the fall trip

The last entry in the daily log will go up sometime tonight.  It took longer than expected to sort through all the images and go through the notes from the trip.   I'm tempted to say we took too many photographs --  but can you really take too many photographs???  The above is from the Chester River on day eight, sailing along at a nice 5 knots or so.

Finishing the log means it is time to start thinking about the fall trip.  Bruce and I have to compare schedules to see what works.  One idea I've thrown out is sailing from mid-Bay, probably the somewhere on the Little Choptank River, north to the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal and then down Delaware Bay to Lewes at the mouth of the bay.  But that is just an idea - I need to do some research.

steve

Day Eight, downwind to the Chester River

Morning on day eight came earlier than usual.  A couple of crabbers, diesels rumbling, motored down Tilghman Creek at 4 a.m.  It was a holiday weekend, Memorial Day.  Maybe they wanted to get an early  start on their workday.
About an hour later this waterman below motored down near us on the creek to set out his trotline.

We had an easy day ahead of us.  A light breeze out of the south and clear skies, our goal was to reach Kent Narrows by noon, have lunch and make our way up the lower part of the Chester River.  We had time to spare so we sailed southeast into the wind, making about four knots on the Miles River.

Off of Hambleton Cove we turned back north, sailing wing and wing towards Kent Island Narrows.  Just making two knots to start with, the breeze picked up and we were soon doing three knots while nearing Parsons Island.  

At 9:40 I glanced at the gps and saw that we reached the 200 nautical mile mark for the trip.  Eight days, 200 nautical miles, at least a dozen bodies of water - and they were all fading away.  Tangier Sound was a distant memory, as were the dolphins of South Marsh Island, the bamboo channel of Fishing Creek. 

For me a small boat journey is a complete immersion in the immediate environment.  After a few days on the water I can think about, really focus on, only what surrounds me at any given moment.  All else seems remote.  The day before or the day ahead, even those are distant.  It is only what I can see, hear, touch or taste right then, right there, that seems to matter.  And that was the way it felt sailing wing and wing that morning on Eastern Bay.

By 11:00 were dodging power boats and their wakes as we entered the narrows.  We dropped the sails and motored north into the channel, tying up at Bridges Restaurant for a nice lunch.   Back on the water before 1:00, we passed beneath the bridge in choppy, windy and crowded conditions, reaching the Chester River at 1:20.  

It was a great ride up the Chester River, full sail and making 5.5 to 6 knots in the afternoon breeze.   We found ourselves in the thick of a sailing fleet, some racing and some out for a holiday sail.  We had lots of people waving and saying hello, lots of nice compliments for what had to be the smallest sailboat on the river that afternoon.

We rounded marshy Piney Point, putting the fishing line out for one last, unsuccessful, troll over a fishing hole marked as "Hell's Delight" on the charts.  Bruce is the only one with bragging rights for fishing on this trip.  I would really love to catch a fish in a place called Hell's Delight, but that will have to wait until another trip.

At 3:00 we tacked into Grove Creek, followed a well marked channel to Reed Creek and rode the perfect wind past the fleet of moored yachts to our final anchorage for the trip.

I got out for a swim while Bruce straightened up the boat.  I don't recall what we had for dinner that night but I do know we our last two cans of budweiser to wash down the meal.

We relaxed in Spartina after dinner, talked and laughed a bit.  There was rich evening light as the sun went down.

steve

distance traveled   24.6 nm
average speed        3.2 knots

no static at all

I've just ordered a new radio for Spartina.  It is an Eton Emergency Weather Radio with AM/FM and, of course, NOAA weather.  The power source can be AA batteries, hand crank generator or solar power.  Price, through LLBean, is $50.00.  It even has a cell phone charger.

I carry a marine vhf radio for communication and weather reports.  I also like to have the AM/FM radio along to listen to sports.  On Chesapeake Bay Bruce and I have had a great time listening to sports stations out of Washington D.C.  On solo trips it can make for a nice companion.  On the spring walkabout I went three days with no radio, then listened to sports talk for the next two days.  Sometimes I enjoy silence, sometimes I enjoy hearing what is going on in the world.

 In the past I've carried a Grundig FR200 radio on Spartina.  On this last trip, while listening to a sports talk show, I tried to adjust the antenna and it broke off.   Ooops.  But after three years of being exposed to salt spray what do you expect?  It had served me well.  Sun, salt spray and bouncing up and down as I trailered Spartina on the highways (the worst wear and tear on most boats is on the highway) took its toll.

