Still in Flensburg

Having gone to the trouble of getting here we thought we should give ourselves time to enjoy Flensburg, which is a sizeable, attractive city at the head of its fjord. 

Yesterday only I really went any distance ashore, exploring the shopping area and supermarket. In the evening Ben and I went in search of takeaway food, and rather creatively I think managed to get an interesting fish dinner served in polystyrene boxes from Jessen's Fischperle, a restaurant about quarter of a mile down the quay. It was the most expensive takeaway we've ever had (€45), although if it had been a meal out for three it would have been quite reasonable. We spoke to (we think) Herr Jessen himself, and he gave Ben and me a free Coke each while we were waiting. It was a lot easier than getting Sam off the boat, and we had pretty much the same view as the restaurant has, from our own cockpit! 

The challenges of disembarkation were made clear today when we got Sam over the bow. The method we've been using has Sam suspended from the spinnaker halyard, which runs from the top of the mast, and an extra line attached to the halyard above his head to pull him away from the boat. However this depends on having a cleat opposite the bow of the boat and far enough away to take the strain off Ben, who pulls Sam to the shore while I control the winch. On this mooring the only cleats are on our side of the quay, and either side of the boat, so the mechanics were all wrong. Fortunately the passers-by were intelligent and helpful this time and we got him on and off ok. Once again the weather is gorgeous and we were all very hot by the time Sam was safely ashore. 

We spent the morning exploring the historic quay, which has a good collection of boats and a restoration workshop, with a handy cafe so you can drink a cappucino while watching someone shape ribs, caulk seams or, more prosaically, build a pram dinghy out of marine ply.  

After a further visit to the shopping area and the old part of town, we were all shattered when we got back to the boat. The forecast is for gusty winds overnight, so we spent a bit of time dropping Kalessin back from the quay and crossing our stern warps (mechanics again - it makes the box mooring more stable in wind). As I write we should be getting gusts up to 17 knots, according to WindGuru, and there is actually no wind at all. Still, we are pretty sheltered here, and who knows what the night might bring?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

reading it all with interest!
P D A and A

Merry Christmas from just me

Video of photos made for Sam's funeral    Dear friends and family As I hope you all know, this year has been a difficult one for me. On ...