Shipwrecked uninhabited island inside the Netherlands

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SvenH

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Scary situation. He was lucky to survive. The Westerly Cirrus did not. Well done to someone spotting the half sunken boat and reporting it.

Good article in the Magazine you linked. Much better informed and explained than the typical press & RNLI reports we see here. I note the writer had spoken to the KNRM (Dutch equivalent of RNLI) rather than just rehashed a press release.

I'd assumed this was in some remote place like Friesland, but was in the IJsselmeer, just a few km off Medemblik. Shows how vulnerable we are even in 'home' waters and seemingly benign conditions.

Skipper seemingly unprepared. No VHF, EPIRB, flares or other distress signals, and phone battery flat. Ran out of food. Inadequate anchor watch in suspect holding, it appears. At least he had the initiative to contrive a shelter out of sails, and had additional clothes to put on.

I wonder what I might to attract attention in such a situation - barely above sea level; vessels unlikely to pass close by but presumably quite a number a bit further away; and 'within sight' of low lying heavily populated land (at least to anyone using binoculars) but only if one can get height. I imagine just tethering a sail from the masthead alone would at least more likely catch someone's eye, even if one couldn't contrive anything more specifically. Certainly encourages my scepticism about doing without flares.
 
SvenH said:
Bit of a chilling story:
German sailor anchored next to "Kreupel" island north west of Enkhuizen to enjoy the silence. Weather changed and anchor did not hold.
Boat sank on the rocks.

Lack of preparation in a quiet season lead to being stranded for 2 days without being noticed. Due to the season this could have easily been more than two days resulting in death...
Very close call...:

Gevangen tussen keien en kou: solozeiler overleeft tweeënhalve dag op De Kreupel dankzij KNRM | Zeilen
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I cannot read the article.

I find it difficult to believe there are still uninhabited islands ( ACTUALLY no I don’t, I mean islands not OWNED).

Drifting the thread, was the island owned?

Any islands not owned under UK law (I know this one is not UK - but does it still apply?) …

… can be inhabited for x amount of years and thereafter becomes one’s own property. Great for a hermit with resources.

Was this an island or a lump of rock sticking out of the sea with no fresh water, no soil or vegetation…

A lot of thread drift there; apologies if it offends or detracts from thread - simply ignore.

Watched a film based upon facts about s family that settled in the Galapagos; they created a home. The 20- something year old wife gave birth and brought up a family with her husband and children whilst others perished.

She lived to 96.

The land she leased or owned (since 1937) is still under family ownership and a small hotel is built there.

Hence my interest in islands.
 
Kreupel Island is a nature reserve with restricted access, with a small marina, without facilities. Looking at maps, you cannot even get to land from the marina, so maybe you need to call it just a set of jetties.

Kreupel was built on top of an existing shallow, to become a nature reserve, a resting place for birds.
 
I have sailed up and down the Ijselmeer many times but never noticed the island, probably as I was usually doing a direct route from around Makkum to Enkhuisen. There is often a colony of black terns in this region and I wonder if they nest on the island. I sold my Cirrus to a German in 1973, so I hope it wasn’t that one.
 
SvenH said:
Bit of a chilling story:
German sailor anchored next to "Kreupel" island north west of Enkhuizen to enjoy the silence. Weather changed and anchor did not hold.
Boat sank on the rocks.

Lack of preparation in a quiet season lead to being stranded for 2 days without being noticed. Due to the season this could have easily been more than two days resulting in death...
Very close call...:

Gevangen tussen keien en kou: solozeiler overleeft tweeënhalve dag op De Kreupel dankzij KNRM | Zeilen
Click to expand...
I've stopped at this harbour a couple of times, an idyllic spot in summertime so peaceful. Very limited facilities except stagings to moor to and a man to collect the fees. This skipper appeared to have anchored outside the harbour
. The seas build incredibly in the shallow water.
 
In fact, the boat survived to run aground a different day!; "His Westerly Cirrus , badly damaged, was salvaged on behalf of Rijkswaterstaat and transported to Lelystad." (y)
 
Salvaged by the Rjkswaterstaat may simply mean removed.I understand that if you don't get on and remove a wreck in the Netherlands the state will do it and send you a large bill.Not something that happens here.
 
News item about the man himself. Apparently he is Dutch but "with a German address."
The story is not getting any clearer, he seems to have commercial sailors in his family but his level of unpreparedness plus his lack of acknowledgment of this is baffling.

"The trip from Workum tot North Holland province was heavy, and his tank was almost empty" shows complete lack of knowledge and preparedness.

Schipbreukeling Ben (70) overleefde dag en nacht op onbewoond eiland IJsselmeer
 
I believe one of the biggest hazards for us yachties is complacency.
I started this trip, Makkum to Enkhuizen one balmy August day, perfect sailing conditions
Soon a 25 knot squall arrived on the nose. Very steep waves quickly arrived making progress difficult. Luckily Stavoren was under our lee so we dived in there.
The same situation on November would be very unpleasant.
 
