The Jersey Coast

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Chesapeake Bay Beauty

Last week.....where does the time go anyway....sometimes it seems like I live life in a daze, what day is it, where am I, who am I !!  Maybe it's just the old adage time flies when you're  having fun, so I must be having a real ball!!  It's been almost a week since the last time I let you know what we're doing and where we are doing it.

So here goes...

We couldn't leave Solomons on Friday, too windy, so Gary finished the Radar project ....

Oooh....nice legs!

 doesn't this look like fun..

Since we really wanted to attend the antique boat show we decided to head across the bay to St. Michaels early Saturday morning.  We arrived about noon and this is just a taste of a great show, nowhere near the LeChenaux show in the U.P. of Michigan but good none the less.

Gary's heritage.....Chris Craft

The Radio control society

Nice Hacker Craft

Race Boats from 'the heyday of racing'

Then again if you recently won the lottery you can 'hire' the 1939 Trumpy yacht 
Washingtonian for a mere $1500. per hour with a 2 hour minimum.  If you can't catch her in St. Michaels, she'll be at the Ocean Reef Club in Florida in the winter.  Just a thought.

We left St. Michaels and anchored in the Wye River so that we could get an early start on our trip through the C&D canal and Delaware Bay.  This trip has to be planned according to the tides to get you down Delaware Bay without a 'tide fight'.  Our idea was to stay in Chesapeake City but we made such good time that we decided to go through the C&D canal and head for the Reedy Island anchorage in the Delaware River.  It was an easy day...with lots of boat traffic.  The sailboats were LOVING the winds on the bay...they were everywhere.

                                       

C & D Canal Bridges

          Farm Reedy Island  Delaware River

            What a storm looks like from a boat....puts things in perspective..

 We were close to the end of the rainbow...the most awesome one I have EVER seen.  The picture does it no justice at all.

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We got a Nuclear view at this anchorage.

Let's see, we are now up to Monday. When travelling the Delaware River and Bay you are advised to leave at high tide so the water as it goes out can "suck you down the bay" so to speak. We had planned to go to Cape May and Anchor on the south end of the New Jersey Shore and anchor there before heading up the coast on the Atlantic. 

Light Bell...and 'bird sanctuary' on the Delaware River

But once we got there we changed our plan (AGAIN!!)  The water on the Bay was so calm and when we got to Cape May we were almost in the ocean so we thought what the heck...lets just keep going, it's only noon.

So with big smiles on our faces for being so confident (not to mention smart) we headed out the Cape May Inlet for another adventure.

         I remember hearing "It will get better when we get out of the inlet"  

                                                         ...well one can hope..

It wasn't a terrible trip but it wasn't good.  The wind was on our aft quarter, which in Tie A Knot language means..."Let's Roll Baby"

This photo was NOT doctored....and I was steering because
if I don't there's a chance the fish will be eating my lunch.

So after 4 hours of extreme rolling and steering we got to the Atlantic City Inlet.  I had my life jacket on, not taking any chances, and it was a fast ride in....with the waves going in and the tide going out.  Of course we couldn't get into the anchorage we planned to because it was low tide (this tide business is quite daunting...no rhyme or reason that I can see.) so we anchored in front of the Coast Guard Station by the casinos.  That was the worst night at anchor ever, I felt like I was in a giant cradle with a very impatient mother at the wheel.  Turbulence big time.

 Lots of amusement on the Jersey Coast...this is Morey's Piers Wildwood, N.J.

Atlantic City Skyline from the water

Atlantic City Wind Generators on a miserable day

We thought we'd have to stay here for ever to get out into the Atlantic again when we suddenly decided to check out facts on the N.J. ICW....turns out it is very shallow, mostly 5-6 feet in depth, but after reading about a couple who had done it last year we decided it could be done and if not we could always backtrack.

 We weren't sure if they were clamming or oystering but the water is super shallow in the ICW they were kneeling in the shallows harvesting something,

Being led through the dredging maze by a small work boat

 Abandoned Fish Factory in the ICW north of Atlantic City

 ICW Jersey Shore  in the rain

We were being adventurous trying this trip up the ICW but the alternative, waiting 3 or more days to make it 80 miles north in the Atlantic was not appealing so we figured what the heck.  We did do a little research and people had done it last year, but that was pre Sandy.  We found water levels to be very low.  We need more than 4 1/2 feet under our keel and we went through a lot of areas with only 5 to 6 feet of depth.  We ended up making an unplanned stop to anchor last night because it was raining so hard we really couldn't see the bouys and you HAVE to stay between them in this waterway or you will be calling Tow Boat US for sure.  We were going to move when is stopped raining because we were in Barnegat Bay which is very large and shallow but as luck would have it it started blowing 15-25 mph and we were stuck there.  It was another nasty night.  In Atlantic city we rolled, here we bucked like we were riding a bronco.  Not pleasant but over and done with thank God.

