Hampton VA

October 23 - 28, 2016

We departed Fishing Bay at 9:20 am.  Although Paul and Laurie were not quite ready to leave we decided to go anyway and meet up with them again in Hampton, Va. We were very much looking forward to this stop over.  Unfortunately, the trip down was very rough with high winds and seas, much worse than forecast.  Winds were heading off the nose and we were taking the seas off the starboard bow, not very comfortable as Brad would attest.  The cockpit and us were soaked with sea water by the time we arrived in Hampton. 

The marina closed at five and we were cutting it close, I called ahead and the dock-master agreed to hang in and give us a hand. We arrived at 5 o’clock on the nose.  It was great to have his assist, the docking was pretty tricky as we had to back in on an angle around a piling and against a strong cross current.

We decided after a long day we would shower and head out to dinner.  What a beautiful town.  The main drag where the restaurants were located was a sight so see…the cobblestone streets and old buildings were lit up from the lights that hung from the trees lining the road.  We ate dinner at the Conch & Bucket and the server seated us at a window seat that viewed the pretty street.  After dinner we went for a little walk and headed back to the marina. Truly an enjoyable evening after our long day.  

A garden grown by the Harbourmaster for Cruisers to help themselves

The next day I worked at finding a spa for some much needed services, which I was able to get into right away…not always a good sign but it worked out perfect.  We washed all the salt off the boat inside and out which took a few hours but she started to shine again, then I headed off in an UBER to enjoy the afternoon at the spa.  

During our stay here we went to the Nasa Air Museum, a must stop if you ever come to Hampton - and you should!  We visited the lovely local historical museum and of course, I had to ride the Carousel which was a wonderful restoration of hand-carved and painted wood.  

Once Paul and Laure arrived we had dinner out again in another restaurant in the historical district - Venture. The food and wine were good but unfortunately, Laurie and I had finished our dinner by the time Paul and Brad got theirs - a mix up in the kitchen I guess.  Fortunately their meals were comped due to the mist.  

The marina was fantastic and you couldn’t ask for a better location, right downtown and a short walking distance to many things.  Paul needed to head back to Deltaville to pick up his car and wanted us to reserve a car as the cars go fast around the weekend.  We decided to rent a car a little earlier and have a shopping day at one of the outdoor shopping centres.  Again, the streets at this outdoor ‘mall’ were lined in cobblestone and traditional architecture that fit in with the area.  

The marina facilities included laundry, showers etc.  The showers were not bad as far as marina’s go so I decided it would give me the opportunity to dry my hair etc with a little more space - normally I shower on the boat. Unfortunately, one day in the second stall I could hear this woman virtually hacking up a lung, sneezing etc.   When I returned to the boat the first thing I said to Brad was…”hope I don’t get sick” and then proceeded to tell him about this poor sick woman. Unfortunately my comment turned out to prophetic.

On Thursday Brad drove Paul to pick up his car in Deltaville, a three hour drive and Laurie and I remained back doing laundry.

We decided on the Friday we would leave the Hampton Public Piers and head over to Sunset Marina where Paul and Laurie were docked, so that we would be together for our early departure.  After lunch at a little restaurant by the marina Laurie and I found a Costco…first one for me in US and pretty much the same as at home as the receipt would confirm.  We found these great down-filled, packable light weight jackets for $19.99 - the steal of the day.  The weather is warmer down here than at home - typical 23 -27 degrees C, but still we get some pretty chilly days, especially on the water. While the ladies were touring Costco the men headed over to a “used” marine store and Brad picked up a Shakespeare fibre glass fishing rod, with a ball bearing stainless steel salt water reel in excellent condition for $40 US. Also a filleting knife, sheathe and mesh glove for $20.  Good day for deals!

That night we headed over to dinner on 2outrageous for a BBQ rib dinner and met up with some people we met earlier at lunch (Hans, Bill & Peter).  They were heading out soon for the Caribbean 1500 rally, after which Hans would take Paul and Laurie’s car back to Canada for them.  

The morning of our departure I awoke feeling quite ill with fever and a very bad cough which sadly would turn into bronchitis again for the second year.  As we were not quite prepared for this sickness again, Brad walked up to the drugstore to get some meds before we headed out. The US sells NyQuil cough syrup, amazing product as I would soon learn.

