137 Days - 1,660 Miles - Long Island Sound to Essex, CT

Port Washington to Branford

Branford to Essex/Hamburg Cove

The weather has been so weird!  We arrived in Port Washington to blue skies and hot, so much so that even these Florida people took a dip in the pool.  The next day was rainy, foggy and cold, so cold that we put on long sleeves and jeans.  This seems to be the pattern we have been in for a while.  We left Port Washington to Branford in a medium fog (couple mile viability) and didn't start to see blue skies until we reached New Haven.  From New Haven on to Branford, big blue skies and eventually got hot.  Leaving Branford to Hamburg Cove on the CT River we had a beautiful day, big blue skies and nice and warm.  The pattern looks like its going to continue as we have just about every other day of inclement weather followed by a forecast that uses the words delightful and pleasant in the description.

Connecticut River

As we make way up the Long Island Sound much has looked familiar but nothing more so than boating past the Old Saybrook Lighthouse and entering the Connecticut River something we have done a million times in our life.  It all looks the same but so much has changed.  The last time we entered the Connecticut River, except for Becky's dad all of our parents were still alive,  Jessica had not  started college and the Florida chapter of our life had not started. Boating past this lighthouse is where the whole conversation/dream about taking a trip like this began.

"When I see a flying boat I get a lump in my throat and say someday I will."
Jimmy Buffett

This was always the theme song to that conversation-dream and here we are, in the middle of our trip, coming into the Connecticut River and that song is ringing in my brain. Following the channel stay to the right now move to the left turn to Starboard and here we are Hamburg Cove.  With a 20kt wind and choppy water Hamburg Cove offers a quiet oasis. This quiet piece of New England that time has forgotten maybe the best of all the reasons to make the trip up the Connecticut River.  Today there will be a dinghy ride, multiple cigars,  thoughts of our parents and a "remember when" conversation. But that is just for today.  Tomorrow the Gypsy Soul moves forward.  We move Forward.     

CT River/Hamburg Cove

No words can describe, so I won't even attempt.

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1659 Statutory Miles / Day 128 to 134

NYC Didn't Disappoint

Started our stay in the Big Apple @ Lincoln Harbor Yacht Club, directly on the Hudson, at the advice of a fellow boater we met along the way.  They were correct, in that the view was beautiful, but neglected to tell us how rough our stay would be, being directly on the river due to the constant water traffic.  Barges, Tugs, and Water Ferry's/Taxi's.  To compound things this marina took some bad hits this winter from snow and Ice.  They lost 40 slips, including their fuel dock and pump-out and their sea wall.  So there was nothing stopping the roll of the river and we started rocking and rolling (HARD) at ~ 5:30 am each day and didn't stop until almost midnight. After 2 1/2 days - we were looking for another place to stay.  Your body got used to it after awhile, but the wakes just seemed so violent and just felt like too much unnecessary wear-n-tear on the GS.  So we moved to Liberty Landing a few miles south on the Hudson, tucked back in a Canal and finished out our weeks stay there. A great facility!

Bike Ride in Central Park

We've been to Central Park before and have always enjoyed spending time there. Mr. B came up with the brilliant idea of taking our bikes into the city and ride around the park.  BRILLIANT IDEA!!!!

We saw so much of the park, places we've never been able to take the time to see. Getting there was even more interesting.  Taking the bikes on the water taxi from NJ to mid town.  I never knew that NYC had so many bike paths. From mid town, you take a nice ride along the West Side Hwy then cut across city streets to CP.  We felt like "real" New Yorkers LOL  It actually was easier than we both thought it would be, once you got into the "rhythm" of things.  

Did I say that this was a BRILLIANT IDEA!!!!

9/11 Memorial Museum:

The last time we were in the city, the grounds weren't completed and the museum not opened.  So we were both looking forward to taking the tour. It honored and payed tribute to the victims and the first responders while giving little publicity to the terrorists.  It was good to remember the raw emotions you felt in the days right after 9/11.

