ChrisE
Well-Known Member
As you are all probably aware by now Rival Spirit is slowly making her way back from Norway. Well here's the latest part, and hopefully nearly the end, of the saga.
We hired a couple of Norwegians to bring RS back from Stavanger where she had repairs to rudder and an annoying leak fixed. They left a week ago last Thursday with the intent of leaving her at the eastern end of the Kiel Canal for us to bring through canal and await the final part of voyage home.
Well, as ever, things didn't go quite to plan and the guys got her as far as Odense in Denmark having had engine problems (a new first). Liz and I flew to Hamburg on Thursday with the intent of getting to Odense late in the afternoon and then off. As you will no doubt be unsurprised to hear the plane was late meaning that we missed our train connection and had to wait 2 hours for the next one. Still we had couple of pints in Hamburg station awaiting the train which arrived on time but half the normal length which meant that the swanky 1st class we'd purchased was wasted as the train was packed to capacity and they hadn't had time to service the 1st class area leading to none of the promised food and drink. Train plodded northwards to Schleswig Holstein where the train boards a ferry to get to the island of Fyn which Odense is on. We are then told that due to ferry problems the train will be delayed for 40 mins to await next ferry. Get on this ferry and grab a quick bite in the restaurant before jumping back onto train and off again. Because of the ferry delays we miss the connecting train and wait for an hour for the next train to take us to Odense where we arrived at 7:30 as opposed to the planned 3. Wander down to dock to find boat where it was supposed to be and reasonable order. Off to dodgy Italian for a meal then back to boat.
By the time the Odense has woken up and we have provisioned, bunkered and seen harbour master it is 10 o'clock an the planned 60 miles is down to 40 with a forecast W9 due in the evening. An uneventful voyage follows up the 10 miles of the Odense ship canal and 30 miles west to Fredericia and after some fooling around in the dark we berth up with the intention of being up at crack of sparrows to move boat on the last 60 miles to Kiel. Look at weather forecast and it looks as if the F9 will have blown itself out by morning and we can go. In the mean time off to YC restaurant for a magnificent duck meal (see earlier post on where are you tonight).
Awake next morning at 6 to sound of high south wind and a big chop blasting into the south facing marina entrance where we are berthed. Thoughts of going anywhere fast evaporate and we rollover to see when this is going to go, there is still an outside chance of moving further south, if not Kiel. Take adavantage of the time to look at forecast, another f9 rolling along behind the first one. Thoughts now turn to securing boat in current location to await pick up for journey home. Spend from 10 to 11 moving boat to a more secure berth, fooling around with a Baltic moor (bow-to with two poles at stern that have to be passed through and ropes secured to them). We finish the work to be greeted with the rain stopping, the sun coming out and the wind dropping to nothing. More debate about moving and decide that for the effort of moving and the risk of being caught out in a big wind we call it best and walk into Fredericia, following the recommendation from SimonCr. Well, the place may look nice during the summer but during the winter (it was 6 degrees with heavy showers) and post 2 o'clock on a Saturday with all of the shops shut it is about as interesting as Holland without the lights.
Walk home in the rain to the boat at 5, by which time it is beer o'clock and we sit below having a preprandial when the wind picks up and picks up and picks up and eventually we are nearly on our beam ends as a vigorous front comes through. Didn't have the instruments on but it felt higher than the previous highest wind I'd experienced on the boat and that was a f11 in Poole harbour in May 1996. Fortunately it was short lived and the weather cleared to blow about 25 knots with clear skies and intermittent heavy showers. Felt extremely smug for not trying push on as we'd have got that lot in the dark in a strange harbour.
We went to the YC restaurant for a last meal and went to bed with the prospect of a 4:15 start for the train and plane connection back to the UK. I can report that all connections went to clockwork including a 5 min connection gap atone point and we eventually landed at Heathrow 15 minutes ahead of schedule at 2 o'clock.
Was it all worth it? Of course it was, we established that RS was in good nick, that the engine problem is jamming starter motor bendix that seems to sure itself after a couple of tries, we got a bit a cruise in and managed not to think about work or the usual run of things for 72 hours.