 So here is a toast to some good football games, exciting baseball playoffs, interesting sports talk and, most importantly, silence.  Both radios, Eton and Grundig, come standard with an "OFF" switch.

And for the record, there is no better way to watch a baseball game than on the radio.

steve

Day Seven, back to Tilghman Island

Day seven started calm and clear.  I really like this photo that Bruce shot of me, above, as I listened to weather radio and looked at the charts for our sailing options for the day.  (Check out how clean and organized that cockpit is after six days on the water.  Pretty good, don't you think???)  At this point in the trip we had a day to spare.  I always build an extra day into a trip for weather holds, but had not needed to use one.  So where to go?  We decided to head east across Chesapeake Bay to Love Point at the north end of Kent Island.  Once there we could head north to Rock Hall and a good crab cake at Waterman's, or head south to Kent Island Narrows and then eventually Eastern Bay.
The weather forecast made our final decision for us - chance of severe thunderstorms, possible tornadic activity and possible activation of spotters (tornado spotters, I'm guessing).  That meant we would be heading south in the p.m. where there would be much more protection.

It was one of those peaceful sails off the mooring just after 6 a.m., a light north wind carrying us at a knot or so from behind Dobbins Island.  There is the island above, you can see some of the overnight fleet to the right (north) of the island.
Out of Sillery Bay the north wind picked up, our speed going from 3.4 knots to 4.8 knots as we approached Mountain Point at the south end of Gibson Island and the entrance to the Bay.  It was shallow and choppy, crowded with crab pots as we rounded the point.  Soon we entered the calm Chesapeake Bay.

By 7:30 the wind was gone.  We were out on Bay with two shipping channels to cross.  So we cranked up the outboard and headed east.  Not 30 minutes later the wind filled in from the south and we were sailing again toward Love Point.

We rounded the point at 8:40 with the south wind increasing, tacked across the mouth of the Chester River at 4.5 to 5.7 knots.  It was a great ride.  Bruce and I took turns at the tiller, alternating the tacks as we sailed south to the narrows.  It was rough out in mid-river and the bow of Spartina threw out lots of spray as we crashed through the chop.  Nearing Castle Harbor the water calmed a bit, but still plenty of wind.

About 10:30 we approached the entrance to the Narrows.  A few oyster boats had their conveyor belts down in the water near the channel markers, a line a power boats approached from the north.  Coming up on the holiday weekend I knew there would be lots of traffic.  A half dozen 35 foot or so power cruisers arrived at the channel markers right behind me.  But there was also a boat being towed into one of the marinas.  The boat being towed was of course slower that the other boats, the captain of the tow boat moved just outside the channel to let the other boats through.  We moved over and followed in the track of the boat being towed - plenty of water there and we would not slow down any traffic.

By 11 a.m. we were tied up at Red Eye's Dock Bar.  We asked if we could leave Spartina there for a few minutes for lunch, they said leave it as long as you like, no charge.  So off to Harris Crab House for a couple of soft shell crab hoagie's.  Life was good.

After picking up ice and a few supplies we were back on the water at 12:20 and powered under the Kent Narrows Bridge into both strong wind and current out of the south
.

The afternoon on Eastern Bay was a series of long tacks with steady wind and warm sunshine.  The sky was blue with white puffy clouds, no sign of the severe weather.  We watched as a seaplane made a series of touch and go's off of Piney Point.

The nice lunch caught up with us both.  Bruce slept while I sailed, I slept while Bruce sailed.  We trolled all the way down the bay, but no luck.  We had done pretty well here a year and a half earlier.

By 4 p.m. we were approaching Tilghman Point at the very northern end of Tilghman Island.  We saw a couple of possible anchorages on the charts and decided to try the very first one - Tilghman Creek.  It was a narrow entrance channel, we started the outboard and dropped the sails while forgetting about the trolling line.  As we motored in I noticed the fishing line being pulled taught and knew right away what I had done.  Bruce shut off the outboard, I cut the line and checked to see that prop spun freely.  It did.
Then we headed up the creek looking for an anchorage.  Bruce spotted a cove off to the west but I could not see it clearly, in fact I never quite recognized it until I looked at google earth just now.  Sometimes I lose depth perception when looking at shorelines.  None the less we anchored in a comfortable private spot and enjoyed the evening.

