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ISABELA HITCHES A RIDE We are writing another blog because…………..we enjoyed writing the first one and a number of people told us they followed our passage all the way through to its end in Laleham. That showed such fortitude we decided to check whether 5 years on people still have the same stamina – and interest?
We have returned to motor boating and wanted to continue the Schroeder pattern of boating all summer. But we also have lots of nice things to do in the UK we so decided on a new model this year……….take the boat to Holland but return home every few weeks and so the planning started!
Having had a couple of years of resting, (that is Isabela , not us, we did anything but rest!!) Isabela was in need of some TLC . In total we had 70 recommissioning tasks ( I am pleased to say most of which Paul did rather than the guys below – the bank manager may have had something to say otherwise!) of which 65 were completed and 5 have been left to do in Holland.
We enlisted the help of a number of really good
guys – no there were no women I am sorry to say except Heather, who has her uses. A few weeks before departure date we took Isabela up to Penton Hook Marina to go “glamping” in the “tent” belonging to Charlie Delta Marine. Many thanks to Chris Date of CDM for all his help with getting her in and eventually out of his tent. Without the use of the tent the work would have taken much longer and been more difficult to arrange. Richard Mead did most of the work – a great engineer who knows all aspects of steel boats, particularly Stevens – including some wonderful touching up of paint work. He was also a mine of advice and pointed out some potential issues which were resolved before they became serious. We would also like to thank Gil of DB Marine for servicing the engine and generator and replacing the coolant in both – it was long life coolant but that means 5 years so after 7 it was time for it to be changed. Also thanks to Wesley Crockett for stepping in to do a last minute job. We will have to find some new super engineers in
Holland.
Those of you who read Isabela’s original Clog Blog may (really, I hear you say, after 5 years?) remember that our crossing to Holland was very eventful and took nearly 2 weeks. We were keen not to repeat all of that and having crossed the Channel a few times and being short of time for our first period away we decided that Isabela would take a taxi ie a lorry doing the Harwich – Hook of Holland crossing and we would go by car using the Shuttle. So on Thursday 8
th May Isabela was very carefully loaded onto the Interboat lorry by the crane staff at Penton Hook Marina – the time and effort put in by them and the lorry driver, Andrew, had to be seen to be believed. Eventually she was loaded and strapped down and set off for Harwich with her escort van as she is such a wide load – apologies for any hold-ups she created en route. She is so heavy that she had to be loaded first on to the ship so she was dead central and then came off last. We set off very early the next morning and caught the 0720 Shuttle. Despite a number of road works – we are not the only country that has contraflows – we arrived at Biesbosch Marina, Drimmelen at 1205 only 5 minutes after Isabela. She is so wide as to not be able to go on Dutch motorways so had been on a second ferry to cross a river en route to Drimmelen.
Apparently the escort vans in Holland are highly qualified and have powers equal to the police. Andrew, the driver, told a story that it is illegal to undertake a wide load when it swings out to take a bend but a Merc had wanted to get past, saw an opportunity and went for the undertake – it appears that the escort van drove him off the road since the alternative would have been that he was squashed as the trailer cut the corner. All Andrew saw in his wing mirror was this Merc heading up an embankment. Since we have friends with a “German taxi” we will refrain from comments about them and their drivers.
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