Sail Pandora

It’s Tuesday morning here in Chesapeake City and everyone is waiting for the “big blow” that is expected to arrive mid day today.  For days everyone has been focused on getting to a good harbor to hole up in when today’s forecasted weather  with strong winds and gale force gusts is expected to arrive.  The little harbor here is a great spot, well protected and good holding in mud.

For me, Chesapeake City is more than that, it’s the true beginning of our trip, new life and the fulfillment of a dream that I have sought to achieve for many years.   While the beginning of the Intra Coastal Waterway is actually in Norfolk VA, for me it begins here.   The drudgery of slogging down the coast of NJ is behind us and the fun of gunk-holing and exploring is about to begin.

As my friend Keith said when he called me to check in last night, “from now on you don’t have to run long days or go outside unless you make that choice”.  We are in protected waters, meeting new friends, renewing friendships and just enjoying living aboard and cruising.

I may be repeating myself when I say that this trip is something that I have been focused on ever since we took our first summer trip aboard TAO, a 20′ Cape Cod catboat and our first boat.  When we did our first cruise, a two week run up Long Island Sound and back from Black Rock CT, I found myself feeling depressed a week into our two week trip as I realized that our time aboard was half over and that I would have to head back to work very soon.  As that very first trip aboard TAO came to and end, I said to Brenda that someday I hoped to be in a position to continue on and not to need to cut the trip short to head back to work after such a short time aboard.

I was jealous of those that I perceived as doing such a journey and devoured all sorts of books about voyaging aboard small boats.   Frankly, I really never could grasp how we would ever be able to do this before we were too old to handle the rigors of sailing long distances.  However, amazingly, here we are in Chesapeake City and doing what I have always dreamed of.

So often the phrase, “living the dream” is used to describe what we are doing now and for me that’s exactly what it is.  I have to admit that I am having a little difficulty accepting the fact that we are really on our way, but here we are and we are doing it.  “Bob, you shouldn’t be having so much fun.  Zapp, take that” as lightning strikes me down.”  Perhaps it’s the ghosts of my Puritanical heritage speaking.

So, why Chesapeake City?  Why this small town on the D&C Canal?   Why is this place so important to me?

When we found and purchased Pandora some five years ago in Annapolis, we enjoyed some sailing in the area prior to my running Pandora up to CT and as I brought her up with crew (Brenda has not traditionally done long legs with me), we stopped for a night here.  All and all, I have visited here three times, each time that I have transited the canal.

So, being here with Brenda is the realization of a dream on a number of levels.  Beyond being a sort of “gateway” to cruising, it’s also having her here with me to experience our trip every step of the way instead of arriving by car to spend part of the trip together.  It’s being fully immersed in the cruising lifestyle and spending time with others who are doing, and enjoying, the same.

Over the last several years, as I prepared Pandora, and Brenda, for this trip, we were fortunate to join a cruising group, the Seven Seas Cruising Association, SSCA.  This group, with 10,000+ members from all over the world, is comprised primarily of individuals that spend a lot of time aboard.  A good number  live full time on their boats, but many, like us, split our time between homes ashore and afloat… something that seems right to me.

I would credit members of this group, perhaps more than any other influence, in leading Brenda to say, about a year ago, “it’s time.”

If you hang out with the yacht club set, a group that I thoroughly enjoy spending time with, you will meet sailors that really like boats and being on the water.  What you will not get is a lot of couples that are willing to make a boat their home beyond their one or two week annual cruise.  Frankly, I don’t blame them at all as their boats are not really set up for cruising.  So many don’t even have dodgers or any sort of canvas over the cockpit to shelter them from the sun or rain.   When it rains they get wet.  When the sun shines, they get sunburned.   Their sailing is focused locally, in races or weekend nights on the boat and social time at the club.   It’s a great life and one that we enjoyed for years.  However, now we are into something completely different.

So, why did Brenda come to the conclusion a year ago that she would do this trip with me?  There are many factors, not the least of which is that, in general, she found that most of the women she has who cruise are “just like me.”  No dreadlocks and they care about personal hygiene, dress nicely and complain about crappy weather and bouts of seasickness as much as she does.  They have been very encouraging to her and sympathetic to her fears.  “Brenda, it will be fine.  You will love it, the Bahamas are beautiful.  Let me tell you about this wonderful place that we visited…. You are going to have a great time. It will be great fun, trust me.”

