Saturday' weather forecast was for strong winds again but that would not concern us since we would be in a protected waterway for most of today trip - the last one of this adventure. It was going to be a bit chilly by south Florida standards - highs in the 60's but more than pleasant considering the alternative. When I spoke with Weezie she told me about the 18 or so inches of snow that they had just received back home. We delayed our start this morning until the dockmaster arrived shortly before 8 - I was a bit concerned about the wind blowing me into another boat in the tight confines of the marina as I had to reverse out of my slip and then do a very quick 90 degree turn to port between a couple of closeby boats. It turned out to be a fairly easy departure and we were soon moving along at 6.5 knots with a strong following current but into an equally strong headwind. Lat was to last only about 5 miles - until we cleared out of the St-Lucy River and turned into the Okeechobee canal itself. Once in the "ditch" we were Protected from the wind and very soon, after a passage through the St Lucy lock, immune also to a tidal currrents. Beyond the lock, the water was fresh so the engine, which had been cooled by saltwater for the past 3 months, was now on a diet of freshwater. The Bukh would have a good rinsing from the remaining 15 mile passage through the canal to Indiantown. As we moved along, the air temperature gradually rose so that by Indiantown I was down to short on my sleeves and on my legs. There wasn't a lot to see along the Okeechobee - we passed through agricultural areas where huge pumps drew water from the canal for irrigation, and passed by a few residential developments where houses were grouped on suitable land. There was very little other boat traffic along here, and the canal was wide enough for "auto" to do much of the work.Passing through the narrow and short channel into the marina's basin and tying up just beyond the fuel dock was my last boating operation of this voyage (except for the 200 foot trip to the travelift for the haulout sometime later in the week. We arrived around 2 p.m. My lines were caught by an employee of the marina and another boater - Bob who along with June were preparing to head off on their 27 foot Erickson to the Exumas after the weekend.
Saturdays, I was informed, the marina hosts a BBQ so after sharing a celebratory drink with my neighbours, I read for a bit, walked the dog through the boat storage area, and relaxed, completely.
The boat storage area has a couple of hundred boats there, most of them sailboats, and from all over North America. There is a separate boat work area where boaters can, for up to 2 weeks, so any kind of work on their vessels. There, they are allowed to stay on the boats. In the storage area, it is not allowed.
The BBQ had about 40 attendees, and featured pork and chicken and a huge assortment of appetizers, salads, and desserts. It was a nice way to cap this adventure - enjoying the company of 6 others who very freely shared their "stories" and advice for the less experienced (me)
I contacted Terry at home around 10 pm, they had just returned from Bernie's birthday party. They will depart tomorrow (Sunday), and likely get here later Tuesday evening - weather permitting.
Sunday started off cloudy with some promise of showers later on so I got up early and took down the genoa and main sails, and stowed a few of the lines that I would no longer be needing. Once the showers started, I returned to my Robert Ludlam novel and spent the rest of the day there, at least until around 4 when people began to gather in the lounge to watch some of the football games. Dinner was therefore a bit late getting going but quickly put together in the pressure cooker. I am down to cleaning out the fridge and getting rid of the last of my provisions. I will not starve but my choices are now made for me. Caja, with the warmer conditions has chosen to sleep in the cockpit. It is nice to have pleasant conditions at night. I contacted Terry via Dan's Blackberry. They are on their way and well into Ohio. There appears to be yukky weather on either side of them. They just might be able to squeeze down between the systems and make it here without weather delays. They should be able to pick me up Tuesday evening - I will accompany them to Fort Lauderdale for overnight and we will return to the boat Wednesday evening; and ready to be hauled out first thing Thursday morning. I notified the marina of that plan, walked the dog into Indiantown to pick a some apples - there was very little else in the way of fruit or veggies in the food store there, and returned to the marina for what should be a day of gathering together items for the return trip to Fenelon Falls.
Around the parking lot at the food store were gathered dozens of people, most of them Hyspanic-looking. My guess is that they were there awaiting the opportunity to get a day of work in the surrounding farms.
It is sunny and warm. This marina has good facilities for those who need to be here for a short period of time. I am pleased with my choice of the Indiantown marina, and I will now sign off from this chapter of this blog, hoping to return to the activity if I am able to decide to add another chapter.
Caja and I have survived it well. We will see you all in a short while
This is resolute. Out.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
Alligators and the Indian River
It is Friday, December 12th and I am sitting in the cockpit with Caja at the Mariner Cay Marina near Stuart Florida. We turned off the ICW about a mile ago and all that is left is about 30 miles along the Okeechobee Waterway to Indiantown Florida, where I have decided to leave the boat while we return home for the Christmas and ski seasons. A fair bit of distance has been covered since I last wrote. Today's slip is right outside the marina office so my wi-fi reception is excellent. Time to get caught up.
I left New Smyrna Beach with a good current behind me and made it to Titusville in the early afternoon on Sunday the 7th. The trip down for the most part was along the Mosquito Lagoon, a body of water that was several miles wide and about 20 miles long. It was generally shallow except for where the channel was dredged out. The channel was wide enough that I could use the autopilot to do most of the steering. This is my most valuable piece of equipment. After going the length of the Mosquito Lagoon, we crossed over to the Indian River Lagoon and the balance of the trip along the ICW to Stuart was along this body of water. It was similarly structured - i.e. a few miles wide, shallow and long.
After arriving, I had time to change the oil and filter and still get to take Caja for a long walk along the waterfront. A great deal of the waterfront there was devoted to parkland. There is a huge municipal park that stretched for at least a mile along the waterfront; another park was a tribute to those who contributed in any way to the US space program - we can see the huge erector building at the Kennedy Space Centre from the Titusville waterfront. Another really well-done park pays tribute to those who have fought for the US is recent wars. The rest of the town, however, is far from the classic beauties that we visited in the Carolinas and Georgia. I wandered around looking for a wi-fi spot and struck out wherever I went. I did manage to get stocked up on food and even found a vet where I was able to get some of Caja's regular food - it was about a mile away, though. We had a quiet day on Monday; I found a used book store and picked up a few more paperback "who dunnits",and got to bed early since Tuesday we had a 40 mile day planned- to Melbourne and the city Marina.
We left early again and soon found ourselves pounding into headwinds that increased in strength through the day. The chart indicated that the winds were going to be right into the mouth of the harbour where the marina was located. I tried to call the marina on VHF and on my cell phone but I was unable to raise them, so I decided to cut the trip about 5 miles short and took a slip at the bottom end of the Banana River which was very sheltered from the wind. We tied up for the night at the Telemar Bay Marina. Once we were tied up, I walked and fed Caja and went down to the local sports bar for a quick dinner of hoagies, washed down with a Yuengling beer. We again crashed early since Wednesday would now be the 40 mile day - to Vero Beach.
We left before 7 on Wednesday and again travelled down the Indian River. The wind was again on the nose and fairly strong -15 to 20 mph but the marina at Vero Beach was up a very well-protected river. I had booked a slip there for 2 days but when we arrived, I was told that there was no record of the reservation. This was critical since the weather was forecast to be really bad on Thursday and Vero Beach was a favorite spot to hide. They had no slips available. I protested and they found me a spot in a 3 foot deep lagoon where the dinghys tie up to a floating dock. I had to power into the slip through the silt at the bottom of the lagoon - but - this was a really secure spot to be if the weather got really nasty. The big question was how easy or hard would it be to get out. That would be answered in 2 days.
I treated myself to a great dinner of breaded conch fritters, fried shrimp, and key lime pie at a nearby waterfront restaurant. Vero Beaach is a great place to stay for a while - the county provides free bus service to the shopping areas in the town across the river. There is a very large park where people with dogs meet each morning and evening to exercise the dogs and chat. In many of the marinas visited recently there are found more and more people who live aboard their boats and who stay in marinas for months at a time. The other thing that was very striking about Vero Beach is that many more boats are tied up to mooring balls - in fact, most of the moorings had 3 boats rafted together - there is no anchoring allowed in Vero Beach. The storm came and went - the wind was strong - the rain was heavy, but by about 7 p.m. on Thursday, things had settled down and we had a quiet night. I made up a dinner of tuna and pasta - enough for tomorrow as well.
Friday morning arrived and we again planned to leave around 7. The tide was out and I was stuck in my slip. I managed to push myself back about 10 feet and then put the engine in reverse, and got on the dock and pushed and we slowly moved out into deeper water. We left without incident and started off on the last day of ICW travel. It turned out to be a great one since the wind- at 15 to 20 mph, came from behind, over my shoulder. We were able to put out the genoa and move at an average of about 6 knots for the entire trip. We arrived here in the Manatee Pocket near Stuart, after fighting a bit of current, and wind, were tied up by around 1:30. I think that I may try to upload some photos here later tonight, but now, Caja is begging for a walk. Dinner is leftovers from yesterday and tomorrow, we take our last boat ride ...for a while.
TTYL
Mike
I left New Smyrna Beach with a good current behind me and made it to Titusville in the early afternoon on Sunday the 7th. The trip down for the most part was along the Mosquito Lagoon, a body of water that was several miles wide and about 20 miles long. It was generally shallow except for where the channel was dredged out. The channel was wide enough that I could use the autopilot to do most of the steering. This is my most valuable piece of equipment. After going the length of the Mosquito Lagoon, we crossed over to the Indian River Lagoon and the balance of the trip along the ICW to Stuart was along this body of water. It was similarly structured - i.e. a few miles wide, shallow and long.
After arriving, I had time to change the oil and filter and still get to take Caja for a long walk along the waterfront. A great deal of the waterfront there was devoted to parkland. There is a huge municipal park that stretched for at least a mile along the waterfront; another park was a tribute to those who contributed in any way to the US space program - we can see the huge erector building at the Kennedy Space Centre from the Titusville waterfront. Another really well-done park pays tribute to those who have fought for the US is recent wars. The rest of the town, however, is far from the classic beauties that we visited in the Carolinas and Georgia. I wandered around looking for a wi-fi spot and struck out wherever I went. I did manage to get stocked up on food and even found a vet where I was able to get some of Caja's regular food - it was about a mile away, though. We had a quiet day on Monday; I found a used book store and picked up a few more paperback "who dunnits",and got to bed early since Tuesday we had a 40 mile day planned- to Melbourne and the city Marina.
We left early again and soon found ourselves pounding into headwinds that increased in strength through the day. The chart indicated that the winds were going to be right into the mouth of the harbour where the marina was located. I tried to call the marina on VHF and on my cell phone but I was unable to raise them, so I decided to cut the trip about 5 miles short and took a slip at the bottom end of the Banana River which was very sheltered from the wind. We tied up for the night at the Telemar Bay Marina. Once we were tied up, I walked and fed Caja and went down to the local sports bar for a quick dinner of hoagies, washed down with a Yuengling beer. We again crashed early since Wednesday would now be the 40 mile day - to Vero Beach.
