Tom
06/28/2012, Perth Amboy Yacht Club, NJ

After rounding Cape May and mostly motoring up the coast of New Jersey, We took a mooring at the Perth Amboy Yacht Club courtesy of Tom's childhood friend Ed Ludlow and his wife Judy. The yacht club is located in an old industrial town at the west end of Raritan Bay (between Sandy Hook, NJ and NYC). The City of Perth Amboy is undergoing a revival of sorts these days and is nowhere is gritty as Tom remembers it from his youth. One big advantage for us, there is a train station a mile away that goes right into NYC.

Ed and Tom have not seen each other since high school. Best buddies in cub scouts and a while after. They each took up sailing over the years, although 12000 miles apart at the time. Once Tom and Ed reconnected, as Cary put it, "They were like two best friends that had never been apart." The two are alike in so many ways, Cary and Judy were probably waiting for the boys to finish each others sentences.

While staying in NJ, Tom had the opportunity to show Cary his old stomping grounds. Things like the little 6 room schoolhouse that he went to elementary school that now has 20+ classrooms. The almost 300 year old house he grew up in, once he could find it because all of the streets had changed so much. We even ate lunch in the same hamburger shop that Tom’s mother took him to in grade school. Fun trip down nostalgia lane.

We also had time to go into New York City to eat a corn beef sandwich at Carnegie Deli, walk through Times Square, take a walking tour of Central Park and Battery Park and to ride the subways. We still have some things that we would like to do on the way back like climb the Empire State Building, tour the World Trade Tower memorial, and see a show. It was a great time and we are looking forward to coming back.

US East Coast 2012

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Tom
06/23/2012, Delaware Bay

We puttered around the Chesapeake for a few more days. We were trying to catch up to our friends Hayden and Rayden on their IP-35 but as luck would have it, as we were leaving Annapolis for Rock Hall, they were going the opposite way. We did get to wave at them as they went by. We stayed at Spring Cove Marina for a night. They don't normally take transient boats, but since we were friends of Hayden and Rayden the owner made an exception for us. Very nice place. Our friends had left their car for us to use, so we had the opportunity to see some of the area and get off the boat. A dip in the marina pool also helped as it was 95Â; in the afternoon sun.

The next morning, we slipped out and headed north for the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. The tides in the canal can move at better than 2 knots so we wanted to be in a position to ride the ebb through the canal in the morning. The plan was to anchor near the entrance of the canal and head through at slack water at first light. It took us longer to go north than we thought it would and we ended up in a river mouth about 4 miles south. A huge squall was moving in and we wanted to put the anchor down before it hit. The thunder and lightening were pretty frightening as the bolts crashed down into the trees all around us. Fortunately is passed quickly with no damage.

This morning we were up with the sun and moving early to make the canal. The canal itself is very interesting. It was first proposed back in the 1600's but was not started until the 1820's. The original canal had locks and was 14 miles long and 60 feet wide. The current canal has no locks (hence the high tidal currents) and is 450 feet wide. One of the nice aspects of the canal is the banks are low enough that from the boat you can see the forest along the sides. Makes for a very scenic trip.

We are now making our way down Delaware Bay with the intention of rounding Cape May and heading up to Perth Amboy YC to visit Tom's cub scout buddy

US East Coast 2012

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Cary
06/12/2012, Yorktown, VA

We are now in a nice marina in Yorktown taking in all the history of the Revolutionary and Civil War. This is the heart of so much history including Williamsburg and Monticello (Jefferson's home) which we toured. Fascinating. The weather, with strong north winds, has kept us here a little longer than planned plus Tom has also been under the weather with a cold. But the weather on land is actually lovely. There is so much to see and our friends Chris and Paul from El Salvador just arrived. So Virginia has proven to be very enjoyable

US East Coast 2012

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Cary
06/07/2012, Norfolk, VA

We arrived in Norfolk,Virginia for the Op Sail 2012 where more than 4,000 international officers, cadets and crew from 15 nations converged for parades of tall ships, air shows, festivals, music, fireworks and food. 18 tall ships from all over the world arrived with sails and flags flying, as well as, cadets standing, as much as 150 ft. in the air, on yard arms. The Picton Castle from the Cook Islands, was one of these tall ships with Tom's nephew, Matt, on board. He had signed on two weeks earlier in New York. Matt gave us a private tour of the ship and later joined us with a couple of his friends and a couple of our friends on Dragon's Toy (anchored in the harbor) for diner and fire works. What a show.

US East Coast 2012

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Cary
06/05/2012, Great Dismal Swamp Visitors Centre Dock, NC

One of the highlights of this leg has been the Great Dismal Swamp Canal which has everything from birds, and slithering reptiles to winged insects and mammals, including a few scattered people that inhabit this unique primeval forest. Half way through the swamp we tied up with seven other boats to a dock at the Visitors Center owned by the National Park Service. They loaned us bikes that we rode along the Canal through low hanging trees.

US East Coast 2012

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Tom
06/05/2012, Elizabeth City Town Dock, NC

Just before entering the Dismal Swamp on the way north is the quaint town of Elizabeth City. The town has free dockage on the water front and is known as the Harbor of Hospitality. It is also famous among boating circles for a tradition called Rose Buddies. This started back in 1983 when Fred Fearing and and Joe Kramer decided to pass out roses to the firstmates of the boats that were stopping at the town dock. They would also throw improptu wine and cheese parties for the boats. All to make them feel welcome. Today the town chamber of commerce continues the tradition.

US East Coast 2012

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