Monday 8th August 2005 Middelstum south to Warffum via Usquert.

Modern suction dredger at Middelstum

9.6º C. Rain in the night. Sunny spells and more heavy rain showers. Mike was up at 7.30 a.m. He took Bill to get a few things from a Plus supermarket by car before we set off at 9.20 a.m. Back down the Boterdiep. The first bridge, Fraamklap was only a kilometre away. We arrived just before the lady keeper came out to lift the bridge at 9.50 a.m. A cruiser was waiting around the corner, but the keeper let us through first. Ninety degrees right and within a few more minutes we were at the brand new DIY lock at Den Deel. Pressed the button on the landing before the lock

Den Deel lock and pumping station

and the lights changed to red and green, then the guillotine gate lifted and we went into the concrete chamber, 25m long by 3m wide, guillotine gates at either end and a new pumping station alongside the lock chamber. Bill pressed the button on the lockside and we rose 10 cms. The heavens opened and it poured with rain. We followed Rosy to the next waiting point, the liftbridge in Onderdendam. I went inside and did a few chores while we waited. Zijlvestrbrug opened at 11.30 a.m. and we followed Rosy through. Bill missed the

Statue of a bow-hauling boatwoman at Onderdendam

right turn on to the Warffumermeer and had to reverse - that put us in the lead. Two men in canoes followed us and overtook as we went along the narrower canal. We hadn’t gone far before we met a new replica botter coming in the opposite direction. He sounded his horn, so we sounded ours. Cheeky so and so thought he was going to get the middle, think again, matey! The elderly couple inside the cabin looked very miserable as they went past, not a smile or a wave. Turned right on to the Usquerdermaar at 12.15 p.m. a

The hill by the Usequerdermaar

wider canal fringed with reeds and good views across the fields and meadows. Bill went straight on, as he said he wasn’t that interested in dead end canals, (unlike us, we always have to go to the very ends of navigation, always have done!) so he continued on into Warffum and we said we’d see him later, or possibly the next day. Just us now. The canal up to Usquert was deeper too at almost 2m deep. Seagulls and whimbrels were feeding in one large meadow. A little further on we came across a grass covered hill, partly hidden by trees - almost a forest! Came to the conclusion that the hill was formerly a rubbish tip and the trees were to hide it. We passed 

Farm track liftbridge (DIY) near Usquert

a fisherman and saw no other signs of humanity until we reached the village. The last section, alongside a road, was narrower with trees on our left. A farm access liftbridge was DIY and hand wound, once I’d heaved on the rusty bar to unlock the deck. Mike took the boat through and picked me up on the other side and we ran into Usquert. There was a wide space before the moorings so we winded and stopped by a little landing stage while Mike went to look at the moorings and take a couple of photos. While he was away, an elderly man in a van stopped to have a chat. He’d been a sailor and had been to all sorts of places in England - Margate and Whitstable, even Gainsborough! I told him we’d just come back from Poland. He asked if we were staying overnight and I told him no, we were going to carry on back to the junction and 

Start of the moorings at Usquert

up the Warffummermaar. He said the moorings were free in Usquert. I didn’t get the significance of his comment until later. It was 2.15 p.m. when Mike returned and said the moorings were completely full and he could find no sign of a tap. I walked back down the road to wind the farm bridge up and he brought the boat through. I had remarked that we must get some water as I really needed to do some washing. Mike put the pins in and we did one load while we carried on down the canal back to the junction and turned right heading up to Warffum.

End of navigation at Usquert

Travelling at the increased speed necessary for generating 240v made some of the bends a bit tricky. We turned right into an old basin which had new brick quay walls and a low wooden landing to tie to. It was devoid of boats except for one resident cruiser. There was a section marked “Water” and a hose connection in the wall, so we tied up next to it and Mike went to find the harbour master while I connected up our hosepipe. I dipped the tank to find we had half a tank, 300 litres. The man who came back with Mike to unlock the cabin across the road and turn the water tap on spoke very good English and was very chatty. He said that the moorings in the main channel were an overspill from the basin and were charged at the same rate, which

Lovely, but almost, empty moorings at Warffum

should be 4,50€ per night for boats of our length (electricity cost another 1€ per day, but the water was free). (Now we knew why the guy at Usquert made the comment that their moorings were free!) We said we’d move on. Mike said he would walk down the road to go and tell Bill the bad news and the guy went with him. It had started to rain while we were refilling the water tank and neither of us thought about the fact that we’d left all the gear out on the stern of the boat, including the GPS and the camera. When Mike returned he said the guy had waived the charges as he thought it was silly to charge for the moorings and have no boats stopping overnight. That was nice of him. We took all the stuff off the slide inside and dried it out as best we could. The GPS was pretty much waterproof, but the camera wasn’t. Left it to dry out overnight with its battery and flash card removed. (We were lucky – it recovered). Watched the news and weather - Britain was enjoying good summer weather, while we were due more cold rain and wind.