DanTribe said:
I believe one of the biggest hazards for us yachties is complacency.
I started this trip, Makkum to Enkhuizen one balmy August day, perfect sailing conditions
Soon a 25 knot squall arrived on the nose. Very steep waves quickly arrived making progress difficult. Luckily Stavoren was under our lee so we dived in there.
The same situation on November would be very unpleasant.
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One of the very few times I have needed a double reef was when sailing from Lemmer to Lelystad. Very tiresome as far as I recall.
 
I think it might be because in NL one can just go sailing, no diploma's or certificates required. Yachts do not need to be registered, just have basic liability insurance. And it is law that you know the rules. But not everyone knows that law...

I guess it is mostly common knowledge you are better of with training but some just do go, after buying a eu 400,-- boat.

The IJsselmeer can turn to choppy within minutes and if you haven't learned and practiced what you need to do, you can get in trouble.
 
'I think it might be because in NL one can just go sailing, no diploma's or certificates required. Yachts do not need to be registered, just have basic liability insurance. And it is law that you know the rules. But not everyone knows that law...

I guess it is mostly common knowledge you are better of with training but some just do go, after buying a eu 400,-- boat.

The IJsselmeer can turn to choppy within minutes and if you haven't learned and practiced what you need to do, you can get in trouble.'

This equally applies in the UK and to UK sailors .
My standout impression is that if a very well found boat ,sail or motor,enters the harbour it is going to be dutch.
 
SvenH said:
I think it might be because in NL one can just go sailing, no diploma's or certificates required. Yachts do not need to be registered, just have basic liability insurance. And it is law that you know the rules. But not everyone knows that law...

I guess it is mostly common knowledge you are better of with training but some just do go, after buying a eu 400,-- boat.

The IJsselmeer can turn to choppy within minutes and if you haven't learned and practiced what you need to do, you can get in trouble.
Click to expand...
That's more restrictive than the UK where you need no training, qualifications, or insurance.
I've spent almost all of my time as a boat owner uninsured, and only had insurance when I had a marina or yard contract which required it.
 
bluerm166 said:
This equally applies in the UK and to UK sailors .
My standout impression is that if a very well found boat ,sail or motor,enters the harbour it is going to be dutch.
Click to expand...
Probably because the clunkers (boats and people) bimble around the Dutch coast, just like the Brits. You'd probably find British boats in Dutch harbours in better nick than the average in a British harbour.
 
Stemar said:
Probably because the clunkers (boats and people) bimble around the Dutch coast, just like the Brits. You'd probably find British boats in Dutch harbours in better nick than the average in a British harbour.
Click to expand...

We used to try to ensure that those 'better nick' Dutch boats that got over here didn't stay that way. 😁

1763207846766.png
 
SvenH said:
I think it might be because in NL one can just go sailing, no diploma's or certificates required. Yachts do not need to be registered, just have basic liability insurance. And it is law that you know the rules. But not everyone knows that law...
Click to expand...
Whilst it is counterintuitive - the lack of qualification can actually make mistakes like this LESS likely. When you define a minimum standard for something - driving, sailing, rock climbing, diving, etc - often it becomes a level which nobody bothers to develop skills/training beyond. In reality many people who achieve a minimum standard on the day of the test get worse afterwards but still have the piece of paper. So whilst this is an example that MIGHT have been avoided with some more experience or at least quicker resolved with better equipment there are still plenty of sailors making mistakes and struggling to call for help in jurisdictions that are far more restrictive on leisureboat users.

I think the Isjelmeer, might trick some users into thinking it’s low risk because it is just a giant pond. I don’t think we saw a single yacht anchor there in a week we enjoyed there. A great location with lots of on shore character as well as good sailing. Good to see it is well served by rescue services too.
 
ylop said:
Whilst it is counterintuitive - the lack of qualification can actually make mistakes like this LESS likely. When you define a minimum standard for something - driving, sailing, rock climbing, diving, etc - often it becomes a level which nobody bothers to develop skills/training beyond. In reality many people who achieve a minimum standard on the day of the test get worse afterwards but still have the piece of paper. So whilst this is an example that MIGHT have been avoided with some more experience or at least quicker resolved with better equipment there are still plenty of sailors making mistakes and struggling to call for help in jurisdictions that are far more restrictive on leisureboat users.

I think the Isjelmeer, might trick some users into thinking it’s low risk because it is just a giant pond. I don’t think we saw a single yacht anchor there in a week we enjoyed there. A great location with lots of on shore character as well as good sailing. Good to see it is well served by rescue services too.
Click to expand...
I was thinking that I had anchored there but in fact I was remembering the Haringvliet. I can't recall seeing anyone anchored in the Ijselmeer, except for the lagoon at Enkhuizen which is a handy stopover. In the Haringvliet we went ashore with the children and played French cricket with a tennis ball and a half Avon oar, much to the mystification of the locals.
 
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