The final miles
In Ystad (see above/below), many other yachts are waiting with us for the westerly wind to subside, which is currently making further travel quite unpleasant – and which already causes the first accident in the evening: a French yacht has to be towed in by the local rescue boat (see below, left). Around 4:00 a.m., German military commands wake us up, and eight navy sailing yachts with seven masts and seven functioning rudders dock around us. They had set out from Leba, Poland, and attempted to tack the 100 nautical miles (as the crow flies) to Rønne, Bornholm, against the wind. However, the port of Rønne is now closed – Bornholm’s ports often close in strong westerly winds – so they ended up with tacking for almost 200 nautical miles. The tiller of a Hanseat 70 and the shroud of a Sunbeam 36 (see below right) were not able to withstand the stresses; a complete rig – mast, boom and sails – now lies at the bottom of the Bornholmsgat.
“Red sky at night, sailors’ delight. Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.” After a rainy, stormy, and gray evening, we once again enjoy a wonderful morning of sailing on a sea illuminated by a blood-red kitsch (see above). Adhering to the variation of the Bible verse (Matthew 16:2f.), we decide to settle for a five-hour tack to Gislövs Läge/Trelleborg (see below). And indeed, just a few minutes after our arrival, the rain thunders down on the deck and 26-knot-gusts whistle through the rigging. Above all, this gives us the opportunity to meet friends from Malmö, who are visiting us for an afternoon “fika” on SY Blue Layla and to discuss the 2025 Surströmming (see further below).
The barometer is rising, the sky is blue, and SY Blue Layla seems to be enjoying the last 100 sporty nautical miles across the Arkona Sea, which is allowed to show some of its teeth: On our way to the island of Møn (see above/below), we encounter 15-23 kn of wind against us; the next day, wind and waves increase even further, but we are able to follow a beam reach mostly, although our evasive maneuvers in the face of the big ships in the Kadetrinne (see below) forces us to point to later on.
When we first hear the situation report from the Warnemünde Traffic Control Center on channel 73 again, SY Blue Layla seems to go faster and faster – and to have fun. She wants to go home! Apparently, we are not quite there yet ourselves, because, uncharacteristically, there is a leisurely breakfast in Klintholm that morning, so we do not dock at our home port (see above) until after 6 p.m. To celebrate, we decide on pizza and a toast to our ship, which has once again reliably brought us home safely. Our longest cruise to date is coming to an end.
