The story so far part two

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Just enough time for a shower before I go and meet my date, as with all ladies she is late, but soon she joins me in the bar and we go for a walk around the town, Romance bloomed.
After a few more days on the road and a lot of boats looked at,
That first boat of the road trip was still top of the list so I went back for both the boat and the girl.
I did a deal and agreed the work I wanted done and spent the rest of my stay: you guessed it, with the girl.
I made a number of trips to Holland over the next few months but not to see the boat!
In May, I pack my things quit my job and head to Holland, a week later then expected, so there was some making up to be done on the girl front.
I meet the former owner and we go for a sail on some lakes near by to try her out under sail so off we go the first two bridges open on request the third only opens at 7 each evening so we return to the boat yard. We head off again a few days later when the rain has stopped, pass the 7 o’clock Bridge only to find the next bridge is managed by the railway and requires 24 hours notice to open.
Stuck between two bridges we moor up to a rubbish skip and frank jumps ship with a smile and says “I will sort out the bridge and call you when we can go.”
Early the next morning frank calls, “quick” he says there opening the bridge you can’t wait for me, you will have to go.
So I cast off for my first solo sail in botje and it’s against the clock! well I just make the bridge and by the next there is frank waving from the garden of a café the man tries to tell me I cant moor there and frank explains that I have to as he has just ordered tea.
We cast off as soon as the next bridge opens and we are on our way to the lakes agnieszka joins us at one of the bridges just before the lake and before you know it we are setting the sails and flying across the lake under full sail as the wind picks up and up and finally we have to pack the sails and moor up
A few days later frank joins me again and we start are way back to the boat yard we get stuck again at 24 hour notice bridge, I think frank forgot to call but I am not sure so frank jumps off saying “I will sort out the bridges and call you.”
The next morning the hotel owner seems surprised to see me moored in the bier garden, but was pleased to here that I would be off soon!
Frank called to say that the bridge would open in an hour, so I had a cup of tea and set off from the hotel, through the bridge to look for somewhere to moor for the 7 o’clock bridge I thought about the rubbish skip again but the owner had been a bit off about it the last time and it had taken quiet a few shots of scotch to talk him round so I moored to some piles and amused my self for the rest of the day.

I pass under the 7 o’clock bridge bang on time and return to boat yard a full 7 days after I had left.

It was time to head back to the UK as I had a holiday booked with Steve and Scot.

I returned to the boat a few weeks later with mum and dad but the boat is in a real mess as the boat yard are fitting a winch to make razing and lowering the mast a one man job, so we find a room, well hole floor in a sea front hotel, for one night and plan to stay on the boat the next.

That evening after botje had passed mothers inspection dad is doing something on the dock and mum is in the cockpit (no mum I am not being rude) when she cried out “quick grab your first aid kit your dads broken everything!”
As it turns out it wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t pretty dad had fallen over a rope*!#*! (I was so sure it was the shelf he would have injured him self on, I would have put money on it!)
The next morning arrives and we are off to Eindhoven, the boat has passed mothers inspection now its Agnieszkas turn.
We meet that evening for a meal and Agnieszka gets mother’s approval.

Dad is in a lot of pain with his hand and chest, so I drive the return leg via an over night in gent to the tunnel.
I return home to botje late that night after a long train ride and the work is done! I can lower the mast just a couple more bits and she will be ready to go.

The day arrives its pissing down and my new fenders have not arrived.
Next morning the sun is bright and warm and Richard is there to greet me with arm fulls of fenders I say good bye to the boat yard and I am off!
First stop is for fuel and its three hours away, it went well just a slight bump as I met the pontoon.
But then I was passed the lake at Warmond which had taken 7 days with the mast up, I gave frank a ring as promised to let him know how I was getting on.
He talked me through all the hazards and possible wrong turns for the next few hours, I have to go through a lot of little opening bridges, but I have done bridges these will be ok *#**# that was close! Some of these are dam tight!
And on some of them you get a smack in the ear from a wooden shoe as a bridge keeper tries to collect his tip with the aid of a shoe and fishing rod.
A few hours later I wait to enter my first lock as I join the amstal canal, it’s a nice affair with flowers and such just like home, me and a little weekender go in when the lock opens and moor up, the gate closes behind us and the other opens and off we go.

The next few locks are open so I motor straight through headed for Amsterdam,
Frank shouts and waves from the left bank I am coming up to an important junction and if I go the wrong way I will end up in the city centre he meets me again after to make sure I got the right turn and tells me that were I plan to stay is just the other side of Amsterdam rijn canal the main route for the big ships frank tells me he will jump on at the lock and make the crossing with me.

