Łeba-Asaa
We start planning the next voyage esencially right after returning from the previous one. Throughout the year, a pile of things "for the yacht" slowly accumulates. This year, one of the major new additions is the hatches. The original ones were quite worn and covered with artificial teak, which no longer cleaned well. Making hatches from real teak is quite expensive. Fortunately, Kamil found a company that installs exotic wood flooring and sells the leftover planks at reasonable prices. A friendly carpenter cut us thick, waterproof plywood and parquet scraps according to the pattern, and Kamil glued and screwed on appropriately fitted boards to the plywood from underneath, filling the gaps with "Caulking" – an expensive but very effective sealant that prevents water from seeping between the boards while allowing the saturated wood to work. This sealant is typically used for filling gaps when laying a teak deck.
So, we are discussing further plans. Kamil would really like to see the Norwegian fjords from a yacht (a dream since high school). So we decide to head in that direction. Our holiday plans are put into question when, at the beginning of April, it turns out that Zuza is pregnant. In the first trimester, she has to quit her job and even spends three weeks bedridden. However, the situation significantly improves later. Still, the question of the holidays remains. Staying at home is dangerous due to the heat. It's risky at the countryside because of ticks. The same goes for the lake. Everyone around tells us about various dangers. It turns out that, contrary to appearances, it might be best on the yacht – Zuza can lie down, it's not excessively hot, there are no ticks, and there's a doctor in every port in case something goes wrong.
We visit Stubborn at the end of April when a crane arrives to Łeba. As we are preoccupied with the pregnancy, Zuza mainly lies down or takes walks, while Kamil's dad helps him with the work.
At the end of June, we set sail. We don't know how it will go, so we don't set a destination – we'll stop wherever it works out for us. The Łeba – Ustka – Darłowo – Kołobrzeg leg is somewhat rainy, but calm. A storm keeps us in Kołobrzeg for three days. The sea looks fierce and beautiful, but it can't be denied that we prefer observing it from the beach. We use the forced stop for shopping. Among other things, we buy a pine shelf at the Kołobrzeg Castorama. When the child is born and joins us on the boat, we will fence off one of the berths in the cabin, creating something like a playpen.
Then we head through Dziwnów to Świnoujście. We are considering what to do next. Zuza has concerns about leaving Poland due to the pregnancy. However, we finally conclude that we have EU Health Insurance Cards and will receive help anywhere in the EU. We make the final decision after an ultrasound (the beginning of the period when a mid-pregnancy ultrasound can be performed coincides). A friendly doctor states that everything is fine and sees no problem in continuing sailing. We celebrate this news with delicious pancakes and prepare for the further voyage. We have maps and pilot books, so we just need to complete the grocery shopping.
In a small local shop, we buy delicious sausages. Our boat lacks a refrigerator, so we resort to old methods - the sausages hang on the handrail and slowly dry out. Even later, in warmer climates, we successfully use this method with a slight improvement - the parts hanging the lowest get a ‘diaper’ - a piece of paper towel attached with a wire. The melting fat drips into this paper. Changing the diaper is much simpler than cleaning and washing off the fat splattering in all directions from the sausages rocking on the waves.
July 13 we are ready and set off for Kroslin. Approaching this port at night is a real navigational exercise because the sea route leading to it are marked by flashing buoys. Care must be taken to pass them in the correct order—it often happens that the next waterway gates are opposite where the yacht is located, but taking shortcuts risks running aground (right next to the narrow, winding channel, it is already too shallow for us).
We also have to be very careful about which gate belongs to our route. We spend few exciting hours — first, we determine on the map how the next gate should flash, and then we peer into the darkness with a binocular and stopwatch in hand. Our Chinese, theoretically waterproof binoculars, however, fog up, sometimes one can see through one eyepiece, sometimes the other, and drying them in the sun during the day only helps temporarily.
Binoculars’ proper revival is impossible, and the following year we replace them with a Delta marine binoculars, which cause no problems for many years (other than the battery socket damage and the lack of backlighting for the built-in compass).
At 23:30, we manage to successfully reach Kroslin. We spend a day and a half there and take advantage of the local mast ladder. In the harbor, on the shore, there is a pole with a ladder and small balconies. It is enough to dock with the mast under it and climb the ladder to calmly and without swaying inspect and repair the higher parts. Kamil takes the opportunity to carefully photograph all the shackles, pins, and clips at the very top of our boat - this way, in case of problems, it is easier to predict what is wrong and how to deal with it.
Next, we head to Sassnitz, a port famous for stones with holes.
We also visited the museum submarine HMS Otus. The thickness of the cables and sheets, as well as the number of control clocks, is impressive.
After leaving Świnoujście, we started looking for a place to winterize the yacht.
By then, we more or less knew how far we had a chance to sail, so we wrote emails to all the ports within a 2-3 week range. The cheapest offer we got was from the town of Asaa. The responses were in Danish, but with the help of an online translator, we managed to figure everything out. Since we had already chosen a place, we set off from Germany to Denmark.