We left before 7 on Wednesday and again travelled down the Indian River. The wind was again on the nose and fairly strong -15 to 20 mph but the marina at Vero Beach was up a very well-protected river. I had booked a slip there for 2 days but when we arrived, I was told that there was no record of the reservation. This was critical since the weather was forecast to be really bad on Thursday and Vero Beach was a favorite spot to hide. They had no slips available. I protested and they found me a spot in a 3 foot deep lagoon where the dinghys tie up to a floating dock. I had to power into the slip through the silt at the bottom of the lagoon - but - this was a really secure spot to be if the weather got really nasty. The big question was how easy or hard would it be to get out. That would be answered in 2 days.
I treated myself to a great dinner of breaded conch fritters, fried shrimp, and key lime pie at a nearby waterfront restaurant. Vero Beaach is a great place to stay for a while - the county provides free bus service to the shopping areas in the town across the river. There is a very large park where people with dogs meet each morning and evening to exercise the dogs and chat. In many of the marinas visited recently there are found more and more people who live aboard their boats and who stay in marinas for months at a time. The other thing that was very striking about Vero Beach is that many more boats are tied up to mooring balls - in fact, most of the moorings had 3 boats rafted together - there is no anchoring allowed in Vero Beach. The storm came and went - the wind was strong - the rain was heavy, but by about 7 p.m. on Thursday, things had settled down and we had a quiet night. I made up a dinner of tuna and pasta - enough for tomorrow as well.
Friday morning arrived and we again planned to leave around 7. The tide was out and I was stuck in my slip. I managed to push myself back about 10 feet and then put the engine in reverse, and got on the dock and pushed and we slowly moved out into deeper water. We left without incident and started off on the last day of ICW travel. It turned out to be a great one since the wind- at 15 to 20 mph, came from behind, over my shoulder. We were able to put out the genoa and move at an average of about 6 knots for the entire trip. We arrived here in the Manatee Pocket near Stuart, after fighting a bit of current, and wind, were tied up by around 1:30. I think that I may try to upload some photos here later tonight, but now, Caja is begging for a walk. Dinner is leftovers from yesterday and tomorrow, we take our last boat ride ...for a while.
TTYL
Mike
Saturday, December 6, 2008
The sunshine coast
We again planned our departure from St. Augustine early - before sunrise to take advantage of the lack of tidal current at departure and the presence of current as we made our way south. Even though we only had 25 miles to go to our next stop, it is really good to get in early - it pretty well adds another day to our time in port and provides the time to get some of the boat jobs done. Our first afternoon in Palm Coast, we walked over to the "European Village", a hotel-condo complex that is built in a triangle around a large open plaza. Small stores, bars, and restaurants occupy the ground level and the hotel rooms are in the 3 floors above. Once inside the triangle, we were protected from the cool breeze and we warmed up quickly, and then pigged out at an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet. We also then decided to return to one of the other restaurants for dinner. While we ate our lunch we were serenaded by a "crooner" who took to the stage in the middle of the plaza and belted out old standards while the few people who were there ate. This is really getting to be tourist and resort country. The terrain has gradually moved to include less marsh and more solid ground with a larger variety of trees, including various types of palms.
Later, the 10 minute walk led us back to the village. We stopped for a beer ($2.00) - I think that the shops here are hurting; dinner comprised local food at what seemed to be the most popular restaurant in the village. Our return was after dark and it took me very little time to crash, even though tomorrow morning we would have a liesurely get-up.
Ham and eggs warmed up the cabin and filled my tummy on Thursday morning. That day was one of domestic chores - finally getting around to doing the dishes (they had piled up for about 3 days); and then laundry. The latter gave me time to finish off one of the pocketbooks that I had picked up a way back in Belhaven. I now have only one more book to finish - it is the relatively "heavy" one dealing with Islam. Kind of academic and sometimes boring but I am determined - even resolute.
Kent and Karen and I had decided that our last night in PCM would present the chance to pool their and my remaining "goodies" for our sundowner. We polished off 3 part bottles of wine, loads of cheese and crackers and we all found that we had had enough to satisfy our appetites. I was in bed by around 7:30. Tomorrow, it is the land of the Daytona 500 and raucous spring break goings-on. Kent and Karen were delivering their boat to a boat-yard to get some work done on it and I had booked a slip at the Halifax Harbour Marina - the municipal marina right on the Daytona waterfront and next door to Breezaway's boat-yard.
The trip was about 28 miles and we again left early and were assisted by the tidal current, arriving in Daytona shortly after noon. The HHM is huge - over 500 slips. After signing in at the slip I walked over towards K and K's marina and met them along the way. We took a short walk downtown, scoped out a likely restaurant for dinner and found out that we had arrived on the day of Daytona's Christmas parade. The downtown of Daytona is about a mile removed from the barrier island on which the famous beaches are located. It looked as though this town in suffering - there were many empty stores and the remaining ones were almost deserted. We wondered what the Christmas parade would bring.
After a quick visit to West Marine for some engine oil, I walked Caja on the waterfront trail and met K and K - our first stop - an Irish pub for a pre-dinner drink. I had a dark ale - Murphy's - somewhat like Guiness, and then we continued onm down to the restaurant for our excellent dinner. Live jazz entertainment started just as we were finishing up-very skilled players; and we went outside to join the fairly large crowd that had gathered for the parade. It was like most such events - fire trucks, police cars, a few bands, a few decorated floats, marching groups from some of the schools, and local dignitaries out "glad-handing. It was fun, though to see a large group of people enjoying themselves. After a phone conversation with Terry, I crashed shortly after 9 and in my dreams planned my first day for some time, unescorted.
Because my trip to New Smyrna Beach Marina was only about 18 miles, I slept in for about half an hour, and after the usual morning activities, left around 7:45. I was again lucky enough to have a current pushing me all the way and arrived at my destination by about 11:00 a.m. For the first time in a long time, there were light showers to mark my departure from a stop. It soon eased up and the sun finally emerged, raising the temperatures to the mid-70's. I had a quick lunch and did the typical tour of downtown New Smyrna Beach, managing to find a bakery where I stocked up on a few "sweets", and a farmers' market where I stocked up on some fruit - oranges, apples and grapes - the only items that I ran out of this morning. Even though the dockmaster told me that there is no wi-fi here, he added that one can usually piggyback on another unprotected wireless connection. This blog is coming to via that means. It is about 2 in the afternoon right now and boats around me are being decorated. It turned out that my visit here coincides with NSB's Christmas parade as well as with a boat parade later in the evening. I will be "Christmas'ed" out if this continues. However, I still have not started my Christmas shopping and there will be no time to do it once I get back to Fenelon Falls. I had better get moving!
That's it for now; tomorrow I move along to Titusville where I have a slip booked for 2 days. Time to do some engine maintenance. It is about 32 miles so my get-up will return to 5:00 a.m. I wonder what I will do when I get back home?
Mike
Later, the 10 minute walk led us back to the village. We stopped for a beer ($2.00) - I think that the shops here are hurting; dinner comprised local food at what seemed to be the most popular restaurant in the village. Our return was after dark and it took me very little time to crash, even though tomorrow morning we would have a liesurely get-up.
Ham and eggs warmed up the cabin and filled my tummy on Thursday morning. That day was one of domestic chores - finally getting around to doing the dishes (they had piled up for about 3 days); and then laundry. The latter gave me time to finish off one of the pocketbooks that I had picked up a way back in Belhaven. I now have only one more book to finish - it is the relatively "heavy" one dealing with Islam. Kind of academic and sometimes boring but I am determined - even resolute.
Kent and Karen and I had decided that our last night in PCM would present the chance to pool their and my remaining "goodies" for our sundowner. We polished off 3 part bottles of wine, loads of cheese and crackers and we all found that we had had enough to satisfy our appetites. I was in bed by around 7:30. Tomorrow, it is the land of the Daytona 500 and raucous spring break goings-on. Kent and Karen were delivering their boat to a boat-yard to get some work done on it and I had booked a slip at the Halifax Harbour Marina - the municipal marina right on the Daytona waterfront and next door to Breezaway's boat-yard.
The trip was about 28 miles and we again left early and were assisted by the tidal current, arriving in Daytona shortly after noon. The HHM is huge - over 500 slips. After signing in at the slip I walked over towards K and K's marina and met them along the way. We took a short walk downtown, scoped out a likely restaurant for dinner and found out that we had arrived on the day of Daytona's Christmas parade. The downtown of Daytona is about a mile removed from the barrier island on which the famous beaches are located. It looked as though this town in suffering - there were many empty stores and the remaining ones were almost deserted. We wondered what the Christmas parade would bring.
After a quick visit to West Marine for some engine oil, I walked Caja on the waterfront trail and met K and K - our first stop - an Irish pub for a pre-dinner drink. I had a dark ale - Murphy's - somewhat like Guiness, and then we continued onm down to the restaurant for our excellent dinner. Live jazz entertainment started just as we were finishing up-very skilled players; and we went outside to join the fairly large crowd that had gathered for the parade. It was like most such events - fire trucks, police cars, a few bands, a few decorated floats, marching groups from some of the schools, and local dignitaries out "glad-handing. It was fun, though to see a large group of people enjoying themselves. After a phone conversation with Terry, I crashed shortly after 9 and in my dreams planned my first day for some time, unescorted.
Because my trip to New Smyrna Beach Marina was only about 18 miles, I slept in for about half an hour, and after the usual morning activities, left around 7:45. I was again lucky enough to have a current pushing me all the way and arrived at my destination by about 11:00 a.m. For the first time in a long time, there were light showers to mark my departure from a stop. It soon eased up and the sun finally emerged, raising the temperatures to the mid-70's. I had a quick lunch and did the typical tour of downtown New Smyrna Beach, managing to find a bakery where I stocked up on a few "sweets", and a farmers' market where I stocked up on some fruit - oranges, apples and grapes - the only items that I ran out of this morning. Even though the dockmaster told me that there is no wi-fi here, he added that one can usually piggyback on another unprotected wireless connection. This blog is coming to via that means. It is about 2 in the afternoon right now and boats around me are being decorated. It turned out that my visit here coincides with NSB's Christmas parade as well as with a boat parade later in the evening. I will be "Christmas'ed" out if this continues. However, I still have not started my Christmas shopping and there will be no time to do it once I get back to Fenelon Falls. I had better get moving!