I'll tell you what, though, I'll be glad when RS is finally back on her mooring, scheduled for the end of this month.
We hired a couple of Norwegians to bring RS back from Stavanger where she had repairs to rudder and an annoying leak fixed. They left a week ago last Thursday with the intent of leaving her at the eastern end of the Kiel Canal for us to bring through canal and await the final part of voyage home.
Well, as ever, things didn't go quite to plan and the guys got her as far as Odense in Denmark having had engine problems (a new first). Liz and I flew to Hamburg on Thursday with the intent of getting to Odense late in the afternoon and then off. As you will no doubt be unsurprised to hear the plane was late meaning that we missed our train connection and had to wait 2 hours for the next one. Still we had couple of pints in Hamburg station awaiting the train which arrived on time but half the normal length which meant that the swanky 1st class we'd purchased was wasted as the train was packed to capacity and they hadn't had time to service the 1st class area leading to none of the promised food and drink. Train plodded northwards to Schleswig Holstein where the train boards a ferry to get to the island of Fyn which Odense is on. We are then told that due to ferry problems the train will be delayed for 40 mins to await next ferry. Get on this ferry and grab a quick bite in the restaurant before jumping back onto train and off again. Because of the ferry delays we miss the connecting train and wait for an hour for the next train to take us to Odense where we arrived at 7:30 as opposed to the planned 3. Wander down to dock to find boat where it was supposed to be and reasonable order. Off to dodgy Italian for a meal then back to boat.
By the time the Odense has woken up and we have provisioned, bunkered and seen harbour master it is 10 o'clock an the planned 60 miles is down to 40 with a forecast W9 due in the evening. An uneventful voyage follows up the 10 miles of the Odense ship canal and 30 miles west to Fredericia and after some fooling around in the dark we berth up with the intention of being up at crack of sparrows to move boat on the last 60 miles to Kiel. Look at weather forecast and it looks as if the F9 will have blown itself out by morning and we can go. In the mean time off to YC restaurant for a magnificent duck meal (see earlier post on where are you tonight).
Awake next morning at 6 to sound of high south wind and a big chop blasting into the south facing marina entrance where we are berthed. Thoughts of going anywhere fast evaporate and we rollover to see when this is going to go, there is still an outside chance of moving further south, if not Kiel. Take adavantage of the time to look at forecast, another f9 rolling along behind the first one. Thoughts now turn to securing boat in current location to await pick up for journey home. Spend from 10 to 11 moving boat to a more secure berth, fooling around with a Baltic moor (bow-to with two poles at stern that have to be passed through and ropes secured to them). We finish the work to be greeted with the rain stopping, the sun coming out and the wind dropping to nothing. More debate about moving and decide that for the effort of moving and the risk of being caught out in a big wind we call it best and walk into Fredericia, following the recommendation from SimonCr. Well, the place may look nice during the summer but during the winter (it was 6 degrees with heavy showers) and post 2 o'clock on a Saturday with all of the shops shut it is about as interesting as Holland without the lights.
Walk home in the rain to the boat at 5, by which time it is beer o'clock and we sit below having a preprandial when the wind picks up and picks up and picks up and eventually we are nearly on our beam ends as a vigorous front comes through. Didn't have the instruments on but it felt higher than the previous highest wind I'd experienced on the boat and that was a f11 in Poole harbour in May 1996. Fortunately it was short lived and the weather cleared to blow about 25 knots with clear skies and intermittent heavy showers. Felt extremely smug for not trying push on as we'd have got that lot in the dark in a strange harbour.
We went to the YC restaurant for a last meal and went to bed with the prospect of a 4:15 start for the train and plane connection back to the UK. I can report that all connections went to clockwork including a 5 min connection gap atone point and we eventually landed at Heathrow 15 minutes ahead of schedule at 2 o'clock.
Was it all worth it? Of course it was, we established that RS was in good nick, that the engine problem is jamming starter motor bendix that seems to sure itself after a couple of tries, we got a bit a cruise in and managed not to think about work or the usual run of things for 72 hours.
I'll tell you what, though, I'll be glad when RS is finally back on her mooring, scheduled for the end of this month.