Last evening we enjoyed dinner with Rick and Julie who cruise a good part of the year aboard their SAGA 48, Altair.   Frank and Julie have been sailing together for years in a succession of boats.   Their sailing has taken them to the Bahamas, Caribbean some some eight times and, to date, a trip around the world.    When asked about seasickness, both Julie and Frank confessed that they generally feel a bit off, or worse, their first day at sea but that they get over it fairly quickly.

When asked what their plans are for this season, they said that they still aren’t sure exactly where they will be after the Caribbean.  Perhaps they will head to Panama and into the Pacific as there are some places that they want to visit again or for the first time.   I’d say that Frank and Julie are indeed “living the dream.”  They have found a way to see the world together and that’s what I am hoping to do with Brenda.  Well, at least see a little corner of the world, the Bahamas.  Well, I shouldn’t get ahead of myself on this one.  One step at a time, Bob.

While Frank and Julie are exploring the world together, others, like our friends Bob and Ginnie aboard The Abby, have taken a somewhat different approach.  They too have a boat capable of sailing wherever the wish.  When they began cruising extensively about ten years ago, they had loose plans to begin in the Bahamas for a season, move on to the Caribbean and perhaps beyond.  However, for them, they fell in love with the Bahamas and are now going back for the 8th season.   They feel no compulsion to move on as they have found their place, their world to explore and are content to split their time with summer cruises in New England and winters in the Bahamas along with a generous amount of time ashore as they spend their time ashore in their Connecticut home.

As I have often remarked, I want to do whatever I can do to help make this trip fun for us, especially for Brenda, or there won’t be a second trip.   So, how’s it going?  Perhaps you’d better ask Brenda.  However, it’s my blog and from my perspective, it’s going swimmingly, thank you.  We’ve been underway for a week now, the toughest leg, that nasty Jersey Coast run, is behind us and now it’s up to us to choose when to go and when to stay.  Yes, we have a long way to go to get to Florida where we will leave Pandora for a month while we head north to enjoy the holidays with our family, but there’s plenty of time between now and mid December, when we return home for the holidays, to enjoy our time together aboard Pandora.   For me, I am really looking forward to making the most of it with Brenda.

So, now that I have spilled my guts on the why’s of our trip, let me close with a brief bit of what.  Chesepeak City is a very tiny and quaint harbor just off of a busy commercial waterway shared by cruisers and ships alike.  Shortly after we arrived here yesterday I looked up and saw a real behemoth glide silently by.  Man, that’s a big boat.  I guess that the Breton fisherman’s prayer, “O God, thy sea is so great and my boat is so small” applies to some more than others. 

The town is very scenic and even has a really good knitting/weaving store.   Don’t think that I didn’t stoop to saying “Brenda, you really should visit Chesapeake City as there is a great yarn store!” as an additional lure to get here here.   Doesn’t she look like a happy knitter?A very pretty and well kept main street.  I particularly like the brick buildings.  Notice the details in this cornice. What a great building to house a gallery.  And the dominant highway bridge is always in evidence. Nice detail work on the well kept buildings.  The one on the end is a restaurant where we had dinner last night overlooking the canal with our friends.Today, in spite of the crappy weather, we hope to go for a walk and visit the canal museum which chronicles the history of the canal and area.  Besides, the town wouldn’t be here, or would we, if it weren’t for the canal.

It’s Monday morning and we are headed up the Delaware River under power.  There is a light wind from the north and the seas are very calm.   Our destination for today is Chesapeake City at the far end of the ‘Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, a very nice little anchorage at the very top of Chesapeake Bay.

Yesterday we made a 30km run, mostly under power, from Atlantic City to Cape May.  I am afraid that there isn’t much to say except that the seas were calm and it was uneventful.  Leaving AC in full daylight gave us a good look at just how built up the place is.   As much of the surrounding coastline has relatively little development so this place sticks out like a sore thumb.  