We departed Sunset marina at 8:45 am. 

Fishing Bay Marina

October 15 - 22, 2016

We pulled up anchor in the bay around 10:00 am and headed over to the marina  Unfortunately, zero cell service even at the marina,  This turned out to be just the beginning of days with zero service with Roam Mobility. I guess you aren’t expected to ‘roam’ outside of major centres!  I wasn’t sure how I was going to manage for the week, a day here and there but an entire week of no service?? Thank you to whoever invented wifi! The dock-master was kind enough to let us use his personal cell to call the boarder patrol to check-in.

We had noticed a few fruit flies while anchored out but had no idea what the week would entail.  As the marina had wifi I was able to google some ideas for traps and although we caught many, they multiplied daily for the entire stay. We also noticed them at the grocery store.  The marina Paul had recommended was fantastic.  They offer a courtesy car or bikes to trek into town for groceries or supplies.  We always seem in a rush to get these chores done and move on to other projects so we opted for the car.  While we were here Brad was able to get our Wirie (wifi booster) connected and I was able to download Garmin Bluecharts (navigational software) as our current Inavx was failing us at the least opportune times and Garmin had come highly recommend by some of our new friends. 

On the Tuesday Paul and Laurie arrived and it was great to see some familiar faces.  We enjoyed a nice evening of dinner and drinks (although Laurie swears that Brad was trying to kill Paul with all the drinks, lol).  The next evening we joined Paul, Laurie and their friends Deb and Ron for a bbq at the clubhouse, another great evening and more new friends.  The following day I joined Deb and Ron in the courtesy car to hit the grocery store again, as we had been there for almost a week and needed to restock.  I am finding the produce isn’t lasting very long and we tend to hit the grocery store whenever possible (not surprisingly, I am finding most sailors will never turn down a ride to a grocery store, lol).  Brad stayed back and equalized the batteries, which takes about 8 hours and is very smelly.  He was also able to refinish our cockpit teak table, clean the fenders (massive stains and abrasions from the New York State canal system) and install our new fender bags, Laurie and Paul had brought the order from home for us (believe it or not, cheapest place to get them was at home).   We decided en route they would be very helpful for us as we planned on doing a lot of anchoring out (thus not needing fenders) and the fenders on the side of the boat tend to be a trip hazard, if they don’t need to be there.  

Another interesting note about this marina was that the sister marina next door (same owners) has been storing the Sequoia for three years.  The Sequoia was the old Presidential Yacht, from the time of FDR through JFK.  Very interesting to see it, although sad to hear that it is deteriorating on the hard while two charitable organizations fight for control over her. 

The Sequoia

The weather for the week was fantastic (especially for drying laundry outside) up until the anticipated departure day, which was soon postponed for one more day due to the expectation of very high winds and waves.  The thing I have learned about sailing is always, always triple check the weather. Check ahead as you plan your next trip and again before you depart…you can’t be in a rush because mother nature doesn’t always play along.  Safety first!  (I know you liked that one Mom).

Merry Christmas from the crew on Estrella del Sur!

Merry Christmas from the crew on Estrella del Sur!

We apologize for not keeping up with the blog.  We have had many issues with internet and our Wirie (wifi booster).  The Wirie is now up and running and once again giving us a clear stream to the wifi at the Marina.  Unfortunately, we are still having issues with the blog working with my mac, which may result in us changing the blog site in the future. Thank you for all the emails giving concern about us...we are safe and sound in Daytona Beach and will hopefully have all the posts updated before we leave here to head South for our Bahamas crossing.

Our basil xmas tree and sailcloth stockings

Cheers,

Brad & Julie

Sassafras River to Fishing Bay (Deltaville)

October 12, 2016

Leaving Sassafras River

We departed Sassafras River at 9:20 am travelling in tandem with Reflection 2 leading the way as we were still having issues with the inavx charts not automatically changing over and sometimes missing entire charts. The decision was made…as soon as we reached a good wifi spot we would download the Garmin Bluecharts which allows us to use Active Captain (which contains details on marinas, anchorages, bridge times etc.) overlaid on the charts.  We motored and motor-sailed in light air until we reached Rhode River (past Annapolis) and dropped anchor at 4:20 pm.  Another peaceful night and sundowners with our friends on Reflection 2, the first time we dropped the dinghy down this trip.

