(Logs are posted with the most recent entry first)
THE END
Bitter sweet words to be sure as we come to a close of this log that started with Leg I on April 22nd, 2007. If you have been with us for the entire voyage, thanks for the interest, moral support, and perseverance. Jo and I both hope it was an enjoyable experience. If you recently joined us, we hope you will go back sometime and catch up on rest of this adventure.
As our trip evolved, it became our mission to show what a safe, fun experience could be had in a small, 43-foot, unstabalized trawler without going offshore and facing the perils of the open ocean. There is plenty of adventure in just seeing the Americas from coast to coast as I hope our humble attempt at writing was able to convey. In the company of good friends, this is a very doable trip and any well-found boat can do the same voyage!
Our mission now is to encourage others to follow in our wake. Toward that end we will be starting a website by years end about “The Big U,” Cruising from Maine to Alaska. In its pages, we hope other fellow travelers will share their adventures and add to the legacy for all to enjoy as they too voyage through the truly wonderful Americas.
End Engine Hours: 2318 Fuel used/on board: 5783/547+231=778
Distance trip/to Date: 44/14,668
This is it! Our final day at sea and the completion of our 14,668-mile voyage we now call “The Big U” that started in Seattle some 30-months ago.
It was still overcast and cool this morning in Annapolis but yesterdays waves and wind are only a memory. The new classes of Midshipman were all out for their morning run around the Academy as we slip past the school’s waterfront and head out into the Bay. Our last 44-mile, 6-hour passage will be in calm seas and little wind as we head south from Annapolis to the Solomons, our last destination.
Wandering Star’s autopilot steered almost the entire way as even the crab pot buoys seemed to be aligned for an uneventful day at sea. Lots of fellow cruisers are out and about, many, I am sure were trapped in various ports by the three days of storm and are finally heading home. Summer is over here and the cooler nights foretells of winter just around the corner.
We’ll leave WS in the care of Washburn’s Boatyard for the next several weeks while we head home to the west coast to see family and take care of some business. We’ll also take a short vacation in Bali to see our good friends Roger and Suzanne who run an Ashram there. In early November, Jo & I will be back here to finish up some maintenance on WS before we head her south again for Key West and the Bahamas for the winter.
By 1:00 PM we are making the final turn into Solomons Harbor. First, we’ll make a quick stop at the fuel dock to top off our fuel tanks to prevent condensation from accumulating and adding water to our fuel while we’re away. Being Saturday, the usual crew at the boatyard are off but Scott, who lives in the marina, is there to catch our lines and tie us up this last time.
Our good friends Bob and Cheryl on Kasekuchen, a Selene 53 parked next marina over, our quickly on the phone to invite us to dinner. Friends Jake and Susanne, on Annaruth, another Selene 53, are here too and a great night of catching up as well as sharing our previous to boating life’s stories. It seems only fitting that we share this happy occasion with new good friends as the evening subtlety reminds us of all the great occasions we shared with Les and Rose and Dottie and Ken to get here. Also, how much we wish they could be with us now to help put a special end to this closing chapter in our Alaska to Maine adventure.
End Engine Hours: 2312 Fuel used/on board: 5768/562
Distance trip/to Date: 25/14,624
Forty plus knot winds, angry five to six foot short, steep waves, blowing foam and spray reaching the top of the pilot house…sounds like a great day for a passage to Annapolis! The good news was that the gale warnings were lifted this morning but someone forgot to tell the wind and waves. With the promise that perhaps the weather would be improving, we decide to press on for the 25-miles run to Annapolis across the Bay. While no where near as bad as it could be here under these same circumstances, it is still a bumpy crossing with the wind rattling the bimini on the Fly Bridge as the spray keeps the wipers busy.
The wind is coming out of the west so as we get closer to the western shore, the waves begin to subside with the shorter fetch and by the time we make the long channel that leads into Annapolis harbor, conditions have calmed down substantially. We head directly to our usual spot on the dock in the front of Pusser’s Rum Bar where Rook, the very attentive dock boy is waiting to take our lines. It’s a nasty, old wood piling waterfront that takes a few minutes of bumpering and line adjustment to get the old girl comfortable for the night but she soon snuggled in tight, safe from wind and wave.
Our immediate project is to get Twinkle, the wayward dinghy, pumped back up and lowered into the water for her trip to the dinghy doctor for repairs. In a half hours time she is ready for the short putt across the harbor to the inflatable shop. Once delivered and hauled to the shop, the water taxis takes me back to WS. Chores complete, we now have the afternoon off to relax with a movie after the strenuous days crossing.
One of the nice perks of our bar side location is the full room service catering that can be ordered right from our boat. Later, Jo and I order a nice dinner of steamed mussels and salad to eat on board followed by a twilight walk around the still busy, Friday night streets of Annapolis The midshipmen at the Navy Academy, now in Fall session, and the girls that they attract are very much in evidence everywhere. Fall is in the air but it is still just warm enough for a sorbert before heading home for the evening.
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St Michaels
9/10 Thursday
Gale Warning - well the weather has continued to deteriorate over night and we wake up to formal gale warnings on the VHF from NOAA and 25-knots of wind. While we probably could have made it across the Bay to Annapolis before the storm hits, we decide to stay put hoping for better weather tomorrow to make the short 24-mile passage. We want to stop there and drop off our leaking RIB dinghy so it can be serviced while WS is in dry dock in the Solomon’s.
Baltimore to St Michaels
9/09 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 39:16.87 N Longitude: 076:36.14 W
To: Latitude: 38:47.14 N Longitude: 076:13.21 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 450 at 16-20 kts. SEA: 2/3
End Engine Hours: 2308 Fuel used/on board: 5757/573
Distance trip/to Date: 38/14,599
Is a nice day to cruise down the Chesapeake Bay. Heavier weather is looming before the weekend but today is fairly mild with even occasional glimpses of sunshine. We’ve decided to head for St. Michaels, a small town on the Chesapeake’s Eastern Shore. It has sentimental value for us as it was the first destination for the original Wandering Star almost ten years ago. To get there we shall need to pass through the Kent Narrows directly across the Bay from Annapolis some 26-mile south of Baltimore.
The Kent Narrows is a narrow gap between a large, Bay side island and the mainland of the Eastern Shore. It features some very shallow approach water, down to 7′ in places, but also has Harris’ Crab Shack, one of our favorite hangouts from when we were here for months getting WS I commissioned. With dockside tie-up space available, we decide to stop in for a nice lunch before continuing on to St Michaels.
After lunch, we must get one more tiny bascule bridge to open before we can get through the Narrows. The bridge attendant was not paying good attention and gave our right away to a north bound sailboat without telling us a second boat was coming behind it a swell. Normally the boat traveling with the current - us in this case, has the right of way.
Naturally when we started into the narrow bridge opening, a 2nd hidden boat was coming from the other side at the same time and only the combinations of my horn and the other guys quick reactions prevented a collision in the narrow passage. The bridge operator apologized for his lack of care - too little too late - but it was still as near a miss as we’ve had this whole trip.
The rest of the voyage across Prospect Bay went without incident except that the wind is continuing to build, now up to 20-knots plus as the afternoon wears on so it is blowing pretty good by the time we arrive at St Michael’s Marina. We decide to take an easier to get at side tie on their face dock rather that to try to back up into the now strong wind into a narrow slip and are soon tied down safe and secure.
After a walk around town and dinner at a great little wine and pizza bar called Ava’s, we are back on board in time for our president’s health care speech and a good night sleep (not because we were much relieved by anything in his speech).
End Engine Hours: 2302 Fuel used/on board: 5743/586
Distance trip/to Date: 52/14,561
It’s a log way to Baltimore! While only 52-miles by water, it seemed to take forever when you’re fighting the currents. First going out of the canal had us down to barely making 6-knots against the incoming ebb and then you must go quite far south into the Chesapeake Bay, cut across some shoals to the west, then back up north again a long ways, again against the current, to get into Baltimore’s harbor. So we ramped up the RPM’s to 1680, burned more fuel than we like at 3.3 gallons/hour and plowed along to make it in 7-hours where it would have taken 9 at our normal cruising settings.
The voyage itself was somewhat rocky, not because of the weather but from the wakes of the dozens of high speed power boats heading in all directions trying to get home from their holiday weekend. Once in Baltimore’s inner harbor, we took a slip in the East Inner Harbor Marina which is conveniently located next to all of the major tourist attractions; the aquarium, nautical museum, Orioles ballpark, and every major chain restaurant plus 20 some smaller places in the nearby Italian district. There are street performers, old ships on display and even a huge Borders Book store along with a nice shopping district here too. This is definitely the place to be in this city.
Jo and I did our usual walk about before heading for La Tasca, a Spanish tapas (small plates) bar we always seem to enjoy. Then it was a stop for ice cream before heading back to WS early as we are still trying to get over the all night run to get here. Incidentally, today’s weather shows the expected waves hitting 18′ this week off the Jersey Coast so we certainly did the right things in heading here early.
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Stamford to Summit North Marina, C&D Canal, Bear, Delaware
End Engine Hours: 2295 Fuel used/on board: 5721/608
Distance trip/to Date: 215/14,509
The promise of big winds with matching seas early in the week off the Jersey Coast talked us into doing one last, 215-mile long, 28+ hour run all the way from Connecticut to the beginning of the Chesapeake Bay. We had looked forward to a more leisurely final lap through NYC and even a stop in Atlantic City for the first time but getting stuck for a week that far north or a miserable ride down the exposed Atlantic coast were strong enough incentives for us to make a whole new plan.
As it turned out, the weather and timing could have been not more perfect. We left Stamford at a lazy 0900, carefully timed to catch the 12:28 PM flood through the infamous Hell’s Gate into New York City’s East River. And the gate to hell it was! The current had us virtually surfing through the final gap at a blistering 13.9 knots even with the throttle pulled all the way back to idle. We haven’t seen anything as wild and exciting as this since we left the fjords of SE Alaska so long ago. With the swirling currents and confused waves, it was all I could do to keep WS under control and pointed in the right direction. Once safe in the east River, the favorable push lasted all the way past NYC and out through the Narrows into the Atlantic Ocean.
Darkness overtook us shortly after we hit the New Jersey Coast but the full moon was already on the rise, the sea had a gentle 2-3 foot swell, and the night was clear for a stunning shoreline vista of twinkling lights as far as you could see. There was even a fireworks show along the way as some little beach community celebrated the start of their big Labor Day Weekend. We arrived at the Cape May breakwater as planned, right at 0630 and first light of the new day.
Sure enough, the ugly dredge we dangled last time by here in July was now working on the lower section of Cape May Bay. This time, I did manage to guess the correct around it thus avoiding getting tangled up with the snakey, 3-foot diameter plumbing pipes that carry her tailings out of the bay.
Once past the dredge, it was still tricky to sort out the day markers and find the deep water path across the Bay’s inner pond to the canal out onto Delaware Bay. Why they can’t mark this channel better is beyond me. It has to be the worst navigation signing on East Coast. Cynically, one might think that it is because Seatow and Towboats US both have bases here and need to make a living pulling visitors off the mud. Both of their advertising bill boards are on prominent display as you enter both ends of the bay…very suspicious.
By 0800, we were through the mess and out in Delaware Bay, steaming north for the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, the gateway to the Chesapeake Bay. After 28-hours on the water, we were relieved to find that the Summit North Marina, located half way through this 12-mle long ditch, has room for us for the night so a quick right turn and we are soon secure for by 1330 in the afternoon.
Beside lots of bothersome bugs, this marina has a lot of good things going for it. Helpful dock boys who gladly drive you to the grocery store and back, the cheapest fuel prices we’ve seen since the ICW, a tree covered park setting and even a popular destination restaurant called Aqua Sol we would loved to have tried if we weren’t so physically shot from being up most of the night.
So it’s a quiet dinner on WS after a quick trip to the store and early to bed for your crew…the bright lights of the party life will need to wait till we pull into Baltimore tomorrow and officially start this, the last week of our 126-week odyssey.
End Engine Hours: 2266 Fuel used/on board: 5656/674
Distance trip/to Date: 28/14,294
This is still real summer cruising…with yet another perfect day on the water.To bad it can’t last but we sure are enjoying it one day at a time.Today’s run was only 28-miles to Stamford and a rendezvous with Joanne’s high school friend Patty and her husband John.It is the start of the Labor Day weekend so boats are pouring out of the harbor, all off to a race or a final summer cruise with the family, as we make our approach to the narrow entrance channel.
Our marina, HarborPark, was just about as far up river towards the town of Stamford as you can go. While far from as pretentious as some of our recent stops, it was an easy place for our friends to meet us, have happy hour on board and then take us to their home and back for dinner. We did not spend much time sightseeing but it was great to see their beautiful Connecticut home surrounded by acres of woods, where the deer come right up to the porch and eat the flowers out of the pots.Jo had a great time catching up with her good friend and we all had a very enjoyable evening together.
It was back to WS fairly early for a good nights rest for tomorrow we will do our last overnighter of the voyage as we make our way back through New York City and down the New Jersey coast some 200-miles before more bad weather (high seas) arrive early next week.
End Engine Hours: 2262 Fuel used/on board: 5646/684
Distance trip/to Date: 52/14,266
Off the dock at 0715 to make the scheduled 0740 opening of the Mystic Highway Bridge. As luck would have it, the very busy commuter train bridge, just a coupe hundred yards down stream was open long enough for us to slip through that as well. We were then on our way the mile or so back down the Mystic River turning east to our next port of call, the Milford Yacht Club in tiny Milford Harbor.
We are still enjoying perfect summer weather and the sound was as smooth as it can possible be as well. Not even a ripple most of the 52-miles/8-hours to Milford. I was even able to take time off to lay on the foredeck to read, snooze and get some sun…the first time in months.
Milford is mostly a commuter town for NYC but the yacht club was very active, friendly and comfortable with our side-tie dock looking right out the breakwater into the sound. Thursday night is race night at the club so we had the extra treat of seeing their entire fleet of sailboats head out for an evening of racing around the buoys in the sound much like our old Wednesday night beer can derbies in Marina del Rey back home.
After our usual walk around this very small town, obligatory drink at the yacht club bar, we headed back to WS for a nice dinner on board and a quiet evening at home.
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Newport to Mystic Seaport, Connecticut
9/2 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 41:29.30 N Longitude: 071:19.07 W
To: Latitude: 41:21.75 N Longitude: 071:57.88 W
Weather: sunny and clear Wind: 3250 at 12-14 kts. SEA: 2
End Engine Hours: 2254 Fuel used/on board: 5627/702
Distance trip/to Date: 38/14,214
A nice little run today with the wind and the waves still in our favor. As you recall, we visited Mystic on the way northeast but want to return to spend more time with my cousin Bob and wife, Paula. Jo was also able to finesse a hair appointment in the afternoon so all I had to do was get her the 38-miles by 1pm. This sounds easy but involved leaving Newport in the early morning dark and timing it so we could pass through two bridges, one that only opens once each hour, and be tied up to the Mystic Seaport dock with enough time for her to walk the mile to the saloon.
As it turned out, we did it all with time to spare and I even managed to work in a haircut and see more of the wonderful Seaport museum in the afternoon. Mystic Seaport is a very special place that is dedicated to preserving the history of the sea and I always wanted to bring my own boat here so we can check the box on this one too. By docking here we had full run of the place, even after hours when all of the tourist are gone so it is a very unique experience.
Evening was spent enjoying the hospitality of my cousin and Paula at their beautiful home on Mason Island with steamers, corn on the cob and swordfish stakes, Bobby barbequed to perfection.
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Sandwich Marina to Newport, Rhode Island
9/1 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 41:46.24 N Longitude: 070:30.21 W
To: Latitude: 41:29.30 N Longitude: 071:19.07 W
Weather: sunny and clear Wind: 900 at 10-12 kts. SEA: 2
End Engine Hours: 2248 Fuel used/on board: 5614/715
Distance trip/to Date: 51/14,176
No rush to leave this morning till the tide turns to ebb at 0828. Jo had 30-minutes for a short walk to the store while I got the boat ready so by the time she got back it was time to leave. Then it was quick run west on the 10-miles of canal reaching a speed of 8.5 knots by the time we got to the Buzzard Bay end. With calm seas and the 12-knots of wind at our back, the rest of the 51-mile trip into Newport was as nice as it gets out here. This shallow bay has the reputation for being really nasty when a strong prevailing wind is against the opposite tide so we were very pleased with our warm and sunny day when it couldn’t be more like a lake.
Everyone connected to boating for any length number of years has heard of Newport Rhode Island as it is a hub for sailboat racing. It was best known for hosting the America’s Cup (1930 to 1983) when it was the exclusive property of the New York Yacht Club who borrowed the facilities of the Newport Yacht Club here to run their race. While these days are long gone, the town still has the remnants of its past glory in the nautical shops, atmosphere, and street names. Once Jo & I were welcomed and secure by the great club crew at NYC to our dock for the night (at $5.75/foot and still the cheapest in the harbor), we did not waste any time getting off and exploring its old brick paved waterfront..
Tourist shops are much the same in every town so you look for the unusual or something unique to the area. Here, we found a huge second hand consignment shop full of nautical antiques and old model ships. There was also a very special modern school committed to the training of young people in the restoration of old wood ships which looked like fun at any age.
After very over priced drinks at the Black Pearl, a classic tourist trap bar, it was getting dark and cooler. George, our dockmaster, steered us to the locals favorite Brick Road Restaurant for a nice dinner with a great salad bar (something that’s become quite rare) before returning to WS for an early night’s rest after a perfect day.
End Engine Hours: 2241 Fuel used/on board: 5596/733
Distance trip/to Date: 49/14,125
It is a beautiful, pre-dawn morning as we leave Boston and sail out of the harbor into the sunrise. The sky is clear, the ocean is smooth, and the boat is running great while we cover the 49-miles to the eastern entrance to the Cape Cod Canal. As you may recall from our eastbound passage, timing is everything transiting the canal and even more important heading west as the current can run over 5-knots east to west on the flood. So you must be riding on the ebb to make it through the 10-miles of waterway in any sort of reasonable time.
Our plan is to spend the night in the small Sandwich Marina at the Cape Cod entrance, then head through at the beginning of the ebb first thing in Tuesday morning. After our 0530 departure from Boston, we arrived at the east end at 1230, too late to go all the way through today but with just enough ebb left to easily get the ½-mile up the canal to the marina…perfect timing if I do say so myself. Dockmaster Dave soon had us secure in a nice slip in this old but comfortable marina.
What was totally unexpected was the quaint town of Sandwich. While rich with the early history of our country, being one of the first areas settled after Plymouth, it later became the American center for the art of commercial glass lowing. This large and profitable industry was based here for many years dominating the local economy of the whole area. All that is left now is an incredible museum with some of the most beautiful glass on display to be found anywhere and most of it made right here.
Jo & I had a delightful afternoon wandering around and enjoying this undiscovered gem before heading back to WS for the evening. The weather returned to gloomy late in the day with low’s predicted in the 50’s for tonight, it feels like we are getting out of New England just in time…winter is on the way!
*Note: took on 360 gallons of diesel at $2.60/gal. to bring total back to 750gal. on Board.
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Boston
8/29-8/30 Saturday and Sunday
While “hurricane” Dave didn’t mineralize, it sure dumped a lot of rain on us all day Saturday so we just stayed snug in our little boat most of the day. Sunday was as nice as Saturday was miserable so Jo & I were able to spend the day walking around Boston, taking in a movie, and then joining the multitudes lurking the streets of the Italian section searching for the perfect place to have dinner. Tresca Restaurant looked like it would do nicely and served one of the best Cioppino’s I’ve had anywhere outside of San Francisco. Then it was early to bed with a predawn departure planned for the morning.
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Kennebunkport to Boston
8/28 Friday
From: Latitude: 48:21.29 N Longitude: 070:28.43 W
To: Latitude: 42:22.28 N Longitude: 071:03.35 W
Weather: mostly cloudy Wind: 700 at 10-15 kts. SEA: 3
End Engine Hours: 2234 Fuel used/on board: 5579/422
Distance trip/to Date: 73/14,076
Can you believe it, as we left Kennebunkport, yet another hurricane was boring down on New England. We had planned to visit Gloucester one more time but it is too vulnerable to wind and weather and not a good hurricane hole. Our plan now is to take refuge from Daniel at our favorite marina way back on the Charles River on the north side of Boston but we had to get there today before it hits us tomorrow. This made for another long day at sea but well worth the eleven hours it took to cover the 73-miles for the peace of mind in Boston Harbor.
As it turned out, old Daniel fizzled out before it made it to Massachusetts, thank God, but we’ll still get hit with the moisture it was carrying. Construction Marina only had one slip left with everyone running for cover and it is all the way at the end of the last gangway overlooking the special dock where the square rigged warship “old Ironsides,” (US Constitution) has a permanent home. I can look right out of my pilot house window as I write this and see her in all her glory not 100-yards away.
We’ll hunker down here for a couple of days and let Daniel pass on before we continue our journey south. For tonight, it was off in a light sprinkle of rain to our favorite pub for a brew and some crab stuffed mushrooms before dinner and rerun TV on board.
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Kennebunkport
8/27 Thursday
We took the day off here to play with cousin’s Kathy and husband David. It’s the first time we’ve been able to get together in way too many years so we made the best of this opportunity by having lunch on board while pourng over the family albums going back to our common great grandparents. Kathy has done a remarkable job of keeping all of our clans history together so it was great fun sharing all of the memories and family we have in common..
Then it was off in their car for a driving tour of the surrounding country side. This is a real treat for Jo & I who usually have to walk, or at best bike everywhere and usually don’t get much beyond the waterfront. Today we went south all the way down to the village of York with its neat little lighthouse, perched on a rocky point (we passed it again at sea on Friday) and popular beaches.
Once we were back on board, it was time for happy hour followed by a very good dinner in Kennebunkport across the bridge at Grissini’s Italian restaurant. It was after 10pm when we finally had to say goodbye with the promise that it won’t be so long till our next time together.
End Engine Hours: 2223 Fuel used/on board: 5551/450
Distance trip/to Date: 50/14,003
We finally hit 14,000-mile mark for the voyage on the 50-mile slog back to Kennebunkport. And what a slog it was, the sea decided to be as ugly today as it was nice yesterday with nasty 5′ short interval waves right on the nose beam most of the way. Luckily, the wind stayed mild so new wind waves did not compound the problem but the spray was flying as WS did her best to keep on an even keel for most of the 8-hour trip.
At one point, we seriously considered turning off at Portland and calling it a passage but with 10-miles to get in there from our course line as we passed and only 20-miles to continue on, we decided to stay the course. As it turned out, we made the right decision as the seas began to moderate and were downright mellow again by the time we reached Kennebunkport’s breakwater. Just as well too, as I was not looking forward to surfing WS into the small, narrow entrance to the Kennebunk River. Chick’s Marina was a welcome sight, even with the highest docking rates on the trip, and the dock boys were there standing by to tie us up in short order. Then it was the all call to mops and hoses for the next hour as the crew scrubbed her down fore and aft to get all the salt off and we could forget that passage in short order.
Needless to say, it will be a quiet night tonight. Just hanging on to stay upright for 8-hours tends to exercise every muscle in your body so its not surprising to feel as tired as we did and ready for a good night sleep. We’ll take the day off tomorrow for a visit with my cousin Kathy and husband David who will drive over from Massachusetts to spend the day. In the meanwhile, the weather will hopefully sort itself out before we head off for Gloucester on Friday.
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Southwest Harbor to Boothbay Harbor
8/25 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 44:16.45 N Longitude: 068:19.52 W
To: Latitude: 48:51.04 N Longitude: 069:37.59 W
Weather: mostly clear with some fog Wind: 2250 at 5-8 kts. SEA: 3
End Engine Hours: 2216 Fuel used/on board: 5532/474
Distance trip/to Date: 74/13,953
We were off the dock before 6AM for our 74-mile return trip to Boothbay. Much to our surprise, the outside ocean was calm today compared to just yesterday’s huge swells. Local patches of dense fog provided the challenge for most of the morning. Were it not for the lobster trap buoys, cruising in fog is not much different than the overnight passages with no moon that we are so used to from the Caribbean. Up here we also need to watch our radar for the lobster boats that dart around without much regard to where they are headed, thankfully not the big commercial container and cruise ships that were the bane of our existence in the warmer waters.
Our old friend (as of our last visit), dock master Judy was there to greet us as we pulled into our slip at Boothbay Marina. After over 10-hours at sea, it was all we could do to get WS tied to the dock before we were off to the dockside pub for a Guinness and some oysters followed by a great dinner at Kaler’s, a locals favorite fish place much like our old Crab Cooker in Newport Beach back home. Instead of crabs though, it’s a $12.99 one-pound lobster dinner that packs them in even on a Tuesday night. I’m about done with lobster but we did try a lobster roll (like a tuna sandwich made with lobster, mayonnaise and lettice served on a hotdog bun) as an appetizer and it was quit good.
Not much energy left in the crew by the time we got back on board so we called it an early night after only a half-hour of rerun TV and internet email.
(Logs are posted with the most recent entry first)
Well here we are at the end of leg XV and as far north as we will go. It would have been fun to go on to the Canadian Boarder but the last 67-miles from here are not good cruising in the sense that the coast is not hospitable for little boats…thirty-foot tides, no pleasure boat facilities of any kind, few harbors of refuge with only one offering any real protection from a blow or serious waves and not much to see once you get there.
Between hurricane Bill and the prospects of more bad weather coming, we are just out of time too. As it is, we only have three weeks to get WS all the way back to the Chesapeake and her “beauty” appointment with the boatyard. Her crew needs some time off too. Our business commitments and family duties are calling as well as a much needed “vacation” in Bali.
I had intended to stop updating these logs here but due to a steadily diminishing number of requests, I will keep reporting on our adventure all the way back to the Chesapeake so I hope you will continue to join us on this the final (I promise) leg of this going on three-year voyage.
Northeast Harbor to Southwest Harbor
8/24 Monday
From: Latitude: 44:17.73 N Longitude: 068.17.04 W
To: Latitude: 44:16.45 N Longitude: 068:19.52 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 3600 at 5-10 kts. SEA: 5
End Engine Hours: 2205 Fuel used/on board: 5506/499
Distance trip/to Date: 10/13,879
We set out today on WS with the best of intentions to explore the east side of Mount Desert Island and perhaps cruise across the sound to Winter Harbor for an overnight stay. Once we cleared the protected confines of Northeast Harbor it soon became apparent that this was not such a good idea and it is still to soon after Hurricane Bill to do any outside, unprotected voyaging.
While to winds were light, the waves were something else again. By the time we got to the southeast end of the island and the place where the seven-year old girl was swept away yesterday, it was obviously not good seamanship to proceed. Giant sets of waves, as tall as I’ve ever experienced in a boat, where still rolling into the sound and pounding the rocky cliffs so we did an about-face and headed back to Southwest Harbor instead. For the record, we’ll call 44:18 N/068:11W at the mouth of Otter Cove the official end of our journey north.
Southwest is a nice big cove with a full service marina but lies completely unprotected to the east and vulnerable to wind and waves from east to northeast. Today, it was flat calm and an easy matter to find our reserved spot in Dysart’s Great Harbor Marina. We’ve been assigned to a side tie along the main dock and soon have WS secured for our last night on the island.
With a whole unexpected and unscheduled afternoon before us, Jo and I decided to take one last trip on the free bus and cover the rest of the interior and eastern shore of Acadia National Park. The park bus travels all the way down the seashore on this circuit and it was fun to hop off and walk along the cliffs to see the same monster waves crashing on shore we had just been riding up and over on WS. The rest of Acadia Park is very nice with lots to do, hiking, biking, kayaking, camping etc. but it still can’t touch our western mountains for shear rugged beauty.
Tourist fever duly quenched, we stopped in Southwest’s little town to do some provisioning for the trip west before returning to WS for dinner on board and preparations for a first light departure in the morning.
###
Northeast Harbor - Hurricane Watch
8/21 - 8/23
Just when we thought we’ve had all of the excitement we could wring from one trip, Hurricane Bill comes on the scene heading straight for us. Thankfully there’s a pressure ridge currently in place (as of noon on Friday) keeping old Bill out to sea where he would miss us by 130-miles…still way to close for comfort.
After some negotiating with Northwest’s Harbor Master, we are allowed to raft up along side the huge steel, 98-ton Maine Missionary Society trawler; Sunbeam V. We are about as close in to shore and protected as we can get in this perfect hurricane hole - reported by locals to be the “Safest” harbor on the New England Coast! For Jo and I, we’re just thinking you can’t go too far wrong when things get dicey tied to a church ship so here we are snug as a water bug, waiting till Bill arrives with his 17-foot seas and 30+ mph winds on Sunday afternoon.
We had a nice fun day Saturday while waiting for Bill. Jo went off in the morning to join a charity walk while I gave WS a bath and filled her tanks. It was interesting to watch the other boats around us get ready for the predicted high winds; taking in their canvas and loose cushions, tying down their dingys, and doubling or tightening up their dock lines.
In the late afternoon, we took the bus for our second trip up to Bar Harbor for another look around. Bar is not a harbor for little boats, much to our surprise, so we won’t be bringing WS up here like we had thought. There is no marina, just a very rickety old town dock and a few scattered moorings without much appeal. As a town though, it has lots of unique shops featuring local artisan talent rather then just selling T-shirts.
We then took another one of the free, constantly circulating, park buses over to Southeast Harbor, our original destination before wild Bill headed our way. It is very exposed to the east and not a good hurricane hole at all but a pleasant little village with a good market and gourmet/wine shop. While walking the dock there, we met up with Bruce Kessler, the guru of trawler cruising (he’s been around the world on his) and the leader of the FUBAR cruise we joined from San Diego to La Paz, Mexico in ‘07. We made plans to get together when we move here on Tuesday.
The highlight of the day was the cabaret dinner show at the Deckhouse Restaurant right on the dock at Southwest’s marina. This show featured aspiring college kids studying for Broadway who did double duty as our wait staff intermixed with their performances of song and dance. A great show with lots of interaction with the players, all combined with excellent food and service made for a very memorable night indeed. Even our pre-arranged taxis home (the park buses stop at dusk) was right on schedule so we were back on WS before eleven.
Sunday morning we awoke to the promised wind and rain from our visit with Bill who was now directly offshore. Fortunately, he has lost much of his vigor and is down to a Category I (winds of 95-mph) while still headed Northeast far out to sea. Down in our protected cubby hole, the wind barely clocked gusts of 18-20 mph but we can see the much higher winds on the surrounding hillside trees and fast moving clouds.
It’s out at sea and along the exposed coast where it is really happening. The waves today are over 17′ and the winds are hitting 39-knots - not the place for little boats! All we feel in here is a little storm surge now and again as WS tugs at her mooring lines to Big Sister. The rain, while heavy at times, was intermittent by noon. By afternoon, the sun was shinning so all in all we really dodged what could have been a very hairy situation.
Tomorrow we will make one more move to the east and the beginning of the Bold Coast before we must turn around and start to make our way back to southern waters.
###
Bass Harbor to Northeast Harbor
8/20 Thursday
From: Latitude: 44:13.95 N Longitude: 68:20.95 W
To: Latitude: 44:17.73 N Longitude: 068.17.04 W
Weather: sunny and warm Wind: 1800 at 5-10 kts. SEA: 1
End Engine Hours: 2203 Fuel used/on board: 5500/502
Distance trip/to Date: 18/13,869
We did some sightseeing today on our way the 6-miles to Northeast Harbor. If you look at a chart, you will see that Mt Desert is a large, round Island with a fjord running north to south almost splitting it into two halves. Named Some’s Fjord, it is the only true fjord on the east coast so we traveled up its entire 5-mile length to have a look and were rewarded with deep, still water and pine covered mountains (east coast size) on both sides. Interestingly, there are three small boat yards up in its upper reaches and John William’s yard is well known up here for making a line of top quality line of picnic boats. Also, a few nice homes can be spotted among the tress and not much else.
Once we are back out of the fjord, it’s just a quick left turn and we are in the small. Compact hurricane hole of Northeast Harbor where we would like to hang out till Hurricane Bill passes on Sunday afternoon if they have room. Once secure in a slip, we take a quick reconnaissance trip through the village, didn’t find anyplace that grabbed us for lunch so we came back to WS for it and the rest of the afternoon.
Thursday night is “Stroll the Village” night in Northeast Harbor’s town where there is music on the street, stores stay open late serving appetizers with wine, and most of the locals turn out to enjoy their town so we headed back to join the fun. We do something very similar in Big Bear too and it’s a great way for the town folk to get together and support their small businesses.
By seven PM, we’ve revisited most of the shops, met lots of nice people, and had plenty of wine so we settle in at the Bassa, Casino de Tape’o (small plates) restaurant for a nice dinner on their porch before heading back to WS and calling it a day.
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Buck’s Harbor to Bass Harbor, Mount Desert
8/19 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 44:20.32 N Longitude: 068:44.11 W
To: Latitude: 44:13.95 N Longitude: 68:20.95 W
Weather: hazy but sunny Wind: 1950 at 5-8 kts. SEA: 1
End Engine Hours: 2200 Fuel used/on board: 5497/509
Distance trip/to Date: 21/13,854
Well, we are really in cruising mode now. Lazy morning departures, short day trips, and afternoons hiking about on shore at a new port each day with the occasional pub visit thrown in before heading home to WS for a sunset happy hour, dinner for two on board and some sort of video entertainment before early to bed. Life is good!
We left Buck’s sometime after nine, cruised 21-miles/3-hours down the glass smooth Eggomoggin Reach, along the north shore of Deer Island, through Casco Passage, and across Blue Hill Bay to tonight’s stop in Bass Harbor. Bass is our first port on the fabled Mount Desert Island, home of Acadia National Park. Here, at last, is said to be the best cruising New England and perhaps all of the East Coast has to offer. Dozens of pristine coves and anchorages, sprinkled with working lobster towns and full service marinas. This is a truly a boaters paradise.
While beautiful scenery is everywhere we look, Maine is not as dramatic as Alaska with her snow capped mountains forming a background for much the same looking seascapes. The foreground is still awesome and with the hint of constant fog, we probably couldn’t see the mountains anyways. Weather is in the forecast for Sunday, not from hurricane Bill which won’t affect us till early next week, but we have red flags from Buoy weather predicting up to 29-knots of wind with 13-foot seas offshore so naturally we’ll be laying low back in these protected islands.
Once we picked up a mooring from Morse Services and rowed ashore, it didn’t take us a half-hour to walk the length of the waterfront part of town. We did find a really neat, old time nautical store specializing in ship models and I found the kit of a New Bedford whaling skiff I have been looking for months. Once built, it will go perfectly with the model of the Charles Morgan whaler I am just rigging back on land. Looks like I’ll have something more to do once we get done cruising.
Typical of how it goes out here, we met locals Michael and Maria when we stopped for a brew on our hike. Within minutes, they had invited us to use their cabin front mooring free of charge should we need a place to tie up while in the area. We just keep meeting the nicest, most generous people everywhere we go on WS.
Back on our mooring ball for sunset and to watch one of the local, 100′ charter schooners maneuver in and drop her hook for the night just like they did at the turn of the century…very cool! Jo and I are really enjoying our quiet nights on board at this point but know things will get much more social again tomorrow when we hit the main cruising community of Southwest Harbor.
###
Camden to Buck’s Harbor
8/18 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 44.12.55 N Longitude: 065.03.75 W
To: Latitude: 44:20.32 N Longitude: 068:44.11 W
Weather: hazy but sunny Wind: 1900 at 8-12 kts. SEA: 1
End Engine Hours: 2197 Fuel used/on board: 5489/517
Distance trip/to Date: 18/13,833
I got WS ready to depart while Jo took the Enterprise car back so by 10AM we were ready for the 18-mile jog across Penobscot Bay to the tiny, well protected bay called Buck’s Harbor (often confused with Buck’s Town further up the coast).
The 3-hour crossing from Camden went smoothly with little wind and flat water as we passed the many small interesting looking islands heading north. The harbor entrance is wide, free of shoals but has a large, pine covered island right in the center of the bay with plenty of moorings available on its opposite side between the island and the Buck Harbor Marina’s dock . A quick call on VHF10 and we are assigned a vacant buoy just off their dock It is an easy, few minute row for us to get ashore and look around.
The small town here of Brooksville just up the hill from the waterfront consists of a store, restaurant, church and community center and that’s about it. After doing our best to support the local economy at the store and a brief walk on the narrow windy main country road with no sidewalks, we headed back to WS for an afternoon of working on the photos and our logs. Our BBQ dinner on board was followed by a DVD from the archives of unseen movies we carry for just these occasions.
###
Camden
8/17 Monday
We took a nice day off here to rent a car and really see the country side. Our afternoon trip took us from the towns of Rockport to the south to Belfast to the north and to the top of Mount Battie in Camden Hills State Park for the view of all of Camden Harbor and even to the islands offshore. Had it not been for the afternoon haze, I’m told we could have seen all the way to our next destination of Desert Island and Acadia National Park.
