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2023 DELMARVA Reports |
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Late
in the afternoon preceding day one the crew arrived, comprising myself, Captain
David B. Gifford, First Mate (and MD School Instructor) Captain Robin Bauer,
Dave Welch, Geoff Stothard, Mark Hurley and Scott (later to be know
affectionately as Steve) Reynolds. Meeting
first at the MDSchool’s office, we made introductions.
I then presented an overview of the voyage around the Delmarva, after
which we discussed the methods and tools to be used to plot the courses that we
would follow to execute our voyage. Geoff,
Mark, Dave and Scott then began the extensive work necessary to establish and
record our intended waypoints. We broke from this work and enjoyed dinner
together at Baywolf restaurant in Rock Hall. Day
One: The crew met first
at the MDSchool office at approximately 0845, and after a brief explanation of
the day’s work ahead we went aboard Navigator.
We proceeded to discuss in greater detail the plan for our voyage, and
the various passages along the way, as well as crew responsibilities in general.
I made assignments for engineer, boson, navigator and emergency coordinator, and
in accordance with each role so assigned Dave, Mark, Scott and Geoff performed
the various inspections appointed to them for these various roles. After lunch
we adjourned to the classroom where, using the charts for the voyage as well as
the USCG Light List, Coast Pilot and current Local Notices to Mariners, the crew
determined the waypoints, courses, and distances for the first legs of our
journey. After completion of this work we adjourned for the evening. Day
Two: We met aboard Navigator at 0800 and I gave each student a role for
the day, respectively as student skipper, navigator, boson and engineer. Mark,
Scott, Geoff and Dave set to work making the various pre-departure checks and
preparations assigned in the course workbook to those various roles.
After completing these we refueled the boat at Lankford Bay Marina and
departed to the Chester River to begin our adventure.
There we ran a calibration of the speed and distance log in between
Daybeacon “LC”, and Green “1”. Completing
that, we proceeded down the Chester River where the I called a surprise Man
Overboard drill. The quick-witted
crew capably executed the return and recovery. Setting sail, we proceeded around
Eastern Neck Island. As the wind fell we were forced to motor into Swan Creek,
taking a mooring ball at Swan Creek Marina, a mere six or so miles from our home
slip at Lankford Bay Marina as the goose flies. We had dinner aboard, ably
prepared by a hot but hungry crew. Following dinner a strong thunderstorm moved
through the area, bringing high winds and intense lightning for about 30
minutes. Undeterred, Geoff, Dave, Mark and Scott continued their work preparing
the navigation plan for our Delmarva circumnavigation. Day
Three: We departed Swan
Creek early, heading north through the Elk River to the C & D Canal. Light
southerly winds precluded sailing, so we motored throughout this leg.
Nevertheless, we enjoyed the scenery on a warm summer day, and arrived at Summit
North Marina around 1600. Navigating into the marina took some care, as the
entrance is narrow and shoaling and we arrived an hour or so before low tide.
After taking on fuel and emptying our holding tank, we tied up alongside
a T-dock. After a welcome shower we dined at Grain H2O and enjoyed a night
sleeping with air-conditioning. Day
Four: We arose early and
departed Summit North Marina at approximately 0530, taking care to avoid leaving
at low tide. We motored to the junction of the canal with the Delaware River and
turned right down River past the Salem Nuclear Plant facility, and onward to the
Delaware Bay. Light winds again left us motoring and with the rattle of the
engine as our company we navigated largely buoy to buoy for this leg. We were careful to avoid the various shallows and ledges
along the Delaware River, passing the old Victorian structure of Ship John Shoal
Light, and the more modest lights at Elbow of Cross Ledge and Miah Maull Shoal.
