Calamity in Germany

One of the fascinations of cruising is that you can rarely predict what each day will bring. Fortunately, since my retirement I have been able go for three or more months’ sailing and visit many interesting places, so I have encountered a huge range of unusual situations in my Elizabethan 23 Reservation.

Occasionally, there will be a long period when all goes well, with fair winds, blue skies and good company. These are times to be savoured, for as surely as night follows day they will not last for long.

My summer cruise to the Baltic had started late, due to health problems and it was the middle of June before I reached Dover. I was then able to make up a bit of time by making a non-stop passage to Den Helder in North Holland. It was mid-July before I reached Denmark, so this only left me just over three weeks before I had to start back. I managed to go round Fyn and visited Aero and a few places on the mainland, but was beset by the longest period of calm weather that I had ever experienced.

It had been a pleasant voyage so far, but