After two days cowering from a near gale in the Kattegat, we opted to turn tail and head back south via the Sound, rather than make our way in the exposed seas to the north of Seeland. Although the forecast was for force four from the west, even the short five mile fetch made for an uncomfortable beam sea. The Baltic was proving a tricky sea to navigate as despite the popular belief that there are no tides, we were finding significant wind-driven currents which were impossible to predict.

On this trip we could skirt east of Copenhagen's Middelgrund windfarm, a significant feature on the landscape which, together with other renewable energy sources, contributes 13% of the country's total energy consumption. We took the Hollænder Dyb channel due south before turning west at Dragor fort into the Køge Bucht.

The harbour at Køge's Lystbaadehavn has been augmented by four new marinas which stretch along the popular sandy beach. Although the nearest to the town, it is still a good mile away and even the walk to the harbour office could wear you out. On site, a shop, kiosk, chandlery and restaurant provide for immediate needs and a cycle path leads from the boat storage area to the town. Famous for its ancient half-timbered buildings, Køge's main street boasts an array of interesting shops as well as the obligatory town museum (closed Mondays).

Yet another day of high winds made an ideal lay day to take the 30 minute train ride to Roskilde for a visit to the Viking Ship Museum (www.vikingshipmuseum.com). Once the seat of the Royal Family and the burial place of several generations of Danish monarchs, Roskilde is strategically situated at the site of a natural spring and at the head of a defensible fjord. It was these 11th century defences, formed by the sinking of defunct ships in the main channel, that were recovered in an intricate archeological project that began in the 1960's and took more than 25 years to complete. Today, as well as the preserved remains, the museum is home to accurate reconstructions of each vessel. Built using traditional tools, techniques and materials these range from an 11 metre fishing boat to a 30 metre longship built in Dublin as an ocean-going warship.

Cruising Statistics

Distance: 48 nm

Total to date: 913 nm

Avg Speed: 6 knots

Duration: 8 hours

Diesel: 40 litres

Wind: W-SW 4

Mooring: Kr.100/night

Electricity: Included

Water: Included

Charts

NV Serie 3 - S26

NV Serie 2 - S21

S23