Archives 2023

Today, we plan to do some biking around Northport and Centerport and experience some the places we experienced so long ago. We lived on Long Island from 1995 – 2001 and loved it here; started our family boating life here in 1997 with our first SeaRay Sundancer (a 268 meaning 26’ 8” long) that we named Legacy. Later upgraded to a SeaRay 33 Sundancer (Legacy II). Many great memories on those boats! It was the 33 we took with us when we moved to MD, then later upgraded to the 38 (Legacy III) and then to the current Legacy.

Got to thinking about boat terms we use that everyone may not understand…. So here are a few.

First are the standards: Port and Starboard (left and right, respectively). We use these to describe which side of the boat or which side you will pass something or someone on. Bow (front of the boat), stern (back of the boat) and cockpit (the sitting area at the back of the boat). Head (bathroom), galley (kitchen) and stateroom (bedroom). Bridle or snubber: 2 lines that attach to the anchor chain (rode) and back to the strong points on the boat (forward cleats) to take the pressure off the windless (chain winch). These are all pretty standard so far. Here are some more unique ones:

Looper: Someone doing/on the Great Loop.

Boat Card: sort of a business card to exchange with other loopers (see ours below).

Docktails: cocktails on the dock with other loopers; Jimmy Buffet calls them boat drinks, but not sure he’s a looper although he is a parrot head. This is a looper tradition. Many say you need to detox after looping!

Boat shower: when you take a shower on the boat, you turn the water on and off to conserve water in the middle portions of your shower while lathering; otherwise known as a military shower.

Boat laundry: clothing too clean to throw in the dirty laundry bin but too dirty to put back in the clean clothes drawer; definitely something to be worn again!

Other boaters – please add your boat terms in comments! I’m not a sailor, so I can’t give you those!

Fair winds and following seas!

This morning our plan was to make the leisurely 3 hour run from City Island, NY (Eastern most part of Long Island Sound) to Centerport, NY (north shore of Long Island where we used to live, about 1/3 of the way from NYC to Montauk). We’d leave after breakfast and after doing a couple loads of laundry while we were still connected to shore power – “lines off” by 10:00 am. Sounded like a good idea and the weather forecast looked cooperative….. well that was the forecast, not the actual weather. Forecast said winds at 10-15 knots, but when we were ready to go, they were blowing over 30 knots with 2-3 foot seas. So we waited……. When the winds died down to between 15 and 20 knots – we asked for some assistance from the guys at the marina to help us untie and were on our way just before 1:00 pm. As we moved east, the winds improved and the seas calmed. All good! We arrived in Centerport to a good 10 knot breeze, nearly flat seas and bright sunshine – not a cloud in the sky.

It was great to see the old landmarks as we entered the harbor – LILCO stacks, Sand City, Vanderbilt Planetarium, Asharoken and Centerport beaches as well as Northport and Centerport Yacht Clubs. We found a great anchorage, cleaned up the boat and enjoyed a steak dinner onboard. Tomorrow we venture into town and will meet up with friends for dinner at an old favorite – a German restaurant called Pumpernickels where the Wiener Roastbraten with Onion Straws and Bratkartoffeln is the best…. Of course there will be a few pints of Oktoberfest as well. Only thing missing – the Schults and the Bensons!

There’s nothing like approaching Lady Liberty and Manhattan from the water. We remember when the kids were little – just 2 and 4 – and we bought our first boat (a SeaRay 268) on the south shore of Long Island. We decided to take it around via the water instead of trucking over land. We made a day of it and took it ourselves through NYC to the north shore where we lived in Centerport, NY. As we got closer to Liberty Island, Sarah and Michael kept asking me “What is that, Momma, what is that?” I kept saying “I don’t know, let’s see if we can figure it out as we get closer.” That’s how they first saw and learned about the Statue of Liberty.

That trip up NY Harbor never gets old! What a great run from Sandy Hook, NJ into NY Harbor and then up the East River to City Island at the west end of Long Island Sound. 4 states in 3 days! Loved seeing Manhattan and Brooklyn from the water and then visiting the City Island Museum.

Did you know City Island was a boat/ship building powerhouse back in the day? I had no idea they built 6 America’s Cup winning yachts: 1870: Magic; 1958: Columbia; 1964: Constellation; 1967 and 1970: Intrepid; 1974 and 1977: Courageous; 1980: Freedom. Enjoying City Island for one night and then onto Centerport, NY!

