We got back to Vreeswijk a couple of days before Mary and Martin were due to arrive so we discussed it with the harbourmaster, Ton, and he agreed we could stay on for them.
Ton and his wife Riny came for tea on the Friday and we had a lovely chat with them. We promised to wave to them in their flat overlooking the port de plaisance when we left on the Sunday.
Mary and Martin arrived late on Saturday evening, as their bus had been re-routed due to a historic vehicle event which had been taking place throughout the day, travelling right past our barge. We were in pole position and enjoyed seeing all the interesting ancient vehicles and tractors passing by.
On Sunday morning we were all ready to go and Alex went to start the engine, but instead of it bursting into life there was an almighty explosion in the engine room. One of the two 12v batteries that power the 24v starter motor had exploded – bits of battery, battery compartment and battery acid all over the place. So a bit of a clear up required, plus the purchase of two new engine batteries. But – as this was Sunday in Holland, not a single place to buy them anywhere within a 20km radius: Alex and Martin drove round and round, to no avail.
Come Monday morning at 8am they were off again and this time, success! A couple of suitable batteries were acquired for an amazingly reasonable price of €170.
So, off we went on Monday and Ton said he wouldn't charge us for the extra night. (Maybe it was the box of Scottish shortbread biscuits we had given him and Riny when they came for tea that did the trick!) But how kind. We gave them a cheery wave, as promised, when we passed their flat as we left the historic harbour.
The Hollandsche Ijssel turned to to be a lovely cruise after the first few industrial kilometres, and we stopped for a peaceful night at Oudewater.
We got another early start but were held up for an hour at Haastrecht where the bridge only opened for passage to boats every two hours! Goodness knows why, as the bridge itself was hardly busy with cars. In fact I think there were more boats waiting at the appointed hour than cars that had crossed the bridge!
We had lunch at Gouda and then set off to cruise south to Dordrecht.
There was a fair amount of barge traffic and we cruised down minding our own business, when suddenly we spotted the container ship which had been catching us up for some time was right on our tail and about to ram us!
We had all been momentarily distracted by watching a breasted-up couple of barges travelling in the opposite direction and so this emerging situation had escaped our notice. Alex immediately called the container barge on the radio but to no avail and it subsequently rammed us on the port quarter, thankfully missing both rudder and propeller.
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| Re-arrangement of the rear port quarter |
RICCALL shot forward but the momentum of the container barge meant that it careened down the whole port side of RICCALL bending the handrail in by a foot or so and the rear quarter of the bulwark of the back deck.
The crew member of the container barge came to explain that the captain had alerted ‘the Sector’ and they would take us abreast down to Dordrecht where the police would be waiting to take statements. But before we got the lines on properly, the barge took off again and it was all we could do to hang on to its very rear being buffeted about by the propeller wash.
However, we got to Dordrecht finally (rather more quickly than we could have managed on our own!) and were interviewed by the land police, the water police and breathalysed: eventually at 8.30 pm and in the dark we were told we could finally make it to the historic Wolwevershaven, our intended mooring for the night. The RWS police boat accompanied us there and even organised for the lift bridge to be opened for us.
I must say, mooring up in the dark in a harbour you’ve only visited once 15 years before and with no idea of where and if there might be a space would be pretty daunting at the best of times. But we made it despite still feeling pretty discombobulated. Mary and Martin had done sterling work clearing up all the dislodged items down below and made supper for the two weary sailors! and the next day had to leave for their flight back to Scotland. We sat back to lick our wounds!
The owner of the sailing boat behind RICCALL came and chatted to us, offered us electricity and the help of the young man working for him on his boat, another Martin. Martin said he would be happy to help us the following morning at 8 am with straightening the handrails so that we could at least walk down the port deck!
8 am came and went and no Martin, so Alex got one of his bottle jacks, filled it with fluid, found some old timber baulks once used as fenders, and he and Louise set to work.
By 11 o’clock the rails were all but back in position with just one upright needing to be welded into position at the bottom and the lifting gate rail requiring welding into a new temporary position to cope with the re-positioned back quarter.
At this point Martin came up trumps. “I’m a welder,” he said and for €20 did all the welding absolutely beautifully. Yes, Alex could have done it but nothing like as neatly.
So the rear of RICCALL was not quite what it was, but she was serviceable and we could continue to our winter mooring in Cambrai.