That's it for now; tomorrow I move along to Titusville where I have a slip booked for 2 days. Time to do some engine maintenance. It is about 32 miles so my get-up will return to 5:00 a.m. I wonder what I will do when I get back home?
Mike
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
We made it to Florida
This entry has been a long time coming, primarily since on our travels through Georgia, we were very often out of cell phone and internet range. Even now, in St-Augustine Florida, the internet access is spotty. It is often difficult to stay connected as the wi-fi systems are in some locations, pretty primitive.
Since I last wrote, because of strong winds we decided to stay an extra day in Beaufort South Carolina. That was no hardship since the town is very attractive. I did try to upload photos to the last blog entry but the access being what is is, it was not possible. I may have to wait until I get to a "real" wi-fi location to do that. In fact, this afternoon I'll get to a coffee shop and bring along the Mac.
After we left Beaufort on Wednesday Nov. 19th, we stopped at the Palmetto Bay Marina, on Hilton Head Island. It was a bit out of the way, but gave us a protected spot to spend the night. The marina was located adjacent to a resort so there were small cafes and bars where we had dinner after our long day on the water. We were again lucky to have found a spot frequented by locals and treated ourselves to a simple dinner - no dishes to wash. My day typically starts around 5 a.m. when I grab a good breakfast, make my lunch, and then take Caja for a good walk. Our departure is usually just before sunrise, around 7 a.m. We have been pretty lucky with tidal currents - we are in an area where the tides are around 9 feet in height. That means that when the tide is either coming in or going out, there is quite a current generated. I can slow us down to around 3 knots, or it can boost our speed up to about 7 knots, depending on how close we are to the inlet. Things have usually evened out, however, so that our average speed has been about 5.4 knots - about 6 mph - about 10 kph. The other thing that the high tidal range has allowed us to do is safely navigate the shallow parts of the ICW. There are spots where the water is no more than 2 feet deep at low tide. Our boats draw around 4 feet, so we need to be very aware of the state of the tide when we leave to cover any of those areas.
In Georgia, there are 3 areas where the water is very shallow, and yet we we had absolutely no problems in terms of running aground. I had been informed by other sailors, that I would definitely run aground in Georgia. I do admit that going through those areas is stressful - one eye is always on the depth sounder- but here we are in Florida and the only time that I touched bottom was in North Carolina when I strayed a bit out of the channel. And even then, I just put the boat into reverse and easily backed off the soft muddy bottom into deeper water.
The other challenge that Georgia presented is the relative lack of marinas along the way. Had I been alone, that would have presented no problem but with the dog - there is a problem. Much of the waterway's path through Georgia as through swamps. The sides of the waterway are made up of swamp grass sitting in mud. There are often no places where a dinghy can land or where a dog can go ashore and "do his business". Skipper Bob gave recommendations on where to anchor so that dogs may be taken ashore but his directions were usually skimpy with insufficient specifics. More on that later.
The other feature of Georgia is that we are regularly required to traverse sounds - fairly large bodies of water with access to the ocean, and very often, quite shallow areas where the sand has been moved around by the rushing tides. Again, close attention to the buoys kept us on the straight and narrow and in deep enough water. One advantage of having to go through larger bodies of water is that then, it is often possible to put up at least 1 sail. Whenever the wind is right, and the waterway wide enough, I launch the genoa. It allows me to keep up with larger boats which are generally, quite a bit faster than I am. Because of my relatively small side, the sails are smaller and easier to quickly launch and retrieve.
When we left Palmetto Bay, our next stop was at the Isle of Hope Marina. This Marina was located near Savannah Georgia; in fact, the Savannah bus route ran very close to the marina. This would be a good spot to dock if one wished to pay Savannah a good long visit. While there we made arrangements to use their courtesy car and made a trip to the local grocery store, and then stopped at an authentic local diner for a southern lunch of pulled pork sandwich. It was a very busy spot so we knew that we would luck out. Strong winds were predicted for Friday, so we made arrangements to spend another day at this spot. It is a real luxury being able to do that. It has generally turned out that our travel days are sunny and with light winds - perfect.
The next 2 days were anchor out days. The first stop at Walburg Creek; the second at Duplin Creek. Both of these anchorages were excellent. The creeks were several hundred yards wide and protected on at least 1 side by trees. The other side featured the typical Georgia swamp grass. So at least we would not have to put up with wind-generated waves. Both of these areas are supposed to be doggy-friendly but in each spot, one had to know is advance where the landing areas were and then drop the anchor close to those spots. I did not and so, although I put the dinghy in the water at Walburg, Caja did not get a trip to shore. I did take him in to Duplin where he had a pee and got himself good and muddy.
We left Duplin Creek early on Monday the 24th and had a quick run down to the Jekyll Harbour Marina where we had booked in for 2 days. Jeckyll Island is a State Park that was once the winter playground of the very rich and very famous. The state bought the whole island and has worked to maintain the old "cottages" as they once were. They are very grand. The Millionaires Club is now a luxury hotel and the island is a huge tourist attraction. We enjoyed nice walks around the historical area and a couple of meals in the restaurant that was attached to the marina. While there, we made plans to stay for a couple of days at St-Mary's Georgia. This community for about 9 years, has been hosting an American Thanksgiving dinner for boaters. So we left the comfort of Jekyll Harbour and made for the anchorage at St-Mary's. There is a small marina there but since our plans were made late in the game we figured that our only option would be to anchor out. That was no problem since the anchorage is very large - last year there were over 100 boats there. And, the holding was very good, as soon as the anchor touched bottom - it grabbed and held. That has been the case each time that I anchored. And, the next morning, the anchor has come up clean - no mud or weeds attached. The bottoms must be sandy or gravelly.
The Thanksgiving dinner is a story in itself. Over 200 people were served. 21 turkeys were cooked by the local organizing committee. There was no cost to the boaters. It was a chance to sit down with many other people who are doing what we are and pick their brains, or listen to their stories. Amazingly, at the table next to where Karen and Kent and I sat down, were 4 people, one couple who passed around their boat card. Their address was on the card. It was ...Fenelon Falls, On Canada. They were the Tracys. I had taught their daughter Nancy, when I worked at I. E Weldon. Tiny world!!! Next stop Florida!!
We stayed at St-Mary's Wednesday and Thursday and left before sunrise on Friday the 28th - this time bound for Palm Cove Marina, near Jacksonville, Florida. There was a fairly shallow entrance channel which we hit a low tide but managed to get in early enough to grab a needed shower, and walk over to the food store and stock up before our "sundowner" hors d'oerves and drinks. The temperatures are warming up - the days are still sunny - we are catching up with the summer.
The start to St-Augustine was again before sunrise so that we could take advantage of the daylight hours and the favourable tidal current. The trip was easy; the water unshallow and wide; the scenery becoming more of what one would expect in Florida - less marsh grass and more condos and large homes along the waterway. We had planned to stay at least 2 days in St-Augustine but that stretched out to 4 days - the 3rd because of heavy rains and winds; the 4th because Kent and I had to make a trip to the sailors' exchange where we both had items to get. Our first day in St-A. sunny and very warm. We arrived early enough to have time to take the trolley train around the old section of town for an hour and 20 minutes. It gave us the "lay of the land". This is a very old city - the oldest settled by Europeans in North America - around 1513, I think. This is the place where Ponce de Leon discovered the "Fountain of Youth". It is also a town full of old tourist traps like the Ripleys's Believe it or Not museum and about 100 other museums. There were loads of people here on Saturday because of the Thanksgiving weekend but the other days have been a lot quieter. We have busied ourselves by reading, taking the shuttle bus to Amelia Island where there is a picturesque lighthouse, planning the rest of our time in Florida, and doing boat-related jobs. Caja has been spoiled with 2 good walks per day and I with restaurant meals at least once per day.
I will be leaving the boat in about 3 weeks and it will be left here for at least two and a half months. Other boaters have been advising me that I should make arrangements to have it hauled out and stored on dry land while I am away. A convenient spot often mentioned and one, I think, where Bob and Jane Ellis left their boat is at Indian River Marina on the Okeechobee. I will have to think about that over the next week or so; if I decide that I will not go over to the Bahamas in the winter, then it might be 3 or 4 months before the boat gets used. Kent and Karen are suggesting that it might be easier for me to do the Florida Keys than the Bahamas. Lots yet to sort out. I am getting a bit tired so I do need to take a bit of a break from the cruising life.
Anyhow, that brings me up to date. The sun is shining again; the winds have dropped, but so has the temperature. Tonight there might be frost but things warm up again staring tomorrow. We are off for Palm Coast Marina where we have slips reserved for 2 days, and then it is on to Daytona Beach. That will be the end of the line for Kent and Karen. They will be hauling their boat and returning home to Oklahoma for about a month before they return and press on to the Keys.
They have been very good travelling companions. I will be sorry to leave them.
On my visit to the sailor's exchange, I picked up a couple of used burners that I think might fit by cooking stove. That is my job for this afternoon. But first, an excellent lunch.
So long for now.
Mike
Since I last wrote, because of strong winds we decided to stay an extra day in Beaufort South Carolina. That was no hardship since the town is very attractive. I did try to upload photos to the last blog entry but the access being what is is, it was not possible. I may have to wait until I get to a "real" wi-fi location to do that. In fact, this afternoon I'll get to a coffee shop and bring along the Mac.
After we left Beaufort on Wednesday Nov. 19th, we stopped at the Palmetto Bay Marina, on Hilton Head Island. It was a bit out of the way, but gave us a protected spot to spend the night. The marina was located adjacent to a resort so there were small cafes and bars where we had dinner after our long day on the water. We were again lucky to have found a spot frequented by locals and treated ourselves to a simple dinner - no dishes to wash. My day typically starts around 5 a.m. when I grab a good breakfast, make my lunch, and then take Caja for a good walk. Our departure is usually just before sunrise, around 7 a.m. We have been pretty lucky with tidal currents - we are in an area where the tides are around 9 feet in height. That means that when the tide is either coming in or going out, there is quite a current generated. I can slow us down to around 3 knots, or it can boost our speed up to about 7 knots, depending on how close we are to the inlet. Things have usually evened out, however, so that our average speed has been about 5.4 knots - about 6 mph - about 10 kph. The other thing that the high tidal range has allowed us to do is safely navigate the shallow parts of the ICW. There are spots where the water is no more than 2 feet deep at low tide. Our boats draw around 4 feet, so we need to be very aware of the state of the tide when we leave to cover any of those areas.
In Georgia, there are 3 areas where the water is very shallow, and yet we we had absolutely no problems in terms of running aground. I had been informed by other sailors, that I would definitely run aground in Georgia. I do admit that going through those areas is stressful - one eye is always on the depth sounder- but here we are in Florida and the only time that I touched bottom was in North Carolina when I strayed a bit out of the channel. And even then, I just put the boat into reverse and easily backed off the soft muddy bottom into deeper water.
