Day #70: Church Creek, MD--Closing the Loop

Thomas Point Shoal Light.

Isn't the tiller arm supposed to be attached to the rudder post?

Everything is fine, until it isn't.  Some 22 miles short of the Loop's finish line, Nellie's steering fails completely.   The two bolts holding the tiller arm to the rudder post broke.   It's a strange feeling to turn the wheel and have nothing happen.  But, as Captain Ron says, "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen out there."  "There" for us was just off Knapps Narrows.  Down went the anchor and we went into "fix it" mode.

Working in small spaces.

A kludged hose clamp repair.

There are three ways to steer Nellie: hydraulicly, electrically and with the emergency tiller.  The bolts' failure killed the first two methods.  The third is an admission of defeat.  Besides, we didn't come this far to merely limp over the finish line.  An hour later Nellie was fixed, the hook was up, and we were steaming towards the finish line.  It's amazing what you can do with a few hose clamps.

What started out as a beautiful day quickly degenerated. Nellie unsuccessfully dodged two thunderstorms.

A rainbow marks the end of Nellie's Loop.

Annapolis to Church Creek, MD

The line is crossed, the Loop is closed.  So, here we'll rest for a bit.

44 miles today, 1,733 miles into 2019, 9,953 miles from Naples, and 12,040 miles to complete the Great Loop.  DBH

Day #69: Annapolis, MD

Not quite the Golden Gate Bridge (112,000 cars/day), but still an icon, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (61,000 cars/day).  

Two bridges can't carry all the traffic so there's a proposal to add a third bridge.

Looking southeast on Main Street towards Spa Creek.

Niece Elizabeth Howell Hanano and Great-Niece Janey visit Nellie.  Janey looks like she has some saltwater in her veins.

Chestertown to Annapolis, MD

41 miles today, 1,689 miles in 2019, 9,909 miles from Naples, and 11,996 into the Loop.  DBH

Day #68: Chestertown, MD

Raw sugar delivery.

We passed the Palawan as she was unloading at the Domino sugar plant.  The Palawan carries 22,000 tons of raw sugar.  Let's see, that's 5,000,000,000 packets of sugar!

Looking north up the Chester River.

This 11 August picture of Nellie heading down the Elk River was posted on the LNVT Facebook page.  The Dutch doors are closed so the flies were out. (Photo credit: David Nolan).

Quaint Chestertown, MD

One of Chestertown's claims to fame is Washington College.  It's the tenth oldest in the US and the first college formed after the Revolutionary War.  The kids are just returning from summer break.  Ubiquitous are the signs, "Welcome class of 2023".

Baltimore to Chestertown, MD.

64 miles today, 1,648 miles into 2019, 9,868 miles from Naples and 11,955 miles into the Loop.  DBH

Day #66 & #67: Rock Creek and Baltimore, MD

Looking  down the Patapsco River at the Francis Scott Key Bridge.  Visible beneath the bridge is Baltimore's skyline

"Oh say can you see," Fort McHenry.

Downtown Baltimore.

Nellie's enjoying the sights and sounds of her slip in the midst of Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

From Still Pond to Rock Creek to Baltimore, MD.

38 miles in the last two days, 1,584 miles into 2019, 9,818 miles from Naples, and 11,891 miles into the Loop.  DBH

Day #64 & #65: Sassafras River and Still Pond, MD

Welcome to the Chesapeake.  Isn't there supposed to be some land around here somewhere?

Definitions matter.  Nuance matters. Words matter.  I want to scream this out when some passerby innocently asks "Are you a Looper?"  But then I'd look like a crazy person, wouldn't I.  Here's the problem.   A Looper is someone doing the 6000 mile Great Loop.  Many folks buy a boat, often their first, do the Loop in a year or less, and then sell the boat.  For them the Loop is a bucket-list item.  Cruising, however, is way of life, not merely a year out of your life. 

41 American Tug Mary Alyce, with John and Jeanne Niccolls aboard, welcoming Nellie to the Chesapeake.

Happy birthday Bicki!

Still Pond's very narrow channel.

Chesapeake City to the Sassafras River to Still Pond, MD.

The last two days have been filled with R&R afloat.  Yea, I know it's hard to believe but, cruising is tiring.  48 miles in the last two days, 1,546 miles into 2019, 9,781 miles from Naples and 11,856 into the Loop. DBH

Day #62 & 63: Chesapeake City, MD

(Top) Nautical chart showing the entrance to Reedy Island anchorage.  (Bottom) Nellie's view of the entrance.  Note the rocks, which are only visible at low tide, radiating out from each end of the entrance.

Cruising is really quite simple: learn what will kill you and avoid it.

On 9 August 2016, the 47' Nord Haven, Ghost Rider, misread the charts, hit the Reedy Dike (highlighted in purple) and sunk.

At the northwest end of Delaware Bay is the infamous Reedy Island anchorage.  Why infamous?  Because getting into the anchorage requires getting past the Reedy Dike, and the Reedy Dike regularly sinks cruising boats.  Why?  Ah, that's a good question.

