As the lights changed, the Schinkelbrug railway bridge started to open and the midnight passage for the convoy of the 5 waiting yachts had started. Railway bridge, lock, 10 road bridges and a final railway bridge to go. The actual journey took just over 2 hours, including a 30 minute wait at the final rail bridge, and was uneventful apart from the occasional dazzle from passing cars. However, motoring through the heart of the still awake Amsterdam in the very early hours of the morning is an unforgettable experience. At about 2am we passed through the final road bridge to Amsterdam's River IJ, which still had ferries crossing and barges going up and down. Narrowly missing a barge whose lights were lost in the background of Amsterdam's street life we managed to cross the river and safely moored up at Sixhaven marina, immediately opposite Amsterdam's main train station.
After a good lay in we caught a free ferry across the IJ and spent the day exploring the city.
