Sailing for Adventure (On the Big Blue Wet Thing): denHelder Crew Change 2013

Welcome Back to the Boats... Were going to denHelder Netherlands this time and then out to the North Sea

Its a nice little town in the north-west of the Netherlands where we caught the boat to go North into Norwegian Waters.

Huisduinen was the original older part of the city, whereas Helder itself was a nearby smaller hamlet. Due to its strategic location at the tip of the North Holland peninsula, multiple fortifications were built in the area. The area likely began being called Helledore ("Hell's Door" or "Hell's Gate", later on 'Helsdeur') because of the water between now Den Helder and Texel called Marsdiep. The current of the water was so strong many ships were lost. The name Helder may also have come from Helle/Helde, which means hill or hilly grounds, or from Helre, which means a sandy ridge.

Den Helder has played an important part in Dutch shipping. During the Dutch Golden Age, ships would be assembled near Den Helder and sail from there the world's oceans. During the 1820s, the North Holland Canal was dug from Amsterdam to Den Helder. The lighthouse Lange Jaap was built in 1877 and is the tallest cast-iron lighthouse in Europe, at 63.45 meters (208.2 ft).