The other challenge that Georgia presented is the relative lack of marinas along the way. Had I been alone, that would have presented no problem but with the dog - there is a problem. Much of the waterway's path through Georgia as through swamps. The sides of the waterway are made up of swamp grass sitting in mud. There are often no places where a dinghy can land or where a dog can go ashore and "do his business". Skipper Bob gave recommendations on where to anchor so that dogs may be taken ashore but his directions were usually skimpy with insufficient specifics. More on that later.
The other feature of Georgia is that we are regularly required to traverse sounds - fairly large bodies of water with access to the ocean, and very often, quite shallow areas where the sand has been moved around by the rushing tides. Again, close attention to the buoys kept us on the straight and narrow and in deep enough water. One advantage of having to go through larger bodies of water is that then, it is often possible to put up at least 1 sail. Whenever the wind is right, and the waterway wide enough, I launch the genoa. It allows me to keep up with larger boats which are generally, quite a bit faster than I am. Because of my relatively small side, the sails are smaller and easier to quickly launch and retrieve.
When we left Palmetto Bay, our next stop was at the Isle of Hope Marina. This Marina was located near Savannah Georgia; in fact, the Savannah bus route ran very close to the marina. This would be a good spot to dock if one wished to pay Savannah a good long visit. While there we made arrangements to use their courtesy car and made a trip to the local grocery store, and then stopped at an authentic local diner for a southern lunch of pulled pork sandwich. It was a very busy spot so we knew that we would luck out. Strong winds were predicted for Friday, so we made arrangements to spend another day at this spot. It is a real luxury being able to do that. It has generally turned out that our travel days are sunny and with light winds - perfect.
The next 2 days were anchor out days. The first stop at Walburg Creek; the second at Duplin Creek. Both of these anchorages were excellent. The creeks were several hundred yards wide and protected on at least 1 side by trees. The other side featured the typical Georgia swamp grass. So at least we would not have to put up with wind-generated waves. Both of these areas are supposed to be doggy-friendly but in each spot, one had to know is advance where the landing areas were and then drop the anchor close to those spots. I did not and so, although I put the dinghy in the water at Walburg, Caja did not get a trip to shore. I did take him in to Duplin where he had a pee and got himself good and muddy.
We left Duplin Creek early on Monday the 24th and had a quick run down to the Jekyll Harbour Marina where we had booked in for 2 days. Jeckyll Island is a State Park that was once the winter playground of the very rich and very famous. The state bought the whole island and has worked to maintain the old "cottages" as they once were. They are very grand. The Millionaires Club is now a luxury hotel and the island is a huge tourist attraction. We enjoyed nice walks around the historical area and a couple of meals in the restaurant that was attached to the marina. While there, we made plans to stay for a couple of days at St-Mary's Georgia. This community for about 9 years, has been hosting an American Thanksgiving dinner for boaters. So we left the comfort of Jekyll Harbour and made for the anchorage at St-Mary's. There is a small marina there but since our plans were made late in the game we figured that our only option would be to anchor out. That was no problem since the anchorage is very large - last year there were over 100 boats there. And, the holding was very good, as soon as the anchor touched bottom - it grabbed and held. That has been the case each time that I anchored. And, the next morning, the anchor has come up clean - no mud or weeds attached. The bottoms must be sandy or gravelly.
The Thanksgiving dinner is a story in itself. Over 200 people were served. 21 turkeys were cooked by the local organizing committee. There was no cost to the boaters. It was a chance to sit down with many other people who are doing what we are and pick their brains, or listen to their stories. Amazingly, at the table next to where Karen and Kent and I sat down, were 4 people, one couple who passed around their boat card. Their address was on the card. It was ...Fenelon Falls, On Canada. They were the Tracys. I had taught their daughter Nancy, when I worked at I. E Weldon. Tiny world!!! Next stop Florida!!
We stayed at St-Mary's Wednesday and Thursday and left before sunrise on Friday the 28th - this time bound for Palm Cove Marina, near Jacksonville, Florida. There was a fairly shallow entrance channel which we hit a low tide but managed to get in early enough to grab a needed shower, and walk over to the food store and stock up before our "sundowner" hors d'oerves and drinks. The temperatures are warming up - the days are still sunny - we are catching up with the summer.
The start to St-Augustine was again before sunrise so that we could take advantage of the daylight hours and the favourable tidal current. The trip was easy; the water unshallow and wide; the scenery becoming more of what one would expect in Florida - less marsh grass and more condos and large homes along the waterway. We had planned to stay at least 2 days in St-Augustine but that stretched out to 4 days - the 3rd because of heavy rains and winds; the 4th because Kent and I had to make a trip to the sailors' exchange where we both had items to get. Our first day in St-A. sunny and very warm. We arrived early enough to have time to take the trolley train around the old section of town for an hour and 20 minutes. It gave us the "lay of the land". This is a very old city - the oldest settled by Europeans in North America - around 1513, I think. This is the place where Ponce de Leon discovered the "Fountain of Youth". It is also a town full of old tourist traps like the Ripleys's Believe it or Not museum and about 100 other museums. There were loads of people here on Saturday because of the Thanksgiving weekend but the other days have been a lot quieter. We have busied ourselves by reading, taking the shuttle bus to Amelia Island where there is a picturesque lighthouse, planning the rest of our time in Florida, and doing boat-related jobs. Caja has been spoiled with 2 good walks per day and I with restaurant meals at least once per day.
I will be leaving the boat in about 3 weeks and it will be left here for at least two and a half months. Other boaters have been advising me that I should make arrangements to have it hauled out and stored on dry land while I am away. A convenient spot often mentioned and one, I think, where Bob and Jane Ellis left their boat is at Indian River Marina on the Okeechobee. I will have to think about that over the next week or so; if I decide that I will not go over to the Bahamas in the winter, then it might be 3 or 4 months before the boat gets used. Kent and Karen are suggesting that it might be easier for me to do the Florida Keys than the Bahamas. Lots yet to sort out. I am getting a bit tired so I do need to take a bit of a break from the cruising life.
Anyhow, that brings me up to date. The sun is shining again; the winds have dropped, but so has the temperature. Tonight there might be frost but things warm up again staring tomorrow. We are off for Palm Coast Marina where we have slips reserved for 2 days, and then it is on to Daytona Beach. That will be the end of the line for Kent and Karen. They will be hauling their boat and returning home to Oklahoma for about a month before they return and press on to the Keys.
They have been very good travelling companions. I will be sorry to leave them.
On my visit to the sailor's exchange, I picked up a couple of used burners that I think might fit by cooking stove. That is my job for this afternoon. But first, an excellent lunch.
So long for now.
Mike
Monday, November 10, 2008
Golf anyone?
It has been 5 days since my last post and a lot of ground has been covered. We did leave as planned on Thursday morning and moved quickly down the waterway towards the Myrtle Beach area. Our first destination was the Coquina Yacht club which was located in a protected basin off the waterway with 2 other marinas. The most memorable features of that day's trip was that we were getting into the area of large homes along the waterfront. Although two of the notoriously shallow areas of the ICW - Lockwood's Folly and the Shallotte Inlet, were a short distance out of Southport, both of these areas turned out to be no problems. But it was still a relief to get them behind us. The entire route was in effect through a canal system that ran just inside a series of barrier islands. Another noted feature was that the barrier islands themselves were very heavily built up. There were private homes - mostly large and condo developments on most of the long and narrow barrier islands. Once we arrived at the marina, we were informed that the adjacent Holiday Inn had a happy hour from 5 to 7 so, thinking that there would be many other boaters there, we made plans to attend. As it turned out, we were almost the only ones there. We had a quick beer and returned to Resolute where Kent and Karen were guests for dinner - Greek salad and leftovers from the night before.
We made plans to leave by around 7 the nest morning so it was again early to bed.
Friday was another beautiful day and our trip was a bit less than 30 miles. We had reserved slips at the Osprey Marina which was still in the Myrtle Beach area but the marina was located miles away from anything. It was, however also located in a very protected basin so there were no concerns about current or wakes from passing boats. The setting was almost jungle-like. The trip to get there was still through very built-up areas and golf courses, and large condo developments, and very large private homes, became quite common sights. Since the trip was short, we arrived in early afternoon at the marina. We took advantage of the service provided by a nearby restaurant and called for a ride into the community. We there enjoyed a fabulous Italian dinner and then did a bit of grocery shopping in the store next to the restaurant. We again had made plans to leave at 7 a.m. so it was another early night. I should add that most of the marinas advertise free wi-fi. However, it has most often turned out that it consists of a wireless router that is next to their office computer and it is almost impossible to connect unless the laptop is brought up close to the router.
Saturday was another beautiful and sunny, and warm day. And, we arrived in Georgetown fairly early in the afternoon after another short trip, and stopped at the Boat Shed marina. The route took us again through a waterway that was reminiscent of the canals of New York. There were deciduous trees along the way and many of them, had some colour although not the brilliant colours that we are used to seeing in the fall in Ontario. Georgetown had a very well developed waterfront with many watering holes, galleries, and cafes built on the boardwalk than ran for about half a mile along the waterfront. The town had many well-preserved old historic homes. There was a very large population of boats in the harbour, many of them choosing to anchor in the basin near the marinas and most of the people who we saw in the town were boaters. There didn't seem to be a lot of locals out and about even though it was a saturday. The stores did not seem to be that busy. It was another early bed-time since we had planned for a 55 mile day on Sunday. We were going to leave the marina at 6;15 a.m.
We did make the planned departure time, along with another 10 or 12 boats, and thought that with the fairly large distance to cover, we would be lucky to make it to the Isle of Palms marina by their closing time of 5:00 p.m. Fortunately, our early departure and help from a favourable tidal current had us snug in our slips by around 3:30; it was, however, a long day and I celebrated by treating myself to a great dinner at the on-site restaurant. The Isle of Palms is a really pretty spot, consisting of very large homes on this island which seems to be a tourist mecca. It has a number of very large resorts, most of which are based around golfing. Caja and I took a little walk after we arrived, along one gold course located about 100 m from the marina. And there are lots of palm trees on most of the nearby properties. On this leg of the trip we were introduced to what I later found out to be typical "low country Carolina" geography. We went through miles of riverways and canals that made their way through marshland bordered by grassy swamps. Whenever there was solid ground, people had built very large and impressive homes. We also passed by many boaters, many of whom were out fishing. The following morning, Caja and I took a walk over to the ocean side of the island; there we walked for about a mile along the beach. Many others people were also out at this time doing the same thing. Along this ocean front, the homes were humungous. We were able to do this at our leisure because the next leg of the trip was very short, only about 20 miles, into the old city of Charleston S.C.
