A natural at the helm
Saturday, October 17, 2015
Brother aboard
We met my brother Bob in Baltimore and we spent a week together cruising the Chesapeake Bay. Wonder time had by all.
Sunday, October 4, 2015
Big Apple #5 Great Kills
Kind of a strange name for a very nice harbor.. Great Kills.
Yesterday we saw the NE wind forecast from the NE, and the coastal flooding translating into greater than usual flood tides up the Hudson. That spelled only one thing to us after several nights of severe rolls on the 79th street moorings when the winds ran counter to tide.. we had to get out of there. The night before the mooring ball was bumping into the hull keeping us up and worried about damage. So, in the morning we started looking for a better solution and found Great Kills harbor on Statten Island.
We left in pretty iffy conditions and managed to loose a winch handle I had left (I thought locked) to the winch on the mast. Oh well, another expensive PLUNK. Fortunately we had more than one handle on board. After a wild ride abeam of the 25knt winds and waves we made it through the narrow pass into the harbor and were rewarded with dead calm conditions. Ahhh.. nice.
The plan now is hang out here until the gale conditions abate on the coastal waters of NJ so we can make our way south. No rain and moderate winds predicted today (Sunday), so I think we will go ashore, take the train to the ferry and go into Manhattan for some exploring. We have yet to see the Freedom tower and memorial and hope to get to that today.
"New York, New York, it's a wonderful town, the Bronx is up and the Battery down, the people all go in a hole in the ground. New York, New York... it's a won-der-ful TOWN!"
Yesterday we saw the NE wind forecast from the NE, and the coastal flooding translating into greater than usual flood tides up the Hudson. That spelled only one thing to us after several nights of severe rolls on the 79th street moorings when the winds ran counter to tide.. we had to get out of there. The night before the mooring ball was bumping into the hull keeping us up and worried about damage. So, in the morning we started looking for a better solution and found Great Kills harbor on Statten Island.
We left in pretty iffy conditions and managed to loose a winch handle I had left (I thought locked) to the winch on the mast. Oh well, another expensive PLUNK. Fortunately we had more than one handle on board. After a wild ride abeam of the 25knt winds and waves we made it through the narrow pass into the harbor and were rewarded with dead calm conditions. Ahhh.. nice.
The plan now is hang out here until the gale conditions abate on the coastal waters of NJ so we can make our way south. No rain and moderate winds predicted today (Sunday), so I think we will go ashore, take the train to the ferry and go into Manhattan for some exploring. We have yet to see the Freedom tower and memorial and hope to get to that today.
"New York, New York, it's a wonderful town, the Bronx is up and the Battery down, the people all go in a hole in the ground. New York, New York... it's a won-der-ful TOWN!"
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Big Apple #4 Provisioning ON BROADWAY
The 79th street boat basin is just two blocks from Broadway. So we went in the dingy on a wet ride with the Hudson River running at what must have been 3-4 knots of current. It is a little exciting to get on and off the boat in those kinds of currents.
So we walked up and found the local grocery. Imagine ALL of the products in a full sized Safeway on the West Coast crammed into a space 1/3 the size. Almost claustrophobic!
We continue to keep an eye on the progress of Hurricane Joaquin. If she heads toward NYC, we will retreat up the Hudson.
So we walked up and found the local grocery. Imagine ALL of the products in a full sized Safeway on the West Coast crammed into a space 1/3 the size. Almost claustrophobic!
Big Apple #3 Mooring in the Heart of NYC
While at anchor near the Statue of Liberty, another boat came in, ParPar with Henry as captain. With the dragging excitement the night before, I decided to take the dinghy over and introduce myself and compare ground tackle.
Turns out that ParPar is a veteran traveler with thousands of miles under her keel. They had been in Guatemala, and were heading back south from a visit to Nova Scotia. It is alway nice to compare notes with other live aboard captains.
So Henry and I got to talking and he mentioned a mooring field at 79th street on the Hudson just 3 blocks from Broadway, another two blocks to Central Park etc... all for $30/night! How's that for cheap NYC accommodations.. you just need to bring your own floating house! Wait. We have one of those!
We couldn't pass that up, so followed ParPar up the Hudson with the tide. Only the tide did not exist! There had been a bit of rain, so the tide tables were completely off and what was scheduled to be a flood tide turned out to be pretty serious ebb given the flood waters coming down the river.
Now the odd part. We got to the 79th street boat basin and took one of the yellow transient mooring balls. We arrived ahead of ParPar because we were larger/faster and it turns out that I took the LAST transient ball. Not good. Here I just made a new friend in Henry and I end up taking the last ball!
Major credit to Henry though. We contacted each other on the radio and he was remarkably good natured about the whole thing. I offered to raft up, but the marina/conditions really didn't allow that. So they anchored just north of the mooring field and we exchanged cell numbers and I promised to call him when one the transient mooring balls came free (first come first serve only).
Anyway, last night was serious rolls. Finally the flood tide got going (North set) with 20kn winds from the North. Bad things happen when the wind blows one way, and the water is moving the opposite way. It would appear that on the Hudson the result is about 4ft standing waves. Gypsy Queen with her full keel wants to set to the current flow, but the wind blew her sideways to the standing waves.
So, our usual sleep pattern emerged again. Christine sleeps like a rock and Mark gets up repeatedly to check on the boat and store items that had become airborne and banging back and forth. She owes me a nice nap today!
Turns out that ParPar is a veteran traveler with thousands of miles under her keel. They had been in Guatemala, and were heading back south from a visit to Nova Scotia. It is alway nice to compare notes with other live aboard captains.
So Henry and I got to talking and he mentioned a mooring field at 79th street on the Hudson just 3 blocks from Broadway, another two blocks to Central Park etc... all for $30/night! How's that for cheap NYC accommodations.. you just need to bring your own floating house! Wait. We have one of those!
We couldn't pass that up, so followed ParPar up the Hudson with the tide. Only the tide did not exist! There had been a bit of rain, so the tide tables were completely off and what was scheduled to be a flood tide turned out to be pretty serious ebb given the flood waters coming down the river.
Now the odd part. We got to the 79th street boat basin and took one of the yellow transient mooring balls. We arrived ahead of ParPar because we were larger/faster and it turns out that I took the LAST transient ball. Not good. Here I just made a new friend in Henry and I end up taking the last ball!
Major credit to Henry though. We contacted each other on the radio and he was remarkably good natured about the whole thing. I offered to raft up, but the marina/conditions really didn't allow that. So they anchored just north of the mooring field and we exchanged cell numbers and I promised to call him when one the transient mooring balls came free (first come first serve only).
Anyway, last night was serious rolls. Finally the flood tide got going (North set) with 20kn winds from the North. Bad things happen when the wind blows one way, and the water is moving the opposite way. It would appear that on the Hudson the result is about 4ft standing waves. Gypsy Queen with her full keel wants to set to the current flow, but the wind blew her sideways to the standing waves.
So, our usual sleep pattern emerged again. Christine sleeps like a rock and Mark gets up repeatedly to check on the boat and store items that had become airborne and banging back and forth. She owes me a nice nap today!
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