Through Glove, Gislovs, and Skanor we sail to Copenhagen.
It was night when we entered the Kattegat Strait,. The weather was foggy and rainy. Once again, it turned out how useful radar would be. It consumes a lot of energy and cannot be used non-stop (only when working with the engine and having charging), but sometimes turning it on a few times an hour when visibility is poor, to get oriented in the situation, would be invaluable. Kamil always has a flashlight and a larger spotlight at hand at night. When something loomed in front of us, he immediately shone. We passed within a few meters of a larger, completely unlit yacht, from which someone flashed a weak flashlight at us after the fact.
Another potentially dangerous situation occurred when, in light rain and mist, Kamil went down to the companionway for a moment, and the yacht remained on the auto-electric steering. When he came out, he saw that we were passing another, equally surprised yacht about 10-20 meters away,(someone had just looked out of the companionway while sailing on auto-steer).
We arrive in Copenhagen and dock at the marina near the famous Christiania. Right at the entrance, we are greeted by the spirit of the free district— a freely floating house.
We visit the city and drop by to see Ela and Stas, Zuza's relatives who are also passionate sailors, living nearby.
Then through Flakfort, Helsingor with the castle Kronborg known from 'Hamlet', Gilleleje, Odden, Grenaa, Egense, we arrive at Asaa on 29.07. It turned out to be a port with a very shallow approach. The frequently silted channel, as well as the nearby sandbanks that lead to the port approach, often cause yachts to run aground. Nearby, we took a photo of a protruding mast from one of those that couldn't get off the sandbank.
Entering the port is basically possible only with slight waves. Hence, it was not overcrowded and rather available only to smaller vessels. The price was lower than what we had in Łeba. Additionally, a crane and stand rental were included. A cozy atmosphere of a small sailing village welcomed us. We confirmed all arrangements with the friendly harbor master Alfred.
Since we had some spare time, we went for a small tour around the area. First, we ended up on Laeso. The island has an interesting history. Since the Middle Ages, it has been famous for salt production. In the 12th century, it was discovered that the island's groundwater was significantly saltier than the surrounding sea (14% compared to 2%) - such brine was perfect for salt production. It was poured onto something like huge trays under which fires were lit. The water evaporated, leaving the salt behind. It was packed and distributed throughout Europe. Currently, there is an open-air museum on the island where you can thoroughly observe the entire process.
The salt business ended when all the trees were cut down and there was nothing left to burn under the trays. The residents had to find other ways to cope. Laeso is located in an area of shallow waters and the inhabitants began to collect items from numerous shipwrecks that couldn't pass through. During the era of great tall ships, many vessels wrecked, and the business flourished. In addition to collecting items, the people of Laeso started rescuing shipwreck survivors. Many houses had tall poles with a lookout sitting on top. The lookouts had assigned shifts to ensure that no ship in distress was overlooked. Upon hearing of another disaster, the residents would rush to their boats, rescue the castaways, bring them to their homes, nurse them back to health, and then charge a fee for the service.
On August 28, 1780, during the disaster of the Danish sailing ship Printz Friedrich, they managed to save 500 crew members. The sailors gradually left the island, filling the pockets of their rescuers and leaving behind four illegitimate children.
After visiting the Salt Island, we sailed to Skagen, the northernmost point of Denmark and where the Baltic Sea meets the North Sea.
There we visited fortifications from the World War II period.
It is also possible to encounter baby seals on the beach here, which the mothers leave on the sand when they go hunting. It is very important not to approach these little ones because it stresses them, and worse, it may cause the mother not to return for the young.
On August 5th, we return to Asaa and pack the yacht for winter. The port does not have its own crane, so Alfred takes on the task of hauling out our boat in autumn when a crane ordered by the local community arrives. The harbor master fulfills this task fantastically.
An additional requirement was to dismantle the mast before the winter season (using a small crane that is permanently at the marina). This allowed us to solve the problem we had been facing from the beginning - water leaking from the mast. It found its way inside at the point where the cables run inside the mast and through the deck into the hull (the Albin Vega mast ends at deck level and does not go to the bottom of the yacht). This caused the wooden frame supporting the deck under the mast to be constantly wet. We had the opportunity to fix the leaking wiring. Alfred showed us a solution where the cables are led outside at the lower part of the mast and brought under the deck through a metal pipe. Based on this, Kamil came up with the idea of making a pipe inside the mast (to reduce the risk of snagging on cables and the pipe during work on the mast). We glued a PVC sewer pipe sleeve into the deck, into which a suitable PVC cap fits. We glued a flexible corrugated tube reinforced with wire (similar to a vacuum cleaner tube, but designed for difficult weather conditions) into the cap. We run the cables through this tube inside and when setting the mast, we bend it so that it forms a "pipe" inside the mast. This definitively closed the leak issue at this spot for subsequent years.
Ela and Staś come to Asaa to get us and take us to Copenhagen. From there, we take a bus to Malmo and then a ferry to Szczecin.
Comments