 Appoaching Ijmuiden Sea Lock |
 Ship in Ijmuiden Harbour |
We slipped our lines at 09:15, enjoyed a trouble free trip along the North Sea Canal, which seems to becoming more industrialised along its banks each time we traversed it. The sea lock at Ijmuiden was reached at 11:30, and then a 2.25 nautical mile run through the extensive harbour brought us out into the North Sea.
We motor/sailed closed hauled as far as the Luchterduirien Windfarm before bearing to port and directly into the wind. At this point, the wind had dropped considerably so we dropped the sails and motored. A distant windfarm lay on our starboard side, together with two large anchorages populated by ships, plus an oil platform.
By the time we were 30 miles out from Ijmuiden, the waves and wind had died down. A gentle sea rolled boundless to an invisible horizon which dissolved into a sky with a few wispy clouds. Many oil and gas platforms broke the blank canvas, and giant ships drifted serenely on their silent courses. An occasional yacht appeared from the haze, and disappeared, like ghosts passing in the day.
I took the watch up to 11pm, a good time to be on watch since I could take in the richly, coloured sunsets. For company, I had the full moon who was playing hide and seek behind the clouds.
 Sunset in the North Sea |