{"id":14100,"date":"2023-07-06T13:47:24","date_gmt":"2023-07-06T17:47:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=14100"},"modified":"2023-07-20T21:55:56","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T01:55:56","slug":"the-staande-mastroute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2023\/07\/06\/the-staande-mastroute\/","title":{"rendered":"The Staande Mastroute"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: 52\u00b022’40.4″N 4\u00b038’18.0″E<\/a><\/h6>\n

<\/p>\n

Negotiating the English Channel and the northwestern edges of France and Belgium required us to pay more attention to the depth sounder than we had anticipated. The Channel is shallow. Between Guernsey and the Straits of Dover we never registered more than 100 feet on the depth sounder. After Dover we never saw more than 25 feet and often only 12. No-go areas charted between 0 and 3 feet have names like Den Oever (done over?), Trapageer (trap your gear?), and Former Mined Area (nuff said).<\/p>\n

This change in topology required a bit of forward planning. It meant figuring out where the shipping channels lay, and how the buoys are laid out, so we could avoid the big ships that might run us over. All that complexity meant keeping our eyes peeled and minds focused \u2013 which after 24 hours at sea grows harder with each turn of the watch. After all, there are plenty of things out there that will go bump in the night if you let them.<\/p>\n

After you pass Calais there are three main sailing routes to the Baltic Sea:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Head north around the top of Denmark and through the Skaggerak<\/a>, a strait, past the umlauts of G\u00f6teborg and Malm\u00f6 and on to the Diacritic Isles.<\/li>\n
  2. Or you could go north around Holland and take a shortcut through Germany along the Kiel Canal.<\/li>\n
  3. Our choice is to cross Holland via its extensive network of canals, lifting bridges, and locks via the \u2018Staande Mastroute<\/a>\u2019 (SMR). We joined the SMR in Vlissingen, at the route’s southern end, and are about halfway through. We should pop out on the German border and from there we\u2019ll go through the Kiel canal.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    What is a staande mast, and why does it need a route?<\/h6>\n

    Staande mast<\/em> translates to standing mast. In other words, a mast that cannot be lowered easily. Thus, the SMR guides sailboats safely across the country with their masts intact. The bonus is there are lots of marinas and fun places to visit along the way.<\/p>\n

    For some it is a way of avoiding the outside passage, for others it is a holiday adventure in itself. For the Dutch it is a way of life. The SMR is what America\u2019s Intra-Coastal Waterway<\/a> (ICW) could be if it was still used for commerce, or if Congress believed in social goods.<\/p>\n

    \n\n\t\n\t
    \n\t\t
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"carol-underway-featured\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>
    \n\t
    <\/div>\n\n\t
    \n\n\t\t<\/a>\"\"\n\t\t
    \n\t\t\t
    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t\n\t