We left Solomons on the 5th, went past Annapolis, under the Bay Bridge, and made it to the Magothy River late afternoon. We ran against the tide the whole way, but could tell a big improvement in the boat's performance since the haulout.
The next morning we headed to the C and D Canal which connects the Chesapeake Bay to Delaware Bay. We left at 5 in the morning, and made it to Chesapeake City at about noon.
A congested mobile home type park on the canal.
We were a bit apprehensive about this anchorage, because it is small, has current, has shallow spots, and most pleasure boats make this their midway stopping point on their way to Cape May (ie too crowded). The anchorage was tight, but it worked out fine.
In the early days, C and D Canal had a lock system. The museum in the picture on the left, housed 2 large pumps, which pumped water via a large paddle wheel to fill up the lock. The canal was originally 10 feet deep. To accommodate modern ships, it has been expanded to 35 feet deep and 450 feet wide. They say 15,000 vessels pass through each year. Chesapeake City is a small, but charming town with a lot of homes from the 1800s.
We left just after noon the following day to anchor behind Reedy Island which lies just a couple of miles south of the C and D Canal on the Delaware Bay. It was only 17 nautical miles from Chesapeake City, but it helped set us up to ride the tide for the next leg south to Cape May. Reedy Island doesn't give much south or north protection, but it has good east and west protection--and protection from ships. There are no good anchorages on the Delaware Bay between the canal and Cape May. The currents on the bay are wicked, and we were a bit nervous going through the small gap between the jetties to get behind the island. The fear was not enough water, going aground, then being swept into the jetty by the strong current. I was told there was a minimum of 10 to 15 feet of water through the entrance. We saw 8.2 feet at one spot, but made it through fine.
We left just after noon the following day to anchor behind Reedy Island which lies just a couple of miles south of the C and D Canal on the Delaware Bay. It was only 17 nautical miles from Chesapeake City, but it helped set us up to ride the tide for the next leg south to Cape May. Reedy Island doesn't give much south or north protection, but it has good east and west protection--and protection from ships. There are no good anchorages on the Delaware Bay between the canal and Cape May. The currents on the bay are wicked, and we were a bit nervous going through the small gap between the jetties to get behind the island. The fear was not enough water, going aground, then being swept into the jetty by the strong current. I was told there was a minimum of 10 to 15 feet of water through the entrance. We saw 8.2 feet at one spot, but made it through fine.
Not the best protection, but by far our most scenic anchorage yet. The house with the big chimney was originally built by Jane Fonda. A couple of years ago Al Gore bought it from her with carbon credits. Recently, there was talk of making it the temporary White House, but that plan was nixed when they found out the rooms with the domes on them were not mosques.
Ever see a nuclear plant so hot it glows?
We woke up when the tide changed at 2 the next morning and briefly thought about leaving, but went back to bed until 5. We had a fast ride down the bay with the tide on our side. On the way down we decided to skip Cape May and sail straight through to Sandy Hook Bay. There is a canal that connects the Delaware Bay to the harbor in Cape May, but our mast is too high to get under the bridges. So we have to go outside around the cape and around the extensive shoals that protrude several miles past the cape. This adds several miles going in and coming out, plus the weather forecast was OK, so we just kept going. It was a beautiful day and we had a wonderful sail. The winds were fluky--alternating between 15 knots and 6 knots, but it was nice to sail. Late in the afternoon, after the wind died, the rest of the trip was either motoring, or motor sailing with the staysail up. Once we got around the shoals off of Cape May our course took us just inside the 3 mile line for most of the trip. We had land or lights in sight the whole way--saw the roller coaster and ferris wheel at Wildwood. Childhood memories. My family spent some time at the Wildwood and Atlantic City beaches when I was a mere lad. The lights of Atlantic City were pretty from the water. At one point we were low level buzzed by one of those military planes with the big disc antenna on it. In the wee hours of the morning the seas turned a bit sloppy as the NE wind picked up. And it turned much colder. We did some pounding into the wind for a few hours, and it was a welcome sight when the New York skyline appeared. When we entered Sandy Hook Bay we couldn't believe how many people were out fishing. I was worried about being fined for encroaching a security boundary I was unaware of, but the bay was littered with fishing boats. A lot of them were large boats with 30 or 40 people on them.
Ever see a nuclear plant so hot it glows?
We woke up when the tide changed at 2 the next morning and briefly thought about leaving, but went back to bed until 5. We had a fast ride down the bay with the tide on our side. On the way down we decided to skip Cape May and sail straight through to Sandy Hook Bay. There is a canal that connects the Delaware Bay to the harbor in Cape May, but our mast is too high to get under the bridges. So we have to go outside around the cape and around the extensive shoals that protrude several miles past the cape. This adds several miles going in and coming out, plus the weather forecast was OK, so we just kept going. It was a beautiful day and we had a wonderful sail. The winds were fluky--alternating between 15 knots and 6 knots, but it was nice to sail. Late in the afternoon, after the wind died, the rest of the trip was either motoring, or motor sailing with the staysail up. Once we got around the shoals off of Cape May our course took us just inside the 3 mile line for most of the trip. We had land or lights in sight the whole way--saw the roller coaster and ferris wheel at Wildwood. Childhood memories. My family spent some time at the Wildwood and Atlantic City beaches when I was a mere lad. The lights of Atlantic City were pretty from the water. At one point we were low level buzzed by one of those military planes with the big disc antenna on it. In the wee hours of the morning the seas turned a bit sloppy as the NE wind picked up. And it turned much colder. We did some pounding into the wind for a few hours, and it was a welcome sight when the New York skyline appeared. When we entered Sandy Hook Bay we couldn't believe how many people were out fishing. I was worried about being fined for encroaching a security boundary I was unaware of, but the bay was littered with fishing boats. A lot of them were large boats with 30 or 40 people on them.
At 9:30 am we dropped the anchor at Atlantic Highlands on the south side of Sandy Hook Bay.
The marina charges $50 a night for a mooring (not a slip), so we are anchored. It's $13 each for a shower. We'll shower on the boat. We will rest up and then decide where and when to go from here.
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