Thursday 20th June 2013 Schmedehausen to Ibbenbüren. 27 kms no locks

Pied wagtail hitching a ride on the ladders on the boat roof

Very hot and sunny again (another thunderstorm later to cool everything down) when we set off at 10.15 am. Spotted the next mooring at KP88.7, not too far to move if the politzei had moved us on the night before. Murene loaded with coal went past as HeJo from Vreeswijk loaded with woodchips overtook us. The next boat past was a loaded tanker called Lena from Duisburg which was churning mud up off the bottom turning the clear green water murky for a while. A wagtail hitched a short ride on the boat roof, long enough this time for Mike to take a photo, but it didn’t search the ladders and planks for spiders like previous birds had done. A small cruiser from Hamm overtook us. A loaded boat called Maro went past as a WSV car drove down the towpath. We paused to disconnect the generator next to a quay opposite a sand wharf at KP99. I made some lunch. Hazy clouds hid the sun and made the temperature more pleasant. The wind started to pick up and we kept fingers crossed we would get to our mooring before the next thunderstorm started. 80m loaded boat Spes Mea from Dunkerque went past with an “A Vendre” notice in the wheelhouse window, we both said that boat’s for sale before we realised it was French. 

Wandering Snail at the chandlery/bunkerstation KP108 DEK

There were four cruisers moored by an electric box just before the junction. The Snail had stopped at the chandlery/bunkerstation at KP108 by the junction. Oll said on radio that they had no maps and no hats so we didn’t stop. Then he said they had the keys for sale for the water and electric boxes. Round the bend to the right on to the MLK, noting the queue of boats above Bevergern lock. As we went under Sperrtor 1 (men were still doing maintenance on the floodgate) we noted a tanker had just turned on to the MLK from the DEK behind us. The smallest loaded boat we’d seen for some time went past, Nederwaard from Alblasserdam, 55m x 6m. Very neat. Shortly after that, tanker Nawatrans IX from Moers went past  at KP2 as we were being overtaken by loaded tankership Elise (84.74m x 9.6m 1,553 tonnes). Roeloffina a loaded 80m x 9m boat from Rotterdam went past and then we turned into the Stichkanal and moored in almost the same spot we left the day before. We hurried to get tied up it was 2.30 pm. The Snail arrived fifteen minutes later just before it started to bucket down with rain again. Then we had a long, loud thunderstorm accompanied by torrential rain.