16th June
We decided that we would try for the first bridge opening at 10:30 for the Rijksweg Brug which is the bridge for the A9 motorway at Spaarndam. This only opens three times a day and if we were late we would have to wait 4 hours for the next bridge opening. Before that we had to pass two bridges and a lock.
We were wondering earlier how they kept a check on boats paying their dues, as we were not asked for our boat name when paying our dues, but somehow they must keep check, as when we were passing the second bridge we heard the Haarlem Harbour master call another British yacht who had passed through Haarlem without paying the harbour dues. The skipper quickly replied, saying he was unsure as he hadn’t stayed overnight, but was told to return to the office to “Pay the Ferryman”. If this yacht was planning to make the bridge he would have missed the early lift.
We arrived at the Rijksweg bridge with plenty of time to spare. We were joined by other yachts out of Haarlem and were all slowly pottering by the bridge when one of the smaller yachts got too close to the edge and ran aground. They gave us a call to see if we could tow them off, but as their draft was 1.5mt and we are 1.8mt we indicated we were unable to help, but luckily another Dutch boat managed to pull them clear. We decided to go back and tie up to the waiting area and have a cuppa.
Just before 10.30, we returned to the bridge but there was no sign of the bridge opening as the cars and lorries were still whizzing along. For some reason this lift was delayed by 15 minutes (perhaps the operator was on an extended comfort break). Once through we had a short wait to enter the Noordzeekanaal. This canal is the gateway to the River Rhine via Amsterdam which has very large shipping traffic. We headed east keeping to starboard and it was not until we could see the Amsterdam Marina on the north bank that we crossed the water. We then tied up and called the harbour master who gave us a nice pontoon berth, something we like as this is our usual type of mooring and we know how to do it – most of the time! We are now safely on our berth for a few days and Carole has hidden the charts and pilot books somewhere!
This Marina was first opened in 2013 and has large pontoons with plenty of space. Admittedly, we are here mid-week, but Chris estimates that the Marina is only 30-40% occupied. There is still development going on all around, but fortunately it’s quiet from late afternoon until morning, when the piling hammer begins banging on the dockside. However, the upside is the beautiful facilities, which include two bathrooms – the first we’ve encountered in Holland.