Hot, humid
06/27/2008, Newport Marina, Jersey City NJ

Lady Liberty

After the Maelstrom of the harbor, Lady Liberty's torch beckoned us. From there we had a gentle sail with wonderful views of NYC. We arrived in the Newport Marina in Jersey city as they prepared for the Rainbow Sailing Rally. We spend the night with little air and bright lights. We did meet two architects who live on their Endeavor 40 and commute to work in NYC.

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Bill
06/27/2008, Jersey City, NJ

Under the Brooklyn Bridge on the way to rush hour...

Tensions ran high as we approached Hell Gate, known for 7 knot currents, swirling eddies and huge barges intent on crushing sailboats... There was none of that! A couple barges passed, the current was slack and everything was so peaceful that we put up the Genoa and sailed past mid-town Manhattan looking at buildings and other landmarks. Little did we know as we peacefully made our way through Hell Gate and down the East River what waited for us .... What we hadn't realized is that we would sail into the New York Harbor and the area of the South Street Seaport at Rush Hour! As we approached the sea taxies started to fly out of their little ports. They would go from docked to 30 mph in seconds, zooming toward their destinations. Others started to arrive from Brooklyn, and the Staten Island Ferry, and more and more... Each one throwing up a huge wake. A maelstrom of 5 and 6 foot wave from every angle. Now under motor, Be Here Now rolled and crashed and we hung on, agog at the scene around us. And there were helicopters overhead, many of them...

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clear cool, light wind
06/26/2008, Manhasset Bay n 40 49.983 w73 43.370

Lara stows provisions...

We have had two days of sailing after two days stuck in Essex by thunderstorms. Today we prepare to sail around Manhattan via Throgs Neck, Hell Gate, the East River and New York Harbor. The current will not be right in Hell Gate until mid afternoon so we will wait here and get organized.

Yesterday was spectacular. From Mt Sinai harbor to Manhasset in 10.52 hours, averaging 4.8 mph. Although the wind died a couple times it was mostly 5 to 12 kts with waves under a foot. Smooth Sailing with long tacks. Lots of other boats out. Mexican dinner with Ken who welcomed us from the bow of his boat at the Northshore Yacht Club.

The steering is wonderful after the repair at Brewer's Dauntless in Essex. Other systems seem to be pretty good. We have already had to replace a seawater pump on the diesel and the fresh water domestic pump... the galley cold water line burst... the adventure begins!

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06/16/2008, Boat in Essex CT

Bill at the helm, Be Here Now sails into th CT River under the Old Lyme Rail Bridge.

Tentative itinerary for the trip north:

22th Sunday
42 nm from Essex CT to Mt Sinai Harbor 5 to 8 hours
Ralph's Fishing Station

23th Monday
48 nm from Mt Sinai Harbor to Manhasset bay 6 to 10 hours.
North Shore Yacht Club in Manhasset Bay.

24th Tuesday
Manhasset Bay to Newport Marina in Jersey City 4 hours plus tour of harbor.
Newport Marina.
Jersey City, New Jersey

Or 79th street Marina
NYC, NY

25th Wednesday
50 nm from Jersey City, NJ to Newburg/Poughkeepsie NY

26th Thursday
33 nm to Hop-O-Nose Marina in Catskill, NY
Afternoon un-stepping the mast and preparing the boat for the Canal.

27th Friday
62 nm: 34 nm to Federal Lock at Troy NY. 28 nm to Schuylerville NY

28th, Saturday
69 nm: 32 nm to Whitehall NY, 37 nm to Champlain Bridge Marina

29th, Sunday
Car to Dorset

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05/29/2008, Essex CT

The maiden Voyage. Newport to Block Island to Shelter Island to Greenport to Hamburg Cove to Essex CT. about 150 miles with wind between 10 and 25 knots... a little on the nose and a lot on the beam.. Sometimes (when the plan went right) with the current and sometimes against it. Learning the boat, proud of my first mate, first rate soul mate up on deck wrestling the sail down. Seeing how the boat heaves to, feeling BHN reach across the Sound under a Genoa and hull speed and more. Lara at the wheel in 4-5 foot waves cresting as the current pushes against the wind. The calm of the sunsets, the peace of the mornings with yoga on the foredeck and meditation on the aft deck. Scrumptious meals and Champagne for our anniversary.

Draw bridges on the Connecticut River, no current in Plumb Gut, biking in Greenport, a north current in Essex harbor. Our first guests on the boat, 15 in all, family gathered around the binnacle, testing out the bunks. Long sleeps in peaceful coves. The windlass works, the glow plugs work, the fresh water works (but not the hot, yet...) Vitamin C works, DR works, GPS works, alternator works, lots of little things to fix and set up. Like a wonderful dream,,, yet we can taste it and feel it and remember it afterward.

