Sunday, Oct 10
After a nice afternoon of visiting we returned to the boat. Thank you again Doug and Jackie for your hospitality, laundry and the car!
In the evening we met another cruiser, Roger from JoHee, who is traveling with his cat, Kitty. He invited us over to his boat to share the bottle of blueberry wine that the marina provides. We are looking forward to reading Kitty’s blog and getting the cat’s eye view of cruising.
Monday, Oct 11th.
We had to leave the dock by 11:00, so we anchored by the Coast Guard Base in Cape May harbor and spent a relaxing afternoon resting up as we are going to head straight for Norfolk or Hampton Virginia tomorrow which will be about a 30 hour run.
Tuesday, Oct 12th, and Wednesday, Oct 13th
At midnight flashes of lightning woke us up. When the wind started to pick up we got up to check on the anchor. Our anchor was fine but through the strobe light of the lightning we could see two boats dragging down on us, one to port and one to starboard. The wind was over 30 knots, gusting higher, and the rain was coming in sideways. The boat to starboard missed us by about 15 feet. We are still not sure how the one to port missed our anchor. We were both on deck with the engine running. Luckily both boats were able to get under control before they hit the ruins of the old dock behind us. It was pretty exciting for a few minutes. By 12:30 the storm had passed, everyone was re-anchored, and the rest of the night was peaceful.
We headed out of the Cape May inlet at 5:15 a.m. for an overnight trip to Hampton, Virginia. All day and most of the night the wind was very light and the seas were calm, so we motor sailed (okay, we motored and put the sails up just for the sake of having them up). Around 3:00 in the morning the wind came up, and by the time we got into the Chesapeake in the dark the wind was 15-20 knots and the seas were up. The waves are very steep and square in the Chesapeake. We were very happy to tie up to the Hampton Public Pier around 8:30 a.m., especially since most of the the other boats on the dock are cruisers headed for the Bahamas.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Old Lyme, CT to Cape May, NJ
We had a great couple of days at Rick and Robin’s house. It was great to spend some time with them and with Kyle and Eric. We just missed Kyle’s 18th birthday.
Friday night we went back to the boat. Kind Robin was slightly alarmed at leaving us with the boat jumping around on the dock in the 30 knot winds. Strangely, although from the dock the boat looked like a bucking bronco, it was fairly comfortable below. In the evening we went for a walk along the board walk at Old Lyme, it was very pretty by the marsh, but cold with the wind.
As always, thank you Robin and Rick for your hospitality!
Saturday, Oct 2, 2010
We left Old Lyme and had a nice sail in the afternoon. We ended up in “the gulf” at Milford. When we anchored it was calm and sheltered and the sunset was beautiful. In the middle of the night the wind shifted and we rolled around all night. Very uncomfortable and not a bit restful.
Sunday, Oct 3, 2010
A cloudy and cold day with NE winds 15-20 knots, gusting to 25 with 4 - 6 foot seas. Around noon the sun came out. We decided to go into Norwalk and tie up at the town dock. We usually don’t like to pay for dockage, but after last nights lack of sleep we decided to splurge. Also, I needed to go to a store and find some cold medicine.
Monday, Oct 4, 2010
Brrrr. Very chilly this morning. We don’t have an outside thermometer. Inside the cabin, after using the stove to make coffee it was only 58 degrees. We left the dock in the morning in a cold rain and thought about going into Zeigler’s Cove (just south of Rowayton), it was rough in that cove, so we anchored in the next cove to the north, Scott’s Cove. It was very calm and nice for a change. We were anchored by 10:30 in the morning so we spent a relaxing day reading books. I baked bread in the afternoon.
Tuesday, Oct 5, 2010
Yet another cloudy, rainy, and cold day with plenty of wind. We headed over to Port Washington to spend the night. On the way into the harbor we passed a very old fashioned looking square rigger motoring up the bay.
We anchored at the edge of the mooring field. Just before dinner time a couple of boats came in and picked up moorings fairly close to us. We were just getting ready to raise the anchor and move in case the wind changed so we wouldn’t swing into them when a launch came out to let us know that the yellow mooring ball next to us was free for two nights, so we happily moved over.
Wednesday, Oct 5, 2010
Finally, a mostly sunny day. We started out the day with a nice breakfast of eggs, home fries, and toast. As we pulled out of the harbor we could see the New York skyline in the distance. We had a great ride through New York. We went through Hells Gate with a 15 knot head wind and were still doing 8 knots. Sailing by the Statue of Liberty is spectacular. We anchored for the nights at Atlantic Highlands (Sandy Hook).
