After a last month of extra preparations, we said goodbye at Pont 13 on the IJ on Sunday 30 May. The sun was shining and everyone was enthusiastic about the location. One more week, then we would really take off…..
Tuesday June 8 we had packed everything, emptied and cleaned our house and left for the Pantera in Zaandam for our 1st night on board. After a farewell lunch again at Pont 13 we left for IJmuiden. It was a special moment for both of us when the floodgates opened and we saw the sea sparkle in front of us; now it really started!!
The first weeks were familiar territory from previous vacations and we gradually built up some routine while traveling. In Scheveningen we did some shopping and then via Zeeland towards Belgium and France. It is wonderful to be outdoors a lot, even if at a certain point the temperature is still a bit on the cold side.
From St. Valery en Caux on everything is new when we cross to Cherbourg. Our 1st night crossing. It is cloudless with a nearly full moon and daylight until 11 p.m. Then dark and at the first light the next morning we anchor in the basin in front of the port of Cherbourg.
We like Cherbourg; many terraces and a “plage vert” in front of the harbour, ie a large grassy plain where Cherbourgians enjoy the sun; there is football and skating on a skate park, there are beautifully landscaped borders and a statue of Napoleon on horseback.
When we leave Cherbourg we are suddenly surrounded by a dozen dolphins. The 1st we encounter! Unfortunately no photo…… After a stopover in Diélette we cross between the Channel Islands to Lézardrieux. Unfortunately, we are not allowed to enter the Channel Islands because of Corona. The islands are closed. We did hoist our British courtesy flag though.
So now we are in Lézardrieux from where we will head west for Brest in the next few days. There we will wait for a good weather window to cross to A Coruña in Spain.