We haven't touched bottom yet and we only have about 10 miles to go before we have to go out into the ocean again at Manasquan which is the end of the ICW.  Then another 20 miles in the Atlantic to the Inlet into New York Harbor.  

Wagon  HO!!!

                  Our Silver Bay Anchorage in 7 feet of water at low tide...all tucked in.

                     The Atlantic Ocean and Jersey Shore are at the top of the chart.

In With The New and The Storm

This is the 5th day that we've been on a mooring in Solomons Md.  We had expected it to be a 24 hour stop, and Mother Nature just laughed.

The first day we went to California (just a quick trip by bus :-) and picked up our camera. Yea!

The next day we provisioned, but since our outboard parts hadn't arrived yet, that put us into a

3rd day.....

So you know what happens to us when we sit in one spot for longer than 2 days.  Yup....we work on something!  We went to West Marine to get some varnish to finish the bridge hatch doors and weather stripping for our leaking port lights and hatches and ended up coming back with a new Garmin Radar GPS unit.  We have been looking at this discontinued unit since January and this was the moment the universe decided to kick our butts and make us make the decision. (Not to mention they had one in stock ).

I may have mentioned that when we were in Merritt Island we had it our old Furuno radar bench tested and they said it worked fine.  Well it didn't work fine, in fact it didn't work at all, no surprise there since boat electronics are in constant need of replacing or upgrading, which is why we don't have many.

Anyway I'm getting off track....

Days 3 & 4...

Gary spent most of Wednesday and part of Thursday trying to get the cable threaded through our arch for the new radar...not happening!   He had to disconnect the solar panels, remove the solar cable and all of the additional wiring, and re-thread all of the wires through the small space.  Obviously the reason they had wires strung across the bridge top when we bought the boat was the lack of room in the arch.  They weren't as doggedly persistent as Gary because that was NOT an option.  He did it of course and since I helped I didn't get any great shots of the angst.  Let it be know it was not a project we want to repeat anytime soon

Bringing back our purchase 

Radar Package Deal...it's also a GPS chartplotter with a screen we will actually be able to see without a magnifying glass
(what we could see two years ago is a. bit of a struggle now)
Our old little  5" GPS chartplotter!  In 2 more years it'll probably have to be a 19" screen!

Farm on the Patuxent River with the highway bridge to California in the background.  

               View from the dinghy dock, you can see Tie A Knot in the background

                            Zanhizers docks from our boat.   Lots of masts here.

We were promised a storm yesterday and midway into our installation boy did she hit!   It had been hot and sunny and we thought it was another non event but about 2:30 the sky  started getting  black and the wind started to pick up a little.  Another half hour it started to rain and then WHAM...the wind picked up to 35 kts with gusts to 50 kts.  I'm sure we were also doing a lot of crazy moves but the Hunter sailboat behind us looked like it was on the end of a whip!  

It really was quite an experience.  We stood on the back deck for most of it and I kept telling Gary "don't touch the metal"!!  Lightening was everywhere, winds howling, life preservers, buckets, floating by.  Then it was over. I'd say it was probably only 20 to 30 minutes at the most.  Today we talked to a couple on a boat on the dock in the marina that got struck by lightening. ( Fried all of their equipment.)  and another that were out in the bay when it hit. They were on a Nordhaven which is an ocean going trawler so although it was scary they were able to ride it out and get into the marina as soon as it was over.   Whew, we were all glad it was over.

So here we are day 5 finishing up the Radar installation and hopefully getting things put back in order for our planned early morning departure tomorrow.  Today the winds are about 15 to 20 mph and it started out with quite a few black clouds to the East but it looks better now.  Hopefully the winds will die down like they are forecasting and we can head across the bay to an antique boat show in St. Michaels, Md. on the eastern shore tomorrow.

                                           Happy anniversary forever honey!!

Michelle and Joe on 'Simple Life'....they make it look so easy ..

For you Denny.......

                            There are way more boats than houses on Solomons Harbor

Solomons harbor inlet

Tie A Knot....
Out

Solomon's

Here we sit in Solomon's Island, Md. on a mooring ball at Zanhizer's Yachting Center.  Nice place that we stayed at on our last trip through.  It beats trying to anchor this beast in their very small harbor and we figured Solomon's would be a convenient stop to have our new camera sent. Yea!!!