A tug pushing a barge of sand covered in seagulls

Reflection 2 leading the way

Estrella del Sur anchored out in Rhode River

Reflection 2 in the foggy morning

October 13, 2016

We departed Rhode River at 10:08 am after awaiting the very dense fog to clear, again in tandem with Reflection 2.  There were many other boats leaving at the same time - in fact we looked like a fleet departing with various other sailboats including two catamarans heading south down the bay. Seas initially were a little choppy with no wind, but as they day went on  8 - 10 knot winds picked up - you guessed it - dead on the nose.  This increased the chop and we unfurled the Yankee, motor-sailing to windward. We dropped anchor at 4:40 pm in Solomon-Mill Creek along side Reflection 2.  Another great day!

October 14, 2016

We departed Solomon at 7:40 am as we anticipated a longer run than the past few days. Even though it was sunny out it was a very chilly morning…time to breakout the long underwear and hat once again.  Leaving Solomon was quite rough and Brad was getting some salt water facials at the helm from white caps, but we were doing speeds over 8 knots. Many boats leaving at the same time again and some were taking the pounding very hard.  This was the day we planned to head to Fishing Bay Marina to stay for a week, meet up with Paul and Laurie from Loyalist Cove and get some projects done on the boat.  We quickly decided we would anchor in Fishing Bay and spend one more night with our new friends, entering the marina the following day.  At 5:05 pm we dropped anchor just outside the marina, dropped the dinghy again and headed over for a wonderful evening.  Fishing Bay is incredibly well protected and it was a pleasant change form the high winds and seas in the Chesapeake.

Cute lighthouse we saw in the morning

We made it to Virginia.

Another beautiful sunset in Fishing Bay!

Chesapeake City to Sassafras River

October 11, 2016

Bay Bridge

Departed Chesapeake city at 11:23 am and headed for Sassafras River.  After about an hour into our trip we noticed a “lo bat” signal even though the alternators were now charging the system at 14.4v (thanks to Brad). This indicates that the batteries are now below 50 percent capacity.  Fortunately, our house bank is (was) 1050 amp hours so even at less than half capacity our voltage remains virtually constant while anchored over night.  Sassafras is a beautiful river, very calm with beautiful homes lining it’s shores.  We went past our anchorage site to find a marina for diesel and pump-out.  Unfortunately during docking I managed to lose a few layers of skin off my knuckles (now Brad will have to be the dishwasher for a few days). We didn’t mind the extra travel as it was a very beautiful day and were enjoying being off the dock.  At 3:00 pm we dropped anchor along side Reflection 2 for a very peaceful night after our ‘sundowners” and a wonderful dinner of salmon steaks, basmati rice and green beans, followed by a slice of apple pie. But for our damaged batteries a great day!  Nice to know the alternators/voltage regulators are now working properly.

Leaving Sassafras River

Anchorage in Sassafrass

C&D Canal to Chesapeake City

October 4-10 2016

Departed Delaware City at 12:20 pm and headed down the canal to Chesapeake City, very happy to get off the bay as it was still very rocky in the morning.  We arrived at the Chesapeake Inn Restaurant and Marina at 2:20 pm with the intentions of staying one night, we stayed a week.  Seemed this was a good as place as any to wait out hurricane Matthew.  Later that evening we met up with Hank Schmitt our Skipper and mentor from our trip from New York to Bermuda two years ago.  He had stopped by for a night stay on the way to the boat show, what a surprise.  We shared some drinks and some stories at the onsite Tiki bar.  We also had the pleasure of meeting Eric and Corinne from Montreal on Reflection 2 and later in the week Sam from Vermont on Sweet Pea, instantly making some new friends. On the Thursday we were able to make it to the Annapolis Sailboat show, which was great

Night time shot from our boat

and had the rest of the week to work on projects.  We were able to order a replacement water tank and fittings from Defender, Brad installed the new tank which seems to be working perfectly.  He was also able to eliminate the air from the port tank.  In addition to some small jobs we spent several hours running wire from the house battery bank to the sensor input on the voltage regulators for both diesels. Here’s to hoping it works and corrects the no charging/overcharging problem that has plagued us since they were installed.  On the Saturday night we all had a wonderful dinner on Reflection 2 and we reciprocated with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday. Then Monday we had the pleasure of Sam for dinner.  This remarkable woman is single handing a 28 ft Cape Dory, named Sweet Pea from Vermont to the Caribbean. 

