To Amsterdam?

[bromleybysea]

Went last year. Harwich to Ijmuiden. Lots of dodging wind farms and oil rigs but otherwise very straightforward. Confirm free wifi in the cafe in Ijmuiden and the pulchritudinous waitresses. Haarlem is lovely, like a mini Amsterdam, and there is a bus from the marina. Sixhaven marina is great, especially if you have a small boat 'cos you can usually get one of the small boxes up the end. It was 12 € a night for my 9.5m. Foot ferry overdo central Amsterdam. Supermarket about z20 mins walk from the marina.

 

[sailorman]

Went last year. Harwich to Ijmuiden. Lots of dodging wind farms and oil rigs but otherwise very straightforward. Confirm free wifi in the cafe in Ijmuiden and the pulchritudinous waitresses. Haarlem is lovely, like a mini Amsterdam, and there is a bus from the marina. Sixhaven marina is great, especially if you have a small boat 'cos you can usually get one of the small boxes up the end. It was 12 € a night for my 9.5m. Foot ferry overdo central Amsterdam. Supermarket about z20 mins walk from the marina.

Or go past the Sixhaven into the Aeolious on the same side about 1/2 mile further on. The Sm is just outside their gate

 

[Athene V30]

Or go past the Sixhaven into the Aeolious on the same side about 1/2 mile further on. The Sm is just outside their gate

SM or S&M?

My last visit to Amsterdam was a long time ago in a large grey war canoe

 

[sailorman]

SM or S&M?

My last visit to Amsterdam was a long time ago in a large grey war canoe

All tastes catered for as you well know, having been there on a Grey Funnel Ship

 

[johnalison]

1 There's a useful small Albert Hein in the footway under the railway station.

2 Beware of trams!

 

[sailorman]

1 There's a useful small Albert Hein in the footway under the railway station.

2 Beware of trams!

a very large SM out of the sixhaven & bear right along the road away from the marina or call into the Aeolius marina 1/2 Nm further along the NS canal same side as SHaven

 

[johnalison]

That SM good, but nearer Aeolus. It salmons quicker to take the ferry over to the station.

Little Fred Drift, my favourite museum is the Tropen museum. A short tram ride from the station to their ethnographic collection, which is not as dull as it sounds. Our clapped out bikes were stolen from outside in 2000. We needed an appointment to get a crime number from the police!

 

[sailorman]

That SM good, but nearer Aeolus. It salmons quicker to take the ferry over to the station.

Little Fred Drift, my favourite museum is the Tropen museum. A short tram ride from the station to their ethnographic collection, which is not as dull as it sounds. Our clapped out bikes were stolen from outside in 2000. We needed an appointment to get a crime number from the police!

That SM is the cheapest available to a visiting boater in Holland

 

[jerrytug]

That SM is the cheapest available to a visiting boater in Holland

And not only will Sixhaven let you take a marina trolley to the SM, the SM will let you in with it! try that in Dip Switch.

 

[sailorman]

And not only will Sixhaven let you take a marina trolley to the SM, the SM will let you in with it! try that in Dip Switch.

The SMs own trolleys have wheel lock that automatically engage when taken beyond a perimeter line around their car park

 

[johnalison]

I have no idea how my pad managed to write the nonsense in my last missive but I would only say that salmons have nothing to do with Amsterdam but that Albert Hejn can be handy if you are on your way back to he boat from the town.

 

[Rhing]

What's the 'best' route to Amsterdam from the Orwell during the summer months.

That depends (OK, I confess, I’m a lawyer) a bit on what you like.
We had a boat in the Netherlands on the east coast of the Ijsselmeer. The Frisian inland waterways, the Ijsselmeer and the Dutch islands in the North Sea were our main area on weekends and for vacation since we sold our trailer boat and got a 30 feet boat. About 10 years ago we did the opposite trip over Amsterdam, Ijmuiden, Lowestoft, Southwold and back to the Netherlands over Oudeschild/Texel and Den Oever.
We needed approximately 22 hours to Lowestoft and about 25 on the way back to Texel. Neither trip could be done during daylight. Thus the additional 3 hours don't make much difference.

