Sunday, September 4th - the final stretch

At 6:30 AM, the anchor is raised for the last time.  It is Labor Day weekend, the unofficial end of summer and the end of our summer cruise.  By 1:30 PM, Cutter Loose has a full tank of fuel and is safely in her slip at Osprey Point Marina in Rock Hall.  Thinking of all of the places we've visited, people we've met and things we learned, it is an exhilirating feeling to have completed this voyage.

The Subaru is unharmed by Irene and starts immediately.  Access to a vehicle is the first sign that our lives are about to change for the next few months.  Armed with soapy water and scrub brushes, we attack a three month buildup of salt on the deck of Cutter Loose.  After several hours of labor, she is much cleaner, but darkness requires that we postpone the polishing for tomorrow.  She has served us exceptionally well.  We spend the early evening hours catching up with our slip neighbors, Bill and Alice.  Then we are visited by the crew of Calliope, an Island Packet 485 that we chatted up whilst transiting Delaware Bay.  This crew sailed directly to Rock Hall from Nova Scotia.

Summer cruise by the numbers:

• duration: 94 days


• nautical miles: 1,848


• overnight anchorages: 37


• overnight moorings (paid a fee): 38


• overnight moorings (no cost): 10


• overnights at marinas: 9, including tonight's stay in our slip @ Osprey Point


• gallons of diesel fuel consumed: 350


• engine hours: 327


• generator hours: 62

Saturday, September 3rd

Today is the fifth consecutive day of fine weather for cruising.  Our destination is Chesapeake City, located on the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. 

The anchor is up at 6:15 AM in order to enter Cape May Channel precisely when the tide turns north in Delaware Bay.  Our course takes us southeast through the Cape May inlet and into the Atlantic Ocean.  We round Cape May Point by way of Cape May Channel, then enter Delaware Bay for the long, uneventful slog north to the C&D Canal.   We enjoy a 2 knot boost in speed over ground from the favorable current.

The water in Delaware Bay today is the color of cafe au lait.  At one point, we post a lookout on the bow in an effort to avoid colliding with floating trees, pilings and other debris.  We are still feeling the impact of Irene one week after the storm.

At 4:50 PM, Cutter Loose is anchored in the anchorage basin at Chesapeake City.  There are a handful of cruising boats in the anchorage, but most of the boats are  noisy go-fast boats in the 20 foot range.   They will clear out at dusk.

The distance of today's run is 66 miles.  We are positioned to arrive at our slip in Rock Hall tomorrow afternoon.   This will be a bittersweet event.  It will certainly be refreshing to thoroughly clean Cutter Loose, resume old friendships, gain daily access to fresh fruits and vegetables, enjoy the comforts of home and gain the ability to exercise.  But our life is about to undergo a major change.  As Labor Day signals the end of summer, our return to Rock Hall will bring the 2011 summer cruise to an end.  And what a cruise it has been.  Despite some anxious hours leading up to Irene, I can honestly say that I have thoroughly enjoyed every single day of this adventure.

Just when we are finally in the groove of a a 6 knot lifestyle, we will soon be subjected to schedules, appointments, deadlines and the gravitational pull of life ashore.  Gone will be the relative simplicity of moving Cutter Loose to the destination du jour.  Looking forward, it will take a major effort to break free of the shoreside bond and commence the next cruise...a goal to which we are more committed than ever.

Friday, September 2nd

[caption id="attachment_1524" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Navigating the narrow entrance to Rum Cove"][/caption]

Since the passage of Irene, the succesive days of favorable weather have enabled us to make steady progress towards Rock Hall.  At 7 AM, the anchor is up in Rum Cove.   The wind this morning is from the east which is blowing directly into Absecon Inlet and kicking up a swell.  We throttle up and blast our way through the waves on our bow.  Once beyond the Absecon sea buoy, the easterly wind becomes an asset as we ease into a comfortable broad reach en route to Cape May, a distance of 40 miles. 

