Too Chez Again

Six days after Sandy rolled through the Mid-Atlantic States, we shoved off in a beautiful unharmed Too Chez. Bob Smahay, Bill Tribble, Glen Lewis and I set sail 4 hours before the start of the Carib 1500. Hopefully they did not get the weather we got during our 36 hour trip around Cape Hatteras and Look Out. The Cape in direct competition with Michigan weather may have won the title “if you don’t like the weather wait 5 minutes it will change”
We started in Northerlies with gusts to 20 and temps in the low 40’s through the night and finished in lightning and darkness with the same low temps. During the first night a contest ensued as to who could put the most clothes on…..very rare for me so obviously I lost. Glen came out the winner looking like the Michelin Tire guy with a life vest. Bob a close second with his warm wine glass followed by Bill who found his perch half way up and down the companionway ladder. As the moon rose at midnight we entered the Gulf Stream and sailed south around Cape Hatteras. By early morning the seas and gone from 4 to 6 to flat calm….I mean looking glass calm and as the sun rose so did the temps and it was almost “Gary shed your Laundry” warm.
Unfortunately no one knocked on wood and sure enough by 8am the weather had changed again and so had the winds. Through the day we had 25 to 30 plus winds from every direction we wanted to go to. The seas, 6 to 10 footers, came from those directions for hours after the wind had shifted from that directions. We were a healing washing machine as we limped into Beaufort inlet at 8pm with search lights and GPS working hard to find the unlit markers.
Warm food and cold Vodka was the first order of business as we shed our salted foul weather gear and then a warm rack for a deserved break from our trek south.

We have been watching the weather channel like a couple of old geezers. As we moved back and forth this past week across the Midwest on business, hunting and football games our Too Chez sat waiting for the storm of the century in Little Creek. Our boat manager on site, Josh Johnson, a Naval Architect grad from U of M with extensive experience with yacht deliveries and the associated storms that can occur was busy readying our floating home for the impending disaster.
As of 1:30 pm yesterday afternoon Josh said the boat was doing fine but the next 36 hours would tell the tale. We will talk with him today at 10 and see how the first of 3 high tides with massive surges and wind affect our future trip with Too Chez.
We spoke with our friends on Saturday who also has a boat in the Norfolk area as well as Michael and Hope who said it was raining like mad and more flooding was expected.
Our plans still remain to get in the car and drive to Norfolk on Friday to set sail for South Florida next weekend. The four of us Glenn, Bill, Bob and I are hoping that the boat makes it through these next series of high tides. If it does Windfinder is forecasting a good north with to push us down and beyond the cape for Sunday and Monday next week as Frankenstorm moves on up to the Maritimes and on its way to England.

We had made the decision the day before to bypass the temptations and sins of Atlantic City and shoot for the West end of the C&D by night fall the following days. It started out with some early morning maneuvering to dodge the cat behind Too Chez as we bucked a high outgoing tide and swift current. Once past the railroad bridge that separated the inlet from the harbor we unfurled the sails to a morning breeze and head for Cape May Point.
Unfurling the head sail we couldn’t help but notice that it was not as fluid as the day before once the sun rose high enough we took a look and could easily see the swivel was cockeyed and the halyard wrapped round the stop. With a bit of tugging and pulling we were able to get it wrapped back round the stay but we were done for the time being with the extra long 135. Later as we fell once again short of our dock because of bad information from the Marina, We were able to see that the swivel was not only cockeyed but completely beyond the furling sail track. Three days later North Sails stepped up and paid for the damages, new parts and repair as well as modifying the headsail to its proper size.
Those events though didn’t deter us since we were now ahead of schedule and ready to race up the Delaware Bay on an incoming tide and a blast of strong wind from the south east. The latter was great once we were able to plow through some sizable waves at the start of the trip and by night fall L Michael was challenging the large freighters that ply the Canal to pass us.
A call to a local rigger in Worton creek ensured that by Sunday morning we would know exactly what had to be replaced and the sail on its way to the Annapolis loft for repairs.

We had some issues with our new 135 genny which created even more problems with the roller furling system. The sail made by North was cut to long on the luff and as a result when it was hoisted to the top of the foil it jamed the furling swivel, popped the swivel stop off the foil and damaged the bearings. All this happened while we were sailing down to Cape May so for 4 days we were without head sail. North came through for us though, as they took care of the rigger and next day air for the replacement parts as well as making the corrections on the 135. All over a four day period at various spots along the way, including Worton Creek, Rock Hall and Annapolis.

I have always believed that looking for the best deal is often frought with risk. This event proved it again. While North Sails is a reasonably priced vendor they are not the discount sail loft that gives you the best price and than walks away from any problems. They stepped up and took responsibility and expenses surrounding there error.

While we lost time sailing, it did give Michael and I some time to wander around our old haunts in Annapolis and enjoy some oysters and a few cups of grog. We even were able to have dinner one night with Linda as she made her way over from business meetings on the eastern shore to join us at our favorite steak joint in East Port.

We finished out the week with some good sailing and beautiful anchorages south of the Bay Bridge up the Tred Avon and Wicomico rivers. Rained each night but sun in the morning. The Sunday sail down to Little Creek even included a 3 hour spinnaker run. Probably the last time we will use it until we get down to warmer waters and weather since we plan on going outside from Norfolk to St. Augustine starting November 1

We shoved off from the creaking and jumping fuel dock just in time to see the rising sun strike the new trade center. Sailing past the Lady and the Lamp we shoot through the narrows and head for Ambrose Channel and the Atlantic Ocean.
Dolphin greeted Too Chez as her sails were unfurled and humed along on a port tack bound for the Jersey Shores and Manasquan inlet.

The quartering 4 to 6 foot swells along with 12 knot winds hurried our swift sloop along at 7.5 knots. Back on schedule we began the discussion of the next days sail to try to make the rest of the coast in one day as opposed to a layover in Atlantic City. Too Chez doesn't seem to notice that we have reduced the overlap on her headsail as she seems just as fast and maybe more nimble with the smaller genoa.

9/18/2012
Catskill is a quaint community that we left the boat and returned to find it ready for the next push south. The goal is Norfolk by the 28th for Linda to rejoin Too Chez. What a fortunate person I am to have friends along the way to help and enjoy this portion of the journey. Michael Smith, my long term friend and confident is on board as we wait out the rain storm to end all rain storms....short of hurricane...before we scoot down the Hudson. The creek was filled to the max with water off the Catskill mountains. Michael and I renewed our life after a 15 year absence with tours of the local artist colony. Michael came up by train from Williamsburg and we started the trip with a hot and spicy meal at Mexican Radio restaurant in Hudson and a tour the next day of Olena, the 19th century estate of an early founder of the Hudson River artist colony.
Wednesday broke as we motored out of the creek at 8 knots bound for as far as we could get to on our first night and day on the Hudson bound for NYC. 90 nm later we pulled into the Lincoln Yacht Club across from the Empire State building. As we turned in off the Hudson doing 10 plus knots we scooted into the marina only to go aground 20 feet from our slip. Even the Harbor master couldn't explain the short depth from our keel to the mud of the marina!
We made it but spent the night tied to the creaking and screaking fuel dock and enjoyed the sites and sounds of the city. What a view. Eat your heart out Donald Trump nothing is better than finding a safe anchorage while looking at the city that never sleeps from your own boat in a safe spot across the river.