Tuesday 20 May
Leiden
Leiden to Amstelveen
Amstelveen to Zaanse Schans
Zaanse Schans
Zaanse Schans to Alkmaar
Alkmaar
Alkmaar to Langedijk (Het Waartje)
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Today was more overcast than yesterday and we even had a few drops of rain while we wandered round the Wednesday Market in the centre of town. There were stalls selling local and other varieties of cheeses, plus fruit and vegetables as well as the normal range of market tat to be seen anywhere. We stocked up on perishable goodies and did some general browsing and then headed back to the boat for lunch. By the afternoon it was brightening up and getting hotter. We headed back into town to visit the Rijksmuseum of Antiquities where there are some interesting Egyptian, Greek and Etruscan exhibits as well as some more local stuff. After that we stopped off at the Siebold House to look at the collection of Japanese prints and artifacts collected by Dr Siebold. It was rather sterile and not very interesting. Then it was back to the boat via Albert Heijns for more provisions. Our quartermaster’s strategy is to obtain supplies little and often to avoid carting heavy shopping bags for long distances, as the supermarkets hardly ever seem to be right near the marinas or town quays.
Leiden market cheese stall - one of many to tempt a cheesaholic!
We were up in good time to do the chores ready for our next leg. The key to the showers had to be returned to the harbour master to get back the €15 deposit; at the same time we needed a couple of tokens for water to top up the tanks. Mike also found out where the pump-out machine is located which turned out to be just opposite the harbour master's office. He said “Put your boat there and I will come and open the machine – it’s gratis”. That would be the second free pump-out so far – not bad. So after we had filled up with water we moved Starry Night over to the pump-out machine and the harbour master and his assistant came over and unlocked the cabinet containing the hoses and pumping gubbins. They left us to it.
We connected up and pressed the go button and there were reassuring pumping noises coming from the machine and other positive signs I won’t go into! After five minutes it seemed prudent to check the tank gauge and low and behold there had been no change. This was reminiscent of our last trip over here where we had problems with nearly all the machines we encountered. After some head scratching we decided to uncoil all the unused hose which was hanging in a vertical loop and requiring the pump to lift some 2m or more to prime itself. We laid the hoses on the dockside reducing the priming head by 75% and immediately there was an improvement. The whole job was then done in less than ten minutes. Perhaps this is the secret to these pump-out machines – they just don’t have enough umphh to self-prime unless all the hose is uncoiled and lying on the ground. May be that’s what the Dutch instructions say!
After that was over we were on our way and heading out of Leiden. As we passed an enormous working barge with pile drivers and excavators installing a new quayside two of the workers gave us a cheery wave and one of them said “Good morning. How are you? Have a nice holiday in Holland” as we sailed by! Wow!
We retraced our route to the Kager Plassen with a slight diversion to take in Kaag and check out the diesel price at a nearby “bunkerstation”, which was basically a road side petrol station facing the canal too; the price seemed high at €1.48 per litre (cf €1.20ish at Middelburg). So we pressed on passing another bunkerstation which looked closed, and then turned right and headed to the other side of the Brassermermeer to the Texaco bunkerstation we had seen doing a roaring trade on the Sunday when we had passed by heading the other way. He was selling at €1.42. We like to buy our diesel from someone who has a good throughput as it means it is unlikely to have got contaminated with water. This chap told us he had sold 40,000 litres during the last two weeks of good weather!
After filling up we went back to the moorings by the Brassermermeer for lunch and then back across the lake to rejoin the Ringvaart van de Haarlemmermeerpolder heading North East towards Amsterdam. This canal takes you past the Westeinder Plassen which is a lake with a network of island along one side with masses of boat yards and moorings and thin strip like islands separated by narrow “sloots” or drainage ditches on which some low fruit bushes were growing by the thousand. Every farmstead had them but we couldn’t decide what they were. Then Schipol Airport came into view with its enormous hangars and cargo terminals. The canal goes right past the end of one runway. There was a yacht behind us and the planes were so low that they looked as if they would clip the top off its mast.
