Category: Captain and First Mate

Weathering the Storm

It was a beautiful day with calm water, sunny skies, and no wind when we left the marina in Chesapeake City on Thursday morning.  We docked at the marina in Cape May, NJ under the same sunny skies we left in the morning. Thursday was a three state travel day. We started in Maryland, passed through Delaware on the Delaware River, and ended in New Jersey.

We knew a  weather system was heading across the states and heading to the Eastern shore and that we would need to stay in Cape May for a few days until the system passed.   What we didn’t know was how severe this system would be and how long we would need to stay here.  It’s now been five days and we can’t foresee leaving here for probably another four to five days. The winds are relentless and are sustained at 30 mph with gusts to 50 mph. There are now 10-15 foot seas in the Atlantic. For the past several weeks, we have been cruising down rivers, bays and canals. We now need to head north in the Atlantic for 125 miles before we can travel up the Hudson River. We won’t be moving from our safe dock anytime soon. It’s actually difficult to stay upright at times as we have walked into town to get groceries and to the beach to see the waves crashing onshore.

We couldn’t have been stuck in a better place. Cape May is simply charming. It’s well known for its Victorian houses dating back to the early 1800’s and the pedestrian village is a short 2 or 3 mile walk from the marina.

We knew we would need to test our flexibility at many times along this journey and we are waiting patiently (!) for this weather system to get a move on so we can, too!

Changes in Latitude

We continue to travel north on the Chesapeake Bay.  At times we have crisscrossed from the eastern shore to the western shore and back, as we try to visit as many of the notable small towns as possible.  We cruised into the beautiful historic port of Annapolis yesterday and enjoyed our walking tour of the Naval Academy today.  Once again, we are so incredibly proud of these fine young men and woman who will soon become our country’s military leaders.🇺🇸

It’s remarkable to know that we have traveled over 1,500 miles on the water since tossing our lines in Sarasota in late February.  With Sarasota located at 27 degrees N latitude and Annapolis being at 39 degrees N latitude, we have noticed the surrounding water temperature has dropped to 52 degrees Fahrenheit with the air temperature averaging in the 50’s, as well.  In fact, for every one degree of latitude change we move 69 statute miles further north.  Therefore, we are 828 miles north of Sarasota where spring weather is still trying to break through.

Unlike cruising in Florida, we have not had to run our generator or use our air conditioning for the past six weeks.  We are able to keep our refrigerators and freezer cold while underway utilizing an inverter system which converts battery power to 110 volt ac current to supply these appliances.  This allows us to keep these essential appliances operating without having to turn on our generator.  While docking at marinas, we utilize the dockside electrical power pedestals to supply all the electrical power we need.

We will soon be moving further north to cross from the upper Chesapeake to the Delaware River and Cape May, NJ  via the C & D canal (Chesapeake Bay and Delaware River).

The Necessity of Flexibility

Cruising  north on the ICW has required a large degree of flexibility.  We have had to adjust our schedule numerous times due to strong currents, forceful winds, high seas and even a lack of dock availability.  We have even encountered marinas which had no fuel.  We have learned valuable lessons in flexibility and adaptability and recognize that our planned daily schedule might need to be revised, altered or simply cancelled.

We arrived at the Norfolk Yacht and Country Club in howling winds, but managed to safely dock with the help of two able dockhands.  After spending Easter Sunday and the following day at the beautiful yacht club we chose to leave on the third day when the winds were supposed to be less fierce.  As we got into the main shipping channel approximately three miles to the north, we encountered our worst sea and wind conditions to date.   We even had some challenges turning the boat around.  We called the Norfolk club and asked whether we could return for another night.  They were very accommodating and we felt that we made the safest decision.  That evening we had dinner with another boating couple who had completed their Great Loop trip in 1988.   They have over 50 years of boating experience.  They shared their boating wisdom with us… “When in doubt, chicken out.”   Our revision to that is, “When in doubt, think it out.”

As we continue cruising on this coast, we have had the opportunity to anchor near Camp Lejeune, cruise past the Norfolk Navy shipyard, and watch patrols of young Coast Guard seamen train near our dock at Yorktown, VA.  We are inspired by their dedication and professionalism.  In the future, we will be cruising to Annapolis, home of the Naval Academy and up the Hudson River past West Point.  We are grateful to these fine men and women for their service.

Anchoring by Camp Lejeune

After a one day stop at Wrightsville Beach, NC we moved north on the ICW to find a quite anchorage to spend one night. Our quiet setting was located adjacent to the Camp Lejeune marine base. We were about to go to sleep when our night was livened up by several Apache helicopters performing night training maneuvers directly over our heads. As we weighed anchor the next morning to head north, we were passed by a flotilla of fast moving navy harbor patrol boats carrying marine personnel on morning maneuvers. We also passed a designated military beach area used for live fire target practice. It is comforting to know our military men and women are constantly training to be ready to defend our freedom and we are forever grateful for their service. God bless America! 🇺🇸

From the military area, we moved on to Beaufort, NC. Having visited both Beaufort, SC recently and Beaufort, NC, we made an effort to pronounce each town properly. Beaufort, SC is pronounced ”BEW-fert” and Beaufort, NC is pronounced ”BOW-firt”. Interestingly, both towns are named after the same individual, Henry Somerset, the Duke of Beaufort, an English noble.

From the eastern shore of North Carolina we are cruising our way to the North Carolina Outer Banks. We will have to monitor the weather which can cause the seas of the Pimlico Sound to swell, making for an unpleasant passage.

About Us!

We have lived in Sarasota, FL since 1985.  We started boating locally on the west coast of Florida in 1988, utilizing a boat rental club called “Club Nautico”.  Through that exposure, we realized that boating was something we wanted to continue to do with our family. Our two grown children and their families now share our enthusiasm for boating and scuba diving.  We cruised many summers to the Florida keys with our children and dove for lobster and recreation.

Through the years we have owned three gas powered Sea Ray inboard/outboards and three diesel powered Sea Rays.  During that time, we kept admiring the quality of Marlow yachts, which has its headquarters near Sarasota.  Throughout our many years of owning boats and boating, we knew what would be an ideal boat for us.  We designed and built a 49E Marlow with all the comforts necessary for long range cruising. In 2018, we took delivery of our vessel, which we named Hydrotherapy. 

We had heard about a 6,000 mile boat trip around the eastern United States waterways.  This is referred to as the Great Circle Loop.  We had been reading articles about this cruising adventure for many years in boating magazines and become more and more familiar with this boating trip.  We are recently retired and now have the time to embark on this journey.