What a great marina and would highly recommend, not only was it about $280 US for the week but it is a very sheltered marina with floating docks with a restaurant and Tiki bar on site.  Chesapeake city was a very beautiful little town with early 1800’s wood-sided homes maintained in immaculate condition.  Great stay but time to get heading south, the nights are getting very cold.

Marina view from out boat

Our Enterprise Rental Car

Our new solar light ambience 

Bay Bridge to Annapolis

Oswego to Delaware City the start of the C&D Canal 2016

It is officially our one month anniversary as cruisers, what a perfect time to finally get this posted. We have been very busy and have not had much time to focus on this blog - actually none.  Now we will give a quick catch - up and hopefully, keep up to date in the future.

Late Spring early summer was spent finishing up projects on the boat and installing new gear we had purchased over the winter.  This includes a new radar system which operates off bluetooth to iPad and iPhone, an important safety feature since a ship travelling at 22 knots on a converging course can be invisible over the horizon and make contact with you in less than twenty minutes.   With this device, instead of a radar screen fixed at the helm station, we can have dinner together below while monitoring shipping.

On July 6, 2016 Estrella del Sur was finally launched after three years on the hard.

Launch day
compliments of our friend Gordon
with his drone

Unfortunately, the travel lift and launching slip at Loyalist Cove were a bit too narrow for our boat and therefore a crane was hired to put us in the water. Please understand most marinas in Ontario do not have travel lifts large enough to launch catamarans. We continued working on projects once afloat, including new non-skid (grippy surface on deck that ensures stable footing while underway).  The instructions for application of the product we used, Kiwi-grip, were obviously written by a contract litigation lawyer: the paint was supposed to be applied in temperatures between 60 and 70 degrees F, not direct sunlight, and with no rain or dew for 24 hours.  How many days are completely overcast with no chance of rain?   In the result we still have a few areas that still need to be done. 

In August and early September we had a few test sails and a couple of memorable nights out under anchor with Spencer and Rosario, Christoper and Raiden.  We also had an opportunity to test our new dinghy and with a 20 h.p. motor on a 10 ft R.I.B. (rigid inflatable boat)..  We found that the two of us were unwilling to go beyond half throttle as we were already flying along on a plane.  Chris and Raiden however, pushed that to the max and returned to tell about it.

While not going out for an overnight anchorage we were also pleased to have Victoria, Ashley, Olivia, Shane and Tyler also out for a visit.  In addition, just prior to departure, Dave and Jane (Julie’s parents) came for an overnight stay on the boat at Loyalist Cove.

READY OR NOT! - September 12, 2016 

Although much was still required to be done on the boat, at 6:10 am on Monday September 12, 2016 we departed from Loyalist Cove Marina.  Accompanying us were Matthew and Kathleen on Kinship, a Saga 43 from Ottawa. 

Loyalist Cove Marina

As our mast and boom were lashed to the deck we motored across Lake Ontario arriving at Oswego NY at 1:10 pm.  We were able to clear customs/immigration by video call to Syracuse Border Patrol and by 1:30 had a 12 month cruising permit faxed to us for one year.  When we attempted to start the engines to leave, the starter motor on the port diesel exploded.  I mean literally - the bell housing at the front blew into several pieces.  Please understand we just had two new starter motors installed as preventative maintenance. While we were assured these Chinese knock-offs were a perfect fit for our Yanmar diesels, they obviously weren’t.  Thankfully we had a rebuilt original as a spare and were able to get going after a short delay. 

Once underway again we transited the first lock (Lock 8) of the Oswego Canal and at 4:20 pm tied off on the East wall of the canal for the night.  We then went to get some provisions at the Big M supermarket where we found great deals, such as $6.99 a pound for some terrific striploin steaks.

September 13, 2016

We left Oswego at 9:00 am and headed through locks 7 to to 1 (for some reason, there is no lock 4), arriving at Phoenix at 3:20 pm.  Brad noted that in spite of motoring all day, when we plugged into shore power the batteries were charging.  He suspected that the brand new Balmar high out-put alternators and smart regulators had been installed incorrectly, as the batteries should have been fully charged.  Free docking, some good ice cream at a nearby store and a pretty waterfront setting soon alleviated the concerns.