When you are making a 12 hour ocean run up the New Jersey coast, BORING is exactly what you want and exactly what we got! We left Cape May around 6:45 am and headed into a little bit of bounciness (1-3 foot seas and 12-15 knot headwinds) which gradually eased to flat seas and 5-6 knot tailwinds. The shift of the winds propelled us to about a 10.5 knot speed vs. 9.5 in the morning. Arrived at Sandy Hook around 6:30 pm and found a great anchorage right near Blessed Again, again! Enjoyed a simple dinner aboard and a fantastic sunset. Our decision to press on with the 12 hour boring run is proving to be the wise decision, as the weather in Cape May looks rainy and windy for the next 3-4 days. Sorry to see posts from the loopers who are there being “locked in” for a few days.

It was exciting to see the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge and NYC off in the distance as we rounded the corner into Sandy Hook. Last time we did this trip, NYC was one of our favorite legs. Sunday, we will travel past the Statue of Liberty (always a thrill), up the East River with Manhattan to port and Brooklyn to starboard, through Hell’s Gate into Long Island Sound. We plan to spend the night in City Island, reminiscent of a cruise we took with the kids when we lived in Centerport, NY. It was Labor Day weekend just before 9/11.

Day 2 took us from Chesapeake City, MD at the mouth of the C&D Canal to Cape May, NJ with a 5.5/6 hour run mostly through the very calm Delaware Bay – so 3 states in 2 days. We met 3 other looping boats in Chesapeake City including Diana and Marshall on Escape who invited us onto their boat for dinner to pick crabs with them – what a treat! We arrived in Cape May early afternoon with the plan to ride our bikes to Nauti Spirits Distillery, owned by our friends and neighbors Steve and Caroline Miller. After a little help from “pops” at the local dive shop to tighten one of the fittings that kept the wheel and handlebars in line (rather important!) we were off!! Sadly, Steve and Caroline were not there, but the delicious vodka drink and the fun atmosphere complete with Adirondack chairs and corn hole did not disappoint. We met 4 additional looping couples including Perry and Vicki on Blessed Again, a Fleming 55. Our evening was capped off by a great dinner at The Lobster House and the beautiful sunset above. It was early to bed and early to rise for a long run (about 12 hours) on 5/27 from Cape May to Sandy Hook, NJ. The weather window for an open ocean run up the NJ coast looks great for 5/27, but not 5/28 or 5/29 so we will skip stopping at Manasquan and “go the distance” in one go. We are on that run as I type this with 1-3 foot waves and bright sunshine. All good!! Learnings so far – carry a bike pump and small took kit on the bikes!!

Today we left Annapolis for our first official day on the Loop. Although we’ve been out of our “dirt home” for about a week, we were still enjoying the familiar waters of the Magothy and Severn Rivers with friends old and new. This morning, we enjoyed a delicious and touching send off by a few close friends. We took down the AYC burgee and replaced it with the AGLCA, had a champagne toast, amazing quiche made by the loving hands of Tricia Chitterling and wonderful prayer circle. Then we were off!! We traveled about 6 hours from Annapolis to Chesapeake City, a small quaint town just a few hundred yards from the entrance to the C&D Canal. We will navigate the canal tomorrow into the Delaware Bay. Next stop Cape May, NJ.

Today was our last day in Annapolis before we head out on the loop. What better way to spend it than watching the Blue Angels air show on the Severn River in honor of the Naval Academy graduates with lifelong friends and family!

And so our adventure on the Great Loop begins! Special thanks to Tricia and Chris Chitterling for hosting a great send off from the beach and to the Steinwegs and Chapmans for their help in a great breakfast buffet. We pulled away from our pier right on time at 12:00 pm on 5/19/2023. Thank you to all of our wonderful neighbors and friends who came out to see us off and to Peter and Carolyn Hiskey for their blessings and prayers of send off. We headed over to Eagle Cove with the AYC cruising fleet for a couple days, then will go to downtown Annapolis for a couple days where we will also take in the Blue Angels Air show on the Severn River to celebrate the Naval Academy Graduation. Our final departure from MD, headed to CT to visit family, will be 5/25. Planned arrival in CT is 6/1 and departure 6/5. Don’t think we’ll feel like we are really “on the loop” until we depart CT and head into waters and ports we’ve not navigated before. It’s good to start with confidence of the familiar as we then depart for the unknown! Let the adventure begin!

Yesterday we spent 2 hours fueling up – it takes a while to onboard 1200 gallons of fuel. We carry over 1400 gallons full and calculate we will refuel 5-6 times over the next year.

1 week from today we move aboard and start our journey with a weekend at Eagle Cove with the AYC cruising fleet, then on to a few days in downtown Annapolis including the “best seats in the house” for the Blue Angels air show for the USNA commencement, and finally start our trek up the Chesapeake Bay to the C&D canal on 5/25.

Rented the house…. packing up our personal belongings. Departure date is set at 5/25/2023! Great Loop here we come!