It was interesting to visit Cape May as I had not been there for nearly 30 years.  The last time I was there was when I was bringing my second boat, a Cape Cod catboat, Sappho, back from Lewis DL, just across the Delaware River, back to New Jersey.  Wow, that was a long time ago.  While I have been past Cape May a number of times since, I have always been on a delivery and didn’t stop for the night.

The anchorage is off of the Coast Guard station and there is plenty of room to drop a hook.  Interestingly, of the nearly a dozen boats that were anchored, about half were from Canada.  Cape May is a good spot to wait for a favorable tide and wind to head up the Delaware River to the C&D canal.

We took the dink into town, nearly two miles away, and had a drink at a local seafood joint on the harbor.   The view was very nice, with pleasure and fishing boats in abundance.  

After that we motored further up the harbor and spied a row of boat houses, one of which, built in the 20s, was owned by the sister of a weaver Brenda knows.  We had been told to look her up when we were in town so we did.  

Sdina and her husband Fergie,  were indeed having cocktails out on the deck of the boathouse and when Brenda shouted, “are you Sdina?”, she was and were instantly to join them.    It seems that Sdina is nearly 90 and looks like she is at least 15-20 years younger.  How do she do it?   She was drinking red wine.   Hmm… We enjoyed a beer with them as the sun set over the harbor.  It was a very nice visit. Sdina is Swedish and the boathouse had been decorated as one would expect given her heritage.  She said that IKEA has done very well by them.

We headed back to Pandora and enjoyed a terrific dinner of fajitas, a nice way to end the day.  We turned in early as we had to leave really early today to head up the river.

This morning we set the alarm for 04:45 as the tide was to turn in our favor in the Delaware River at 05:30 and it’s a good 50km up to the canal.  There are a number of ways to head up the Delaware from Cape May, one that takes you very close to shore around Cape May point through some unmarked shoals, some of which are only 2-4′ deep and another, longer route, that involves heading out to sea about 6km prior to turning to the north to head up the river.

In spite of the fact that some of my friends, and it seems, a number of the other boats that left around the same time I did, take the shorter, more tricky way, Brenda and I decided to play it safe and headed out the long way.   Even that way involves going over some really shallow places, some less than 10′ deep, the shoals seemed easier to avoid.

While my charts are only a few years old, I did find that some pareticularly shallow areas had migrated somewhat and I found myself going over some scary spots that were less than 15′ deep where the chart showed nearly 30′.   That has been my experience each time I have made this run.  Besides, it was dark for about an hour after we left port and seeing the water swirl in the really shallow places would have been impossible in the dark.  I have a real aversion to running aground, especially miles from land where there should be plenty of water.

We were well out to sea when the sun came up.  I am always moved by seeing the sunrise over the water.  It makes you feel really insignificant. 

The amount of water that is moving up and down the river with each turn of the tide is amazing.  Here we are, going about 7kts through the water and yet our over the bottom speed is over 8.5kts and further up stream, greater than 9.5kts.  As the river is over 15km wide at the mouth, that’s a lot of water moving along with us.

With this amount of water running up and down the river twice each day,  the bottom contours change constantly and shoaling continues all the way up the river so dredging is a constant effort.  When they pump the sand out of the channel, they deposit it on either side and that means that there is even greater shoaling on either side of the channel.  Pleasure boats (meaning small, like us) head up the channel just outside of the channel to avoid the ships like this one but not so far out as to risk the shoals.  There’s plenty of shipping to avoid and at over 600′ long, it is a very good idea to stay out of the way of guys like this.  

I shudder at the thought of coming face to face with this bow wave in the middle of the night. This one is interesting as it’s actually a large barge with a wedge shaped cut in the stern where a tug can fit inside to push it along.  When they are secured inside that cut, the tug and barge behave as one ship.  A particularly dramatic feature along the way is the Salem nuclear power plant.   It is hard to believe just how big this thing is.  That’s a lot of concrete.  Let’s hope that the steam coming out of the cooling tower is just water vapor.   However, not much of a carbon footprint.   

I liked this lifting barge.   It says that it’s home ported in NY but it’s hard to imagine this boat making it’s way down the coast.  Perhaps they lift it on another bigger lifting boat.  For inquiring minds to ponder. 