We left Mill Creek at 7am with about 8 other boats all headed north trying to beat the bad weather.  It was a total 180 from yesterday.  Yesterday calm and partly sunny, today moderate seas and gray skies.  We were out about two hours when the black cloud caught up with us.  It rained pretty hard for about twenty minutes and then it was done.  We crossed the mouth of the Potomac and made it up the coast and dodged the rest of the heavy weather.

                         8:30 am , she is a 'comin!

The rest of the trip was a trial on Gary's stamina,  trying to keep Tie A Knot on a straight course while taking the waves on the aft quarter is hard on the mind and body!

One might think sitting behind the wheel of a boat is easy BUT  consider this, keeping your eyes on the water for foreign objects and crab pots, or shallow spots that if hit could really unmake your day. Then think of how hard it might be to spot things in rough seas.  Then their is the physical act of keeping the boat on course which on this boat is never easy, you are constantly correcting it's sneaky little maneuvers.   That all takes its toll on the body not to mention the mind.  It's no wonder the first thing he wants after the anchor is set is a BEER! 

We had the opportunity to follow another trawler similar to ours today and we were both like "is that what we look like?".... It was like watching a drunk trying to walk a straight line!  Anyway we made it. We pulled into the harbor at 12:30, only a little worse for the wear.

So here we sit .... in the rain...

Since bikes will be our mode of transportation here, we will have to wait until tomorrow to get out, so we quickly dinghied up to the office between downpours, signed in and got ice so that I could defrost the frig, always a fun wet task.  Just the way to spend a day like today., I know the ducks sure are loving it!
Hopefully June is not going to continue like it has started out.... at least it isn't cold!
We'll be here for two days, tomorrow is the post office, West Marine, and the grocery store, then we'll be ready to head out Wednesday...
So it goes.....

Quick Update

We had a great day cruising today.  5 to 10 kt. winds and very calm seas.  We pulled up the anchor at 8:45 and got to Mill Creek at 3:30.  Fifty-four miles in a little less than seven hours.  I know that sounds ridiculous to most but it was a good day.  Lots of sailboats out there, this IS the Chesapeake...sailing is their game.  Not much else to report, iffy internet and phones here so I'm making this a 'quickie' update.  Headed for Solomon's Island tomorrow which means crossing the mouth of the Potomac...HUGE....hopefully the daily storms will hold off until we make it.  

 We are here (anchor at the bottom of picture)  Mill Creek off of the Wicomico River which is south of the Potomac.

A lovely quiet anchorage with quite a few other cruisers.  It took two spots and 5 tries to set the anchor but we are 'hooked' now.  There are houses here but most are hidden by the trees, quite a lot like "Up North", Michigan.

Chesapeake Bound

Here we are all snuggled in our anchorage (in pretty much the middle of the creek) with the locals whizzing around us and probably thinking "what the heck".  Oh well, it took us an hour to get in here so here we will stay.  We are in Chisman Creek on the Poquoson River, just south of the York River.

 Because of the threat of Tropical Storm Andrea and 50 knot winds we spent Thursday and Friday night at Atlantic Yacht Basin just before the Great Bridge Lock tied up to the wall.  Gary thought the stay was worth the price of admission.  They had six buildings of covered wells.  With one building being 200' long and another 250'.  Believe me, he thought he'd died and gone to heaven.  The boats in these buildings were Incredible. There was a 60' Chris Craft Commander 'Stardust' circa 1970's that looked like it came out of the showroom.  It was for sale and had belonged to Hogie Charmichael .  A 57' Chris Craft Connie also in showroom condition.

And this....'Scout' a 73 foot commuter yacht built by Defoe McGinnis in Bay City Michigan in 1930.  The condition was like it just came out of the factory. Shining paint and mahogany (brightwork) like a mirror.  Serious dollars went into restoring these boats.

Then there was 'Principia'....

a 1928 96' yacht ....it was also Pristine.
Then there were the Burgers, Selenes, Nordhavens, it was just unbelievable., these are high dollar yachts.  I'm sure they are used but probably not often.
Evidently this yard has been family operated since 1936 and has 158,000 square feet of COVERED storage!  It was a true gem of a stop.  The staff were so friendly and to stay on their transient dock was only $1.00 a foot.  Believe me this is VERY RARE!  I think Gary'd like to have a job there!  (Kidding)


This boat from Maine was on the dock near us.  Even the wealthy like those $1.00 a foot rates....



Anyway....we weathered Andrea (another non event)  just a few gusty winds last night ( not the 50 kt they were predicting) and a bit of rain yesterday and even though we got soaked coming back from the grocery store, "it's all good".