The trip down the Merewede and onto the Amer went without incident but not unnaturally we gave every large barge a wide berth! The Wilhelmina Canal onto which we now turned presented much smaller locks and barges and we felt more at home as our shattered confidence gradually built up.
Tilburg’s myriad of bridges posed no problem or hold up whatsoever. We never even slowed down through any of them, each one opening as we arrived. Finally, at the last bridge Alex was so impressed by the bridge controllers that he thanked them for a brilliant passage. ‘No Problem’ came the laconic reply.
We then discovered that Keith and Louise were here on this very canal and we caught up with them at Orangesluis. Another opportunity for drinks and catch up.
We turned onto the Zuid Willemsvaart Canal to head south leaving ASCENSION behind. At lock 12 we were kept waiting for some considerable time and then into the lock came barge SUZANNA. We had last seen Dick and Lin in 2016 in Bruges, so that made for a happy re-union. We both moored up at Lock 16 near Weert and more drinks and chat followed. We stayed on for shopping after they left the next day.
When we got to Lier we decided to spend a day moving the car from Vreeswijk to Vilvoorde as that meant an easier pick-up again when we got to Cambrai.
For the day of departure for the Rupel we were advised to be at the Duffel Sluis to leave at 7.30am to catch the tide, to reach Klein Willebroek Sluis before it closed at 10 am.
However, at 7am when we asked the lockkeeper, he told us the tide had been late arriving and he couldn't let us out before 8.30 which meant that Klein Willebroek Sluis would be closed by the time we got there. Oh hell!
So we decided, with his advice, to wait at Duffel until we could go down river on the ebb, stop on the floating pontoon at Boom (over the river from K W) near low water then wait there until K W opened again three hours before high water.
We turned round in the ebb just upstream of the pontoon and eased our way backwards onto the inside where we would be out of the way of the ferry mooring.
Three and a half hours later we were able to contact K W Sluis who let us through and allowed us to moor up on the lock moorings for overnight. On our way south and just after Halle, we came across this most amazing piece of street art. It stretched for hundreds of metres and was truly wonderful.
Enough said!! Just marvellous!
Now we had the Brussels-Charleroi Canal under our keel and the several lift bridges and locks to negotiate before continuing onto the Canal du Centre. Of course, when we got to the Ronquieres inclined plane on Sunday afternoon we discovered it closed on Sundays! (despite all info giving 7-day opening).
An early night, then off early to the Strepy-Thieu lift – once again we were alone in this marvellous ‘machine’.
The next day more excitement to look forward to – traversing the newly re-opened Pommeroel-Conde Canal. All went well and we moored below the Hensies Lock still just inside Belgium. We had moored at the very extreme end of the moorings which was fortunate as at midnight an 80m barge squeezed into the space we had left. He left at 6 am, as soon as the lock opened.
At Trith-St Leger Lock we moored right behind a 39m barge which had obviously been there for some time. At about 11o’clock that night an 80 x 10m moored up behind us (just exactly enough room) then later another one appeared and moored on the 39m in front and on little us! Blimy! They both left around 6. I’d like to say they slipped away silently into the dark morning, but they didn’t – engines roaring, propellers thrashing. Hey, ho!
And strangely at 10 am when we ourselves left, we had the canal and locks to ourselves all the way to the turn off onto the Escaut Canalise, which leads to the St Quentin. We decided to stop at Estrun and spent an uncomfortable night moored, with permission, on Ray and Rachel’s barge, BANDRA, as the wind in the Bassin Rond was very strong indeed. But we made the decision to carry on next morning despite the wind, and in the shelter of the canal itself we felt much happier.
We made it to Cambrai by 2.30 pm that afternoon and settled into our winter mooring spot. Hurrah!
Now, only 4 trains to collect the car from Vilvoorde! Alex had planned the itinerary and by booking split tickets and a slightly convoluted route, we did the whole thing for €34 for the two of us. And the car was unmolested and right where we had left it, outside the police station!
Quite an end to a momentous year. But of course, now we have the unenviable task of finding a shipyard which can undertake the repairs RICCALL needs!
This year's stats:
1826.88 Kilometres
114 Locks
235 Mobile Bridges
1 comment:
I'm breathlessness just reading of your adventures. What a season you've had. We visited many of the places you mentioned, whilst cruising with Iskra so happy memories rekindled. We've just come back from moving our narrowboat, no stories to match yours. Happy days Hilary and John
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