Lauwersoog marina is just outside the sea lock. We had to come out into the sea as the lock does not work at night. We have to leave at 03.30 on Sunday morning so we can work the tides towards Borkum Island our first planned German stop. The marina is nothing special at low tide we are just in mud at springs we would be well in. We are in a box mooring so tight we had to remove our fenders, there are fishing boats and ferries coming and going, we were unable to p...

Only four miles today to Dokkum a very popular place and very busy so by arriving late morning we hopped to get a mooring. As you see and according to a Dutch boat next to us we are in the best spot in the town, right under one off the windmills. Our keel is sat in the mud, but we are only about a foot from the bank so no problems. The town is very clean and lovely to walk round, another ice cream shop was found and tested. The town hall has a very large bell tow...

As soon as we passed under this extraordinary bridge we stopped on the first available bank side as my back was still playing up. Not much better the next day so we stayed another night. Brenda went into town for supply's. The second evening we realised that one of the buildings was an abattoir and the eerie sound of the cows mooing as they were making there last journey from the lorries into the building made Brenda feel very sad and is now considering becoming ...

Our sail back to the mainland was a sunny beam reach in 12 kns of wind, near perfect sailing conditions. The sea covers a huge area but the channel for shipping is very narrow and winding, resulting in some close encounters with other ships. The lock and bridges opened as we arrived in Harlingen with no waiting around. Once into the canal we passed through the usual industrial areas, then into countryside arriving in the pretty town of Franeker. We moored in the ...

We wanted to come to Vlieland, what we didnt know was that Vlieland is Hollands version of sandbanks, holiday homes for the rich and famous. A lovely unspoilt island but very expensive. We had made a plan to sail from the IJsselmeer lock to Harlingen then across the Waddenzee. We then spoke to a guy who said that there is a Tall Ship Race taking place this weekend witch as lots of special regulations regarding sailing. So we decided to make another plan over a dr...