On the big ships they usually sport this sort of orange life boat on the stern.  The idea is to be able to easily, and quickly, get the boat in the water.  Imagine being “launched” by this lifeboat as the ship is being pounded by waves?  The seats in these lifeboats have tubular metal harnesses like an amusement park ride that come down over your shoulders.  That’s a thrill ride experience that I’d be happy to avoid. There are a number of interesting lighthouses along the river.  I didn’t get too close but you get the idea. I like bridges and this new style is cropping up all over.  This one on the C&D requires a lot less maintenance as there is nothing to paint I think.

This older style one has a nice sweep to the approach. Well, we finally made it into the anchorage at Chesepeake City and I am just finishing up this post.  When we were in the middle of the river the data coverage on the cell phone wasn’t good enough to I wasn’t able to upload the photos and finish it up.

We are anchored and plan to go ashore and explore.  Actually, Brenda has her sights set on a weaving/knitting store in town that is particularly inviting.

Stay tuned for more action and suspense as we plan to stay here for the next two days.  Heavy winds coming on Tuesday that we want to avoid.

Ta, Ta. for now.

It’s 07:00 on Sunday morning and the sun has just come up here in Atlantic City.   Who would expect that there would be a very nice anchorage in what is perhaps the tackiest place in the US, but there is.

Having said that, the lights on the casinos last evening were quite a sight and Brenda and I enjoyed an “adult beverage” in the cockpit while watching the lights blink and glare all around us.  I have passed AC at night while making passage but have never been in here myself.

The sunrise this morning was spectacular and as the sun rose in the east the buildings all around us were bathed in a warm glow promising another terrific day aboard Pandora.  The NW breezes are still with us and are expected to last the day which we need to finish our run to Cape May.

Getting photos like these is one of the advantages of awaking early.  Happily, early for me is now 06:00 instead of 04:00 that I was plagued with for the last few weeks before we left on our voyage.   Even the casinos look warm in the early light.  It’s hard to believe how many massive buildings are crammed into such a small space. Much of the area around us is a general anchorage that can easily hold a dozen boats or perhaps more.   Believe it or not, this entire complex is a single hotel, Harrahs.  I guess that millions have to be lost there to keep such a massive facility in business.   As they say, “the house always wins in the end”.

You never forget that the ocean is nearby as nestled in the midst of all of this glitter is the sobering presence of the Coast Guard station.   Personally, it’s the sight of this that pleases me most. Yesterday was indeed a wonderful run.  Covering 80 miles in a single day under sail isn’t something that I do every day and to make an 11.5 hour run with the engine on for less than two hours was a treat.   I am certain that yesterday was one of the longest runs uninterrupted by motoring that I have ever had and certainly the longest for Brenda.  As fun as it was, I was tired when we reached AC at dusk last evening.  I was apprehensive about making the approach during dusk as I didn’t really know what to expect even though the charts seemed clear enough.   The buildings along the beach in AC are imposing to be sure. The shoals all along the southern coast of NJ go way out and as we approached AC I had to stay well off to avoid being in water less than 20′ deep.   As I took this photo we were about to take down the sails and motor up the channel.  As the sands shift constantly only the outer most approach buoys are even on the chart.

Happily, the winds held up all day and did so from a great direction so for nearly the entire trip from Sandy Hook to the entrance to AC we had the wind behind the beam, making for a brisk ride.   Pandora really excels in these conditions making better than 8kts with 15 apparent just aft of the beam.  The fastest speed for us yesterday was better than 9kts but most of the time we sailed in the high 7s and low 8ts.    There were a few hours where the winds were nearly behind us which cost us some speed so our overall speed for the day was 6.6 including the nasty hour that we slogged from Atlantic Highlands to the tip of Sandy Hook.

All and all, a very satisfactory performance for the day and I even caught a brief glimpse of a pod of dolphins twice, my first for the trip.

Today we have a short 30 mile run to Cape May where we will wait until the north winds shift to the south to make our run up the Delaware.   We expect to meet up with our friends on Blue Highway again as they made the run there yesterday from Atlantic Highlands, choosing to wait till later in the day and make the entire run to Cape May in a single overnight run.

