Time and Tides
May 22, 2013
The weather has been fairly good with a few spectacular days thrown in. We have accomplished a great deal but the napping keeps interrupting stuff like oil changes and other tasks such that we have less than a week to “get-r-done”. Had I rationed the naps a bit more, chances are the list would be done. I am not referring to the master list, just the list for getting underway. Then there is the need to stow stuff so that in a 25 degree roll at sea we don’t break things. I reference the mark on the galley bulkhead three feet from the sole where the microwave chose to attempt flight one rowdy day at sea. After almost a year in port, stuff has unstowed itself in favor of “not digging” to find. Stuff is perched in places that will not support heeling over about three degrees. The boat is not in ship shape now but it will be soon. Scurv has left his toys everywhere. Come to think of it, so has the other two crew. Thank goodness, we do not have an inspection today.
We met with two other crews that have cruised north of here. They spoke of timing being critical in dealing with currents that can reach high speed in some places. For instance; Hell Gate, NY (East River) can see currents approaching 5.2 knots. We whistle along at 7 knots thus we want that current with us not against us lest we muddle along in place. We have not seen high current speeds thus far. That translates to some unusual departure times. We have guides that tell us when and where the currents will be a factor. To catch the right tide direction at XYZ, we have to be underway at 0300 or we have to make this waypoint by a certain time. Now, not only weather but also tides and currents start to take on a greater role in our adventure. In days before ships could sail upwind, it got a bit more complicated. Imagine a square-rigger riding a tide into a certain anchorage and needing the reverse conditions to sail out. They had to depend on yet another factor: the need to navigate upwind. If the wind was not right, they may have been stuck for a long time.