Harwich to IJmuiden and on to Wadden islands.

[stu9000]

Hi all,
I am finalising the passage plan to Holland and would be interested to get your views.

Detailed plan, as a Google doc is here, but please do not feel you need to trawl through it.

In summary, I will hop up from the home mooring on the Blackwater to Shotley, wait a few hours and then jump off to Ijmuiden. I sail a Westerly Seahawk. I usually calculate the cruising speed as a conservative 5k. Myself and one able bodied crew On board.

The excellent North Sea Passage Pilot recommends leaving Harwich at local Hw, but his crusing speed is 6k. Ideally I want to cross TSS and DWR routes in daylight, although I do have AIS. I also want to make landfall in daylight. The best compromise I have found so far is to depart Harwich Hw - 4. 1600 hrs. The current is against at first, but is dropping by the time im out in the chamnel proper.That gets me into Ijmuiden at 2000 ish.

Once past the East Anglia One wind farm the currents are on the beam and I hope they will cancel each other out.

The NSPP recommends coming into Ijmuiden with a north going tide. We arrive at peak flow Southerly. I could aim high, but that means potentially drifting into the shipping approach channel for IJmuiden. Any thoughts on this?

From Ijmuiden I'm thinking either the marina on Texel island, or Den Helder, depending on wind and tide.

Any recommendations on the islands?

Again, depending on weather, we might dip into the Ijsselmeer, taking the inland route to Amsterdam then back home via Ijmuiden.

We have 10 days. Seems doable to me. But I have never sailed the Ijsselmeer so do not know how slow the locks and canals are.

Cheers all.

 

[Pye_End]

Went over about a month ago from SYH to Ijmuiden. Took 25 hours (26 foot boat - not that fast - single handed). However, it took 2 days to get a good enough forecast to do it. Might be more lucky now that summer has come, but don't bank on it. Left at high water (6am), S Bawdsey, round the top of shipwash, and set a heading for Ijmuiden (75 degrees maybe), and just let the tides do their thing. Went south of East Anglia wind farm; took all traffic lanes or TSS's as required as they came up; tides then took me north over the windfarm outside Ijmuiden (had to play with heading a bit from there to get to Ijmuiden entrance without entering Ijmuiden lane or wind farm due to strength of tide). None of the trip was hard on the wind, this time, and this can be hard work. Coming back took longer though not sure why. I wouldn't get too hung up on which bit of the trip you do in the dark. You will meet shipping across the trip in day and night, and most of it is straight forward at the time. Handy to get into Ijmuiden in the light. To get your passport stamped you are less likely for them to come to the marina than a couple of months ago, and the office is a 45 minute brisk walk each way, though there are buses from the marina which will help with most of the walk.

Den Helder is windy relative to everywhere else round there, so if the weather doesn't play ball, then that could be the hardest destination. You can lock in to the old dockyard to a relatively new marina, and there is a museum there which is worth going round (including a submarine). Nice cafes also along the edge of the old docks. Texel is nice. You can hire a tuk tuk there or bikes. Cruise ship was there when I went. Don't know how often this happens. My favourite is Vlieland, though it can fill up (have a look at this useful page: De Waddenhavens - Stichting Jachthavens Waddeneilanden). Terschelling also worth a visit. However, you may get to Ijmuiden and decide to do Amsterdam instead because of the weather - just 3 hours away, and then into the Markenmeer.

If you go Den Oever then worth sailing further into the Ijsselmeer to Medemblik or Enkhuizen. Hoorn and Volendam also fabulous spots. The locks at Enkhuizen are probably going to be quicker than Lemmer. If in south Ijsselmeer then Naarden and Muiderslot well worth spending time in.

Coming home - keep an eye on the weather from a week before you need to be back!

For the detail of where to go in the Netherlands, it would be worth having a few different possibilities in mind and seeing how you get on depending on the wind. The Wadden Sea for instance can kick up a nasty sea with wind against a strong tide. Even beating in the Ijsselmeer can be unexpectedly tough. Keep your options open and it will be more of a holiday than a forced march. Your actual departure strategy from the Netherlands, and the weather you get will soon tell you how much you can bite off in 10 days. Fabulous place to sail, and 10 days will give you a taster for return plans.

 

[Dockhead]

Just came from there.

I've done the Ijsselmeer several times en route back from the Baltic to the Solent. It's delightful and highly recommended. The locks are not that difficult or time consuming. Last week we hit Harlingen, Enkhuizen, and Amsterdam before coming out the Nordzee Canal at Ijmuiden. There are new gigantic locks at Ijmuiden so the old locks are used only by pleasure vessels and it's very fast and efficient.