Just for fun, if you want a slightly different take on the day from Brenda, check out her post from yesterday, September 15th.  Hmm….  Glad that she is such a good sport and that the warm blue waters of the Bahamas beckon.

Well, my coffee is getting cold so I’ll sign off now.  Besides, they just sounded reveille from the Coast Guard station so that’s a sure sign that the day has begun and what a great day it is.

It’s 10:30 on Saturday morning and we are about 5 miles from shore and less than 10 miles from Manasquan inlet headed to Atlantic City or Cape May.   I am sitting in the cockpit with the laptop typing away plein air this post.   Brenda’s taking a nap down below and the auto pilot is cranking away as move along down the coast. The winds are as forecast, blowing from the North West at 15-20kts.  The boat is handling beautifully and blasting along on a broad reach at between 7 and 8 knots.  In gusts she really goes, beating 8 kts.  I wish that I had cleaned the bottom again as I expect that we would be doing even better.   There’s very little traffic with just one other sailboat nearby.

We left Atlantic Highlands at 08:00 this morning motoring into a very snotty 20kt NW wind to get up to the tip of Sandy Hook where we could put up the sails and bear off into the ocean.  Brenda was none too happy with the conditions which were not pleasant as heavy spray was coming over the bow as we motored directly into the wind.  The fact that we were one of the first boats to leave didn’t make her feel particularly confident in our plans.

However, after settling onto our course south for our 75-100 mile run, I was able to put out the genoa and full main which really got us going.  To sail on such a great point of sail for hours and hours at between 7 & 8kts isn’t something that happens every day.    The good news is that while the wind is blowing nearly 20 kts in gusts, we never see apparent wind much above the mid teens as we are going along with the wind, a very pleasant way to go.

The forecast calls for another day of these conditions and then it is supposed to shift to the south and blow fairly hard for a few days.   The weather router specifically noted that Tuesday is going to be nasty so recommended that we find a safe place to anchor while that blows through.

Our plan is to head to Atlantic City or Cape May, spend the night and then head up the Delaware Bay when the wind shifts to the south.

After that, into the Delaware and Chesapeake Canal and on to Chesapeake City to ride out the nasty winds on Tuesday.     As no post is complete without a few photos, here you go

Nice shot of the ensign.  Makes me proud to be an American.  

What a perfect day to be making passage.  We are indeed off to a great start for our voyage.    These shots don’t begin to do justice to the beautiful view.   

Before I get too full of myself about how fast Pandora is I should show this shot of a 100′ yacht that just ran past us at nearly 30kts.  Makes you wonder about his carbon footprint.  I for one feel pretty good that my autopilot, laptop, phones and all the other electronic stuff aboard are being charged by my solar panels that are cranking away and delivering power to spare.  

Finally, thanks also for your nice e-mail notes.  Please leave comments on the blog too.

While I have done overnights dozen’s of times over the years, Brenda hasn’t yet done an overnight of any consequence, and certainly not on the ocean.   The weather router, or should I say “weather hand holder” Chris Parker has been in touch for the last few days giving us updates as to what day will be the best to head down the coast. As of now, we sit behind the breakwater at Atlantic Highlands, after moving from inside of Sandy Hook to find a more sheltered anchorage early this morning.   We should have realized that the fast ferries from NYC that run till 23:30 hours kick up quite a swell that kept things interesting until late last night.

The weather forecast suggests that a weak cold front will come through tonight and will shift the winds from the south to the west/northwest at 10-15kts with higher gusts for all of Saturday and into Sunday.   This will allow ample time for us to get to Cape May (100 miles) and prepare for a run up the Delaware River, an additional 55 miles up from Cape May. They key will be for us to be in a safe place as of Tuesday as the winds are supposed to blow near gale force at that time so we certainly don’t want to be in unprotected waters when that happens.

The forecasted winds seem to suggest a departure shortly after dawn so that we can catch the ebb tide and favorable winds at Sandy Hook.  Id all goes well we will likely end up at Atlantic City or Cape May prior to when we are supposed to be there, ie: in the dark,  but I’d rather slow down than to have to motor sail to catch up. That’s about all that I know for now so stay tuned for more.  I expect that we will be underway shortly after first light.  Early bird captures the worm.

