A weekend under sail
Is the horizon still there?
I feel sick. What am I doing here? The yacht is at a wind force of seven in an inclined position. Andreas, the skipper, uses the wind to gain speed. In the meantime I use the railing to vomit.
Then I sit down next to the others and stare at the horizon. Should help to concentrate on seasickness on one point. "And, Simone," exclaims Laura, "is the horizon still where it belongs?" I have to laugh. Fortunately, the crew is great: my girlfriend Andrea, her husband Andreas - our skipper - and his buddies Matthias and Florian with Laura and Vivien. At noon we left Marina Toft near Flensburg and are now sailing on the "La Villa" towards Denmark. As I focus on the horizon, the others become active. "The wind has died down, which is great for putting the spike," Andreas calls. Florian and Matthias go below deck, come back with a colorful foresail and take Andreas' instructions. Then the spinnaker puffs up in front of the boat - as well as the proud swollen breasts of Florian and Matthias. "17 o'clock, Spi set", enters Andrea in the log book. Seems to be a big deal. Also for me: Due to the distraction, my seasickness disappeared.
We spend the night in the harbor of Sonderborg and drive the next morning through the strait as Sund north. The horizon is clear today without me. So I can start my first sailing attempts. Andreas explains the individual steps to me. First we set the height of the tree correctly. Then I loosen the tree picker and fix the mainsheet a little bit. Then I use the winch to crank the big hang tight until the sail stops. Listen and be amazed, I speak Sailing - with a few cheat sheets: The names are all written on tape and assigned to the lines.
"11 o'clock, mainsail hoisted", is in the logbook. And I was there. Feels like a sport. With bare feet I climb onto the foredeck and sit in the sun. We drive around the peninsula as around and in the small Belt, a strait between Jutland and the island Funen.
"Do you want to take the wheel?" Asks Andreas, "that's very easy, like driving a car." After an initial course we glide straight through the waves. Then the wind gets stronger and I hand back the steering wheel and the responsibility to the skipper. The boat goes neatly in the heel, ie imbalance - until the railing touches the waves. I'm getting dizzy. In passing, I inquire if such a boat can topple over.
Andreas laughs: "A skipper has to do something stupid here, in case of emergency you'll sail the sails and the ship will go back to the horizontal." Reassured, I sit down to the others on the high ridge and let my legs dangle. So we counteract the heel with our weight, the boat has less resistance and is faster. "Regatta!", Exclaims Andrea. I note in my imaginary log: "1 pm, Simone is not seasick anymore, that's Rock'n'Roll".
Info - sailing around the island Als
A weekend trip on the "La Villa" around the island Als costs 295 euros, plus board cash (harbor fees, diesel, meals).
Further information: Schoenicke skipper team, Grubesallee 27a, 22143 Hamburg, Tel. 040/675 40 44, www.skipperteam.de
Video - How to make a sailor's knot
Sailor knots are a thing of their own. So that no one gets entangled on board, shows ChroniquesDuVasteMonde employee Simone Lück in our video clip, how to do it!
From Lake Constance to the loop: trips for beginners
- Sailing on trial: That's what the Starnberger Sailing School is all about. If you want to find out if it's fun, you can book individual lessons with a sailing instructor starnberger Lake go out. Info: sailing school, Am Hügel 8, 82319 Starnberg, Tel. 08151/79028, www.segelschule-starnberg.de, hour for 55 euros.
- Taster sailing in Glücksburg at the Flensburg Fjord: The "Hanseatic Yachting School" offers sailing on four different weekends under instruction for singles and families. Info: Hanseatic Yachting School, Philosophenweg 1, 24960 Glücksburg, Tel. 04631/60000, a href = "// www.dhh.de" target = "_ blank"> www.dhh.de, Taster Sailing, / Vollpesnion 185 Euro.
- The sailing school in Überlingen am Lake Constance in the program (from 870 euros). Info: Kai Raschevski, Bahnhofstr. 35, 88662 Überlingen, Tel. 07551/3218, www.segelschule-ueberlingen.de, for 44 euros there is a trial lesson with skipper.
- Sailing on the "Petrine", a historic lake Ewer from 1909: The ship can be chartered for a whole group of up to 23 people, each from Kappeln on the Schlei (Price on request for group size). If you have more time, you can book a longer trip as a single traveler.Info: Jochen Storbeck, Wiesenweg 4, 18565 Vitte / Hiddensee, Tel. 038300/60547, Törnplan at www.petrine.de.
- Day trips on many sailing ships are offered around the major harbor festivals. Ideal for beginners. For example, during the Hanse Sail in Rostock from the 6th to the 9th of August. Mitfahjren you can on about 50 ships. Info: Office Hanse Sail, Warnowufer 65, 18057 Rostock, Tel. 0381/2085226, www.hansesail.com.
