First Leg - First Stop

   
    We're in Pasadena, MD on shore. We were hauled Monday the 23rd, only 5 days after leaving Mystic. We're here for our annual haul out for painting and maintenance.

     When we left Mystic we went to Port Jefferson. We had light winds and a good current for the early part of the day so when we slowed down it wasn't too bad. We had a little breeze at the start so we saw the genoa for a while. There were about 3-4 other southbound boats there. From there we went to Port Washington with even lighter conditions. All motoring.

     Port Washington has free moorings for transients so it's a nice place to rest, especially since we got there early.

     Next up was a very long passage: through the City and then along the New Jersey coast overnight to Cape May, NJ. We timed Hell Gate pretty well but the passage south had the wind and seas right on the nose which slowed us down quite a bit. We had hoped to go all the way up the Delaware Bay/River but the slow passage made us stop overnight in Cape May. It was a bit choppy because we had to go right into the waves so sleeping wasn't to great.

     The cold front passed through over night so when we headed up the Delaware the wind was on the nose AGAIN. We were headed south, the wind was SE to SW. We started north and the wind shifted N to NW. Sigh. We get used to choppy. Unwillingly. Not big seas but right on the bow. Not comfortable but we made it to the C & D Canal and Chesapeake City.

     We left the C & D in the morning and went all the way to Bodkin Creek which is Pasadena, MD just outside the Patapsco River which leads to Baltimore. Had a nice sail for a change.

     We pushed our luck pushing south in spite of semi-adverse weather because the marina needed us here sooner to avoid scheduled haul outs for other boats. It worked out okay. We've got our work done and I'll be taking the boat to Annapolis to wait for Carol to come back from her job. Also getting the opportunity to go to the NASCAR race in Dover, a 2 hour drive from here.

     Oh, did I mention the buoy in New York Harbor that jumped out and attacked us? A New York mugging? No? Never mind. Nothing  to see here.


    

Summer came late. Fall came early

     It's almost time for us to leave Connecticut and head south again. It's been a little bit of an odd summer. It started off pretty cold and has ended pretty cool. We had a period of very hot weather but it really didn't last all that long. On the other hand none of the severe weather Connecticut got ever reached Mystic where we live now. We had a very near miss right after Labor Day but that's it.

     We did a little boating but much less than when we were not full time liveaboards. Our first rendezvous was at Hamburg Cove where we met up with our Waterbury Squadron friends and caught up with winter events. It was still cold then so they all got to see our cockpit enclosure for the first time. Normally it's been put away before we have any boating get-togethers. We had a short cruise to Block Island for the Fourth of July but the weather kept us from seeing the fireworks. Twice. Too foggy.

     Heather joined us for a vacation cruise (her vacation, not ours) at the end of July and we went to Martha's Vineyard for most of the week. Weather affected this trip also but it wasn't too bad. We had a warm sunny day when we went to the beach at Aquinnah, if you know what that means. Great sightseeing!

     The also great thing about this summer is the chance we had to invite relatives and friends to the boat! Marcy and Chris and the kids had a mini-cruise of Mystic:

     Carol's former co-worker Laverne and husband Walt visited us as well as fellow southern cruisers Bob and Jane from Voyageur. Great meals and conversation even if the weather wasn't that great.

     My cousin Jim and wife Joan also visited us and had a brief weather window that allowed a short cruise. It's fun taking people out of their comfort zones and getting them on the water. No one drowned.

     My sister, Monica came twice to the boat with her kids but they're really the only regular family visitors we get in the summer.

We ended the summer season with our usual rendezvous at Watch Hill/Napatree for the Labor Day holiday. Said good-bye to our boating friends until next spring.

     The oddest event of the season was the uninvited guest we had aboard late in August:

We have no idea how it got aboard and into our main cabin. Swam in, up a hatch or line? In a computer bag that was in the car while we took a walk on a nature trail? Who knows? It was a common Northern Water Snake. A baby but not at all a welcome bundle of joy.

     We're about a week away from departure towards warmer (we hope) weather. Last year was NOT warm. Maybe this year will be. More likely stormy.

     I am going to try to blog more often but we do get so busy. Sunning, swimming, exploring all take up a lot of time.