End Engine Hours: 2194 Fuel used/on board: 5482/524
Distance trip/to Date: 19/13,815
It was a nice Sunday morning to do some boating so after our special Sunday morning omelet breakfast on board, we were off of our mooring float and on our way to Camden, some 19-miles further up the reach of Penobscot Bay. It is still beautiful weather for cruising with absolutely flat calm seas, little wind, and bright sunshine as we wound our way between the many islands and shoals that make up most of “Down Eastern” Maine.
The town of Camden nestles around a tiny cove in the back of the larger Camden Bay and is every bit as picturesque as we had heard. Using a unique system of short floating docks in rows across the harbor, these folks have found a way to crowd in more boats per foot then even possible with mooring balls. The docks around the shore are lined with all manner of classic, gaff rigged schooners (we counted ten) and mega yachts while we little folk fill up the floats in the middle. The village itself has nautical looking shops and restaurants around the entire cove with church steeples and homes perched on the hills behind. And everywhere, you get the sense of motion from the circling gulls to the constant coming and going of a flotilla of watercraft.
It is here we finally became aware of the huge tidal range that this area is known for in the lower 48. One hour, your boat is down in a hole with the entire town high above and several hours later, you are 20-feet higher and level with the streets and wharf tops. I understand it even gets more dramatic the further up this rigged coast you venture to the point that even anchoring becomes a real challenge or you will wake up with no water under your boat.
Once we are settled on our float, right in the middle of things, we decide to pump up “Twinkle” our little 8′ back-up dinghy for the short row ashore. The two streets of town don’t add up to a mile in length so even after taking our time stopping in most of the shops is still doesn’t take long to see it all. After our look around, it was back on board for an afternoon of reading in the sun on the top deck, a glass of wine at sunset, and then dinner ashore at the highly recommended Waterfront Restaurant. I had a really good Tuscany Fish Stew which was very similar to my all time favorite Cioppino from San Francisco. After our post-dinner walk around the now quiet village, it was late by the time we were back on board WS.
End Engine Hours: 2191 Fuel used/on board: 5475/531
Distance trip/to Date: 27/13,796
We had one last walk around the town before pushing off the dock for the 27-mile run to Tenants Harbor on Muscongus Bay. We are getting spoiled by these easy, 3-4 hours of on-the-water travel per day…so different from the 50-60 mile runs with the many overnights we had to do to get here. This really feels like we are on vacation at last!
This morning’s challenge is all about the lobster traps again. They are getting so prolific now that I can’t even use the auto pilot but must hand steer for hours at a time constantly maneuvering our 25-tons so we don’t run one over and come to a grinding halt. I will say this though; there are so many different color combinations (each boat has its distinct set of color patterns on their buoys so them can recognize their own quickly). When the sea is smooth and calm, as it has been, it is a virtual flower garden of buoys as far as we can see in all directions.
We pulled WS into tiny Tenant Harbor around 1PM and called one of the four listed dockside “companies” pot luck for a mooring ball assignment. The harbor is so small there is no room to anchor so they have just divided it up with the balls and we are directed to any yellow one that is available by the very casual shore staff. Once secure, its pump up the dingy again (it seems to be having trouble hold air in all three chambers now), get her launched, and then head to the dock with the name of our mooring company to pay and take a quick look around. It is quick too since there is little more than a library, convenience store, two take-away restaurants and a fuel/lobster dock to see anyways. The big event for the week is a self guided tour of all the local homes that have decided to be “green” and live off the grid with solar/wind power and self grown food etc. Lacking in much of a fun factor we decided to pass.
Dinner of fresh, just caught this morning, haddock in hand, it’s back to WS for a relaxing afternoon followed by great dinner which was delayed a couple of hours while we tried to figure out why the shower sump (pump that drains the showers and head sinks below the water line over the side) is no longer doing its thing. We can hear it running but the grey water in not going anywhere. After determining that the drain hose must be blocked upstream somewhere, we decide to disconnect the darn thing and just let the bilged pump do the job till be can get dockside again to try and clear the obstruction. Where is my crack plumber when I need him?
Dinner was to a nice sunset anyways as they last quite late this far north.
End Engine Hours: 2187 Fuel used/on board: 5466/540
Distance trip/to Date: 34/13,769
The march to the Canadian boarder begins in earnest today. Sure, we’ll stop to have some fun and hopefully meet up with some old friends from down island along the way but the underlying goal is to get to the end of Maine by next week and then pace ourselves more slowly on the return trip south.
It is only 34-miles east to Boothbay, our next port of call so we plan on a 0900 departure to take advantage of the ebb out of Portland Harbor and the flood into Booth. The seas today are mostly on the beam but not tall enough, 1′- 2′ to cause much of a roll. What is different is the marked increase in the number of cruising boats we now see heading in all directions. We must be one of the last boats arriving this far north as most everyone seems like they have been here for awhile already. While it does make the anchorages and marinas a bit more crowed, it feels good to be back among our own in the cruising community again.
Boothbay, like most of these ports, lies back up a long entrance bay. The closer we get to town, the more it seems like the authentic Maine we remember and you always see on travel brochures. Rocky shores covered with thick stands of pine trees mixed with dozens of islands are everywhere. The town itself is off to the right hand side of a small bay where it is protected from the wicked winter wind and seas. Boothbay Marina, like the town, is small, and compact. It is at the far edge of town just before a pedestrian bridge closes off the rest of the bay. Dockmaster Judy is there at our side-tie dock waving us into a tiny spot between two bigger boats that looks to be much too small for WS but with lots of direction from her and the other skippers, we manage to parallel park her with a foot to spare on each end. Whew! The last time we tried this tight a fit in Alaska, we punched a hole in the Nordic Tug just in front of us with our anchor.
We only have an afternoon here so as soon as we are cleaned up, Jo and I are off to see the town. The old replica square rigger “Freedom” from Salem is in dry dock here being refitted so that is our first stop and she is grand. She was built in 1996 as an exact copy of the original to every detail but with diesel engines you would never know she had until she is high and dry. From there we spent the afternoon visiting the many art galleries and shops till we were too hungry to go on another step. Thankfully and just in time, I found the old Seafarer Pub that had a Guinness/raw clams special so I stopped in to imbibe to get my strength back while Jo went back to WS to start dinner.
We spent a quiet evening on board enjoying the solitude, our direct TV, and the internet while the neighboring bars rocked out to the usual Friday night festivities as folks gear up for what promises to be a great summer weekend. Sometimes it is just as nice to know you could go party if you wanted too but enjoy the chance more to just stay home.
###
Portland
8/12 Thursday
Our very active sports minded crew was up early to jog, walk, exercise on deck, and even pro-level jump rope on this, there last morning on board. I made the WS traditional French Toast breakfast for all hands while they packed up and then we started doing some boat clean-up chores. Later, we had a final lunch ashore before Ted & Heather caught the train back to Boston where they will take an advanced fitness training class before heading back to the California on Sunday.
Jo and I spent the rest of the day finishing up on our boat chores, doing some provisioning before catching a new movie and having a late, farewell to Portland dinner, on the DeMillo’s very nice ferry restaurant.
Kennebunkport to Portland
8/11 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 43:21.32 N Longitude: 070:28.44 W
To: Latitude: 43:39.25 N Longitude: 070:15.05 W
Weather: cloudy becoming fog Wind: 900 at 12-16 kts. SEA: 3
End Engine Hours: 2182 Fuel used/on board: 5453/552
Distance trip/to Date: 27/13,735
With newest crew member Ted on board, we set off at 0930 this morning for the 27-mile jaunt across up the coast to Portland. While it was clear and sunny as we left, it soon became foggy in spite of the freshening wind now out of the east for the first time since we left Cape Cod. Lobster traps aside, it still was an enjoyable passage with everyone excited about arriving in the “Big City” of Portland. We even managed to work in short marketing meeting about H & T’s new business, The Mountain Fitness Center in Big Bear Lake while at sea.
I don’t mean to harp on the lobster traps but they are a constant pain to navigate around. There are just so many of them and they go so far out to sea, in depths from 50 to over 100 feet, it is almost impossible to go out far enough to get around them if you are coastal cruising. I do have some empathy for the lobstermen who own them and try to make a living when faced with the short season, lobster prices at a paltry $3.50/pound, sometimes downright ugly weather and competition with their fellow man for the best locations. The papers up here are full of articles about lobster poaching, buoy cutting, and even a shooting or two. Some of these two-man lobster boat teams maintain over 800 traps and at two traps to a set of buoys that means they need to haul up empty and re-bait 400 a day to keep them working.
The entrance channel to Portland Harbor is very straight forward with a wide, easy to find and hazard free opening. Once past the welcoming Portland Point light, the channel expands into a wide bay that we just needed to follow around to the right to the city’s bustling docks. Here we encountered all manner of sea craft from local ferries for the bay to the huge international variety headed for Nova Scotia. Added to the mix of dozens of sightseeing and whale-watching boats, day sailing charter schooners, and the usual sword and lobster boats are the occasional ocean going cargo ships found in all major sea ports. So it is a busy harbor and the most northern of all US shipping ports.
As we make the final turn towards the city, DeMillo’s Marina is apparent dead head. The large ferry they have converted into a floating restaurant is their distinctive landmark. A quick call ashore and we have directions to our slip where a dock hand is waiting to take our lines and tie us up. While expensive at $3.95/foot, they are the only game in town that has immediate, walking access to the city and all of the other amenities we want and need (showers, laundry, wifi, security, the restaurant). In a half-hours time, our crew has merged on main street with the hundreds of other tourists out seeing the sights and enjoying this sunny, summers day.
The evening finds us back on board for a late BBQ dinner and early to bed after a very full, but enjoyable day.
End Engine Hours: 2178 Fuel used/on board: 5443/562
Distance trip/to Date: 22/13,708
Off the dock at 0930…stuck firmly in the mud at 0935 due to one of those senior moments when you forget which side of the red buoy you are supposed to be on but with my excuse of just passing the fuel dock which was in deep water. Thanks to the rising tide and the passing wake of a lobster boat we were able to slip off within a few minutes and minimal embarrassment. By now the bottom of our keel must be nice and shiny - certainly all of the bottom paint is gone. I’m looking forward to hauling the old girl next month to see the results of two mud groundings and thumping over the log strewn bottom on the Dismal Swamp.
Substantial rain was in the forecast for today but with the Doppler weather radar it is easy to time our travel between the approaching storms. There has been little wind making the 22-mile passage smooth and flat. We stayed close to the shore so we could enjoy the scenery in spite of the pain dodging so many traps and were rewarded with close passes by two outstanding lighthouses. We even had some sunshine around noon as we approached the breakwater lined entrance to the Kennebunk River.
Chick’s Marina, our stop for tonight, happily is just a mile up this very windy, narrow waterway that is only 5′ deep controlled depth. Coming in on a flood at about 4′ above MLW certainly helps reduce the SPF (sweaty palms factor). Two dock boys are already standing by to catch our lines as we reach our spot on the long face dock of this small, but well organized marina and we are quickly secured and ready to go ashore for the first time in Maine, 13,708 miles since we began in April of 2007.
A short walk to town and the crew is soon enjoying the quaint ambiance of Kennebunkport along with a surprising number of other tourists on this rain threatened Tuesday. The shops are interesting and varied, lots of tempting restaurants and good things to eat, even the brew pub home of Old Shipyard Ale are all on our very walk able tour. I also managed to work in a quick haircut along the way without even being missed by rest of the Wandering Star gang.
Tonight, it’s off to the casual elegance of Mabel’s at the Old White Barn Inn. A favorite, we are told, of George and Barbara’s (Bush) when they are in summer residence just up the road.
###
Newburyport to Portsmouth, New Hampshire
8/10 Monday
From: Latitude: 42:48.78 N Longitude : 070:52.16 W
End Engine Hours: 2175 Fuel used/on board: 5435/570
Distance trip/to Date: 18/13,686
We were able to take our time getting away this morning while waiting for slack water to go out over the river’s bar. I spent my free time at first light taking a 12-mile bike ride across the bridge to the beach town of Salisbury and back while Jo took her walk and Heather took up the bike once I returned. We were all back on board and ready to shove off on the 0951 slack water for the 18-mile harbor hop to Portsmouth.
In talking to the locals, we discovered that the Merrimack River Bar can be the most dangerous harbor entrance on the east coast. It compares nationally as only second to the Columbia River Bar on the Oregon coast in nastiness under the right conditions and many ships have met their fate in its grasp. But thankfully those conditions occur most often during a Nor’easter in the winter and today it was a smooth as Golden Pond.
While cloudy enough to look like rain was eminent all morning, the sun broke out just as we turned the corner and made our way the short run up the Piscataqua River to our new home for tonight at the very deluxe, Wentworth by the Sea Marina. It comes complete with pool, a grand old historic hotel were we have full privileges and, most important, the courtesy car we needed to pick up Ted at the bus station as well as doing some provisioning. While there is a city dock right in the town of Portsmouth, our reconnaissance later showed it to be, as rolly and miserable as promised in the cruising guide so we made the right, but expensive choice ($3.50/foot).
Once we had Ted and our groceries in hand, it was back to WS for an afternoon of settling in, resting up, and BBQ dinner on board followed by a marketing meeting about H & T’s new business, The Mountain Fitness Center in Big Bear Lake.
###
Gloucester to Newburyport
8/8 Saturday
From: Latitude: 42:36.63 N Longitude : 070:35.33 W
End Engine Hours: 2172 Fuel used/on board: 5429/576
Distance trip/to Date: 27/13,668
A beautiful morning as we steamed out of Gloucester Harbor, except for the boy waving goodbye from the lighthouse rocks, it was identical to the final morning of the long-line boats as they left here in Perfect Storm. Our passage, thankfully was a bit milder than theirs with 1-2 foot waves and little wind as we rounded the often turbulent Cape Ann. Thacker Island sits just off the eastern most end of the Cape and features two identical lighthouses dating back to the British that are less than a quarter mile apart and line up directly with True North. We are told that this was done so departing ships could check their compasses for accuracy for a safe return.
Once around the point, it is a straight run across 10-miles of the Gulf of Maine to Newburyport, our last stop in Massachusetts. This little known town has a rich history dating back to when it was the major east coast port for all the clipper ships that made the cargo runs to Europe and beyond. Now it is a very popular tourist town with some of the nicest shops and restaurants we’ve seen anywhere since Annapolis. It has that same feel, steeped in nautical traditions of the sea, as well. Even our Coast Guard was originally started here.
The town is located a couple of miles up the Merrimack River and like so many river entrances on the northern west coast, we must cross over a bar of shallow and sometimes rough water to gain admittance. At half a rising tide, it holds good for our 5′ draft but I wouldn’t try it on anything less. As our good fortune would have it, we found space that just had been vacated on the long city dock that is part of their waterfront walk and right in the heart of the downtown scene.
We had an excellent lunch ashore, followed by a look around town before we settled in back on board to be part of the scenery for the hundreds of tourist walking the waterfront well into the evening. Dinner on board and a few games of Rummy Cube finished off a nice summers day.
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Salem to Gloucester
8/7 Friday
From: Latitude: 42:51.25 N Longitude : 070:52.91 W
End Engine Hours: 2168 Fuel used/on board: 5419/586
Distance trip/to Date: 12/13,641
Today was our lucky day…we finally ran over a lobster trap buoy but didn’t get it caught in the prop! Besides being hard to see and so prolific, this happened because we had to evade a crossing boat under sail and a red harbor buoy so the only choice was to go over it or hit something else much bigger and harder. We could hear it clunk all along the keel but somehow it missed getting tangled up in our prop spinning at 1520 RPMs. We do have a line cutter fixed to the prop shaft that spins with the shaft against a fixed blade as the last hope but the buoy didn’t come loose so I assume it was fine after our encounter.
Otherwise it was a beautiful day for the short, 12-mile run over to Gloucester Harbor. The sky was clear and the winds were offshore at less than 20-knots for the passage. The harbor entrance is well protected form the dreaded Nor’easters but wide open for us to enter from the south. Once inside, we easily picked up our pre-assigned mooring ball right in the split between the north and south inner harbor channels and were quickly secure for our over night stay.
Without a public launch service, we launched our dinghy, had a bite to eat for lunch, and then were off to explore this famous little fishing town by 1:30 PM. After a quick stop at the Harbormasters Office, we roamed the streets in search of an authentic Sou’wester hat for me. These beauties were developed in the 1800’s and made of sail cloth covered in linseed oil (waterproofing) and lampblack for their dark color. They kept the water out of your eyes with a turned up front gutter and from going down your neck with a wide brim down the back. They are called Sou’wester’s because that would be the direction you needed to face when a Nor’easter was blowing.
Besides finding my hat we visited the well known statue of the “Gloucester Fisherman” and the memorial to the over 8,000 from this town who have been lost at sea, met the mayor, had a beer in the old Crow’s Nest bar of Perfect Storm fame, and a great lobster dinner at Capt Carlo’s on the pier. All in all, it was a great day on the waterfront as we headed back to WS to secure the dinghy before dark and get to bed early for tomorrows passage around Cape Ann, the last sometimes treacherous cape of our voyage.
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Boston to Salem
8/6 Thursday
From: Latitude: 42:22.22 N Longitude : 071:03.57 W
To: Latitude: 42:51.25 N Longitude 070:52.91 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 2650 at 5-10 kts. SEA: 2
End Engine Hours: 2166 Fuel used/on board: 5415/590
Distance trip/to Date: 22/13,628
Time to leave Boston at last. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been a great stay here but we are anxious to get north and complete our goal, to establish “The Big-U” as a very doable trawler experience (more on that later). Now that Heather is on board, we are ready to go. Heather and Ted have been able to join us in all four corners of our 3-year odyssey. They were with us in Alaska, Mexico, St Lucia, and now here for the final leg to Maine.
Our nav system indicated that 0822 was the best time for time and tides to make the short, 22-mile hop over to Salem so everyone had some time to do their early morning activities - Heather took a run, Jo her walk, and I got WS ready to leave port. By 0820, we were all on board and ready to push off.
If you recall from coming in, it takes a good half hour just to get clear of Boston Harbor. Inbound traffic was light this morning so exiting went easily and soon we were back to dodging lobster traps as we made our way up the coast. Aside from these nuisances, working our way around the east end of Marblehead Neck with its shallows, shoals and rocks was the only thing worth mentioning in the way of a boating experience. Once inside Salem Harbor, it is just a matter of finding your way through a very full mooring field with hundreds of boats to get to the Hawthorne Cove Marina, our stop for tonight.
Since Boston we have started to experience the effects of the extreme tidal changes common to many northern latitudes. In Salem, the present 10-foot difference between high and low can easily make the difference between being in the mud and cruising in 12-feet of water to where you want to go. This morning, we arrived at near high tide so we had the luxury of room to maneuver as we waited for the dockboys to assign us to a space and tie WS up. It would have been much more difficult at low tide in the tight quarters of these small marinas, especially with the crowed moorings covering all floatable water space in the harbor.
Once WS is secure, it did not take us long to have lunch and be off to explore the witch crazy town of Salem. The locals, to their credit, have taken a very dubious past incident from 1692 when they hung 19 “witches” and turned it into a major area tourist attraction. There are stores named Broom Closet, Crow Haven Corner, Old World Wichery, and even an Angeles Landing just to balance things out I guess. There are witch museums, witch villages, witch dungeons, nightmare factories and a popular, long running stage play every night about the famous Salem witch trials of that era. Added to the witch mania is a nice, but small maritime park featuring the old square rigger Freedom (out of town for refitting during our visit) to amuse the less witch inclined so they do a nice tourist business here during the short summer season.
In about four hours, we were able to see most everything of interest to us, spend some time in at a local farmers market, and be back on board for dinner and a movie. Tonight’s feature was the epic “Perfect Storm” which was based on the rugged life of the long-line sword fisherman of Gloucester, our next port of call.
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Boston
8/1 Saturday to Wednesday
If you’ve never been to Boston in the summer, you’ve really missed something. This place is alive with people. Last night, we walked around Little Italy in North Boston. The sidewalks were so busy with folks out having a good time you could hardly get by without stepping into the street. Of course, you won’t want to miss the Freedom Trail, one of the most historical 2.5 mile walks you can take anywhere. The passionate sports fans have their lovable Sox conveniently reachable from anywhere by subway. Then there are the hundreds of great places to eat, second only (perhaps) to NYC All of this served up against a backdrop of life on the water and sea lore. If only the friendly locals wouldn’t talk with a mouth full of marbles it would be perfect!
I even found a guy that makes the most exquisite model ships (a long time passion of mine) that lives just over the bridge from our marina and he lets me stop by anytime to watch him at work. A former MIT prof, Pat has on display the most detailed collection of old ships I have ever seen…it rivals even museum quality, all made by him to scale from the original blueprints or drawings right down to the individually placing of the copper plates that often covered their wooden hulls.
We like it so much here, we’ve decided to stay for a few extra days, $3/foot/day dock fees be damned, to wait for our daughter Heather to join us for the ride north. She gets in on Wednesday night so we will have plenty of time to soak up all there is to see and do and even get in some work on WS if fun time allows. Then it is off to Salem, followed by Gloucester, Newburyport, and, Portsmouth (Ted will join us here), before our first port in Maine; Kennebunkport, then on to Portland where we will drop off Heather and Ted before we continue to march up the coast another 140-miles to our ultimate destination of Bar Harbor.
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Plymouth to Boston
7/31 Friday
From: Latitude: 41:57.67 N Longitude : 070:39.69 W
To: Latitude: 42:22.22 N Longitude 71:03.57 W
Weather: clear to stormy Wind: 1750 at 10-14 kts. SEA: 2
End Engine Hours: 2162 Fuel used/on board: 5407/598
Distance trip/to Date: 40/13,606
A beautiful day’s passage to Boston was spoiled, at the end, by a rain storm that was not supposed to hit till later in the afternoon. We woke to a clear, sunny morning, left our mooring ball right on schedule at 0650 and made our way out though the long circuitous channel to the first waypoint by 0730. Then it was just a matter of dodging hundreds of lobster traps the entire 40-miles to the entrance to Boston Harbor.
We seem to see a pattern developing here. All of the harbors are a long ways back in a bay or up a river so it takes a fair amount of time at the beginning and end of each passage just to get in and out of port. With Boston, it was just about an hour after it took over a half hour to leave Plymouth. Then we had perfect weather the whole 4-hours at sea only to watch with frustration as the approaching rain on the Nexrad radar beat us to our marina while we were still on the long approach into Boston Harbor.
By the way, we get the Nexrad images through http://www.wunderground.com after entering the zip code for the area we are in and marking as “favorites” the cities in our future. Next to Buoy weather, http://www.buoyweather.com, which we have relied on for wave heights since are early days of cruising the Channel Islands in California, we like Wunderground’s versatility, good 7-day forecasts, and ease of use. Offshore and down island other factors come into play like an absence of internet access so phone in/fee for services like Commanders Weather (1-603-882-6789) help make the tough go or no-go decisions when all else fails.
The Boston Harbor approach involves working your way around or through a dozen off shore islands that are great for day cruising from Boston but stand right in the way of a clean entry. Today we used the end of the South Approach, after taking a shortcut across water too shallow for the big boys, to get to President Roads (the big ship entry channel) and the entrance to the Charles River. By the time we passed Boston’s City Docks, it was really coming down so we knew a wet landing was not going to be avoided.
Constitution Marina is ideally located just before the bridges and locks that guard the entrance to the Charles and we had our slip assignment by phone before we made the final turn and spotted two very wet dock boys waiting to help with our lines. As it turned out, the first slip was two small for our girl’s broad beam so we had to do a180 in very close quarters and take a wider slip on the opposite side. Once secure, we just battened down the hatches and waited about an hour for the first wave of the storm to pass through the area.
We like this marina for it’s proximity to North Boston, location on the “Freedom Trail” and friendly, helpful staff with out the much higher slip rates (a $1/foot more) just across the water. Umbrellas in hand, your crew is soon off between storms exploring our Charlestown side of the city with a walk up to the top of Bunker Hill and a visit to the old historic “Warren Pub” where the likes of Jefferson and Washington stopped in for a brew to plan the Revolution so many years ago. A much damper forecast for the evening, kept us on board tonight where we began to make plans for touring the city in sunshine tomorrow and the rest of our voyage up the New England Coast.
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Woods Hole to Plymouth via the Cape Cod Canal
7/29 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 41:31.50 N Longitude : 070:41.23 W
To: Latitude: 41:57.67 N Longitude 070:39.69 W
Weather: overcast some fog Wind: 1950 at 10-14 kts. SEA: 3
End Engine Hours: 2156 Fuel used/on board: 5392/613
Distance trip/to Date: 42/13,566
Today is all about timing as we transit the Cape Cod Canal that cuts across the long arm of Cape Cod and saves 135-miles of open ocean exposure (see the “Chart of Voyage” map website section). The tidal driven current gets flowing so fast through this canal that we must arrive at the beginning of the flood to have a chance of getting through its 17-miles of waterway. East bound boats can expect a 2 to 4-knot push when transiting on the flood while the ebb would be 2-4 knots against them - not a reasonable alternative when you only go 7-knots at cruise speed.
Our magic moment for the start of the flood this morning was 0953. Taking into account the couple of hours it will take us to get out of Woods Hole and across the remainder of Buzzard Bay and into the canals long approach channel, we needed to be off the dock in time for the 0800 bridge opening out of Ell Pond. Thankfully, there was not any fog to slow us down so we made it to the canal entrance on time just as the current switched from ebb to flood. Here we were joined by a small armada of other cruising boats who have been waiting in the canals western anchorage to do the same passage.
The canal itself is wide and beautiful as it gently snakes across the Cape Cod peninsula. With very little oncoming traffic, we can spread out and WS passes the smaller sailboats with ease and is leading the charge by the exit onto Cape Cod Bay. From here it is just an and easy, 16-mile putt up the Bay to Plymouth where we take a mooring just off the Mayflower II overlooking this historic town. The oldest street in North America is just off our bow and with the complementary shuttle launch from Plymouth, Jo and I are soon out for an afternoon walk with all the other tourists the length and breath of the town.
With rain looking eminent, we head back to WS for the evening deciding to stay an extra day for the Yacht Club’s dinner tomorrow night and a chance to meet some of the members and take in more of the hospitality. Tonight it will be BBQ steaks on board WS with a wonderful DVD program on classical music Dottie & Ken gave us last Christmas.
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Block Island to Wood Hole, Massachusetts
7/28 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 40:11.42 N Longitude 071:34.68 W
To: Latitude: 41:31.50 N Longitude: 070:41.23 W
Weather: fog sunny late Wind: 1900 at 8-10 kts. SEA: 3
End Engine Hours: 2150 Fuel used/on board: 5377/627
Distance trip/to Date: 49/13,572
Pulled up our well buried anchor this morning in the densest fog yet. We don’t like traveling in fog, especially when one needs to thread their way out a narrow breakwater entrance, but up here in the Northeast, it sometimes just can’t be helped if you ever need to move the boat early in the AM. Today’s 49-mile, 7-hour journey to Woods Hole was such an occasion so off we went, basically flying by instruments.
Once we were free of the Great Salt Pond on Block Island, it is just a matter of not running into another boat or over the hard to see anyways, crab traps. It just takes constant vigilance by the crew to do both for 7-hours or until the fog lifts which today did not happen till after lunch. The seas and winds have backed down considerable from yesterdays more trying crossing so all in all it was a nice passage up Buzzard Bay to the Hole entrance.
Woods Hole is world renowned for its oceanographic Institutes. Harvard, Yale and many other East Coast Universities all have a presence here. It has always been a favorite vacation spot or summer home refuge at the end of the road just down the peninsula from Cape Cod. For us boaters, it offer access from Buzzard Bay to the Atlantic, through a very current dominated channel as well as a small, limited access back bay, called Ell Pond where we were able to score one of the only open slips at the 26-slip Woods Hole Marina. To get into the Pond, we had to pass through the smallest bascule bridge yet - just 20′ wide (WS is 16″) and only 4′ of clearance when closed.
Once inside, marina manager Buzz directed us to a tiny slip which was wide enough but only 25′ long so WS stuck out a good 20-foot into the channel. Fortunately, it is quiet enough water back in here so the lack of bow cleats was not a problem. Soon, we were off to explore the Oceanographic (the exploration of the Titanic originated from here) and the local Historic museums, just two of the many this town is known for, and to see the sights. Dinner was dockside at a Hawaii Fusion restaurant of all things, overlooking WS. The annual WH Film festival was going on too so we sat in on a screening of “American Casino, a depressing film about the recent crisis in our financial system, before heading home.
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Mystic Seaport to Block Island, Rhode Island
7/27 Monday
From: Latitude: 41:58.18 N Longitude 071:58.18 W
To: Latitude: 40:11.42 N Longitude: 071:34.68 W
Weather: sunny some clouds Wind: 1900 at 15-20 kts. SEA: 4
End Engine Hours: 2143 Fuel used/on board: 5361/637
Distance trip/to Date: 24/13,525
We were able to delay our departure this morning long enough to get in a nice last bike ride around old Mystic and for Jo to take her long walk. Around 1015, we finally dropped the dock lines only to be delayed another 20-minutes for two passing trains which kept the railroad closed till 1035. Once we do get going, it still takes a good hour just to get down the Mystic River, out through Fishers Sound, and then finally into the Block Island Channel.
It’s a 24-mile run over to Block Island in 3-6 foot swells off the starboard bow…not all that comfortable but doable for WS. The real surprise came as we entered The Great Salt Pond breakwater on Block Island. The wind immediately picked up to 30+ knots with gusts as high as 40. We had thought about grabbing a mooring for our overnight stay but the Harbormaster was not ready to bother to find us one till after 3 o’clock, a half-hour wait so we decided to drop the anchor and save the $40 instead.
After one practice drop, which wound up two close to other boats, we got it right and settled back on 200′ of chain in the 35′ of water. With our anchor rode bridle in place, it will be the equivalent of 250′ of scope which should hold us secure even in this wind. As the afternoon past, the wind did back down to a more reasonable 15 to 20-knots but still it was hardly conducive to launching the dinghy and going ashore.
While disappointed not to be able to see Block Island up close and personal, we did have a nice evening on board just relaxing and getting back in our cruising mode…BBQ dinner followed by a little TV and early to bed - all without a party - what a concept!.
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Mystic Seaport
7/24 - 7/26 Friday to Sunday
Lot’s of fun here so I want to share some of the highlights. Cousins Bob & Paula Walker, sister Audrey & brother Don along with niece Lexie were all here for a long weekend get together including a dinner party at Bob’s Yacht Club, an old fashioned New England style beach BBQ (steamers, saltwater soaked corn on the cob, salmon, tuna, & steak), touring the quant shops in the town of Mystic, and Jo & I spending Saturday at the Mystic Seaport Museum.
It was the antique boat show this weekend at Seaport with vintage sail boats gong back to the turn of the century as well as the beautiful early wood Chris Crafts runabouts and Trumpy luxury yachts. They also have the Charles Morgan (early whaling ship) out of the water for a three-year refit. I’ve been building a scale-model of her for a couple of years when at home so it was especially great to be aboard her in person.
When you throw in some provisioning, Jo’s hair salon visit, boat chores, touring the countryside with my cousin’s borrowed car, breakfast at the historic old Stonington Village just east of here and a farewell dinner with Bob & Paula at the S&P Oyster Co on Sunday night, it has been a very full weekend indeed.
End Engine Hours: 2135 Fuel used/on board: 5351/647
Distance trip/to Date: 24/13,501
We woke up this morning floating suspended in a “pea soup” fog. At times, I could hardly see the front end of WS let alone the few boats around us. Fortunately, by 0830 it lifted just enough for us to make out the shore across the bay so we could up anchor and feel our way out of this peaceful place. The hour delay in our departure allowed the incoming tide to be in full race against us at over 2-knots as we threaded our way out the narrow, Threemile Harbor entrance.
Once out at sea, the current settled back down to a knot on the beam but the fog would open and close all the way across the 20-miles of sound to Fisher Island just off Mystic River. At Race Rock, on the south tip of Fisher, we experienced the full effect of the incoming tide as it rushed to fill the 100-miles of Long Island Sound. At times, the auto pilot had to point WS a full 40o more to the east just to stay on the course line and we still would have lost ground if I had not increased the throttle to full speed ahead.
Fortunately, as we rounded the North Dumpling lighthouse, it cleared enough for us to make an easy entry into the Mystic River and find our way up stream to Seaport Marina, our home for the next several days. A quick call on VHF13 to the operator of the railroad bridge just before Mystic let us know a train was coming so we had to crank up to top speed again and race thru the bridge opening before the train came…very exciting.
Seaport Marina is located right in the town of Mystic so once we were tied up, your crew was off to see the sights and find the S & P Oyster Company for lunch. We stopped in Mystic on a road trip when Heather was just five. We loved it then and it has always been on our bucket list to come back again by sea so here we are at last.
Rain was on its way any minute as we took a quick look around town and made it back to WS just as the clouds finally let go. Evening was quiet time on board with the back ground sound of rain on the overhead decks of WS - a very nice day indeed and great to be back in Mystic on our own boat after 30-years.
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Threemile Harbor at anchor
7/21 & 7/22 Tuesday - Wednesday
We decided to take a couple of days off in this perfectly protected, uncrowded anchorage after the fast paced, but fun week it took to get here. Probably a good thing we did too because it rained on and off all day Tuesday - the first serious rain we have had in a couple of weeks. Jo and I have always enjoyed rain days to catch up on our writing and just to lazily lay about and read. What a treat!
On Wednesday, it was sunny and warm, a perfect day to dinghy ashore, rent a car and tour the Hamptons so off we went by nine AM. This area is best known for its huge, multi-million dollar estates but you get no sense of this just driving around. The only things you see are the modest homes and quaint villages the locals and tourist enjoy. The big estates are simply not visible from the public roads. It is only when you stop and check the listings in a real estate office window that all start at several million and head upwards of 30 and 40 million that the true cost of living out here apparent.
We had lunch in Montauk (the far east end on Long Island), shopped in East Broughton and drove through Bridgehampton in just a few hours time before turning our car back into Enterprise and getting a ride back to our dinghy at Threemile Harbor. Of the three villages, East Hampton is the most up-market mostly featuring dozens of designer dress shops. Montauk, somewhat to our surprise, was just the opposite. It was a very modest beach town that seemed to cater to mostly vacationing, blue-collar families from the rest of the state.
By five, we were back on board WS, the dinghy was stowed and we settled in for another nice quiet evening at anchor.
End Engine Hours: 2134 Fuel used/on board: 5341/657
Distance trip/to Date: 9/13,477
Friends Jim & Pam caught the noon train back to JFK so after a quick trip to the market, we said goodbye to Sag Harbor and continued east. Our next stop is just around the corner in an almost completely enclosed bay with an excellent anchorage. After a several weeks of dock fees and the hustle bustle of marinas, it is good to out on the hook again. It’s only 9-miles from Sag to Threemile Harbor so by 1:30 we were already circling the 12-foot deep bay water looking for a likely spot to anchor and settle in for the night.
At the far, south end of this bay up another narrow cut is the access to the town of East Hampton touted as “America’s most beautiful village.” We may stay another day to check out what all the fuss is all about and use this opportunity see at least some of the famous “Hamptons” along the southern shore of Long Island. But for tonight, it’s just the two of us for dinner and a movie again as we spend a quiet night on board our great little ship that neither of us would trade for a mega yachts even if we could afford any one of them.
End Engine Hours: 2133 Fuel used/on board: 5339/660
Distance trip/to Date: 11/13,468
Just a short harbor to harbor hop this morning so we are in no hurry to leave Greenport. Our crew got up to our traditional Sunday morning custom omelets on board then walked over to the local Starbucks and the grocery before finally getting underway at 1110. Today 11-mile passage will take us another third of the way around Shelter Island to the very popular (and pricey) Sag Harbor Yacht Club Marina.
The several bays we pass though are very busy today with local boaters enjoying the beautiful weather and their wakes provide the only waves for most of the journey. Once we are backed into our assigned slip for the night, we are off to do a quick tour of the town and to pick a place for our farewell dinner tonight. Jim and Pam will be jumping ship here to take the train back to JFK and Los Angeles in the morning.
Sag Harbor is a nice town that has worked very hard to develop a tourism industry which is about the only industry that remains this far out on Long Island besides real estate. It has plenty of cute shops and the typical tourist attractions but we felt Greenport was better setup for boaters and more convenient. Still Sag remains the place to be seen if you are in the mega-yacht society.
Jimmy Buffets “Continental Drifter III” was just leaving the other dozen mega yachts parked here as we were pulling into the harbor. Once we were docked, Jim figured out the 102′ Broward yacht from Daytona just behind us named ‘Hi Banx” belongs to the Francis family, the owners of NASCAR. Unusually, you have no idea who owns any of these huge yachts as it is a well kept secret so it is fun to identify two owners in a row.