The way north around Holland gives the opportunity to visit a Dutch island. It has a safe marina with separate boxes (?, but I think, you know what I mean). However, you shouldn't arrive at Pentecost, king's birthday or any other long weekend. You can hire bikes directly outside of the marina to go to the other villages or to the beach. And have a "leckerbekje" at the take-away in Oudeschild, which is the Dutch way of fish and chips or "kibbeling", the spicier Version. From there it's a short trip to Den Oever, where there is the lock to enter the Ijsselmeer. You can forget about the tide from here to Ijmuiden, enough beauty sleep and fresh bread in the morning. There is not much more to be seen in Den Oever. If you stay there, the restaurant in the marina is quite good and you can get bicycles (of course not really high tec) for free to go to the village.

I would recommend going straight on to Medemblik, Enkhuizen and/or a day later to Hoorn. These are small towns, founded in the so called “golden euuw”, the golden age of the Netherland in the 16th / 17th century, when the East India Company was established and they were in strong competition with England.

Medemblik: Go to the Pekelharinghaven, safe harbour with boxes, a 2 minutes walk to the centre. There was a restaurant called “de Artist”, which was very good for fish, offered fresh and in an unusual manner, so that’s not the “every day meal”. And this is the seat of Jongert, one of the most famous boatyards in the Netherlands. Better leave your credit cards on the boat.

Enkhuizen: Go to the Buitenhaven, the town harbour. It’s not quiet, it’s not comfortable as in Medemblik. You will probably have boats alongside, but you will probably get more from the atmosphere of the town. The Compagnieshaven is more comfortable (boxes, small supermarket) and allows going to the old centre of the city within a 5 minutes walk. The Zuiderzee Museum shows a lot about the life, when the tide still went in and out of the Ijsselmeer, as the Afslutsdijk (the dike, which locks out the North Sea and its storm floods in northwestern storms) was not yet built. “Zee” means sea in Dutch, “meer” is a lake. Have a look at Dromedaris and the small houses in the centre.

Hoorn: is IMHO the harbour with the best atmosphere. Again I recommend the Buitenhaven / town harbour. You enter the outer harbour (anchoring possible), go through the old lock, which stays open nowadays, as the Ijsselmeer has no tide any more, with big trees on the side, and afterwards opens the inner harbour and (hopefully) get a berth for your boat “next door” to the houses from former centuries. There is the “grashaven” and a harbour of the local water sports club as well in case you prefer separate boxes etc.

Other harbours:
Broekerhaven: small nice harbour of the local club, bigger basin cannot be entered because of a fixed bridge, but a 5 min walk to nice restaurant in good weather with tables outside directly at the basin.
Edam: famous for cheese, a nice old town. We always stayed in the harbour straight after the entrance of the canal, leading to the town. You avoid passing the lock – twice, in and out -. From there it’s a 10 – 15 min walk to the town. Harbour is tidy and safe, boxes. And the name is “Galgenveld”, which means “gallows field”, but nevertheless I always slept well in this harbour too.

Volendam, Marken, Monnikendam: fine harbours, but very touristic, I’d always prefer Edam instead.

Durgerdam is recommended, if you want to visit Amsterdam, but don’t want to go there by boat because of the busy Sixhaven. A bus goes to Amsterdam. I never have been there and you want to go there anyway.

And the next harbour is … tataaaa AMSTERDAM

For the way back use the Nordzeekanal to Ijmuiden. You can leave Ijmuiden at any time.

I’ve never done the “stande mast route” south of Amsterdam. However, it’s mainly canals and you have to go by motor. The Ijsselmeer allows sailing and visiting old towns as well.

Just to complete: The villages on the East coast of the Ijsselmeer are either former fisher villages, smaller, nice, but not as nice as the towns on the other side. Makkum gives access to the inland waterways, but for this purpose I recommend Workum (strictly stay in the fairway, not in strong westerly winds, on land) or Stavoren. You can go over the Johan Friso Kanal to Fluessen, a big lake, which allows some sailing too. At the end you can go through the Woudsender Rakken to Woudsend and further on to Sloten, the smallest town in the Netherlands. Stay there for the night, and go further on to Lemmer, nice too, to enter into the Ijsselmeer again. Lelystad and Almere are “artificial” cities, as the whole Flevoland is “new land”. The original coastline of the Ijsselmeer was at Elburg and Harderwijk.
Muiden is a nice village as well, but to leave is out is not a major mistake.

