Four Days Out.........

 .....And Still Afloat!

Monday, May 31, we left Deale, MD (HOORAY!) in sunny but mildly breezy conditions.  Our course took us north on the Chesapeake Bay past West River, Annapolis, the Bay Bridge, and the Patapsco River that leads to Baltimore.   It being our first day on the water in several months, we experimented with different speeds and such and enjoyed the scenery.

    Just before  Hart-Miller Island, we  ducked thru a narrow but well-charted cut into Middle River and on to our destination at the Baltimore Yacht Club on Sue Island.  We were feeling good.  Nice weather, the boat running very well, new alternator spinning merrily away, only a few crab pots to dodge.  What’s not to like?  As we approached our designated dock, a helpful boater came to catch our lines and said, 

“Hey, why does your dinghy look like that?” 

Oh, Shit! Unbeknown to us,  our new dingy davit was holding the dinghy low enough that, at certain speeds between crawling and on plane,  our wake was filling the dinghy with water.   As the weight of
the water grew, the lifting rings in the bow of the dinghy failed.  The bow then dropped out of the davit, and we were dragging the dinghy behind the boat backward.  And the wash of our wake stripped everything loose out of the boat.  Oars, seats, fuel tank, and, most critically the rigid inflatable Air Deck floor.  

Rescued dinghy, minus missing pieces

Oh Shit, indeed.   We are now awaiting delivery of replacement components (to the tune of $1,000+) and “negotiating”  with our insurance company.   We are hoping all the pieces will catch up with us in New York and we will become dinghy-capable once again.   We are also awaiting the delivery of Wade’s repaired cell phone which is undergoing warranty surgery in Baltimore.   (Living with one phone in a household is yet another lost skill we are having to relearn.)

On Tuesday, June 1, we voyaged some 52 miles to Delaware City, DE at the north end of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. 

Scene from the C&D Canal

After some final adjustments (and one bailing) of the dinghy, we made  a delightful voyage to the north end of the Chesapeake Bay and into the C&D Canal.   The C&D is a 10-mile sea-level canal that

joins Delaware and Chesapeake Bays and serves the lion's share of ship traffic from the Atlantic to the port of Baltimore.   (Fortunately, we did not meet any ship traffic.  Whew!)

Near the end of Tuesday’s voyage, we dodged two bullets.  First, our navigation software attempted to route us thru a back door passage to our destination at the Delaware City Marina.  Even though the passage was marked “Not Maintained’ and “Not Recommended for Navigation” on their own  charts  and despite the presence of the highway  bridge with a kayak-appropriate 6-foot fixed clearance, Navionics (from Garmin) said, “Hey, THIS is the way.”   Commodore Kathleen was skeptical, but Helmsman Wade made the turn anyway and we immediately ran aground.  Embarrassed and chastened, we were able to back out without apparent damage. ( Thanks for nothin’, Garmin.)

But now our second challenge for the day emerged when the port engine began to randomly surge at low RPM.   Suspecting bad fuel (we had topped off at Baltimore Yacht Club) or a clogged fuel filter,

we pressed on the Delaware City. The marina crew there skillfully spun us around in their narrow fairway and secured us to the dock.   We decided to divide and conquer, with Commodore Kathleen Uber-ing to the grocery and liquor store (Tax-free Delaware.  Yay!) while Engineer Wade changed fuel filters.  And they certainly needed changing, those on the port side being particularly nasty with black tar and bits of rubber bands stuck in the filter elements. 

Our respective tasks done, we reunited for an excellent 5:00 pm briefing from the marina staff on our next day voyage down Delaware Bay.  In the process, we discovered the docks were full of fellow Loopers!   We made acquaintances and agreed to travel together on Wednesday with Southern Estate, Hallelujah, and a few others. 

Our cruise down Delaware Bay was serene,  covering some 55 miles at about 9 knots.   We led a flotilla of 5-6 boats, departing our marina at 6:00 am to ride the falling tide down the bay.  Seas were   calm, skies were clear,

Delaware Bay ship traffic

 engines ran smoothly and NOTHING ELSE   WENT WRONG!!   The most excitement we had was a propane     tanker who came roaring thru our flotilla at 15 knots, horn blowing,   and wake aboiling.

Our voyage ended thru the Cape May Canal to  Cape May, NJ where we will wait for some stormy weather to pass.   For those of you with

Irish Lass on Delaware Bay

weak East Coast geography, that puts us where the Delaware River and Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Where it means the sea, the Bay is 30 miles wide and passes substantial ship traffic for both Philadelphia and Baltimore.   While our marina is mediocre (Memo to self:  “family-owned” can be code for poorly maintained and under-invested),  Cape May has a lovely well-preserved historical section.  Lovely 18th and 19th-century homes and inns on oak-shaded streets. 

We attended our first Looper “Docktails” gathering Wednesday evening, meeting several others on the same journey.   We enjoyed a very nice dinner on Friday at the Merion Inn with fellow-Westerners  Steve and Ann of Halleluiah who hail from Longmont, CO.

On Saturday, we will venture “outside” (in fleet with others again) for an open water run north with the NJ coast 2 miles to port and Europe 3,000 miles to starboard.   

 It’s fun to try new things, right?

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