Dinner was at the old American Hotel restaurant on Main Street which was probably the most up scale place in town and was quite good by any standard. The wine list, while huge (30-40 pages), was shockingly expensive which seems to be the trend we are seeing as we move around the northeast and divinely discourages that second bottle unless you bring your own which we did tonight. After dinner, it was a final stroll though town back to WS for a nightcap before turning in by midnight. Jo and I will be sad to loose our guests in the morning as it has been really fun having them on board for the 100-miles to get here from New York City.
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Greenport
7/18 Saturday
Our crew took a much deserved day off today after four mornings at sea exploring the harbors of South Long Island Sound. It did seem a little strange to start off what was supposed to be a day on shore by immediately taking the ferry over to nearby Shelter Island. Here we walked a mile to a rental bike shop and then did a 10-mile pedal tour across this island of beautiful homes and rural, wooded roads. All this exercise led to a nice lunch at the quaint Dory restaurant before heading back on the ferry to Greenport.
Next it was off to the movies for the afternoon matinee before returning to WS for the happy hour concert we could enjoy right from our fly bridge from nearby Claudio’s Clam Bar. Dinner was on board tonight made up from all the leftovers from yesterdays abundant dinner ashore. Not much energy left in the old crew after the full day so Jo & I had a last walk through the very active Saturday night town while our guests relaxed before turning in to the less than gentle strains of the evening’s rock band at the clam bar.
End Engine Hours: 2131 Fuel used/on board: 5335/664
Distance trip/to Date: 49/13,457
We are off to Greenport today, the longest leg of our voyage. It took us just 7-hours to cover the 49-miles in calm seas and light winds to the end of Long Island and make the turn through Plum Cut into the large bay surrounding Shelter Island and Greenport.
To get in early on what promised to be a busy summer weekend for boating, we had to be off the MSYC docks by first light and clear of their breakwater by 0600. Even so we didn’t get into the Greenport City Docks at Mitchell Park till 1230 just as a visiting Yacht Club from Connecticut were starting to arrive. Luckily we were still in time to get a good, inside the breakwater position, on the long fixed dock.
The marina is in a great position for a walking tour to most everything in town and handy to the Shelter Island Ferry as well. Greenport has a long boating tradition going back to the original colonies and then then early whalers that were based here. Things haven’t changed much today as now it is now the crossroads for pleasure boats of all sizes looking for a good time place to stay on the water.
Our crew spent the afternoon touring the town before enjoying happy hour on our top deck followed by an memorable dinner at Caudio’s, the oldest single family owned restaurant in the US dating back to 1870. The food was good too as was the service which is nice to find in an obviously tourist based business. Then it was early to bed for all hands after the long but well rounded day of boating and exploring our new port.
End Engine Hours: 2124 Fuel used/on board: 5318/680
Distance trip/to Date: 21/13,408
This morning was another easy passage of only 21-miles but with just a touch more wind and an increased chance of rain that never materialized. The sound is as flat as a pond and I’ve seen more waves on Big Bear Lake than we’ve experienced on Long Island Sound so far. I’m sure it must kick up quite a bit during a Nor’easter but it’s hard to imagine under these conditions.
The trip between the two well protected harbors takes only three hours but they are as different as they are interesting. Where Huntington has more activity, more obvious affluence and more to do, Mt Sinai is more peaceful, remote and serene. The Huntington Harbor Yacht Clubs is impersonal and business like, Mt Sinai’s club is friendly, down to earth, and interested in just having a good time. The members also went way out of their way to be sure we felt welcome and even sent a committee down to offer a Burgee exchange and our Ventura Yacht Club flag now hangs proudly in their club house.
Our crew joined a very animated group of members for tasty lunch on the Club’s deck overlooking the marina which was busy even on a Thursday. Then the crew had a needed afternoon off from touring and sightseeing just to enjoy the cool afternoon on WS. Our evening BBQ salmon dinner with fine wine was on board and was followed by a rousing game of Rummy Cube till lights out. It will be an early departure tomorrow with a 50+ mile final run to the east end of the sound to the boating town of Greenport at first light.
End Engine Hours: 2121 Fuel used/on board: 5311/687
Distance trip/to Date: 21/13,387
Another short, easy passage on Long Island Sound. This cruise so far is such a leisurely pace compared to the grueling, 50-plus miles a day it took to get here. We left our marina side tie at 9AM and were secure in are new slip in the Huntington Yacht Club by noon. With virtually no wind, the Sound was smooth as glass and even the sun was out to make it an ideal morning to cover the 21-miles. The harbor itself is one on the best protected on the north coast, not that we need it today, and is chocker full of boats of all descriptions on mooring and the several marinas. Obviously, we have found a very popular spot with boaters.
After lunch on board it was off on foot for the 2-mile plus walk to the town of Huntington and while far, it was worth the effort. This town reminds us of the small, water oriented communities we found on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan on WS I back in 2000. It has unique, mom & pop shops and not the usual redundant franchises that have become the norm most everywhere else. After a couple of hours we have covered it all, had our ice cream, and hired a cab to take us back to the Yacht Club to rest up for the evening activities.
Tonight is our night to eat out and we have selected “Prime” as the restaurant of choice out of dozens that abound in the area. While the food was decent, the extensive wine list was extravagantly overpriced which took the fun out of ordering anything new. We did find a somewhat decent Australian Shiraz at $45/bottle that worked for us.
In talking to the locals, this town is still basically a bedroom community for NYC and most of the residents have high-end jobs on Wall Street and need to commute by train into the city the hour and a half each way each day…ugh! But you can see why the boaters make this choice, to live by the water close to their boats in this ideal setting and, at least, they don’t have to drive.
End Engine Hours: 2118 Fuel used/on board: 5304/694
Distance trip/to Date: 21/13,366
It was a much more leisurely departure this morning than in recent memory. We had time for a walk to the nearby Starbucks, a nice breakfast on board and then finally got underway by 0845 heading for the Battery end of Manhattan before turning up the East River. The navigation planning objective here is to time the boats arrival at the Battery exactly two-hours after the tides low water (today’s was 0712) so that you can catch the flood up the River and all the way through Hell’s Gate right into Long Island Sound.
Traffic on the East River
After dodging a fair number of ferries, tugs with tows and work boats on the waterway, we make the turn into Hell’s Gate right on schedule. We have a 1.5 knot current push, hitting speeds of almost 10-knots as we zip up this narrow connection joining NYC and to the Sound. We are not going far today, just a total of 21-miles to the Brewers Capri Marina on Manhasset Bay. This gives us most of the afternoon to take the dinghy ashore in the small town of Port Washington, have a walk around, and then a beer at the local pub before heading back for relaxation on board for the afternoon.
Tonight, we spend our evening on board WS having a steak BBQ dinner, enjoying some fine wines and the great company as we celebrate the beginning of this weeks adventure.
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New York City
7/12 - 7/13 Sunday & Monday
After a nice couple of days refreshing WS, getting Jo over a chest cold, and seeing some of NYC Sunday life in Greenwich Village, we are ready to resume our cruise north to Maine.
We have really enjoyed our dock location here in Newport Marina on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. It has excellent spot close to shops, a major mall, ferry terminal, a subway stop to NYC and Michael Anthony’s, an excellent new restaurant right at the end of our gangway. Its only disadvantage is a bit of roll you get during the weekday commuter hours from so many passing ferries but even that can be mitigated by taking a side tie on the long dock (for a slight increase in dock fees) further up the marina’s channel instead of a slip.
Jim & Pam Truran
On Monday, long time friends Jim & Pam from California, join the WS crew for this next week of exploring Long Island Sound. Once they are settled into their crew’s quarters, we all head off to the handy super market to do a major provisioning followed by the usual happy hour on board and ending up with a great dinner at Michaels were we are treated like honored guests by the friendly wait staff.
(Logs are posted with the most recent entry first)
This is the end of Leg XIV. It started in Florida just two months, over 1,400 miles ago. ,. It has been a quick trip to be sure but much less daunting doing it for the second time. Probably, one could argue, we traveled too fast through some delightful places where others tend to stop for weeks but it is all part of the master cruising plan and we know we’ll be back through here again, probably a couple more times as we continue to enjoy the East Coast in 2010.Leg XV will take us all the way from New York through the New England States to Maine thus completing “The Big U,” the planned Alaska to Maine through the Panama Canal cruise. Hope you will stay on board as we explore, what promises to be one of the most beautiful maritime areas in the Americas.
End Engine Hours: 2115 Fuel used/on board: 5298/744
Distance trip/to Date: 41/13,345
Verrazanno Bridge entrance to New York Harbor
The home stretch run today was as nice as yesterday’s was ugly. Smooth seas, no wind, with clear, blue skies . . . what a way to finish the last 40-miles to New York City. Off the Hoffman’s dock at 0515, we are out the breakwater even before the fisherman this morning. Then we hugged the coast till the end of Sandy Hook; cut across the shallow flats to the deep water, big ship channel; passed under the Verrazanno Bridge; then into the busy NY harbor at last. Next, WS passes close by both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island where our friends Jim & Pam are out on the veranda to wave us in (they are here for a wedding this Sunday and will join our crew for next weeks cruise of Long island Sound).
We’ve booked into the new Newport Marina on the Jersey side of the Hudson River for the weekend after staying at the pricy Liberty Landing, right across from where the World trade center use to be, on our previous visit. What a pleasant surprise, not only is it cheaper here by almost half, it is in a much better location, walking distance close to high-end stores, the subway, ferries and most everything you would expect from life in the big city. While there is no fuel, chandleries or other boat services, that’s not why we are here anyways and we can’t wait to get off and hit the malls.
First, we need to get the salt off WS and give her a good general clean-up after a week on the move and the rough day at sea. In a couple of hours, she is looking presentable again and we can head off with a clear conscience. After shopping and a much needed hair cut, Jo and I return to clean out the ship’s pantry. There was stuff down there that has been on board since Mexico so it was not hard to fill three shopping bags with food for the local homeless. With Jo just recovering from a chest cold, we’ll take it easy tonight so we are in good shape to head over to explore the Big Apple tomorrow.
End Engine Hours: 2109 Fuel used/on board: 5283/521+238
Distance trip/to Date: 86/13,304
The peaceful and calm of the early morning belies the long, wet, rough day at sea ahead for we mariners. Thankfully, it is going to be sunny with very light winds all day which certainly helps make this 14-hour, 86-mile Atlantic Ocean bashing into 3′ to 6′ waves, mostly right on the nose, much more palatable. With the forecast getting worse for the weekend, this is the best weather we could expect till way into next week which would really mess up our schedule for meeting friends in NYC, Jim & Pam and heading north.
I’m really getting to like our pre-dawn departures. It’s just me and the fisherman usually moving out to sea in the mist and blue-grey light that often turns into a spectacular sunrise with the promise of adventure to come. So it is this morning as our 0530 start also takes advantage of some ebbing tide to help glide us out of the long harbor entrance in short order. Once we are clear of the breakwater though, it all breaks loose.
One might think that after 13,000 miles (thankfully not all of it like this), we would get conditioned to the constant movement and need to hold on for dear life just to stay seated much less move about but I don’t think your body ever does. It is just physically very tiring using every muscle hour after hour to stay vertical. Laying down is not easy either as you tend to roll around or even off a moving flat surface too.
We were about 5-miles offshore when we passed Atlantic City by sea for the second time (the last was in June 2000) without stopping in. We’ll need to put that on the list to do on our Fall trip back south. By noon we seem to be through the worst of it as, at least, the seas are not quite as confused (coming from several directions at once). My concern was that our course needed to gradually turn more and more to the north as we round the widest part of New Jersey. This would make the present uncomfortable seas on the bow downright miserable directly on our beam.
The sea gods were very kind to us today. It seemed with each turn we made all afternoon, the waves slowly diminished until our beam seas really were not as bad as they started and were even downright mellow as we made the final turn into the setting sun towards Manasquan Inlet.
It was 1930 (7:30 PM) by the time we finally came in the breakwater and reached our dock at the newly redone Hoffman’s Marina. This is a small game fishing marina which wants to become known for tournaments and has a Mako shark one starting tomorrow at fist light. The semi-resort town of Brielle is located here not far from Point Pleasant, New Jersey.
Once we are secured to the end of fuel dock where they will keep us for the night, we decide to put on a couple hundred gallons of fuel to bring us back up to full since it is so handy and notoriously expensive in New York State and beyond. Then Jo and I head out for a short walk up the street to the Sand Bar Restaurant for a late dinner. The local bars along the way are jumping with Friday night celebrants but we are not even tempted to join in and are just happy to get a hot meal and ino bed early for tomorrows final 40-mile jaunt to New York City.
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C & D Canal to Cape May, New Jersey
7/9 Thursday
From: Latitude: 39:31.56 N Longitude 075:48.51 W
To: Latitude: 38:57.04 N Longitude: 074:54.31 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 0900 at 10-16 kts. SEA: Bay
End Engine Hours: 2095 Fuel used/on board: 5248/555
Distance trip/to Date: 566/13,218
Yet another early departure, this one to catch the flood tide and get a big push through the canal into the Delaware River. I weighed anchor and was out of our small cove by 0555. The strategy worked great as we hit speeds of over nine knots with less RPM’s then we would ordinarily use to make 6-knots. This rush lasted about 20-miles down the River too until to tide inevitably turned and we were back in a struggle to make 6-knot against it’s 1.2 knots on our bow. At the end of the day, it all balances out to some degree but without the early start, it would take an hour or two longer to make the same distance.
The rest of the 66-trip down the river is about as boring as boating can ever get..nothing to see on either side, especially during the lower half when it is so wide you can’t even see the shores. Only the occasional challenge of sharing the narrow deep water center with a barge and tow or a huge oil tanker heading up river make for a relief from the tedium.
That all changes as you make the turn for the Cape May Canal, the “back door” into Cape May Harbor. I had an adventure when here last in’00 too. As I recall, our new Mainship 390 was on the third-day of our one-year Great Loop cruise when I turned too soon for the marina and went aground, filling the salt water cooling strainers with mud and while we got unstuck on our own having the engine shut down due to overheating - all within 10-minutes of entering this harbor.
Today’s drama, involved having a dredge’s hose stretched across the charted canal entrance channel with no indication of any sort telling us which way to go, only that there was shallow water in every direction. As our luck would have it, some kind soul noticed our dilemma - probably because we stopped all forward progress and were just sitting there in center channel trying to figure it out - took pity and gave us some directions on the VHF radio. While our chart showed only 4′ of water and our depth sounder showed only 5′ we slide over the former mud bar into deeper water on the other side.
We had toyed all day with the idea of going for another over nighter all the way to NYC. But with Jo not feeling well (cough and cold), the weather kicking up outside (4′ seas with 20-knots of wind), it was an easy decision just to stay here and start fresh in the early morning yet again.
One phone call and we find room at a very friendly Utsch’s Marina, followed by several more calls for some round about instructions that took us back over the shoal we had just crossed to finally get into their place and our slip for tonight.
Hopefully getting out of here in the morning will be easier with some newly gained local knowledge - even in the before dawn light. For tonight, it will be early to bed again with the bright lights of Manhattan still over 100-miles away.
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Annapolis to Chesapeake City Anchorage, C & D Canal
End Engine Hours: 2085 Fuel used/on board: 5224/575
Distance trip/to Date: 50/13,152
Off to a rough start this morning. The waters on the Bay were churned up with a 3′ chop on the nose and a 16-knot wind on the beam as we passed under the Lane Memorial Bridge heading north. This is not easy to face after a night of revelry in old Annapolis. Fortunately, things continued to get better, both internally and outside as we continued up the Chesapeake and by early afternoon downright mellow again.
Today’s relatively short run of 50-miles in eight hours took us to the beginning of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal built in the days of Ben Franklin. It shortcuts the passage between these to large Bays making it possible to save the miles and time it would take to go the long way around. It is a busy ditch with lots of commercial barge traffic mixed in with we fun boaters all going in both directions. As you might imagine, the tides play a huge role in whipping up a strong current that head east on the flood and west on the ebb.
Not much room to stop along the canal itself so we opt to anchor for the night at Chesapeake City’s small anchorage just a few miles in on the Maryland side. The only other option is a rather pricey marina at mile 8 from the Delaware end. Our choice will make for a good start in the morning with a favorable current to push us through the 12-miles in a hurry.
We set the anchor in about 9-feet of water. After a very skinny water entrance, the cove opens up with room enough for about a half-dozen boats. Tonight we will share it with just two sailboats. I have the dinner roast on the Barbie before the sun sets over the quiet little town and we settle in for a much different night than the one in our most recent past. The contrasts of cruising are truly amazing!
End Engine Hours: 2076 Fuel used/on board: 5204/585
Distance trip/to Date: 67/13,102
We are out of the Potomac River by 0630 and on our way north again to Annapolis which is pretty much a straight run from here. It is a perfect day, smooth water, light wind, and plenty of sunshine. A real day of leisure for the crew with not much to do or worry about.
We do begin to notice that small boat traffic is increasing some as this area we are entering is the yachting capitol of the Chesapeake.
Things get more interesting once you make the final turn towards Annapolis harbor. The water gets shallow, lots of buoys and floats are everywhere, and suddenly boats of all sizes are heading in multiple directions. For our dockage tonight, we made reservations at the Marriott “Marina” which turns out to only be a side tie to the wharf right in front of their waterfront Pusser’s Rum Bar on Ego Alley and not a marina at all. Ego Alley is a long, narrow channel extending from the harbor 100-yards into the heart of downtown Annapolis and is notorious for the power boaters who like to cruise in and out to showoff their boats, nubile girlfriends, or own shirtless physiques.
Once we spot the Marriott dock boys and figure out that this is where they waqnt us to go (they even have cute little signs made saying “Reserved for Wandering Star” all along the dock), we back into the Alley and parallel park WS blocking the view of most of the drinkers at Pusser’s. Not to worry, we are close enough so they can look right through our windows and portholes anyways…life in a fishbowl at its best.
Acting as nonchalant as possible, Jo and I climb off WS around the tables filled with happy hour revelers’ to head into town for a look around, ice cream cones, and to take some photos. We’ve been here many times before when commissioning our first Wandering Star across the Bay so it’s like a coming home of sorts and still one of our favorite boating destinations.
By seven o’clock, the Naval Academy Rock Band is play full tilt in the park next to us on the Port side and the Pusser’s Rummy band is playing on the dock to our Starboard. We are back on board WS trying to have a meaningful conversation with our new friends, Chuck and Andrea, the owners of Selene Annapolis. There are not any newer Selene 43’s in the Chesapeake area so they jumped at the chance to see ours and talk about how much we are enjoying her on our cruise.
Once on our own again, Jo and I have cocktails on the flybridge and enjoy the ciaos around us for an hour before ordering dinner which is delivered, plates, dinnerware and all right to our boat by our friendly bar staff. It’s a full moon night, the bands have died down and peace again has captivated the city by the time the WS crew turns in for some much needed sleep after a very full day of boating Chesapeake style.
End Engine Hours: 2066 Fuel used/on board: 5176/623
Distance trip/to Date: 29/13,035
We spent a long day running some 85-miles of Potomac River today to within 5-miles of its end in the Chesapeake Bay. A first light (5:30AM) departure was necessary and we still did not set the hook in Smith Creek till 5:30 PM after an uneventful day of trawlering down the gradually widening river. With a buoy to buoy course set on the nav system, all the steering responsibility is up to the auto pilot so on watch you just watch out for the occasionally passing go fast power boat cutting too close on the turns. There is not even any commercial traffic to worry about so I was even able to get some waxing done on the topsides gelcoat.
Of course, it is always exciting to go by the live fire area of Quantico Marine Base. Here, as we learned coming up river, we need to hug the Maryland shore in 8-12 feet of water to stay out of the impact area. Range patrol boats standby to be sure no one encroaches on their firing range which is something of a comfort as the bombs are splashing in full view just across the river.
Smith Creek is a small, woodsy, tributary and the last protected place to anchor before going out on the big Bay so we needed to stop here for the night as the Solomons are just too far to get to before dark. Jo has not been feeling well all day with a bit of the flu or cold so once we settle in she’s back to bed and I’m on my own devices for the evening. Nothing too exciting to do 100-yards from shore and no place to go anyways so it will only be some network TV, a quiet dinner and then early to bed with another long, 65-mile day ahead to Annapolis.
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Washington, D.C.
7/2 - 7/6 Thursday to Sunday
We are spending the long holiday weekend with son Kevin and girlfriend Jenn here in Washington. Boats are being cleaned up and decorated, the Capitol Mall is set up full of music and food pavilions, a big parade is planned down Pennsylvania Avenue followed by the traditional evening fireworks we will see from the fly bridge on Wandering Star.
We’ve been busy seeing the sights too including taking in the play “Shear Madness” at the Kennedy Center, having dinner in Georgetown, and meeting boating friends past and present that have gathered at the Capitol Yacht Club. I even managed to work in a day of boat maintenance so even WS looks happier.
While the fireworks on the 4th here were no more spectacular than the fireworks we have at home in Big Bear, there’s just something special about being in the Capitol for the countries birthday celebration. After visiting some new friends, Alan and Kat on their beautiful 65′ Andale for cocktails, we had a up market 4th BBQ on WS of steak & lobster with Kevin & Jenn. Our slip was in the perfect position for watching the fireworks from the fly-bridge (they are launched from the Capitol Mall by Washington’s Monument), sipping on a cold beer, all while listening to a little of Sousa’s Stars & Stripes on the ships system.
Sadly, on Sunday afternoon, Kevin & Jenn left for home in California after a very nice week of having them on board and sharing the DC experience. Later, old cruising friends from the Great Loop in 2000, Gary and Dawn dropped b for happy hour on WS followed by a casual dinner from the locals fish market which is convenient to have next to the CYC (unless the wind shifts). It was great to see them again and we had fun catching up before lights out. Tomorrow it will be a long day as we try to make the entire 100-miles of the Potomac on our way to Annapolis.
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Belmont Bay to Washington, D.C.
7/1 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 38:39.30 N Longitude 077:13.94 W
To: Latitude: 38:31.70 N Longitude: 077:00.83 W
Weather: sunny, rain late Wind: 1900 at 8-12 kts. SEA: River
End Engine Hours: 2054 Fuel used/on board: 5145/652
Distance trip/to Date: 25/12,948
George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon is the morning’s first stop once we have tip-toed out of the shallow Belmont Bay at low tide. We anchor WS just off the main Potomac channel in 8-feet. drop in the dinghy, motor in to George’s dock to tie up and then explore the picturesque estate on foot. Knowledgeable staff, a great job of restoration, and a well laid out tour really helps make it a worthwhile experience for our entire crew.
By early afternoon, we are back on board, dinghy and anchor are up and WS is back on her way up the river. It is only a few more hours till we are under the newly rebuilt Woodrow Wilson Bridge with the Capitol rotunda and Washington Monument visible over the trees ahead. We will spend tonight at the James Creek Marina just south of the mall before moving on to The Capitol Yacht Club by the Jefferson Memorial in the morning.
The rest of the afternoon was devoted to R & R on board and a long walk to check out the neighborhood which ended at the CYC for a beer. Then it was an even longer walk back home for dinner on board, all well before the forecast rain finally hit the area.
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Solomons to Belmont Bay, Potomac River, Va
6/30 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 38:19.96 N Longitude 076:27.52 W
To: Latitude: 38:39.30 N Longitude: 077:13.94 W
Weather: lt overcast Wind: 2250 at 8-12 kts. SEA: River
End Engine Hours: 2050 Fuel used/on board: 5137/661
Distance trip/to Date: 96/12,923
A really early start (0545) this morning. Before most of my crew even were awake enough to realize we were underway, we slipped the dock lines and headed back down the Pax River, out into the Bay to the south, then turned right to head up the Potomac. It’s over a hundred miles to Washington and we want to get as far as possible this first day so that we can coast on into the Capitol tomorrow at leisure.
The weather sure cooperated today with light winds and a mostly clear sky till late afternoon. The river was smooth and calm with only to tidal flow to impede our forward progress late in the afternoon. It flows a substantial 1.5 knots here on the ebb so when it’s against you, 7-knots of speed through the water is cut to a dismal 5.5 knots over the ground.
Once we past the 301 bridge, some 70-mles up river, it occurred to us that there were not many good options for an overnight at anchor or even any marinas in the last 30-miles before DC. It was all we could do to make Belmont Bay and a well off the river marina there before lights out. So it was some 95-miles and 14.5 hours, not to mentions the extra 3-miles to get up into a very shallow side bay to our dockage for the night in our long days run.
Needless to say, it was a short, quiet evening with a light dinner, our crew turned in early. Kei & Jenn are still recovering from there red-eye flight here as well. With only 21-miles to go, we’ll be able to have a much more time for a fun-filled day tomorrow.
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Solomons - Zahniser’s Marina
6/27 - 6/29 Saturday-Monday
Taking a couple of days off here to get Lexie back home, stay over at her house with sister Audrey & brother Don Sunday night in Spotsylvania where Gigi, Brock, sister Michelle and David joined us for dinner.
Early Monday morning we picked up Kevin and Jenn at Dulles Airport before returning to WS in Solomons where we spent the rest of the day settling our new guests in on board, using the pool, and then having a nice sunset dinner at Pier Solomons Crab Grill overlooking the Pax River.
Note: Took on 325 gallons of fuel at $2.40/gallon to bring the total on board back up to 714 gallons.
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Reedville to Solomons, Patuxent River, Md
6/26 Friday
From: Latitude: 37:50.25 N Longitude 076:16.78 W
To: Latitude: 38:19.96 N Longitude: 076:27.52 W
Weather: lt overcast Wind: 2250 at 8-12 kts. SEA: Chesapeake Bay
End Engine Hours: 2035 Fuel used/on board: 5093/389
Distance trip/to Date: 42/12,827
A soft departure at 0700 this morning with my crew still asleep for the last section of this week’s run to Solomon Island, a yachting center just north of the entrance to the Potomac River. Here we will arrange for WS to spend a couple months in the Fall getting some of the more serious cosmetic warranty work done, some of which has been delayed since our departure from Seattle in the winter of ‘07. This weekend we will also change crew exchanging niece Lexie for son Kevin and girlfriend Jenn for the 4th of July cruise up to Washington DC.
Still, calm, and hot best describes our Bay passage today. If fact, it was so still the bugs could fly the 5-miles out to WS and to make pests of themselves. It was 42-miles taking seven hours for the run between Reedville and the Solomon’s. As you head into the harbor, yacht marinas line the shores on both sides for several miles. Washburn’s Boat Yard, our stop for the estimates and overnight, is the next to last facility up this waterway on the starboard side. It is a Selene’s commissioning and warranty center for this area of the east coast.
It took us a couple of moves to finally get WS to our side tie for the evening due to the need to shuffle boats by the yard. Once safe and secure to our dock for the night, Jo went off to pick up the Enterprise car we’ll need for the next few days, while yardboss Eric and I went over the hit list for the needed warranty quote. He’ll contact Brad at Selene Seattle to work out a cost. Then, hopefully, we’ll be able to get the work done at the end of this summer’s cruise.
When Jo returned with our rental car, we headed over to Lexington, at Navy Airstation town across the river for dinner and a movie. Dinner was mediocre at best but the movie, “Proposal” made up for it and was most enjoyable and funny. Back on board by 10PM for desert and bed for all hands.
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Crown Pointe Marina to Reedville, Wicomico River
6/25 Thursday
From: Latitude: 37:15.97 N Longitude 076:25.48 W
To: Latitude: 37:50.25 N Longitude: 076:16.78 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 2100 at12-18 kts. SEA: Chesapeake Bay
End Engine Hours: 2028 Fuel used/on board: 5076/406
Distance trip/to Date: 49/12,785
Sure enough, WS was sitting on the mud in the morning with the -.2′ tide. As our good luck would have it, we were able to wiggle off after some anxious moments of full forward throttle with nothing happening before slowly easing off at last. I was concerned about some other low spots (off the fish factory pier) we had crossed yesterday at high tide when entering the narrow channel to the marina. After talking with some of the local toothless waterman and following the track they used departing before us this morning, we were able to slip over the shoaling (probably pushed through some soft mud) and were able to reach the deep water beyond.
The rest of the morning was uneventful if not downright boring. It is always surprising how little boat traffic there is on the south end of the Bay during the week. Oh sure, there is the occasional fishing boat or crabber but very few pleasure boats or fellow cruisers. We did see the famous menhaden fishing fleet, down to about 8 boats now. Their forefather’s have been working these waters since 1873. The fleet processing factory is near our marina for tonight and I can almost smell the ambiance already. Otherwise, a huge Navy transport that past us within 100-yards off our starboard quarter just before turning into the Wicomico River was the day’s only excitement.
The short course up the channel to Reedville was easy and much more straight forward then yesterday’s shallow water experience. It takes us past a rather large and fragrant menhaden fish processing plant, past the ruins of the old previous 1800’s plant, then it’s a straight shot over to The Crazy Crab, a restaurant/marina, and our stop for the night. As soon as we are secured by the owner Charles, it’s off to explore the village with a nice ice cream store and excellent “Fisherman’s” Museum. This all volunteer built panoramic history of the area is really worth a visit with an intact period home, complete pictorial time line of the events establishing Reedville, model shop with a room size HO train layout, and even an area were they teach the local kids to build their own 8′ dinghy.
Dinner, of course, was at the Crazy Crab since we are tied up literally on the doorstep. We ate outside on the porch and had a great crab feast featuring both King and local Chesapeake crabs and even paid for our night’s dockage right on the meal check. Back on board, it’s an evening of Batman and the “Dark Night” on HBO with niece Lexie.
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Kingsmill Resort to Crown Pointe Marina, York River
6/24 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 37:12.23 N Longitude 076:39.76 W
To: Latitude: 37:15.97 N Longitude: 076:25.48 W
Weather: clear Wind: 1400 at 8-12 kts. SEA: Chesapeake Bay
End Engine Hours: 2020 Fuel used/on board: 5056/426
Distance trip/to Date: 49/12,746
Our newest crew member was up early with her uncle getting WS ready for today’s voyage down the James’s River and out on the Chesapeake Bay. By 0700, she was joined by Aunt Jo and we were on our way. Today’s trek will take us some 49-miles to our overnight stop at the nice sounding, Crown Pointe Marine on the York River.
There was a fair bit of traffic coming up the James as we headed back down towards Norfolk including a couple of Army ferry boats and a tug with tow plus the normal array of fishing boats. Most notable was passing the George H. W. Bush, our newest fast attack aircraft carrier which was at the docks in Newport News after just completing her sea trails. Once around the bend and heading north on the Chesapeake itself, the Bay waters were unusually calm with very light boat traffic for the rest of our passage.
It takes several miles to go up the wide mouth of the York River just to get to Crown Pointe, the first marina in the river. We are only stopping here because it is 1/3rd of the way to the Solomon’s and it’s ad in the cruising guide promised some nice amenities like wifi, free use of a car, movies. shopping, restaurants, and a Boaters US discount. The shock and disappointment was that none of these were true. It was miles to the nearest store etc. and there was no car available. To add to the insult, the slips were too small for WS so the rather blasé young dockhand stuck us on a side tie over very skinny water.
Once we uncovered all of the false advertising, we would have probably left if we were not so far up the channel, distant from anything else, and so tired after the early start and the 8-hours in transit. Making the best of it, Lexie spent a Huck Finn afternoon catching crabs with some old chicken pieces on a string off the back swimstep. We did manage to land about six blues but most were too small even to catch in the net to get on board let alone try and eat. A nice evening meal on board and a rousing game of Rummy Cube rounded off a nice evening anyways.
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Kingsmill Resort
6/22 - 6/23 Monday - Tuesday
We’re going spend a few days here in Kingsmill catching our breath from the run up the ICW. WS is now due for her 2000 hour oil change and a new set of fuel filters. In doing this task, I accidentally disconnected the Fireboy engine room fire suppression system which, of course, keeps the engine from running or even starting again and causes the captain several hours of frustration. I finally had to get some consultation from Cummins in Portsmouth to figure out what went wrong and to help get her started again.
On Monday, thirteen year old niece Lexie arrived just after noon. Her Mom and my sister, Audrey drove her down from Spotsylvania with her grandma and cousin Luca also came along for the ride. After a quick, sightseeing drive around Williamsburg and doing some provisioning at the local market, they all said goodbye and Lexie officially became a part of the Wandering Star crew for the next week as we move the boat up the Chesapeake to Solomon Island, about 200-miles to the north.
Tuesday was Busch Gardens day. This is a major amusement park laid out in countries similar to Epcot in Orlando but in a much more scenic setting. Acres of hills, trees, lakes, streams and waterfalls cover the property with bridges connecting the represented countries. Besides a variety of shops and stage shows built around national themes, the park is best known and loved (by the younger generation) for its wide selection of roller coasters.
Innocent sounding names like Griffon, Alpengeist, and Apollo’s Chariot actually disguise these terror laden, high-speed monsters with hundreds of feet of vertical drop, inverted loops, and hairpin turns, some without even floors to provide some small sense of security. Your captain, lead on by Lexie managed to ride every one of these beasts for an entire day of body abuse to say nothing of frayed nerves and stressed libido.
By evening, a very tired crew was back on board WS after a nice dinner at the Kingsmill Marina Gill. Alvin and the Chipmunks was the movie of the night and it was all I could do to stay awake but too tired to drag my bones to bed after the “fun filled” day at Busch Gardens.
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Hampton Roads to Kingsmill Resort on the James River
6/21 Sunday - Father’s Day
From: Latitude: 37:01.48 N Longitude 076:20.48 W
To: Latitude: 37:12.23 N Longitude: 076:39.76 W
Weather: clear Wind: 3300 at 18-24 kts. SEA: River
It is always tough to spend Father’s Day without your kids close by but I did receive a nice card from Heather who is very busy putting on the annual Big Bear Lake Yacht Club Waterman’s Party (usually our job) and I had a long talk to Kei on the phone in the afternoon - always a treat. The mission today is to move WS up the James River 28-miles to the very fancy Kingsmill Resort Marina. Here for $100.night, we get full use of all resort facilities including, pools, spa, many restaurants, and even free transportation to area attractions including Busch gardens and Colonial Williamsburg.
What should have been an easy ride up a calm river turned ugly early as the wind piped up to 20 to 24 knots with a few gusts hitting even 30. This, of course, blew right down the long fetch of the river kicking up wind waves that hit us right on the nose most of the way. We turned off the river’s narrow ship channel at buoy #40 and headed for the North shore towards the resort’s marina. After some concern over the depth of a spoil area, a fellow boater assured us that he crosses it all the time without a problem. It did turn out to be 14′ deep all the way to the entrance. Once behind the wooded breakwater, it was all our thrusters and crew could do to get us backed into the slip and secured against the nasty wind.
However, by late afternoon, the wind died down, the sun came out and soon Jo & I were enjoying Father’s Day with a view from the peaceful flybridge. We’ll stay put for a few days to enjoy the amenities of the area. Tomorrow, our young niece Lexie will join our crew for the next week as we move WS further north on the Chesapeake.
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Deep Creek to Hampton Roads, Chesapeake Bay
6/20 Saturday
From: Latitude: 36:44.88 N Longitude 076:20.28 W
To: Latitude 37:01.48: N Longitude: 076:20.48 W
Weather: Partly cloudy Wind: 2300 at 8-14 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 2008 Fuel used/on board: 5027/455
Distance trip/to Date: 21/12,669
It was a nice quiet night with only the occasionally curious jet skier cruising by to break up the absolute quiet of the swamp. Hard to believe that only two weeks and 700-miles ago we were still in Florida and here we are about to arrive at the Chesapeake Bay. We’ll spend a couple of good weeks exploring the Bay before we move on to New York City.
There is only a few miles to go this morning before we are out of Deep Creek and back into the main ICW which here is also the deep water port for Norfolk and Portsmouth. Leaving the creek, you turn left, pass under several railroad bridges that are usually left open, call for an opening of one last bascule bridge, go through a second opening bridge that was under repairs so is always open and we are free of the Intercoastal Waterway at last! I like cruising by the busy port of Norfolk docks as they are mostly Navy shipyards and much of our Atlantic Fleet seems to be here in various stages of refit.
A 300 boat sailing race is just getting started as we pass the Portsmouth Yacht Club. The racing fleet soon fills the entire channel shore to shore for the next several miles. Once you think you are finally clear of the racers, they turn around the downwind mark and all start coming at you, back to the starting line. Of course, mixed in with this ciaos, the normal big ship traffic is trying to get into or out of the ports as well as Navy ships under armed Coast Guard escort with a 500-yard security zone around them are all trying to force everyone out of the way so they can pass. What fun!
Once clear of it all, it is only a couple of miles north across the bay to Hampton Roads’ buoyed entrance and then up stream to our destination for tonight, the Hampton City Docks. It is still before lunch so as soon as we are backed in and tied up, Jo & I are off the explore town and find some lunch. Hampton Roads is a nice town that has tried hard to reinvent itself as a tourist destination but seems to be struggling from lack of interest.