Nautical charts exist to keep boats off the rocks.  The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) does a great job charting every naturally occurring rock.  And there's the rub.  Dike's may be a lot of rocks piled together, but they're definitely not naturally occurring.  So, instead of the standard rock or reef symbol, NOAA uses two parallel lines to represent a dike.  This nuance is lost on most mariners.  Furthermore, a pile of rocks by any symbol is just as deadly.

Miah Maull Shoal Light.

Rare as hen's teeth lately is our free dock in Chesapeake City. 

Laundry day aboard Nellie means it's "clean sheet night".

All the streets are pretty in Chesapeake City.

After exploring all the city's streets I took the OneWheel farther afield.  

Cape May, NJ to Chesapeake City, MD

It's nice to be at the dock in Chesapeake City, MD.  73 miles yesterday, 1,498 miles in 2019, 9,733 from Naples, and 11,808 into the Loop. DBH

Day #61: Cape May, NJ

Approaching Atlantic City, NJ on the NJ-ICW (aka inside).

When cruisers talk about traversing the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway (NJ-ICW), one question invariably comes up: stay inside or go out into the Atlantic?  I'm an inside guy as I generally prefer scenery to speed.  However, the NJ-ICW challenges my conviction by also being shallow, circuitous and, in places, lack luster.  As exhibit "A"
I present the diagram below, Nellie's inside route from Little Egg Inlet to Atlantic City.  I get seasick just thinking about all those turns ;-)

Nellie's route by Little Egg Inlet (upper right), to Atlantic City and then out  Absecon Inlet (arrow at bottom).

A Right whale breeches with a dolphin looking on.

Well, this is something you certainly won't see on the inside, a Right whale breeching by Nellie off Ocean City, NJ.

Mini-Ne on Nellie's window frame.

Mini-Ne, when not marking Nellie's position on paper charts, usually sits comfortably on the helm's window sill.  It takes a powerful wave to knock her off.  In a very rough East River, Mini-Ne only tumbled twice.  What does it say then about the wakes on the NJ-ICW that toss Mini-Ne almost constantly?  Granted it's a beautiful weekend day and everyone is out, but still!

Brant Beach, NJ to Cape May, NJ

On the hook in Cape May, NJ.  Seeing as Nellie is closing in on a major milestone, i.e. completion of the Great Loop, I'm going to track her Loop miles too.  So, 68 miles today, 1,425 miles into 2019, 9,660 miles from Naples and 11,735 miles into the Loop.  DBH

Day #60: Long Beach Island, NJ

A calm day for the 30 mile ocean run from Coney Island to the Manasquan Inlet.

Never a good sight, smoke and fire billowing from a 20' runabout.  Fortunately no one was injured.

Like a puppy looking for a place to lie down, Nellie wandered though three anchorages before finding just the right spot for the night.  We first had the anchor down at Berkeley Island and were relaxing when the weather forecast changed.  The predicted calm winds had morphed into 15kt northerlies.   Berkeley Island offers excellent protection from all directions except, you guessed it, from the north.  Up comes the anchor.  Three hours south is Barnegat Inlet and an anchorage that, on the chart anyway, looks just right.   And, right it was, but also completely full.   Next.  Another two hours south, behind Flat Island, is Brant Beach.  There, after traveling 84 wandering miles, we drop the hook and call it a day.

At anchor in Brant Beach.  (Photo credit: Lou Beckerman)

So much for anonimity.  A few minutes after settling into Brant Beach I receive the following email:

If you need anything, you are in front of our dock.  Let us know. Lou

We've never met Lou Beckerman, but it was sure nice of him to welcome us to his neighborhood.

Coney Island, NY to Brant Beach, NJ can

I wrote back to Lou:

Thank you for the kind offer.

Nellie's 80lb Babeth anchor is down on 100' of 3/8" BBB chain--hopefully we won't drag into your dock ;-)

84 miles today, 1,357 miles into 2019 and 9,590 miles from Naples.  DBH

Day #59: Coney Island, NY

Heading south on the East River.  The Upper East Side is to starboard, Roosevelt Island to port, and the Queensboro Bridge is dead ahead.

Rough!  How in calm weather can the East River be so rough? Simple. The 2kt ebbing current makes standing waves and every boat's wake reflects endlessly off the walled shoreline.  I'd second renaming it Washing Machine River.

Looking SW at the Brooklyn Bridge and Wall Street.  

Today some Wall Street clown tried to sell me some "high yield" collateralized debt obligations.  Yea, right.  I'm no country bumpkin.  Seeing that, he offered up 100 shares in the Brooklyn Bridge.  I got them at a great price.

What a sight!

The Coney Island boardwalk is huge.

Coney Island hotdogs.

New Yorkers are savy and world wise.  So, why do they lineup to pay $4.75 for a Nathan's hotdog when the same thing, including a large soda, can be had at Costco for $1.50?

A quiet sunset on our Sheepshead Bay Yacht Club mooring.

Bay Island, NY to Coney Island, NY with a diversion to pay our respects to Lady Liberty.

Tonight we're on a Sheepshead Bay Yacht Club mooring.  38 miles today, 1,273 miles into 2019 and 9,506 miles from Naples.  DBH