The good facilities and free wifi at Alkmaar, combined with the lack of Sunday openings for the Rotorenbrug, convinced us to extend our stay in Alkmaar and we used the time to complete our chapter on North Holland, celebrating on Sunday night with our 'gala dinner of the chapter' at the Koperen Pot. All the tables were, as usual, booked by locals but the friendly team invited us to eat at the bar, where we had a ringside view of all the meals being prepared in the open-plan kitchen. The harbour master's recommendation was vindicated by the excellent standards of food and service and the meal made a fitting end to our stay in the town.

In the morning we received an official send off from Harbour Master Rob and then made our way back to Amsterdam, this time taking the Noordhollandsch Kanaal via Purmerend. En route there was time to come to the aid of a damsel in distress who we found lurking by the bank in a broken down rib. We already had her in tow by the time her boyfriend arrived with a boat trailer so we arranged a rendezvous further downstream where they could easily recover the stricken boat. The rest of the trip was uneventful and passed mainly through open farmland. Even the approach to Amsterdam from the north is surprisingly attractive with parkland lining the waterway for much of the time.

On arrival we retrieved our car from the Audi dealer where it had been undergoing some emergency repairs, and used our favourite Aeolus yacht haven as a base for another days exploring in South Holland by car.

Cruising Statistics

Distance (inland): 22 nm

Total to date: 366 nm

Avg Speed: 5.5kn

Duration: 4 hrs

Diesel: 50 litres

Mooring: €10/night

Electricity: Included

Water: Included

Charts

ANWB G Amsterdam-Alkmaar

Locks

Purmerend sluis

Bridges

10 opening

3 fixed (min 6.85m)