Dinner was the sirloin tips we had picked up in Oxford - excellent - plus potatoes and onions, all washed down by ice cold budweiser bought at Red Eye's in the Narrows.

Below you will see me that evening after an impromptu swim.  I had allowed a plastic bag blow overboard and jumped in to retrieve it.  The water was warm, the swim relaxing.

Later than evening thunderstorms passed up the Bay just on the other side of Tilghman Island, we stayed comfortable and dry in the creek.  A very peaceful evening after a good day on the water.

steve

distance traveled   36.4 nm

average speed         3.5 knots

my boat is not cute, neither are the Seals

Quick post on today's sail, I need to get back to the daily logs.  It was a nice day on the the water, marred only by the comment at the ramp from a skiff owner who said my boat was "cute".  You can call Spartina a lot of thing but from my point of view "cute" is not one of them.  I let the comment slide - it was to nice a day to argue.
I used a different ramp today.  The Elizabeth River was crowded downtown for the annual Harborfest party.  Boat races, tall ships, beer, turkey wings - all that sort of stuff.  I used a ramp on the Lafayette River and then sailed down to the Elizabeth River where I could watch a lot of boats, including this yawl below, leaving the festivities.  It was a good spot of see a lot of different boats.

My guess is that these guys below are Seals - not the cute kind of seal.  They most likely did some sort of demonstration at Harborfest.  The east coast Seals are based at a couple of places in Virginia Beach.  You see them out jogging in the early morning in black shorts and white tee shirts.  Or swimming along the beach with goggles and swim fins.  Or hanging on a line beneath a helicopter as it flies overhead.  Or parachuting miles off the beach with black parachutes.  Around here you never really know if that guy in line next to you, the one in the blue bdu's (battle dress uniform), is a Seal or not.  You just never know.

I was about to head back to the ramp when I saw a gaff-rigged cutter coming around the coal pier.  I will change plans anytime just to see a gaff-rigged boat.

I sailed back out on the river to intercept the cutter.  Two women and one man aboard, all wearing white shirts and straw hats.  I told them the boat looked beautiful, they repaid the compliment in kind.  Out of Martha's Vineyard they said, but they were gone before I could ask anymore questions.

No name on the hull, just a classic boat heading home.

steve

bivy's explained

 I get a lot of questions about how the Alpine Bivy works.  It is clear to me that I have not done a good job of describing the system.  It is not easy to explain - even when people see them in place they often don't quite understand the different layers of protection.  The images above and below are from Amazon.com.  At the very top is our most common configurations, with the mosquito mesh zipped in place.  The image just below that shows the bivy open - I sleep with the bivy open when there are no bugs.  It is very pleasant.

Below the bivy is set for rain, it becomes virtually a one man tent.  This is what I mean when I say "I pulled the bivy over me" or "I dropped the top of the bivy".  The orange material is gore-tex, water runs right off.  The grey material is a rubberized waterproof material, rainwater can pool on the deck of the boat and we stay dry.  Instructions tell me not to full zip the cover in place to avoid suffocation.  I usually leave a six inch stretch unzipped, this still blocks the rain but lets air circulate.

Below are our two bivy sacs in place on Spartina, we were setting up for the evening at Tilghman Creek.  We can't use tent stakes, as designed, to spread the bivy out.  Instead we use bits of line to fasten the foot of the bivy to the bottom of he first bulkhead under the foredeck, and two more bits of line at the "shoulders" of the sac are tied to eye pads (which also serve other purposes while in the sailing configuration).  Across the top is a bungee cord (I would not survive in life without bungee cord), the tent-pole arches in the bivy are tied to that for vertical support.

I hope that helps clarify things.  I will say they have made a huge difference in the cruising life styles.  I really don't know how we did the first couple of trips without them.

Rain?  No big deal.  Bugs?  Not a worry.  A nice breeze, no bugs and a clear night - leave the bivy open and enjoy the star filled sky.  It doesn't get much better than that.

steve

Day Six, across the Bay to Dobbins Island

We carried our gear from the hotel room, packed Spartina and cast off from the dock at 6:30.  Or we tried to cast off.  I put the outboard in reverse and tried to back out of the slip but the boat would not move.  The mast or maybe a halyard had hung up in a tree that reached out over the slip.  Bruce used the boat hook to free us and we were on our way.  

We passed by some of the old work boats in the harbor on Knapp Narrows and headed west towards Chesapeake Bay.  Well rested after a good night at the inn, it felt good to be out on the water.  The last time we had headed west out of Knapp Narrows there had been quite a bit more wind.  This time it was easy, wind out of the south at 10 knots, calm water and the feeling that we knew our way around.

