Day 116, Wednesday October 16

Day 116, Wednesday Oct 16, 2013 – Into the Atlantic we go!

Local fisherman pulling up ???

We wake up to a calm day after spending a very peaceful evening at anchor.  We are planning to make a run down the Jersey Coast today leaving the option for a straight sail to Cape May (entrance to Delaware Bay).  To make Cape May will be ~22 hour sail and you want to time it for a daylight arrival so we aim for an 11 o’clock take off.  There are a couple of spots we can stop for the night if we want.



Lumpy seas

We finish a few things around the boat in preparation, call about getting a Sat Phone for the adventure and get underway at 11.  It is a calm ride out to the tip of Sandy Hook the only thing we had to watch for was boat traffic with a number of small fishing boat in the area.  The small boats are pulling up traps probably crabs.  Once we make top of Sandy Hook and turn to make the run out to the ocean we are in a washing machine.  The tide is running out and the waves are coming from the east making for steep waves.  It is pretty bouncy but Jazzebelle handles it well.   While we are exiting a 34’ Catalina is just behind us, which is nice as it is good to have a buddy boat.  Once we make the turn south the movement on the boat gets better with more of roll than hobby horsing. 

Julie at the helm in the Atlantic

The wind is out of the south west with just enough west to allow us to motor sail.  We get the main up, 1^st time with a tether on for Dawson and then get the 130 Genoa out.  With the sails up we call up our new buddy boat to find out what their plans are.  They are also heading down the coast but have decided to do it in 3 days, Day 1 to Manasqan Inlet, about a 25 Nautical mile run down the coast, then to Atlantic City and then to Cape May.  Sounds like a plan so we decide to join them.  The boat is called Flock of Seagulls out of Buffalo New York.  The crew is Scott and Suzie who are taking the boat to Key Largo.



42 pound lobster on the wall

The passage to Manasqan Inlet passes quickly with the winds failing us only for the last half hour.  Suzie has called ahead and made arrangements to dock at a restaurant, the Shrimp Box for free as long as we eat there.  This sounds like an even better plan so we call to get the same dockage.  The entrance to the harbour is nice and wide with lots of depth a very easy entrance.  We are tied up to the Shrimp Box dock by 16:30 and meet our new friends in person.



Scott marking the Hurricane Sandy waterline

We head in to town to find a mail box; we have some letters to post and to pick up a quart of milk.  After about a 2 mile walk we return with a quart of milk and the letters as we were unable to find a mail box.  Well we actually did find a mail box but it was just a US Postal relay box with no slot, oh well we will post them in Atlantic City.

We get back to the boat by 6, invite Scott and Suzie over for a happy hour and then head into the Shrimp Box for dinner.  The Shrimp Box is your standard waterfront seafood restaurant, big entrance with seascapes and Shark jaws and booths lining the water front window.  The meal is excellent, large portions with salad bar so we will have lunch for tomorrow.  We both have a shrimp platter.  The shrimp is fresh as the harbour is home port to a large shrimp fleet.  As we are leaving the restaurant Julie notices a plaque on the wall at chest height marking the high water level from Sandy, hard to believe the whole point was under 3.5 feet of water.   It is places like this that are rightfully concerned about global warming and rising water levels.  We are back on the boat for 8:30, Scott and Suzie stay at the bar to watch the Boston/Detroit game as Suzie’s cousin is pitching for the Tigers.

 

Julie stays up to do some blogging and Dawson heads off to bed.  It was a good day for our first day on the ocean.  We go on deck a couple times during the night to check our lines as there is a 5 foot tide here and we want to make sure there is enough slack in the lines and fenders are in the right place.

Cheers

Dawson and Julie