Also, we ran into some of our sailing buddies, here in Atlantic Highlands, Lynn and Russel of Blue Highway a great sailing couple from Naples Fl who we met in Maine a few summers ago.  They have made this run many times and I expect to be keeping in touch with them along the way.

We will continue to post our location as we move down the coast but before I break, I have to post some photos that our son Christopher took of us yesterday when we were making our way through NYC yesterday.   What a treat to have a shutter bug in the family. Nothing like a shot as we came through Hell’s Gate.  As Brenda spied Christopher for the first time she teared up.  I have to say that I was a bit teary as well.   What a thrill.As we headed down the East River.  So, are you tired of so many photos of Pandora?  Tough.  It’s my blog and I can put as many on of her as I want.   Here’s one where Pandora is more of a bit player, a panorama as we head down the East River.   This one is surely a keeper and I will have to blow it up for display at home when we return.  What a view. 

More to come as we make our way down the coast on Saturday.  Wish us luck and fair winds.

Today Brenda and I headed through New York aboard Pandora and had a wonderful trip.  The last time Brenda and I made this trip together was 30 years ago on our 20′ Catboat.  That time it didn’t go well at all.  Had our son Rob been born at that time he would have called such a journey a “career limiting move” for my sailing with Brenda.  Imagine a 20’ boat with a 5hp diesel inboard heading through Hell’s Gate with the tide and spitting out into the Sandy Hook Bay with the full ebb tide and a strong SW wind kicking up a massive chop. Well, at least massive to a 20’ underpowered catboat.   Well, thank goodness it went well today as it took 30 years after the last trip for me to convince Brenda to give it a go again.   Happily, the circumstances were  very different today and even Brenda declared that she had a terrific time.   It wasn’t all about being aboard Pandora that made it a great trip for Brenda.  As this time our son Christopher (He wasn’t even born when she last did this trip) who lives on the upper west side in Manhattan, rode his bike over to the East River to greet us as we exited Hell’s Gate at the upper end of Roosevelt Island.   It was such a thrill to see him standing there on the bike path that Brenda and I both were quite choked up.  However, Brenda was able to hold herself together long enough to take dozens of photos of Chris taking pictures of her taking pictures of Chris…  Well y0u get the general idea.

I have gone through NY by boat many times over the years but to do it again, and under such wonderful circumstances, with Brenda was indeed a treat for me.  After “meeting up” with Christopher,uptown,  the plan was to race him down to the bottom tip of Manhattan and Battery Park.  So what happened you ask?   Wh won this big race?  Well,  Pandora wins by a mere ten minutes.  Glad that we had the tide with us.  I can’t believe that Christopher did it at all, and much less that fast.   We only waited at the Battery for about 10 minutes and then, there he was.  I expect that our wild waving and his shouting to us must have been quite a sight for the many tourists that were trying to figure out what the display was all about.

The race is on…

Here’s a few more of the 135 photos that Brenda and I took on the short and fast run down the East River.  Where do I begin?

The new Freedom Tower and my dad’s favorite bridge.  The Brooklyn Bridge, I guess that makes it my favorite too.  I still recall this same sight right after the twin towers came down.  I was running my last boat down to it’s winter home in Morgan Creek NJ and passed just a week or so after that tragedy.  Ths dark smoke and stench was terrible.

Brenda with the NYC skyline behind her.   What fun.

Can’t have to many pictures of our son Chris.  He would ride along, stop take pictures and ride some more.    It was so much fun to see him peddling along next to us.  So near and yet so far.

Always looking for a better shot, Christopher jumped the fence at the Battery.  I wonder what the tourists on shore next to him were thinking of our screaming and waving back and forth.  “those crazies are my parents, they have abandoned me for the high seas.  I won’t see them for months…  Isn’t this great!!!”  

Loads of traffic in the harbor.  I wonder who chose the color for the Staten Island Ferry?  I like it.  Not the sort of bold statement you would expect from a public bureaucrat .

How about the Statue of Liberty to salute our passing?Love this one.  What sweet lines.  Not!!!

The skyline fades into the distance.  It will be a long time till we pass through here again. 