After the museum, we decided to go italian in Tribeca.  With the help of the internet, we stumbled upon Acappella.  Not only was the food outstanding, we got the whole "italian show" from our server and BFF (Big Fat Frankie). OMG  It was like having dinner being served by Tony Soprano.

Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island:

It only took us 54 years, but we finally made it to see Lady Liberty & Ellis Island.  The statue was so formidable.  We heard a lot of people commenting she was much smaller than they thought she would be, and we felt just the opposite.  She was right there, in your face, and the detail was amazing.  Here are some facts I learned that I never knew before.  The copper was shapped by hand in pieces that are about as thick as a penny and put over a steel cage.  Wednesday, June 17 was the 130 anniversary of her arrival in NYC and I didn't know that there are broken shackel and chains on her feet symbolizing freedom from oppression.  

Ellis Island was a bit disappointing.  It seemed very sterile and everything inside felt new, not old. In 2012, hurricane Sandy did a lot of damage to buildings on Ellis Island and it was closed for just about 1 year.  The buildings are still not climate controlled so most of the artifacts have been removed to prevent them from damage.  I'm hopeful that this is why it felt so strange to me, but a sight to see none the less.  It's a pretty important piece of most of our ancestors.

East River to Long Island Sound

The sights of the Manhattan skyline were good, but not nearly as impressive from the East River.  We spent a lot of time trying to figure out when to pass through Hell Gate, since we heard so many horror stories.  We timed it perfectly just a few minutes into a flood tide, early morning so not much commercial traffic, excepr for the tug pulling a barge that we encountered right as we entered "The Gate".  No issues and a pretty terrific ride into The Sound.  We passed by Roosevelt Island, Rikers Island and Laguardia before entering Long Island Sound and stopping in Port Washington for the evening.

Click here to see all our NYC pictures

WW37

1629 Statutory Miles Covered/ Day 126 & 127 - The Big Apple

Cape May to Atlantic City

We left Cape May on 6/11/15 and had the best ride to Atlantic City. We were 1 1/2 to 2 miles off shore big sun and a light breeze. It was just perfect. After a short while you could see the skyline of Atlantic City in the distance. So different from the miles of beach houses and beaches that we had for the first few hours. The only problem was that the city looked like it was right there, just around the next corner for 2 more hours... AC was a one night stop and we didn't leave any of our greenbacks at the casinos.

Atlantic City to Manasquan

From AC to Manasquan Inlet was a 6 hour ride. Again, we had pretty good water and weather conditions.  Not quit as flat as cape may to AC but still a fantastic day in the water. Manasquan is a huge recreational boating area with sport fish as far as the eye can see. The Marina is located on a part of the inlet where there is a train bridge that has to be closed every time one of the commuter or Amtrak trains passes through. In our short 12 hour stay we saw no less than a couple dozen. Do you know how strange it is to see a train pass by the bow of the boat about 10 feet away???

On to the big apple

Waited until slack tide to leave our tight quarters and not have to fight the 10 knot current. Yep, I said and meant 10 knots!!!   The entire exit took about 15 minutes and in that time we dealt with a train bridge lift several jet skis, a 5 kt current in the inlet and a boat who decided to drop anchor and fish in the channel that was about 3 boats wide to begin with lined with rocks on each side. Whew!!!!!  Glad we're finally on open water with no worries in site. 

That's when it seemed like it was a little foggy out, strange for 11am.  The 3 mile visibility turned into 2 and then into less than a half mile for the rest of the 5 hour trip to Manhattan. We were fortunate to catch up with Conch Quest, who we had met the night before and go into NYC harbor together. You know when you loose one of your senses the others are heightened. We could hear everything around us. Commercial vessels announcing their arrival or departure in the Ambrose Channel, we could hear them sounding their horn in the fog, we could see large blobs on the radar and then a few minutes later we could feel the wake they left behind. A couple of times as the fog lifted some we could see large container ships as close as 1/4 mile away at best. Made us stop and go WHOA. We ran the outside edges of the commercial channel and they were in it so never any danger but ominous none the less. 