It took some time to clear Schipol but eventually we arrived at Nieuwe Meer at Amstelveen on the outskirts of Amsterdam. Apart from the distant noise of the motorway A4 and the railway, tram and metro tracks about a quarter of a mile away passing over the Schinkelbrug, we had a very nice secluded mooring by a wood and park right next to Bosbaansluis. We could see the stagings where the yachts muster for the night convoy through Amsterdam, and by the time we went to bed there were several yachts waiting for the four Schinkelbrug railway and motorway bridges to open at 23:52. We slept well, confident that the tip of our 5m high VHF antenna would fit comfortably under, with 2m to spare!
Typical dual-carriageway bridge on the Ringvaart van de Haarlemmermeerpolder
The end of a runway at Schipol seen from the Ringvaart van de Haarlemmermeerpolder. Note that the airport is well below the level of the canal on the polder!
Night convoy mustering point with a couple of yachts waiting for the midnight call to duty! Motorway barriers visible on either side of bridge.
We woke up to the sound of rain beating on the roof and leaden skies. It was going to be one of those days, but we had had over two weeks of sunshine and warmth so we weren’t complaining too much.
We got everything ready for a 9:00 start. As the Amsterdam bridges don’t open during the rush hour (07:00 to 09:00) we wanted to pitch up at the Nieuwe Meersluis about 09:05. It was still raining as we bobbed around in front of the Schinkelbrug looking at the Nieuwe Meersluis lock beyond, and the array of traffic lights all showing red. Then, miraculously, one of the sets of lights went to red over green. We had been spotted, and they were getting the lock ready for us.
The gate slid open sideways and retracted into the lock side, the lock lights went to green and then the yellow lights on the bridge came on to signify that we could go under and into the lock. The lock gate itself forms a bridge over the lock for a bicycle path, which is a commuter route to somewhere; there were masses of cyclists waiting at the barriers for us to pass through and for the lock gate to reclose.
In this lock the skipper has to report to an office lock-side to pay the transit dues for the passage through Amsterdam and for the opening of the bridges. The fee is based on the length of the boat and for us was €9. There are ten bridges that we needed to have opened. The big railway bridges at each end and the motorway bridge all have 7m clearance and only open in the night for the convoys. The others open all through the day except in the rush hour.
The whole process worked like clockwork and at most bridges we hardly had to slow down. As we got near each bridge, the lights went to red over green. We could hear the bells ringing and see the road barriers go down. Then the bridge would go up. It became obvious that they wanted us to pass under as soon as we would "fit" under the opening; some of the bridges could stop their open cycle partially open and then re-close for a boat like us, thus minimising the delay to traffic. More normally they opened all the way up before coming down again.
Only a few times did we have to stop and wait, and usually this was to wait for other boat traffic to catch us up or a boat coming the other way. We passed quite a few barges coming the other way as this is a busy commercial route, and generally they got priority when meeting at bridges.
By 11:30 we were heading out into the Noordzeekanaal. We were completely soaked as we had spent the whole passage outside for better control and visibility and it hadn’t stopped raining. On the Noordzeekanaal there was a chance to come inside for a short while until we got to the romantically named Zij-kanaal G where it was back up top for the turn North through Zaandam.
At the Wilhelmina sluis and brug we were confronted with red lights, an open lock and a bridge with 3m clearance. We were just debating if we should fold down the mast and reduce our air draught from 3.3m to 2.9m when we were assaulted by a loud Dutch tannoy voice telling us to do something. We guessed it as fold down your mast so we did. We squeezed under the bridge with no more than four inches to spare over the top of the windscreen.
The lock keepers looked pleased when we emerged from under the bridge and spoke to us in English, telling us to moor up at the far end of the lock where they would process our lock fee which was €4. As there was no water level change that we could detect that amounts to one of our most expensive lockings on the basis of €/m rise or fall!
On our way again we headed up the Zaan and by folding down our mast we managed to fit under all the bridges without any more openings.
Eventually we arrived at the Zaanse Schans historical area with its working windmills. We had visited this place many years ago and were looking forward to seeing it again. We wanted to stop at the mooring in the complex itself – the only snag being that there is just one mooring for one boat, but you can stay there for three days! So the chances of it being free were not in our favour, but… it was empty, and so we took possession! It was 12:00 and time for some soup to warm the bones!