September 14, 2016

Due to inclement weather we did not depart Phoenix until 11:18 am.  After a quick stop to refuel, we entered Lake Oneida at 1:49 pm.   Gusty conditions created a bad chop in the

shallow lake, but we arrived at Sylvan Beach at 4:40 pm.  We had a nice dinner out at the Crazy Clam restaurant at this Wasaga Beach - like waterfront town. 

September 15, 2016

We departed Sylvan Beach in the mist and fog at 8:02 am on a very chilly morning (7 degrees C.) and had to turn on our propane heater.  We arrived at Ilion, our next stop at 2:40 pm.   We were inundated with flies as the numerous ones we brought from Canada have now been joined by American ones. In total, we travelled 6 hours and 38 min today and after tying up, we made a quick call home to wish my Dad a very happy birthday!

September 16, 2016

We departed Ilion at 7:32 am on another very chilly morning.  We had a very long wait to get into Lock 17, very slimy and wet and the largest lock of the canal system.  Our new friends, the two Pierre’s from Montreal on La Caboteur, joined us in that lock (as many before).  The skipper of this 31 foot Beneteau, Pierre Desrosier, is a very experienced sailor (four transatlantic crossings) and is a terrific source of advice, as well as gourmet cheese and porto!  We arrived in Amsterdam at 5:20 pm after 9 hours and 50 minutes of motoring.

September 17, 2016

Lock 17
The two Pierre's coming
out behind us.

We departed Amsterdam at 7:24 am, stopped for some diesel, a pump-out and decided to fill the water tanks. Unfortunately, our secondary water tank we installed is plumbed so that if completely filled, the intake hose is pressed against the bottom of the tool cabinet located above it.  While Brad was going back and forth from pump-out to water, the tank was overfilled and burst.  Down to one water tank!  It was a busy day for line handling as we cleared 9 locks, arriving at the Waterford visitor centre eight hours later.  We met up again with our friends the two Pierre’s, as well as Matthew and Kathleen from Ottawa. We had some sundowners that turned into a potluck dinner on Estrella del Sur and a superb guitar and vocal performance by Pierre Lachance.   A wonderful evening with our new friends. 

We should give kudos to the Americans for the facilities along the Oswego and Erie canals.  Free docking, generally with water and sometimes free electrical hookup.  However, a couple of words are required about transmitting the locks themselves:  disgustingly slimy!   You enter the locks as slowly as you can while paying attention to currents and cross winds (especially in downward locks).  After coming to a stop precisely beside the vertical ropes or pipes, you either hold the slippery ropes or wrap your own lines around the pipes and HOLD ON during the ascent or descent.  The boat's fenders become covered in slime and rust

which transfers itself to the boat's hull - and our new topsides paint job!  In spite of the dirt and the strength required in some of the locks, Julie never complained and became an incredibly proficient line handler.  As you will see, as time passed she would also become our navigator.

September 19, 2016

We departed Waterford at 8:45 and had a long wait to get through lock 1 in Troy - the last lock in the New York State canal system. After 7 hours and 15 min of motoring we arrived at Hop-O-Nose marina on the Catskill creek to get our mast up. For some reason, just before Hop-O-Nose our Inavx chart ended and we were missing the next chart required for navigation from the Hudson River into the marina.  Fortunately we also had our Garmin chart plotter, with its own digital charts.

  

We really enjoyed our time here.  We did laundry, grocery (and wine) shopping and of course, worked on the boat.  There was a bit of a delay for us to get the mast up as we were waiting for a bulb for the tricolour, masthead light from Defender.  After receiving two faulty bulbs from Marine Beam we decided to go with another company. There were also some difficulties getting the mast up…somehow the shrouds were reversed on the spreaders, but Brad and the staff were able to get it straightened out.  One night we had a terrific dinner at the marina’s restaurant, and Pierre Lachance made Julie a wonderful rope bracelet (Simple Cobra stitch ending in a monkey's fist),  As well as being a master guitarist’ he is also a master at tying knots.

