Monday, June 8, 2009

Hey, that bridge isn't on the chart!

It was bound to happen sooner or later. It's the reason we try to have both electronic and paper charts. At the moment, however, we have only electronic charts for where we are, and there, about a half a mile from our destination, was a bridge that didn't show up on our e-charts. The bridge looks sort of new, but the chart chip is new as of 2008, and the bridge looks older than that. It's some kind of opening bridge, but it seems to be one that you have to call. But there's no channel or phone number. We ask a sailboat with stepped mast, and they give us a number, but it doesn't work. It's one number less than the numbers that have worked in Germany, but what's the missing number?

Oh well. We returned to an area that has lots of yacht clubs that welcome visitors. None has that side-tie we were hoping for in Lübeck, though. We pick the one that has the nicest pilings and best cleats and go for it. It's the Stettiner Yacht Club, and it costs a few euros more than the others, but it looks better maintained and easier for us. We pick the box we want, and on our third time past, we turn in. The fenders we put out pop back onto the deck and we bump the piling, discovering that it's rubberized. Cool. A man is on the dock to get our bowline, and we make it in to the box with minimal trauma and no yelling. There was also no wind. We did break something. A piece of Star Board that was by our stern anchor, but it's no big deal. Just a little too bad. Our best box docking yet.

With the passerelle in place we went ashore to pay our fees and decide to stay for two nights. The harbormaster tells us it's about 10 minutes walking to town and the grocery store and also to the bus. We're thinking we'll take a bus into Lübeck in the morning.

On our walk to the grocery store (which really was only about 10 minutes), we discover the train station. Now we think we might take the train. If only this yacht club had loaner bicycles, we could ride. A sign outside the yacht club property says it's 6.8 km to Lübeck. That's close enough.

Oh, yes, they also have wireless Internet here except that we haven't been able to get it to work yet.

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