We’re in luck though; a street fair is planned for tonight so after a rest we are back downtown to see the festivities. Live bands, beer for sale on the streets, and more Great Danes (a local animal rescue project) than I’ve ever seen in one place are the evening’s main attractions. We find a likely pub, have a decadent meal, a couple of local beers and are ready to call it a night just as the street party seems to be finally getting started. Feels good to just go home to WS…hope we’re not getting old.
End Engine Hours: 2005 Fuel used/on board: 5021/461
Distance trip/to Date: 35/12,648
We sort of knew going into the Dismal Swamp that it would be a long, slow day. To make the first 0730 opening of the Elizabeth City Bridge, we needed to cast off by 0715. Then, as we progressed up the ever narrowing channel, I soon was reduced to hand steering as nothing automated could keep is in the winding, Pasquotank River. At mile-37, 13-miles up stream from EC, Turner’s Cut of the Dismal Swamp Canal begins. By now it is just 50-feet wide and 6 to 9 feet deep if we are lucky.
This is the oldest manmade waterway in the US, its hand digging by slaves began in 1793 and was completed in 1804. As you might imagine, it has had a tortuous history surviving the civil war, various bankruptcies, and the politics of being in two states, Virginia and North Carolina. Edgar Allen Poe wrote “The Raven” while staying at the canal’s state-line hotel popular in his day for marriages, duels, and with criminals escaping the law in either state.
While the controlling depth (maximum draft for passage) is six feet, WS never hit bottom but she did bump her way over dozens of logs that, when finally saturated with water, have found their way to the bottom. Nothing gets the old heart racing like a resounding bump on the keel as you slide over yet another snag, hopefully without it hitting the prop. This drama makes for a very long day indeed.
Added to the whole canal experience is the South Mills Lock that raises you 8′ up into a fresh water fed section that lasts for some 23-miles before dropping you the same at the Deep Creek Lock just 10-miles for Norfolk. The trick here is that the locks only operate on a very limited schedule so unless you want to spend the night up on the Swamp, you need to maintain a solid 5-knots to make the second locks last opening at 3:30 PM.
Once we are through Deep Creek, after a tiring day of thumping bottom and hand steering, here for the night so with the blessing of the friendly lockmaster Robert, we drop anchor in the center of his 10 foot deep channel just outside this last lock. Here we can still enjoy the quiet beauty of the Swamp for the evening and be on our way early for the morning run and dozen lift bridges that still await us before Norfolk.
End Engine Hours: 1998 Fuel used/on board: 5009/473
Distance trip/to Date: 33/12,580
We just used our 5,000th gallon of diesel fuel since we began our trip 12, 500 mile ago…still getting 2.5 miles/gallon. Even at an average cost of $2.00/gallon we’ve only spent $5,000 a year on fuel - still a bargain when you consider we are moving our home right along with us and seeing this incrediable part of the world in the process.
We were up and away early to get as far as possible across the often nasty Albemarle Sound before the wind picks up again. We don’t need to wait long this morning for our first obstacle, a shoaling problem around the day markers just off Long Shoal Point. The shallow water has moved into the waterway and encroached on the Red #8 day marker instead of the Green #7 as shown on the charts.
Most trouble is being caused by a problem with the ICW preferred track as displayed on the electronic charts. It now goes right over the new shoal and, you guessed it, any one following the track precisely goes hard aground. Sure enough there was a sailboat stuck fast in the mud already this morning as we passed this area. Local knowledge says that if you just follow directly between Green #9 and Green #7, you will stay in 12-feet of water the whole way.
Once past this excitement, you come to the fork in the waterway with the choice of two ways to get to Norfolk. To the left is the Great Dismal Swamp adventure past Elizabeth City and the other direction is the normal ICW trek up through the North Carolina Cut, passed Coinjock, and eventually into the Albemarle-Chesapeake Canal leading to Norfolk. Both routes are about 50-miles long. Since we did the “normal” route in 2001 it will be the Dismal Swamp for us and the left turn for this trip.
The last 20-miles of the sound, while only 10 to 20-feet deep most of the way, is covered with crab traps so this keeps you busy on what should normally be an easy crossing. After the Sound ends, you will start up the Pasquotank River. Soon we were sliding by a huge Coast Guard Air Base and even a blimp hanger left over from World War II before finally getting to our destination, Elizabeth City.
Elizabeth City in known for it’s hospitality to boaters. To encourage tourism, the city fathers have provided free dockage for all boaters along the main city waterfront. By noon, we were backed into the first convenient pole slip right on Mariners Park and ready to explore our new city. We walked the historic walk through the quaint town, visited the heritage museum, and had a free van pick us up for a grocery run. Later, we tried something new to us, dinner while watching a movie. It is a converted movie theater with 30 dining tables instead of theater seats. Each table has a phone for calling in your order and you dine while watching a first run movie…in our case we saw “Hangover” and it was a laugh riot, sometimes crude guy film. Then Jo and I walked back to WS just before a torrential downpour that, I’m sure, cleaned the last of the salt off our girl as we head into more protected waters.
End Engine Hours: 1992 Fuel used/on board: 4998/484
Distance trip/to Date: 46/12,580
Our challenge today is to navigate without our electronic charts. Of course, we still have the backup paper charts so doing it the old fashioned way will not be a problem just inconvenient. Your skipper did not realize the C-Map charts for the Nobeltec do not cover all the way to the Chesapeake as would seem logical but instead cleverly, for increased sales perhaps, end at Cape Hatteras or around ICW mile-100.
The good news is that the rest of the charts are all furnished on the CD’s with the original Admiral software so you need only to have an internet or a phone to purchase the “Unlock” codes to access them. The bad news is that they are very pricey at $499 for each section which only covers us for the next leg to Long Island Sound before we need another $499 to get the charts for the rest of the way to Maine. You can rent them at $150 for 4-months which works if you don’t plan on spending longer time in the area.
Much of the early morning was spent in the narrow Alligator-Pango River Canal so navigation was all line of sight in the narrow channel. In open water, our journey up the wide open Alligator River was still easy using the visual day markers of the ICW just like boaters did for the hundred years before GPS driven chart systems. Between mile-102 and our destination for today at mile-84, I was able to place waypoints on the day-board markers using coordinates given in the chart book. Then it is just a matter of connecting the dots (waypoints) to get there.
Our stop for tonight is literarily in the middle of no where, 12-miles from the nearest town. As soon as you come through the last highway swing bridge of the day, it’s a hard left into the marina which is actually a truck stop gas station on a main highway. Alligator River Marina is renowned for having the lowest fuel prices on the ICW so most experienced boaters can’t resist the bargain they get by stopping here and it is convenient for starting the next leg across the wide and exposed Albemarle Sound in the morning.
Friends from the FUBAR (the boat rally from San Diego to La Paz last year) on Annaruth, Jake and Suzanna were already secure at the dock when we arrived. They were quick to invite us over for Happy Hour once WS was snuggled in for the night. With no where else to go, it was back to our boat for the evening after a very nice visit with them. It is so different to go to sleep to the sounds of trucks on the highway after months of just the quiet rustle of wind and water.
End Engine Hours: 1986 Fuel used/on board: 4981/500
Distance trip/to Date: 42/12,534
This morning’s fare took us from ICW mile 182 at Oriental to mile 160 up the big and broad Neuse River. Then a narrow canal and a couple of creeks bring us out on the Pungo River where we go to mile-136 and the Belhaven turn-off. It was a day of nice, rustic scenery only marred by higher winds and waves then we would like on the open stretches and a consistent sprinkling of rain most of the morning.
The River Forest Marina and Shipyard at Belhaven is a bit past it’s prime but still serviceable and a pleasant place to stop before heading through the long Alligator-Pungo River canal tomorrow. Not much in the town either, which is an easy walk from the marina and even lacks a grocery store. The off and on rainy afternoon kept us from wandering too far and soon we were back on board catching up on computer chores.
We had dinner on board rather than at the small but pleasant grill in the old hotel on the marina grounds where we would have been the lonely only guests.
End Engine Hours: 1979 Fuel used/on board: 4966/515
Distance trip/to Date: 23/12,492
Brother Raymond was at the helm for most of today’s short, 23-mile run to the small shrimping town of Oriental. The waterway this morning took us past the marina with the high and dry Dreamweaver just off the ICW. Wandering Star managed a rather forlorn farewell toot salute for her old friend of so many, many miles as we past her by.
Our 9AM departure allowed us to make this next port in time for lunch and a nice afternoon walk around the very quiet, two street village. The marine store and a much sought after ice cream shop where about the only establishments open worth mentioning. All to soon, Ray and Kathy had to depart with their truck and trailer to drive back to Beaufort and pick up their other car they deposited there for the cruise before heading back home to Raleigh.
Jo and I spent the rest of the day doing some boat chores and laundry before we were joined again by Steve and Bard as they docked their boat in the next slip. This lead to an hour of trading tours and comparing notes of each others 43’s which is always a favorite activity of boaters. Later, just the WS crew had a pleasant late dinner in the marina’s handy restaurant before retiring for the evening.
End Engine Hours: 1975 Fuel used/on board: 4958/524
Distance trip/to Date: 58/12,469
Today was about heading to our weekend destination where we will pickup Brother Ray and wife Kathy for a couple of day of fun together. The 58-mile run is just more of the same ICW except with a remarkable increase in small boat traffic enjoying the perfect weekend weather. By the time we hit the outskirts of Beaufort, this became complete pandemonium. Hundreds of small, center-console fishing boats, the local favorite, four and five abreast were heading in both directions on the waterway. It is nice being in the biggest, slowest boat here as the rest had to give way so we could stay our course.
Beaufort Docks was waiting for us with a nice slip right in front of the Dockyard Restaurant, one of the favorite night spots for folk music for the town’s visitors. Once secure and her salt hosed off, WS was ready for company. Soon after Ray and Kathy arrived, Ken and Dottie stopped by in their fully loaded U-haul with everything but the “California or Bust” sign needed for their cross-country trip home. Dreamweaver is on the hard just up the river from here where she will wait patiently for their return.
After saying our final goodbyes to D&K, our expanded crew spent a great evening just walking the waterfront of Beaufort. We checked out every eatery in town before making a decisive decision to have a great meal at the waterside “Front Street Grill” before returning to WS. Minutes later, after dinner cordials in hand, we were all on the top deck where we listened to the bluegrass music by tonight’s local band on the nearby porch.
Sunday morning was at leisure followed by brunch at the landmark “Grocery” with an afternoon of shopping along the docks. Steve and Barb on our sister ship, a Solo 43′ “Maerin” pulled into our marina just after naptime. Solo’s were the original name of our design before the molds were sold to Jet-tern and the name changed to Selene. Otherwise it is the identical boat and they have number 4 to our #23. They were assigned to the slip directly across from WS and by 5PM had joined us for a cocktail party that was already in full swing. After they departed, the evening continued with a sumptuous dinner on board, and a late, unrequited search for ice cream in the now sleeping town of Beaufort..
End Engine Hours: 1967 Fuel used/on board: 4936/545
Distance trip/to Date: 69/12,411
A nice long, 69-mile day on the ICW. Weighed anchor at 0600 to make the 1st of three bridge openings we will need today. Unfortunately, none operate on demand which means we must carefully plan our arrival at each bridge so it is exactly on the hour or wait until the next opening up to an hour later. Our first bridge is the oldest design left on the waterway, a floating pontoon monstrosity which also is the slowest opening and very seemingly very cumbersome to operate. At extreme low tides, it can’t open at all. Good to see that they are finally building a new, 65′ high, fixed bridge next door so this relic can finally be retired.
The scenery through out the day is a nice mix of beautiful homes, meandering rivers, and lots of fellow travelers…jet skies, tubers, joy riders, and fisherman, as the pace of the water sports begins to pick up in earnest for the first real weekend of summer. We manage to time our second bridge, an older swing bridge, to arrive just minutes before the scheduled opening. To make it happen, we had to start an hour ahead and average our speed up to an unheard of 9.2 knots with the help of a flooding tide much of the way.
We’re early for our last bridge late in the day and only an hour from our destination for the night, Harbor Village Marina. Ironically and quite by coincidence, we stayed here nine years ago with WSI too. We should have remembered that while it is located in a nicer, high-end residential community, it’s miles away from even a decent restaurant . So after a nice long walk and some boat chores, it is dinner on board again and another quiet evening. Fear not fellow partiers, things are sure to pickup again soon.
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Georgetown to anchor in the Calibash River, mile 342
6/11 Thursday
From: Latitude: 33:21.80 N Longitude 075:11.91 W
To: Latitude: 37:52.38 N Longitude: 078:34.19 W
Weather: partly cloudy - some sun Wind: 1450 at 8-12 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1956 Fuel used/on board: 4911/560
Distance trip/to Date: 55/12,342
Up and away early again but this time with our friends on Kasekuchen right behind us as they move on today to Myrtle Beach. The ICW is a lot more interesting in this section with lots of beautiful homes and tourist facilities along the stretch past Myrtle Beach and the town of Little River.
Just after lunchtime, we bid our friends farewell as they turned off at the posh Marina at Grand Dunes to spend some a couple of weeks there with visiting friends. Soon after their departure, the ICW gets very interesting between miles 347 and 365 as you must go through a section called “The Rockpile.” Here the channel was cut through solid rock so it is very narrow and unforgiving should you stray at all from dead-center of the slender waterway. It is still high tide for us through this section so depth was not a problem just hoping you don’t need to pass a larger boat coming the other way keeps your anxiety level at the top of the chart. Once through this, the worst of the ICW is behind…or so we thought.
Hoping to get closer to the North Carolina/South Carolina boarder before calling it a day, WS continued on till mile 342 (in case I didn’t mention it before, ICW statue miles are measured starting with mile1 in Norfolk, Virginia and ending with mile 1095 in Miami). Our chart shows a designated anchorage here just a short way north on the Calabash River. What it failed to show and was not made clear in the cruising guide was that the channel markers for this stretch of river are the opposite of the ICW with red back on the right instead of the left as it is in the rest of Intercoastal Waterway heading north.
Well before we realized what was happening or could reverse course, WS was hard aground. We were literarily stuck in the mud in 4.5 feet of water with the tide still rapidly departing. No amount of forward or reverse throttle could get us off so instead of just waiting for the tide to come back in a couple of hours and hoping it floats us off, not further aground, we hailed a passing SeaTow tug (most boaters belong to this service - it’s like AAA for boaters) and our new best friend Brian spent the better part of the next hour using his prop wash to get WS unstuck and off the infernal sand bar. Once back afloat, he was nice enough to show us how we should have gone up the river and soon we were comfortably swinging at anchor with only our pride the worse for wear
We’ll hopefully spend a quiet night here so we can up anchor at first light and continue on to North Carolina tomorrow morning.
###
Charleston to Georgetown
6/10 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 32:46.65 N Longitude 075:57.13 W
To: Latitude: 33:21.80 N Longitude: 075:11.91 W
Weather: partly cloudy - some sun Wind: 1400 at 8-12 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1947 Fuel used/on board: 4893/578
Distance trip/to Date: 57/12,287
Up early to squeeze in an early morning bike ride around Charleston’s downtown while Jo took a nice long walk. We were still off the dock and on our way across Charleston Harbor before 8:00 AM.
Once back in the ICW, we immediately had our first bridge encounter but at 32′ off the water, we could sneak under it without an opening (we are 30′ tall). From then on it was mostly a rather featureless day on the Intercoastal…mile after mile of either swamp land or thick forests right to the water’s edge. This section is mostly a national wildlife preserve but other than seeing an occasional heron, I’m not sure what we are preserving.
It was late afternoon by the time we finally pulled out on Winyah Bay and headed up the several last miles to Georgetown. We almost decided to anchor out in the bay instead of heading up the channel to the town itself but were very glad we didn’t! As we made the final turn toward our marina, there sat our good friends, Bob & Cheryl on Kasekuchen on an end tie dock. We hadn’t expected to see them till tomorrow in Myrtle Beach. It didn’t take but a few minutes for Cheryl to show up on board with her famous, hot from the oven, Passage Cookies and to invite us over for cocktails and dinner.
A great dinner it was too! Bob out did himself whipping up the best parmesan crusted fresh grouper in a lemon caper sauce I’ve ever had finished with a homemade cherry pie…heaven! All followed by dancing on the aft deck, needless-to-say it was a tired but very full happy WS crew that walked the mile back to our marina and a good nights rest.
The evenings last dance…
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Brunswick to Charleston, South Carolina
6/8 - 6/9 Monday to Tuesday - overnight passage
From: Latitude: 31:9.48 N Longitude 081:29.99 W
To: Latitude: 32:46.65 N Longitude: 075:57.13 W
Weather: partly cloudy - some sun Wind: 1800 at 8-12 kts. SEA: 2
End Engine Hours: 1937 Fuel used/on board: 4871/276+324=600
Distance trip/to Date: 155/12,232
Okay, so we cheated and snuck put to do yet another “overnight passage” on the high seas. Well, hardly high in this part of the Atlantic where depths 20-miles offshore only reach down about 40-50 feet. True, the benign weather, soft wind, and ripples for waves are also hard to resist after the months of bashing north through all manner of crumby conditions we had in the southern Caribbean. Our true motivation this time however, was speed. Much as we love meandering up the ICW, we needed to really make some time these two weeks if the rest of our summer plans are going to all fit into three short months.
Frankly, it was nice to spend a rather leisurely day out on the salt again. With WS happily steering herself, one only has to glance up occasionally from a novel or Sudoku to be sure all systems are still functioning well and nothing bigger than us was in our immediate future. The gentle south easterly swell carefully rocked WS so as not to disturb her occupants from their quiet repose as well. Nighttime brought the promise of a beautiful night only a full moon can deliver. With little or no big boat traffic the dark hours radar watching proved no harder then the daylight’s hours of rest and relaxation.
I like to spend my night watches with rousing episodes from the TV series “24.” Jack and company keep me wide awake, adrenalin pumping, and make the time pass quickly all in one. Tonight was so perfect, I just enjoyed the quiet and read my current book. Jo took the 9 to 1 watch so I got some good rest and then stayed awake till we were secure at the Charleston City Marina in downtown. They put us out on the mega yacht dock so WS is in some big company. We also needed to put on 324 gallons of fuel at $2.45/gal. - the first fuel since leaving San Juan, Puerto Rico - not bad!
The rest of the day was spent at leisure enjoying Charleston, one our favorite cities on the whole East Coast. We started with a great seafood lunch at “The Landing” one of the better locals spots at the end of Market Street. After that I was able to go on board the USS Freedom, our Navies’ newest fast attack frigate. At 300, long this jet turbine driven ship can do 47-knots from a standstill in 5 minutes and still turn in her own length. All systems on board are fully automated cutting the normal frigate crew size down from 300 to 40 officers and enlisted men and it only takes three of these to run the entire ship at sea. Fully equipped with the latest and greatest in anti sub and anti aircraft gear she and eventually 55 sister ships with take over the duties of guarding our aircraft carriers.
Jo and I spent the afternoon on board followed by a nice BBQ dinner and a movie on the Direct TV. Tomorrow, it will be back on the ICW early heading for Georgetown .
###
Jacksonville to Fernandino Beach (Florida/Georgia Boarder)
6/6 Saturday
From: Latitude: 30:16.61 N Longitude:081:42.83 W
To: Latitude: 30: 40.18 N Longitude:081:28.17 W
Weather: CTS (chance of thunder storms)- rain Wind: 2000 at 10-15 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1908 Fuel used/on board: 4814/360
Distance trip/to Date: 40/12,033
Back on the water again…
Out of our slip at the posh Marina at Ortega Landing and escaped the clutches of Ortega River and by 10:30. We got a late start since Jo did not get back from the west coast until 9:30 last night and we needed to turn the rental car back this morning before we could leave.
Spotted sunshine this morning right up until we cast off, then it proceeded to go down hill with rain and threatening thunder storms much of the afternoon. Today’s objective is to make the long, 20-mile passage back down the St. Johns River and pick up the ICW north just a mile or two from the rivers opening on the ocean. Making it almost to the Georgia boarder was an added bonus but not without some high anxiety. The waterway is very shallow in many places as it makes the long sweep around Amelia Island.
We bumped the bottom about a half dozen times including one patch were we had to literally plow our way through the soft mud for 10 or 15 yards. In these spots, you just need the courage to push the throttle down and hope for the best You either get good and stuck then delayed until the next high tide or you get through it and keep on truck’ in.
Happily, we got through it and made a total of 40-miles to the boarder before calling it a day at 1630 and grabbing a mooring buoy off the town of Fernandino Beach for the night. We would have preferred to anchor but the current is too swift, the channel is narrow, the wind is blowing 20+ knots and we want a good night’s sleep for an early start in the morning. We tried on several different moorings to find one that did not swing too close to our neighbors in the contrary wind and current but finally one that worked and settled in for the night,
Some work on the internet, a good BBQ dinner, some Comedy Central and Jo and I are ready to call it a day…only 718-miles to go till we’re back in the Chesapeake!
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Ortega Landing Marina, Jacksonville
5/15 - 6/5
Time out…Son Kevin is graduating from College! His proud parents are flying home to California to duly celebrate his commencement from Chapman University on the 23rd of May with a degree in Creative Writing. He plans on becoming a screen play writer, a passion he developed as a young, captive lad on our previous year-long voyage around the Great Loop in 2000/2001.
I was back on board doing boat chores by the end of May and spent a week on my own just getting things done while Jo did the same for our Las Vegas home. Finally, by June 5trh, we are together again, refreshed and renewed and ready to continue our long journey North.
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St Augustine to Jacksonville
5/14 Thursday
From: Latitude: 29:53.52 N Longitude:081:48.55 W
To: Latitude: 30:16.61 N Longitude:081:42.83 W
Weather: cloudy and cool Wind: 01250 at 10-15 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1902 Fuel used/on board: 4801/372
Distance trip/to Date: 55/11,993
We hit the ground running this morning. If we are to cover the 55-miles to Jacksonville in one day, we need to get out on the ICW early…especially with the restricted openings of the Lion’s Bridge due to morning traffic and construction. So by 0630, we had called the bridge tender for a 0700 opening and were on our way at first light. Weather calls for possible isolated thunderstorms later in the afternoon too so we would like to be safe in a slip before they start up as well.
The ICW continues to wind its way up the coast looking much the same these past hundred miles. Narrow isolated stretches followed by miles of modest waterfront homes, each with its own boat suspended on davits from the family dock followed by wide, natural lagoons with all manner of wild life everywhere. We have seen lots of dolphins and even a few Manatees along this section of waterway and more than our share of deerflies that get so thick we need to keep WS closed up for hours at a time.
By 1:00 PM it is starting to get dark ahead and Cumulonimbus clouds continue to build on the western horizon as we make the turn up the St John’s River toward Jacksonville. The bad news was that the marina we selected and made reservations thinking it was a safe place to leave WS for the trip home turned out to be anything but safe. After a very difficult time and several attempts to back WS into a crosswind challenged dock, your captain was not very happy with the new accomodations. Short rickety docks, inadequate and poorly positioned bow pilings, few cleats and, worst of all, miles of exposure to the wind and waves blowing in off the St John’s River made the marina very marginal even for an overnight stop let along two weeks without us on board.
In less than an hour, we were on our way again up river as we frantically called every marina we could find for a better place to leave WS. We felt bad deserting our new friends on Full Circle at the unsafe marina since we were indirectly responsible for them staying there too but a skipper must do what is best for his boat. Finally, we were able to make arrangements with Ortega Landing to stay at their new marina past Jacksonville just up the Ortega River. The only problems now are the isolated thunderstorm forecast has turned into severe storm warnings for the Jacksonville area…and already we could here them rumbling off in the distance and the chart we need for the upper St. John River just ran out of its detail on my chart plotter.
So basically flying blind, we had to make the run across the wide shallow bay past Jacksonville with no idea where we were going or what lies underwater only by reading directions from a paragraph in the cruising guide. Next we had to get the Ortega River Bridge to open up so we could get through and finally make the dash to find our marina and back into our assigned slip on D dock just as the full fury of the storm was about to hit. Definitely an SPM (sweaty palms moment)!
Once safe and snug, we relaxed while waited out the storm on WS over a couple of beers and two fingers of rum before checking into the marina office and finally settling down for a simple night of BBQ chicken and the last regular episodes of Survivor.
###
Palm Court Marina to St Augustine
5/13 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 29:34.63 N Longitude:081:11.62 W
To: Latitude: 29:53.52 N Longitude:081:48.55 W
Weather: cloudy and cool Wind: 01250 at 10-15 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1893 Fuel used/on board: 4781/388
Distance trip/to Date: 22/11,938
We had a much enjoyed leisurely morning. Jo was able to take a long walk and I dusted off the old folding bike and did about 5-miles along the ICW we had just come up yesterday. By 0930 we were back on board and ready for today’s short, 22-mile ride to St Augustine. This is the birthplace of our first Wandering Star and we had visited the Mainship factory here back in 1999 and again when we came through on our great loop cruise in 2001.
St Augustine is a great tourist town filled with gift shops, historic buildings, museums, and good restaurants so by 1:00 we were tied up to the city dock right down town so we could walk to it all. And walk we did! Up and down all the old streets, past the oldest school house in America, the old fort, art galleries and, of course dozens of t-shirt and souvenir shops. The real find was a gallery of world artifacts an ex-school teacher and his wife had gathers to sell from all over the far-east. Here I found the small, grieving Buddha statue make of carved coconut wood I had been looking for since I saw a full size one of teak in an ashram style beach resort in St Maarten.
Part of the afternoon’s mission was to find a great restaurant for our dinner later. Out of many candidates, we returned later to ‘The Tasting Room” which specialized in fine wines and great Spanish and international appetizers meant to be shared. It was a memorable two-hour dinner of many flavors and inspired wines to complement each course. A happy and satisfied crew walked the mile back through now empty St Augustine streets to our less than quiet marina.
We soon figured out that the bridge construction to remake the Bridge of the Lions that crosses the river right behind Wandering Star’s slip goes on 24-hours a day. Thankfully, running the stateroom air-conditioning masked all sounds for sleeping so it was still a peaceful night for tomorrow’s early morning departure.
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Titusville Marina to Palm Court Resort Marina
5/12 Tuesday
From: Latitude: 28:37.26 N Longitude: 080:48.31 W
To: Latitude: 29:34.63 N Longitude:081:11.62 W
Weather: cloudy and cool Wind: 0500 at 15-20 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1890 Fuel used/on board: 4774/395
Distance trip/to Date: 65/11,916
A long day on the water is planned for today. We got an early start despite all the fun of yesterday’s “launch” party. I was up and had WS ready to cast off by 0700. In fact, Les was even up to do the dockline honors one last time as he and Rose head back to Georgia by car today and then mothball Voyager before they head home to Wisconsin for the summer. It is doubtful we will be together again, as boaters, in the foreseeable future.
It has been an incredible experience traveling together with Les & Rose these past two years…the many memories and adventures we have shared have made us family and it is hard to finally say goodbye. One can only hope that it is only a matter of time and circumstance till we’re all together again.
I wanted Jo to be able to sleep in a bit but, like a good mate, she was up in a flash as soon as she felt the engine start. We had planned to just go the 47-miles to Daytona today but we made such good time, thanks to good currents and few bridges, we didn’t even stop there but just pressed on another 20-miles to Palm Court Resort. This quaint marina is just a small turnoff on a long and narrow stretch of the ICW with no place even to anchor and about half-way between Daytona and St Augustine. We pulled in to our slip just before closing at 1645, tied up quickly, and took off for a nice walk to stretch our legs after 10-hours behind the wheel.
Back on board, it was a dinner of BBQ steak, a quiet night of TV, and early to bed for a very tired crew. Since we did so well with a 65-mile run today, we can afford to take it a little easier tomorrow with a more leisurely departure. I might even get the old bike and go for a early morning ride for the first time in months,
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Titusville Marina - Kennedy Space Center
5/11 Monday - Atlantis launch day
The gang was all here for the big day. Bob & Cheryl on Kasekuchen, Les & Rose from Voyager, Dot & Ken on Dreamweaver, Tim & Jan on Full Circle were on hand at the marina nearest the Canaveral Space Port for our celebration to mark the launch of the shuttle Atlantis’ mission to rescue the Hubble Telescope. Actually Tim & Jan took Full Circle out to the ICW marker 38 where they can see the actual launch pad since they can fit under the now, pre-launched closed bridges over the waterway. Dot & Ken are anchored out in front of our marina and will join us for the watch on board.
While the launch itself was great and exciting, it was not as spectacular as the one we watched on WSI in 2001. The were just too many clouds in the way that obscured much of the ascent. We still had the full effect of the ground (water) shaking power and roar of the rockets even from 13 miles away. As soon as the shuttle was out of sight, the party really got started on Kasekuchen as the champagne corks popped and the snacks were unveiled. Girls on the top deck and guys on the rear cockpit partied on till well past dark and a great time was had by all.
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Cocoa Village to Titusville Marina
5/10 Sunday - Mom’s Day
From: Latitude: 2828:21.49 N Longitude: 080:43.55 W
To: Latitude: 28:37.26 N Longitude: 080:48.31 W
Weather: sunny, hot Wind: 1350 at 3-5 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1880 Fuel used/on board: 4751/418
Distance trip/to Date: 17/11,851
My crew was a little slower getting going this morning but we did have our traditional omelet breakfast and still were on the water by 0900. It is still and hot today - even hotter already than yesterday for the short run up to Titusville. Other boats are already heading that way for the coming launch of Atlantis tomorrow. There are just two bridges to open including our first old style swing bridge this trip, the Max Brewer at Titusville.
The marina is just off the ICW on the left once we are past the bridge and we pull into our assigned dock at the end tie right behind Kasekuchen stern to stern. Once secure, we greet our old friends again (Les & Rose are on board K for the launch too), then Jo gets our Budget car while I check in and we are soon loaded up, on our way back to Melbourne Beach. The plan is to take Lorelei and Conrad back home from their cruise with us then spend the afternoon with them there and have dinner before coming back to WS. Conrad is an excellent chief and the Osso Bocco is awesome! After an impromptu stop at Cold-Stones, It is very late by the time Jo & I return to the marina for bed.
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Melbourne Beach to Cocoa Village
5/9 Saturday
From: Latitude: 28:04.67 N Longitude: 080:36.06 W
To: Latitude: 28:21.49 N Longitude: 080:43.55 W
Weather: sunny, hot Wind: 1350 at 3-5 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1877 Fuel used/on board: 4745/424
Distance trip/to Date: 19/11,834
While I thought this morning would be a good morning for our guests to sleep in, both were up soon after first light so the day started early. After a light breakfast, we were back on the waterway by 0800 heading north just the 19-miles to Cocoa Village for lunch, some shopping, and watching some of the Players Golf Tournament on the satellite.
It is hot today and the outside air is virtually still - a first in longer than I can remember. Once settled into a slip at the newly refurbished Cocoa Village Marina, it was batten down all the hatches and turn on the air conditioning to make the coming afternoon heat more bearable. A nice walk through town to the local pub, a couple of pints of Guinness with lunch and then Conrad and I were heading back on board for naps and TV as planned while the ladies took their time doing some shopping in the now sweltering heat.
Tonight’s dinner was on board featured a homemade Bermuda Bouillabaisse with shrimp, mussels, lobster, and Mahi Mahi from a recipe collected by fellow Caribbean boater Morgan Freeman. It was delicious! The evening passed learning a new bridge-like card game from our guests called Eucher and a good time was had by all.
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Vero Beach to Melbourne Beach
5/8 Friday
From: Latitude: 27:39.49 N Longitude: 080:32.22 W
To: Latitude: 28:04.67 N Longitude: 080:36.06 W
Weather: mostly sunny Wind: 1100 at 10-12 kts. SEA: ICW
End Engine Hours: 1874 Fuel used/on board: 4737/431
Distance trip/to Date: 29/11,815
Sorry if these days on the ICW are not as exciting as the Caribbean but in fact, we prefer to keep them that way. Here the biggest two dangers are running aground or being run into by someone else…neither one are very good options. The center channel water is shallow with an average depth of around 10′ and shoaling quickly to 3-4′ or less on both sides of the day board waterway markers. If you pay attention and stay in the center you should be alright with only the occasional high spot that has silted in to give you concern.
Passing boats are another matter entirely. Most pass carefully and with concern for the damage their wake can cause by violently rocking your boat from side to side but there are always a few that roar by you at 20-30 knots and knock on your beam. Some pass as close as a boat length in the narrow stretches of the channel. This causes a corkscrew response as our boat struggle to maintain course as it passes over their mountainous bow wave. The danger is that the bow of your boat can actually swing into the stern of the passing boat in this out of control process. We had one such close encounter today and just missed the swim step of a passing boat by only several feet. Not much you can do except pull back on the throttle quickly to hope you avoid a collision.
Our quests, Conrad and Lorelei arrived this morning from their home in Melbourne Beach at 0900 and by 1000 we were off the dock and on our way the short haul to Melbourne Beach. . Today was another 40-miles of narrow waterways followed by wide, lake-like bays. Only a few bridges on the way, all over 60′ clearance, so no problem there with WS only being 30′ tall. The day started out hot, in the 90’s, but gradually cooled as we moved north to a pleasant 81-degrees.
It was around 1430 when we pulled off the ICW at day-marker number “8″ and made the turn for Melbourne Harbor. We called ahead on the VHF so Dockmaster Dave was waiting on the assigned dock to greet us. After squeaking bow first into a very tight slip (6″ to spare on each side), it was discovered the dock was not long enough to reach the aft railing so we could get off WS. So it was back out again turn WS completely around and do it all again, stern first this time.
Once settled in our slip, the boys watched some golf and news on the satellite TV while the ladies took a long walk around greater downtown Melbourne. Evening dinner was at the Chart House of the same chain we always enjoy in California. Food was great but in its corporate evolution it has lost what was once the greatest salad bar to be found anywhere. The surburb yet reasonable priced wine selection more that made up for the change and there Ceasar salid with anchovies still is one of the best.
End Engine Hours: 1869Fuel used/on board: 4727/442
Distance trip/to Date: 41/11,786
Up early after an especially quiet and restful night. Got the anchor up, engine started and on our way again before Jo’s feet even hit the deck. Today, promises to be much easier than yesterday…only a handful of bridges and 40-miles to go to get to our stop for the night at the Vero Beach City Marina. Lots of wide spots on the ICW today made up of large inland salt water lakes a mile across in places. These would get a bit boring were it not for all of the traffic in the narrow, ICW channel, going in both direction.
Passing and being passed was the order of the day which keeps you on the alert at all times. Even our new friends from Nassau, Tim & Jan on Full Circle managed to pass us on their way north. Most boats are very considerate slowing down from a plane and passing with slow care but there are always a few maniacs that seem to delight in seeing how much they can rock a slower boat. Well that’s what God gave us a middle finger for I guess.
By 1:30 PM we were tied up along side at our marina on a back slew in Vero Beach. Jo took off immediately to get a rental car and provision while I got the salt off and got WS ready for company. Jo’s best friend Lorelei from Melbourne Beach and husband Conrad our coming on board in the morning for a couple of days of waterway experience. It’s the first company we had on board since Bob & Pat in the Virgins and we are looking forward to some group fun as we share the Intercoastal experience.
This evening, once Jo was back, we finished clean-up chores and had a nice BBQ dinner on board resisting the temptation to dine at the lovely Vero Beach Yacht Club next door who were nice enough to extend us their hospitality. It’s also “Survivor” night and we have not seen a episode since we were home for the Board meeting in March and it is the only TV show I think we really miss.
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Fort Lauderdale to Hobe Sound
5/6 Wednesday
From: Latitude: 26: 08.49 N Longitude: 080:06.56 W
End Engine Hours: 1863 Fuel used/on board: 4712/456
Distance trip/to Date: 55/11,754
Today was the day of bridges. As we moved north 55-miles along the Intercoastal Waterway, we passed under 26 bridges…22 of which were draw bridges we had to have open for WS to fit through with her 30′ of height. The trick was that most only open on a fixed schedule so you must time your arrival to coincide with the scheduled opening or you are stuck trying to hold your 24-ton boat in place against wind and current for a half hour till the appointed next opening. Some of these bridges are only a few hundred yards apart and others can be several miles so it is quite a navigational challenge to get the speed and distance timing to work out.
Most of the day, Jo did the math and the radio (yes you must call each bridge and request an opening even though the operator can see you out the bridge control room window) while I steered WS along the waterway. Even staying in the middle of the charted channel, we still managed to bump the bottom on two occasions. Luckily with our momentum and narrow keel we able to keep her moving over the shallow spot to deeper water on the other side.
Once we were past Jupiter Inlet, we started looking for a wide spot in the channel to anchor for the night. We were much relieved (and tired) when we finally dropped our Rochna anchor in 8′ of water along the western shore in the wildlife sanctuary of Hobe Sound.
