The Final Leg

After a wonderful night enjoying the NYC sights from across the Hudson River, we left Liberty Landing Marina early this morning amidst the ever frenetic marine traffic of ferries, water taxis, barges, tankers and tugs. I learned very early that these commercial vessels operate under the "rule of big" -- in other words, whoever is the biggest, gets to go first! None the less, we navigated our way through the busy harbor and headed north (east) on the East River toward Long Island Sound.

Departing Liberty Landing Marina

Fortunately, the tide and current was in our favor (not to mention calm winds) so the always challenging Hell Gate was nothing more than a mild pool of rushing water as we went through. From there, it was all "down hill" as we entered Long Island Sound in what my local NY boating friend called a "Grade A Day". And indeed it was -- calm, smooth and most enjoyable for most of the ride right down the center of the Sound toward our final destination, Essex, CT.

A calm day on Long Island Sound

In the center of the Sound headed to the Connecticut River

As we entered the Connecticut River, there was a certain sense of satisfaction (and relief) that came over us. We had just spent the past 17 days traveling 1,445 miles through 10 states on the Atlantic coast waterways and it was, in no uncertain terms, a real accomplishment for us. Over the years, we have developed a real "rhythm" to running the boat, handling the lines, navigating the waters, while all the time taking in our surroundings and savoring the moment together. 

And that is really what this trip was all about -- together. With the water, with the wind, with nature's beauty, with the people along the way, and most importantly, with each other.

Cocoa FL tp Essex CT

Entering the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook Point

Our "home" for the summer

Full Circle

Today was an amazing day.

With seas forecast offshore with 3-4 foot swells from the southeast and winds from the west picking up in the afternoon, we decided to make an early morning departure from Cape May to New York. While we were successful in dodging most of the bad weather, it caught up with us the last two hours. Just the same, it was a relatively good day on the water covering 140 miles in under six hours. The boat ran beautifully and handled the seas with command.

As we approached New York Harbor, the Statue of Liberty came into view. Realizing that my grandparents emigrated to the United States from Italy and passed Lady Liberty before being processed at Ellis Island, was both an emotional and humbling moment for me. It is hard to imagine that just two generations later I would follow the same path in my own boat. 

Lady Liberty off the bow of Endless Summer

Ellis Island - Where my grandparents emigrated to the USA

We are docked this evening at Liberty Landing Marina, just across the Hudson River from lower Manhattan. The view looking back over the city is stunning and very special. I spent 7 years of my career working in NYC and through that experience am now able to enjoy this time on the water. I don't think I could have ever imagined that I would return one day this way. 

A full circle day in so many ways. 

Overlooking Freedom Tower - Lower Manhattan

Even more spectacular at night!

A Break in the Weather - Sort Of

How the day started

After four days of "sitting" in Kent Island MD, the weather finally broke enough for us to continue north. It was still a rainy. overcast and choppy day on the upper Chesapeake and Delaware Bays, but all in all, not a bad day on the water.  Today we traveled about 140 miles to South Jersey Marina in Cape May NJ. Not more than 30 minutes after our arrival, the skies cleared and the sun actually came out. I can't begin to tell you how excited we were to finally see some blue sky and dry conditions.

Unfortunately, the break may just that -- a break, as they are calling for unfavorbaly high winds and rough offshore seas tomorrow. Unless that changes over night (doubtful), we plan to stay in Cape May for two nights as the next part of the trip takes off the Jersey coast for 145 miles to New York. The ocean is never a predictable force but to the extent I can minimize the chances of a "bad ride", I plan to do so. Besides, it is Mother's Day tomorrow and making the Admiral "green" is not a very thoughtful gift!

How the day ended

Socked In

When we first planned this trip from Longboat Key FL to Essex, CT having some "bad weather days" was already baked in. No trip this distance can go without some alteration due to unfriendly wind and waves. Up until we left Portsmouth, VA this past Tuesday, we didn't need to use one of our five "lay days" due to weather. Well, that has all changed.