Thursday, Oct 6, 2010
We got up at 5:00 a.m. to head down the New Jersey coast. The high speed ferries are alarmingly fast and require keeping a sharp lookout, especially in the dark. Although I don’t particularly like sailing at night seeing the stars and the New York skyline lit up in the distance was impressive. The morning sailing was a bit rough with 20 - 25 knots of wind and 4 - 6 foot seas. In the afternoon the seas knocked down and the wind subsided to 15 - 20 knots. As we were coming into Barnegat inlet a butterfly flew in the lee of the boat for about 5 minutes and the first pelicans that we have seen this year flew by. Now that we are anchored, looking back on the day it was a nice day’s sailing.
Friday, Oct 7, 2010
We had a wonderful sail in the morning. We motorsailed for about an hour to charge the batteries, then as we came alongside a Sabre 30 we shut off the engine and sailed. We were able to sail slightly faster than they did for the rest of the morning which was fun. Mid morning I was at the helm, paying attention to my course, when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. A small bird landed on the tiller a couple of inches from my hand. It startled me, so I screamed like a girl, which startled it, so it flew around the boat and landed again. About an hour later another little bird flew in the boat, then back out. We were listening to the radio and heard a couple of other boats talking and one said they had a bird do the same thing, then a hawk came along and ate the bird. I hope this wasn’t our bird.
Around noon time when we were by Atlantic City the wind shifted onto the nose so we had to make a decision whether or not to go on to Cape May and get in around dark or go into Atlantic City. We decided to motor sail to Cape May. We got in around 7:00, just after sunset.
Saturday, Oct 8
In the morning we discovered that wherever the leak is coming from, it is worse than we had thought. All of the clothes in my locker were wet. Our list of boat work is as always growing instead of shrinking. After pulling out all of the clothes it seems like the leak(s) are probably coming from some combination of one of the chainplates, the rubrail, and/or the dinghy tie down. When Doug showed up with his car and his generous offer of using their laundry, he may not have realized how generous of an offer this was! We had a fun day visiting with Doug, Jackie, Tom, Jerri, Kelly, Olivia, and Chloe.
Sunday, Oct 9
Our boat is at the end of a t-dock where the fishermen hang out. A man caught a little sand shark - about a foot long and let me pet it before he let it go.
We spent the morning rebedding all of the things that were probably leaking and bailing the water out of the sail locker (the dorade was also leaking...). All of these chores involved also pulling everything out of every locker and piling it randomly around the boat, then putting it all away again. The joys of boating! We then ran errands - West Marine, propane, Walmart, etc., then had Philly cheesesteaks for lunch, then went back over to Doug and Jackie's for another visit. It is a treat being able to catch up with family.
Friday night we went back to the boat. Kind Robin was slightly alarmed at leaving us with the boat jumping around on the dock in the 30 knot winds. Strangely, although from the dock the boat looked like a bucking bronco, it was fairly comfortable below. In the evening we went for a walk along the board walk at Old Lyme, it was very pretty by the marsh, but cold with the wind.
As always, thank you Robin and Rick for your hospitality!
Saturday, Oct 2, 2010
We left Old Lyme and had a nice sail in the afternoon. We ended up in “the gulf” at Milford. When we anchored it was calm and sheltered and the sunset was beautiful. In the middle of the night the wind shifted and we rolled around all night. Very uncomfortable and not a bit restful.
Sunday, Oct 3, 2010
A cloudy and cold day with NE winds 15-20 knots, gusting to 25 with 4 - 6 foot seas. Around noon the sun came out. We decided to go into Norwalk and tie up at the town dock. We usually don’t like to pay for dockage, but after last nights lack of sleep we decided to splurge. Also, I needed to go to a store and find some cold medicine.
Monday, Oct 4, 2010
Brrrr. Very chilly this morning. We don’t have an outside thermometer. Inside the cabin, after using the stove to make coffee it was only 58 degrees. We left the dock in the morning in a cold rain and thought about going into Zeigler’s Cove (just south of Rowayton), it was rough in that cove, so we anchored in the next cove to the north, Scott’s Cove. It was very calm and nice for a change. We were anchored by 10:30 in the morning so we spent a relaxing day reading books. I baked bread in the afternoon.
Tuesday, Oct 5, 2010
Yet another cloudy, rainy, and cold day with plenty of wind. We headed over to Port Washington to spend the night. On the way into the harbor we passed a very old fashioned looking square rigger motoring up the bay.
We anchored at the edge of the mooring field. Just before dinner time a couple of boats came in and picked up moorings fairly close to us. We were just getting ready to raise the anchor and move in case the wind changed so we wouldn’t swing into them when a launch came out to let us know that the yellow mooring ball next to us was free for two nights, so we happily moved over.
