June 5

the middle branch of the Rhine, named the Neder Rijn here, full to the brim

the tower of the church in Rhenen. count the stories to get an idea of the height!

After leaving Amsterdam (Weesp), and touring along the Vecht, we arrived near Utrecht. The city has a major canal (the Amserdam-Rijn Kanaal) and the river Lek (really the middle branch of the Rhine) on the west and south sides, respectively. Access by small canal is possible, but my air draft makes that difficult, so we turned off to Nieuweigen instead, spending two nights there getting supplies, and doing more boat tasks. The weather (finally) is real summer, and that is nice. The boat opens up well to allow cross breezes, and that makes it possible to cool off quickly in any sort of breeze.

We then set off upstream on the Lek towards Arnhem. A very stiff current and high water made progress slower than anticipated, so we stopped at Rhenen in a riverside mooring. Many pleasure boats, and jet-skis (Sunday afternoon), and the occasional large barge made for lots of activity. Rhenen is on a hill (a VERY rare things so far in the Netherlands) and the massive church tower (under restoration) is a distinctive landmark. It has a (working) carillon (like many towns) and the bells rang out tunes each half hour. Made the evening even more memorable. Another great day.

I wish I had the skills for this

you are squeezing me!

to have a library like this…

boats here come in all styles!

A few more Amsterdam pictures…