So, what next?  Our weather router, Chris Parker, just told me that he recommends that we take a lay day here at Sandy Hook and ride a cold front with good NW winds down the coast on Saturday.    A great day of sailing?  Sounds good to me.

As planned, Brenda and I shoved off from Essex yesterday morning aboard Pandora.  Following a stop at the fuel dock for $4.50 per gal diesel (yikes) we headed out into Long Island Sound for our first day out on our journey to the Bahamas.  While that sounds like a daunting journey, someone suggested that we look at it as a series of day sails.  Sounds good to me.

As we were headed West yesterday I got a call from one of my oldest friends Chris Blossom , who asked if we’d like to visit Fayerweather Yacht Club in Black Rock CT for the night to hook up with him and his wife Pat.    What a terrific idea as FYC was the club that Brenda and I joined just after purchasing our very first boat, a 20′ Cape Cod catboat way back in the early 80s.

I immediately called our son Rob as well as my parents and invited them to join us at FYC for drinks and dinner.  Our friend Craig also joined us.    What a great time we had over pizza and beer.  Just like old times.  However the beers weren’t less than a dollar like when we were members.   I have to admit that I felt a bit “slow” this morning as I think that I killed some brain cells.  Hmm….

As we entered the harbor last evening around sunset, Brenda and I were struck by a massive jolt of deja-vu from the years that we had sailed a succession of boats out of that harbor.    Seeing the waterfront and light house at the entrance to the harbor brought us back some 30 years to a time when we were only in our 20s and living in Fairfield.

If that wasn’t jolting enough we were greeted by Chris’s grown son Travers, who runs the club launch and docks at FYC.    Here we were, aboard Pandora being greeted by the next generation and by someone who was about the same age we were when we first became members of the club.   Being the all powerful waterfront manager Travers even arranged for us to have a free night on the dock.  How wonderful.

It was only fitting that we have our photo taken aboard Pandora as we continue on with our voyage.  It seems like just a few years ago when we tied up to this same dock and headed out on voyages throughout New England.    So much has changed and yet seems very much the same.  However, the boat sure is a lot bigger.

This morning our friend Chris came down to the club and joined us or coffee prior to our departure further west in Long Island Sound.  What a great way to begin this new phase of our lives some 35 years and 5 boats later.  Were are really on our way.

It’s September 11th and today is the best weather day for sailing this week.  With forecast winds from the North/North West, we should be able to make some distance toward New York.  I can’t decide quite what I feel about leaving on our trip on this particular day but off we go as the winds are to shift to the south west soon which will not be so great for making the westing we need to get to New York.

Our departure today is the result of years of planning and at least a few months of frantic running around getting all the details going, not counting the sale of our home in NJ and moving here to CT.

The next two weeks will take us through New York and down the New Jersey coast into the Delaware Bay and on to Annapolis for the SSCA gam and Annapolis Boat show.  After that we will bolt for Newport News and mile one of the Intra Coastal Waterway.

Yesterday was a particularly busy day that included suspending cable, picking up last minute supplies and putting the remaining gear aboard Pandora.  Actually, some gear went on and then was removed as there was just too much to cram aboard.   I am particularly glad that I raised the waterline a few inches two years ago as she is now riding lower than ever.  Here on the CT River, with the lighter fresh water, I would expect to see her ride lower on her lines but seeing so little bottom paint showing was alarming, for sure.  Hopefully, this will improve when we hit the heavier salt water of the Sound later today.  I am not too hopeful as we plan on taking on a tank full of water and diesel which will add another 1,000+ lbs to her weight.

Another interesting fact is that Pandora now has a slight starboard list, as opposed to a list to port.  The niggly port list has bugged me for years and it seems that I have overcompensated somewhat in my packing.  I guess that we will have to just drink more wine from port stores and straighten things up as best we can.  You just gotta do what you gotta do.

It’s been particularly nice that so many of our friends have been calling and dropping by to wish us well on our voyage which is very nice.  Living on the “runway from the Cape”, just off of 95 has made us a natural stopping point for those returning from vacation with stops to say HI lasting from 30 min to 4 days and this has made for a busy but fun last few weeks.  Brenda is a bit sad to be headed away from friends and family for so long but I am hopeful that the adventure will capture her imagination soon so that she enjoys the trip.

