12 August 2012 – Rendsburg

54:18.39N

09:40.10E

Back in Rendsburg for the Glorious Twelfth.  Roger assures me that he has had an enjoyable day.  The sun has shone, and we went out to supper in the Riverside Café here, and he ate fish with scrambled eggs and a mustard sauce!  Bliss!

The canal has been a serious experience on this occasion.  We were milling around outside the lock just after 10am – us and 100+ others.  A small coastal movement and the most enormous container ship, shepherded by a tug pulling astern, went in first.  The sportsboots all milled about as though for an Olympic start waiting for the lights to change and allow us entry.  I was moved to get a roving fender out.  There was some seriously thoughtless seamanship and bumping fenders. (Like dodgems, only bigger, heavier and more expensive if things go wrong.)  Roger remained astonishingly cool.

Inside the lock, we thought to join a trot moored to “Kiel” the tug dedicated to pulling big ships backwards.  We came alongside but moved on after energetic shouting from the lock-keepers.  (My view was that I don’t understand German!)   There was more space than we had feared, and ended up just in front of Coral Leader. We’ve never been so close to an Ultra large Carrier.  One boat almost caught its spreader under the bow chine!  Magnetic Attraction is in the second row back, against the wall….

Having done this before, no sooner had we moored up than I climbed up the lock and across the front lock gate to pay the channel dues.  Because there were so many boats, this speed was a bad idea – the lock was ready to open and so there was a dispensation for those that hadn’t paid!

As ever, the gates opened and everyone piled out.  The whole experience had taken just over an hour, I think.  We set off for the 35km or so to Rendsburg: with Coral Leader approaching steadily and overtaking the fleet.  But at the Flemhuder passing area the whole convoy ground to a halt: ships were coming in the opposite direction.  There’s not much room for ships to pass!

We’ll be in Rendsburg tomorrow, and then set off for Cuxhaven on Tuesday.