– Holland Just Happened!-
In the first instance Holland was never part of the plan. But, acting on advice from Joe and Anne (EssDeeAy), we scrapped plans for France and struck out for Holland, via Belgium instead. This turned out to be a good move.
France is still on the cards of course but, since arriving in Holland, we’ve kind of taken to the place and, it is also important to say (because Ivan and Vinciane on Tula will probably be reading this) that Belgium is equally impressive too.
In good company!.. Why Belgium and Holland?
Well, because we haven’t yet tackled the waterways of France, it is hard to draw comparisons but it is safe to say we have truly enjoyed our time in Belgium and Holland.
In May 2013 we had Lucie shipped by truck to Nieuwpoort in Belgium (we used CPL) from the T&K and that all went smoothly enough. The day job timetable meant that we couldn’t hang around waiting to cross the English Channel on Lucie under her own steam. So, a couple of days after leaving the T&K, we were back in the water in Belgium and ready to head off in the general direction of Holland.
We’re now based in Monnickendam (about 20 minutes by bus from Amsterdam) but our route from Nieuwpoort took us via Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp and several stops in Holland before, acting on advice from Ivan and Vinciane, we travelled up the wonderfully picturesque River Vecht towards Holland’s huge inland lake, the Markermeer. We crossed the Markermeer for Monnickendam – a three hour trip across open water in fabulous weather – hardly a ripple. All in all, the trip from Nieuwpoort to Monnickendam was a fabulous journey that was made so much easier with the navigational advice we got from Ivan, Vinciane, Joe and Anne (AKA the Lucie Support Team).
The Marina at Muiden, last stop before the open water and Monnickendam
In boating terms things just work in both Belgium and Holland. And, although people told us that berths would be at a premium during the summer holidays –
especially in Holland, we always managed to find interesting places to stop on our way to Monnickendam. Apart from our stops on the River Vecht, there was always water and electricity available on berths. The harbourmasters we met on the way were nothing if not helpful and
friendly. Indeed, we’ve found the people generally in Holland and Belgium to be most welcoming and generous. And, of course, the people in Holland and Belgium speak English perfectly well. Indeed trying to speak Dutch doesn’t always work because the people here almost always reply in English!
There aren’t so many locks in Belgium or Holland but plenty of bridges. All the bridges and locks are contactable – usually on the VHF radio or on the telephone. In both countries everything is very well organized. The food is good, the beer is cold there are always well-stocked shops within easy reach. Depending on where you are, short delays are inevitable but we were never held up for long. Other river and canal users are courteous and apart from one near scrape with a commercial barge and its irate captain (our fault), everyone we have met was friendly.
The Rhine Canal in Holland was interesting. We got to mix it with some huge commercial barges and sometimes we encountered two or more barges lashed together – all of them moving along at a fair pace and some of them being pushed by a tug. We found the AIS system really useful. It allowed us to ‘see around the bends’ and find out what commercial barges were heading our way and, importantly, how big they were and how fast they were moving. This gave us a chance to prepare ourselves because, if you are not watching, the biggest commercial barges always seem to come roaring around the next bend in the river or canal! How come you never meet them on long straight bits of the river or canal?! Not everyone agrees with us but I truly value the AIS. One thing that is most useful about the AIS is that it will tell you exactly how long it will be before boats coming towards you or boats creeping up behind behind you will be coming into view. Note: pleasure craft below a certain size are not required to have AIS installed.
Monnickendam is delightful. A small historic town with a beautiful town centre good restaurants, nice cafes and small boutique shops. There are several marinas here – all vying for our business. We’re at Marina Monnickendam where the staff could not be more helpful. Most of the boats here are modern sailing boats but there are quite a few ‘brown boats’ (old Dutch sailing) barges here. Not a Piper Boat in sight yet! The centre of Monnickendam is jam packed with historic sailing ships and that only add to Monnickendam’s charm. On a warm day there’s no finer place to sit with a cold beer in your hand.
Folding bikes are a must. There are cycle paths everywhere in Holland and Belgium. We no longer have a car and so cycling to the shops has become the norm. I’m not sure how we’ll feel about the journey to the Dutch equivalent of the Co-op in January!
Marinas here in Holland and Belgium charge far less and offer much more than comparable marinas in the UK. There is a much higher level of service here. They also don’t charge the astronomic river license fees we experienced on the Thames. In short, a lot more bangs for bucks over here.
Where next? Well, we’re spoiled for choice. We’re lazy sailors. We usually only cruise for between 3 and 4 hours a day and then we take a couple of days off to recover. We potter along at very low revs because, even if the countryside in Holland and Belgium is largely flat, there is much to see. The small towns in both Holland and Belgium are hidden treasures. We’re thinking about tackling the north of Holland next year but then we might go back to Belgium. Maybe France the year after? Who cares? It’s all good.
So, in conclusion, whilst a great many people start in France, I’m pleased we followed the good advice and came over here to Holland via Belgium to start with. Belgium and Holland has much to offer and, for novices like us, it was a truly good place to start.