After arriving at the Bay Bridge Marina in Stevensville, MD (Kent Island), we have been under the influence of a persisting and nasty cold front. It has rained every day, the wind has been brisk and the temps are 20 degrees below normal for this time of year. Not exactly an "Endless Summer" kind of setting! In addition, our next stop is Cape May NJ which has even worse conditions dominated by 25-30 mph winds and 5-7 foot seas off shore at least until Saturday. No sense being in a hurry to get to that!!!

None the less, we are making good use of our time on board. I have cleaned all the sea strainers, topped off the engine oil, hydraulic fluids, gear oil and coolant levels. We have vacuumed the interior of the boat, mopped the floors and cleaned the heads. Today, we're really going to do something exciting -- the laundry! The one benefit was getting to spend another evening with good friends and solving the problems of the world over a home cooked dinner and good bottle of red wine.

Not really sure what tomorrow will bring, but this is part of the "boating life" where you learn to take a little of the bad with a lot of the good.

Wind and seas not very welcoming

New Friends - Old Friends

Coming through Coinjock we met a couple of great guys on another boat that were traveling at about the same time and speed as we were. As a result, we struck up a conversation along the waterway and ended up staying at the same marina in Norfolk (well, actually Portsmouth). Last evening, we enjoyed cocktails on Endless Summer and a delightful dinner on board Scott and Kel's boat. We had some great laughs and shared stories about various adventures on the water. It was great to make "new friends".

This morning we left Norfolk at an almost first light departure of 730am and headed 160 miles up the Chesapeake Bay toward the Eastern Shore of Maryland. I have traveled this section of the Bay many times over many years and I can only recall two other times when the water was as calm and friendly as it was today. Yes, we did have to outrun some nasty thunderstorms and deal with a little sea fog, but that was a small price to pay for such a pleasant and easy ride. We arrived 6 hours late at our old home port of Bay Bridge Marina on Kent Island, MD. This evening our dear friends Wynn and Nancy came to the boat for cocktails and then off to dinner at Kentmoor, one of our favorite spots. Nothing like a bowl of Maryland crab soup and a "real" crab cake to welcome you home. And nothing is better than doing that with "old friends".

Dining aboard One "Mo" Time with Scott and Kell

Outrunning the storms!

An amazingly calm day on The Chesapeake Bay

Prime Space and Prime Rib

After a delightful evening in River Dunes, we headed out for one of the funkiest places on the ICW, Coinjock North Carolina. It is considered by most mariners to be a "have to" stop because it is the only place before Norfolk that you can dock, get fuel and some dinner. This little marina has 1050 feet of bulkhead dock space right on the waterway and they stack the boats in like sardines. During transient season, it is full every night. They also have a "famous" restaurant (yeah, it's called the Coinjock Restaurant), and they are known for their 32 ounce prime rib -- of course you can get the petite portion weighing in at a mere 16 ounces! With a dock full of sailboats, yachts and mega yachts, it is the most eclectic crowd and experience you can possibly imagine.

The next morning, we only had to run 50 miles to Norfolk, but this little stretch takes a long time -- like 5 hours. There are a number of bridges and a lock on restricted timing so unless you get there in time (or you get there too early) you can sit and "spin" while waiting for the next opening. Add to that mix a lot of other boats doing the same thing, a few 80 foot tugs pushing 300 foot barges and military operations coming into Norfolk and it's easy to see how this can be intimidating and frustrating to many folks. One of the great thing about Endless Summer is that it is equipped with a GPS technology called "Skyhook" where you can simply press a button at the helm and it will hold it's place in the water automatically. It is a pretty amazing feature and one that we use all the time to hold our spot on the water while waiting for bridges, locks, fuel docks and rigging the lines before docking. Takes a lot of the stress out of the process!

Tugs and barges were everywhere 

Getting ready to follow this barge into the Great Bridge Lock

Passing some of the military operations in Norfolk