The was another parade of boats the next morning, Monday Nov. 10th lined up along the route from the Isle of Palms to Charleston. The trip went smoothly; the weather was very good. although the forecast for later in the week was starting to look a little ominous. We checked into the Charleston City Marina with only a little trouble due to the tidal current. The marina, though had 2 dockhands ready to assist each boat as it docked. This was a very large marina. We were assigned dock space along the "Megadock", a 1000 foot long concrete floating dock that is the home to most transient boaters. Needless to say, we were given spots at the end of the 1000 foot "Megadock", so that any time we wanted to go to shore, or to the showers or washrooms - you guessed it, it was a 1000 foot walk. I haven't stepped on scales since I left but I am quite confident that my weight is down, as is my waistline. A few more "Megadocks" and there won't be anything left of me!
Our stay in Charleston turned out to be 6 days long. When we listened to the weather forecast on Tuesday morning, strong winds and heavy rains were predicted for later in the week. We judged that if we were going to be stuck somewhere for several days, it might just as well be in Charleston, where at least there would be many things to see and do. As it was, we spent our first afternoon there touring around the very historic downtown area, where there were "antebellum" style homes, many museums and churches, that many more tourists lined up to see. I will try to upload a few photos of some of these features. On some of the stormy and wet days, the only times we went out were when Caja had to be walked. The balance of the time I spent reading, or doing boat stuff - we made a run to West Marine where I picked up the pieces needed to get better lighting in the cockpit - it gets dark so early these days. The marina has a courtesy van that makes trips into the city each hour and it will also pick up marina customers after they have completed their business downtown.
On Friday morning, Kent and Karen and I, and another couple from another boat took a tour boat out to Fort Sumter, which is located on an island in the Charleston Harbour. It was there that the first shots in the American Civil war were fired.
Another one my projects in Charleston was to try to get Caja to "do it" on the boat. That is still a work in progress. It has to be done, however, because after we leave here, we start encountering sections of the waterway where there are no marinas and often, the anchorages are out in the middle of nowhere and with marshland all around. I wonder if an old dog can learn a new trick.
We were finally able to leave Charleston on Sunday morning. The weather was going to be cool, but the wind was down and it was to be sunny again. We pulled out at 7:00 a.m. bound for an anchorage that was undetermined and based on how far we were able to get by mid-afternoon. The dock staff helped us to leave by using the strong current in the marina to turn the boat around and we were on our way, to our surprise, assisted by the tidal current most of the way. By 3:00 p.m. we had arrived at a good anchorage in the South Edisto River and Kent, arriving before me, dropped his anchor near the shore in about 10 feet of water. When I came in, I rafted up with them for our evening "sundowner" drink and snack and then set off to drop my own hook. There is a 7.3 foot tide in this area, so I put out about 85 feet of chain on the 25 lb. CQR. It dug in well, and I heated up some leftovers and then crashed at about 7:30 p.m. We had earlier tried to use cell phones but were unable to get any coverage from where we were.
Because we had covered a fair distance on Sunday, our Monday trip to Beaufort S.C. would be relatively short - about 25 n.m. We left at 7:00 a.m. just the same - Beaufort is supposed to be a very lovely city and it would be nice to have a bit of time to explore it after we arrived. Again, we were lucky enough to get a strong lift from the tidal current and made very good time. The only unpleasant part of the trip was our turn up the Coosaw River - the combination of current against a brisk wind made for short and choppy water. That only lasted about an hour or so until we reached a more protected part of the waterway. It was also easy since there weren't any shallow areas to worry about today, even though much of the time we travelled through the same S.C. low country.
The homes of Beaufort are very special and words to describe them are hard to find. Hopefully, a few photos will fill in that gap.
Well. that brings me pretty well up to date. Tomorrow will by sunny again although there is a frost warning out tonight. It was close to freezing here last night as well, thankfully, I installed a diesel-fired cabin heater this past summer. It was a very appreciated item this morning. The next week or so is supposed to bring us lots of sun, but with near-freezing temperature at night and only the low 50's F. during the day. Warmer weather arrives later in the week. With another early start planned, at 9:00 p.m. my next step is to crash.
See you again soon.
Mike
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Next stop Myrtle Beach
The run down to Beaufort was pretty uneventful other than shortly after leaving Oriental and entering the Adams Canal, I was surprised to see a large pod of dolphins swimming towards the boat. They seem to be quite plentiful around here - I suppose that is the reasoning behind the signs that were posted in Oriental that we not feed the dolphins. There was a fair bit of wind blowing from behind me so I tried to deploy the genoa as often as I could so that my speed would stay up. I still wasn't able to keep up with Robert and Brigitte and after a couple of hours, lost sight of them. The rest of the trip went without problems and by early afternoon I was tied up at the Town Creek Marina, just outside Beaufort. They had a courtesy car so I signed up for it and later in the afternoon, went and replentished the "larder" at the local Food Lion store. They had a restaurant on site but O checked out their menu and was not all that impressed, so dinner was prep'd on board.
I left early the next morning, planning on getting as far as Dudley's marina - about 30 miles down the ICW. This marina was located right on the ICW so it was subject to whatever tidal currents might happen to come along. There are many inlets from the Atlantic to the ICW and the tides generate currents through the inlets and into the ICW. It is hard to predict just what the currents will be at any particular spot since there are so many of these inlets. The docks at the marina were a bit rough but I got in without incident. The other notable item was that this marina served a number of sport fishing boats and whenever they went by, their wake gave us a bit of a ride. This disappeared, however, just before sunset and we had a fairly peaceful night. Part of the run took us through Camp Lejeune - a US Marines base. I attached a photo of the tower at the start of the Camp. There is a dolphin in the foreground of the picture. The tower is there to warn boaters when the Marines as engaged in live fire exercises. Fortunately, when I went through, they were not.
We were off and running again the next morning - it was another beautiful day; warming up a bit - into the low 70's.The getwaway from the marina was hairy - there was a good current running and I had to call upon those 10 puppies to work pretty hard to get me out of the slip and back into the ICW. Resolute's pretty good paint job will likely need to be redone after I get back frpm this trip.
Today's run was to a marina advertised in Skipper Bob's book as being in a basin off the ICW and therefore not really subject to currents or the wakes from passing vessels. The Beach House Marina was at Surf City - yes- it could be the same surf city that Beach Boys sang about - the beach was about 300 yards away - a photo is attached. There was a huge pier jutting out into the Atlantic - it was populated by dozens of people fishing; many other just sat in the sand taking in the fantastic view.
They had great floating docks at this marina and getting in and out was absolutely a breeze. None of the local eateries appealed that much to me so it was dinner again aboard. I will save my appetite for when I get to Southport.
I left early the next morning, Sunday, planning to go to the Carolina Beach basin about 35 miles away, and stay there overnight, going the last 15 miles to Southport, at the bottom of the Cape Fear River, the next day. However, I caught a very good tidal current and soon found myself in the Cape Fear River, doing 8.4 knots. I was tied up at Southport before 3:00 p.m. and planned to stay at least a couple of days since heavy rain and strong winds were forecast. As it turned out, the poor weather continued until Wednesday, so we will be leaving tomorrow morning. I met up again with the boat Breezaway. Kent and Karen came in the same day as I did and we will be leaving together tomorrow, this time bound for Myrtle Beach South Carolina. We shared a cab out to the WalMart and then had a nice dinner aboard their boat last evening. After listening to the reports regarding the American elections for an hour or so, I returned to Resolute, listened for another hour or so, had a chat with Terry and then crashed.
This community has a lot of history and has a mixture of very old, well preserved buildings located in live-oak stands, and condo-type developments. I will attach a couple of photos of these as well. That pretty much brings me up-to-date.
Well -= I tried to do an upload, but I had problems. I'll try again later. For now, it's back to the boat; Caja's legs are crossed, so are his eyes - time for some relief.
Too der loo
Mike
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Pungo, Pamlico, and Forest Gump
It has been about a week and a half since I had a chance to post news but internet access has been a little more problematic lately. The system at Tidewater Marina had hiccupped and technicians were there for the days when I was trying to get it up and running and my wanderings seem to have taken us to places where access is not a given.
Terry did show up as advertised in Portsmouth and we ended up staying there for about 3 days. The winds had picked up which was great for the schooners that raced down from Annapolis but they also prevented me and others from going on our merry way.
It was really interesting to see the fleet of schooners - about 45 of them all tied up at various points around the Portsmouth harbour. This annual event is a fundraiser for an environmental group and provides an opportunity for their crews to get some overnight sailing experience and to have great parties at each end of the trip.
Terry and I also used to time to make a visit to the Virginia Wine fest which is held across the harbour at Norfolk. The city public transportation provides a ferry across - $1.50 each way. We tasted a large variety of wines and then picked up 6 bottles of what we enjoyed the most. Needless to say, some of it is already gone!.
We left Portsmouth on Monday and decided that we would take the Dismal Swamp route towards Arbemarle Sound - the next large body of water to be crossed. It was a good choice as the Army Corps of Engineers had that day decided to revert to lock opening 4 times per day and we made transit. We otherwise would have had to have waited about 4 hours.
The Dismal Swamp route was peaceful and neither dismal, nor overly swampy. It was like a 20 mile-long straight canal through the backwoods. One of the things that continues to impress me is that there is very little development along the waterways. It seems that a green belt has been deliberately left there.
Our first stop along the way was at the North Carolina Visitor Centre which provides a free dock. We were the first to arrive of about a dozen boats. There is room for 4 boats to tie alongside so we ended up building a raft that was at least 3 deep. Resolute was on the inside connecting many other boats to shore. It was a great stop; lots of comeradery among the boaters. We left early the next morning for the relatively short run to Elizabeth City which prides itself as a transient-boater friendly community. Indeed it was. Among the other boats there was La Buena Vida. We joined Marlene and Heiner and 3 others for dinner and good conversation at one of local restaurants.