As vacation time usually is limited: Oudeschild / Texel to Enkhuizen could be done in one day. Next day to Hoorn or perhaps better to Edam in order to reach Amsterdam and Sixhaven a bit earlier to increase the chances of getting an acceptable berth.

 

[Rhing]

What's the 'best' route to Amsterdam from the Orwell during the summer months.

That depends (OK, I confess, I’m a lawyer) a bit on what you like.
We had a boat in the Netherlands on the east coast of the Ijsselmeer. The Frisian inland waterways, the Ijsselmeer and the Dutch islands in the North Sea were our main area on weekends and for vacation since we sold our trailer boat and got a 30 feet boat. About 10 years ago we did the opposite trip over Amsterdam, Ijmuiden, Lowestoft, Southwold and back to the Netherlands over Oudeschild/Texel and Den Oever.
We needed approximately 22 hours to Lowestoft and about 25 on the way back to Texel. Neither trip could be done during daylight. Thus the additional 3 hours don't make much difference.

The way north around Holland gives the opportunity to visit a Dutch island. It has a safe marina with separate boxes (?, but I think, you know what I mean). However, you shouldn't arrive at Pentecost, king's birthday or any other long weekend. You can hire bikes directly outside of the marina to go to the other villages or to the beach. And have a "leckerbekje" at the take-away in Oudeschild, which is the Dutch way of fish and chips or "kibbeling", the spicier Version. From there it's a short trip to Den Oever, where there is the lock to enter the Ijsselmeer. You can forget about the tide from here to Ijmuiden, enough beauty sleep and fresh bread in the morning. There is not much more to be seen in Den Oever. If you stay there, the restaurant in the marina is quite good and you can get bicycles (of course not really high tec) for free to go to the village.

I would recommend going straight on to Medemblik, Enkhuizen and/or a day later to Hoorn. These are small towns, founded in the so called “golden euuw”, the golden age of the Netherland in the 16th / 17th century, when the East India Company was established and they were in strong competition with England.

Medemblik: Go to the Pekelharinghaven, safe harbour with boxes, a 2 minutes walk to the centre. There was a restaurant called “de Artist”, which was very good for fish, offered fresh and in an unusual manner, so that’s not the “every day meal”. And this is the seat of Jongert, one of the most famous boatyards in the Netherlands. Better leave your credit cards on the boat.

Enkhuizen: Go to the Buitenhaven, the town harbour. It’s not quiet, it’s not comfortable as in Medemblik. You will probably have boats alongside, but you will probably get more from the atmosphere of the town. The Compagnieshaven is more comfortable (boxes, small supermarket) and allows going to the old centre of the city within a 5 minutes walk. The Zuiderzee Museum shows a lot about the life, when the tide still went in and out of the Ijsselmeer, as the Afslutsdijk (the dike, which locks out the North Sea and its storm floods in northwestern storms) was not yet built. “Zee” means sea in Dutch, “meer” is a lake. Have a look at Dromedaris and the small houses in the centre.

Hoorn: is IMHO the harbour with the best atmosphere. Again I recommend the Buitenhaven / town harbour. You enter the outer harbour (anchoring possible), go through the old lock, which stays open nowadays, as the Ijsselmeer has no tide any more, with big trees on the side, and afterwards opens the inner harbour and (hopefully) get a berth for your boat “next door” to the houses from former centuries. There is the “grashaven” and a harbour of the local water sports club as well in case you prefer separate boxes etc.

Other harbours:
Broekerhaven: small nice harbour of the local club, bigger basin cannot be entered because of a fixed bridge, but a 5 min walk to nice restaurant in good weather with tables outside directly at the basin.
Edam: famous for cheese, a nice old town. We always stayed in the harbour straight after the entrance of the canal, leading to the town. You avoid passing the lock – twice, in and out -. From there it’s a 10 – 15 min walk to the town. Harbour is tidy and safe, boxes. And the name is “Galgenveld”, which means “gallows field”, but nevertheless I always slept well in this harbour too.

