Break On Through To The Other Side, Ep. 187

Neither of us could handle another 5am start. It was nice to know the sun had that kind of endurance this time of year, but after the big push in the last few days to get around the Netherlands and Germany barrier islands (area known as the German Bight), Karen and I needed some R&R time. Cuxhaven, at the doorstep of the Elbe River, is at the crossroads of history. Just a few steps away from our marina stood the ornate arrival hall for the Hamburg America Line which, until it ceased operations in 1969, was the major departure point for German and other European emigrants to the U.S. During World War I, the German Navy operated airships out of a nearby hangar. Today, like many coastal cities, a majority of the economy has pivoted to tourism. However, just south of the historic cruise ship terminal is a state of the art offshore wind farm assembly plant run by Siemens Gamesa. These wind turbine components are so massive, much more so than the land-based wind farms, that manufacturers strategically locate their plants at ports like Cuxhaven where they can immediately load the components onto custom built ships for transport to the offshore sites. It also frees them from any over-the-road size constraints. We got a chance to see the multi-story high nacelles (the central hub of the turbine where the gears and generator are located) being loaded onto a ship at Cuxhaven. Hats off to the men and women in this industry, doing their own pivot like other neighboring European countries, as they shift focus from oil and gas production to clean energy production.

A nacelle being prepared for transport (Photo Credit: Siemens Gamesa)
Custom-built ship for transporting nacelles. Cuxhaven
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Locked Up, Ep. 184

Like land travelers that had a taste of the sea on a sightseeing boat, we had a peek into life ashore during our tour of medieval Belgium through Brugge and Ghent. But it was time to get back to our chosen mode of transport. We had intended to push away from Oostende at first light the next morning, but it would seem other plans were being hatched. At midnight, Karen awoke with a start, insisting that someone was onboard our boat. Regular readers will note this as a common occurrence – Karen awake at the slightest noise, trying to shake me from a dead sleep. She was right of course. A small sailboat was rafting up to us, apparently having just pulled into the port in the eery shroud of darkness. It didn’t make sense that someone would be underway so late, and then disturb someone else’s rest by rafting to them, but not all of my brain cells were reporting in for duty. We had the pleasure of informing them we were leaving at 5am, which would require their presence to break free from the raft-up. They were indeed gone without a trace at 5, but high winds had arrived, prompting us to turn in for a little more sleep. Ha! This time, an hour later, I’m startled awake by loud noises up on deck. What now, I fretted. Another sailboat had decided to head out but was having difficulty turning quick enough in between the other boats. Their bow, complete with a hard-edged anchor on the bowsprit, was pressed against our toe rail and lifeline. I rushed to the foredeck to push them off, as another neighboring boat pulled on their stern. They commenced forward gear again and were off without a word, not even an apology. I would have even accepted a hand gesture of sorrow. Lucky for them, I could not find any obvious signs of damage. 

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Color Collage, Ep. 182

The fun and games were over. It was time we leave the sailor’s sandbox surrounding the Isle of Wight and start making miles to the east. Try as we might, we couldn’t find anything sexy written about this stretch of  England’s coast as it narrows on its way to the Straits of Dover. In sailor lingo, we were faced with a coast of passage. Not much to see, and you hope for good wind to get it over with sooner. 

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