Mach 1, a Dehler 33 Classic (modified), was sold in February, but her new owners, 'Team 3M'¬¬- Mans, Markus and Matthias Hakansson from Sweden - could not take delivery then because the sea was still frozen and there were ice floes in the Stockholm archipelago! So we came to an arrangement that we would meet them halfway. Friday, April 25th, British Kiel YC was the appointment. All we had to do was sail the boat there.
Saturday April 19th was the day that Des, Nigel and I planned to leave Haven Ports YC at Levington. The weather was NE 5/6 with a strong wind warning in force. Where did we want to go? NE to Den Helder. We postponed until 0400 Sunday morning. The wind had by then moderated to light NE and we motored out into the North Sea.
We couldn't motor all the way to Den Helder. Mach 1 can make 7.2 knots at moderate revs in flat water, but the sea state didn't allow for this and the Coastguard forecast was NE 6, 7 for a time. So we headed for Lowestoft on a good fetch.
On starting the engine we found the water seal on the impeller pump had failed. It was entitled to after 12 years extremely hard work. But we had to sort out that problem.
We scoured Lowestoft on Monday. An industrial pump supplier managed to get a replacement seal from another source, then put the pump back together. What we didn't know was that the pump drive wheel was incorrectly assembled on the shaft, and out of alignment with the crankshaft pulley. We had big problems all the way to Kiel with the belt jumping off the driven wheel.
However our immediate problem was the forecast. It didn't look like any favourable winds until Wednesday. This meant Des would run out of time, and had to leave us.
The weather seemed to be settling down, with light SE winds due on Wednesday. Nigel and I motored out of Lowestoft into a still lumpy sea just before 10pm on Tuesday heading straight to the Frisian Islands and missing out Den Helder, in an attempt to make up for lost time.
The wind had all but disappeared, so we motored. About 15 miles out I noticed a change in the exhaust note and found that the belt had jumped off the impeller. It took me 10 minutes to put it back on and off we went again, this time with the main hoisted to try to get some speed out of the wind, even at the cost of 10 degrees of course efficiency.
Then we found that the autopilot had gone on strike. Again, 12 years of hard work and no problems until then so no complaints.
But we were saddled with steering the boat all the way. No problem, we thought. We were soon to understand that steering into a very black night with nothing to aim at, peering at the compass, one hour on/one hour off, was very, very tiring indeed!
However at 0530 as the first light was appearing, the wind veered to ESE and we could get some more boat speed out of the Force 3. Not quite enough to make decent sailing, but better than nothing. Things seemed to be improving.
The wind continued to veer throughout Wednesday, falling light from SE so that we were motoring all the time, re-fitting the drive belt on some five occasions. I discovered that by slightly over-tightening the belt, the motor would run OK and the belt was less inclined to jump off.
As we approached the Frisian Islands, the night grew as black as ink. There were many fishing boats about and we had to concentrate hard to keep out of trouble, and to try and steer a straight course. 0530 and we made the Wester Ems safe water mark on the approach channel to Borkijm.
We were running low on diesel. Mach 1 draws 2.2m and we had few options for refuelling. We were not sure of making Wangerooge, the most easterly island with any kind of facilities, so we had little choice but to make a 22-mile detour.
There was a heavy mist but we found that the channel was well marked with lateral buoys at 1 mile intervals and we found the yacht harbour without difficulty. The centre channel in the entrance has silted up quite badly. We motored in with about 6 inches under the keel to find that there were about six boats in this quite large, but dilapidated marina.
We moored alongside a large Dutch motor cruiser who helped us with directions to a garage about 500 yards away where we had to haul our two jerry cans on three trips to fill up the boat. We had some food on board, a few hours sleep, and off we went at 1342.
The sea was silky smooth, not a breath of wind, which at least meant we could make 7 knots. We found the Ooster Ems buoy no problem, then headed for the Dreaded Elbe! I say 'dreaded' because people who'd been there before had warned us not to try to enter when strong winds are against the tide. Even in calm weather, the spring tides run at 5 knots off Cuxhaven which is about 10 miles into the estuary.
If you can't get to Cuxhaven on a favourable tide, then Wangerooge at the eastern end of the Frisians is just about the only option, entailing a large detour. Heligoland is another option but again, adds about 25 miles to your journey.
The sky was black and the stars disappeared as midnight approached. Suddenly a bolt of lightning hit the sea, it seemed about six boat lengths away! Then the heavens opened. There were lots of ships in the area and concentration was needed to stay out of trouble.
It seemed like something out of a Wagnerian opera. Lightning crashed around the boat, the rain came down in stair-rods, and through all this Nigel was snoring!
My big concern; would we make Cuxhaven on the tide? I was relieved to pick up the three cardinal marks at the starboard entrance to the Elbe at about 0300 on Friday.
From there on in, the channel is extremely well marked and we were making 7 knots over the ground. As dawn broke, we motored into the yacht harbour at Cuxhaven just as the tide was turning. Made it in the nick of time! Then - bliss -bacon rolls and SLEEP!
Not for too long though! At 0900 we were up again and set off against the last of the ebb for Brunsbuttel and the entrance to the Kiel Canal about 13 miles distant.
It was a beautiful day as we motored down the Elbe. In daylight it seems like a huge river but the banks come together to 1 mile wide approaching the canal lock gates. We picked up the flood tide mid-morning and after hanging around outside the gates for a while, we finally entered at 1340 on Friday.
Next challenge: no sailing in the canal, only motoring allowed, and no night navigation. Could we get to Rednsburg 60km up the canal before nightfall? The engine seemed OK so we added 200 rpm and off we set.
The canal is very attractive. It is amazing to be motoring along in beautiful countryside , and just around the bend is a flotilla of large container ships coming straight towards you!
It's all perfectly safe however and well-policed. No one is exceeding the speed limits and wash is reduced to a minimum. You just have to keep on your side of the channel.
It was a beautiful day all the way down the canal and finally we motored into the inner town marina of beautiful Rednsburg at 1900 hours on Friday, amazingly on schedule, to see 'Team 3M' jumping up and down with joy on the pontoon! We had been in regular touch by text messaging all the way down the canal and they had arrived earlier in the day by train and taxi from Stockholm.
It didn't take long to moor up at the very pretty marina and even less time to get stuck into some foaming ales set out on the dockside by The Boys! What a welcome! The boat was refuelled and we were hauled off to the very nice yacht club bar.
I fell asleep in my dinner. I woke up the next morning in my sleeping bag in the forepeak wondering how I got there. We have struck up a real friendship with these Swedish. They are really keen sailors stepping up from an Albin Express 25 to Mach 1. It was extremely rewarding to see the look on their faces as they stepped on board.
On Saturday morning we motored up to the lock gates at Kiel, and waited as a submarine went through the lock. Then we were through and Mach 1 was in The Baltic! The British Kiel YC is just around the corner and we were dropped off there. It was an emotional moment as Nigel and I watched Mach 1 sail off ¬- short lived as I noticed the water pump belt had jumped off again!
It seemed Mach 1 did not want to leave me. I hailed the guys and it took me 10 minutes to put the belt back on, before away they went, heading for the south coast of Sweden.
