We eventually relaxed over supper with Justin and some of the other assembled gaffers: there are about 40 boats here so far.
Bonita was designed by William Crossfield and built in his yard at Arnside, Cumbria in 1888. This occasional blog describes some of her adventures - including her 2013 and 2023 circumnavigations of Britain and her Baltic cruise of 2016.
Tuesday 6 August 2024
Dordrecht
A busy day. D and I left home at 4am to get a taxi to St Pancras, then the Eurostar to Rotterdam and taxi to Hellevoetsluis. Bonita seemed none the worse for her few days neglect and we left Hellevoetsluis at about midday. We mostly motored through the canals to Dordrecht with a little help from the wind and a fair tide down the Spui. Some of these waterways seem to have significant tidal flows even though the waterlevel doesnt go up or down very much. We had to wait about an hour for the road and rail bridge at Dordrecht to open.
The Gaffers have congregated in the Wijnhaven. To get into this haven we needed to negotiate a narrow entrance and a lifting bridge that doesnt open for long. This manoever proved to be more difficult than expected, perhaps due to a difficult narrow entrance, passing barge traffic and maybe a long day.However the situation was rescued by D jumping ashore from the bowsprit and pushing off, to widespread admiration. Fortunately no damage was done to either Bonita or other boats
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