Chesapeake City to Cape May
June 5, 2013
Today started at 0400 with a planned very early departure from the anchorage at Chesapeake City to Cape May, New Jersey. It was a very long day and knowing that made it important to wake early to catch the current in the C & D Canal and some additional current on ebb tide down the Delaware River to Delaware Bay and Cape May. Thus, time and tide controlled our day. However, back to Chesapeake City where there is a small pond that doubles as an anchorage. There were six boats in that small spot last evening but it worked. It also helped that very nearby was access to ½-pound cheeseburgers and pizza. The intriguing thing was the size of the restaurant. It was large and there were no spare tables outside. That cheeseburger was fine.
It took twelve and one half hours to mostly motor (as usual against the wind) to Cape May. Once there, one cannot simply head into the jetties. There are serious shoals guarding the approach from the river out to about three miles. That meant that we sailed almost around the place before getting to the jetties. It took about three hours from the time we saw Cape May until we entered the harbor. The good part was that most of that was in the Atlantic. For the first time in almost a year, we saw green water without stuff in it. We saw dolphins, which reminded us of Port A. Cape May is a stopping point for transients heading up and down the coast as well as into the Chesapeake via the Delaware and C&D.
We have been sailing with two other boats since leaving the Solomons. As of tomorrow, one will be leaving ahead of us and the other will catch up in a day or two. They stopped in a different place tonight. That is how it works so there are hellos and good byes all the time. All three boats are heading to the Long Island Sound and beyond so we will stay in touch and see them again. We might stay here for a few days to let bad weather pass. That means Scurv will get a few chances to roam around and meet new critters. He did not get much time ashore last evening and that is just as well since there were about three dozen large geese just waiting for him ashore. More later because the crew of Why Knot is dawg tired and heading to the rack.