That said Den Helder is also a very nice stop and quite easy to get into, should you choose to go around the outside.

The Waddensee is shallow and treacherous with constantly shifting sands. We've been into Borkum once, and Norderney once, but never again. It's not worth it with our 2.3m draught.

I would not worry about day or night for the North Sea (you do have radar, right?). Your main and actually only concern is wind and weather. The North Sea is a tough bit of water in any kind of weather; you will want to carefully choose the weather window.

 

[stu9000]

Went over about a month ago from SYH to Ijmuiden. Took 25 hours (26 foot boat - not that fast - single handed). However, it took 2 days to get a good enough forecast to do it. Might be more lucky now that summer has come, but don't bank on it. Left at high water (6am), S Bawdsey, round the top of shipwash, and set a heading for Ijmuiden (75 degrees maybe), and just let the tides do their thing. Went south of East Anglia wind farm; took all traffic lanes or TSS's as required as they came up; tides then took me north over the windfarm outside Ijmuiden (had to play with heading a bit from there to get to Ijmuiden entrance without entering Ijmuiden lane or wind farm due to strength of tide). None of the trip was hard on the wind, this time, and this can be hard work. Coming back took longer though not sure why. I wouldn't get too hung up on which bit of the trip you do in the dark. You will meet shipping across the trip in day and night, and most of it is straight forward at the time. Handy to get into Ijmuiden in the light. To get your passport stamped you are less likely for them to come to the marina than a couple of months ago, and the office is a 45 minute brisk walk each way, though there are buses from the marina which will help with most of the walk.

Den Helder is windy relative to everywhere else round there, so if the weather doesn't play ball, then that could be the hardest destination. You can lock in to the old dockyard to a relatively new marina, and there is a museum there which is worth going round (including a submarine). Nice cafes also along the edge of the old docks. Texel is nice. You can hire a tuk tuk there or bikes. Cruise ship was there when I went. Don't know how often this happens. My favourite is Vlieland, though it can fill up (have a look at this useful page: De Waddenhavens - Stichting Jachthavens Waddeneilanden). Terschelling also worth a visit. However, you may get to Ijmuiden and decide to do Amsterdam instead because of the weather - just 3 hours away, and then into the Markenmeer.

If you go Den Oever then worth sailing further into the Ijsselmeer to Medemblik or Enkhuizen. Hoorn and Volendam also fabulous spots. The locks at Enkhuizen are probably going to be quicker than Lemmer. If in south Ijsselmeer then Naarden and Muiderslot well worth spending time in.

Coming home - keep an eye on the weather from a week before you need to be back!

For the detail of where to go in the Netherlands, it would be worth having a few different possibilities in mind and seeing how you get on depending on the wind. The Wadden Sea for instance can kick up a nasty sea with wind against a strong tide. Even beating in the Ijsselmeer can be unexpectedly tough. Keep your options open and it will be more of a holiday than a forced march. Your actual departure strategy from the Netherlands, and the weather you get will soon tell you how much you can bite off in 10 days. Fabulous place to sail, and 10 days will give you a taster for return plans.

This post is an absolute gold mine.
Thanks v much.
26h single handed is pretty amazing.
I will have folding bikes on board which should make getting to Ijmuiden customs.
However, I am struggling to locate the office where we get our passports stamped on arrival.

Interesting to read that Dan Helder can be exposed, and thanks for the info on the islands.
I agree flexibility is key and that I should work with the weather.
I am jumping off on July 6th so expect to be getting reliable wind forecasts any day now.

Thanks again.

S

 

[stu9000]

Just came from there.

I've done the Ijsselmeer several times en route back from the Baltic to the Solent. It's delightful and highly recommended. The locks are not that difficult or time consuming. Last week we hit Harlingen, Enkhuizen, and Amsterdam before coming out the Nordzee Canal at Ijmuiden. There are new gigantic locks at Ijmuiden so the old locks are used only by pleasure vessels and it's very fast and efficient.

That said Den Helder is also a very nice stop and quite easy to get into, should you choose to go around the outside.

The Waddensee is shallow and treacherous with constantly shifting sands. We've been into Borkum once, and Norderney once, but never again. It's not worth it with our 2.3m draught.