Albemarle Sound has a reputation for being rather nasty in strong winds so we took advantage of the predicted lighter winds and left around 8 on Wednesday morning hoping to reach the Alligator River Marina about 50 miles away. The Sound was well-behaved for the first 6 hours - we were able to put up sails and make fairly good time. There was a parade of boats- mostly sail, doing the same thing. Towards the end of the trip, the winds had picked up and the water was quite choppy making our turn into the Alligator River, so we had a couple of hours of light "bashing about" before we reached the protected waters in the marina. Beyond this location, our options for docking were limited so we decided to put in another long day and aim for Belhaven, from where Terry would leave the boat and return to work in Toronto. It was therefore, another long day and this time, we left around 7:30 with a couple of other sailboats. One, NA, a C & C 29 was being skippered solo, by John. We had dinner at the marina diner the night before along with the skipper of the other boat, Malina, that left at the same time. We reached Belhaven around 4 pm and docked there, one day ahead of our schedule. We had a couple of days, then to relax here and it was just as well as the winds had really picked up again. It was reassuring to be tied to the ground with a whole bunch of ropes. It also gave us the time to discover what the local area had to offer. One of the "gems" was a restaurant attached to a wine and book store called Wine and Words. Their theme for October was French cuisine and Terry and I had an excellent meal there. We highly recommend this eatery. Terry was due back in Toronto to work on Monday, so Friday, we picked up in Washington N.C. a rental car that I would use to drive her to Norfolk for her flight back on Sunday. The trip had a early start, and part of it was along the Dismal Swamp canal, where we saw large farms just a short distance removed form the waterway. It also gave us a chance to see the countryside - many farms, some large forested areas, and of course, much of what related to water-based activities.
Once I returned to the boat, a few related jobs had to be done - change oil and filters, and impeller, top up the water and fuel tanks and get ready for the next leg - this time solo again. Because of a forecast of increasing winds later the next day, I elected to leave early and try to get through Pamlico Sound before the wind picked up again. I was almost successful - it didn't pick up until I made a turn right into the strengthening wind in the Neuse River so Caja and I had to put up with about 3 hours of bouncing around. By 4:30 pm we were tied up at the Oriental N.C. Marina - happy to be so as a very dark-looking bank of clouds that accompanied a cold front moved over us just as I was finished tying up. A cold beer, a good dinner at the marina restaurant and a full night's sleep cured whatever ailed me. I turned down an offer of dinner on a boat from Montreal crewed by a really nice French-speaking couple, Robert and Brigitte, and opted to go for the rain-check tomorrow. I decided to stay at this marina for another 2 days since the winds are 20-25 knots and the temperature down in the low 50's during the day. Last night it dropped to the low 30's and tonight, some are saying that we might be flirting with the freezing mark. Thank heavens for electric micro furnaces. Mine was on all of last night and I am sure tonight will be similar.
Next stop is Beaufort/Moorehead City N.C., although the staff here at the marina are telling me that they have a really fun time here on Hallowe'en - I may have to think about that.
In terms of the title to this entry, the Pungo and the Pamlico are rivers in the region; the reference to Forest Gump is based on my spotting my first shrimp fleets; some in one of the rivers, and many others going about their business on Pamlico Sound. The harbour where I write this is a working one; there are many shrimp boats tied up here.
I was not successful last time around getting any pictures to upload so I will try again from here and comment later on what they represent.
Adieu for now
Mike
Thursday, October 16, 2008
The millenium man and dog
This note come to you from Portsmouth Virginia. On Wednesday, the odometer on the chart plotter turned over 1000 nautical miles. It is hard to believe that we have covered that much ground. So far, any of the difficulties we have encountered have been minor. When the weather was rough, we stayed put (except for our run up Delaware Bay - I was foolish, but no harm was done and some confidence was gained).
The trip Wednesday was pretty long - about 37 nautical miles from Broad Creek near Deltaville to Salt Ponds which is a small bay about 5 miles north of Norfolk. We left earlier than we usually leave - about 7:45 and motorsailed the whole way. The weather has been hot again and relatively windless. Through the day, a parade of sailboats travelled south, with a smaller number going north. Most of them are faster than we are; on the one hand it is frustrating to be constantly passed by other boats but by the end of the day, we have made progress and are moving steadily towards THE SOUTH. It is remarkable how easy navigation is across some large distances with the chartplotter. For a few days I was lazy and did not keep track of our position on the paper charts but I have since become a bit more careful in that regard. Chartplotters do fail. On many of the recent days it has been a bit hazy so one is often out of sight of land.
The stop at Salt Ponds was pleasant. The very large marina is attached to a resort so all of the facilities were top notch. I was, however, a bit unsettled when we arrived - the entrance channel was reputed to carry 6 feet at low tide. We arrived at low tide and I watched the depth sounder as it dropped from 5 to 4 to 3 to 2 to .7 feet beneath the keel. At that point the sounder stopped reporting depths. I took my eyes off it and pretended that I wasn't really worried. We made it in and tied up at their floating docks. Plans were made to leave today on the rising and higher tide.
That we did. The run for the 15 n.m. to Portsmouth went well; we avoided being run down by the Russian tanker by doing a 360 degree turn and letting him by. Actually, the pilot had called to advise me that he had to come in my direction. That made my decision easy. We are at the Tidewater marina, another very large facility with good amenities. I will be here for several days; Terry is scheduled to come in on Saturday for a stay of a week or so. I should have time to get the boat cleaned up and some laundry done before she arrives. It will be nice to have a few down days before we head off down the ICW.
I ran into a a sailor who lives aboard his boat here in the marina and he and his friend gave me the lowdown on this area and on what lies ahead.
People continue to be very friendly and open. I think that Caja breaks the ice for a lot of folks.
I should also have time to upload a few photos tomorrow. See you then.
Mike
The trip Wednesday was pretty long - about 37 nautical miles from Broad Creek near Deltaville to Salt Ponds which is a small bay about 5 miles north of Norfolk. We left earlier than we usually leave - about 7:45 and motorsailed the whole way. The weather has been hot again and relatively windless. Through the day, a parade of sailboats travelled south, with a smaller number going north. Most of them are faster than we are; on the one hand it is frustrating to be constantly passed by other boats but by the end of the day, we have made progress and are moving steadily towards THE SOUTH. It is remarkable how easy navigation is across some large distances with the chartplotter. For a few days I was lazy and did not keep track of our position on the paper charts but I have since become a bit more careful in that regard. Chartplotters do fail. On many of the recent days it has been a bit hazy so one is often out of sight of land.
The stop at Salt Ponds was pleasant. The very large marina is attached to a resort so all of the facilities were top notch. I was, however, a bit unsettled when we arrived - the entrance channel was reputed to carry 6 feet at low tide. We arrived at low tide and I watched the depth sounder as it dropped from 5 to 4 to 3 to 2 to .7 feet beneath the keel. At that point the sounder stopped reporting depths. I took my eyes off it and pretended that I wasn't really worried. We made it in and tied up at their floating docks. Plans were made to leave today on the rising and higher tide.
That we did. The run for the 15 n.m. to Portsmouth went well; we avoided being run down by the Russian tanker by doing a 360 degree turn and letting him by. Actually, the pilot had called to advise me that he had to come in my direction. That made my decision easy. We are at the Tidewater marina, another very large facility with good amenities. I will be here for several days; Terry is scheduled to come in on Saturday for a stay of a week or so. I should have time to get the boat cleaned up and some laundry done before she arrives. It will be nice to have a few down days before we head off down the ICW.
I ran into a a sailor who lives aboard his boat here in the marina and he and his friend gave me the lowdown on this area and on what lies ahead.
People continue to be very friendly and open. I think that Caja breaks the ice for a lot of folks.
I should also have time to upload a few photos tomorrow. See you then.
Mike
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Up the Potomac and not a wave in sight
It has been about 5 days since I last had a chance to post a message he and in that time we have covered quite a bit of ground. We left Saint Michael's on a beautiful day with a good NE wind about 10 knots. We had to motor for about an hour to get out of the river but after that, we had an excellent sail for about 5 hours crossing the Bay and stopping at a fabulous Marina in Herrington Harbour. Their grounds were manicured and covered with beautiful plantings and for the first time, the plants were what I would expect in the south - palm-type plantings. There was a huge pool (they are all closed at this time of the year), exercise rooms, tennis courts, etc. Tiki bar and wonderful restaurant where I kept up my tradition by having crab cakes. I could have stayed much longer but I am pressing to get to Norfolk before unpleasant weather arrives later in the week.
Our next stop was at the boating centre of Solomon's Island where I had my first experience docking among pilings and a very short fixed dock. With some help from the gas attendant we made it in unscathed. This marina had seen better days but it provided a secure spot for the night. I was able to do without the engine for about half of today's trip; the rest of the time, the wind faded and to keep up speed, the "iron Genny" was enlisted. Caja and I continue to remain healthy. We are still able to get up at 6:30 each morning and get in our 30 minute walk.
The next day was another hot and relatively windless one. We motorsailed the whole way and stopped at Point Lookout Marina which again featured pilings and fixed docks. It was easier to get in this time since there was absolutely no wind and we drifted right to where we had to be. They did have a restaurant on-site and I enjoyed another seafood dinner and watched a gorgeous sunset. The only problem with this place was that it was about 13.5 miles off the beaten path; up the Potomac River towards Washington D.C. Two and a half hours that will have to be made up tomorrow morning. Oh well, c'est-la-vie. This is a huge river.GRAHAM....THE PELICANS HAVE ARRIVED; THERE WERE DOZENS AND DOZENS OF THEM. I TOOK A FEW PHOTOS - I WILL TRY TO POST ONE FOR YOU AND MEL.
On Monday, Thanksgiving in Canada, we did not pause to celebrate but got going early again and enjoyed another beautifully warm but windless day getting down to Ingram Bay Marina. This spot was inside a short creek off Ingram Bay but only a short distance off the direct route south. The marina is relatively small but the location is perfect. When Caja and I did our walks we started to notice a difference in the vegetation. There are many large fir trees. There are still loads of flowers blooming and we see exotic-looking grasses with puffy heads on them. I will again try to upload photos of some of these.
Today, Tuesday the 14th was a short day for us. Because we were close to the direct route and our next stop was only about 25 n.m. away, we arrived at another really nice marina - Regatta Point Yacht Club shortly after 2 p.m. They had a courtesy car to use so I grabbed it and made a run to West Marine and to the local food store which were each about 3 miles away. Yes, there has been a casualty on Resolute. The snap shackle that connects the main sheet to the traveller lost its pin. You might need a translation. See a sailor.
This place, however, has Wi-Fi and that it why you will hear from me today. The last place I stopped was so much out of the way that my cell phone would not connect. It seems that we are getting back into civilization although, not having cell service is really not that much of a handicap; at least it shouldn't be.
Caja becons; it's time to grab a beer and get started on dinner. I have a really long day planned for tomorrow- about 35 nautical miles - depending on tidal currents about 8 hours.
ttyl
Mike
Our next stop was at the boating centre of Solomon's Island where I had my first experience docking among pilings and a very short fixed dock. With some help from the gas attendant we made it in unscathed. This marina had seen better days but it provided a secure spot for the night. I was able to do without the engine for about half of today's trip; the rest of the time, the wind faded and to keep up speed, the "iron Genny" was enlisted. Caja and I continue to remain healthy. We are still able to get up at 6:30 each morning and get in our 30 minute walk.