Tomorrow should be much easier with fewer bridges and lots more space between each. Tonight, we are just glad to swing quietly on the hook, have dinner, watch some normal US Direct TV (just got it working again after over a year of Spanish programming out of Trinidad), and enjoy OUR almost full moon.
(Logs are posted with the most recent entry first)
This is the end of Leg XIII and our 10-months saga in the Caribbean. We’ve covered a lot of miles, some 3,080 since we left Panama last September. It has been every bit the adventure we had expected. In many ways, it was much harder. The constant weather worries were the key factor here. The winds this season were much more consistent and stronger than any winter in recent local memory. To offset that disappointment, the diversity of the islands themselves, and the warm, friendly people we met all along the way were a true joy. Would we do it again, probably not, only because there is so much else we want to see and do in our wonderful world and this always was to be a one way trip. Now we will be back in the “homeland” for the rest of the year and continuing our cruise up the Eastern Seaboard to Maine. Hope you will stay “on Board” for Leg XIV as the adventure continues…
Nassau to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
5/2 - 5/3 Saturday and Sunday - our last overnight passage
End Engine Hours: 1853 Fuel used/on board: 4693/475
Distance trip/to Date: 170/11,690
With reaching Latitude 26 N and Longitude 080 West, we are back in the USA! It feels great to be home, check in through Homeland Security, and relax in the old familiar waterway of the ICW in Florida. As much fun as we had in Nassau, there was always the nagging feeling in the back of our minds that we were never going to get a weather window out of there. But it finally a opened up just wide enough on Saturday and Sunday for us to make the final break for home. Indeed, most of our new and old friends started leaving in droves on Friday morning. Rather then opt for their three-day, all daylight passage, your crew decided to get it all over with in one last 170-mile, overnight run non- stop (we hoped) to Fort Lauderdale.
And run we did…a deep water slice up to Chub Cay, then the exciting 70-mile crossing of the Great Bahama Bank where you have only 2 to 3 feet of water under the keel most of the way, and finally, the always challenging currents of the Gulf Stream. Our most exciting challenge came as usual in the dead of night. At 12-midnight we were approaching Cat Key and thankfully the end of a safe 10-hour passage over the very shallow bank when our radar showed three boats anchored directly on our course line in the only water deep enough for our passage.
It is hard to imagine how difficult it is to maneuver your now seemingly huge boat in the pitch dark around parked boats using only your radar to “see” all the while waiting for the bottom to scrape on the coral below until you have tried it. Once past this obstacle course, we still had to brave sand bars and coral heads studded reefs, relying solely on our chart plotter, to clear the north end of Cat Cay and the freedom of deep water in the Gulf Stream beyond. The process took almost an hour of high anxiety maneuverings but WS made it unscathed and it was a much relaxed skipper who finally was relieved at one AM for a few hours of much needed rest.
The first hints of daybreak found me back at the helm as we approached the Florida coast. Crossing the gulf stream, while never a cakewalk, was passable tonight with 18 to 20 knots of wind, 8-knots more than forecast. Happily it was directly off our stern so what waves that developed were following and never got much over 3-4 feet in height. It is the strong current here that is so amazing,1.5 to 2.5 knots of sometimes turbulent water heading north. I was able to pull back on the throttle to 1400 RPM, barely burn any fuel, and still do over 8-knots most of the way across.
By 8 AM, we were in the entrance channel and by 9:00 waiting for our first bridge opening on the ICW heading north. Just before the second bridge, we could see Rose from Voyager and Cheryl, a friend and Selene owner with us on the FUBAR, at the bridge railing waving a welcome home. Within minutes, Les was helping with our dock lines as we secured WS in her first east coast slip at the very nice, Coral Ridge Yacht Club. Cheryl and Bob on Kasekuchen are members here and were good enough to make all the arrangements right down to a welcome brunch on the clubs waterside patio.
Then it was off to the always fun Homeland Security folks for the US check-in procedures in Bob’s borrowed car followed by naps on board for a very tired but happy crew. Later, Les and Rose were back from family visits to join us all on Kasekuchen for delightful appetizers and Bob’s now Selene famous “sliders” - mini burgers of sirloin or fresh Mahi Mahi with all the trimmings. What a great day to be alive and home in America!
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Nassau
4/24 - 5/1 Friday to Friday
Vacation time at last! We’re taking a few days off here from boating just to relax and not think about what needs fixed, where we need to get to tomorrow, or what the weather is doing (in fact, the weather is crummy, high pressure has the trades gusting up to gale force so we wouldn’t be going anywhere anyways).
We moved WS over to Atlantis Marina for the weekend with all the mega-yachts and although it is expensive, we have the full use of this hotels magnificent facilities. These include six or eight pools, water-slides, huge salt-water lagoons filled with fish, rays and sharks, a casino, golf course, multiple 5-star restaurants, shops, and even a movie theater. What’s more interesting, unlike the rest of the Caribbean, the place is packed - you would never know there is a recession on in the rest of the world. It is good to know decadence is still alive and well somewhere.
Back in our old slip at Yacht Haven Marina, Jo and I manage to take a short vacation trip from WS for a couple of nights to what must remain for now an undisclosed location. Once we are back on board, we spent the last few days getting WS ready to cross the Gulf Stream and waiting for the wind and waves to slow down at least. Nassau has been fun with nice people and just enough to do to make a week here interesting. But we are more than ready to move on across the Stream and back to the great old USA!
End Engine Hours: 1829 Fuel used/on board: 4639/529
Distance trip/to Date: 7.0/11,520
Winds began to howl during the night and shifted to the northeast Trades as predicted. Even the anchor chain was twisted showing we had swung around several times during the restless night. We pulled up the Rockna at 9:30 with about 20-knots of wind and moved off towards Yacht Haven Marina in Nassau. Naturally, this involved us moving southeast for a couple miles so we could best experience a ½ hour of beam seas just to give us a taste of what it would have been like making a crossing today instead of yesterday. No thanks! Glad to be here for sure.
Once we made the turn around Porgy Rocks, it was a straight shot into the back side of Nassau Harbor with a always welcome following sea. We called Nassau Harbor Control to report our arrival as required just like we were the Queen Mary II and received their permission to enter which we would have done anyways. We then contacted Yacht Haven for our slip, battled a ferocious cross current and opposite wind but managed to stuff WS into a slip with out incident.
We were secure and checked in just in time to make the “Cruisers Luncheon” at the Green Parrot so hustled off a mile up the street to get there. It turned out to be a very worthwhile event where we met some very nice people including Steve and Barb Sipe on Maerin - a 43′ SOLO #3 - an earlier version of our exact boat! We also connected with folks heading west who we could do the Gulf Stream crossing with next weekend.
Back on WS after lunch so I could give her a complete wash down to remove layers of salt acquired all the way from San Juan. As I merrily washed, Jo made some air travel plans for us for next week - we have some time to kill waiting for better weather to move west. Then it was up to the Pop deck bar with all the other old salts for happy hour free conch fritter’s before heading back to WS for dinner and a couple episodes of Boston Legal.
End Engine Hours: 1826 Fuel used/on board: 4636/531
Distance trip/to Date: 71/11,513
It didn’t take long to figure out that if we were going to make Nassau ahead of this cold front, we would need to make the entire crossing today. We left Staniel as planned at 7AM but by the time we were out on the smooth, flat, deep water for about 20-minutes it was a done deal. We upped the RPM’ s to 1500 and took off north - still for Highbourne Cay but with the intention of just passing it by, crossing the banks heading straight to Nassau before it gets dark. This was all prompted by the latest forecast calling for tomorrow to get really windy and rough continuing on through the weekend. The last thing we want is to be stuck out on some remote Cay while a three-day or more front passes through.
We arrived at Highbourne and moved off the deep water by noon. Passing the marina we had planned to overnight, we continued on across the 30-miles of shallow water banks towards Nassau. Crossing banks is a necessity when playing in the Bahamas. The problem is they are often only eight-feet or less deep and strewn with big ugly black coral heads hiding just below the surface. Getting around them is easy, the concern is just seeing them before it is too late. You need the sun high in the sky, the seas calm and the wind a soft zephyr.
Of course, we had none of this by the time we reached the treacherous “Yellow Blank.” The wind had piped up to 18-20 whipping up wind waves that made anything hard to see beneath the surface. We did have a good sun angle though and with spray flying over the pilot house did manage to creep through the most coral head infested area unscathed. Jo was the lookout on the top deck directing me around dozens of the nasty brutes rising up from the bottom in a skinny 8-10 feet of water.
Once through a couple miles of this unnerving stress, we began to see depths of 19 to 23 feet - too deep for the boat eviscerating monsters. By the time we did reach Nassau the sun was too low and directly in our eyes for us to attempt the coral head garden that is the eastern entrance to the harbor so we opted for a small detour a couple miles to the east called Rose Island. Here we were much relieved to drop the hook in 16-feet, crack a beer and wait for D&K on Dreamweaver, about an hour behind.
Just a word on anchoring in the Bahamas. For the most part, it is some of the easiest anchoring we have done anywhere. All you need to do is find a nice sandy patch of bottom, usually in 8 to 10 feet of clear water, watch it drop to the sand, put the boat in reverse and back up 50-feet till it grabs and stops your momentum. You can watch the whole process over the side. And unless you are in grass or on a solid coral bottom you are set on the first try.
The only time anchoring gets tricky is when you have tidal current moving one direction on ebb and the opposite on flood. Then you run the risk of having your anchor pull loose when it resets in the opposite direction which it usually does. If you want to leave nothing to chance, you need to put out two anchors 180-degrees apart along the current flow line and swing off the bow in the middle. This arrangement is even called the Bahamian moor as it seemed to originate out of need in this area.
By 7PM Dreamweaver steamed up next to us after running at top spped most of the day to get here just before dark. Ken did manage to catch a nice Dorado on route so a fresh fish dinner was on the WS BBQ minutes after they set the anchor and came over to toast surviving another day of cruising excitement and the glorious Bahamian sunset.
End Engine Hours: 1819 Fuel used/on board: 4609/558
Distance trip/to Date: 58/11,442
I was up before dawn getting WS ready for our departure at first light from George Town. Today’s run of 58-miles will take her half way up the Exuma’s to Staniel Cay, the only major settlement after GT. Once we up anchor, we clear the 5-miles to the entrance to Elizabeth Bay just as the sun is fully up and shining in the East. It is a beautiful day for our deep water passage as we stay about a mile or two off the continuous, north to south, pearl of islands that make up the Exuma chain.
The entrance to Staniel Cay through the Big Rock cut is fairly straight forward. An open pass between a port side reef and a chunk of Major Island, a left turn following close to the land to the marina with only a couple of obvious reef along the couple mile channel. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club Marina approach is something else again. Our luck today would call for a strong, 18-20 knot wind across the docks and a stronger current that seems to constantly flow in either direction through their docks.
We got WS in position to tie up along side the high wooden platform without a problem but it did take the help of the one-arm dock-master (no kidding) and two able Bahamian security patrol seaman to get her snugly secured. Even after their best efforts it still was an hour before Jo and I were done adjusting the bumpers and lines to our satisfaction.
Between the wind waves and the current it is probably the roughest marina we have been in of the entire voyage. As it turned out, one of the most expensive too as they charge $50 flat rate for power, .40 cents a gallon for water, $2.50 for each bag of garbage on top of the already high, $2.00/foot for the privilege of relentlessly being bounced against their docks. Needless to say, we’ll be anchoring out if we pass this way again.
The town of Staniel Cay is not more then a brisk twenty minute to do the whole thing but the Yacht Club itself was the happening place anyway. By 4:00 the bar was full of both island hotel guests and a motley bunch of us cruisers interspersed with a good many colorful locals. By the time we were back from our town walk, Dottie & Ken had arrived and joined us for a drink as happy hour was winding down. Jo and I decided to give the highly recommend Yacht Club fresh fish dinner a try and it did not disappoint. It was far better than any fare we found in George Town but at higher, US prices of course.
Tomorrow, it’s off early to Highbounre Cay and the northern most end of the Exuma’s and after this morning’s early start, it was easy to turn in right after dinner.
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George Town = Camp Funtime
4/15 - 4/20 Wednesday to Sunday
Spring Break for Cruisers in the George Town anchorage.. This is the place we have been looking for since we left Mexico! Perhaps, we did not even realize what we have been missing most on a conscious level - you get so caught up in the journey - moving the boat getting to the next link toward our destination. George Town, while not much in ambiance or scenery, has the first solid “Cruisers community” we have seen since passing through Granada or been a part of since Hautulco. It is enhanced by an international flavor with yachts here from all over the world and heading most everywhere, even the Mediterranean based mega-yachts are here for the festivities.
These folks know how to have fun together. From the 8AM morning Cruisers Net on the radio that shares the day’s opportunities to a regular schedule of fun events you can take or leave as the mood strikes, this is what the boating lifestyle is really all about. Daily beach volleyball, fish fries, barbecues, Sailfish (small, light sailing dingys) races, kids activities, native crafts and, of course, the usual snorkeling - diving in the crystal clear, turquoise water. There are games galore too - Texas-hold’em tournaments, bridge, Mexican Train, cocktails and dinners on the various fellow cruising boats.
Final preparations are under way for this weeks big Family Regatta. The makeshift stalls are finally done and the mail ferry has delivered twelve of the competing boats from all over the islands. It looks like two dozen will compete in this year’s race. The weather has stopped blowing 20-knots from the wrong direction so we won’t be able to stay for the actual races but it has been fun watching all the preparations. Who knows, perhaps we will return next year at a more leisurely pace. So far this has been the most congenial spot in the Caribbean.
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Long island to George Town, Great Exuma island
4/14 Tuesday - an early morning passage
From: Latitude 23:06.13 N Longitude: 074:56.96 W
To: Latitude: 23:30.79 N Longitude: 75:36.04 W
Weather: clear Wind: 900 at 10-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2-3
End Engine Hours: 1805 Fuel used/on board: 4592/575
Distance trip/to Date: 72/11,384
I set the alarm for 3AM but was up a one anxious to go. I left Jo sleep while I got WS ready for sea, started her up and then reeled in the 50′ of anchor chain to get her underway. The harbor has a broad, straightforward opening so heading out to sea in the dark was easy as daylight, especially with the accuracy of the charts in our chart-plotter.
Soon we were humming along up the coast of Long Island under the light of a three- quarter moon in a moderate swell and 15-20 knots of wind on the aft beam. By daybreak, we turned the corned around the west end of the island for the straight shoot across the Exuma Sound for George Town on Great Exuma Island.
Once you arrive at the channel entrance, the fun just begins as it another 5-miles of twists and turns around mine fields of mostly unmarked reefs to finally get the actual town anchorage. Next week is Family Regatta Week here, the singular most important annual event in the Exumas and the source of a year’s income for many. Yachts gather from all over the Caribbean for the week to watch the island families race their home made sailboats around the harbor course. Bragging rights for the year comes as the main prize and nuances of racing strategy keep the locals in heated conversation till next years race.. Planks are used to hike 3 to 6 crew members out over water on the boat side for leverage just to keep the crafts upright with often hilarious results and a good time is had by all.
As soon as we were settled in and had the dinghy down, both crews went ashore to walk the streets of the first real town since leaving the Turks. While far from prosperous, George Town did support a well stocked market and plenty of liquor stores. The town itself is spread around the edge of an inner salt water lake accessed under a small bridge to the dinghy dock. Other boat services were basically non existing other than a rather run down marina at one end of town. Poor economic conditions were readily apparent everywhere with many closed restaurants and resort hotels. Even the internet was limited and expensive to access.
We did watch the locals build dozens of carnival stalls along the waterfront in preparations for next weeks big event before heading back to the dingy and WS. Since there was not much fun reasons to go ashore, our crew had a light dinner on board and watched some back episodes of Boston legal before calling it an early night.
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Mayaguana Island to Long island
4/11 - 4/12 Saturday to Easter Sunday - an overnight passage
From: Latitude 22:21.53 N Longitude: 072:59.03 W
To: : Latitude 23:06.13 N Longitude: 074:56.96 W
Weather: clear Wind: 900 at 10-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2-3
End Engine Hours: 1793 Fuel used/on board: 4568/598
Distance trip/to Date: 123/11,312
Spent the morning checking into the Bahamas. Thanks to a kindly local, we were lucky to even get a checked in at all. Winfred picked us up in her car just being nice as we were walking in from the concert town dock only to discover everything was closed for the 4-day Easter weekend. Apparently everyone is related in this remote end of the island so a few phone calls and visits by her to family members in power…she even had to get her sister, the government clerk, out of the bush where she was off for the day hunting crabs so we had the people we needed to get the job done. It cost $300 for a annual Bahamas Cruising Permit plus we were glad to pay the $50 for overtime for the officials rather than wait here till Tuesday for regular business hours.
As soon as we were back on board, had lunch and then it was up anchor for the 4.5-mile slow crawl across the shallow Abraham Lagoon to the much easier West end exit to deep water. By dark we were safely around the end of Mayaguana and heading across the open water channel. The full-moon was up by 10:30 and the wind/waves continued to back down making for a most pleasant 123-mile journey indeed.
By sunrise our objective, the small town of Clarence on Long Island, was in view and by 10AM we had the anchor down temporarily in 8′ just inside bay. Flying Fish Marina was in the process of offloading fuel from a fuel boat so we needed to hang out in the outer anchorage untill 1:30 till it was done before we could move into our slip. The rest of the day we will spend seeing to very small town of Clarence with its two beautiful churches all decked out for Easter. Both churches were built by the same preacher, the first was Anglican built in 1846 then he become a catholic priest and the other was built on the other hill and few years later.
Our walk ended with a stop at our marina bar to meet other cruisers and connect with D&K also ashore for their walk so we could make our plans for Easter dinner on board WS. And a great dinner it was! Jo and Dottie whipped up some excellent Caribbean shrimp, coconut rice, pumpkin soup after several rounds of margaritas and appetizers. It was the perfect end to a very busy day.
Jo and I want to take an extra day here to do some maintenance, take on some water and wash down the crusted salt on WS after these many miles since San Juan. It’s a fun Monday of polish the metal and clean all the spots off the fiberglass on WS before we make ready for the next leg’s very early morning departure to Georgetown on Tuesday.
End Engine Hours: 1773 Fuel used/on board: 4534/632
Distance trip/to Date: 56/11,189
My birthday got started early. I was up at 4:30…wide awake for a planned 6:30 AM departure. The full moon was still up lighting the deck as I did my morning pre-departure routine as I waited for the sunrise. It is a long way across very shallow water, 8′ to 10′ deep, to get to open sea from our snug anchorage and some day light was mandatory if only for appearances since we certainly couldn’t see anything in the water is the flat morning light.
The actual passage was uneventful. Not even another ship in the 55-mile deep water crossing with the now standard 4′-7′ beam seas to bounce us from side to side. Today’s drama is to get to our destination early enough to be able to see the reef and numerous coral heads that guard the Eastern approach to Abraham’s Bay at Mayaguana. Ideally you would want to pass through this reef with the sun high overhead so that the rocks and nasty coral heads that lurk just a few feet beneath the surface are clearly visible.
We finally get to the reef at 3:30 PM, just when the sun is far enough in the west to make seeing difficult. To make matters worse, the tide has all but gone out of the Bay so we are at minimum depths too. Not much choice now but to suck it up and go for it as there are no other options this late in the day. Mayaguana is also the southern most customs and immigration outpost for checking into the Bahamas too so a stop here is also a legal responsibility.
Of course, we have been closely studying our charts and the Southern Bahamas Guide by Pavlidis for the last several miles and have some idea what we are up against. The entrance consists of a narrow channel through a wave breaking barrier reef on both sides several hundred feet off the eastern end of the bay. Given the GPS position of an ugly rock that lies in the early mid-channel, we opt to hug the western reef and follow it around in only 6′ to8′ of water keeping its sharp coral edge close as we dare on the port side.. This also avoids a middle reef notorious for detouring the unwary into a dead end coral trap off to the right and several other mid-channel low spots of 4′ or less.
With Jo perched on the bow as a lookout and me at the helm using all of the electronics WS has available, we sneak through the opening at 4.5 knots enduring 25-minutes of intense, nerve-racking concentration. Once passed the barrier reef and safely inside the fun does not stop. Abraham Bay is quite large, some 5-miles east to west by about 2-miles north to south yet only 8′ to 10′ deep or less.. We now need to find a sandy spot to drop the anchor and swing free for the night without hitting the bottom.
It is very hard for deep-water sailors to get used to moving a 54-ton boat that draws 5′ around over a rock strewn bottom only 3′ or less from the bottom of your keel. Thankfully we soon find a spot just off the eastern end of the bay with all the requirements for secure anchorage and a quiet nights sleep and drop the hook in seven feet of the crystal clear water for which the Bahamas are renowned You can see every rock and starfish…even see you anchor as it sets like looking through a window.
Soon the Dreamweaver crew has joined us for the necessary celebratory safe passage beers and a discussion of where we want to go from here as we explore the Bahamas together over the next several weeks. Then Jo and I have a quiet dinner and movie on board before calling the early end to a beautiful day and one of the most exciting birthdays I’ve had in a long, long time!
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Providenciales at Anchor
4/07 - 4/09 Tuesday through Thusday
Well in all honesty I must say the Turks and Caicos are a real disappointment…useful as a waypoint and rest between DR and the Bahamas but completely devoid of any original charm or character. Provisioning is adequate but expensive. Marinas are primitive at best. Restaurants and resorts are okay but certainly not at the level competitive with most we have seen “down Island.” Everything is so spread out it is impossible to get around without the added expense of a rental car. Add this to a general feeling of unhappiness among the natives and there it is not much of a reason to stop.
Of course, your crew is, as always, determined to make the most of this place regardless of the circumstances and the water is clear and beautiful, just too cold to enjoy. We spent the whole day Wednesday bashing about in our tiny Hertz compact seeing the island literally from one end to the other…looking in vain for something nice to report. The only bright spot was a final rendezvous with Les and Rose on Voyager in Turtle Marina before they depart Friday on their last, non-stop leg back to Georgia where they will end their voyage and return, for now, to the world of business and finance. Sure has been great cruising with them these past many miles and they will be sorely missed by us all on this final leg to the US.
Thursday was a chore day…checking back out thru customs, doing the provisioning and in general, getting ready for seafaring. The final step was to turn the rental car back in and then get a ride back out to the end of the island to the anchorage with a trunk load of food. Luckily, the Hertz people were nice enough to step up and offer a van with driver so we were back on board by sunset. Evening was a pre birthday party and sumptuous fresh fish dinner for me hosted by K&D on Dreamweaver. Rose even baked me a Kailua Chocolate cake just for the occasion and much rum was added on top just for good measure.
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Puerto Plata to Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands
End Engine Hours: 1764 Fuel used/on board: 4517/653
Distance trip/to Date: 150/11,133
Morning was spent finishing up some loose ends on the internet,, checking out with the marina, customs, immigration, drug enforcement and the DR Navy then getting WS ready for sea again. A noon departure will get us into the shallow water surrounding the Turks & Caicos late on Tuesday morning so we have maximum visibility for the many coral heads that lie just under the surface there. At 6.5 knots we will cover the 145-miles in just under 22 hours.
Going out the channel from the marina got the trip off to a rough start. The swell for the northeast was running directly down the buoy path breaking on the reef on both sides and causing WS to pitch over each near breaking wave. Things didn’t calm down till we were well offshore and still remained much rougher than forecast till well into the evening. Happily by midnight, the wind had died down to a reasonable 12-14 knots, the whitecaps disappeared, and the full moon turned it into a magic night for a passage.
Morning finds us just a few miles off the shallow water of the Grand Caicos Bank. We skirt along the southern edge until we get to the northwestern freighter channel and the sun overhead enough to spot the shoals and coral heads. From our turn into the channel, it is just a short, 10-miles of shoal water until we reach our intended anchorage for the night at Sapodilla Bay.
The bay’s anchorage is basically am open road stead with little protection from most directions except north and east, the direction of the prevailing trade. Today it is a light breeze from the south west so not a problem except for some chop. We drop the hook in only six foot and were lucky to find that. Apparently, the bottom depths have changed substantially since last charted in 2003 and low water depths were much less than promised. The good news is it is great holding soft sand so we don’t need much scope, just 50′ and we are secure.
Dreamweaver was already here from there different route and soon both captains are headed into the small commercial harbor for arrival formalities. Once done, we pick up the rest of our crew and head to the beach for a look around our latest country. A nice guy in a pickup truck sees us walking the long road to where we think the town is and gives us a lift in that direction. It is quickly discovered that there is no center “downtown” in Providenciales and that everything is spread out all over the tiny island. That along with outrageous taxis fares and we are soon looking for a rental car agency when Hertz comes to our rescues with a nice little compact.
After a quick drive around and stop at the local IGA supermarket, it’s back to WS for a BBQ dinner before both crews turn in for some catching-up on lost passage making sleep.
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Ocean World Marina, Puerto Plata
4/03 - 4/05 Friday - Sunday
It takes a day or two to get “normal” after a couple of nights at sea and this could not be a nicer place to hang out and catch up on our rest before the next overnight on Monday to the Turks and Caicos Islands 150-miles to the north.
We hired a guide and a taxis with Dottie & Ken for our all day - explore the area - on Saturday and what a grand time we had…seeing the oldest fort in the Caribbean, the Saturday locals open market, amber jewelry factory, hand made cigar factory, and that was all before lunch at a locals lobster/fresh fish restaurant in the suburbs of Puerto Plata. Here the management delights in showing off the whole fish before they cook it so you know exactly how fresh and good it is going to be.
Then we hit the highway east to the internationally renowned windsurfer/kite boarding beach at Playa Cabarete. This mile long bay where the trade winds always blow is protected by a barrier reef and features a white sand beach with wall to wall beach bars as far as you can see in both directions. Making up your mind which one to stop at first is the toughest decision of the day but we opt for Pedro O’Shea’s Irish pub and were only sorry we couldn’t try them all. Evening found Jo and I at the very fancy Casino restaurant over looking our marina for a excellent lobster/prime rib, all-you-can-eat, buffet dinner started off by bottle of fine champagne…life is good!
Sunday was a much needed day of computer chores and then saying goodbye to Dreamweaver who departs tonight for Big Sand Key in the Turks to do some fishing before we meet up again in the Caicos Island of Providenciales on Tuesday.
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San Juan to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
4/01 - 4/03 Wednesday to Friday - a two day, two night passage
From Latitude: 18:27.61 N Longitude: 066:05.36 W
To : 17:50.05 N Longitude: 070:43.65 W
Weather: sunny some clouds becoming clear Wind: 900 at 14-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
End Engine Hours: 1740 Fuel used/on board: 4470/700
Distance trip/to Date: 275/10,913
It was not till noon that we finally dropped our dock lines after a month on shore leave. The planned noon departure for the 275-miles passage to the Dominican Republic gave us the morning free for last minute chores. This was necessary so that we would arrive in the new Ocean World Marina just west of Puerto Plata around 8AM on Friday morning. A clear, sunny day made El Morro all the more picturesque as we passed the San Juan entrance buoys and turned west for the open sea.
Dottie and Ken on Dreamweaver, by previous design, were just passing the entrance coming up coast from their marina on the east end of PR and soon we were in tandem again, just like the good old days in Alaska a couple of years ago. As if to celebrate this reunion, a huge humpback breached right between our two boats sending a tower of spay in all directions and excitement all around for both crews.
The short, steep, northeasterly seas, while not daunting, were certainly manageable from our stern quarter. From this direction, they mainly give the autopilot a workout and make life aboard relatively easy. Jo & I soon fell into our usual pattern of each taking three-hour watches and the afternoon passed quietly as we slid by the northern coast of Puerto Rico off our Port Beam.
Darkness fell about the time we reached the western end of the mainland and started across the dreaded Mona Passage, the channel between the two countries. Notorious for swirling currents and building seas, the only change to be noted by us were the slightly taller swells and wind now up to 20 knots. This is fine for us but not as nice for anyone coming from the opposite direction. A partial moon is up so the night begins without the sometimes ominous feeling that comes with boating in total darkness.
By morning, we are across the channel but still forty-miles off shore from the DR coast. Most of today will be spent gradually closing this gap as we head towards Cabo Samana before making a final turn along the north shore to our destination. By afternoon the waves have subsided to level not enjoyed for months - perhaps since we left the Pacific Ocean! This combined with the lighter wind and clear, sunny skies made it an ideal day for laying on deck in the sunshine just enjoying the whole experience.
Our noon 24-hour position report puts us 16.5 miles north of Cabo Samana, DR and 155-miles from San Juan at: 19:25.01/068:53.97. WS average speed was 6.2 knots using just 1.6 gallons/hour.
Sunset finds us just 35-miles from our only major course change as we round the cape called Cabo Francis Viejo and head for Puerto Plata. We are getting a substantial push from a very friendly current that has our speed up to 7-knots with the engine practically at idle. Normally the is a very welcome event but our arrival at the marina before sun-up is not possible either so we could use a little less help thank you all the same.
Sunrise positioned us just 5-miles from our objective…the new and posh Ocean World Marina. I don’t know where the money came from but none was spared to build this complex way beyond all rational expectations. Not only is there 104 yacht slips including 250′ docks for mega yachts with all the normal boating amenities one could hope for but there is also, on site, a very ornate casino much like the one in Avalon, many fine shops, nightclubs, pools, a follies type stage show, a disco, various bars and restaurants.
The topper is a Sea World style adventure park complete with huge swim-with-the-dolphins pools, a shark encounter pool and hourly water shows to rival any found stateside. All this apparently built for the handful of hearty tourists and boaters that have finally “discovered” the Dominican Republic. Truly amazing!
Once settled in one of the many empty slips, we started the rounds of official paperwork and government visits to WS to rival any we have experienced anywhere. No less than six smiling and gracious officers in uniform from the navy, drug enforcement, agriculture, and animal control came on board to inspect our boat. This was on top of the personal visits still required by your ships captain to the offices of customs and immigration for that clearance. Various official fees and taxes are attached, of course, totaling some $140US. Thankfully, leaving the country only requires that we clear out with the navy, customs, and immigration. Although we are not permitted to leave after 6PM or before 6AM for some mysterious drug control reasons.
Our first afternoon was spent at leisure walking around the marina complex, then a hilarious bus ride into the quaint town of Puerto Plata for a look around. This was followed by an equally funny time trying to find a bus home under the care of a self appointed singing “tour guide” who insisted that no money be paid but we could buy him a can of rather expensive baby formula for his small starving daughter at home. Trying not to be cynical, are still sure it was traded back for a bottle of rum once we were safely out of the way.
To end this fine day, both crews (Dottie & Ken are here too) decided to spend our first evening in DR taking in the casino’s follies show entitled “Bravissimo…Magical Nights in the Caribbean.” Which turned out to be a pleasantly costumed dance review circa the 1950’s with some very pretty local ladies if you could get by the partially balding, charisma free, leading man. . We had a couple of drinks and enjoyed the show, played the old coin operated slot machines in the casino and then tried the extra loud disco which was a really bad idea at our age and demeanor before calling it a night and wandering back to our boats.
Fuel Note: WS put on 208 Gallons of fuel before leaving San Juan at $2.05/gallon, engine hours 1696 making our total on board for departure: 770 gallons.
(Logs are posted with the most recent entry first)
This is the end of Leg XII and 593-miles of some very windy Leeward Islands that started back in Dominica on the third of January. We have been 6-months under way since our last shore leave…some 2,000 miles since we left Panama. As we say in the boating world, that’s a lot of water under the keel. It will be good to take a break and go home to family and friends even if it is only for three short and very busy weeks.Our next leg will take us through some new territory for Jo and I, the Dominican Republic and the Turks & Caicos Islands as well as some old territory, the Bahamas ending in our documented home port, Key West Florida. We hope you will mark your calendar to rejoin us on March 29th as the adventures of Wandering Star continue…
Puerto Del Rey to San Juan and the end of Leg XII
3/2 Monday
Latitude: 18:27.61 N Longitude: 066:05.36 W
Weather: sunny some clouds Wind: 900 at 14-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1009 Passage time: 6 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1696 Fuel used/on board: 4398/562
Distance trip/to Date: 40/10,708
The final passage to San Juan was uneventful as it should be. We’ve had enough adventure for now and are enjoying the familiar scenery this last 40-miles as we cruise up the northern coast of Puerto Rico. It looks very much like the coast of southern California until you come to the massive citadels of San Cristobal and El Morro that once guarded old San Juan from the ravages of war.
Our benign following sea has now piped up quite a bit becoming a six foot swell with a six second. By the time Wandering Star makes the final turn to safety at the welcoming red and green buoys, she is surfing down the face of these short steep waves. Once inside the protection of El Morro, the waters immediately become a quiet lake without a trace of the confused fury that seems to help guard the harbor entrance.
We cruise by several miles of city waterfront as we head past the busy cruise ship docks to our marina. Club Nautico, a serious sport fishing club, will be the temporary home for WS as we depart by plane for California on Thursday. It is a safe, convenient place close to the historic old town of San Juan and the up-scale residential and hotel district of Condado. While short on cruiser services like laundry, internet, and walking distance stores, it makes up for it in competent staff and 24-hour live security.
Once we are hooked up to shore power and the dock lines are secure, Jo and I head off to find a rental car that can help us overcome the distances between the marina and the places we need to go. Cars are cheaper in the long run than taxis if you don’t mind being lost a good deal of the time and we soon find a helpful rental company that will take us to our departure airport as well.
Back on board for a quick clean-up of WS and then ourselves before we head out to find a gourmet dinner place called “Baru” deep in the narrow, hilly, unnamed streets in old town. Recommended by a cruiser casually met on the public dinghy dock in Culebra, typical of how we find most our most enjoyable experiences, this one proves to be a worthy quest as well. It provided both delightfully different food and a uniquely personal ambience despite being very busy for a Monday night.
The next several days will be a flurry of activity as we get our girl ready for her much deserved three weeks of rest. There are covers to go on, valves to close, holes to plug, heads to treat, rust to remove, rails to varnish, and the inevitable repairs to be made after months at sea. The most challenging repair this stop is the removal and shipping home of our Magna inverting system which has been acting up since St Lucia. It will need to go back to its factory, be rebuilt and then returned with us before our voyage can resume at the end of March.
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Isla de Culebra to Puerto Del Rey, mainland Puerto Rico
3/1 Sunday
Latitude: 18:17.19 N Longitude: 065:38.04 W
Weather: sunny some clouds Wind: 900 at 8-12 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1011 Passage time: 3.5 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1690 Fuel used/on board: 4383/579
Distance trip/to Date: 23/10,668
Our usual Sunday morning breakfast of Spanish omelet’s seemed all the better now that we are back in the waters of the Spanish Maine. Then it was up dinghy then up anchor and we were still out to sea by 9:30 on our way west to the mainland. The wind and seas were still calm till we were out of the lee of Culebra Island and then only a minimal northern swell could be detected. This is fairly shallow water between islands here never getting much over 100 feet in depth compared to the down island depths often reaching well over 1,000 feet.
By noon, we were making the call to the marina office just off their breakwater for our slip assignment and for someone to meet us on the dock. This is a huge marina, one on the largest in the Caribbean, with over 1,000 slips so finding ours for the first time can be a bit daunting. Once WS was secured safely, it was still a ¼ mile walk up the dock just to get to dry land and the marina office. Jo & I decide to take the afternoon off to see what we can of Fajardo, the resort beach area of north east Puerto Rico.
While there is not much to do or see here and what there is is very spread out and the taxis fares are outrageous. We did manage to discover the Conquistador Hotel, a deluxe resort perched high on a hill over looking the coast and the entire Spanish Virgins. Compete with golf course, small marina, casino and at least five swimming pools, seeing this beautiful destination resort was well the trip.
Back on WS by late afternoon for another quiet evening on board. It is time to empty out the refrig/freezer as we prepare to go home so we are eating our way through anything that won’t keep till we return. Tomorrow it is up early for the final 38-mile to old San Juan along the dreaded rough and rock strewn northern coast.
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Redhook Bay to Isla de Culebra, Puerto Rico
2/28 Saturday
Latitude: 18:18.23 N Longitude: 065:17.79 W
Weather: sunny with rain squalls Wind: 1100 at 8-12 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1010 Passage time: 4 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1686 Fuel used/on board: 4375/587
Distance trip/to Date: 29/10,645
After a leisurely day yesterday which ended with a very happy hour with friends from Granada, Walt and Susan on Kingdom, the crew was ready to start the final passage of this leg to Puerto Rico. We were both up before daybreak and ready to go well before the American Marina office even opened to check us out but by eight, we were on our way. Ken met us in his dinghy as we left the bay to hand off a few borrowed DVD’s in exchange for Jo’s home baked cookies. We will leave Dreamweaver and Voyager here in the VI to follow us later to PR as travel plans home for us begin next Thursday the 5th.