September 22, 2016

We departed Hop-O-Nose at 8:15 am and headed out for another long day of motoring.  We were heading south towards Haverstraw Bay to meet up with Matthew and Kathleen at an anchorage in the Bay.  It was quite a pleasant motor with beautiful scenery. On route down we passed “World’s End” and the BEAT airforce base where we were surrounded by paratroopers and helicopters..  After ten and a half hours we dropped the anchor by Matthew and Kathleen in Haverstraw Bay.

September 23, 2016

NYC Time Square
Compliments of Pierre L.

Before we departed Brad had again noticed that in spite of so many hours of motoring, our batteries were not charging.  At 7:58 we got the anchor up and headed down the bay.  Shortly after Matthew called us to tell us that the Tappan Zee Bridge was closed to boaters until 4:30.  We quickly decided to find a marina to assist us with the charging issue.  At 9:30 in the morning we arrived at Westerly Marina in Ossining. Our quick little stop ended up costing us $1450 US and four days.  We took advance of the layover and ordered another Yanmar started motor as the second one newly installed before left was already starting to fail.  The mechanic had a quick look and the news wasn't good, but unfortunately they couldn’t do any work till Monday.  We spent a few days working on projects, cleaning up and then decided on Sunday to do a trip into New York city by train…and what a small world, if we didn’t run into the two Pierre’s in Time Square!  We also had brunch (fabulous lemon and ricotta pancakes) at a restaurant fronting Central Park and did a pedal cart tour of the park.  

While at the marina in Ossining we also enjoyed a very good restaurant right beside us called the Beach House - amazing baked lemon haddock and risotto.  So yes, the location did have some perks although we were neighbours with the famous Sing Sing prison and a set of railroad tracks behind us that were busier that the Don Valley parking lot in rush hour.

On Monday, after endless calls to Balmar and working through (or so they thought) the problem, the marina had us up and running again to leave on Tuesday.  Bottom line was that the voltage sensor from the batteries was not connected to the voltage regulators, so they were not charging at all.  This in spite of a little tag on the regulator connection that cautioned:  the included fuse and wire must be connected in order to operate.

Ossining Station

Central Park

Grand Central Station

September 27, 2016

We departed Westerly Marina at 6:08 am before sunrise so as to get a jump start on the day. It was a cold, damp morning with light rain but we were headed to to NYC and feeling excited.  Just before 10:00 am we were passing the 79th Street Basin when I checked the battery voltage.  Holy crap we were at 16.5v and the smell coming off the batteries was a clear sign of trouble.  We quickly called the 79th Street Marina and headed in to dock.  Brad unplugged the regulators and soon realized that the mechanic in Ossining had run the sensor wires and fuse to our starter batteries, not the house bank.  The starter batteries are not charged directly by the alternators, but rather through ‘echo chargers’ which are apparently set to start charging at a different voltage than the Balmar regulators. .The regulators sense that the starter batteries were at 12.4 volts and continued charging the house bank trying to get the voltage up.  The house bank (now massively overcharged)  would not send anything to the starter batteries as the echo chargers said they didn’t need charging.  As a result, the alternators just kept charging the house bank trying to get the voltage up in the starter batteries (which they sensed) until we fried our new $2500.00 house bank!  

View from 79th Street Basin

So there were sat again feeling defeated over all the money we had spent having new equipment installed by professionals in order to avoid problems!.  However, we were in NYC and we decided to pull up our pants and enjoy.  After dinner we headed to a great wine bar that had some live music (our favourite).  Another nice little surprise was when this woman came into the bar and asked to sing with the band…she was amazing!  Afterwards we found out that she was currently singing in a Broadway play.  We love NYC!.

September 28, 2016

After a very rolly night on the Hudson (judging by the wakes, New York truly is ‘the city that never sleeps), we departed 79th Street Basin at 8:56 am with unplugged voltage regulators and no charging batteries.  We also noticed our only remaining water tank was still sucking in air.  This was the day I had been fearing since the trip started…the traffic going through NYC to get us to the channel to head to Sandy Hook.  To my surprise it wasn’t as bad as I thought, lots of traffic but Brad handled her like a pro.  Once we headed into the Chapel Hill

Estrella del Sur at
Highlands, Sandy Hook,
New Jersey

 North Channel the weather started to worsen and the seas were making the journey a little uncomfortable. The winds were 30 knots on the nose with 2 meter seas on the beam (the side of the boat).  Brad had a few salt water facials along the way. Little did we know what would lay ahead for the next few days.  We arrived at the Highlands marina in Sandy Hook, New Jersey at 12:20 pm.