As we neared the city and land the fog lifted quickly and there it was!!  First the Verrazano Bridge, Brooklyn next on the left, Manhattan skyline starts to grow bigger and clearer and for the grand finale.... Lady Liberty. WOW. I'm on overload. 

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1515 Miles Covered/Day 117 - 125 Bear DE, Cape May, Atlantic City

At Last we leave Bear,  DE

Our stay in Bear, DE ended up lasting a few more days than we had anticipated with small craft advisories for the delaware river/bay over and over again. The overnight stop turned into 5 days  It really is a very pretty area with one stop shopping if you need to go to the grocery, deli, post office or buy fire wood. Yep, they are all the same place.  Fortunately for us it was about 2 miles down the road which gave us both something to do and some exercise. 

The Marina, Summit North, is a hurricane hole off of the C&D about 2/3 of they way through the canal.  All along the canal are some very nice walking/biking trails.  The place is actually kind of weird - it's like there was a plan for a resort type facility that only got half implemented.  A very nice miami/south Florida style restaurant on the hill overlooking the river.  Roads and infrastructure as if a hotel or houses were going to be put in, but stopped in time.  All in the middle of NO WHERE - just weird. 

With the arrival of Friday, and the weather/marine forecasts clear, we were VERY excited to head south (wait, isn't this the wrong direction???) down the Delaware. The Delaware is a very busy river for commercial vessels, in our 6 hour trip, we saw at least a half dozen tanker, cargo ships & barges. The first 4 hours of our trip were great - the last 2 hours kicked the crap out of us.  Nothing dangerous, but again we had very confused 2-4 foot seas hitting us randomly from all sides.  Things were rolling around everywhere.  At one point, we heard something bang and the dingy engine that we stowe behind the ladder in the cockpit had rolled 1/2 way across and was blocking the door.  You should have seen the gymnastics required to put it back and tie it up while pitching side to side.  You can be sure that we have everything now stowed away and secured before leaving the dock, even if we are expecting a nice day!   

link to Bear DE Stop

Cape May, NJ

Scheduled for a 2 day stop, ended up being 5.  At least this time we were in a pretty cool place with lots to do and see.  I never really gave Cape May much consideration before, but it is an old fishing town, with some great beaches and lovely neighborhoods.  The entire city of Cape May is designated the Cape May Historic District, a National Historic Landmark due to its concentration of Victorian buildings. (The most outside of San Francisco).  We stayed at the Canyon Club Marina, it was great, infinity pool, a short bike/walk from restaurants, shops and the beach.  The weather continued to be sketchy - cold and windy.  We were in Sweaters and jeans (again - I had already packed them away for the summer, or so I thought). Overall a pretty great place, that we would like to visit again, but right now, we are itching to get moving again, and Wednesday looks like it's going to be the day.

Link to Cape May Pictures

Atlantic City, NJ

So happy we left the docks today!  What a great ride we had as well.  Sunny skies, a nice slow roll on the ocean and a 4 hour trip from Cape May to A.C.  We rode about 2 miles off shore, which gave us a great view of the "Jersey Shore".  It was really enjoyable all around. Here we sit under clear skies and a view of the casinos across the inlet.  We have Bally's, Harrrah's and the world famous Golen Nugget.  We had opted not to leave our $$ at the tables this time. 

The strange water patterns continue, the winds have picked up and the marine forecast for tomorrow is borderline for making more northern progress.  We are learning patience over the past few weeks for sure.

Day 110 to 116 / 1400 Statutory Miles: The Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is a much bigger body of water than we anticipated and we only skimmed the surface with our visits to Deltaville, Solomons Island & Annapolis.  Because of the vastness, we found ourselves so far offshore most of the day, you really couldn't see and appreciate the beautiful coastline.  If you want to "explore" the bay, you really need to get yourself "into the rivers" that are along the shoreline.  With that said, it might just alter our plans for our trip back south so that we can do some additional exploring in this area.  What we did see was simply beautiful, and each place different from the place before it.  We also enjoyed (through the binoculars) the numerous lighthouses that dot the bay. These are a few of the ones we passed.

