Shoehorned in Scheveningen

Stargazer sails, out of Ijmuiden, with the fishing fleet, at sunrise. Their nets are lowered....

...the moment the boats clear the breakwater. Neither Stargazer nor the fishermen are ones to waste a moment of a fair tide.

We pick our way through anchored merchantmen, resting before loading at Europort; and busy coastal cargo boats bustling round to Antwerpen via the Westerchelde. The brisk morning breeze falls light, as the day ticks by, only the tide keeps us moving for an hour. Then it backs swiftly from south, through east, to north.

Its a lifting shift. Stargazer started the day beating. Now she's first reaching and then running. Foaming in towards Scheveningen. I radio port control for clearance. The entrance is narrow and blind. We get the all clear and twin green lights flicks on. 

Two,sickle shaped, rock breakwaters funnel us into the Voorhaven. We turn hard to port, between two towering stone jetties, and slip into the Visserhaven. A narrow aquatic alleyway, opens to starboard. I helm Stargazer through the stone canyon, craning my neck at the dank masonry enclosing us to either side, focusing on the far end, to keep us straight.

We emerge in a long dock, parallel to the sea, in the heart of Scheveningen. The sea side suburban outpost of Den Haag (or The Hague). 

A waving figure appears amid rafted boats, in the packed harbour. He gestures us over, indicating that we should come alongside a neat blue Hanse. 

"Fits like a glove, like a glove" the Havenmeester cries in delight, as he takes our lines. And he's right. There's just under a metre to play with to bow and stern. Stargazer is shoehorned in Scheveningen. Ready to explore.