Wednesday, Oct 5, 2010
Finally, a mostly sunny day. We started out the day with a nice breakfast of eggs, home fries, and toast. As we pulled out of the harbor we could see the New York skyline in the distance. We had a great ride through New York. We went through Hells Gate with a 15 knot head wind and were still doing 8 knots. Sailing by the Statue of Liberty is spectacular. We anchored for the nights at Atlantic Highlands (Sandy Hook).
Thursday, Oct 6, 2010
We got up at 5:00 a.m. to head down the New Jersey coast. The high speed ferries are alarmingly fast and require keeping a sharp lookout, especially in the dark. Although I don’t particularly like sailing at night seeing the stars and the New York skyline lit up in the distance was impressive. The morning sailing was a bit rough with 20 - 25 knots of wind and 4 - 6 foot seas. In the afternoon the seas knocked down and the wind subsided to 15 - 20 knots. As we were coming into Barnegat inlet a butterfly flew in the lee of the boat for about 5 minutes and the first pelicans that we have seen this year flew by. Now that we are anchored, looking back on the day it was a nice day’s sailing.
Friday, Oct 7, 2010
We had a wonderful sail in the morning. We motorsailed for about an hour to charge the batteries, then as we came alongside a Sabre 30 we shut off the engine and sailed. We were able to sail slightly faster than they did for the rest of the morning which was fun. Mid morning I was at the helm, paying attention to my course, when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. A small bird landed on the tiller a couple of inches from my hand. It startled me, so I screamed like a girl, which startled it, so it flew around the boat and landed again. About an hour later another little bird flew in the boat, then back out. We were listening to the radio and heard a couple of other boats talking and one said they had a bird do the same thing, then a hawk came along and ate the bird. I hope this wasn’t our bird.
Around noon time when we were by Atlantic City the wind shifted onto the nose so we had to make a decision whether or not to go on to Cape May and get in around dark or go into Atlantic City. We decided to motor sail to Cape May. We got in around 7:00, just after sunset.
Saturday, Oct 8
In the morning we discovered that wherever the leak is coming from, it is worse than we had thought. All of the clothes in my locker were wet. Our list of boat work is as always growing instead of shrinking. After pulling out all of the clothes it seems like the leak(s) are probably coming from some combination of one of the chainplates, the rubrail, and/or the dinghy tie down. When Doug showed up with his car and his generous offer of using their laundry, he may not have realized how generous of an offer this was! We had a fun day visiting with Doug, Jackie, Tom, Jerri, Kelly, Olivia, and Chloe.
Sunday, Oct 9
Our boat is at the end of a t-dock where the fishermen hang out. A man caught a little sand shark - about a foot long and let me pet it before he let it go.
We spent the morning rebedding all of the things that were probably leaking and bailing the water out of the sail locker (the dorade was also leaking...). All of these chores involved also pulling everything out of every locker and piling it randomly around the boat, then putting it all away again. The joys of boating! We then ran errands - West Marine, propane, Walmart, etc., then had Philly cheesesteaks for lunch, then went back over to Doug and Jackie's for another visit. It is a treat being able to catch up with family.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Tenants Harbor, ME to Old Lyme, CT
Thursday, September 23, 2010
After several hectic weeks of trying to get the boat ready, our house ready for the winter, and Mum’s house ready to rent, we finally left the dock. It was sad waving goodbye to Mum and Bailey and looking back at them as Mum stood on the dock waving and Bailey sat patiently beside her.
The beginning of the trip was pleasantly not exiting. The wind speed was 0 to 5 knots. We put up the sails and pretended to motorsail, when in reality we were just motoring. Monhegan was beautiful as we passed by in the company of several groups of dolphins. As we were leaving the island behind we could hear a loon calling. The temperature was chilly during the day and predicted to be cold during the night. On one of my watches while the autopilot was steering I knit a neck warmer. Later I was glad to have it.
The moon rose among pink tinged clouds in the east while the sun went down in a fantastic orange sunset reflected off the mirror calm water. Later in the evening the wind started to increase. By midnight it was blowing 15-20 right on the nose. By that point we were halfway to the Cape in the middle of the gulf of Maine. The seas were very short and confused. All in all it was a very unpleasant night, especially since both of us were seasick. During the night a whale startled Bill when it surfaced and blew about 100 feet from the boat.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Friday morning was overcast with the wind still 20 knots on the nose and the very short confused seas were 4 to 6 feet. We realized around 8:00 a.m. that we would not be able to get to the entrance of the Cape Cod canal in time for the ebb tide so decided to go to Scituate Harbor instead.