After days of unrelenting wind, the morning is almost flat calm as we make our final turn through Current Passage and proceed up the coast of St Thomas and the 28-miles to the Spanish Virgins. Culebra Island is just over half way between Puerto Rico and St Thomas. While once the lair of pirates like Henry Morgan and even visited earlier by Christopher Columbus, it is mostly a modest resort Island now for the PR locals and a few of us more advantageous yachties. With anchorages galore, good snorkeling and a well protected harbor of Ensenada Honda, it is a great place to stop to break up the otherwise long passage.
By noon, WS is feeling her way into this great harbor which could hold hundreds of cruising boats with ease but today there is less than a dozen on the hook off the island’s only small town of Dewey. US citizens can check in with customs with a simple phone call so with that taken care of, Jo and I are off to find some lunch and get to know our way around.
The “Dinghy Dock” waterfront bar & grill fills the lunch need nicely. After a short walk through the tiny town, a drink at Mamacita’s and a dinghy trip through the old fishing boat canal that still connects the bay with the open water channel to Puerto Rico, we head back to WS. With no one to be social with it is nice to just enjoy a peaceful afternoon on board and a quiet evening on our own happy home.
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Coral Bay to American Marina, Redhook Bay
2/26 Thursday
Latitude: 18:19.45 N Longitude: 064:51.12 W
Weather: PC Wind: 900 at 10-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1011 Passage time: 3 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1682 Fuel used/on board: 4365/597
Distance trip/to Date: 17/10,616
I forgot to mention the pod of five Humpbacks we encountered as we came into Coral Bay yesterday. This was the first family group we have seen since leaving Alaska two years ago. These big beauties were just hanging out in 65 feet of water fairly close to shore. There appeared to be a couple of juveniles mixed in as well enjoying the seclusion, I am sure, this remote bay affords.
The nice quiet night at anchor in this rather exposed to the east bay let us know early that the winds and sea had further mellowed and were perfect for the continued circumnavigation of St John’s. This morning we will go around the extended eastern end and then down to long northern side of the island before turning across the straits for St Thomas Island and our marina in Redhook. Here we will do some needed maintenance and top off the water and food before starting the passage to Puerto Rico on Saturday.
The American IGY Marina in Redhook is the main US cruising headquarters for all smaller boats (not the mega yachts of Charlotte Amalie) and is well organized for that purpose. Everything a cruiser needs is either there or in walking distance including several nice bars and restaurants. After WS was washed top to bottom, laundry done, and the oil changed, Jo and I set out to find a good one for dinner and were not disappointed by the fresh fish at “Off the Hook” just up the bay. After dinner, it was back to WS for a unsocial night of watching TV and early bed.
Note: Oil and filters changed in the Cummins at 1682 hours - next due at 2000 hours.
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Caneel Bay to Coral Bay
2/25 Wednesday
Latitude: 18:20.57 N Longitude: 064:40.70 W
Weather: PC Wind: 900 at 10-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1012 Passage time: 2 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1677 Fuel used/on board: 4359/602
Distance trip/to Date: 12/10,599
An early start this morning was planned to get ahead of the wind and wind waves of yesterday. As it turned out, conditions were much milder today and the 8 AM departure, while not necessary, served us well in the long run. We were able to get to Coral Bay by 10:30 and have time to hike around the whole bay and do some shopping before settling in for lunch ashore.
Coral Bay is one of the last hippie generation outposts in the Virgins or anywhere else for that matter and was known in the past for as a refuge for those wishing to remain out of sight from our mainland authorities. Many of these aging characters can still be seen ambling along the shoreline roads or hanging out in one of the several open air bars.
After a required stop at Skinny Legs, a popular cruisers bar at the dinghy dock, our afternoon and evening was spent back on WS just enjoying the quiet and ambiance of this remote, tourist free bay.
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Charlotte Amalie to Caneel Bay
2/24 Tuesday
Latitude: 18:20.82 N Longitude: 064:47.35W
Weather: PC Wind: 1000 at 12-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 4
Barometer: 1012 Passage time: 2.5 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1679 Fuel used/on board: 4355/606
Distance trip/to Date: 11/10,587
Took a nice long, early morning walk through downtown Charlotte Amalie before departing. Not much has changed in this, one of the first cruise ship ports of the Caribbean. Three ships in today with over 1,000 visiting every year makes it still the most popular “big ship” port of call By 10 AM we were back on board, the anchor was up, and we were on our way back to the more small boat cruiser friendly St John’s Island.
Our plan had been to head directly to Coral Bay, a seldom visited town on the eastern, Atlantic side of the island but wind and sea piped up to the point after Current Pass that it was just not worth the wet, rocky ride. Instead, we veered off back to the more protected Caneel Bay and took a mooring again for the afternoon. Jo and I then headed ashore to the old Rock Resort in Caneel for a great lunch. While the place has changed owners many times, it still has the quiet elegance of the grand old tropical hotels of the past and has not changed much in thirty years.
After lunch and a rest back on board, Jo and I headed for Cruz Bay by dinghy just around the corner for some shopping time. We stopped by on the way to see Cousin Bob & Paula on the Freedom 44 in the same anchorage and plans were made to join us there later for happy hour. It was sure nice to be able to spend some one on one time with them and plans were made to spend some more time together once we reached Connecticut this summer. Back on WS just after dark, Jo and I settled in for a light dinner and another borrowed DVD movie.
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Francis Bay to Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas Island
2/23 Monday
Latitude: 18:21.51 N Longitude: 064:44.85W
Weather: sunny Wind: 900 at 12-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1013 Passage time: 2 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1673 Fuel used/on board: 4746/615
Distance trip/to Date: 9/10,565
We took the 13-mile ride across the bay to St Thomas this morning. We originally planned to dock overnight at the new deluxe Grand Haven Marina run by IGY in Charlotte Amalie but decided to drop the anchor to have a dinghy look first and were glad we did. This place has gone completely Mega Yacht now and is just not appropriate for our little boat. High concrete docks, bollards so far apart our dock lines won’t reach, and only 100 amp power not to mention their extravagant fees make this place very cruising yacht unfriendly. When you add in the proximity to the cruise ship dock with the usual high end jewelry and dress shops and the lack of yacht services…not even a marine store and we were very happy to stay out on the hook.
We did go ashore for a very nice lunch though and a look around while we did some provisioning. We came here every year when we had the yacht charter company for the annual broker boat show and have very fond memories of how much fun the place used to be but there is not a trace left of the old Yacht Haven Marina. For the late afternoon, we were invited for sunset cocktails on Voyager who have been here for a few days taking care of business and waiting for guests. It was well after dark when we headed back on board WS to watch one of our new movies left by Bob & Pat before turning in for an early start in the morning.
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Caneel Bay to Francis Bay
2/22 Sunday
Latitude: 18:21.51 N Longitude: 064:44.85W
Weather: sunny Wind: 900 at 12-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1013 Passage time: 2 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1673 Fuel used/on board: 4746/615
Distance trip/to Date: 9/10,565
Took a early dinghy ride back around the bend into Cruz Bay to do some shopping and better look over the town. We were joined by the crew of “Joy for all Seasons” as we plan to spend the day on St John together. Cousin Bob Walker has extensive experience cruising down here and once even owed a mountain top on St John. As soon as we were back on board, both boats dropped their mooring balls and headed around the Hawknest Point end to explore the beaches and coves between here and Leinster Bay, just across from Tortola.
All of the moorings in Leinster were taken and after some discussion with a irate cruiser about the legality of anchoring there beside the mooring field, we decided to head back to the more hospitable and open Francis Bay where balls were readily available. As soon as WS was secure, we joined the Audrey & Don in the dinghys for some much enjoyed snorkeling along Whistling Cay, a rock at the entrance north of the moorings.
Evening cocktails for all were on WS followed by a delicious, old fashioned hamburger BBQ on Joy. Back on board, Jo & I stayed up to the wee hours watching “Slum Dog” sweep the Academy Awards on our Satellite TV.
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Sopher’s Hole to Caneel Bay, St John, USVI
2/21 Saturday
Latitude: 18:20.52 N Longitude: 064:47.51 W
Weather: sunny Wind: 950 at 12-16 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1013 Passage time: 2 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1671 Fuel used/on board: 4343/631
Distance trip/to Date: 8/10,556
Our crew was up early on their last day on WS. Bob & Pat will leave this morning by ferry for St Thomas and their flight back to California. They’ve been great fun and a delight to have share our voyage from St Maarten. We’ll miss them on board. Our last farewell breakfast on board together was joined by Dottie & Ken but by 9:00 it was all hands on deck as our dock space was needed by the local charter operator to turn around his fleet of weekly catamaran charters. We make a quick trip by dinghy to clear customs dropping Bob & Pat at the ferry terminal at the same time. Then back on board by 9:25, record time for port clearance, disconnecting power and dock lines on our way to St John’s Island and the USA again at last after more then a year in foreign waters.
Once we cleared into the US in Cruz Bay, we moved into Caneel Bay next door and picked up a mooring. My cousin Bob Walker, who has brought a friend’s Freedom 44 sailboat “Joy for all Seasons” down from Connecticut, is moored close by and it was good to see him again after many years. He was joined later tonight by Don & Audrey for a long weekend of cruising together.
Jo and I spent a quiet evening aboard after a farewell dinner with Dottie & Ken who may be nearing the end of their cruise as they look to return to a more “normal” life.
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Cruising the British Virgin Islands, Virgin Gorda to Sopher’s Hole
2/17 - 2/ 20
Latitude: 18:23.24 N Longitude: 064:42.04 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 75 to 950 at 10-20 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3/4
Barometer: 1013 Passage time: 46 hrs over 4 days
Engine Hours: 1669 Fuel used/on board: 4340/634
Distance trip/to Date: 46/10,548
We will be moving around a lot in this closely knit island group so instead of individual daily logs for each short passage, I’ll just report on the overall experience. As many of you know, Jo and I have been here many times over 30 years both with family and as charter brokers with our own company, Yacht Holidays International in the “80’s. In many ways, it feels like coming home for us to the place where our love of cruising could be quenched on the installment plan as we and our kids were growing up.
Day 1
Spent our 1st night at anchor just off Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda. It is Jo’s birthday today! The wind has died, the channel is like a lake and the sun is shinning. Took the dingy ashore in the morning with guests Bob and Pat for some dingy gas and a stop at the dive shop. Underway by 11AM for Long Bay on the north end of VG and its Bitter End Yacht Club. Picked up a mooring and headed ashore after lunch for a look around before taking the dinghy out for snorkel expedition to the reef on the far side of Saba Rock Not much there except one large sting ray and some small reef fish. Water was exceptionally clear but a chilly 78 degrees.
Jo’s evening birthday festivities began with a happy hour ashore at the BEYC followed by dinner of fresh wahoo on board Dreamweaver with gift opening and desert with game of Cranium on board Voyager. Girls against guys ended in a tie after the guys lead for the entire game…some foul play is suspected. Wind piped up to 20 knots for a bumpy ride back to our big boats.
Day 2
Wind is still howling so we decide to stay put on our mooring today to better explore the north end of Virgin Gorda, in particular, the Briar Creek Resort. This remote and luxurious property is tucked back into a small corner of the VG Sound with access to water on two sides, the sound on our side and Deep Bay/Berchers Bay on the Atlantic ocean side. Our crew takes a nice 2-mile hillside hike for some spectacular views of both bays before having lunch at the Fat Virgin Café just off the resort property.
Back on board for naps, before Bob and I head ashore for an internet session. This evenings activities include an authentic Caribbean dinner (from our cooking class on St Kitts) cooked by Jo assisted by Pat and another great movie up for Academy Award best Actor consideration “Frozen River.”
Day 3
Departure from Bitter End today…the weather be damned! Still blowing 20 with gusts to 30 but time to move on and the protected nature of the Sir Francis Drake Channel should at least keep the waves limited to the fetch of the east-west oriented strait. We decide to hug the leeward shore of the eastern islands for the scenery and some protection from the ugliness. .
Plans to stop for lunch at Norman Island, the southern most rock in this chain, were abandoned once we arrived to discover the advertised shipboard restaurant there was not as inviting as it sounded. We grabbed a quick lunch on board while still moving in the mostly calm bay and then continued west over the top of St Johns, past the south end of Tortola, through the narrow Thatch island Cut and finally on to our destination for the day, Jost Van Dyke Island.
Foxy’s world famous beach bar and grill is located in Great Harbor on Jost Van Dyke. Yes, this is the real reason we have endured wind and waves for thirty plus miles…it is simply not to be missed. The legendary Foxy still performs with song and guitar nightly plus tonight he will be accompanied by a R&R Caribbean dance band so we dropped our hook in 34-feet, took our naps and got ready for yet another night of painkiller punch and dubious memories.
Day 4
Our night in Foxy’s started out with disappointed expectations - no Foxy, no live band and only a quiet, small crowd of older cruisers showed up for the fun. With a little perseverance we did manage to make a memorable evening with a good dinner, lots of punch and all of us diehards dancing to a local DJ till midnight. After a surprisingly quiet night at anchor, all hands took a quick morning trip ashore to take a walk and to shop at Foxy’s general store. By 10, the wind started to clock around making Great Harbor a lee shore so we quickly headed back to WS, raised anchor to get out before things got much worse.
Once back across the Tortola channel and through the cut, we turned into Sopher’s Hole, a well protected port on the west end with an accommodating marina. As soon as WS was secure here, we had lunch ashore at Pusser’s Rum Cafe and set off to see the many other small shops making up this picturesque tourist town. As the final night for our guests, we wanted a memorable dinner so we found a great new gourmet restaurant called “WATERMARK” in Frenchman’s Key resort and spent the evening enjoying excellent food, spirits and our company.
It was already a pitch black night by the time we weighed anchor and set out for our overnight passage. As luck would have it and to some extent our good interpolation of the many conflicting weather reports, the winds began to back down for the first time in weeks. Crossing the Anagada Passage is daunting in the best of circumstances and downright scary in heavy northerly wind and seas. We got this one exactly right with a light breeze right on the stern accompanied by a nice, gentle swell. While still lumpy, these winds and seas from behind WS seemed to push us along towards our distination.
Soon a half moon came up from behind the distant shadow of Anguilla with just enough light for the horizon to be visible and offer its encouragement as we plunged through the night. Daybreak put us about 16 miles off the pass around the north side of Ginger Island and Round Rock marking the end of Virgin Gorda. Making the starboard turn around the rock, and we were, once again, in protected waters and on our way to the anchorage at Spanish Town with its entry officials for the BVI.
We spent the rest of the day, clearance duties completed, napping and relaxing on board. BBQ dinner followed by one of the many great academy award nominated movies brought down by Bob & Pat rounded out a very nice Day on the water and welcome to our new cruising grounds.
Morning was busy getting loose of shore life after 10-days of dockside living. We checked out of the marina, the country and the local supermarket all in an hour’s time so we would be ready for sea by the 11AM bridge opening. Bob and Pat joined our crew on Thursday night and will be traveling with us to Anguilla and the British Virgin Isles. By 1050 we were second in line behind a massive mega yacht and in front of a dozen other boats including Dreamweaver and Voyager, all anxious to get going north or south or anywhere after the long weather delay in St Maarten.
Once we were through the narrow bridge passage and out of the lee of the island, we were delighted to find the seas much more moderate than predicted so we had an easy run the 17-miles to Anguilla. By 1330, we had the anchor down in fifteen feet of water off its beach town of Road Harbor. Once all three boats were set, a dinghy expedition was launched to go ashore and check out this small independent island and to add it to our country collection…this makes number 97 for Jo.
From first look there was not much to see…just a couple of shabby beach bars and a smelly salt marsh. However, one of these bars called Johnny O’s, it turned out, was known for its Sunday afternoon jam sessions and soon we were right in the swing with one of the best Jazz bands I’ve heard in a long time. What started out as a quick walk on the beach turned into a whole afternoons entertainment. Then it was back on board for naps, a bit of the Daytona 500 and then a nine o’clock evening departure for the overnight run to Virgin Gorda and the British Virgin Islands.
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Simpson Bay Marina, St Martin
2/5 to 2/14
Well the combination of continuous bad weather and our new engine problem conspired to keep us in lovely St Martin much longer than intended. What was planned as a 2-3 day quick look around turned into over a week of boat maintenance and the inevitable cruiser’s partying that seems to follow us from island to island. We’ll take care of the engine hiccup by replacing the fuel lift pump with a new one sent down by Cummins. We also found a stress crack on the radar mounting platform from all the thrashing around we’ve done in large seas that we will need to have welded.
WS needs some TLC in the cleanup department too - especially with Bob & Pat, our neighbors and good friends from Big bear joining us here by the end of the week. I spent an hour today taking the big dinghy apart to clean it up and get the sand from a dozen different beaches out of its bilge and then had to replace and change tires around on the bikes to get them operational again. Add to this list the master head that keeps locking up and a full social agenda and you can see that we’ll have plenty to do here in St Martin before we move on the British Virgin Islands next weekend.
The boys and I spent Saturday morning replacing the fuel lift pump on the Cummins after a week’s drama of trying to get Fed Ex to get it here from Florida. They managed to send it to Curacao first so it took three days for an “overnight” shipment. Once it was here, the three of us managed to figure out how to get it installed after removing half the engine including the fuel cooler, a wire harness, the computer, the cooling plate for the computer and a bunch of miscellaneous wires and gismos. Once back together, she started right up and ran beautifully so I think the problem is solved. We immediately fired up WS and ran over to the fuel dock for 400 galleons of the liquid gold (down to $3.35/gallon here) then back to our dock for our last night in St Maarten.
Note: Filled fuel with 400 gallons bringing total up to 700 gallons on board at 1644 engine hours - 4,289 total fuel used to date.
Just before we left St Barts I was able to get on the internet long enough to get several days worth of backed up email. Sadly, I learned of the passing of my long time (49-years) friend and business partner, Bill Veis. Bill had been having a series of small strokes for several years until he was just barely clinging to life the last time we were home for a visit. So while still painful, his departure was not unexpected. Bill was the founder of our company, my mentor in the orthodontic business and not only a great guy but a second father to me through all of the important decisions of my life. Any financial success I’ve achieved, I owe largely to him too.
The days voyage started off as a nice easy run across the 16-miles to the Dutch side of St Martin in the company of our little fleet. Our only boating concern was to get there in plenty of time to make the 11:30 opening of the drawbridge that gives access for boats to enter the popular yacht haven of Simpson Bay. It is in here that you would eventually be able to see most of the mega yachts from around the world as they pass through here for maintenance, crew changes, or just to take a break from cruising the Caribbean. About 30 to 50 of these floating palaces can be found here at any given time.
Things got exciting for us while still crossing the channel when, about a half hour from the southern St Martin city of Philipsburg, our engine started to act up. The main engine’s computer alarm came on with an error message of “Prime pump error” which means the injector pump is not getting enough fuel from the small lift pump that brings the fuel from the tanks. Symptom wise, it started to lope - repeatedly slowing down and then revving up acting like it was going to quit at any minute. A quick check of the engine room does not show anything obviously wrong - filters are clean, engine is cool, oil and alternator normal and no fuel leaks etc. By slowing the rpm’s down to 1200, I found the Cummins would settle down to a nice steady hum again without the alarm drama.
At first, we thought we would need to make an emergency stop at Bobby’s Marine, a boatyard in Philipsburg. Since we are making a steady 5-knots and the Cummins seems like it will not stop completely, we decide to keep going to try to still make the bridge opening and all of the expert services we know are available in the Bay. Unfortunately, the slower speed gets us there just as it closes so nothing to do but drop the hook and relax till the next opening at 5:30. This also gives us the time to take the dinghy to clear customs and pay our multitude of fees - even one for passing through the draw bridge. Later in the afternoon, we get boarded by the St Martin Coast Guard just to add more excitement to an already emotionally packed day.
By 5pm, the staff boat from Simpson Bay Marina, our intended destination, comes all the way out to the anchorage to meet WS and guide us to our slip. Once through the channel, the huge bay with hundreds of boats of all sizes spreads out in every direction. We follow our guide boat as he circles an island of med moored mega yachts to get to our very nice marina. All of the yachting services you could want or need are within a short dinghy ride of this marina…ship chandleries, electronic shops, welding shops, grocery stores, fuel docks not to mention dozens of restaurants, casinos, movie theaters and, of course, great cruiser hangout bars are all within walking distance too.
It’s a quiet dinner on board though and early to bed for a very tired and emotionally drained WS crew after another dramatic day at sea.
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Gustavia at anchor
2/1 - 2/3 Sunday to Tuesday
Superbowl Sunday and hard to believe it is February already. Our party today is planned on Voyager and Dottie/Ken on Dreamweaver will also be able to join us from Saba before game time. Jo and I head to town early for a further look around and some much needed exercise walking. The town is clean, nicely kept up and compact so we hiked up to some of the surrounding, residential hills as well. All of the shops are closed today but we did manage to find a nice dockside spot for a gourmet lunch…so far the food here is suburb! Then it was back to WS for a rest before game/party.kickoff.
And what an exciting game it was! I can’t remember a Superbowl I’ve enjoyed any more. Besides my old home team, the Steelers winning in a squeaker, the food and company on Voyager was outstanding and fun as usual so it made for a most memorable day indeed.
It was a fairly rocky ride to St Barts but this was the last of the northern legs for quite awhile and only 40 miles at that so we didn’t mind. We’re getting good at setting WS up for beam to beam rolls so that nothing inside gets tossed around. We could see Gustavia’s crowed anchorage from miles at sea. This French island is very popular with the rich & famious and a favorite stop of the mega yachts as well. Jimmy Buffet claims it as his favorite which makes it popular with the rest of us.
Once we treaded our way through the yacht’s of all sizes at anchor. We took up a stern to position on the harbors inner seawall as instructed by the port captain. This involved dropping the anchor mid channel and then backing down till the stern almost touches the wharf using fenders to protect the swimstep, not an easy maneuver in a 15-knot crosswind. We managed to get WS tied up just fine but it was quickly apparent the swell roll and boat wakes in the harbor made it a rather precarious mooring at best and downright dangerous for our swimstep should it bang against the dock. We gave it an hour before we decided it was just to risky, undid the whole mess and headed hack out to the anchorage.
Voyager and arrived from Nevis and dropped her anchor while we were playing about inside so we picked a likely spot next to her and set our anchor too in 25 feet of water. While a bit of a dinghy ride into the inner harbor to customs for clearance, we felt much better about leaving WS than we ever would have at the dock. After clearing in, both crews took some time to walk around the very up market town before picking Eddie’s as the best likely spot for dinner. We were not disappointed either as this quaint restaurant served up a great diner for us in their outdoor garden patio. Then it was back to the yachts for a good nights rest.
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St Kitts/Nevis
01/25 - 01/30 Monday to Friday
We are taking an extended, week long, weather break here as the NE Caribbean kicks up a fuss of wind and waves. All-in-all, this is not a bad place to hang out with lots to do and fairly good marina facilities. Oddly enough, the internet is not provided to the marina or easily available nearby so this is the one, very serious drawback for communicating with friends and family and checking on the weather. We did finally hook up with a good internet service from “The Tour Store” right off the cruise ship dock and only a block from our marina.
These islands is not real popular with other cruisers either with only a handful of boats here so we miss the sense of being part of the cruising community we have enjoyed so much down island. This is a same as they have so much to offer and still resemble the “old” Caribbean on days when the cruise ships are not at the dock.
This having been said, we are keeping very busy with the Dreamweaver crew taking island tours, the ferry back to Nevis for a better look, rum tasting crawls, movies, shopping, bonfires on the beach, lobster feasts, and even attending a Caribbean cooking school. We have met and befriended the new owners of a great restaurant in downtown Basseterre called “Stone Walls” now open for a gourmet breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Looks like we’ll hang in here till Saturday then head the 43 miles to St Barts by passing the tiny island of St Eustatius (Statia for short) which is just 20-miles further west and very visible as a mountain top out of the sea off the west end of St Kitts.
Took us a while to get moving but made it ashore by 10am to do the customs/immigration/port captain shuffle. Here takes three stops like in Central America with fees and slow typing to match. Being Sunday, everything in the small town of Charleston was closed except one supermarket so our walking around tour was very brief and we were back on board and ready to move on to St Kitts by noon.
Both islands are part of the same country and it only takes two hours to move the eleven miles to the town of Basseterre on St Kitts. There’s a bit more wind then we expected out of the northeast today but being in the lee for all but the narrow passage between the islands makes the journey a pleasant, wave free, romp. .
The new Port Zante Marina, just off the cruise ship docks, is full (we suspect its just a lazy weekend dockmaster) but with the promise of accommodations first thing in the morning, we opt for what will be a rolly night at anchor just outside of the breakwater instead of going back a couple of miles to a more protected bay.
Dottie & Ken on Dreamweaver arrive from Antigua by five pm after a week long visit from Ken’s brother Marshal and family. I think that this is the first time just our two boats have been together at anchor since the coast of California. Their anchor is barely wet before plans are made for an evening of catching up with a happy hour and fresh fish fry on WS
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Jolly Harbor Marina to Charleston, Nevis
01/24 Saturday
Latitude:17:08.17 N Longitude: 062:37.95 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 1000 at 14-18 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 4
Barometer: 1011 Passage time: 7 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1631 Fuel used/on board: 4262/334
Distance trip/to Date: 47/10,360
Nice early departure from the marina by 7AM. It feels good to be underway again after the protracted but fun stay in Antigua. Over the next several weeks we’ll be moving on a much more regular basis as we explore the remaining Leeward islands on our way to the British Virgins roughly 200 miles to the west.
Once we are out of the lee of Antigua, a nice, long for the Caribbean swell shows up off the starboard beam.. It feels good to have both wind and waves behind us for a change instead of right on the nose or starboard beam. WS handles these seas best of all as she accelerates down the face of each wave up to nine knots from our usual seven. While its cloudy most of the day we can just see the North end of Montserrat with it’s very active volcano.
We pass the south end of Nevis just after lunch and head directly for the only town of Charleston. As we approach, we are surprised to see the anchorage area as marked in our guide book covered with moorings and a distinct lack of cruising boats except for a lone Sunsail charter boat at anchor. We take up a position behind it and drop our hook in twelve feet of firm sand. Since we know customs/immigration are already closed for the day, we decide to just relax on the boat and clear in tomorrow while we have a look around before heading to St Kitts.
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Jolly Harbor Marina
01/19 - 1/23 Monday to Friday
Our final days with the Hazen’s were spent enjoying the beaches of Jolly Harbor Resort and the local ambience. On Monday night, Audrey made us a fabulous sauerkraut dinner, the old Alsatian way (we are of Alsatian ancestry on m our Dads side), which was the best sauerkraut I’ve ever had - even Jo loved it and she is Scotch-Irish! Tuesday finds us glued to the TV watching the coronation of our new president whom we have come to admire, though somewhat reluctantly, after reading his books. On Wednesday, our guests leave for the frozen north and we return to boat chores and the reality of getting ready for sea. Thursday and Friday just more of the same…working on our computers and catching up on maintenance.
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Deep Bay to Jolly Harbor Marina via Dickenson Bay
01/18 Sunday
Latitude:17:03.93 N Longitude: 061:51.05 W
Weather: sunny Wind: 900 at 12-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1012 Passage time: 3 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1624 Fuel used/on board: 4244/352
Distance trip/to Date: 12/10,313
We started off the day with a nice hike up the hill to the old fort for a panoramic view of the bay and WS at anchor quietly waiting for us to return. Then it’s up anchor at 1030 and we head north once more for the popular beaches of Dickenson Bay for a lunch stop and some water sports. We anchor in a skinny, 7′ of water just off the crowed, pristine beach of Sandals Resort. Don & Audrey have a fun time rowing Twinkle, our small collapsible dinghy, to shore.
By 1300, we are tired of being target practice for a screaming fleet of jet skis so as soon as the crew is back on board , we turn south again for our new home in Jolly Harbor. This marina is situated far back in a long channel surrounded by homes, condos, and hotels. While an active tourist area, it is a great place for us to spend our last few days with our guests and then to regroup, re-provision, and make our departure for the next island of Nevis. We have a great super market, ships chandlery, fuel dock, good restaurants, swimming pool, and various shops of all kinds.
Afternoon finds us in the sports bar watching the end of the NFL playoffs where we stay for dinner then it’s back on the Star for the victorious Steeler’s game for us former Pittsburgh natives which lasted till late in the evening.
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English Harbor to Deep Bay
01/17 Saturday
Latitude:17:07.50 N Longitude: 061:54.00 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 900 at 12-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 4 to 2
Barometer: 1013 Passage time: 3 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1622 Fuel used/on board: 4239/357
Distance trip/to Date: 16/10,208
Left the dock at English Harbor with Don and Audrey on board at 1030 after an hour spent untangling our bow mooring line from the other three yachts sharing the buoy. Once free of the dock, we needed to retrieve the anchor while Don did the hose down duties to get off the thick bay mud. Then it’s around the old Fort Bradley guarded bend and then out onto the bounding main, in this case, the ENE Caribbean Trade driven seas. Today, we face 5′- 6′ swell on the beam for the first ½ mile till we are able to make the turn and head due west for the first time since we left the Straits of Juan de Fuca in Washington State.
Our mission today is to explore the bays and coves on the south west side of Antigua on our way to Deep Harbor, a small bay just south of the main port city of St John. Here we dropped the hook in 20 feet of crystal clear water just off the once prestigious Royal Antiguan Hotel, now fallen of hard times. Old Fort Brady overlooks the bay from its lofty perch on the hill once guarding the entrance to this port from the French. In the center of our bay is the wreck of the Andes, a island freighter that caught fire in 1906 and conveniently sank in 30-feet of water making it an ideal fish habitat and snorkeling destination. We spent a great afternoon exploring it and dinghy exploring the entire bay.
Cocktails at sunset on the fly bridge followed by dinner of shish-ka-bob on our top deck table and chairs under the stars.
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English Harbor - on Holiday
01/10 - 1/16 Saturday to Friday
Our first day into marina life in Antigua was spent polishing up Wandering Star from life on the high seas. Company coming next week starting Monday so we want to get our chores done so we can go out and play. While I washed down WS from stem to stern to get the salt off while Jo followed along to do the windows. I even got a haircut worked into the program in the afternoon as I was getting a little scraggly from Dottie’s last attempt on a rocking boat in Port Elizabeth Harbor.
Hosted a small happy hour for new friends on the world cruising Nordhavn ‘43, Kosmos, parked next to us. She is three-quarters of the way around starting in San Diego going west across the Pacific, through Indonesia and the dreaded Straits of Malacca, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Mediterranean, and just arrived from the Canary islands on Tuesday . Now heading back to San Diego and work, Eric and Christi will finish up there world adventure in just under 2-years…quite an accomplishment! You can check out their blog at http://kosmos.liveflux.net/blog.
The rest of our time here was spent exploring the island with friends and family. Mark and Susan Ohlendorf stopped by off on their cruise ship for a delightful day of exploring the northern and eastern sections of the Antigua by rental car. We had a leasurely lunch at the beautifully set Long Bay Inn and finished up the day with a walking tour of English Harbor before heading back to their departing ship.
Sister Audrey and brother-in-law Don from Virginia arrived next and stayed aboard to play with us for a week that included continued, in depth, exploring of the sights in the car by day and the party/restaurant scene at night. One especially memorable night we were joined by the crews of Voyager and Dreamweaver for diner and dancing till closing at a quaint little local place called Bambu. At one point, Don joined the band at the keyboard for a set of Johnnie Be Good that even had the natives outside on the street rocking along with the rest of us. Hiking, snorkeling, shelling, windsurfing, wreck-diving and even some boating as we moved WS around to Jolly Harbor rounded out a very fun filled time together.
We’re off the hook early again this morning as we try to get a jump on the AM winds. This island’s northern point is notorious for high winds and rough seas…nothing new there! This morning did prove to be the exceptions as things did not really kick up till about midway across the channel. An extra two seconds of interval between the waves and the lack of substantial wind waves seemed to help keep things more manageable today and while we did tangle with a few eight footers, it was not the white knuckle experience of some of our recent channel passages.
There was virtually no lee shore relief right up to the opening for English Harbor because it is located on the south east end of the island with no protection from the ENE trades till you slide past the old fort guarding the narrow entrance. Once inside, a hard left brings you to the narrow channel leading to the historic Nelson Dockyard Marina, our home for the coming week. That is it is after a half hour of trying to get the dock master’s attention on the radio so he could assign us to a spot on the quay. As is typical more and more lately, all of the boats here are med moored with there sterns backed up to the sea wall and either a anchor or bow line to a buoy forward to hold the bow.. We squeeze WS into a spot between a couple of sailboats and soon have her tied up and secure.
Apathy seems to be a recurrent theme here so far and the customs/immigration folks are not to be the exception. While conveniently located right on the grounds of our marina, they could barely tear themselves away for their TV long enough to sign and stamp our entry forms. Once finished with the formalities, Jo and I head out the road for a look around Falmouth Harbor next door and to check out the competing marinas. We made the right choice picking Nelson’s Dockyard with the Antigua Yacht Club being the only possible 2nd choice in this adjoining Harbor. Our walking tour ends with a visit to the Jolly Bar on our marina’s grounds and a nice happy hour meeting fellow cruising yachties. .
Home to clean up and then it’s back out with my 1st mate to celebrate our arrival and the turning of the corner at the highly recommended (from happy hour friends) Abracadabra Italian Restaurant just off our marina’s grounds. Here our host Paulo made us feel like his old friends and favorite patrons in short order - what a gift. With excellent food and wine to match, he sure made up for yesterdays lack luster French experience in Deshaies.. A nice walk after dinner under the full moon and it’s the end of another perfect day in paradise.
Slow getting the mental game going this morning after last nights bacchanal, physical side though was up and around early enough to get underway before 7:30. Our companion boats got away on time as well. The crossing of the channel between Dominica and Guadeloupe went pretty much as expected and much better than the previous channel crossing. ENE Swells had a few 8-footers but with the absence of Saturday’s 30+ knot winds, they lacked the confusion and the tendency of the wind driven water to stack on top of the existing swells.
We passed to the West of the Saints, a small group of French islands 8-miles before the Guadeloupe mainland. They would have been a great place to stop if we had the time. The several reasons we have for being in Antigua early next week keep pushing us along especially with the lousy weather due in again Sunday night.
Once in the lee of the island’s high mountains, it is an easy run up the west coast about a mile off the land. We make a point to circle Pigeon Island, one of Cousteau’s top 10 dive spots in the world but it does not look inviting enough today to stop given the gloomy weather and the lack of any available moorings as anchoring there is forbidden. So we settle for a couple of photos and press on to our stop for tonight, the small fishing town of Deshaies (pronounced Day-ay) on the north end of Guadeloupe.
Pulled into the already full anchorage at 1330 and found a likely spot between Voyager and the cliffs that line the bay’s north shore in 30 feet of water. After a couple hours rest, the three crews piled into Dreamweaver’s dinghy for a shore excursion and a look around the town. Desharies, while small, does not disappoint in character and French ambiance. It is clean, the buildings are in good repair, and most are gaily painted in the Caribbean tradition. Best of all, there are at least six French restaurants along its one-mile long waterfront.
We picked the fanciest of the six but unfortunately it did not have the food or service to match its decor but all in all it was an enjoyable meal for the fellowship and the help of a subtle little French Boudreaux. The almost full moon showed us the way back to our boats for an early lights out and pending departure for Antigua in the morning.
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Portsmouth
01/07 Thursday
Took a day off here to do the early morning flower and fauna tour up the Indian River. Really more bird watching as our guide (Martin again) rowed us a mile or two up to a small botanical garden. This area was also in Pirates of the Caribbean II & III as the setting for the witches’ home. Starting at 6:30AM, we were done by 9:00 so went back into town for some local breakfast and a walk around before going back to the boats for lunch.
It was a quiet afternoon on board with only a wet, rainy dinghy trip to the customs office for diversion. We did manage to make a pass by the incredible “Maltice Falcon” just in at anchor for clearing customs from the Antigua boat show. This is the world’s largest, most expensive, privately owed sailing ship at 90-meters long and costing $141 million. Dollars to build. She charters for a mere $310,000/week but this includes a full crew of probably 10 to 12 and all the toys but fuel is extra should you choose not to sail.
Tonight it’s off to the highly touted weekly Reggae night at Big Papas. Music starts at 10PM and shuts down somewhere between 3 and 5 AM. With speakers the size of a Volkswagen in a dance area the size of a modest living room, it’s a wonder any of Dominica’s are not stone deaf. Basically, all the pot you could inhale was free as the air was thick enough with the smoke. Add to this the entire freshman class of the local medical school and a lovely mix of local babes decked out in their finest and shortest and usual grungy Rastafarian guys and you have yourself a great evening of people watching.
