Baltic Sea: Beware of Kerteminde!

Yachts are currently running aground off Kerteminde with unsightly regularity. YACHT reader Kai Bergfeld reports that one afternoon alone, they were able to observe nine yachts running aground as they tried to use the old south entrance. However, this is currently completely closed due to construction work to relocate the south jetty further seaward; only the north entrance may be used. This is because the old pier has only been partially removed so far, with the remains lying treacherously below the waterline. The problem is that the markings are not easy to read coming from the sea, and many people only really realise the exact location of the restricted area when they look at an updated navigation app or electronic nautical chart.

A series of yellow exclusion zone buoys have been laid out to mark the area, but they are difficult to recognise when you come in. The dredger drivers at the construction site try to prevent many crews from running aground by honking and waving, but they don't always react in time, so many yachts end up bumping into them.

Yesterday, according to a YACHT reader on site, sailors from Kerteminde even spent hours warning yachts arriving from a motorboat, as the construction site is not clearly enough marked, even according to the locals. In three hours, 20 yachts were saved from grounding in this way, but 5 still ran aground. The harbour master had apologised for the poor marking of the construction site, but this was in the hands of the construction company. They are now said to have provisionally laid out some ball fenders directly on the remains of the old, submerged pier.

Although there was an official message including a map of the restricted area in the relevant nautical publications, sailors travelling with non-updated material are sometimes unaware of this. The NV-Verlag has set up a good POI page on this subject, which can be found at here. It makes the position and size of the barrier bit clearly visible.

Anyone using an updated version of a sat nav app should be able to find the construction work on the map. NV-Verlag from Eckernförde, for example, has included the construction work in its app with a warning notice and a map of the restricted area.