The next day was another hot and relatively windless one. We motorsailed the whole way and stopped at Point Lookout Marina which again featured pilings and fixed docks. It was easier to get in this time since there was absolutely no wind and we drifted right to where we had to be. They did have a restaurant on-site and I enjoyed another seafood dinner and watched a gorgeous sunset. The only problem with this place was that it was about 13.5 miles off the beaten path; up the Potomac River towards Washington D.C. Two and a half hours that will have to be made up tomorrow morning. Oh well, c'est-la-vie. This is a huge river.GRAHAM....THE PELICANS HAVE ARRIVED; THERE WERE DOZENS AND DOZENS OF THEM. I TOOK A FEW PHOTOS - I WILL TRY TO POST ONE FOR YOU AND MEL.
On Monday, Thanksgiving in Canada, we did not pause to celebrate but got going early again and enjoyed another beautifully warm but windless day getting down to Ingram Bay Marina. This spot was inside a short creek off Ingram Bay but only a short distance off the direct route south. The marina is relatively small but the location is perfect. When Caja and I did our walks we started to notice a difference in the vegetation. There are many large fir trees. There are still loads of flowers blooming and we see exotic-looking grasses with puffy heads on them. I will again try to upload photos of some of these.
Today, Tuesday the 14th was a short day for us. Because we were close to the direct route and our next stop was only about 25 n.m. away, we arrived at another really nice marina - Regatta Point Yacht Club shortly after 2 p.m. They had a courtesy car to use so I grabbed it and made a run to West Marine and to the local food store which were each about 3 miles away. Yes, there has been a casualty on Resolute. The snap shackle that connects the main sheet to the traveller lost its pin. You might need a translation. See a sailor.
This place, however, has Wi-Fi and that it why you will hear from me today. The last place I stopped was so much out of the way that my cell phone would not connect. It seems that we are getting back into civilization although, not having cell service is really not that much of a handicap; at least it shouldn't be.
Caja becons; it's time to grab a beer and get started on dinner. I have a really long day planned for tomorrow- about 35 nautical miles - depending on tidal currents about 8 hours.
ttyl
Mike
Thursday, October 9, 2008
News from Saint Michael's (the village, not me)
Caja and I are sitting in the cockpit on a warm Thursday morning, looking out over mostly empty slip in the harbour at the resort town of Saint Michael's. It reminds me a bit of Niagara-on-the-Lake - lots of little shops and boutiques and loads of B & B's. My main reason for coming here is to go and visit the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Any book I have come across on the Chesapeake strongly recommends that one stop here and pay a visit to that establishment. That is my plan for this afternoon. I have already checked the weather for tomorrow and made reservations at a marina in Herrington Harbour on the other side of the bay.
So far, I have been sticking to the east side of the bay, avoiding the large cities of Baltimore and Annapolis, the latter of which is this weekend hosting their huge boat show. I know that it would be nice to attend but without reservations a year ahead of time, I think it would be difficult to find somewhere to "park".
There seems to be some difference between the east and the west sides of the bay. The east side, where we have been, is not overly developed. The towns and villages are small; many of the residents earn their living fishing the bay and servicing the boaters. All along the trip so far, "auto" has done pretty much all of the steering; an eye needs to be kept for floats marking the location of crab pots. They seem to be everywhere. Our first day down the bay was with a light breeze blowing behind us. The genoa was launched and we cruised, still with the engine running right downwind to the marina at Worton Creek. The only uncomfortable time on the trip was the first few miles out the C & D canal where there was some barge traffic. In the canal, the wakes from the vessels disturb the water for some time as the wake bounces back into the canal from the shores. I thought that Caja might be able to last in the cockpit area but after the first barge went by, he had to go down and curl up below. The marina was about a mile up a creek in a very nicely protected part of the creek. There were high banks along the sides so any wind would be deflected. The people there were very helpful and informative about where to visit while heading south.
Our next stop was at Rock Hall, where we found a very nice marina with floating docks, great washrooms, nearby facilities and helpful staff. We ended up staying there for 2 days and there, in the Waterman's restaurant right on the pier, I had my first go at a plate of the local crabs. It is messy eating but they were very tasty. As I finished my feast on the deck, I was treated to a gorgeous sunset (photo attached). We were sorry to leave but we had to press on and yesterday, we did the run to Saint Michael's. The wind was right on the nose, so we again were on the motor and reached SM's after taking the shortcut through Kent Island Narrows. While the chart shows a depth of only 3 feet in the channel leading into the narrows, the staff at Rock Hall Marina advised that the channel had been dredged 2 years ago. The shallowest I recorded was 7.5 feet.
A brief note about the attached photos: The 1st is of a home on the shores of Chesapeake Bay close to the point where the C & D canal enters the bay. The second is of a tall ship that was anchored just outside the harbour at Rock Hall. The 3rd is my sunset shot and the 4th - the remains after my crab dinner; and the last is of Resolute tied up in slip #34 in front of the restaurant at Saint Michael's Harbour. I have many more photos. You'll have to see my slide show after I return.
Too da loo for now.
Mike
So far, I have been sticking to the east side of the bay, avoiding the large cities of Baltimore and Annapolis, the latter of which is this weekend hosting their huge boat show. I know that it would be nice to attend but without reservations a year ahead of time, I think it would be difficult to find somewhere to "park".
There seems to be some difference between the east and the west sides of the bay. The east side, where we have been, is not overly developed. The towns and villages are small; many of the residents earn their living fishing the bay and servicing the boaters. All along the trip so far, "auto" has done pretty much all of the steering; an eye needs to be kept for floats marking the location of crab pots. They seem to be everywhere. Our first day down the bay was with a light breeze blowing behind us. The genoa was launched and we cruised, still with the engine running right downwind to the marina at Worton Creek. The only uncomfortable time on the trip was the first few miles out the C & D canal where there was some barge traffic. In the canal, the wakes from the vessels disturb the water for some time as the wake bounces back into the canal from the shores. I thought that Caja might be able to last in the cockpit area but after the first barge went by, he had to go down and curl up below. The marina was about a mile up a creek in a very nicely protected part of the creek. There were high banks along the sides so any wind would be deflected. The people there were very helpful and informative about where to visit while heading south.
Our next stop was at Rock Hall, where we found a very nice marina with floating docks, great washrooms, nearby facilities and helpful staff. We ended up staying there for 2 days and there, in the Waterman's restaurant right on the pier, I had my first go at a plate of the local crabs. It is messy eating but they were very tasty. As I finished my feast on the deck, I was treated to a gorgeous sunset (photo attached). We were sorry to leave but we had to press on and yesterday, we did the run to Saint Michael's. The wind was right on the nose, so we again were on the motor and reached SM's after taking the shortcut through Kent Island Narrows. While the chart shows a depth of only 3 feet in the channel leading into the narrows, the staff at Rock Hall Marina advised that the channel had been dredged 2 years ago. The shallowest I recorded was 7.5 feet.
A brief note about the attached photos: The 1st is of a home on the shores of Chesapeake Bay close to the point where the C & D canal enters the bay. The second is of a tall ship that was anchored just outside the harbour at Rock Hall. The 3rd is my sunset shot and the 4th - the remains after my crab dinner; and the last is of Resolute tied up in slip #34 in front of the restaurant at Saint Michael's Harbour. I have many more photos. You'll have to see my slide show after I return.
Too da loo for now.
Mike
Sunday, October 5, 2008
The Chesapeake lies ahead
I am sitting on the boat in a marina in Chesapeake City which is on the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. I have to wait for an hour or so before leaving - right now there is a strong current against me. One of the things that I have learned is that sailboat travellers are very much dependent on the state of the tide. And, with the days growing shorter, that leaves less and less time to get from one spot to the next.
I came up Delaware Bay day before yesterday. The forecast from the night before was for 10 knot winds from the south-east - that would have been ideal, so I and others made plans for the trip up the bay. By the morning, the forecast had changed - the winds were now to be 10 to 15 knots with gusts to 20 ..just about my limit. But we figured that if they blew from behind, it would be tolerable. They did start out that way, but by about 3 hours into the trip, they had increased. Another large boat with wind instruments reported gusts to 30 knots. I had 2 reefs in the main and the genoa rolled up about half way. That worked OK until the wind shifted around and came from ahead. That really kicked up the water. I was in my raingear - we were taking a fair bit of spray. But, 9 hours later, I was safely at the start of the C & D canal and ready for my lunch and an easier 2 hours up to Chesapeake City. I rewarded myself by staying here for another day and getting a chance of look around the area. It is beautiful. It is another one of those very well preserved old towns on the water. I will add a few photos the next time that I have a stop with Wi-fi.
Well, I see other sailboats starting to get out there into the canal, so I will get myself organized to do the same.
The dog continues to do well. The boat is also still hanging in and with regular rest and good food, so am I.
The photos that I uploaded here are of a couple of homes in Chesapeake City.
I want to add a comment about the people who I have met while on this trip. With no exception they have all been very friendly and welcoming. An example from Chesapeake City: I was looking for somewhere to buy some food and there seemed to be nowhere in the village, so I went for a walk along a road that led out of town. I noticed a group of 3 young men who were working in the front yard of one of the houses, so I went up to them and asked about a food store. They told me there was none closeby but there was a small convenience store a mile or so up the road. I thanked them and started to walk on. One of the guys, Chris, told me to hand on - he would give me ride over, as long as I didn't mind riding on a scooter. So, off we went. He took me there, gave me as much time as I needed to shop, and then took me right back to the marina. It turned out that he was a high school teacher at the local school.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Cape May is lovely
It seems like just yesterday that we were weathered in at Waretown N.J. at a great little marina that protected us pretty well while the wind blew at 30 knots with gusts to 40. Our stay at Spencer's Marina lasted a full week, and ended after receiving advice from the locals about when would be the best time to take off for Atlantic City. When we arrived at Waretown, the weather forecasters were predicting strong winds and heavy rain for the balance of the week. Graham realized that there would be no more sailing for him on this trip, so he caught an early flight back to the "big smoke", on Wednesday. He still had the balance of the week off and would use that time to do some work on the siding on his home. Caja will really miss Graham - he is far more liberal with treats than I am!
My original plan was to do the Atlantic City trip in 2 days but the locals advised to push a bit and do it in 1. The weather was ideal on Monday September 29th, so off we went. We travelled through the balance of Barnegat Bay and then went on to Manahawkin Bay along some quite narrow channels. At some times, the channel ran right alongside the large and beautiful summer homes that seemed to cover every available piece of shoreline, particularly along the eastern shore of Little Egg Harbour. This part of the trip went pretty quickly since we had a bit of an assist from the tide.