Well, it’s really very early, actually the middle of the night as I write this, and I should probably try to stop thinking about the trip and get back to bed.

On that note, our son Rob sent this photo of our grand dog last evening.  It seems that even Bosun is wishing us well.  It’s nice to know that we are on everyone’s minds.  Well, I am not completely convinced that Bosun was thinking about us when this photo was taken.  Hmm… However, he’s surely looking very patriotic, isn’t he?

That and many other burning details are very much on our minds as we count down the last week toward our departure.  Last evening Brenda and I headed out to Pandora, here in Essex, to put yet another load of “stuff” aboard.   I am disappointed that this photo doesn’t do justice to the quantity of things that we have brought aboard.

As is always the case, I tried to make everything aboard Pandora the most “fun” for Brenda so I combined it with “happy hour”.   Pretty tricky, yes?  Remember, “when Momma be happy, everyone be happy”.

Does Brenda look happy, glass of wine in hand,  surrounded by all the rubble?  While I stowed each item she logged it into the computer on location and quantity.  This little pile is just one of many that have graced the cabin sole of Pandora over the last few weeks.  We have been buying and stowing for weeks, no make that months.  We have been logging in each item as we stow it and the total now, of cataloged items only and not counting all of the hundreds of other many items aboard, stands at just under 500.  I am sure glad that I raised the waterline by  three inches two years ago.  In case you are wondering, it takes about 1,200 lbs to sink Pandora by about 3/4″ of an inch on the waterline.  So far, plenty of bottom paint still showing.   Fingers crossed that it will stay that way.

Oh yea, we have 8 tubes of toothpaste aboard as of now.   I am sure that you were wondering too.  However, I won’t bore you with the number of cans of soup, tuna, soda…

Brenda and I, along with our son Christopher spent a wonderful afternoon with our friend Jack on Sunday aboard his Dyer 29 power boat.  Yes, we did spend some time on a “stinkpot”.  However, Jack is a fun guy and we thought that it would be nice to spend some time with him on the river.  No disappointment on that account.  What a nice afternoon it was.

Our son Christopher took some great photos of our journey which took us down the river toward Old Saybrook and up to Hamburg Cove, a wonderful little harbor about a mile north of Essex.   In spite of the busy Labor Day weekend, we were able to pick up a mooring in Hamburg and enjoyed a nice spread supplied by Brenda.

Jack’s boat, Three Musketeers is a real classic.  If you have to have a powerboat, instead of a sailboat, this is a very nice looking craft.   Classy.  No, it’s not the one on the left.  How about that wind shield?  It’s new this season.  Really, really nice.

We are not used to seeing a wake with this much “seething” going on.  It takes plenty of fuel to move along like this.   And, a proper ensign to boot.  None of those wimpy flags like are on so many boats.  Makes me proud to be an American!!!Brenda and I enjoying the scenery as it whizzed past.  Going faster than 7kts is a treat.  Nice to have along our own photographer. This was the view from our “living room” with Jack in Hamburg Cove.  Not too shabby.  Chris has been coming here with us since he was only a toddler.   We won’t talk about the view in the other direction that included dozens of boats on moorings. However, it’s a much better view than is available to most.   What a great spot. Nice “do” on my bride and first mate.   It’s a very different experience than being aboard Pandora.  Sort of like sitting on a movable back porch.  Brenda’s look reminds me of how Rene Zelwiger looked after her ride in a convertible in “Bridget Jones’s Diary”.   If you haven’t seen that movie, you should.  In spite of my best efforts, I couldn’t find a photo from that scene.  Forgive me.   I digress. I guess that you had to be there.

We headed back to the Essex Yacht Club for a drink on the deck.  Nice to see Pandora out in the anchorage if only for a week.   Not so close to the club but there she is, just right of center with the double headstay.  This is the one photo that Chris didn’t take.  Not so great but it is a great view.  Yes?

YIKES!!! Did someone say that we are headed out in only a week?  Yes, that’s right, we leave in just 7 days.   #%$&!!!   I’d better sign out and get packing!!!