As I near the lock there is no sign of frank, there is no place for me to moor up and a big barge is coming up behind me, so I head into the lock slowly hoping to see frank but no such luck.
suddenly a big ship fly’s past the end of the lock sending huge waves crashing into the lock I give it full throttle and pound into the waves as I come out into the shipping channel another goes past the other way so I keep the gas on and plough through both washes aiming for the canal opposite and a night in weesp as bounce my way across two fishermen on the corner move just in case! Soon I am back in safe water with nothing to dodge but wooden shoes.
And frank is guiding me to a mooring when the boat is secure frank asked what happened at the lock and I gave my account over a kebab.
Another route was planned so I would not have to spend a 12 hour day with the big ships, but take a more scenic route and join much further down and be out with the big ships for just 3 hours.
It was a lovely sunny day and I set off to dodge shoes on the vecht, I took photos of the first five windmills then gave up there are just to many to bother lots of bridges and shoes and just a few locks but the locks were open.
A great day was had and I moored up in a nice quiet spot miles from anywhere and put the kettle on, Tap tap “harbour master” there like bloody traffic wardens they come from no were!
Acting on some advice it was an early night then off down the big one at first light, before to many ships are awake.
I go out through the lock and it is clear for a good way in both directions it was nice to be on more open water after the narrow canal so I gave some gas and charged along at 6 knots soon a huge lock filled the horizon and as the gate lifted I got my first glimpse inside its massive I mean big, really big! I get the green light and drive in. Along the wall there are mooring bolts about every 25 meters with one every 5 meters above to the top of the lock, I am like a fly against the wall.
The lock keeper who was invisible in a giant watch tower bellowed over the p.a “hay you English man, you are not allowed to drift in the lock”
I replied by radio and did as I was told after some debate, the gate closed the siren sounded and water started to flood in at a massive rate then stop! The world’s biggest lock and it only goes up half a meter! It took longer to motor through then to go up in,
As I came out a container ship went in and hid in the corner.

I made up my mind that it was probably a bad thing to fall out with lock keepers and have only given one the finger since.

A short while later I am back on quiet waters and stop for breakfast before heading out onto another big river with real ships.

This lock is tight and I bounce off both sides going in behind another boat, the lock floods and the gate opens to the Waal a row of ships in both directions so I give it some gas and charge across to my side for a short trek then off to another quiet river with sandy bays along its sides, swimmers, jetskys, power boats, rubber dingys, sail boats, all manor of idiots oh my god! this worse then the ships at least they know what they are doing.
A few hours later I turn off again to a quiet canal and wait to take my turn in the lock it’s a big one and two cement barges go in filling it from end to end
A voice comes over the radio and a Dutch couple on the motor cruiser behind me says the lock keeper is telling us to go up the middle bravely I say “after you”



we both go up the middle to the front and moor under the giant gates and the radio goes again and the Dutch couple in forms me that the lock keeper is warning us to make sure we don’t get hooked on the gates, I ease my ropes a little and nearly get washed down to the back of the lock as the water floods in.
A few miles on I moor up for the night after a very long day and Agnieszka joins me for the night.
the next morning I am off on my own again at the first lock I meet the couple again and a jobs worth lock keeper (this is the one who got the finger) we are joined by a third boat and grind locks together for the rest of the day, until they close for the day and we are stranded by some roadwork’s. On the up side there was a Greek restaurant that was pleased for the trade and a good night was had by all.
The next morning I set off early and crack off another ten or so locks, Agnieszka picks me up in the afternoon and we go to a party.
The next morning I am off again most of the locks are behind me just a few more and I will reach Lommel, the day goes well and within a few hours I am over the border a few more and I am there it’s a lovely place peaceful and pretty, this is going to be home for the next month while I wait for the paper work to catch up it is handy for agnieszka to get to work.
That night Agnieszka moves into the boat and all is well or so it seems we go shopping we chat we go to bed, while we lay in bed Agnieszka asks me to think about some things and I do so.
The next day agnieszka comes home from work and I say we need to talk well what I had to say did not go down at all well and the romance was ended on the spot.
With the romance over agnieszka has started looking for alternative accommodation and I am focused on botje I have ordered a boom tent for the cockpit and spare parts for my trip, next is to get some jobs, done teak oil and sand paper keep me busy for a few days and I catch up with friends on the phone. Sam texts to say the blog is set up so here I sit and start getting the story down.
I have met some great people and had some fun and this is only a brief account of the trip so far, much of the detail has been left out.
When I set off at the beginning of September I will try and make regular updates so check back often to see were me and botje are, and what we have been up to.
Some of you may be wondering why this blog is called beer-aan botje so I will end this first update at the beginning.
the first owner had two children they wanted to name the boat beer-aan-botje after a Dutch nursery rime about a bear who sets sail in a boat made out of a wooded shoe he never gets to were he is going as he always takes the long way round, unfortunately the name was to long for the name plates and needed to be shortened to botje.

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Comments

[shell]

I'm impressed
Brillient, wish I had read this sooner. It is a really good read and gives a great impression of what you have been through. We can relate to some of it but on a much smaller scale on British canals. Looking forward to the next update. Shell XX