Things changed drastically, though, we we reached Little Egg Inlet. There we had to make a sharp turn "upriver" and came face-to-face with the strongest tidal currents to date. They were at least 3 knots, and it took full throttle from Resolute to gain the channel that apparently constantly changes with the strong currents in the inlet. The Coast Guard were busy in one of their boats rearranging the buoys that marked the channel. The struggle against the current continued for about an hour until we made another turn, this time towards the towers marking the casinos in Atlantic City. The last portion of our journey took us through marshland for about 3 hours as we followed a fairly narrow channel that moved back and forth across the marshes.
We had a slip booked at the Farley State Marina which is connected to and operated by the Trump Marina Hotel, a large complex in a very protected basin just off the Absecon Inlet that leads out to the Atlantic.
From Atlantic City, our original plan was to take 2 days and go "inside" in a protected waterway that held a large number of bridges for us to go through, a few fixed bridges with a height of 35 feet (I guessed that Resolute's mast measured 34'5"), and a waterway that took many twists and turns and was reputed to be shallower in some spots than the advertised 4 feet (Resolute draws about 4 feet). So, I decided that since the forecast for Tuesday was for ideal conditions, we would go outside and do it in 1 day. There was virtually no wind except for a bit that arose later in the day. We again did no sailing and ran the engine the whole way. So did each of the other 7 sailboats that left A.C. at about the same time - 8 a.m. that day. The run to Cape May was uneventful, except that while we were leaving the marina at A.C., we spotted our first marine life. Two porpoises surfaced right beside the boat. I seem to remember that this is a good omen. It was. I had earlier reserved a slip at Utsch's Marina and the very helpful staff provided great directions and a helping hand to tie up at our slip. Once Caja was taken care of, I treated myself to a nice dinner at the Lobster House where my eyes were larger than my stomach. The 2 consecutive relatively long days had taken their toll on me and I quite frankly felt that I neeed a bit of a break. I decided to stay one more day at Utsch's and do a few of the boat jobs that seem to have no trouble appearing on my list. Among the items were another try at getting in touch with U.S. Customs. Boats travelling on cruising permits - which I obtained in Oswego, N.Y., are required to report to U.S. Customs regularly. I have tried to do so recently but it has been frustratingly hard to do so. Today, after being redirected 6 times, I finally found someone who took my information. It feels good to be "legal" again.
Cape May is beautiful. It is clearly an area with a focus on the sea. It has large beaches on the Atlantic, a huge fleet of fishing vessles located in the many, many, marinas spread throughout the Harbour area. It is a town with a long history that seems to be well remembered and protected. Many of the houses in the town date back to the 1800's. I did take a walk down through the older part of town on my way to get a haircut and pick up a few provisions but I forgot my camera. If I stay another day, I will remember to take a few photos to post here.
Brief comments relating to the photos. The 1st is of a home in Waretown N.J. The interesting feature about it is that it is built up on pilings about 10 feet above ground level. Several other homes in the community were similarly built. My guess is that it allowed for storm surges to go beneath the house. The 2nd is of one of the hotels in Atlantic City. Many of them were lit up at night. The 3rd is of a bird that landed on Resolute when we were about 3 miles offshore doing the run from A.C. to Cape May. It stayed long enough for me to take a number of pictures of it. I haver no idea what kind of a bird it was. The 4th and 5th are of some of the homes in Cape May. The 5th photo is of a house that is octagonal in shape.
There is a possibility that I may leave tomorrow, weather permitting. My original plan was to do the Delaware Bay in 2 days but the locals at the gas bar here convinced me otherwise. Another Canadian boat, the Chimo 11, is here and they are planning to do it tomorrow, starting at between 3 and 4 a.m. If one leaves shortly after the low tide, one gets to ride the flood all of the way up the bay and the 60 mile trip can be done is less than the normal 12 hours (at 5 knots). The only problem is that one has to get up with the low tide. It would be reassuring to have company for the trip, although, never having sailed at night, I am a little apprehensive about leaving quite that early. I may try to convince them to leave a little closer to sunrise - say 5 or 6 a.m.
We will see how that plays out. The most recent weather forecast that I looked at called for 10 to 15 knot winds, pretty much on the nose, with gusts to 20 knots. It is little fun going against the wind in a sailboat, so I am right now leaning towards waiting another day. It will give me a chance to see a bit more of Cape May.
Well, Caja is looking at me with that "look". He needs to be watered. Talk to you later.
Mike
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Where is Waretown?
The last few days have been pretty eventful. Graham showed up in Tarrytown right on schedule and we left early the following morning to catch a bit of the ebbing tide towards "The Big Apple". The trip down the last 25 miles of the Hudson River went according to plan and we arrived at the Liberty Landing Marina where we had reserved a slip, at around 3 pm. It was necessary to reserve the slip, as I found out; the first place that I called was full. Where we ended up was connected to the Liberty Landing State Park, a great place to walk the dog and one with a large restaurant where Graham and I later had some dinner. After our end of day beer, we hopped aboard a water taxi and went across the river to Manhattan. Graham took me on a tour of a small portion of that area before we returned to the marina around 7 pm. I was a bit surprised at how much construction is still going on at the site of "ground zero". I had expected to see some form of memorial already in place but all that I could see ere construction cranes in and around the area. It would be nice to return to the city and spend a bit more time looking around. The waterfront area alone would take days to really appreciate. One comment that Graham made a number of times was that there seemed to be a lot of public green space down where we were - small and large parks where one could be comfortable - with benches and flowers and buzzing with activity.
We had planned on doing a 5 hour trip the following day (Sunday) to Sandy Hook before we dod our jump "outside" on the Atlantic for the hop to the Manasquan Inlet in New Jersey, but the weather was so good, and the tide in our favour, that we decided to add the hop to Manasquan to our day's run. After about 8 hours, we arrived in the Manasquan Inlet where we had our first brush with difficulty in finding a marina. We ended up tied alongside a fixed pier at the fuel docks at the Brielle Yacht Club - an upscale place with upscale power yachts and a very rough fuel dock that was exposed to a strong current from the river. We docked, then decided to make a run for an unknown anchorage the other side of a lift bridge, then changed our minds and returned to the rough dock where we spent the night, anxious to get out of there the following morning.
We did leave at around 10 a.m., and rode a following wind through the start of the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway. NJICW. It is quite shallow in most spots so we had to keep to the centre of the channel with one eye on the depth sounder as we went along, but after calling a reserving a skip at a marina in Waretown, we relaxed a bit, let out some sails, and actually had the motor off for a couple of hours.
Waretown is a small community on the west bank of Barnegat Bay - a large body of water about 15 miles long and in places several miles wide, but with an average depth of only about 7 feet. That meant that the strong winds that we were sailing in did not raise much in the way of waves on the bay. Still, we were relieved to arrive at a really well-protected, new marine facilityexpecially since the weather forecasts for the next several days point to cery strong winds. I think that we might be here until the weekend, which means that Graham's sailing times on Resolute this trip, might be behind him. The winds are forecast to reach gale force by Wednesday and Thursday so this cruiser will be staying put.
Well, Graham just returned from a shower after his run, time for a snack. I will post a few photos - Graham with the Statue of Liberty in the background, the two of us leaving NYC, and one of the waterfront at the marina in Waretown. By the way, the washrooms here are fabulous; I would highly recommend this place.
I may get back to you again before our stay here is over.
Food for now.
Mike
Friday, September 19, 2008
I can see the towers
Caja and I arrived safely after a really nice motor sail from Haverstraw Bay to Tarrytown. This is where Graham will report later this evening. The train station is all of about 100 meters from the marina. No taxi needed this time! Since I last wrote we covered about 60 miles in 3 stops. The first was at Kingston where I took a slip at the Rondout Harbour Marina. This was located up a very protected creek where I found a really well equipped boat club. It has nice grounds, good showers, laundry, and a helpful staff. Because the tidal currents are not very favourable, I left later in the morning and did some laundry while I waited for the current to change. It makes a huge difference to one's boatspeed if the current is against you. With the current we go around 6 knots; against it goes down to about 3.
There were a couple of interesting events that took place along the way to our second stop. Just before we arrived, an old sailing vessel (or a replica) appeared nearby. I have included a photo of it. The second was near Pockiepsie (?) when another fairly large sailing vessel appeared. I think that Pete Seeger has a similar boat - it looked as though there was a film crew aboard the boat. I have also included a picture of that one.
The docking at our second stop was scary. It was at a marina on the waterfront at Newburg. There was a strong current flowing across the marina and the dockmaster recommended that I try to go to an inside slip. As soon as the boat was crosswise to the current, away we went. It took about 10 minutes, and a lot of work before I was tied up. The only damage was to my ego and to the Lifesling that was hanging on the port stern rail. It got caught in the anchor on the front of a powerboat that we came too close to and the straps got ripped off. My first job today after we arrived in Tarrytown was to sew the straps back on. It took me about an hour using whipping twine and a sailneedle.
Yesterday was a 25 mile day as we went from Newburg to Haverstraw Bay in a very strong north wind. One of the places that I wanted to try to get a good look at was West Point. It occupies a very striking location on an elbow in the Hudson River. I took a number of pictures but the one I will attach to this is of the soldier at the top of the point. An interesting event took place as we were coming into the marina at Haverstaw Bay. I had noticed a tour boat going into the West Point area as we went through. I noticed it again behind us as we approached Haverstraw Bay Marina. Out of the blue, I received a call on my radio. It was from the captain of the tour boat. He called to compliment me on the boat. He asked a few questions over the radio and offered to take me shopping once we were tied up. He waited for me and took me about 2 miles over to the shopping centre and waited while I did the provisioning. His name was Tim and I included his picture. Caja and I came across him this morning as we were doing our morning walk.
The trip to Tarrytown today was easy and short. It took us about 2 hours to cover the 9 miles. There was a nice breeze from the east and while it was not strong enough to keep us moving at 5 knots, we had both sails up and motorsailed to maintain the 5 knots. The marina here is another good one. Great facilities. I spent the afternoon today getting the boat all filled - with water, diesel, and food. As I came into the area near the Tappan Zee bridge, I could see the skyscrapers of New York down the river. The foot of Manhattan Island is about 25 miles away, and the clear air, thanks to a Canadian high pressure system, made it easy to see the skyline of The CIty that never sleeps.
The dog has been fed, the boat is ready, I am up to date on my blog, but I need to eat. Another leg of this trip is almost over.
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