Deltaville: 

Deltaville is located in a fairly rural portion of Virginia.  There are a couple of stores, restaurants and most every kind of support service for sailing within a 5 mile stretch along a main road.  The bay is really a haven for sailboaters.  The marina was a working yard catering to sailboats.  This is the first place we realized they have WINTER here.  It's a week after Memorial Day and there were still a lot of boats on the hard.  Some still in shrinkwrap. Deltaville has a maritime museum focused on the deadrise boats that are still used in these waters today for crabbing and fishing. We spent the day on the bikes checking out the local scenery and the afternoon in the marina pool. 

Solomons Island

Gorgeous little island located on the Patuxent River in Maryland.   Much less rural than Deltaville and had a lot more going on as far as restaurants and shops.  Very picturesque.  We had the pleasure of a mooring in the prettiest lagoon for the evening. This makes the "Do again" list for sure.  

The south bank of the Patuxent River, is home to Headquarters, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School, the Atlantic Test Range, and serves as a center for test and evaluation and systems acquisition relating to naval aviation.  This also meant that we were treated to our own private airshow for a few hours, which was VERY COOL!. This short video doesn't do justice to the experience - they were so loud and some so low, you could feel them in your chest.

Annapolis

Spent 2 nights in Annapolis which, for anyone who know us, is one of our favorite places to visit. Our first time arriving by water (which was a real treat for us).  Visiting some of our favorite "haunts" Rams Head, Prussers and just wandering the streets was just the best.  We stayed in the mooring field located in the harbor just off the Naval Academy giving us the best views of the capital building and Naval Academy Dome that were lit up each night.  Water taxi's were available on demand to take you almost anywhere along the waterfront for $3.  Even with our own tender, it was pretty handy for venturing out at night, when the harbor seemed to get churned up.  

Saturday was a sunny warm day to explore with the dingy.  We discovered Spa Creek which runs between Annapolis and Eastport. There are a few marinas and mooring fields in very protected waters and still very accessible to town.  I think we've made this our stayover of choice for Annapolis when we return in the fall.  Eastport is the city next door to Annapolis across Spa Creek.  We spent a little time here on Saturday afternoon and wish we could spend more.  Same feel as Annapolis, but much more residential and home to several restaurants on the water.  We had the best dinner at a place called O'Leary's Seafood.  Highly recommend it!

Annapolis provided some of the roughest waters for overnighting so far.  There is a huge amount of boat traffic (harbor boat tours, folks cruising the waterfront and extremely windy on top of all that. To say we got ROCKED to sleep each night is an understatement.  Our last night here felt like we were sleeping in a washing machine.

To C&D Canal

North of Annapolis, you could see both sides of the Chesapeake, which was very different than the previous days travels.  A significant portion of the western shore, north of Baltimore, is occupied by the Aberdeen Proving Grounds.  We were racking our brains trying to remember what was "special" about this area - so our friend Google enlightened us.  Wow, there is/was some "badass" stuff taking place at this Army facility.  Once again, glad to have US on our side.

  

Located at the northern tip of the Chesapeake is the C&D Canal.  It is the waterway that connects the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays.  The Chesapeake Bay has spoiled us with its consistent water depths of 15 to over 100 feet everywhere! Expecting the canal to look more like what we are used to boating the ICW in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, we were quite surprised to find it meandering, wide and lots of communities and activity on both banks.  Making our way approximately 1/2 way through on Sunday, there was little commercial traffic, but lots of pleasure boaters buzzin around.  We are spending the night at the North Summit Marina before making our way down the Delaware River to Cape May, NJ. Looking ahead at the weather and water conditions, it is likely that this stop will end up being a 2 night stay. The marine forecast is calling for a low front to pass through today with a S winds and 2-3 foot seas.  No SCA, but with our next leg being southerly, higher wave action and opposing winds, we have learned, end up resulting in a very long uncomfortable day.  Tuesday is calling for north winds and 1-2 foot seas and sounds like a much nicer day for a boat ride.

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