Gdansk
Al Shaheen
John & Jenny Franklin
Wed 11 Jun 2014 14:38
We left Maasholm early on Saturday 7 June for the 350 mile trip to Gdansk. We had both felt too exhausted to leave the day before and missed a brisk westerly breeze, but later reports were that it only lasted a few hours at sea. It turned out to be a 60 hour motoring trip and consumed a lot of diesel. In view of our late departure, we elected not to call at Bornholm, which most others did, and to go straight to Gdansk.
In the Kiel Bay there was a lot of shipping coming from the canal and it lasted well past Rugen. It was an uneventful trip with no wind at all except for a few hours on Sunday night when we motor-sailed with the genoa after a fantastic display of thunder and lightening in the distance off the west Polish coast. So much so that we put a few cell phones and iPads in the oven for protection.
The entrance to Gdansk was interesting and we passed through almost 5 miles of docks on the way to the marina. The Marina Gdansk lies in the heart of the old city, opposite the "Crane Gate" - a fabulous old building on the waterside which was used for off-loading ships in days of old. Gdansk was bombed very heavily in WW2 and was largely flattened but has been meticulously reconstructed in the old style and looks enchanting. Unfortunately, we are on the move again tomorrow to Klaipada in Lithuania and have had little time to enjoy Gdansk what with essential boat jobs and the eternal battle with email connectivity!
We are off on a private guided tour this evening so hopefully should get some photos to post.