We managed to get ashore by 8:30 for dinner at Big Papas after a warm-up party on WS with the gang. Then its all aboard Ken’s dinghy for a rainy ride to the dinghy dock. Big Papa himself saw to it we were seated in his “VIP” area, a makeshift 2nd floor on stilts that still falls down with each passing hurricane. Dinner was good but slow in coming, the epitome of leisurely island dining.
The music cranked up before we were finished so it became impossible to talk, even in the 2nd floor of the a joining structure. We all hung out till eleven and Jo managed to endure a couple of dances with very touchy feely resta men and I had to settle for just being propositioned by one of the ladies of the evening before we all headed back to our floating, quiet homes by shortly after midnight. Probably would not have stayed much longer rven without tomorrow’s early departure for Guadeloupe.
Towed the dinghy for the nice, well protected, 3-hour trip up the leeward side of Dominica. Our Roseau Pancho has called ahead and his contemporary Martin was waiting for us as we pulled into the broad Bay of Portsmouth. Jo & I decide to take up a mooring instead of anchor partly because you want to support the local boat business and with moorings you don’t get charter people anchoring on top of you in these busy harbors.
We head into Big Pappas Restaurant, which has one of the few remaining docks for a look around town in the early afternoon. You do not appreciate how much these small towns are devastated by the frequent hurricanes into you stop in a place like Portsmouth which has 5 or 6 beached or sunken island freighter all along its waterfront. One is even locking the entrance to the main river. All of the small docks we use are completely destroyed and very hard for the owners’ meager business to afford to replace.
While one of the poorer islands so far, the people of Dominica seem happy and well fed. Groceries are mostly fresh grown locally with little prepared foods of any kind. The daily fare here is fruits and vegetables with fresh fish and occasionally goat or chicken. This island has the reputation for long life with the highest ratio of population to octogenarians of any place on the planet. The lady who was the recent record holder just passed at 128- years old.
Back on board for dinner and a movie tonight and a very fast internet for a change so we can get caught up on our correspondence too.
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On the mooring at Roseau
01/04-1/05 Sunday & Monday
Up most of the night with a battle of the bands going on till 5AM at the local nightclub which happens to be right opposite from our mooring. Music quality was not so bad it is just the incessant base drum they crank up till it is like an migraine headache. Then the church bells take over starting at 6AM to further punish both the revelers and the innocent. Town is all but closed so I spent Sunday helping Ken pull and repair his prop which was not badly damaged at all considering the possibilities while Jo got WS back in order after yesterday’s debacle at sea. Dinner and a movie with Ken joining us on WS,
Monday was our day for touring the island in the care of Celia who turns out to be Pancho’s wife and his young son…just love these family outings. This is the most rugged of all the Caribbean Islands with nine active volcanoes rising straight out of the sea, some reaching over 4,000 feet. To the point the early explorers left the place unbothered for many years just because it was so rough and daunting to even bother going ashore. All we could do in a full day was wind our way up one canyon to visit some more waterfalls, swimming holes, as well as the highest road and fresh water lake in the Caribbean. So high it was actually cold up there enough to need a sweater - unheard of in these parts -the coolest we’ve been since leaving Big Bear last fall.
Had a nice lunch at the top of the mountain today so will stay on board for dinner this evening. Voyager caught up with us by the time we got back from touring and will travel with us to Portsmouth at the north end of the island in the morning.
The day started off in the calm of St Pierre Bay with little wind and not even a ripple on the water. Unfortunately this was not to last long for as soon as we moved out of the lee of Martinique all hell broke loose! The waves began to roll in from the East directly on our beam and rose to six feet on up to occasional ten footers and the wind continued to build till it reached 30 plus knots by the time we were in mid channel. Our weather forecast called for more reasonable 5 foot seas and winds of only 20 knots so this surprise is exactly the kind of stuff days we try our best to avoid.
Beam seas are the hardest to manage in any boat, especially for the occupants. Un-stabilized boats roll from side to side in beam seas till you would swear it was going to go completely over. Of course, anything loose inside becomes immediately air born across the cabin and the wind howling through the rigging does not help the bedlam or your nerves either. For four hours, Jo stayed in our bunk which is low and lies amidships so is a more comfortable ride and I stayed glued in the helms seat and hung on for dear life…to the point you just get tired from hanging on.
Our boat did fine with nothing broken other than a plant that upsets and spilled some dirt on the floor. Ken on Dreamweaver ran over and destroyed one of his para vane fish and possible screwed up the prop about two thirds of the way across the channel. He was just lucky he did not get the vane wire wrapped around the prop as stopping the engine out there would have been a very dicey situation indeed.
Things did not calm down again until we were well in the lee of Dominica and even got a bit rougher the last couple of miles as the wind and sea began to funnel around the end of the island. Once behind the land mass, it immediately became a lake again with little wind and no waves at all. We followed the coast line a couple of miles to the main town of Roseau where we were met by a very cheery Rastafarian looking boat boy named Pancho who soon had us secured to his mooring float just off the Anchorage Hotel. It is difficult to anchor here as the shore drops off to deep water immediately so moorings are the only reasonable way to get boats to stop in for a visit.
We’ll stay here awhile and wait for some really good weather before the next leg. The customs procedures are more rigorous too, more like old Mexico where you must report in and out of each port not just the country, so checking in was the next afternoon project. Roseau’s a nice little town but has three cruise ships in today so that disrupts its peaceful nature to put it mildly. At least it’s English again and the cell phone and internet work which has become almost a requirement of late as you do get used to the convenience.
Our crew took time to have a moving happy hour at the old fort hotel and a place called the Garage with car wheels for bar stools and great chicken wings. Then a quick look around as most cruise shippers had left by now before heading back to WS for a quiet dinner on board after a most strenuous day.
A morning of frustration was spent trying to find an internet connection that would connect long enough so that I could get an up to date weather forecast. Nothing would work from our usually dependable Hawking wireless antenna on board so Jo & I took the dinghy into shore and proceeded to roam hotel lobbies and internet café’s hoping to get a website. Still, nothing worked until a shopkeeper, in French pantomime, was able to convey the idea that she thought the internet was off for the entire island due to a broken under ground or sea cable.
Back on board Voyager, Les was thankfully able to get a spot forecast for the channel between Martinique and Dominica, our next objective, over his satellite phone. Well the forecast was even worse than the trouble getting it, promising building winds and waves up to 10′ for the next week starting tomorrow. After some hasty consultation with Ken on Dreamweaver, it was decided that our two boats had to press on if we were to cover the 150-miles to Antigua in time to pick up our guests, Audrey and Don, and for Ken to collect his wife Dottie returning from the US.
So we scraped our plans to tour Martinique on land, weighed anchor by 1030 and both boats took off for the 14-mile run to St Pierre on the north end on Martinique. From here we would be in a good position to make the channel crossing early the next morning just hours ahead of the expected nasty weather (we hope).
While it rained most of the way and for the rest of the day, St Pierre was the one unexpected bright spot in a day of gloominess. We spent an interesting afternoon walking the old streets in this small, historical town of 7,000 which is located on the slopes of the still active volcano, Mount Pelee. St Pierre was once the capitol of early Martinique with prosperous coffee, sugar, and cocoa plantations and a bustling economy. Disaster struck in 1902 when the top blew off Pelee completely destroying the town and killing all but two of its 30,000 residents.
A cobbler in his home cellar and a prisoner in the prison dungeon were the only two to survive the blast of heated gas that poured down the mountain side. Our visit to the Pelee museum showed us the results of this fire ball that was hot enough to incinerate anything made of wood, melt dishes in their stone homes and even the bronze bell in the church steeple. .Twelve sailing ships at anchor in the harbor were burned to their waterline and sank to the bottom as well.
After a quick stop at the customs computer to check out of Martinique and a visit to the local grocery store, it was back to the boats for a rest, dinner and some reading before calling it a day. It will be a dawn departure and six-hours to Dominica in the morning and the end of our stay in the Windward Islands.
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Fort de France to Anse Mitan
01/01 Thursday
Latitude: 14.33.24 N Longitude: 061:03.38 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 0450 at 8-14 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 0
Barometer: 1009 Passage time: .5 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1592 Fuel used/on board: 4170/431
Distance trip/to Date: 3/10,022
All crews were a bit slow rising this morning but the church bells of old Fort de France started extracting their revenge from 6 AM onwards. By eleven everyone is up and moving and it was soon decided to take a short, new year’s cruise across the bay to the resort village and anchorage of Anse Mitan just 3-miles away. At noon, we raise anchor and leave as a group with WS in the lead.
While the new anchorage is fairly crowded with moorings and long term residents, we find enough room for all three of us to move into the last row before the ferry channel which is quiet today for the holiday. Once settled in, Jo and I head to shore to do some reconnaissance for the group and have a nice day exploring a very sleepy little town.
There are several resort hotels, good looking restaurants, the usual tourist shops and, of course, the ever popular French sidewalk cafes. A very full marina, jet-ski rentals on the somewhat narrow beach, many apartment buildings and vacation homes round out the village’s cozy appeal. It seems to be a nice mix of French nationals on holiday and upper class local residents who probably go to work by ferry in Fort de France across the Bay.
By early afternoon we are back on board for some continued recovery from last nights festivities and even decide to spend the evening on board with a quiet dinner and the Rose Bowl game (as long as we could stand it). No working internet here so it’s difficult to get the weather we need for making decisions about the next destination, so tomorrow I’m sure we’ll be moving again.
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Rodney Bay to Fort de France, Martinique
12/31 Wednesday
Latitude: 14.35.90 N Longitude: 061:04.00 W
Weather: partly cloudy early rain Wind: 0700 at 8-14 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 4/5
Barometer: 1009 Passage time: 5.5 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1591 Fuel used/on board: 4169/432
Distance trip/to Date: 34/10,019
Milestones marked this passage. Our 10,000th mile at sea on Wandering Star II turned over on the old sea-dometer about half way across from St Lucia. We’ve finally caught up to the 10,000 miles we put on the first Wandering Star in the six years we were on board her and have now made it to Martinique. Tonight also marks the end of 2008 which began with new years in Mazatlan.
After almost a year of Spanish, weeks of Dutch, followed by the last month of the Kings English with a Caribbean lilt, it is time for the French to have their linguistic turn. One does get rather used to not understanding much of what is going on (being a senior and all) and being on a French island is no different. Except most people here make a real effort to accommodate you if you give their language a try and most understand/speak just enough English to get the job done anyways.
Our first view of Fort de France
We dropped our Rocna anchor in about 25′ just off the town of Fort de France’s ferry docks with Voyager along port side and Dreamweaver just ahead. Then it’s all ashore for entry formalities, all here are accomplished on a computer screen without an official in sight. Then we wandered around for an hour trying to find an open pub finally giving up in favor of some fresh baugettes, groceries, followed by a nap back on board before our New Years celebration tonight.
We welcomed 2009 on Voyager in the classic style…caviar laden crackers, a lobster and steak dinner, desert of grilled pears with a balsamic reduction glaze, and much champagne. Only problem was deciding which time zone we wanted to make our official New Years so we just started with midnight Paris time and worked our way across Iceland, Greenland for a finale in our zone which we share with Nova Scotia and Rio de Janerio.
Here in Martinique, we had fireworks on shore, horns from various boats in our anchorage and even the sacred blowing of the conch shell by Les, Rose and most everyone else on board who could still pucker tight enough followed by dancing on the fan tail. I don’t know when I dawned the red wig or painted on the French mustache but I’m sure it was appropriate and important at the time. All in all, a night to remember I’m sure . . . if only I could!
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Rodney Bay
12/29-12/30 Monday - Tuesday
We had a nice couple of days putting the finishing touches on St Lucia. Found a reasonable cab driver on Monday so were able to make a run back to Castries for Jo’s Christmas present, a pottery plate with a St Lucia theme done by Michelle and to look for a new bike tire for me. Then we were dropped off at Pigeon Island to explore the old, hill top British fort and have happy hour again at the Jambe de Bois (wooden leg) before heading back for an evening at home. Well, at least Jo stayed home, Ken and I found some mischief to get into at the local cruisers bar that involved some 151 proof rum - nuff said!
Took it easy on Tuesday making final preparations for the crossing to Martinique tomorrow morning and waiting for Voyager to return from down island with guests Tom and Babe to join us. We all checked out of St Lucia in the afternoon. Then Jo and I had a great farewell to St Lucia dinner at a local Thai restaurant and a last walk around the area before calling it a night in deference to a early departure in the morning.
After our favorite omelet breakfast, this morning was spent getting WS ready for sea again. You know the drill, dinghy up on deck, hoses and cords stowed, portholes and drawers dogged down, and the final checkout with the Marina. By 1100 we are backing out of our Christmas slip and on our way back north to Rodney Bay.
While the weather forecast for yesterday was worse, today is no walk in the park predicting 20+ knot winds and seas up to 8-feet. Normally we would stay in port but we figure we can take it for the short, 9-mile voyage. As soon as we make the turn up the coast, it is all of Force 5 as forecast with some spray clearing the flybridge. Despite the poor conditions, there are lots of boats out here today as the prime charter season is now in full swing. With only a week’s vacation, these folks need to go out in anything short of a gale or risk a vacation of going nowhere.
Once we make the turn east for the entrance to Rodney Bay in the lee of Pigeon Island, things calm down considerably. We call the RB dock boys on the VHF as we make the turn inside towards the docks to get our slip assignment and they are there to meet us by the time we are ready to back into the spot. Next comes a wash down of the salt spray on WS and a bottom scrub for the dinghy which is quite a mess after being in the water for two plus weeks.
Jo’s off to the store after check-in and then we settle in for a nice quiet night on board.
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Our Christmas Cove in Marigot Bay
Marigot Bay
12/23 - 12/ Tuesday to ?
Life is good in Marigot Bay…just too bad we can’t see much of it from our location. We managed to get the shore power working with Les’ help this morning. It involved replacing a bad rotary power switch and leaving the inverter by-passed when hooked up to shore power. For what ever reason, the way they wire these docks in not compatible with my Magnum inverter system.
Been raining all morning too but got H&T off on an all day adventure in the rainforest which involved some zip lining and a high rope challengers course. Jo and I spent the rest of the day catching up on computer chores and enjoying the quiet of our hidden slip. Tonight we’ll head out to a waterside restaurant just across the small bay called the Hidden Rainforest that I thought was a local burger joint. It turned out to be a very elegant gourmet dining establishment with service and prices to match. Like the Lighthouse a few islands back, the price fix, 5-course dinner was exceptional and certainly worth the cost and the dinghy trip across the bay.
Scuba diving is the adventure for today. We hooked up with a local dive boat and after much fooling around and disorganization, they finally get us out to the dive site south of our bay just before noon. It is Ted’s first scuba dive so Jo and I opt to stay with him and the less experienced divers who will stay close to the instructor in shallower water. Heather goes down with the veterans to explore a wreck in 67 feet while we do a drift dive by some of the prettiest coral-fish combination’s we’ve seen yet. All in all a great day followed by Christmas Eve festivities long into the night split between Voyager and WS.
Christmas Day on Wandering Star began with gift exchange, then a great brunch at the Discovery Hotel just across from our dock and then a late afternoon dinner of Cornish game hens with Dottie & Ken joining us on board that lasted well into the evening. Then it was calls to friends and family at home to complete the evening of a very special day.
Friday morning, Heather & Ted packed up and by noon departed for the airport and their return to the snows of Big Bear. Voyager departed with her guests on board to explore the southern coast of St Lucia along with many other boats in the marina. Dreamweaver is still here at anchor though.
We spent Saturday working on photos (Jo) and internet bookkeeping chores. Then we had a quiet dinner on board followed by some TV. Moving on in the morning back to Rodney Bay to get ready for the passage across the channel to Martinique on Wednesday.
Leisurely morning with the kids off for a fairly early run. Then we all did a dingy explore of the cruise ship busy Castries Harbor, only three in today including a French cruise ship. Even saw Dreamweaver pass by the harbor entrance on her way to Rodney Bay.
By noon we had cleaned up and dinghied over to The Coal Pot for a very gourmet lunch so we wouldn’t miss one of the best restaurants in St Lucia. It is owned by a successful local pottery artist Michelle (founded by her parents) and her French husband and excellent cook Xavier. The place was full by the time we left even on a Monday.
The Coal Pot
Back on board to hoist anchor by 1330 for the 5-mile run to Marigot Bay, our Christmas destination. The seas were still calm on this leeward passage but the forecast is promising 10′ to 15′ waves with up to 35knots of wind by the weekend. Glad we’ll be snug in our deep, well protected Bay.
Upon our arrival, we were a little disappointed to be assigned a slip at the very inside end of the marina close to bug infested mangroves. Since the power does not work here for us either, it looks like we’ll want to shift out to a mooring by tomorrow afternoon to be in a better location anyways. Les and Rose are already here with their holiday guests and Dreamweaver will be here by Wednesday to complete our little boating family.
H&T cooked us dinner tonight followed by a rousing game of Rummy Cube.
We spent a busy morning getting ready for sea although today is a short hop, just 5-miles to the next bay to the south. Part of the large cruise ship popular Castries Harbor, Vigie Cove is a small inlet inside the busy port. It features two of the best rated restaurants on the island, The Coal Pot and Jacques - neither of which was open for our Sunday visit.
We anchored twice in 25′ of mud to get it to stay put, waited through several rain squalls while T&H ran ashore to pick up the last piece of luggage at the nearby domestic airport (how it came in domestic no one knows). Next, they went ashore for a real run around a town over wrought with three cruise ships today. While they were doing that Jo and I managed to find a rum tasting at the nearby duty-free cruiseship village and do some shopping too.
Heather & Ted in Vigie Cove
After dark and several more rain squalls, we all went ashore for a delightful dinner at a small locals resort on our bay called Auberge. It was price fixed lobster night due to a local congregation’s Christmas dinner taking over most of the restaurant. So we all had a great lobster dinner including a free round of drinks with soup and desert for $55EC…about $20US/person. Later our crew watched the first episode of Pirates of the Caribbean back on board.
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Rodney Bay Marina, St Lucia
12/17 - 12/20 Wednesday to Saturday
Spent Wednesday getting acclimated to being in a marina again including getting WS waxed from top deck to waterline by a local rasta boatboy, getting the bike out again for my morning rides, Jo doing her walks and mall visits and even taking in a massage and generally getting ready for our company and Christmas. .
Heather and Ted arrived late Thursday…without their luggage. It seems the sudden snowstorm in Las Vegas and flying standby to Miami were just too much for American Airlines baggage system and it was three days until the last bag was finally collected. Two of the missing four bags were full of boat parts, spares for the engine, mail, Shaklee vitamins and anything else we’re not been able to find in our four months in the lower Caribbean but did show up only an anxious day late.
Friday was devoted to getting H & T settled in and acclimated, looking for the lost luggage, enjoying the ATC festivities. All but three of the 240 ARC boats are now present and accounted for and the party is still in full swing. For evening, it’s off to Jambe de Bois waterside café on the grounds of the old fort on Pigeon Island. The 3rd Sandals in St Lucia is located right up the beach along with a Rock Resort but this quaint little place was a step back time with family help, down home food, and homemade tables and chairs.
The Petit Piton from Soufriere Beach
The highlight of the week here was the tour along the leeward coast to the town of Soufriere and the spectacular Pitons, two rugged coastal pinnacles rising straight out of the water to 2,600 and 2,400 feet. Here we spent a great day visiting the small town, the botanical gardens, the Diamond Waterfalls, the smoking cauldron of an active volcano and my favorite, the Ladera Resort, one of the top ten small resorts in the world. High on a bluff between the Pitons, this un-ostentatious property of only 32 rooms has some of the most incredible views and sumptuous suites I have ever seen. Each open air guest room features a private pool, hot tub, second floor open balcony sleeping area, all with complete privacy. What a place for a honeymoon!
View from your Ladera Suite
Evening on board for our last night in Rodney Bay was fairly quiet as all the ARC folks were off at their final gathering until the wee hours when they stumbled home and woke us all up anyways.
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Admiralty Bay to Rodney Bay, St Lucia
12/15-12/16 Monday night to Tuesday Morning - overnight passage
It is 1930 (7:30PM) when we weigh anchor for the 12hr run to the top end of St Lucia. Most of the day has been spent taking a last look around Port Elizabeth, shopping for food, clearing customs and Jo getting a nice long walk in with Dottie and Rose. We decided an overnight passage makes the most sense given the weather forecast and the need to arrive at Rodney Bay in the early morning light.
Getting underway after sundown and before any moonlight is not the easiest of departures. Add to the mix the crowded, busy anchorage and a cruise ship beside us deciding to up anchor at the same time, all in the pitch black and you have more of a challenge than you could hope for but we manage to get underway without incident. Little did we know that rounding the point leaving Bequia into what felt like a raging gale would prove to be the real excitement for the evening.
While it had been blowing off and on up to 20-knots in the harbor all day, we did not expect winds of 30+ knots with seas on the nose to match for the 8-mile stretch to the lee of St Vincent. Spay clearing the pilot house roof with Wandering Star pounding into 6-foot waves certainly gets your evening cruise off on the wrong foot. Thankfully, it only took an hour to get through the worst of it and it was a beautiful, quiet, moonlit sail the rest of the night. Lots of traffic from fellow cruisers to cruise ships, kept the helms person on alert at all times but we’ll take that to rough water any time.
The notoriously nasty stretch of channel between the north end of St Vincent and the south end of St Lucia was even much smoother than forecast with only a long rolling swell and 10-knots of wind to keep it interesting. By first light, we needed to dodge ahead of one last cruise ship heading into the big boat port of Castries before we made our final turn into Rodney Bay.
Right in the back of the Bay lies a narrow channel that leads into one of the best small boat harbors we’ve seen anywhere. Here you find the huge, modern Rodney Bay Marina, all of the goods and services a boater could hope for along with restaurants, resorts, and all manner of boaters bars. Customs/immigration is right in the marina along with several banks, laundry, and even a couple of massage parlors.
Wandering Star makes it through the entrance channel as the sun rises over the island and finds the only open slip on the last dock. We were not able to make advance reservations here because the marina was fully booked. The reason was what made our stay here especially fun, ARC, the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, 250 sailboats from all over Europe completing their Atlantic crossing at this marina. Each arrival was duly celebrated with cheering, horns, a one-man steel drum band, and champagne for the crew. With a good deal of maneuvering, we are able to keep our slip and soon are part of the ongoing party.
Entrance channel to Rodney Bay
The rest of the day, once new country arrival formalities are over, is spent getting WS back in shape and salt free from several weeks on the high seas and nights at wind blown anchorages. It is always good to be back in port but especially good to be in Rodney Bay waiting for Heather & Ted to join us for Christmas.
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Admiralty Bay at anchor
12/12 - 12/14 Thursday to Sunday
We have decided to spend some time here in this great little town of Port Elizabeth. Once you know your way around, its amazing what all you can find. its just that nothing is in one place. Your Christmas tree is in the small second hand shop, your tree lights are in the grocery market but only one of the six, marine parts are spread between five different shops each carrying a different selection. Christmas presents are a real treasure hunt. There is a nice selection of restaurants along the waterfront with French, Italian, Mexican, Caribbean and even an excellent pizza joint.
On Friday, the newly formed (and seldom rehersed) police band takes center stage in the town square for an afternoon concert of Caribbean Christmas music. Most of the town’s regular folks and the obvious characters show up for the festivities. Soon they are dancing in the street…some under the obvious influence of something smoked or drank earlier in the day. We meet with our gang for sunset pizza and beer at Max’s on the beach before heading back to WS for a quiet night on board.
Saturday was shopping day and a quiet night on board but Sunday more than made up for it. Jo and I took the early 7AM ferry over to St Vincent and a full day tour of the island. Botanical gardens, the waterfront set from Pirates of the Caribbean, old fort Charlotte, the 3000′ towering volcano of Soufriere, 100′ waterfalls, and black sand beaches all connected by some of the windiest, narrowest mountain roads I’ve ever seen.
Our tour company driver was great and while very professional, he brought his wife and her young brother along which made the whole day seem like a family outing even finishing with a swim at the beach. We also enjoyed the company of two Canadian travel agents who are trying to talk Jo into getting back into the biz. For the grand finale, we had ten minutes to get through the crowed street of Kingstown to just make the 6PM ferry so emergency lights flashing and horn blaring he virtually plowed a path through the shoppers to just make the ferry.
We returned just in time for Dottie and Rose’s Chili’s and the final episode of Survival on Voyager to finish up our last night in Bequia.
A travel day today. Off the mooring early after wrestling our 200+ pound dinghy back up top of a rolling boat. We decide to forgo a visit to Mystique Island since it doesn’t seem very hospitable being the privately owned enclave of the rich and famous. Instead its on to Bequia, the last of the Grenadines.
Our first stop after the 18-mile run north is the well sheltered Friendship Bay on the southern tip of Bequia. It is a perfectly round little bay with its entrance protected by reefs on both sides. Unfortunately, there is not much to do here and it does still get enough of the swell inside to make it uncomfortable at times. We drop the hook for an hour to have some lunch before heading around the west point to our final destination of Port Elizabeth in Admiralty Bay. Voyager and Dreamweaver elect to stay put here for tonight.
It takes about an hour for WS to go the 8-miles to Port Elizabeth so by 1PM we are scouting the anchorage for a place to drop our 60 pounds of steel. Most amazing is the number of cruising boats from all over the world already here. Everything from a huge German ocean yacht to the smallest budget sailor seems to have found this small harbor. We take up a place on the north side of the bay in the back of the back dropping in 23′ and settling back 150′ over deeper water. Then its launch the dinghy again and head off to shore to explore our new home.
We’ll spend a few days Christmas shopping here before checking out to go north to St Vincent and on to St Lucia to meet Heather & Ted who are flying in for Christmas. The town is busy, interesting and very clean. We tie off the dinghy in front of the Gingerbread, one of many waterfront restaurant/bars for our sunset walk around the town. Tonight is the cruisers BBQ and steelband Jump-up at Frangipani’s so we make our reservations and head back here by 6pm to join the fun. Its back on board by 9PM for Survivor and early to bed after a very busy day.
A beautiful day! You would not believe the difference 5 knots of wind makes. It feels almost calm and the wind waves inside the bay have died down as well. So we load up the dinghies with snorkel gear and head out to the horseshoe reef that protects Tobago Cays (pronounced Keys) from the large ocean swell to have an underwater look.
The Grenadines Parks department, that care for this area, were good enough to place buoys along the inside of the reef just for our dinghies to tie off while we are exploring underwater. And within minutes we are tied off and doing just that. Sea life is abundant here while the coral is mostly dead but still very interesting and we spend a couple hours seeing all we can see kicking along the inside of the reef in both directions.
Then its back on board for a quick lunch, tie up the dinghy for towing, up anchor and take off for the quick 12-mile trip to the next island north, Canouan. A good half of this island was turned into a major luxury golf resort complete with a Trump Casino. We decide to take a mooring in the large and rolling Charlestown Bay because it will be easier to turn WS into the swell using the stern thruster to reload the dinghy when we leave in the morning. This bay is also a Moorings charter base and they have a substantial presence in the area with their dock here and their fleet most everywhere.
Once all three boats are settled, we head ashore for a look around the local village. While modest and unattractive, it seems very active with people moving about and generally having a friendly good time. I imagine most our benefiting from the work afforded by the resort but it is not apparent in their lifestyle. We stop for happy hour at a nice beach side hotel bar before the Voyager and Dreamweaver crews head back to their boats. Jo and I stay back for a quiet dinner at the hotel’s very fine restaurant before doing the same.
After last night 30+ knot squall we hoped the winds would back off today but they seem to be holding steady at 15+ knots. Voyager left early from the opposite bay to go around the north end o Mayreau and reported that the seas had really kicked up so the more difficult, though more direct, southern passage thru the reefs would be the better option.
We pull up anchor at 0930 and head back out our snug little cove, swing south a mile and then make the turn for snake passage. Ay first glance, you would not believe there are and reef at all. Then on closer inspection, you start to see “black” shallow reefs everywhere and would swear there was no safe passage through but thanks to our accurate charts, GPS, and the Nobeltec chart plotter program, it is easy to stay in the one clear although serpentine channel.
Once safely to deeper water on the other side of the reefs, we turn to starboard, head around a small island and find some room to anchor behind a fleet of Moorings Charter boats on moorings and a hoist of other cruising boats all at anchor behind a tiny island hoping for some shelter. And it is shelter we will need. Before long the winds have come up to a steady 15 knots with most gusts over 20. With the cloudy skies even the crystal clear water looses its appeal. But determined to have a good time, your intrepid crew set out in a very rocky wet dinghy, snorkel gear on board to attempt a dice on the leeward shore of our little protective island.
After quite a drama of getting the dinghy high enough on the beach out of now breaking waves, we are rewarded with some of the best sea turtle fellowship we’ve done. It seems a whole colony of the wonderful creature come to feed on eel grass in 5 to 8 feet of these waters. We spend an hour just following along as part of the family and they ignore us like relatives too.
After snorkeling, we take a ride over to the leeward side of one of the small islands to see what is going on. It seems Raffles Resort has set up a very posh beach BBQ complete with teak table service and sun umbrellas for its pampered guests. One of the large, sailing type cruise ships has claimed part of the beach for its guests as well so the 100 yards of once isolated sand is crawling with people. Mix in the locals trying to sell everything from lobsters to tee shirts and you might as well be back in the city. We have a beer, a look at the difference between what we are doing and these folks and are thankful all over again we were able to make the cruising choice.
Evening fish fry aboard Voyager with a new game “Cranium” keeps us having fun even though the wind is still howling outside.
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Clifton to Windward Bay, Mayreau Island
12/08 Monday
Latitude: 12:38.21 N Longitude: 061:23.84W
Weather: some clouds, sunny Wind: 0850 at 10-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1009 Passage time: 2 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1562 Fuel used/on board: 4108/532
Distance trip/to Date: 6/9847
With only a short run to our next destination, the three crews take their time in the morning checking in with customs/immigration and having one last look around Clifton.. Eventually, Jo and I wandering up a most interesting alley whose walls are gaily painted with very imaginative designs to discover it is a small boutique art gallery and snack shop. Further exploring leads on to a hill top overlook of WS and the Bay as well as guest cabins, fountains, secret gardens, parrots and even the owner sitting on his porch like Jabba-the-hut playing on his computer. Best of all, we meet the resident lady artist “Costello” who, besides walls and fences, paints beautiful shirts (one of which I bought) and dresses with colorful and unique sailing designs.
By lunchtime it was back to the boats and preparation for the short hop across the channel to Mayreau Island. Saline Bay looks like the most inviting anchorage from the cruising guides and within an hours ride we are there, looking for a spot to drop the anchor. It seems somewhat rolley where Voyager parks so I move up to the head of the Bay for more protection only to find the eel grass won’t let the anchor penetrate. After several failed attempt, some concern for some rocks that could trap our anchor and a very obnoxious French Canadian who come in and drops his anchor right on top of us, we decide to pull out with Dreamweaver and head to another anchorage called Windward Bay just around the point.
Here we have much better luck with good and immediate holding in 23′ and practically no roll. While not protected from the wind it is well set behind a fringe reef and the south beaches of Mayreau. Best of all we two boats have it all to ourselves. Shortly after settling in we pick up Dottie & Ken for a short dinghy ride ashore and a look around at the small town perched atop the hill overlooking the ocean on three sides. As usual, we are met by very friendly people and even meet the somewhat boater famous Rastafarian, Robert Lewis Righteous and have a beer is his unusual pub.
Back on WS, we have some refreshments before separating for a quiet evening and dinner. At 4AM a passing squall clocks 30+ knot winds and rain which is great for cleaning off the accumulating salt on WS but causes no other problems.
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Clifton, Union Island, Grenadines
12/07 Sunday
A typical day at anchor usually starts off with me running the generator for a hour or two to replace whatever amperage has been used through the night. Now that we are away for civilized marinas for awhile, to this we must add the process of making water with our reverse osmosis system while the gen is running. This high tech machine squeezes the salt out of the sea water by pushing it through a very fine membrane under 900 pounds of pressure and delivers about 25 gallons of drinking water back to our tanks each hour.
These duties complete, Jo and drop the dinghy, pick up Dottie and Rose from the other boats and head to town for a look around leaving Les and Ken on board to do some work. Clifton is a very neat little town that has become the provisioning and turn around spot for many of the boats visiting the Grenadines but on Sundays it is just lazy and quiet. After a walk around, we decide on the Anchor Yacht Club for a light lunch before heading back aboard for afternoon naps. Tonight, Dottie is hosting us all for a lasagna night dinner on board Dreamweaver which we all are looking forward too.
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Tyrrel Bay to Clifton, Union Island, Grenadines
12/06 Saturday
Latitude: 12:25.77 N Longitude: 061:24.84 W
Weather: some clouds, sunny Wind: 0850 at 10-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3
Barometer: 1009 Passage time: 3 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1560 Fuel used/on board: 4106/535
Distance trip/to Date: 15/9841
Nice morning hiking to the main town on the opposite side of the island. A long way but we all needed the movement and met lots of very friendly local along the way so well worth the time and effort. Did a bit of shopping for fresh veggies and found a store/hotel called “Ade’s Dream” which, thankfully, was one of the nicer establishments in the place.
Then we piled in a taxis and headed back on board for lunch and prepartions to move on.
It is a beautiful day for the short, 15-mile run across the channel to Union Island. Jo 7 I decide to take the scenic route and swing by Petit St Vincent and Petit Martinique along the way. These tiny islands with their surrounding reefs are popular for their remoteness and sport a small, very exclusive resort (listed in the book “Things to do before you die”) on the former and a quaint town on the later. From there it is a straight shot across the channel into the popular cruising harbor at Clifton. Here the harbor has a huge reef smack in the middle so dozens of charter and crusing boats are found huddled around on all four sides.
Voyager and Dreamweaver are in first and pick spots on the outside of the mess while we opt to move in close and tuck into a spot between three sailboats and a day-charter catamaran. It is a close fit, but we figure we may as well get used to the tight anchoring quarters now as this will be the norm all the way north to the Bahamas. Boating has just become too popular to expect to again find the empty anchorages we experienced when we were among the first down here in the 1970’s.
We set the hook hard in 25′ and with the help of the 15-knot trades are soon well dug in for the night. All crews decide a quiet night on board our own boats is in order for evening so Jo and I settle in for a little dinner and a movie before turning in for a rather windy night.
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Clarkes Court Bay to Tyrrel Bay, Carriacou
12/05 Friday
Latitude: 12:27.43 N Longitude: 061:279.10 W
Weather: some clouds, sunny Wind: 0800 at 10-15 kts. Sea: Beaufort: 5
Barometer: 1007 Passage time: 6 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1557 Fuel used/on board: 14/4100
Distance trip/to Date: 35/9836
I’m up at 4AM for our 6-hour passage to Tyrrel Bay on the Island of Carriacou. This island, while still legally a part of Grenada, really anchors the southern end of the Grenadines chain, the rest being a part of St Vincent. A very dirty anchor - sticky with gooey mud - is back in place by first light and all three boats depart the bay for the run up what is left of the windward side of Grenada. While the winds stay under 15-knots, the seas are large, lumpy and continuing to get worse the further we move north making for a very rough ride most of the morning.
The backside or the side of Grenada facing the Atlantic Ocean is more developed than one might think, especially considering how vulnerable it is to any oncoming hurricanes. Later in the morning, we pass the small town of Granville where we had stopped for lunch with Boney on our island tour. Just at the northern tip of Grenada and a bit to the west lies the very troubled waters where an under water volcano called “Kick’em Jenny” is forming a new island on the ocean floor. We give this a area wide detour even though she has been quiet these last few weeks.
Tyrrel Bay is a big, wide bay open to the west so it is well protected from the prevailing easterly winds and seas. It is popular with long term cruisers as well as the first of many bareboat charterers we will encounter over these next three month. Probably 30-boats are already riding anchor here and that will swell to 50 or more before the day is done. A local fisherman informs us that tonight is lobster night at the local beach side grill and when you throw a steel band into the mix, we are up for another night of fun ashore as we kick off our adventures in the Grenadines.
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Clarkes Court Bay
12/02 - 12/4 Tuesday to Thursday
We spent a few lazy days at anchor here in Clarks Court Bay. Actually, longer than we had planned, but it feels like we are really cruising at last and schedules, weather, maintenance has finally taken a back seat to just enjoying where we are, doing as little as possible. While we were not exactly just lying about all day, the pressure of feeling we have so much to do is definitely gone.
Jo did manage a long walk into the Spice Island Mall for some food shopping. While I caught up on some internet projects a bit, but much of the time was as unproductive as possible. Some of the evening activities included a date on Tuesday night when Jo & I went to the terrific restaurant aboard the old, restored lighthouse ship at the marina next bay over. Chef Mark did a five course meal featuring fresh fish entrees and a great spinach soup.
In our bay, Wednesday night is the cruiser’s weekly hamburger BBQ and movie night at the Clarks Court marina and on Thursday, there’s a lasagna night at a local restaurant in the local fishing village of Woolburn with live music for entertainment and three local beers for $2.50.