We turned north, a peaceful downwind sail inside of Poplar Island.  We were wing and wing by 7:30, the north end of Poplar Island to the west and Bloody Point, the southern tip of Kent Island, in sight to the north.  By 9:00 we were passing Bloody Point to our east having decided to head north on the Chesapeake Bay.  The water was choppy around the shallows near the point, but we soon found ourselves in calm water as we passed over the deeper water of Gum Thicket.  The trolling line was out over the steep dropoff, but no luck on this day.

Through the haze we soon spotted large ships, about five or six, anchored on in the Bay.  We talked about watching for the ships in the channels, trying to keep an eye on the commercial traffic.

Then out of the haze the Chesapeake Bay Bridge appeared.  Annapolis on the west side of the bay and Kent Island on the east side.  Both the wind and the current from the south, it was an easy sail at 4.5 knots through the eastern channel.

About a mile north of the bridge we turned west toward the Magothy River.  Anyone who followed my planning for this trip will notice that I had not talked at all about crossing over to the west side of the Bay.  But with good weather we had found ourselves with an extra day to sail.  And I had researched the area a year or two before when considering such a trip.  A quick glance at our charts and my research came back to me - there was both a good restaurant and good anchorage to be found on the Magothy River.

The wind picked up as we neared Sandy Point at the mouth of the river.  We sailed with the wind on the  port beam doing a steady 5 knots close to shore.  We ran alongside a deadrise, two guys on the top tossing crab pots over the side as the captain below shouted "Throw!".  A Pacific SeaCraft Dana 24 sailed north of us on the same tack, a reef tucked in her main (and I was happy to note we were still under full sail).

A few miles upriver we picked out the entrance to Deep Creek, dropped the main and the mizzen and headed up the creek under power.  This was a heavily populated stretch of water, lots of piers and big homes, community beaches and a few old cottages here and there.  We tied up at Deep Creek Marina and Restaurant - an restaurant that dates back to an old bar/fish fry joint from the 1950's - for lunch.  Great meals for us there - I had a Cobb Saland and Bruce had a Caesar Salad with crab cake on top.  When we left we picked up a six pack to go - Bruce asked for Guinness, which came only in a four pack, so they threw in a couple of Corona's and a much needed bottle opener.  This was my kind of restaurant.  There is Bruce, below, on the docks with the restaurant in the background.

After lunch we motored to the middle of the creek, raises the jib and sailed downwind back to the Magothy River.  I thought about raising more sail once on the Magothy, but there was no need.  The south wind carried us across the river to Dobbins Island - our anchorage for the night.
I had picked out the spot based on the charts, figured it would be an excellent anchorage.  But I did not realize it was a popular anchorage.  A dozen big sailboats were anchored out offshore, four or five power boats were in near the beach with plenty of people having fun, drinking beer and having cookouts.  It was a big change from the quiet coves on the other side of the bay.  I hopped in the water for a swim, Bruce relaxed and took some photographs.

With our late lunch we decided to skip dinner, making do with anchovies, oysters and crackers......and the beer packed in our cooler with crushed ice.  A perfect way to end the day.

Below you can see the anchor lights of the weekend fleet.  Anchoring out with all the boats was different, fun and interesting.  I'm not sure we would do it all the time, but I'm glad we gave it a try.

steve

distance traveled  27.7 nm
average speed       3.4 knots

Chesapeake float

We just missed seeing these guys on Tangier Sound by a few hours.  Kevin of Slip Jig fame was out with his buddies on their annual Chesapeake Float.  They left Smith Island heading NE for Rumbley just was we were approaching Smith Island on the west side.

Check out this video by Kevin to get an idea of what it was like.  (And I thought I skirted close to the marshes on Spartina......)

steve

Day Five, Oxford and Tilghman Island

Spartina shook and rattled in the wind sometime after 1:00 in the morning.  I peeked out of the bivy, stars  to port and starboard, a black cloud up ahead of the bow.  "I think we are going to get some rain" I told Bruce.  At first it was mostly wind.  I don't know how much wind, but enough to make me wish I had put more anchor line out that evening.  The ten pound navy anchor, chain and five pound sentinal anchor held fine.  Just light rain at first, then some lightning and then, as the wind fell off, a heavy rain.  We each zipped up our bivy's and fell asleep.

