Lemmer to Medemblik – 22.8 miles in 4 hours and 20 minutes
The weather came up trumps today. It was sunny with a 15 knot breeze, so it looks like we have used up our quota of perfect weather for this year. As we left Lemmer, we found (unexpectedly) that the Skutsjes were sailing again, though it looked like a slightly different class. They seemed to be preparing for a start, so we got a close view again as we went down the Lemmergeul channel. Once past them we hoisted the main with one reef in and part jib, though we quickly let the rest of this out. The wind varied between 10 and 18 knots, but with the wind just aft of the beam we had a great sail across to Medemblik, carefully avoiding the shallows of De Kreupel island. Approaching Medemblik, the fun started. We found that this time they are running the World Laser 4.7 youth championships and suddenly a stream of Lasers were passing us on both sides as we took the sails down.
Once in Medemblik (we actually got into a box berth unscathed!), we went for a wander and found general chaos. As well as it being a weekend water festival, it was also the end of an annual swimming marathon from Stavoren to Medemblik – a distance of 22 kilometres. It appears that we saw the final swimmer coming in accompanied by a lifeboat and a yacht (towing a bucket to keep his speed down). The town was also being regaled by that well known Dutch cultural icon – a drum and bagpipes marching band!
