Thursday 11th August 2005 Ee nr Dokkum to Oudekerk.

Cranes and factory Dokkumer Grootdiep

13.1º C overnight. Grey clouds, windy and cold when we set off just after 8 a.m. (Sunny spells in the afternoon). The first liftbridge, D.F.Woudabrug, was only about a kilometre away and we had to tie up again when we got there as it didn’t open (for pleasure boats) until 9.00 a.m. Two sail boats turned up as the bridge opened, they followed us through and overtook. The bridge was operated by the keeper who was at the bridge just outside Dokkum, using surveillance cameras to watch the boats. A medium sized tripboat out of Dokkum was coming towards us by where a few boats were moored, Rosy stopped instead of keeping going - there

Windmill in Dokkum

was plenty of room. A sailboat overtook us going round the tight bends just before the keeper-operated bridge. Another masted yacht was coming towards us, so the one who’d just overtaken us slotted in between us and Rosy. We could both get under the deck of the bridge without it being lifted, so we went to go past the yacht but the bridge opened so he continued to follow Rosy until we’d cleared the bridge. Like a

Putting the money in the clog on a string

motorway for a while! Into Dokkum, a very touristy little town. The chandlery was selling diesel at 1,07€ a litre. We took the left hand route through the liftbridges, rather than the route through the centre of the town under low fixed bridges and went through Woudspoortbrug with a queue of boats as we went around the town’s moat with two tall windmills on the right bank. The keeper at Altenabrug relieved us of

Waiting for the bridges in Birdaard

4,20€ each for the bridges, swinging the clog on a string to collect it. All the boats stooged about between the rows of moored boats on both banks while the keeper closed his bridge and went on his bike to open Eebrug at the west end of town. A big hireboat from Sneek (pronounced Snake) pulled out from the moorings directly in front of us. The keeper added to the mayhem by letting the boats through from the far side of his bridge first. Swarms of y

Rosy emerging  from the Oudkerkstrevaart on to Oudeel Murk

achts and botters and tjalks went past, all of them travelling much, much faster than us. The hordes overtook as we left the town of Dokkum behind, the canal emerging into windswept meadows where coots were pecking for insects in the grass and geese were competing with the sheep for the best grass. A little house was advertising smoked herring for sale at 11€ per “Pond” – who said we had to use kilos, they’re still using pounds! Ten minutes later a convoy of boats came past which had just cleared the next liftbridge, Klaarkampsterbrug, which lifted as we approached it

DIY liftbridge at Oudekerk

. Two sail boats were approaching the far side as we went through the free bridge. Mike told Bill we should get a move on as the two bridges at Birdaard would be closed for lunch at 12.00. We didn’t make it. The last sailboat to overtake us made it through the bridge at 11.55 a.m. and then the keeper left the cabin. We could see there was a great tangle of boats on the far side of the liftbridge. We tied to the posts by the bridge, Rosy came alongside and a sailboat alongside Rosy. Lunch. Several more yachts and botters arrived and moored behind us. At one o’clock the keeper started from the

Narrow canal through Oudekerk

other end of town first, bringing a gaggle of boats through his two bridges. He lowered the bridge again to let the road traffic queue disperse before letting us through into the 500m length between the two bridges, where more boats were moored along the quay on the right with houses on both sides. The clog swung again for 2€ for the two bridges. The yachts behind us took advantage of the melee between the bridges to zoom past to the head of the queue. Several large cruisers had joined in the convoy behind us and their bow thrusters were zut-zutting as the wind blew them sideways. They all zipped past as we cleared Birdaard. More windswept wide open fields with the wind blasting from our right. Into Bartleheim, where there were some very smart houses and gardens along both banks and we turned left into the little canal, called the Oudkerksvaart, where there was nothing else moving but us and ducked under a couple of low fixed bridges. Round a sharp right hand bend into the village of Ouekerk, where we had a DIY liftbridge to play with. 2€ in the slot to operate the press button bridge (once we’d lowered both road barriers and set the traffic lights to

Little lake Oudekerkstermeer

red). Between the tree lined banks, past a café with pedaloes (which seemed to be closed) and crossed a little shallow lake called Oudkerkstermeer. The name of the navigation had changed to Ouddeel Murk. More meadows, with a kestrel hovering, hunting, and a marsh harrier swooping low, also looking for dinner. A little further on was our destination, a wooden landing sheltered from the wind by a stand of trees not

Mooring at Oudekerk

far from the village of Oudekerk. A family were fishing from it! I said sorry as we cruised past them and they all lifted their rods so we could get to the end of the staging, leaving them half of it to fish from. Bill brought Rosy alongside. Helped Mike unload the moped and he went off to get the car. I set up the new mossie net in the front door as there were masses of small black houseflies. When the fishers went home Bill moved Rosy to moor behind us on the staging. Mike returned at 6 p.m. I helped get the moped back on the roof and sheeted up (the roof was covered in white things, empty shells of thousands of tiny insects).