Around 12:30 we pulled into Scituate tired and ill. We asked the first person we saw where we could find a mooring. Peter from PAULIE’S FOLLY told us to call EASY RIDER on channel 9 and that the mooring next to his was one of their rentals. After a nap we took the launch into town to walk around. The harbormaster printed out a copy of the weather report for us. The weather for Saturdy is unfavorable with wind SW 15 and gust to 25 so we will spend an extra day here. We had an early very simple dinner and went to bed at 6:30.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
After a good nights sleep we both felt better. As usual on the boat I had my coffee in my bunk. We took the launch into town and took some much needed showers. We walked around Scituate; it is a very pretty little town and as Peter told us had everything available within walking distance: groceries, drug store, chandleries, banks, shops, even a bowling alley and a movie theater. Everyone we have met here has been very friendly and helpful. In the afternoon we took the boat in to get fuel and water then spent the rest of the day relaxing and reading books.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
We had a great run to the canal. We were averaging over 6 knots, which is fast for Rondo. In the canal we had to throttle back to avoid going over the 10 knot speed limit because the current is so strong. We anchored in Onset and had a very relaxing evening.
Monday, September 27, 2010
We got up early to a very gray and overcast day and headed out. The wind was NE 5 - 10 all day. We sailed downwind with a following sea through the fog. We were making good time, especially considering we were against the current, however, it was tiring to hand steer with no visual references as there was only about 1 to 2 miles of visibility in the fog. The autopilot does not do well with the following seas that well meaning people insist on wishing upon us. We spent about half the day keeping up with two Island Packets in the upper 30 to lower 40 foot range. Those boats decided to go into Newport or Point Judith. We passed Point Judith a little after three and decided to head on to Mystic because tomorrow is supposed to be very windy and nasty. We passed Watch Hill at 6:30 p.m. as it was starting to get dark the fog lifted. Watch Hill was beautiful and a little eerie looming out of the fog in the dusk. We made our way through Noank and up the very narrow twisty channel to Mystic in the dark. We tried to find a place to anchor but it is very tricky in here so we picked up a mooring for the night at 8:40. It was a long day, but we traveled 75.2 miles so we made a lot of distance.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Today was a very windy and rainy day. We stayed on the boat all day, except for a quick trip in to the fuel dock during a lull in the rain. Unfortunately, the lull ended before we returned to the mooring field.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
We had a great sail from Mystic to Old Lyme. We motored for a little while in the morning to charge the batteries, then had a very comfortable and fast sail as we had the current with us. The sun came out for a few hours and the visibility was good. The houses along the shore are amazing. Around 1:30 we pulled into the dock at the Old Lyme Dock Company. One of the Lyman Morse boats, WOMBAT, was on the dock. At first we didn’t recognize her as she has been painted a different color and has a new name, but Bill recognized the anchor roller he built.
Robin has very kindly offered us her hospitality for a few days since the weather is again supposed to be bad for the next few days so we are at her house in West Hartford.
After several hectic weeks of trying to get the boat ready, our house ready for the winter, and Mum’s house ready to rent, we finally left the dock. It was sad waving goodbye to Mum and Bailey and looking back at them as Mum stood on the dock waving and Bailey sat patiently beside her.
The beginning of the trip was pleasantly not exiting. The wind speed was 0 to 5 knots. We put up the sails and pretended to motorsail, when in reality we were just motoring. Monhegan was beautiful as we passed by in the company of several groups of dolphins. As we were leaving the island behind we could hear a loon calling. The temperature was chilly during the day and predicted to be cold during the night. On one of my watches while the autopilot was steering I knit a neck warmer. Later I was glad to have it.
Southern Island Light, Tenants Harbor, ME
The moon rose among pink tinged clouds in the east while the sun went down in a fantastic orange sunset reflected off the mirror calm water. Later in the evening the wind started to increase. By midnight it was blowing 15-20 right on the nose. By that point we were halfway to the Cape in the middle of the gulf of Maine. The seas were very short and confused. All in all it was a very unpleasant night, especially since both of us were seasick. During the night a whale startled Bill when it surfaced and blew about 100 feet from the boat.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Friday morning was overcast with the wind still 20 knots on the nose and the very short confused seas were 4 to 6 feet. We realized around 8:00 a.m. that we would not be able to get to the entrance of the Cape Cod canal in time for the ebb tide so decided to go to Scituate Harbor instead.