[caption id="attachment_1526" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Leaving the skyline of Atlantic City astern"][/caption]

Today is a refreshing short day of sailing.  At 1:30 PM, we are anchored next to the Coast Guard Station in Cape May Harbor.  The anchorage is lumpy today.  It is the eve of a holiday weekend.  The sportfishermen and recreational boaters are out in full force.  The whale watching boats, dolphin watching boats and bird watching boats are filled with tourists.  Few boaters here observe the posted no wake rule in the inner harbor.  The waves from passing boats causes Cutter Loose to bounce and roll on her anchor.  Her bow is facing west, lying to the outgoing tide.  The 15 knot wind on our stern is out of the east.  

We decide that a walk ashore will be a pleasant diversion.  After landing the dinghy at Corinthian Yacht Club, we take a liesurely stroll towards town.  Holiday traffic on the bridge entering Cape May is mounting. 

Back aboard Cutter Loose, we prepare for an early start in the morning.  At this point of the summer cruise, we focus on consuming the provisions that remain in the refirgerator and freezer, rather than replenishing supplies.  This is yet another sign that this voyage, like summer,  will soon come to an end.

We wish everyone a relaxing holiday weekend.

Thursday, September 1st

In the pre-dawn darkness, I am perched precariously over the bow pulpit.  With a flashlight in one hand and the deck wash hose in the other, I spray the mud from the chain rode and anchor as it is being retracted by the windlass.  Not the normal tidy outcome, but a valiant effort considering that it is a little after five o'clock in the morning. 

We navigate Cutter Loose to Sandy Hook Point in darkness, then first light.  While we are enjoying a hot mug of tea in the cockpit, the high speed ferries are already whisking their passengers from Atlantic Highlands to Manhatten.  We exit the Sandy Hook Channel and enter the Atlantic Ocean at sunrise.  The sky is aglow in reds, purples and oranges.  Red sky in morning?

Today's journey will cover 83 miles over a 13 hour period.  Our course takes us south, running four miles offshore of the New Jersey coast.  No sooner is the autopilot set, it must be disengaged to steer clear of floating debris left over from Irene.  The VHF radio describes flooding conditions and U. S. Coast Guard buoys that are off station, all outcomes of the storm.  New Jersey was not treated kindly by Irene.  We offer yet another word of thanks in appreciation for suriving the storm unscathed.

A friendly voice comes over the VHF from the trawler Amici.  Cutter Loose was anchored near Amici in Atlantic Highlands last evening.  Both vessels are bound for Atlantic City today, but Amici cruises at a much higher speed.  We compare notes on anchorage alternatives, Amici preferring the relative calm of Rum Cove.  On our previous visit to Atlantic City, we paused to inspect the entrance to Rum Cove, then quickly moved on to another anchorage.   The entrance to Rum Cove appeared to be of sufficient width to accommodate a narrow kayak.  But Amici is confident that Cutter Loose will fit.  We agree to discuss this opportunity later in the day.

A strange thing happens en route to Atlantic City.  Out of nowhere, a 100+ foot party fishing boat is barrelling down on Cutter Loose.  It comes to a sudden stop less than 50 yards from our bow.  The skipper sounds a horn and the paying customers dutifully cast their lines overboard.  We are close enough to see the hopeful expressions on their faces. There is a vast ocean in which to fish.  Why select a place so close to the path of Cutter Loose?  And if this happens to be the most productive fishing spot on the Jersey coast, why not wait two minutes until we have cleared the area before making a sudden stop?  Inexplicable things happen all the time out here.

With Atlantic City still 20 miles off in the distance, the shapes of its highrise towers are already vaguely visible, rising out of the water as if in a watercolor painting.   At 6 PM, Cutter Loose has entered Absecon Inlet.  We are staring in disbelief at the entrance to Rum Cove.  Inside the cove is Amici at anchor.  The Captain comes up on the VHF with specific instructions for entering the cove.  The trick is to avoid the sandy side and favor the marsh side of the channel.  The navigable width of the channel is perhaps 20 feet.  Once inside, we are anchored in 12 feet of calm water.  Although a bit nervewracking to enter, this quiet spot is certainly preferable to anchoring in the strong tidal currents next to the Atlantic City - Brigantine Bridge. We radio to thank our new friends aboard Amici for their guidance and settle in for a relaxed evening after a long day at sea.