Volendam, Marken, Monnikendam: fine harbours, but very touristic, I’d always prefer Edam instead.

Durgerdam is recommended, if you want to visit Amsterdam, but don’t want to go there by boat because of the busy Sixhaven. A bus goes to Amsterdam. I never have been there and you want to go there anyway.

And the next harbour is … tataaaa AMSTERDAM

For the way back use the Nordzeekanal to Ijmuiden. You can leave Ijmuiden at any time.

I’ve never done the “stande mast route” south of Amsterdam. However, it’s mainly canals and you have to go by motor. The Ijsselmeer allows sailing and visiting old towns as well.

Just to complete: The villages on the East coast of the Ijsselmeer are either former fisher villages, smaller, nice, but not as nice as the towns on the other side. Makkum gives access to the inland waterways, but for this purpose I recommend Workum (strictly stay in the fairway, not in strong westerly winds, on land) or Stavoren. You can go over the Johan Friso Kanal to Fluessen, a big lake, which allows some sailing too. At the end you can go through the Woudsender Rakken to Woudsend and further on to Sloten, the smallest town in the Netherlands. Stay there for the night, and go further on to Lemmer, nice too, to enter into the Ijsselmeer again. Lelystad and Almere are “artificial” cities, as the whole Flevoland is “new land”. The original coastline of the Ijsselmeer was at Elburg and Harderwijk.
Muiden is a nice village as well, but to leave is out is not a major mistake.

As vacation time usually is limited: Oudeschild / Texel to Enkhuizen could be done in one day. Next day to Hoorn or perhaps better to Edam in order to reach Amsterdam and Sixhaven a bit earlier to increase the chances of getting an acceptable berth for your boat.
(Any language remarks welcome)

 

[johnalison]

I have been to Durgerdam, quite a while ago but I don't think it has changed. As far as I remember, there wasn't a lot there but there is a brilliant little self-drive "ferry" across the harbour, which is worth playing with.

We have fond memories of Makkum from over many years. It is possible to lock into the town if you have modest draft and the town can be quite lively. I believe the ceramic works went bust, which is a pity since their domestic ware was far better than Delft's, but at a price to match. We have some of their tiles on display at home. The large marina to starboard on the way in is actually excellent, with its own shops and family facilities. We had a very happy few days there two yrs ago.

There is a small yacht club marina between the Oranjesluis east of Amsterdam and the rail bridge. There is nothing much there but it is cheap and welcoming and we have often used it before proceeding to the Sixhaven.

 

[sailorman]

I have been to Durgerdam, quite a while ago but I don't think it has changed. As far as I remember, there wasn't a lot there but there is a brilliant little self-drive "ferry" across the harbour, which is worth playing with.

We have fond memories of Makkum from over many years. It is possible to lock into the town if you have modest draft and the town can be quite lively. I believe the ceramic works went bust, which is a pity since their domestic ware was far better than Delft's, but at a price to match. We have some of their tiles on display at home. The large marina to starboard on the way in is actually excellent, with its own shops and family facilities. We had a very happy few days there two yrs ago.

There is a small yacht club marina between the Oranjesluis east of Amsterdam and the rail bridge. There is nothing much there but it is cheap and welcoming and we have often used it before proceeding to the Sixhaven.

The Aeolious Club on the same side a the Sixhaven but about a mile further East is handy for the cheapest super Mkt in Holland

 

[jerrytug]

Rhing thanks for your post, very interesting, makes me look forward even more to next time!

 

[Champagne Murphy]

Excellent detail, thanks very much Rhing

 

[Champagne Murphy]

Sorry to revive this but I'm getting down to the detail now.
What about the actual crossing? Reeds mentions gas fields to cross, any info on these?

 

[MoodySabre]

Lots of windfarms rather than oil rigs. Plan your route and steer round anything on the way! No huge windfarms once you are clear of the east coast 'fence'!

 

[sailorman]

Sorry to revive this but I'm getting down to the detail now.
What about the actual crossing? Reeds mentions gas fields to cross, any info on these?

you pass through the gas fields on a line from nth shipwash, we had no probs you can see some 20 mls away, so you actually have them in sight for many hrs