TheBoatman
Well-Known Member
OK, Why didn\'t anyone tell me?
Just finished a "trip round the bay in the sky-lark" stuff this week.
Basic outline is:
Medway - Ramsgate.
Ramsgate - Nieuport.
Nieuport - Dunkerque.
Dunkerque - Ramsgate.
Ramsgate - Medway.
First part of the trip was going swimingly until we met friends in Ramsgate (Royal Temple) who promptly told us that to go to Belgium we would need a SCHENGAN!! In fact if we were going "foreign" we would need a different SCHENGAN for each country.
Further enquiries revealed the normal horror stories ranging from "I never bother" to "God they turned me and the boat over the last time I went".
It appears that if the Customs man hasn't much on that day and decides to lay one on you, everything gets looked at, ICC ticket, SSR cert, Sail number cert, vhf lic, insurance doc, passports, anchors, warps, flares, the lot.
SO, I decided to wait one more day in Ramsgate and try to get a SCHENGAN from the RYA after a call to their legal dept who advised me NOT to travel unless I was the proud possesor of a filled in SCHENGAN.
Getting the form downloaded from the RYA site is worth another post at a later date but for now lets just say I suceeded (eventually).
Armed with my filled in SCHENGAN I set off for Belgium, never to be asked or boarded by anyone. Not a sole wanted to see my SCHENGAN and I must admit I was ever so disappointed having gone to so much trouble to get one!! Although, we and most other boats were buzzed by helicopters from various countries on the run down from Belgium to france.
The question is?
Why didn't any of you b***rs tell me I needed one before I set off!!!!!
Peter.
BTW.
We had a really good trip with lots of free and fast sailing the only downside was that yet again the French conspired to poison me having had just one meal in France! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Just finished a "trip round the bay in the sky-lark" stuff this week.
Basic outline is:
Medway - Ramsgate.
Ramsgate - Nieuport.
Nieuport - Dunkerque.
Dunkerque - Ramsgate.
Ramsgate - Medway.
First part of the trip was going swimingly until we met friends in Ramsgate (Royal Temple) who promptly told us that to go to Belgium we would need a SCHENGAN!! In fact if we were going "foreign" we would need a different SCHENGAN for each country.
Further enquiries revealed the normal horror stories ranging from "I never bother" to "God they turned me and the boat over the last time I went".
It appears that if the Customs man hasn't much on that day and decides to lay one on you, everything gets looked at, ICC ticket, SSR cert, Sail number cert, vhf lic, insurance doc, passports, anchors, warps, flares, the lot.
SO, I decided to wait one more day in Ramsgate and try to get a SCHENGAN from the RYA after a call to their legal dept who advised me NOT to travel unless I was the proud possesor of a filled in SCHENGAN.
Getting the form downloaded from the RYA site is worth another post at a later date but for now lets just say I suceeded (eventually).
Armed with my filled in SCHENGAN I set off for Belgium, never to be asked or boarded by anyone. Not a sole wanted to see my SCHENGAN and I must admit I was ever so disappointed having gone to so much trouble to get one!! Although, we and most other boats were buzzed by helicopters from various countries on the run down from Belgium to france.
The question is?
Why didn't any of you b***rs tell me I needed one before I set off!!!!!
Peter.
BTW.
We had a really good trip with lots of free and fast sailing the only downside was that yet again the French conspired to poison me having had just one meal in France! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