I would not worry about day or night for the North Sea (you do have radar, right?). Your main and actually only concern is wind and weather. The North Sea is a tough bit of water in any kind of weather; you will want to carefully choose the weather window.

Yes I have radar and AIS. I certainly dont fancy bashing into a headwind for 26 hours so would possibly divert to Oosende or even Ramsgate and Calais if the weather was poor.

The Waddensee sounds interesting. Some of those east side shallow channel routes could be fun in the right conditions. I have read it is less busy precisely because of the shallows and shifting sands you mention. We draw 1.5m and are single keel. I dont mind ghosting up with a rising tide but if we got it wrong we could have an uncomfortable few hours dried out on our ear, and there is always the concern that it will pick up while we are dried out. It is sands is it?

Thank you for sharing.

S

 

[Pye_End]

This post is an absolute gold mine.
Thanks v much.
26h single handed is pretty amazing.
I will have folding bikes on board which should make getting to Ijmuiden customs.
However, I am struggling to locate the office where we get our passports stamped on arrival.

Interesting to read that Dan Helder can be exposed, and thanks for the info on the islands.
I agree flexibility is key and that I should work with the weather.
I am jumping off on July 6th so expect to be getting reliable wind forecasts any day now.

Thanks again.

S

Bikes - I am jealous. I wish I had a boat big enough to take some!

I wouldn't say Den Helder was any more exposed than anywhere else, probably less so, but if you look at say windy you will normally see blobs of colour round that corner, and the tides can get really strong (I was told up to 6kn across the entrance), so potentially bouncy. For the route between Den Helder and Den Oever it is initially quite broad and deep (though it looks as though there is no-go areas quite near the channel - never did work out what was going on), but further up it is important to stay within the marked channel as the edges are steep and you have little warning.

Passport Ijmuiden:

 

[johnalison]

From Walton we would go that way to the Baltic or northern Dutchland. With a 34 and cruising speed of 6 knots or more we preferred to go via Lowestoft in day sails. Leaving Lowestoft at about 6 am we would get to Ijmuiden between 10 and 11 in time for my beauty sleep. By this time we were sailing as a couple and both in our 70s, which may have affected our choice.

In the past we did Blackwater, round the Frisians and back via Lauersoog and the Ijselmeer and the mast-up route in three weeks in a Sadler 29. Ten days is feasible for the northern section but it is always the case with going that way that the weather will mean a ferry trip home, something I only had to do once in over forty years.

Den Helder is fine, and has a maritime museum that I have not visited. Texel has more of a holiday feel and is interesting if you have or can hire bikes. Attractions range from a spoonbill nesting site to a brewery. The islands all get very busy at weekends and full of charter barges, so care needs to be taken to avoid busy locks on Sat and Sun. We were very fond of Harlingen which is an attractive town. The main harbour is busy but fun and the sailing club harbour round the back is quiet and friendly but possibly shallow for boat more than 1.5m.

You could spend a month or more exploring the Ijselmeer and its various ports but it would be well worth while going through and choosing a few places to stop. If you have not done Amsterdam, a night or two at the Sixhaven is part of many sailors' favourite memories.

 

[MK101]

For local tidal information I highly recommend HP33, the Dutch tidal atlas. Great overview (plus tide times for all the major ports along the coast) and details of all the many tricky areas, including the Waddenzee. Invaluable. It is available as a download from here: NLTides - HP33D (English) but I admit I find the book form much more useful. Nice big format, easy to read. Not sure if it's available in the UK though.

For the islands and Waddenzee, the other brilliant resource is to be found here: Nautin: HOME or via the Quick Tide app. You do have to make a small payment (€17 if I remember) but there is lots of information on there, and Quick Tide allows you to check expected depth/clearance at the specific pinch points in the channels in the Waddenzee. If you put your details in, then it will give you real numbers. Of course it is still a prediction but the foundation which runs it takes pride in updating actual depths regularly. I have never found it to be out of kilter in the last four years of using it regularly and it provides a useful check to your own calculations.