This morning we caught the 10:00 lock with two other boats and headed into the Elizabeth River in Norfolk.

We were surprised when we got to Norfolk, not anywhere near the traffic and naval ships we saw on our last trip through.....budget cuts????

As you can tell by the pictures the weather was not so good.  We got through Norfolk only to get a marine alert of possible 50kt. winds (again) with a storm that was moving East over the lower Chesapeake.  Gary made a quick 360 turn and we headed back towards Norfolk and up the Western Branch.  While I'm looking at the sky and thinking "OH, NO!!" my ever thinking captain is thinking "Head West, old man"!   

An hour later we headed up the Chesapeake with sunny skies and fairly calm seas.  

So another day under our belts.

Our goal by Monday is Solomon's, Md. where Jessica & Cory are sending our new camera YEAH!!!! 

Then Northward HO ...

I know many may wonder what our destination is.....to be honest...

We don't know!!!

Lessons Learned

We spent yesterday morning pulling our props at SailCraft in Oriental.  

Why you ask?  We ran aground in Little River and knew we had damaged the propellers.

How you ask?  An error in judgment that all you couples can take a lesson from so you don't repeat our mistake.

Gary's mistake ended up being Gary listening to me....I admit it sometimes he tries to make me happy when that is not the best course of action. 

Jann's mistake was not listening to Gary.

You see, he had a plan that would have us spending 2 nights in a marina, when my plan was to save $$$ by anchoring. To me it's like when you get to a hotel at 9pm after travelling all day and have to pay to sleep instead of just pulling into a WalMart parking lot for free :-)

Of course this was "discussed", often in our "Bickersons" way of communication.  Much to our regret, Gary gave up and history was made.

  

The problem...the stretch between Bull Creek and Southport has NO decent anchorages.  Our timing was way off which put us north of Little River at 5:30 pm with four hours ahead of us to Southport.  I got on my trusted Active Captain site and found several people who had recommended the Bird Island at the Little River Inlet as a decent anchorage.  

The HUGE mistake was getting to the anchorage and then even trying to get into it, but at this point desperation was in the air.  We ran hard aground in packed sand which Gary was able to grind our way off of .  I honestly thought we were grinding right through the bottom at one point.  He was quite P****d at himself that he had even tried it, totally a  shoulda', woulda' coulda' moment.

ANYWAY....this money saving idea of mine ended up costing us....

3 nights in Marina's and a haulout, not to mention the repair of two props!!!! 

So I learned a lesson.....Listen to Gary

and Gary learned a lesson....DON'T listen to Jann

TAKE NOTE!

We spent Sunday night and Monday night in Whittaker Pointe Marina in Oriental.  We had scheduled a haul out at a nearby do it yourself yard for Monday but the wind was blowing so hard and rain adding to the drama that we cancelled until Tuesday.  We had planned to anchor like we did last time we were in Oriental but with the 20-25 kt. SW winds the water was so low we couldn't do it.  We had only 5 ft under us and with a 4 1/2 foot draw that gave us 6 inches.  Not going to work especially given the circumstances of our even being there.

When we  bought the boat it came with a spare set of props  Hallelujah!!  The pulling and reinstalling went without a hitch since Gary had the fore thought and where with all to have all the needed tools and in an hour we were trying them out.  They seem to work fine we picked up a little speed changing from a four bladed prop to a three blade but the jury is still out on whether this will effect our fuel consumption. Getting the props refurbished in Oriental would have extended our stay 3 or 4 days and since it is not one of our favorite stops we decided to wait until we get somewhere we would like to be for a week or more to have them repaired.

LOOKS GOOD!!

Oooh  NOT SO GOOD

PORT PROP  LOOKING NOT SO BAD

OMG....this is NOT good....



New 3 blade installed

After the prop change we made it to the North end of the Pungo River from Oriental on a dreary day.  In the last day and a half wehave travelled in the "big water", the Neuse, Pungo and Alligator Rivers, and the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds.  There isn't much to see but a lot of water.  We saw more boats today than we have on the entire waterway combined since Merritt Island and all but two were power boats.and they were all heading north.  Most of them were big and going fast and passing us with very large wakes.  A lot of discussion about the inconsiderate boater.  A very unusual day.

On the way at 6:30 am.  This should make you northerners feel better....it's cold here too!  Not like last time when it was in the 90's now!!

One of the two sailboats today

Tonight we are anchored in the North River just north of Albemarle Sound off of the ICW.

We really had a discussion about blogging about our grounding, (pride you know) , but,

it's all part of the journey....weak points, strong points...adventure.

So we're calling it a night......to borrow from you, Larry...Tie A Knot out.