In the afternoon it stopped raining and we wandered round Zaanse Schans, visited some of the attractions like the clog making workshop and museum, as well as the Zaanse Museum of the area which was very good and well worth the visit. There were four windmills working, including a log sawing mill and a mustard grinding mill.
Returning to the boat we spent a pleasant hour sitting on the back watching the wading birds, ducks, geese and numerous hares on the nearby marsh land.
Looking under the four bridges comprising Schinkelbrug. Nieuwe Meersluis sliding lock gate just visible.
One of the many Amsterdam lift bridges opened for us. Note the tram overhead line dangling from the post on the bridge - still live presumably!
Tram and unhappy wet cyclists waiting for us to get on through the bridge.
Unhappy wet skipper waiting for tram and cyclists to get over bridge - roles reversed!
The big lift bridge at Amsterdam Central Station
Our mooring at Zaanse Schans - with a raftee that hitched onto us for a couple of hours. The staging is exactly the same length as Starry Night - no room for anyone else.
Today it has rained almost non-stop so we have holed up in Starry Night, reading our books, doing art, researching the next couple of weeks' cruising and relaxing. We could see that the tourists continued to arrive in their buses and wander forlornly about in the rain looking at the windmills.
We were certainly better off inside than outside today!
Finally at about 20:00 it stopped raining and the sun peaked out from behind the clouds so we ventured out for an evening stroll round Zaanse Schans which was by now very quiet.
Zaanse Schans working windmills
This morning was quite chilly but with blue sky in between the clouds. We were ready to leave our mooring just after the beginning of business on the Zaan which is 09:00 on a Sunday morning. The next bridge upstream (Zaanbrug) was obviously working at this hour because we saw the morning cocoa barge go by and it most definitely would not have fitted under.
We arrived at Zaanbrug about 09:10. There is a notice informing that for pleasure craft the bridge opens every quarter of an hour, and there is a button to press to alert the staff to the fact that you are waiting. Having pressed the button we backed off a bit and waited. Within a few minutes we got the green and red and the bridge opened for us. On the other (North) side are some moorings for pleasure craft which look OK and they are near to a shopping area which looks as if it would cater for most needs.
We pressed on up the Markervaart into a bitterly cold northerly wind and cowered behind the windscreen. We were able to fit under all the remaining bridges to Alkmaar by folding down our mast. Our route took us through the Alkmaarder (lake) which being an open stretch of water was very breezy. More cowering! There are some lovely moorings on this lake, far more than are marked on the map. Then we were into the Noordhollandsch Kanaal which took us to Alkmaar.
Our guide, and the Wateralmanak both advised that we should moor at the pontoon next to the harbour master’s office for a berth assignment and also to top up with fresh water (there are no water hoses at the moorings). However when we got to the HM’s office we could see that the waiting/water pontoon is no longer operational. Instead there is a large yellow sign in Dutch, English, French and German giving a phone number to call if you want a mooring.
We called the number and got hold of a very helpful lady who informed us that a group of 20 boats had reserved the inner harbour and we couldn’t moor there: but there was another little harbour for visitors through two more bridges where we could stop in a “box” with finger pontoons, right next to the police station. Over the phone she gave us the code for the showers and loos (which are fine). So that’s where we are.
We have had a wander round town and visited the Stadelijk Musem which has some lovely old paintings of the town militia dating from the late 16th century and early 17th century. There is an introductory film that explains the history of Alkmaar and the siege by the Spanish, which was really interesting. They put on the English language version of the film specially for us, calling us back from our browsing when it was ready to roll.
The centre of Alkmaar has lovely old buildings and pretty side streets as well as its fair share of modern shops too. There is a network of canals with really low bridges that requires quite small boats or a dinghy to explore. We may do this later if there is time.
During our wander we took a look at the other harbour, which is in fact one of the larger canals with boats moored alongside. It is right in the tourist area and very pretty. The outlook from our harbour certainly isn’t so good – the police station, but ours is much quieter and there are no tourists staring into your boat – just the occasional policeman!
First barge of the day - the passing barge traffic can create a nasty bouncing swell that lasts quite a while.
The impressive Harbour Master's Building at Alkmaar. Shame about the defunct waiting/water pontoon. The HM herself is very helpful and there is a first class harbour information booklet.
