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82-year-old pensioner crosses the North Sea – inflatable boat adventure!
82-year-old Horst Wittenberg takes a dinghy trip from Büsum to Helgoland and back. Safety and planning were the focus.
82-year-old pensioner crosses the North Sea – inflatable boat adventure!
A real adventurer recently hit the waves of the North Sea: Horst Wittenberg, an 82-year-old pensioner from Nordenham, embarked on an impressive journey from Büsum to Heligoland in his slim inflatable boat. This is not his first tour - two years ago he ventured on the long route to Świnoujście with another inflatable boat. But the current trip is a very special one for him because he loves Heligoland.
Wittenberg set off from Büsum at 3 a.m. with a 3.30 meter long inflatable boat and an outboard motor that produces 9.9 hp. In ideal weather conditions, with one or two winds and pleasant weather, he sailed the approximately 70 kilometers to the island. After six hours at sea, which he reached at 9:30 a.m., he allowed himself an hour's rest before deciding to make the return journey that same day.
A well-planned tour
Wittenberg emphasizes that safety and suitable weather are crucial for such ventures. He therefore invested around 1,500 euros in extensive safety equipment, which includes, among other things, a GPS emergency transmitter, a VHF radio and a chart plotter.
The pensioner, who worked as a marine engineer for almost 50 years, doesn't let a small fall on his e-scooter, in which he injured himself, stop him from his adventure. His passion for the sea and his good experiences with boat tours drive him. Despite an unexpected breakdown with his chart plotter on the return journey, he managed to navigate partly by compass and landed successfully back in Büsum at 6 p.m. There he was warmly welcomed by an acquaintance.
A look at Heligoland
The enthusiasm for the island is understandable. Heligoland itself has a lot to offer - not just impressive cliffs and a diverse range of wildlife, which is very popular with both locals and tourists. If you don't want to travel with your own boat, you can take the Börteboot Sellebrunn daily, which is considered a real symbol of maritime tradition. That boat brings passengers to the island with fresh stories and anecdotes and gives the trip a special touch thanks to the salty sea breeze, as helgoland.de describes.
Wittenberg is already planning new adventures for the future. In two years he would like to undertake another tour - this time to Amsterdam. So it remains exciting to see what the sprightly adventurer plans next and what stories he will then tell!