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Bill
05/19/2008, Newport, RI

Preparations for leaving the security of the Harbor. If the weather is good we are planning to sail the boat on Friday May 24th to Block Island and on the 25th to Orient Point NY. Then on the 27th to Essex CT. Funny how easy it is to write that... and how many little pieces have to be in order. Weather, currents, tides, wind speed and direction. And of course the question: Is the boat ready? The main sheet and upper block have been replaced; the roller furling line has been lengthened. The reefing lines have been checked. Engine has been checked, tested and run a good bit. Of course there is a long list of things left to be done... and we are ready to leave Newport for a new port!

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Bill
05/11/2008, Newport, RI

Photo is of Be Here Now II across the wharf from Little Dipper.

On the boat, on a mooring in Newport. Tired... Can't believe we can reach in the fridge and grab a cold beer! Lara is cooking up some Indian food! Indie is lying up in the cockpit. The wind generator whirs. We have spent the past two days learning Celestial Navigation from Tim Queeney at Ocean Navigator. Although neither of us feels that we are quite ready to cast off tomorrow and sail across the Pacific, we both feel we have the concepts and, with a little more practice, we will be able to navigate using the stars, moon and sun. As it turns out, Celestial navigation is not too complicated. It requires simple math and patience.

We also had lots of practice this weekend moving the boat around in tight spaces. Several times we were on and off Bowen's Wharf, each time turning the boat in between the wharf and the next one over... If felt like we were turning our 38' boat in about 40' of space... in reality, maybe we had 45 feet. The boat handles very well under power. We demonstrated several times that one can rotate the boat 180 degrees with out really moving. We both agree that we love the boat!!

philosophy

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Bill
05/07/2008, Newport, RI

We worked all weekend on our boat. We now have a working head, hot and cold fresh water, sea water, running engine, sails rigged, working new propane stove (although the propane locker needs new everything!), working wind generator. Only one small leak through a thru-hull. Repaired a leak over that Nav Table (we found because it rained all weekend and the first night we left both of our cell phones on the Nav table... at least it wasn't the laptop!).

Monday we finally took her out for a sail in Naragansett bay for about an hour. Yahooooo! It was great. Still lots to do, and it felt great to sail a little.

Sorry, no images! left the camera in VT...

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05/02/2008, Newport, RI

With a splash and a gurgle we went in the water. Well not we, Be Here Now II!! We were told to be ready for a 5:30 am launch because that is when the tide was high. While Lara slept in, Bill checked and rechecked until the guys showed up at 8! Using a very cool specially designed tractor trailer, they picked up the boat and backed it down a ramp like an oversize fishing boat. And that was it! Soon we were tied up at the dock, rocking gently!! At 1 Denny from DePaul Diesel showed up and went through the engine. It appears that we have a couple years left in her if we take care of it. Needs some new hoses, the water pump needs rebuilding, and insulation should be installed on the exhaust pipe.

He asked if we wanted to do a sea trial! Yikes! Instantly we were excited and terrified at the same time. Here we were master and commander of the ship! And we had never taken her out solo... Denny looked at me and said: "You are able to drive her, right?" I turned to the first mate and said to cast off. She looked at me wide eyed, "which line first?" After a few tense moments we were clear of the dock and steaming out through the harbor toward Narragansett Bay!

We ran the engine through a few tests and just as we were ready to turn around, the Coast Guard approached, "Keep your hands were we can see them. Do you have any fire arms? Who's in command of the vessel" My mind flashed to the guy who suggested that we carry a 50 Caliper sniper rifle for protection! I raised my hand, "I'm in charge, no fire arms." The five of them were heavily armed, wearing survival suits and clearly on a training exercise. "We would like to board and do a safety inspection." Two guys came aboard, and went through their check list. We passed with flying colors...

When we approached the marina, I realized that I had never turned the boat in tight quarters before. Hallberg Rassy's 1983 manual had suggested a method, which I followed and peacefully did a 180, which allowed us to gently approach the dock and tie up like a professional delivery crew. Denny said, "I can see you have done this a few times, I was nervous when we were leaving the dock!" I just smiled and nodded. In my dreams I had done it a hundred times...

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clear, 60s, 0-15 knots
04/24/2008, Newport, RI

The cover is off the boat and Lara was so excited she wanted to take a photo to show everyone. The old stove is out and the new one is waiting to be installed. Gear is starting to come on board and we are prepared to go in the water (I think!)

Choosing the boat

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