On Thursday morning, Les and Rose joined us for a dingy ride to and hike around Hog Island. This is yet another unspoiled island soon to be a Four Seasons resort and the bulldozers are already at work cutting in the initial roads. After lunch, on board the group decided it is time to move on to the Grenadines tomorrow so we rent a cab and run over to St David’s Bay where there is a customs/immigration office to check out of the country.
It’s been a great couple of weeks in Grenada, now one of our favorite islands, and we enjoy our last night under the stars in this quiet bay before an early start for Carriacou in the morning.
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Prickly Bay to Clarkes Court Bay
12/01 Monday
Latitude: 11:59.1 N Longitude: 061:43.5 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 0900 at 6-10kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1011 Passage time: 1 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1551 Fuel used/on board: 4086/555
Distance trip/to Date: 5/9807
It is just a short, 5-mile hop over to Clarkes Court Bay so we take our time in the morning doing a couple of trips by dinghy to the marine store and have another look around the place before departure. Still don’t know what all the fuss is about or why this place is so popular. By 1010, the anchor is up and we are on our way back out of Prickly Bay heading northeast towards the windward side of the island.
There are still lots of clouds around the horizon so we can expect a few mini squalls again today. The entrance to Clarkes has been buoyed privately since our chart was drawn so it is easy to find our way into the deep, long, well protected anchorage. The first thing most apparent is lack of other boats. There are only a dozen or two boats anchored here compared with the chaos of boats at our last stop. Here we are also well protected from the ocean swell and the constant wind waves we found in Prickly.
Several small marinas have sprung up since our cruising guide was written. A Canadian family started one at the very end all the way in and a French couple have one dock they call Whisper Cove tucked into what was called Petite Calivigny Cove. WS settles into a likely spot well off the Whisper dock behind a French catamaran and drops the hook in 23-feet of water.
Afternoon starts with a dinghy ride to visit each marina, a quick walk around the local native village, then we head around the point to the next bay and its new, first class marina. Oddly enough it is called Le Phare Bleau Marina and is owned and operated by a German speaking Swiss couple. Besides its beautiful docks and grounds, individual cabins for guest accommodations, bar, grill and pool, it really features the old Dutch lighthouse ship “Vastra Banken” hauled here from Europe to serve as its marina office, and a 1st class dining establishment.
Our canvas shop is located here so we stop by to say hello to Dave and Jane and plan our meeting on WS tomorrow to install the new hatch cover and mast boot. Then its back around to WS to pick up the laundry and drop Jo ashore for an afternoon of internet mixed with tending the wash while I head back on board to catch up on my logs in peace and quiet.
Evening will be a BBQ on board, some star gazing (Venus and Saturn are brightly just below the quarter moon), and a little TV to finish off a rather typical day of cruising in the Caribbean.
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St George to Prickly Bay
11/30 Sunday
Latitude: 11:58.88 N Longitude: 061:45.63 W
Weather: partly cloudy some rain Wind: 0850 at 6-10kts. Sea: Beaufort: 2
Barometer: 1008 Passage time: 1.5 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1550 Fuel used/on board: 4085/557
Distance trip/to Date: 9/9896
It’s a beautiful day for our short trip south around Pt. Saline to the windward side of Grenada. Here is where the real cruisers hang out. Literally hundreds of yachts from all over the world call these waters home. There are dozens on small bays, each with its own personality, but most boaters usually spend some time in the rather large Prickly Bay. Here they find not only camaraderie but good repair and replacement facilities as well.
The whole area is notorious for reefs so we gingerly feel our way around several before finding the main channel and heading into Prickly. The anchorage is loaded with sailboats of every description, shape, size and country of origin. Jo and I find a good open spot for WS right in the center of the bay far enough from shore so bugs won’t be a bother and drop the anchor in about 30 feet.
WS anchored with the gang in Prickly Bay
We launch the dinghy in short order and set out to explore the landscape. At the very head of the bay is the Spice Island Marina - a popular hurricane hole haul out yard and a great marine store. Most of the cruisers hang out at the bar at the small Prickly Bay Marina but besides the bar and a mini store there is not much else here of interest. With a constant roll coming into the anchorage, one night here should do us quite nicely.
Jo and I walk over to True Blue Bay and the Dodgy Dock Bar for happy hour and to see Voyager and Dreamweaver’s crew that were no where to be found so after a drink, we head back to our own cove only to meet them all returning from the store along the way. We have a light dinner on board and settle in to watch the Steelers and some Sunday night football.
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St George, Granada
11/23 - 11/29 Sunday to Saturday
Grenada is like the end of the rainbow. It is about as far from home as we will be this entire voyage and after all of the harrowing adventures of the last leg, it feels especially good, safe and secure to be here at last. Best of all, it is one of the nicest stops so far. A lush and green island, people who are extra friendly, and everything a visiting yachtie could hope for in the way of boat and provisioning services.
St George’s Quay
As soon as we pull in and are tied to the quay at the new Camper & Nicholson’s Port Louis Marina, we start putting WS back together after so many rough days at sea. She is actually in pretty good shape considering all she has been through but you can tell she is a veteran cruiser now and no longer a newbie to the high seas. She has all the inevitable nicks and scratches that come with her almost 10,000 miles of open ocean, being tied to less than pristine docks, and having stuff banging around inside and out.
It takes us about three full days to get the old girl shipshape again. Salt washed off, stainless polished, laundry caught up, refrig restocked and the ships logs updated, we are finally ready to explore our new country (number 113 for me & 95th for Jo).
My dockside exercise program is to go for a 10-mile bike ride early each morning. This gives me a good overview of what’s around and where everything is we might need while working out the atrophy of my unused leg muscles. Grenada is very mountainous so it is a real workout here plus the narrow streets, driving on the right, and the devil may care attitude of the careening buses and taxis make each morning a special adventure in survival biking.
By Wednesday night, all crews are ready for some time on the town of St. George. A quick dinghy ride across the harbor takes us to the Ocean Grill & Bar on the back bay’s old waterfront for happy hour followed by a walk around town and an excellent curry dinner at BB’s Restaurant. Brian, the owner/chef, was professionally trained in Europe and does a fantastic goat, chicken or veggie curry special on Wednesdays.
Les & Rose host Thanksgiving
Today is Thanksgiving and a full day of traditional gluttony is planned. We start with a Grand Marnier soaked Tipsy French Toast Brunch with Rum based Ramos Fizzes (thanks to the Truran’s for their family recipe) on Wandering Star followed in late afternoon by turkey with all the trimmings hosted by Voyager. All three crews spend much of the afternoon cooking their special dishes for the four course feast which goes on until no one can stand or even stay awake for the evening episode of Survivor.
On Friday, our dock master Junior organized an all day island tour with his Uncle Boney so we are up and ready to go by 8:30. Turns out Boney is an ex-cop and well known, for good and bad, all over the island. He has taken on the personal mission, now that he’s retired, of giving his passengers a first class, in depth, no stone left unturned tour of all there is to see and do in Grenada.
Boney and Loverboy
We start off meeting “Lover Boy” a wild monkey that comes out of the jungle when Boney blows his horn, then onto hand feeding fish in a volcano crater lake, to waterfalls, endless flora, fauna, and of course the spices of all kinds for which the island is famous. Boney makes sure you miss nothing. He talks non-stop, waving and pointing with one hand while steering around hairpin turns with the other for nine solid hours.
After a great pre-arranged (so no time is wasted) lunch in a locals café across the island, we’re soon back heading north on the back roads across an abandoned airstrip that somehow figured in the 1980’s American invasion of Grenada complete with two shot up Cuban airplane still on the tarmac that now serves as a dragstrip for the annual car races.
Cuban Airforce left from the Grenada invasion
We visited an ancient rum mill that is still crushing cane by water wheel and cooking the brew in copper kettles using the cane cuttings for fuel. It is known for distilling the finest 151 proof white rum. This stuff is so dangerously flammable it is banned from air shipment and will evaporate, when spilled, before it can hit the ground.
Our girls drying Cocoa as in “I Love Lucy”
Then it was off to one of the oldest chocolate plantations in the world where we leaned the whole process of making their rich, dark special Grenada blend. The girls even got to take off their shoes to help turn the drying beans by shuffling through them in their bare feet. Then its back across the island and another waterfall before turning south for St George and home just as the sun is going into the western Caribbean…and a wonderful dinner of leftovers on Voyager.
Jo and I spend our last day in St George getting WS ready for cruising again. I also met with a canvas guy who is making a forward hatch cover and a mast boot to stop some pesky leaks in both places. As evening falls, we find ourselves running across the harbor in the dinghy having one last “date night’ at our new favorite BB’s Restaurant and then hanging out back at our marina bar listening and eventually dancing to a very funky local band till lights out.
By late afternoon, WS is ready for serious sea duty. This is the last nasty stretch we have been dreading since we left Panama - the waves come right in off the Atlantic all the way from Africa and it is notorious for strong currents and high wind as well. Added to this mess are drug runners, pirates, and occasional lightning squalls and you can have a really fun time crossing these last 300-miles. In fact, it is so bad most yachts plan there whole Caribbean experience so they can avoid going “East against the Trades.”
It is late afternoon as each of our fleet starting with Dreamweaver nuzzles up to the “mother” ship swinging at anchor and takes on all the fuel we can hold before heading out to open water. WS takes 210 gallons bringing us up to 700 for only $100US. I could have fit another 100 gallons in but wanted to keep the new stuff separate from my already “clean” fuel. This allowed me room to clean the Venezuela fuel while under way before mixing the two. The last thing I would want is more engine trouble in these dangerous waters.
The first night at sea is both lumpy, with 4 to 7 foot waves, and windy, gusting often up to 20-knots. While WS handles these conditions beautifully…plunging down each wave and then rising up, shaking water off her foredeck before going up and over the next crest just to do it all again, the crew does not have it so good. Meals are kept simple when even possible while snacks are life sustaining and always handy. As long as you stay sitting or lying down all is well, it is the moving about that gets to be a challenge. It’s either slide on your butt or risk life and limb lurching about holding on for dear life. Being a small boat, WS provides lots of hand holds everywhere and you need them all!
By morning, everything has calmed down considerably, the sun is out and we make a steady 6-knots against a 1-knot current at 1500 RPM using 2.8 gallons per hour. Reading, napping and taking turns at the helm fills out the day nicely. We even have a fairly normal dinner just after sundown with only a huge, tanker making 16-knots running up on WS from behind to worry about. In fact, there are lots of big boats in the area all night as this is the Atlantic gateway to the Caribbean as well.
Jo takes much of the night watch our second night at sea as the captain did not get much sleep so far on this voyage. I take over again at 0300 till dawn and beyond while Jo gets her share of sack time. We are within 90-miles of Grenada at first light and are soon buzzed by very large and low C-130 military aircraft we assume is looking for drug runners. Sure enough, the US Coast Guard cutter comes over the horizon next and pulls to within a mile of our stern before calling us on the radio. We play 20 questions about who we are and where we came from with the Coasties before they are finally satisfied and break off again to the south.
At 20-miles off, the hills of Grenada are just visible through the clouds. Voyager will go into St George Harbor first this time with WS right behind. Both crews are very relieved to have made it before lights out with about an hour to spare. Unfortunately, Dreamweaver won’t be in to help us celebrate the passage till tomorrow. Besides their slower speed, she needed to make a quick stop at La Blanquilla Island to deal with some water leaking into her swim step.
Peace at Last…Port Luis, St. George, Grenada
Once inside the harbor at St George, Dockmaster “Junior” of Port Louis comes out to greet us in their dinghy and offers us side tie berths on their newly completed dock. This is a welcome alternative to another night at anchor and both boats jump at the opportunity. Just before dark, WS and Voyager are secure stern to stern along the sea wall, powers hooked up, waters turned on and the champagne is flowing as we gather to celebrate the conquest of the southern Caribbean…1,000 miles east against the trades!
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El Grans Roques Anchorage
11/20-11/21 Thursday & Friday
Not much works in El Gran Roques including the internet most of the time. We did manage a signal from our Verizon phone - the first time we’ve heard from it since we left Mexico. Pedro, the owner of the best pizza place in the village, is cruiser friendly and provides free internet when and if it is working so we immediately became good buddies with him. He was raised in Florida, speaks good English and is the clearing point for all island boating info including fuel, money exchange, and just about everything else.
The Roques Islands are known for bonefishing and serious fisherman from all over the world come here to indulge. Even George Bush senior has been here fishing several times before his son became public enemy number one with Presidenta Chavez whose unrelenting anti-US propaganda, have the people of Venezuela afraid of us as well. No one middle class and above much likes Chavez here either but that’s another story.
Dottie & Ken pull into the anchorage on Thursday morning so the gang is together again and a pizza feed is organized at Pedro’s for an early evening diner followed by a Survivor watching party on Voyager for later. All of us have become hooked on the show (Jo and I have been fans since the beginning) so this has become the Thursday night ritual.
On Friday morning, the weekly supply barge, really a very old converted ex US Navy landing craft, arrives out of Caracas. On the QT, everyone here knows that the captain also sells black market fuel at 1950’s prices to visiting yachties. Les and I pay him a visit by dinghy and are able strike up a deal for 57 cents a gallon for 1,200 gallons split between our three boats. Not bad considering fuel in Grenada is currently over $6 US/gallon.
Later in the day, we are able to finally get internet weather ashore and along with calls to our weather guru’s, discover that there is a small weather window for Saturday and Sunday. Since the goal has always been to get to Grenada for Thanksgiving, it is quickly decided that this just might work if we jump on it before it slams shut on Monday so we hurry back to our boats to start making them ready for sea.
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Bonaire to Los Roques, Venezuela
11/18-11/19 Tuesday/Wednesday - Overnight passage
Latitude: 11:56.77 N Longitude: 066:40.87 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 80-1400 at 8-20kts. Sea: Beaufort: 3/4
Barometer: 1002 Passage time: 1600 to 0800/14 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1501 Fuel used/on board: 40/493
Distance trip/to Date: 101/9498
All-in-all, it was a milder trip than we expected. Except for a rough patch after the Ayes Islands and the occasional squall with torrential rain, it was a fairly easy crossing. The current has died back down so it was possible to do 6+ knots and still only burn 2.3 gallons of fuel/hour. A bright half moon would have even made for some visibility but the heavy clouds kept it obscured most of the night.
Morning found us off the west end of El Gran Roque, the only “real” island in the 14 by 24 mile group. It even has a protecting hill, lighthouses, and a small village. The rest of the area is mainly reefs and atolls…great for snorkeling but providing no wind protection or shore services. Fourteen other cruising boats are already anchored in 12-feet on a narrow shelf just off the village so we pick an open spot and join the fleet.
Mosquitoes are the problem in this slice of paradise. Many of the boats have come back to the town anchorage because they are so thick elsewhere in the Los Roques. We have screens on WS which work well but also cut off the cooling breezes so it is less than perfect. Other than shutting things up and running the generator for the air conditioning, there is not much that can be done.
Things ashore went from bad to worse. First we got beat up on the price of lunch which approached US dinner prices because we didn’t yet understand the exchange rate. Then the 1st office of the four we needed to check in with, the Venezuela Coast Guard, said we could only stay two days because we are in transit and have not checked in with at mainland which we have no intention of doing. After much by lingual discussion and negotiations, it was stretched for two more days if we check back on Friday. We know the weather is poor till Monday so we will still will need to fudge a couple more days.
It took from noon till 4:30 to cover all the other paperwork bases which included the National Park office, the police station, and then hike all the way out to the airport to pay the fees which they waived anyways because we were only in transit. By the end of the day, we sure know our way around town. We also think we figured out a way to buy blackmarket fuel cheap but that adventure will unfold on another day. For now, it’s back on board for quiet dinner and good nights rest.
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Bonaire
11/14-11/18 Friday/Tuesday
Our mooring in Bonaire
Hands down, this is our favorite island so far. For a tiny atoll, smaller than Catalina, Bonaire has it all…especially underwater. Yes, it has the required nice, but non-high rise hotels; good, inexpensive restaurants; happy, helpful people and decent, well stocked grocery stores but it is the snorkeling and scuba that really makes it shine. Over 100 crystal clear dive sights line its narrow leeward shores.
Our three crews enjoyed four days here with Jo getting the prize for most accomplished. She signed up for an all day scuba refreshers course which included both a beach and a boat dive and had a great experience getting back into a sport she all but gave up on.
Rainy days kept the rest of us from reaching the full dive potential of the place but we all did take our required circle island tour. The south island area includes a huge salt harvesting operation, a nudist beach, a really authentic beach bar, and a lagoon renowned for its wind surfing and kite boarding..
Even the occasional cruise ships don’t seem to impact the islands nice quiet atmosphere. Conspicuously absent are the assorted Little Switzerland’s type jewelry shops, hoards of overstuffed, sunburned passengers wandering aimlessly in the streets, and the feeling every islander is out to make a buck. Instead, the locals set up modest pop-ups, each day and offer the usual tourist stuff in the calm of their neighborhood park.
We did discover a gourmet wine shop, the best so far since we left San Francisco which even featured vintages from Napa Valley. The personable Indian owner Depok, was a delight and cracked several bottles of his best for us all to share and soon a full fledged wine tasting party was in high gear. By the time we were done, several cases of his finest where on board all boats, ready to sustain us in style for the next several weeks of inebriated cruising.
Since the wet weather never did break and the window for moving on was ready to close again on Friday, we reluctantly, checked out, rescued my speargun for customs, and stowed the dingies. By late afternoon, Voyager and Wandering Star were on their way east towards the next stepping stone island east in the march to Grenada, Los Roques.
###
Curacao to Bonaire
11/13 Thursday
Latitude:12:08.55 N Longitude: 068:17.33 W
Weather: partly cloudy Wind: 1400 at 12-15kts. Sea: Beaufort 4
Barometer: 1005 Passage time: 0930 to 1435/6 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1484 Fuel used/on board: 14/533
Distance trip/to Date: 37/9397
With our spare replacement raw water impellor onboard we are ready to depart Curacao for Bonaire. Up early, there is always a lot to do to get ready for sea - especially when they can be a rough as we have experienced so far getting to here. A bike and dinghy to stow, water tanks to top off, shore-power to disconnect, decks to wash down (covered with fine dust from construction), portholes to shut, and cabinets to secure make up just part of the long morning check list prior to departure. By 0930 though, we back out of our tight fit slip to take up our position following Voyager out of the marina and the Spanish Waters Lagoon.
The first few hours are spent in the lee of the island so the seas are still calm and the wind does not have much effect till we round the south point and made the turn for Bonaire. Here the waters are quite lumpy as the ocean swell and wind waves approach the shallow waters of the windward shore. This lasts for about an hour then things smooth out nicely for the five-hour ride to the main town of Kralendijk (means coral dike in Dutch) about midway down the lee side of the island.
Dreamweaver departed for Bonaire at 0630.so they arrived first and were ready to help us pick up a mooring as we approach in early afternoon. To protect the reef and underworld habitat, anchoring is not permitted anywhere around the island but a nice set of about 40 secure moorings have been provided just off the main town’s shoreline. Once attached to the underwater block of concrete, it’s time again for the bureaucratic shuffle as we all pile into the Dreamweaver dinghy and head ashore for customs and immigration formalities.
I even had to check in my spear gun with customs as they view it as a weapon here (and probably don’t want you maiming all their fish anyways). Then it’s up the street on foot to happy hour at a local cruiser’s hangout bar. This is followed by some of the best pizza I’ve ever had at the highly recommended Pasa Bon Italian Restaurant before loading into the dinghy and a full moon ride back to our little fleet waiting quietly at the moorings.
It’s been a long but gratifying day. We are poised, at last, for our 400-mile jump off across the outer islands of Venezuela towards the final destination for this leg and beginning of the Windward Islands, Grenada. A cool night breeze makes going to bed early a real treat and a good night’s sleep very promising indeed!
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Curacao
11/07 - 11/12 Friday - Wednesday
Hot and buggy would best describe our stay in Curacao. Perhaps that is a bit harsh since we do always seem to have a great time. The Seru Boca Marina at Santa Barbara Plantation is two miles into a huge Hyatt condo/hotel/golf course construction project so it was always a hassle getting in and out of the guard gated, heavy equipment laden site.
Then it was a good 1/2hr ride into the only town of Willemstad on a rather loosely scheduled public bus to a transportation plaza and you walked everywhere else from there. We did this exercise twice, once to check into Curacao and again to check out. The only other day out and about was when we rented a car to do our now traditional circle island, cram it all into one day, explore the whole place tour.
Willemstad’s main claim to fame is a floating pontoon bridge connecting the two halves of the city dating back to the late 1800’s. It is very picturesque, especially when lit up at night. The bridge opens up access for the big ships to a huge inner harbor and perhaps the largest oil refinery in the Caribbean. The city itself is a warren of small streets, shops and restaurants geared to the cruise ship passengers whose daily visits keep the locals in the tourist business.
Curacao’s landmark floating bridge
The crystal clear waters of the ABC’s (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao) are known for some of the best dive and snorkel sites in the world. Not to miss this opportunity, we off loading the big dinghy, joined up with Dottie and Ken, and headed out the long entrance channel to the open sea in search of the wreck of a tug boat we knew was in 15-20 feet of water.
After several false but interesting snorkel stops along the way, we found the tug in the midst of a most unusual underwater photo show tied to the bottom in 12-feet of water. No idea who or why but it did make for something different to see rather then just pretty fish and coral covered wrecks.
Underwater Photo Gallery
Our driving tour took in the north end lighthouse where we had lunch at a very nice but deadly quiet resort, the old fort turned restaurant above Willemstad where Jo and I dined when here on a cruise ship with Heather some 30-years ago, and visits to the first, very welcome marine stores since Panama. We also did some provisioning before calling it a day and heading back into isolation at the marina.
Been having some difficulty with our Northernlights 12kw Generator overheating and shutting itself off so I used this opportunity to take it apart and discover that the raw water cooling pump impellor had self destructed. This is a fairly “normal” failure and easy to replace with the spares we have on board.
I also used this occasion to check on the impellor in the massive raw water pump used to cool our Cummings main engine. It was in good shape still but should be replaced on the general principal of being over a year old. I did discover that the spares I carry for this purpose where the wrong size so had to have the correct size flown down Fedex from Seattle - which arrived in three day flat with a day off for customs…pretty amazing!
Of course, as you should know to count on by now, the rest of our time here was filled with the usual happy hours on each others boats, shared dinners on board, and general socializing between new friends and old. To this mix we did manage to fit in a sunset dinghy raft-up where cocktails and appetizers are served with the small boats tied together and anchored in some other scenic arm of the huge Spanish Waters Lagoon.
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Aruba to Curacao
11/06 - 11/07 Thursday/Friday - Overnight Passage
Latitude:12:04.26 N Longitude: 068:50.57 W
Weather: clear Wind: 0800 at 10-15kts. Sea: Beaufort 4
Barometer: 1008 Passage time: 1800 to 0700 2nd Day/25 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1465 Fuel used/on board: 31/547
Distance trip/to Date: 77/0361
Checking out went smoother than checking into Aruba. An immigration official showed up on WS and stamped her heart out on our documents. Dreamweaver and Voyager came over and got theirs done too. We still had to walk over to the port office though for customs clearance but this time we didn’t need to bring the boats like when we checked in. By sunset, all three boats of our little fleet had slipped out past the breakwater reef and were on our way for the 77-miles overnight voyage to Curacao.
The seas stayed calm the first few hours while we were still in the lee of the island but then kicked up a bit as we became exposed to the long ocean fetch that seems to go all the way to the west coast of Africa. From dark till midnight, it was bumper cars again with all sizes of tankers, freighters, and a dozen or so small boats running between the islands. At one point, I had a “stealth” (no-lights on) 100plus foot boat I hope was military sneak up behind me within a few hundred yards. They left without making contact once they heard us talking about their presence with DW and V on the VHF.
By 0200, we were coming into the lee of Curacao Island and the seas calmed back down for the 20-mile run up the west coast to Spanish Waters Bay and our marina. We arrived at the harbor entrance just at first light and thankfully, our new charts of the area are spot on, so coming into the 80-foot wide, mile-long entrance channel is not a problem. By 0700, we were in front of the marina slips and since the office had not yet opened, we dropped our hook and were able to relax again over breakfast while waiting for the staff.
WS in Seru Boca Marina, Curacao
No time for naps, even though I was running on 2-hours sleep, it’s off by local bus to the customs and immigration offices in the port town of Willemstad. This is a beautiful, UN World Heritage city with much of the old buildings and narrow warren of streets are still as they were when first built by the Dutch in the early 1800’s. Paperwork done, the crews settled in at a open air bar for some refreshment and at another for a late lunch before heading back to the marina.
Downtown Curacao
Early lights out tonight for all as I couldn’t even make it to prime time television before nodding off into a much needed sleep.
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Aruba
10/29 - 11/05 Wednesday/Wednesday
Our marina slip location was right in the center of all the action. Cruise ships coming and going, tourists walking the docks, the hustle and bustle of a small city, and really cool restaurants within an easy walk made for a very pleasant stay in Aruba.
Our crew rented a car for one day and did a complete circle island tour from tip to tip. We saw lighthouses, high-rise resorts, beautiful beaches, butterfly and ostrich farms, wind blown sea cliffs, caves and the “outback” where the road even disappears for much of the time. Not to mention the final stop at the islands famous Balashi Brewery where the brew is made from imported everything and desalinated sea water.
I was happy to find a very talented computer guy who fixed a couple clichés in the on board wireless system. I even figured out, with the help of Greg back in Seattle, how to kick-start the Simrad autopilot system again so it could talk to the navigation/gps system so WS could steer herself without our constant input.
We eventually delayed our departure a few days to take advantage of the excellent medical services and various crew members could had some routine checks done. This was important here since we are able to converse and be understood in English. Being away from a Spanish culture for the first time in a year took some getting used too. A final “lost evening” visit to Senior Frogs for Mexico night made us feel misunderstood and right at home again.
Sunset in Aruba
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Cabo de Villa to Aruba
10/27 - 10/28 Monday/Tuesday - Overnight Passage
Latitude:12:31.10 N Longitude: 070:02.33 W
Weather: clear Wind: 0800 at 8-15kts. Sea: Beaufort 4-5
Barometer: 1008 Passage time: 1000 to 1048 2nd day/24 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1465 Fuel used/on board: 64/578
Distance trip/to Date: 140/9484
Well, if you are reading this you know we made it safe and sound to Aruba…by far the most difficult passage of our 9,000 mile voyage so far! Monstrous seas, relentless wind, aggressively unfavorable currents, and enough emergencies to last us a lifetime are behind us at last and we are all safe in our slips in Oranjestad Harbor.
We just did a drive by of Cape de Villa anchorage in the protected lee of Punta Gallinas without stopping in favor of pressing on to Aruba. As it was it took several more hours to complete this leg do to the 2-knot current directly out of the east, right where we had to go so instead of 7-knots we could barely manage 5-knots the most of the 25-hours.
Punta Gallinason the WS Navigation Computer
The seas were short, steep and miserable most of the way as well. With only 5-seconds between waves 5 to 8 feet high, the boats don’t have time to recover before the next wave pushes them off in a new direction. Also, as you surf down the wave you are on, the bow often pokes her nose into the oncoming wave, scoops up a big bunch of sea water, then throws it high in the air as the bow comes up where the 20-25 knots of wind picks it up and blows it right over the pilot house. Most of the time you feel like a submarine!
Inside, the crew needs to hang on for dear life, especially when moving about (which we do as little as possible). Cooking or even reading becomes very difficult so we just tend to nap when off helm duty to help pass the time. Lots of time is spent on the radio chatting with our buddy boats which helps relieve the time we are on watch but at night there is nothing else to do except keep glued to the radar as it is a black hole outside and you can not even see the bow rail 12-feet in front.
Oddly enough, it was rough all the way up to the Point where we thought we would be protected and, by comparison, calmer once we made the turn for Aruba. Jo was on watch at this point and had to deal with dozens of ships of all sizes coming straight at us for the entire time. This involves plotting their course on the radar and then adjusting our course so that we can pass with a mile or two between us in the dark. I had a much easier watch. By the time I took over at 0130, there wasn’t another ship in sight except our two buddy boats; Dreamweaver and Voyager.
By sunrise, things have settled down a bit, at least the waves seem better when you can see what is coming and prepare your body for the next direction you’ll be lurching. Remarkable our little boat does very well through all of this (as long as her engine is running). She does her sharing of rolling and stabilizers probably could help but I would tend not to use them because they work too hard in rough sea, when you need them most, and slow you down even more with the extra drag they produce.
Pulling into Oranjestad Harbor requires radio clearance with the port authority’s traffic control and after some confusion, we are directed to the southern commercial port to clear customs and immigration before heading to our marina. Once cleared into Aruba, we head back to the main yacht harbor were the very friendly staff at the Renaissance Hotel marina is waiting on the dock to greet us, help tie us up, and welcome us officially to Aruba. With in minutes, all crews have assembled on Voyager for the now traditional shots of tequila that follow all especially harrowing passages. Of course, one good thing leads to another and before long there is much singing, dancing, and eventually carousing around our waterfront looking for particularly disreputable “sailor” bars where we can continue the party till the toil of to little sleep for to many nights finally catches up with us and collapse, at last, into our very steady beds.
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Rodadero to Cabo de Villa
10/26 - 10/27 Sunday/Monday - Overnight Passage
Latitude:12:12.27 N Longitude: 072:10.69 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 0800 at 12-15kts. Sea: Beaufort 5
Barometer: 1008 Passage time: 1000 to 1000 2nd day/24 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1440 Fuel used/on board: 64/642
Distance trip/to Date: 138/9143
What a beautiful night at anchor. It takes a really bad day at sea to really help you appreciate the good nights of rest. Even though the non-stop party at several beach bars rocked till the wee hours, we were up early and fully refreshed…ready for the adventure to continue. Today, we are in no hurry to leave as we always try to time the departure so our arrival is during daylight. By 1000, we have taken WS for a little performance run around the bay and she seems good as new and Voyager has her anchor up so off we go.
As we pass Santa Marta Harbor, Voyager gets stopped by the Columbian “Coast Guard” - three guys in a panga with a girl working the radio - and are instructed to report into their office by radio. Les calls in with his boat information and they seem satisfied and finally pull away. I suppose we were far enough ahead that they didn’t want to bother chasing us over wind and waves.
Once out of the lee of the land, the full force of the wind and sea hits us square on the nose (bow). If anything, it is worse than yesterday for the first 20-miles but then settles down to a fresh 20-25 knot breeze and 4-5 foot seas for most of the day and night. Not a good sign for going around the roughest point in the whole Caribbean…Punta Gallinas.
Sunrise is at 0530 after an almost moon less night - a sliver came up at 4:30AM, to little to late. While for our log, we will consider Cabo de Villa a stop, we actually never put the hook down but just cruised through slowly while cleaning up the boat, making soup and pasta, taking much needed showers, and getting gear secured better for the thrashing to come.
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Point Hermosa to Rodadero - Unscheduled Stop
10/25 Saturday
Latitude: 11:12.20 N Longitude: 074:13.87 W
Weather: cloudy Wind: 0800 at 10-12kts. Sea: Beaufort 3
Barometer: 1008 Passage time: 0800 to 1640 8 hrs.
Engine Hours: 1406 Fuel used/on Board: 22/707
Distance trip/to Date: 64/9005
Today is a day that will live in infamy…the day the engine on Wandering Star quit at sea but I’m getting ahead of myself. After a squally night’s rest, the crew was up early to start what was already known to be a difficult day of passing the huge mouth of the Rio Magdelena. This river empties most everything it finds in Columbia, trees, tangles of brush, trash, and tons of dirt into the Caribbean Sea. Even three-miles offshore, it’s brown, earth scented waters stretch on for 15 or more miles in the crossing. Even more daunting are the confused and decidedly unfriendly waves generated by the merging of the two powerful currents and fresh water with the heavy salt.
No sooner were we through this mess and the unthinkable happens…our trusted engine for 1400 hours and almost 9,000-miles just quits. By this time, the wind is well over 20-knots with gusts much higher and the seas are outrageous, at least, Beaufort 6. Short, steep, over 5-feet tall and hammering us every 5 seconds. Wandering Star makes a valiant effort to keep her dignity but she is soon rolling beam to beam and inside she is a maelstrom of flying objects.
In the midst of this fear and chaos, it is into the engine room with the skipper. Thankfully, Les and Rose are close by with Voyager to lend their moral support and most welcome technical advice. From the symptoms, it seemed our usually dependable Cummings Engine is just starved for fuel. The Racor fuel filters are full of air so our first thought was that somehow air was getting into the inbound fuel system. After many purgings of air from the filters, checking hoses, and attempts to restart, nothing was working. She would start, run for a few minutes, get our hopes up and then choke to death and stop. Remarkable, Jo stayed calm and confident in her captain through it all. But by now it is getting late, seas, and the wind are steadily getting worse, working further in the engine room nearing impossible, and WS was indeed in a precarious position for the 1st time.
A very rough ride for a powerless Wandering Star
“Time for a tow” the skipper cries! While towing in to shore from 17-miles at sea is not an easy option, especially in the current conditions, it seems the only decision now possible short of abandoning ship. The Voyager crew rigs up a 100′ double tow line while we use our strongest dock lines to make a bow bridle. It takes several passes to finally get lines passed between the two careening ships but, with patience, we managed to get them hooked together, bow to stern and the long, slow, careful movement towards shore can begin.
Not a pretty sight…
Now the real holding your breath can begin. Each time to two ships fall into the trough, the tow line would completely disappear in the intervening wave. Then it would reappear. as WS was dragged up over another crest as tight as a cello string… could they hold together with a wildly tossing, 54,000 pound whale, on the end of a fishing line? .Thanks .to a combination of Voyager being a much larger, more powerful ship, her highly skilled crew, the tow lines being exactly the right length so the boats fit trough to trough between the swells, and a good deal of prayer, all went well.
On Monday, thirteen year old niece Lexie arrived just after noon. Her Mom and my sister, Audrey drove her down from Spotsylvania with her grandma and cousin Luca also came along for the ride. After a quick, sightseeing drive around Williamsburg and doing some provisioning at the local market, they all said goodbye and Lexie officially became a part of the Wandering Star crew for the next week as we move the boat up the Chesapeake to Solomon Island, about 200-miles to the north.
Milestones marked this passage. Our 10,000th mile at sea on Wandering Star II turned over on the old sea-dometer about half way across from St Lucia. We’ve finally caught up to the 10,000 miles we put on the first Wandering Star in the six years we were on board her and have now made it to Martinique. Tonight also marks the end of 2008 which began with new years in Mazatlan.
Here in Martinique, we had fireworks on shore, horns from various boats in our anchorage and even the sacred blowing of the conch shell by Les, Rose and most everyone else on board who could still pucker tight enough followed by dancing on the fan tail. I don’t know when I dawned the red wig or painted on the French mustache but I’m sure it was appropriate and important at the time. All in all, a night to remember I’m sure . . . if only I could!
We had a nice couple of days putting the finishing touches on St Lucia. Found a reasonable cab driver on Monday so were able to make a run back to Castries for Jo’s Christmas present, a pottery plate with a St Lucia theme done by Michelle and to look for a new bike tire for me. Then we were dropped off at Pigeon Island to explore the old, hill top British fort and have happy hour again at the Jambe de Bois (wooden leg) before heading back for an evening at home. Well, at least Jo stayed home, Ken and I found some mischief to get into at the local cruisers bar that involved some 151 proof rum - nuff said!
Back on board to hoist anchor by 1330 for the 5-mile run to Marigot Bay, our Christmas destination. The seas were still calm on this leeward passage but the forecast is promising 10′ to 15′ waves with up to 35knots of wind by the weekend. Glad we’ll be snug in our deep, well protected Bay.
Friday was devoted to getting H & T settled in and acclimated, looking for the lost luggage, enjoying the ATC festivities. All but three of the 240 ARC boats are now present and accounted for and the party is still in full swing. For evening, it’s off to Jambe de Bois waterside café on the grounds of the old fort on Pigeon Island. The 3rd Sandals in St Lucia is located right up the beach along with a Rock Resort but this quaint little place was a step back time with family help, down home food, and homemade tables and chairs.
Jo did manage a long walk into the Spice Island Mall for some food shopping. While I caught up on some internet projects a bit, but much of the time was as unproductive as possible. Some of the evening activities included a date on Tuesday night when Jo & I went to the terrific restaurant aboard the old, restored lighthouse ship at the marina next bay over. Chef Mark did a five course meal featuring fresh fish entrees and a great spinach soup.
After several false but interesting snorkel stops along the way, we found the tug in the midst of a most unusual underwater photo show tied to the bottom in 12-feet of water. No idea who or why but it did make for something different to see rather then just pretty fish and coral covered wrecks.