Your draft will limit you a bit but there are still plenty of options behind the islands. For example, Texel or Den Helder to Vlieland/Terschelling via the Scheurrak - a great trip in the right conditions. Or you could go to Harlingen and then out to the islands via the Blauwe Slenk. It gets pretty busy in summer - the Waddenhavens websites which an earlier reply linked to have guides to how busy they are and webcams, which can be very useful. If you're going from Den Helder or Texel (Oudeschild) then you can also go outside, if the weather is right. Check the wave heights in the channels between the islands here: Rijkswaterstaat Waterinfo

Den Helder is interesting and the museum is definitely worth it. You can stay in the Dutch Naval yacht club (KMJC) as well as the marina. On some days (if you're there) you can eat in the Officers' Club. Very nice. Texel is great - Oudeschild is a super place, with lots to see (also a fascinating museum) and if you hire a bike or don't mind a longer walk, then there's lots to explore. There's more than one brewery now! Vlieland and Terschelling are both lovely - I prefer Terschelling but it's a close thing. As with Den Helder or Texel (if you're coming from Ijmuiden) you can more or less at the last moment decide which you want to go to as you approach. Be well aware of wind over tide, and listen out to VHF channel 2 for info on ferries etc. There's lots of them about and they travel quite fast. It's all good fun, and great sailing to be had. There are LOADS of Dutch sailing barges, which often head out to dry out on the sands.

The IJsselmeer locks can take a bit of time in high summer, but they're well practiced. And so are most of the occupants. It can be a bit lively but everyone gets on with it. Check on Fairway Information Services for any restrictions on openings etc., also of bridges. Make sure you check messages - that's where you'll get details. They're also on the Waterkaart live app - which is very useful.

IJsselmeer/Markermeer are very different to the Waddenzee but really interesting places to sail, and with lots of fascinating small places to look at. A round trip ie IJmuiden, Waddenzee, IJsselmeer, Amsterdam and out again at IJmuiden is probably doable but sounds a lot to me. You certainly wouldn't have a huge amount of time to explore the different places you visited. But pretty much anywhere is well worth it, so have a great time!

 

[johnalison]

For a single trip I don’t think you need to get too worked up about the tides providing you have the general pattern. There is, though, a short passage just south of Den Helder where it can run strongly at around four knots, which is not good news if you are going the wrong way.

It is pretty straightforward to sail from Den Helder/Texel round to Harlingen and on to Vlieland/Terschelling within the buoyed channels and be independent of tide height, except for a short section south of Harlingen that goes down to about 2m or a little less where care might be needed.

The Ijselmeer can be an enjoyable tide-free sailing area but can get very lumpy in a blow, and you need to keep a lookout for barges with a freeboard of an inch or less. It is not a great area for wildlife other than greenfly in hot weather, but there is a resident population of black terns that are worth looking out for.

 

[stu9000]

Bikes - I am jealous. I wish I had a boat big enough to take some!

I wouldn't say Den Helder was any more exposed than anywhere else, probably less so, but if you look at say windy you will normally see blobs of colour round that corner, and the tides can get really strong (I was told up to 6kn across the entrance), so potentially bouncy. For the route between Den Helder and Den Oever it is initially quite broad and deep (though it looks as though there is no-go areas quite near the channel - never did work out what was going on), but further up it is important to stay within the marked channel as the edges are steep and you have little warning.

Passport Ijmuiden:

Thanks for the map!

The bike is an old folding bike job I got off e bay. I just hang them off the pushpit. Really REALLY handy for a bit of an explore when tired, or just to check in. Worked so well I got another for the crew to use. They are getting steadily more rusty, and don't like the salt, but I love em.

 

[Frayed Knot]

Immigration Office right on the south (small) lock at Ijmuiden. There’s a spot to moor temporarily immediately after the lock, south side & only a couple of minutes walk.
Our favourite place to stop here, even if we plan to go back to sea, is Ijmond YC just off the canal about four and a half miles towards Amsterdam.
It’s a lovely spot, friendly, cheap and only spoiled by aircraft noise but we find we can ignore it & there are far fewer flights during the night.

 

[Dockhead]

Yes I have radar and AIS. I certainly dont fancy bashing into a headwind for 26 hours so would possibly divert to Oosende or even Ramsgate and Calais if the weather was poor.

The Waddensee sounds interesting. Some of those east side shallow channel routes could be fun in the right conditions. I have read it is less busy precisely because of the shallows and shifting sands you mention. We draw 1.5m and are single keel. I dont mind ghosting up with a rising tide but if we got it wrong we could have an uncomfortable few hours dried out on our ear, and there is always the concern that it will pick up while we are dried out. It is sands is it?

Thank you for sharing.

S

Well, that's Riddle of the Sands land, and I'm sure very lovely and interesting. Post photos.