Around 12:30 we pulled into Scituate tired and ill. We asked the first person we saw where we could find a mooring. Peter from PAULIE’S FOLLY told us to call EASY RIDER on channel 9 and that the mooring next to his was one of their rentals. After a nap we took the launch into town to walk around. The harbormaster printed out a copy of the weather report for us. The weather for Saturdy is unfavorable with wind SW 15 and gust to 25 so we will spend an extra day here. We had an early very simple dinner and went to bed at 6:30.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Scituate, MA
After a good nights sleep we both felt better. As usual on the boat I had my coffee in my bunk. We took the launch into town and took some much needed showers. We walked around Scituate; it is a very pretty little town and as Peter told us had everything available within walking distance: groceries, drug store, chandleries, banks, shops, even a bowling alley and a movie theater. Everyone we have met here has been very friendly and helpful. In the afternoon we took the boat in to get fuel and water then spent the rest of the day relaxing and reading books.
Scituate Swans
Sunday, September 26, 2010
We had a great run to the canal. We were averaging over 6 knots, which is fast for Rondo. In the canal we had to throttle back to avoid going over the 10 knot speed limit because the current is so strong. We anchored in Onset and had a very relaxing evening.
Monday, September 27, 2010
We got up early to a very gray and overcast day and headed out. The wind was NE 5 - 10 all day. We sailed downwind with a following sea through the fog. We were making good time, especially considering we were against the current, however, it was tiring to hand steer with no visual references as there was only about 1 to 2 miles of visibility in the fog. The autopilot does not do well with the following seas that well meaning people insist on wishing upon us. We spent about half the day keeping up with two Island Packets in the upper 30 to lower 40 foot range. Those boats decided to go into Newport or Point Judith. We passed Point Judith a little after three and decided to head on to Mystic because tomorrow is supposed to be very windy and nasty. We passed Watch Hill at 6:30 p.m. as it was starting to get dark the fog lifted. Watch Hill was beautiful and a little eerie looming out of the fog in the dusk. We made our way through Noank and up the very narrow twisty channel to Mystic in the dark. We tried to find a place to anchor but it is very tricky in here so we picked up a mooring for the night at 8:40. It was a long day, but we traveled 75.2 miles so we made a lot of distance.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Today was a very windy and rainy day. We stayed on the boat all day, except for a quick trip in to the fuel dock during a lull in the rain. Unfortunately, the lull ended before we returned to the mooring field.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
We had a great sail from Mystic to Old Lyme. We motored for a little while in the morning to charge the batteries, then had a very comfortable and fast sail as we had the current with us. The sun came out for a few hours and the visibility was good. The houses along the shore are amazing. Around 1:30 we pulled into the dock at the Old Lyme Dock Company. One of the Lyman Morse boats, WOMBAT, was on the dock. At first we didn’t recognize her as she has been painted a different color and has a new name, but Bill recognized the anchor roller he built.
Robin has very kindly offered us her hospitality for a few days since the weather is again supposed to be bad for the next few days so we are at her house in West Hartford.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Rondo
We are getting ready to leave, hopefully later this week. Above is a photo of Rondo with her fancy new sail cover. We have started packing the boat and most of our stuff is onboard. It is a good sign that the waterline is still visible. Everyone always asks about provisioning food. We have found that finding space for books is more of a problem.
The interior is back together which is nice to see after having it torn apart at the beginning of the season. The new sole (floor) in the salon looks great. This was another of Bill's projects this summer.
Above the v-berth there are three cabinet doors each the size of the ones you can see in this photo. This is all the space we have for clothing for a year. Figuring out how to pack for the warm weather in the Bahamas and the chilly trip from here to there is quite a challenge.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Harbor Island Aug 21-22, 2010
We finally spent a night on the boat this season. It was great being aboard and having the opportunity to use the boat instead of just working on her and writing lists, although we did both over the weekend. The weather was overcast and cool, but there was no fog, so for Maine we consider that good boating. Harbor Island is one of our favorite places, it was nice starting out from a wonderful place. On Sunday morning Bill worked on a few projects on the boat. I went for a paddle in the kayak and went ashore for a hike to see the fairy houses.
Rondo at Harbor Island
Fairy House on Harbor Island
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Trail on Harbor Island
When we left Harbor Island we sailed off the mooring and sailed to Eastern Egg Rock hoping to see puffins. We didn't see any puffins, but there were thousands of other birds in the water and around the island. The scientists on the island must be deafened by the noise of all the birds calling to each other constantly (to say nothing of the smell!). Most of the birds were on the opposite side of the island from the two bald eagles.
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| Bald Eagle on Eastern Egg Rock |
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Bailey's First Boat Ride on Rondo
Bailey will not be going on the trip. She does not like the boat. She prefers to stay home with her grandmother.
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