Sept 29- Oct.1, 2016

The initial plan was to stay at the marina for a night or two as the bad weather passed.  The couple of nights turned into four.  Seas were now 4 meters with winds gusting to 50 knots (about 90 kph).  It was so bad the marina crew were wearing their PFD’s on the dock and a 27 foot sport fishing boat sunk at dock from waves breaking over its transom!.  A nice marina but not protected with a blow from the east and that is what we had.   Brad was up every few hours during the nights to re-tie or add some fenders in creative ways to keep us off the pilings.  This was our first time docking with pilings - definitely not a fan in rough weather.

Atlantic City

October 2, 2016

We departed the Highlands marina at 7:34 am  headed for Atlantic City.  It was a cold foggy morning with some pretty high seas.  At 8:03 am Brad noticed the port diesel throttle seemed to be malfunctioning.  We took advantage of the winds unfurled the Yankee and eventually the staysail. After twelve long hours and in the dark (something we never wanted to do) we arrived at Kammerman’s marina Atlantic City.  The owner Chris was great and had kept the marina open late to accommodate us.  Just before we entered the entrance to the marina our navigation chart on Inavx didn’t change over to the next chart (again) so Chris guided us in on the phone.  Chris stayed and had a drink with us once we were all tied up and settled for the night.  He is a police captain in Atlantic City and had lots of stories to share.  He also gave us a discount as Brad was formerly involved in ‘law enforcement’.  We were docked directly across from the casinos with a sensational view of the Atlantic City skyline.  At 10:00 we barbecued a couple of great steaks and enjoyed those with a spinach salad and a bottle of decent pinot noir. Fortunately it was very calm night and the first in many where we both were able to sleep uninterrupted through the night.

October 3, 2016

We departed Atlantic City at 9:35 am.  A little later start but we were tired from the long passage to Atlantic City and had planned to stop in Cape May, which left us lots of time.  Around 11:00 am I spotted a dolphin jumping off to our port side. As we approached Cape May we decided that due to the deteriorating forecast for the following day we should plow on and traverse Delaware Bay that night.  Tide was going to be with us and give us a nice push up the bay.  It was a slow start but a couple of hours into the run we started to pick up speed, averaging about 8 knots.  Again we saw dolphins, this time four of them playing off our bow and then our stern.  The sun was setting and it was positively serene.  Sadly it turned out to be the calm before the storm.

  

Firstly, I had no idea that Delaware Bay was so large, there are many shoals and the cruising guides suggest - especially at night - remaining in the marked shipping channel.  I also didn't realize the number and sheer size of the ships that would be travelling up and down the narrow shipping channel with us.  Now that was a whole new - and terrifying - experience for us both.  It seemed as soon as the dark fell upon us, so did the non- stop ship traffic.  At one point we were confronted by two ships passing in opposite directions

Pic from Chesapeake City
example of size of ships

and were forced out of the narrow channel in an area which rapidly shoaled.  When ships approached we tried to stay just outside the channel in order to give them a clear berth.  A number of ships captains were also good enough to contact us on the VHF and advise us, for example, of their course and to request that we remain on our present course and we would pass safely starboard to starboard.  Some however just barrelled through, making unannounced course changes at the last minute.  Disconcerting to say the least!

We were also forced to deal with a few pleasure boats with improper or malfunctioning running lights, making it difficult to determine their course.  At 12:30 am we finally arrived at the top of the bay suffering through 15 long and stressful hours, exhausted and for Julie, still a little shaken.  We dropped anchor in Delaware City and planned to do the C&D canal in the morning.  Sadly, sleep was again fitful due to strong wind, waves and the wake from ships entering or exiting the adjoining C&D (Chesapeake and Delaware) canal.  

Why did we decide to make a passage of Delaware Bay and anchor in an unfamiliar location at night - something we had vowed to avoid if possible?  Simple.  As we had mentioned earlier, the forecast for the next few days had deteriorated and Delaware Bay is known to be very rough in high winds as the waves accelerate and climb as the bay narrows towards the top.  We also had an eye on Hurricane Mathew and wanted to be clear of the Atlantic coast before it passed the Atlantic coast.  While difficult, that night was our only decent weather window in the foreseeable future.