The town quay moorings in Alkmaar - very pretty but quite busy with passing tourists
Alkmaar cheese weigh house
Today we went to Amsterdam by train from Alkmaar which takes around 40 minutes. Armed with our strippenkart we zoomed about on the trams and managed to take in six different museums all with free admission with our Dutch Museum Card (which we had bought in Middelburg). We reckon we have now broken even on the cost of the cards.
Lunch at t' Singeltje Pancake house opposite the flower market on Singel was quite eventful. Mike was just into his second bite of Uitsmijter when there was a crunching sound which for all the world sounded (and felt) like broken filling. It was in fact the crunching between teeth of several shards of glass! Maureen heard the sound from the other side of the table! The waiter was summoned and the fragments of glass pointed out. He was rather embarrassed and took our two meals away. They were replaced about ten minutes later with fresh ones. But there was no word from the kitchen, the proprietor or anything to suggest this wasn't a normal occurrence. We have crossed this place of our favourite restaurant list!
When we got back to Starry Night, there was a card tucked under our windscreen wiper, left by the HM, asking us to contact her to pay.
Alkmaar overflow moorings by the police station (black and white building) - less pretty, quiet, and good security!
Mike phoned the HM to find out where to pay. When he said Starry Night, she sung the first few bars of Starry Starry Night over the phone! She came round to collect the fees on her bike about half an hour later (mooring fees, not singing fees).
We then made various sorties into Alkmaar to stock up, and to visit the Cheese Museum. Alkmaar is a big centre for cheese production and is also famous for its weekly cheese market. The museum was very interesting. Here again they put on an English language version of the introductory film specially for us. It was just the two of us in an auditorium that could seat sixty people. Obviously this is not the tourist season yet!
After lunch we set off, but first we had to fill up with water and do a pump-out at the special pontoon for the purpose. The HM said that the pump-out machine had been installed during the winter months, but the chap painting his boat nearby said we were the first people to use it. It was free to use like the other three dotted around the harbour area. According to the HM, they are trying to persuade Dutch boaters to stop dumping and flushing straight into the canals by making pump-outs free, but we have never seen anyone using the facilities. It has only just become mandatory to have a tank fitted.
Finally we got going just before 15:00. Outside Alkmaar we turned North up the Kanaal Omval Kolhom. About two mile up this canal there is a rail bridge which we needed to be lifted. The Almanak devotes almost a whole page to describe the method of getting the attention of the bridge operator. There was a button to press on a little jetty.
As we manouvred to get close enough to press the button, two schoolboys on bikes on their way home stopped to offer assistance. They were not at all bad at English for 12ish year olds, and eager to use it. They were really keen to get that bridge open! After no action for ten minutes Mike phoned the number given on a board nearby and asked when the bridge would open. "Which bridge, where are you?" came the answer. This rather threw us. Consulting the map, the bridge had no name except Spoorbrug which is Dutch for railway bridge. The nearest place name was St Pancras. This seemed to do and the controller said "another 20 minutes". Eventually after five more trains passed, the lights changed to green/red, the barriers for the cycle track came down, and the bridge was lifted. We can now say in all honesty that we have had the railway bridge outside St Pancras lifted for our boat to go through!
It was interesting that the bridge deck went up but the overhead line equipment stayed fixed. This somewhat limited the height of the lift to avoid earthing the OHLE! But it was enough for us, and we were on our way again.
We wended our way round Langedijk and came to Roskamsluis lock. Here the lock keeper informed us that one of the locks between here and Medemblik, our destination, is closed. There is a detour involving two other locks and an extra two/three hours cruising. One of these two locks keeps very odd hours and only opens for one hour in the morning and after that not until 14:30. We have been trying to figure out whether we can get from where we are now, through all the various locks and bridges at their respective opening times and to Medemblik in good time to meet our friends Alan and Gill. It is touch and go but we will know tomorrow morning at the Braaksluis lock if it is open at the published time of 09:00, or when the lock keeper at Roskamsluis said it would open which is 10:00. Keeping our fingers crossed for 09:00.
Eager helping hands to get the railway bridge to open.
The final result. St Pancras railway bridge opening up for us.
Rural scene along the Kanaal Omval Kolhom.
Copyright © 2008-2009 Mike Hawkridge