The Victoria Shadow Association

 

Dear All, Having thought of this trip as a delivery trip back to Chatham, things have not turned out like that at all. It's probably been our most sociable trip ever! We have filled more than 2 pages of our Log Book with all the friendly people we have met. We have also detoured to see Copenhagen - a city with many canals and the famous Tivoli Gardens - and pottered gently onwards to the Kiel Canal, after being storm bound in Stubbekobing for 3 days last weekend. We were near two other CA yachts, one a 38 foot Hallberg Rassy and the other a 43 foot Regina, and spent hours talking about the depths on the mast-up route in Holland. The weather has been sunny in the middle of the day though there is a heavy autumnal dew overnight and our heater is on every evening. Sweden and Denmark - recollections of bicycles everywhere, flagpoles in many gardens, too, young people smoking and older people chewing gum. All Swedes speak clear English whilst German seems to be the second language of the Danes on the islands. There has been a delightfully wide variety of food in the supermarkets and the breads were absolutely delicious (after the Caribbean it seems marvellous!). Prices are high, so, now we're in Germany, at Cuxhaven waiting for the right weather to dash 170 miles past the Frisian islands to the IJsslemeer, we find the euro appears cheap in comparison.

Nyhavn, Copenhagen

 

Today we sailed from Brunsbuttel to Cuxhaven and had over 3k of tide with us all the way. On a beam reach, in glorious sunshine, the SOG was 11.1k at one point, with winds around 14k. What speed and luxury! It was really great. Jan and his son were sailing a dinghy close by and we took photos of each other under full sail. (Cheaper than the BVI photos we had taken of Simoon III earlier in the year). The day before Jan and Nellie had been with us, as they had joined us at Laboe and spent two days on board as we cruised the Kiel. It was hot and sunny, hardly any wind and very peaceful. We anchored the first night in Flemhuder See, which was like Stangate Creek without a tide. Simoon IV is big and beautiful and we are both beginning to love her for her speed, space and comfort, quality of workmanship and electric winches, but the downside for Janet is that it's a long way down when we come into harbour. The fenders have to be at water level and despite buying a fender step the distance is daunting. We are having a wonderful time. In Copenhagen we met up with Gus and Helen, an American couple whom we had met when they wintered in St Katharine's last year, and we have been sailing in company with them, apart from when they took the inside passage via Praesto and we went on to Klintholm and Stubbekobing as we couldn't get under the 20m bridge which was on their route. We need 22m plus a bit for clearance and even then it's rather worrying as you approach the 25 m bridge and wonder whether one or other of the measurements is wrong! Simon & Janet