 

[Dockhead]

Immigration Office right on the south (small) lock at Ijmuiden. There’s a spot to moor temporarily immediately after the lock, south side & only a couple of minutes walk.
Our favourite place to stop here, even if we plan to go back to sea, is Ijmond YC just off the canal about four and a half miles towards Amsterdam.
It’s a lovely spot, friendly, cheap and only spoiled by aircraft noise but we find we can ignore it & there are far fewer flights during the night.

That's what I should have done. Wasted half a day running around Amsterdam getting our passports stamped.

 

[Pye_End]

Immigration Office right on the south (small) lock at Ijmuiden. There’s a spot to moor temporarily immediately after the lock, south side & only a couple of minutes walk.

By far the easiest way if you aren't stopping in Ijmuiden Marina first.

 

[MK101]

Our favourite place to stop here, even if we plan to go back to sea, is Ijmond YC just off the canal about four and a half miles towards Amsterdam.
It’s a lovely spot, friendly, cheap and only spoiled by aircraft noise but we find we can ignore it & there are far fewer flights during the night.

Sadly Ijmond Jachthaven almost certainly isn't an option this year if you have a mast, because the bridge you need to go through to get there from the North Sea canal is out of action in the long term. They have organised the odd one-off but not for a good while.

100% agree that doing the passport after locking through is well worth it.

 

[Frayed Knot]

Sadly Ijmond Jachthaven almost certainly isn't an option this year if you have a mast, because the bridge you need to go through to get there from the North Sea canal is out of action in the long term. They have organised the odd one-off but not for a good while.

100% agree that doing the passport after locking through is well worth it.

That’s really bad news - not least for locals - as well as the entire Haalem route being inaccessible.

 

[stu9000]

From Walton we would go that way to the Baltic or northern Dutchland. With a 34 and cruising speed of 6 knots or more we preferred to go via Lowestoft in day sails. Leaving Lowestoft at about 6 am we would get to Ijmuiden between 10 and 11 in time for my beauty sleep. By this time we were sailing as a couple and both in our 70s, which may have affected our choice.

In the past we did Blackwater, round the Frisians and back via Lauersoog and the Ijselmeer and the mast-up route in three weeks in a Sadler 29. Ten days is feasible for the northern section but it is always the case with going that way that the weather will mean a ferry trip home, something I only had to do once in over forty years.

Den Helder is fine, and has a maritime museum that I have not visited. Texel has more of a holiday feel and is interesting if you have or can hire bikes. Attractions range from a spoonbill nesting site to a brewery. The islands all get very busy at weekends and full of charter barges, so care needs to be taken to avoid busy locks on Sat and Sun. We were very fond of Harlingen which is an attractive town. The main harbour is busy but fun and the sailing club harbour round the back is quiet and friendly but possibly shallow for boat more than 1.5m.

You could spend a month or more exploring the Ijselmeer and its various ports but it would be well worth while going through and choosing a few places to stop. If you have not done Amsterdam, a night or two at the Sixhaven is part of many sailors' favourite memories.

Thanks. Really useful, as always.
It is still to early to get a forecast from Predict Wind. This is Friday 4th.



It seem to cycle through a pattern of southerlies followed by northerlies.
If the gods are smiling, Ill have a fair wind going and then it switch to take me home.

 

[stu9000]

Immigration Office right on the south (small) lock at Ijmuiden. There’s a spot to moor temporarily immediately after the lock, south side & only a couple of minutes walk.
Our favourite place to stop here, even if we plan to go back to sea, is Ijmond YC just off the canal about four and a half miles towards Amsterdam.
It’s a lovely spot, friendly, cheap and only spoiled by aircraft noise but we find we can ignore it & there are far fewer flights during the night.

Great tip. Is this where you mean?

 

[stu9000]

Sadly Ijmond Jachthaven almost certainly isn't an option this year if you have a mast, because the bridge you need to go through to get there from the North Sea canal is out of action in the long term. They have organised the odd one-off but not for a good while.

100% agree that doing the passport after locking through is well worth it.

Hi,
can you help me identify the bridge that is "out of action" please?
Not to doubt you, but I cannot find any notices about it.
Using Google Maps because it shows the crossings clearly Some are tunnels, I think
Is this the bridge you are referring to?


I read your article on this, and found the link very helpful.
https://www.theca.org.uk/system/files/SMR info sources_1_0.pdf
So much so I have just applied to join the Cruising Assoc.
As I understand it, coming up from the south via Vlissengen is out of the question, but I can still get to Amsterdam and to the

 

[Pye_End]

View attachment 195277

Great tip. Is this where you mean?

No, you will find big ones along there.

Moor here: