Wadden Sea

Sailing on the Wadden Sea

Sailing at the Waddenzee offers a lot of possibilities. Because it is tidal water, the area widely varies in depth, on one hand there are streams which are broad on which we can sail straight ahead. On the other hand there are many small and narrow streams in which we need to manoeuvre a lot because we otherwise will run aground. Which brings us to another beautiful option on the Waddenzee, which is exploring the tidal flats.

Besides the wide variety in sailing options this  Unesco World heritage area provides a broad spectrum of wildlife, seals are most common to see in the water and relaxing on the tidal flats but porpoises can be seen as well. Because of our wide experience in this sailing area and we have taken a course at Ecomare centre for Wadden and North sea about this wonderful area we can share our broad knowledge of the marine life with you.

At the Waddenzee there are several islands we can set sail for, most often we sail to Schiermonnikoog and Ameland. The former is a car-free island, it is the smallest habited Dutch island. The latter is a larger island with more shops and tourist but with a beautiful beach.

We offer several arrangements for sailing at the Waddenzee, varying in duration. The examples given are merely options, a trip can be modified, in consultation with us, to your preferences.

 

10.00 Arrival with coffee and tea. An introduction about life aboard and sailing from the skipper, the schedule of the day is depending upon times of high and low water.
10.30 Depart from port, setting the sails! Enthusiastic sailors help us hoisting the sails, however relaxing and enjoying the scenery is possible as well.
11.30 Whenever it is high tide we could set off for the port of Schiermonnikoog, from where you can set out to explore the island. Whenever it is ebb tide we could explore the tidal flats, together with the crew you can walk on the tidal flats and explore the marine life. (Times may vary depending upon tidal influences)
12.30 A delicious lunch will be ready for you, a nice cup of homemade soup and some fresh sandwiches.
13.30 We continue our journey, perhaps tack a few times.
15.00 Some snacks and refreshments are available.
17.00 We moor again and your sailing adventure aboard the Willem Jacob comes to an end
10.00 Arrival with coffee and tea. An introduction about life aboard and sailing from the skipper, the schedule of the day is depending upon times of high and low water.
10.30 Depart from port, setting the sails! Enthusiastic sailors help us hoisting the sails, however relaxing and enjoying the scenery is possible as well.
11.30 Whenever it is high tide we could set off for the port of Schiermonnikoog, from where you can set out to explore the island. Whenever it is ebb tide we could explore the tidal flats, together with the crew you can walk on the sands and explore the marine life. (Times may vary depending upon tidal influences)
12.30 A delicious lunch will be ready for you, a nice cup of homemade soup and some fresh sandwiches.
13.30 We continue our journey over the water, perhaps tack a few times.
15.30 Some refreshments and snacks will be available
17.30 We find a nice anchorage, where we can enjoy the unique scenery optimally. Meanwhile a member of the crew lights the BBQ and not long afterwards all kinds of delicious food will be served.
19.00 We set off again heading for port. On deck of around the fireplace you can enjoy a nice cup of tea or coffee.
20.00 We moor are the port of Lauwersoog where our journey for the day ends.

Exploring the tidal flats

The bottom of Willem Jacob is flat, this is a typical Dutch inner water feature of the clipper. Its flat bottom allows the ship to intentionally strand when the ebb-tide is running. Twice a day it is high water on the Waddenzee, with a bit of calculation the skipper is able to pick a beautiful spot, he will ‘park’ the ship or in other words run aground. During the next hour or so the ebb-tide will have taken away most of the water and the tidal flats start to show. As soon as possible you can descend and walk over the bottom of the sea.

Walk around the ship and find out what marine life we have.

Refloating

During the ebb-tide you can easily wander around the tidal flats, however the water will rise again with the running flood-tide. With the flood-tide the ship will refloat and we can set sail again. The time you have to spend on the tidal flat is depending on height of tide and geographical specifics.

Would you like to experience this unique opportunity? Please contact us, our skipper  is familiar with the tides and he will be able to inform you about suitable dates and times.

Planning

Wandering over the bottom of the sea is a wonderful experience.

We will sail towards a tidal flat during the ebb-tide. Once we are there, either we drop anchor or we manoeuvre the ship aground. The time between ‘grounding’ and the water being all gone depends on the location, however it is relatively fast. Soon it will be possible to walk around the ship without getting your feet wet. This is one of the great features of a flat bottomed ship, it is comfortable, no heavy listing and within a couple of hours she will refloat and sails will be set again.

How could such a trip look like?

  • Approximately 5 or 6 hours previously of ebb-tide you will arrive aboard. General instructions will be given and we will leave port.
  • We will sail over the Waddenzee for some hours
  • Somewhere around 3pm a good spot will be picked to ground. Important is a place without any swell and preferably a nice hard sandbank, not a muddy flat, in order to walk comfortably.
  • While awaiting low water there are several options, enjoying a meal, listen to some of the skippers wonderful stories, read a book and so on.
  • As soon as the water is low enough a nice walk around the tidal flat can be made. See the marine life, feel the sand, wonder about nature and explore!
  • As soon as the flood-tide starts running you will need to get back on board, because the water comes quickly. We only need 1 meter of water to sail again

Planning: 

As you can imagine, the time of low water is very important in planning these trips. Please contact us for any options or questions. In the example we chose for a 10 hour trip, exploring the tidal flats could be done in a 7 hour trip, however sailing will be much shorter and the tidal flat will not be entirely dry. If you have gotten curious about tidal streams or wish to take a look for any options you could visit this tidal website and pick a location from which you would like to depart.

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