Being affraid of the big ships in the Kiel Canal.

I’m scared of getting close to the big ships. Which is exactly what we are about to do many times over the course of one day, as we enter the Kiel canal.

I was quite excited to take the Kiel canal on our sailboat, even if that meant a full day of motoring. The perspective of going into locks for the first time in the most trafficked man-made channel in the world felt appealing.

When I started to realize that it probably meant we were going to get quite close to the big ships that scare me so much, the Kiel canal became a little more daunting of a place.

But the day after we toured the Kieler week we left Laboe in the Kiel Fjord, motored our way to Holtenau where the locks are, paid our dues and entered the locks. Docking in the locks of the Kiel canal proved a lot more challenging than we had wished, as our fenders were way too high, and we hit the ramp several times. Our stern shifted out, making me fear that I wouldn’t be able to go back onboard again!

Thankfully, some nice German sailors came over to help out, and while pointing out that our fenders were “not good”, enabled us to complete our passage of the locks.

Our first close encounter with a big ship occurred 5 minutes after our exit of the locks, as our neighbor passed us, forming a big wake that bounced us properly.

Less than an hour later, an even bigger ship appeared in front of us, scaring the living h*** out of me. We cozied up with many big ships that day, and if exposure counts as therapy, the Kiel canal should have cured my fear of big ships permanently (the story shows that this isn’t true…)

The constant proximity with other ship came to take a more awkward turn later that day, as we very slowly passed a bare-skinned sailor on his sailboat. Ryan told me the guy seemed to wear no shirt, and as I hand steered to passed him, I realized he wasn’t wearing pants either. I accelerated to make the awkward moment as fast as possible. While I was embarrassed by the situation, Ryan wondered about the clotheless sailor the entire day.

The locks passage in Holtenau was way smoother, and for 5 minutes, I really appreciated entering the North Sea. 5 minutes later, I realized traffic, boats and proximity with big ships was actually way worse in the Elbe river than it was in the canal. After a couple of close calls near a big ships anchorage, we eventually enjoyed a nice sunset before arriving in Cuxhaven, after 14 hours of motoring.

I can rarely film our arrival. Partly because we shorthand Polar Seal and I haven’t found a way to have the camera out, partly because I’m generally dead-tired when we arrive.That day, Ryan and I had a “docking argument”(they are classic), that we managed to eventually laugh about. We arrived in Cuxhaven safe, sound, and richer of experience.

Next week, we start answering the questions you’ve sent us!