With Hurricane Isabel behind us it was time to get back on track and align our location with our calendar for the next couple of weeks. That started by getting going back to Annapolis.

With the forecasts looking good, we departed Portland early on Sunday, 9/21, and cruised on flat seas a direct shot to Plymouth, MA, where we anchored for the night. A 110 mile run in the sun. Andrea became head whale spotter, and we really got excited when we found ourselves amidst a pod of about 20 of them. We wish pictures could capture the moment better.

On Monday, 9/22 we again got going pretty early and made it through the dreaded Cape Cod Canal with a favorable current, and then to an unusually smooth-like-glass Buzzards Bay. We arrived back in Portsmouth, RI around 1500, cleaned up, got our mail, settled some business, and met Dick and Mary who are considering purchase of a Selene like ours. They also are Grand Banks 46 owners - we had much in common.

[Editor's note - Subsequent to the writing of this leg log, we received email from Dick who said they had just placed their order for Selene 53 Hull 24. It will be here late next year, and we wish them the best - hoping that they enjoy theirs as much as we are enjoying Celebrate]

Tuesday's weather was not as nice. Blowing and overcast with a drop or two. On the spur of the moment we invited Dick and Mary to ride with us the 5 miles to Newport to get a feel of the boat, and they jumped on it. Dropped them off there and at 0930 left Newport bound for the Thimbles off the CT shore of LI sound.

The forecast was for winds S at 10-15, seas 2-3. Wrong. It wasn’t long after we left Newport and headed toward Point Judith that we engaged 3-5 head seas in 15-20 winds. At least the forecast had the direction right. But that was wrong for our course because as we turned west at Point Judith we were exposed to the full fetch of the Atlantic between Block Is and Long Is, both 20 miles distant. Seas became 4-6 on the beam and because of wild tidal currents opposing, the interval was short. Square waves, in other words. But, Celebrate handled it well, although even with the stabilizers working very well, we had a couple of wild rolls as an occasional 8’+ elephant would smack us square on our beam.

Enough, eventually, and with forecasts not encouraging, we ducked behind Fishers Island after 3 hours of beating. Just in time to find a place to anchor in winds that our anemometer clocked as 50.7 kts!. A huge front passed over, and we just quit for the day. Andrea earned a lot of points for seawomanship that day.

Wednesday, 9/24 was as beautiful and pleasant as Tuesday was ugly. We cruised on flat water all the way to Stamford, CT, where we moored, rented a car, and drove to visit Roger, teaching at Hotchkiss. It was a great evening, and on Thursday we got a tour of this rarified school, met other faculty, and sat in two classes Roger taught in math and computer applications.

We were glad we didn’t have to take the test the kids did. Both of us were inspired by the excitement of academia and the joy of an education. We resolved to figure some ways to continue our own enlightenment some day. Drove back to Stamford, took the launch back to Celebrate, and sacked early. A really full and exciting day.

The big push. Weather for Friday, 9/26, along the Jersey coast was forecast better than Saturday which was forecast better than Sunday. Some plotting and planning proved that we could, and should, shoot for Atlantic City. So, up before dawn and at 0545 we slipped the mooring and headed out across a quiet Long Island Sound. We began fighting the current by the time we started through the East River and passed LaGuardia airport, Rikers Island (a not nice place to visit and no, I would not like to live there), and passed Hell Gate abeam Manhattan. We had just about made it past Roosevelt Island when we were swarmed by the Coast Guard manning M60’s on deck mounts telling us the channel had just closed as a security measure for the UN. Not having more than a BB gun aboard, we acquiesced and did a 180 to return and go around Roosevelt Is on its east channel.

Down through NY harbor, past Sandy Hook, NJ, and a long but easy passage to Atlantic City where we tied up at the Farley State Marina, operated by the Trump Casino (how convenient), and were joined immediately by Thad and Beth for the next couple days. 13 hours and 113 miles including that NY detour.

When they arrived, we went to the hotel/casino, knowing the marina was secure. They even had locked gates at each pier, and only the boat owners were given the combination. Alas, Chuck forgot and we were locked out. But after some ingenious thinking, we were able to defeat the system and return comfortably to retire for the night:

Saturday was a lot of firsts for Thad and Beth.  First time in the ocean, first time in Cape May Canal, first time up the Delaware Bay, first time through the C&D Canal, first time mastering an autopilot and chart plotter, and the night before, first time dining at Hooters – delightfully tacky but unrefined. Another first for Beth was noting the nude beach just south of the Cape May Canal as we exited and turned north. She really appreciated the stabilized binos. It was a very long day owing to the captain’s uncanny ability to pick passages timed to the maximum contra currents. We averaged less than 8 kts the whole 50 miles up lumpy Delaware Bay and through the C&D which we entered at nightfall. As we passed Chesapeake City, about ¾ of the way through we encountered the 700’ Norwegian Princess cruise ship going the other way. Yielded easily to her. Just a couple miles out of the canal we pulled into the Bohemia River, dropped the hook, and appreciated the end of our 13 hour, 110 mile day.

Sunday, 9/28 started late, gray, and windy but that’s ok because only a couple miles to go to Thad and Beth’s bay house. Arrived uneventfully, except for getting the docking right on a small "T" head. A delightful afternoon of laundry and football. A few naps, to boot, and steak on the grill for dinner. On Monday after breakfast we all went our ways. It was clear but windy down the bay, and we arrived in Annapolis at 3. Wound up at Ann and Hank's dock.