Spartina sailed off anchor at 6:30 on a beautiful morning.  We ghosted along at an easy two knots heading towards Cook Point at the mouth of the Choptank River.  The early morning light was rich, the water calm and the sailing peaceful.  We have left anchorages in good winds, strong winds, and under power.  Leaving in a gentle breeze, moving at just a knot or two, is my favorite way to start the day.

We had a couple goals for the day.  One was to have a nice lunch in Oxford.  The second was to reach Tilghman Island so we could tie up in a marina and stay at the Knapp Narrows in for the night (and maybe have a nice dinner at a local restaurant).

The light breeze picked up, then fell off on the approach to Cook Point.  We struggled to round the point, the water and the wind (and the sailors too) were confused.  Maybe it was the tide going against the wind, maybe it was confused currents at the mouth of the river.  We eventually motor sailed around the point and entered the broad mouth of the Choptank.

It as a morning of sailing, motoring, sailing as the winds seemed to come and go.  For a while the winds were ENE, the NW, then gone.  By sail and by power we found ourselves off of Benoni Point at the mouth of the Tred Avon River by 10 a.m.  When winds are light like that morning we tend to experiment with the camera.  Below is a self-portrail I shot while standing on the foredeck motoring up the Tred Avon.

Reached Town Creek at 10:45 and headed to the fuel dock, taking on about 3/4 gallons of gas.  Then down the creek to Schooners only to find out that they were closed on Wednesdays.  But the manager was kind enough to let us tie up at his docks.

We walked the few blocks to the Oxford Market where we ordered sandwiches from their excellent deli.  Then we sat on the benches out front for a relaxing lunch.  Bruce, below, made a couple of phone calls home and checked his email.  Afterwards we went back into the market to buy some onions, potatoes and a very reasonably price frozen, vacuum packed bag of sirloin tips.

Oxford is a great little town.  It is very upscale, but in a casual sort of way.  Arriving by boat, regardless of income status, let us feel like we were part of the town for a short while.

Back on the water at 12:25 and Bruce handle the tacking down the Tred Avon River in perfect form.  At Benoni Point the wind failed again and it was an afternoon of motor sailing down the Choptank.  Passing the mouth of Broad Creek at 3:00 the southwest wind finally filled in.

It was perfect timing as we looked to the west and saw the skipjack Rebecca T. Ruark, a passenger vessel now, coming out of Dogwood Harbor.  We turned in their direction to get a closer look, and we were thrilled to see them turn in our direction for a closer look at us.

On our trips we "share" a camera.  Bruce provides the body, in this case a very nice Canon 5D, and a long lens.  I provide the wide angle lens, a 16 to 35 mm zoom.  And we take turns with the camera.  It usually works out fine but sometimes we have those great photo situations where we look at each other and wonder who should get to use the camera.  Bruce was at the tiller when we saw the skipjack so I made the first grab (ok, lunge) for the camera box.  I shot the skipjack coming across our bow, above, then relinquished (somewhat stubbornly) the camera to Bruce for the long lens photo, below.   Nice photo, Bruce, you gotta love those clouds!  Yes, we both want to shoot all the nice photos, but as Bruce has said before, our wives make us play nice.

It was a treat to trade tacks with the skipjack.  They came close enough to ask questions about the trip and wish us well.  One of the guys on the skipjack told us to keep heading west as they sailed east, they had a ratio of nine women to two men on the boat and he had no interest in changing those numbers.  West we sailed.

We left the skipjack lined up perfectly for the eastern entrance to Knapp Narrows, the channel that cuts across Tilghman Island.  I radioed to the bascule bridge and they opened for us without delay.

We had no reservations at Knapp Narrows Inn but being a weekday before the summer season they had plenty of room in both the marina and the inn.  We got tied up and then carried our gear to a nearby room.

Dinner was at the Bay Hundred restaurant right there at the marina.  I had heard over the years that the restaurant had gone through several changes in management and food was, at times, inconsistent.  We were there at the right time as our dinners were outstanding.  Bruce had ahi tuna, I had a very spicy clams and linguine with white sauce (I don't think I've had it prepared any better than that).

And then the chores - laundry, drying out the gear, refilling water bottles and setting up the boom tent for the night.  The two glasses of wine with dinner caught up with me and I lost all my energy.  

I slept that night with no dreams.  But who needs dreams when you are on a trip like this.

steve

distance traveled    24.5 nm

moving average    2.7 knots