Back On The Chesapeake

Our plan after Linda's medical procedure on Thursday, was to immediately begin our trip to Baltimore. We need to secure Ariel for a few days so we can go to Ohio for Camyrn's first birthday party. We began with heavy rain and the passing of Kyle which delayed our departure from Onset until Monday, September 29. We planned our departure to maximize the use of favorable currents. We left Onset at 8:45 am to time the favorable current which carried us all the way out of Buzzards Bay and most of the way to the Harbor of Refuge at Point Judith. We have passed this man-made shelter many times but never went in. We decided to stay there to save the time it would require to go into a more protected anchorage. The swell had been running high all day from the weekend storms and we found the break wall at Point Judith insufficient to keep the waves from breaking over the top. We had a bouncy night and we were happy to get underway at 6:30 am to catch a favorable current in Long Island Sound. We decided to stop at East Haven, which this time around was very calm and comfortable. We were on our way again the next morning at 7:30 am to again catch the favorable current. We stopped at Port Washington, one of our favorites. The next day was extremely windy so we stayed but did not go ashore. The following day was still windy and we knew New York harbor would be rough, but we wanted to stage at Sandy Hook for forecast good conditions for the weekend. We timed our departure to arrive at Hells Gate at near slack. It was rough going right from the start and it became a very rough ride in New York harbor as we expected. We arrived at Atlantic Highlands to a very crowded anchorage as we are now back in the pack of boats migrating south. Our departure the next morning was timed to arrive at the entrance of Delaware Bay at 8 am the following morning to catch the favorable current up the bay and through the C&D canal. After topping off our fuel we left at 8:15 am. It was a very smooth trip down the coast and the wind was in our favor as we had hoped. The wind was only about 10 knots so we had to motor sail the entire trip. We were pretty much alone the entire way. While a lot of other boats left as well we think they were probably making stops along the coast. We arrived at the entrance of the Delaware Bay 20 minutes early, not bad after 128 miles. Our average speed was 5.5 knots as planned. To some this may seem slow but we have slowed down this year to reduce our use of diesel fuel. The wind was on the nose going up the bay so it was a little slower than we would have liked. We stopped at the Bohemia River which is just past the Chesapeake side of the C&D canal. Our goal was the Sassafras River but we would have arrived after dark if we kept going. The Bohemia River takes a bit of nerve. It is silted in about two feet over the depths reported on the charts. We gingerly looked for a spot as the actual depths were 4.9 - 6.0 feet. Out draft is now 4.9 feet so we know we were at our limit and maybe pushing through some silt. The next day we decided to go straight to the inner harbor in Baltimore, which was a day ahead of our plan. We are now at the Inner Harbor East Marina which is in the center city and a great facility. When we stepped off in Baltimore we realized we had not been off Ariel for 11 days. This trip was so much different from a year ago, but most of the difference is with us. We are much more patient and more focused on using favorable wind and current to help us.