August 25th, Another sunny day, Steve was going to
drop by mid-day so we ate breakfast, took four steaks out to thaw for dinner with Steve
and Patti and then went ashore for a shower, to use wifi and we also brought
our garbage and laundry along with us. Our trip into town needed to include a grocery so we could replenish our veggies.
We took our backpacks, and split the laundry to share the load as we would need
to walk a mile to the Laundromat…used wifi again while we waited for the wash. A
large grocery was too far to walk, so we stopped at a small market store in town
for some expensive vegetables…with backpacks full, laundry and groceries in
hand, we lugged them all to the dinghy and back to the boat by noon. Steve came
out to the boat shortly after to let us know they may not make it for dinner
tonight do to a family medical situation…he would let us know in a couple of
hours...they couldn't make it so we BBQ’d the steaks for dinner and future
lunches. Here are pictures of the Nyack Boat Club, mooring field and I & Steve...
The day was very hot and humid; Julie laid on the deck to soak
up some sun while I checked the engine oil…we've been having a real issue with
getting a proper indication of the oil level in the engine; too much oil is one
of the possible causes for the engine hiccups. Next we installed our Jack-lines
(heavy duty straps that run the length of the deck on both Port and Starboard
sides that are used to tether ourselves to the boat for when we must go out on
deck when on the ocean or any rough water). After that we sat and planned our
travel plan for the next day. We called the 79th Street Boat Basin
for a mooring ball however; our boat was too big and heavy for their moorings.
We looked at other options as we didn't want to make the 40+ mile trek to Richmond County Yacht Club in the Great Kills Basin on Staten Island. We called back to 79th St BB and asked for a slip
(dock) in the somewhat protected basin rather than the mooring ball in the open
Hudson River which is known to be pretty rough from all the boat, barge and
water taxi’s. They asked our draft (how deep our keel reaches below the water
surface) and said at low tide we would sink into the mud a foot and a half…our
keel is a fin keel (it goes down then spreads out at the bottom like a wing) so
a slip is not an option. They put me on hold and another fellow came on, “okay
we have one 2500lbs mooring ball anchor, NW10, that was installed by a member, it
will hold your boat”…hmmm, we just spent 2 nights on a 400lb mooring ball anchor…anyway,
it’s comforting to know you have a reservation for the next day.
After dinner, feeling sticky from the humidity, we went
ashore for another shower and to use the wifi to study the weather…it looks
like a possible weather window Wednesday and Thursday for the jump from Manhattan
to Cape May, NJ…it takes about 20 hours - it’ll be our first overnight passage.
Christobal is heading up the coast but far off shore and won’t be by us until
Thursday. To confirm my assessment, I reach out to Rick Smith, a professional
boat delivery Captain and my brother Rick who has made the trip before and with
trustworthy common sense. (…Well, with the possibility of doing our first ocean
crossing, the anxiety built, we both went silent and reflected then discussed
things in bed before closing our eyes)…over the next hour or two they both did
their own assessment and their responses were identical: yes, it’s a weather
window, but let Christobal pass, slow down and enjoy NYC, no rush. We took
their advice, thanked them and asked for their further assistance for this
coming passage.
Going back to the boat that night in the dark, we shined our torch light out in the mooring field and spotted our boat easily…We put
reflective tape on our mast last year for night passages and to find our boat
in a large anchorage…it worked beautifully from a ¼ mile out!
No comments:
Post a Comment