As Delaware Bay opened out we continued to motor under the hot sun, with but
little to no wind. Toward evening we passed around Cape Henlopen and into the
Atlantic Ocean. A short while later
the rolling swell of the ocean became more pronounced and afflicted some of the
crew with discomfort. Dinner was
foregone in favor of lighter fare. As
evening yielded to the dark of night we proceeded along the shore, approximately
five to ten miles east of the Delaware coast, and later approximately twenty to
twenty-five miles eastward off the coast of Maryland and Virginia. This being
July 4th, we enjoyed the fireworks at various towns along the shore and had a
wonderful position to view many different displays until the thicker darkness of
late night ended those festivities. We continued the overnight voyage under a
largely cloudless sky. This
afforded us a chance to observe a bright array of stars and constellations free
from the light of settled land. For this portion of the voyage we implemented
our watch schedule, dividing Dave, Mark Geoff, and Scott, into two watches, each
comprising six hours. Robin and I
too alternated six-hour watches, though beginning at the middle of the
students’ respective watches. This
allowed us to enjoy the company of each student watch (and enabled the students
to benefit of our respective instruction!). Day
Five: Overnight we
continued down the coast from Delaware to Maryland, and into Virginia. Daybreak
brought another sunny, warm day, with a very light southerly breeze. We made a
feeble attempt at motor sailing throughout the day, but little wind filled the
sails to assist our progress. We kept our engine RPMs at 1800 to conserve fuel,
though we nevertheless were able to maintain a minimum of five knots. During the
day we were occasionally accompanied by dolphins, which broke the monotony of
the pond-like sea. Late
in the evening we arrived at R “2N”, our waypoint near the North Channel
entrance to Chesapeake Bay and began our passage through the channel to Cape
Charles. Now in the dark, we used flashlights both in the cockpit and at the bow
to locate the unlighted buoys that marked our way, and to locate any stray crab
pots that might be encountered. We were assisted by a growing flood tide, and
when we reached the highway bridges the flood was near its peak. We experienced
strong currents – which I estimate to be about five knots - carrying us up to
and under the bridges. Now in the Inner Middle Ground we made our way to Cape
Charles buoy from buoy until we reached the white light at Old Plantation Flats
and the challenging entrance to Cape Charles Harbor. We took some time outside
the entrance identifying the range lights to be followed into the channel.
It was now after midnight, and the crew was tired from the long passage
down the coast. Our caution was
also due in large part to several light anomalies and discrepancies between our
paper chart, the chart plotter and various chart applications on our phones.
Most significantly, the lower range light at the channel entry was dim to the
point of being nearly invisible. As
we lined up these lights and prepared to enter the channel, another inbound
sailboat offered to lead us through the passage, and we took the opportunity to
follow that boat, although we were quite carefully following our own charts too.
Once into the harbor, we tied up at a T-dock (with the assistance of a
neighboring sailboat owner awakened by our arrival) for a much-needed few hours
of sleep. Day
Six: As described
previously, the day began in the early hours with our arrival at Cape Charles
harbor. In light of the many sleepless hours experienced by the crew coming down
the coast, I made a decision to layover an extra day in Cape Charles City. This
gave us an opportunity not only to rest, but to do a little touring and
shopping, and to enjoy several fine meals ashore. During the afternoon, Scott,
Dave, Mark and Jeff took their ASA106 written examination. Day
Seven: After a memorable
breakfast at Cape Charles Coffee Shop, and after refueling and pumping out the
holding tank, we departed Cape Charles at approximately 1030, for our journey
north up the Chesapeake Bay. We again experienced a sunny, hot and humid summer
day. What little wind we had blew from the south at approximately the same speed
as our five knot boat speed. This precluded sailing and resulted in a very hot
and languid day. The watch schedule among all of us was inverted, with the
students and instructors swapping watch times. Dave, Scott, Jeff and Mark
rotated tasks during their watch, steering, navigating and acting as rover as
their watch duties required. The sweltering day faded into a warm night, and
soon we were navigating in earnest by the various lighted buoys plotted as our
waypoints. Throughout the night we encountered various other vessels, including
large ships, some of whom we hailed on the VHF to coordinate our passing. The
crew handle these encounters very well, ensuring a safe passage. Day
Seven: Near dawn we
passed Thomas Point Light on our way to Annapolis. The daylight again brought
bright sunshine, heat, humidity, and virtually no wind. About 0900 we entered
the mooring field in Annapolis Harbor, just outside of Ego Alley, where we took
mooring ball #15 for well-earned rest and relief from our long overnight leg up
the Bay. Shortly after mooring we hailed the pump-out boat that services boats
in the harbor, and pumped our holding tank clean. Some of the crew then retired
to Annapolis for a shower and a look around. Others remained on the boat for a
rest while I graded the students’ examinations. After everyone returned to the
boat in the late afternoon, we took the water taxi to the Annapolis Yacht Club,
where we enjoyed (courtesy of Robin’s reciprocity arrangements through her
yacht club) a delightful dinner before returning to the boat for a quiet
night’s sleep on the mooring. Day
Eight: Promptly at 0830,
after respecting Morning Colors observed at the Naval Academy at 0800, we
unmoored and began our return to Lankford Bay Marina.
For the first time we had a favorable wind that enabled us to do some
sailing, and so once outside of Annapolis Harbor we set the main and genoa and
sailed close hauled to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Once through the enormous
bridge spans, we continued to sail north toward the Chester River, though the
wind now weakened and fully failed us after we rounded the Love Point and turned
into the Chester River. As we
turned north past green “9”, however, we again were able to set our sails
for a downwind leg to Lankford Bay Marina. There we refueled and returned
Navigator to its home slip, ending our voyage. As Mark, Jeff, Dave and Scott did
the final cleaning and assembled their personal effects, a strong thunderstorm
moved in with high winds and some rain. Undeterred, everyone made their way down
the dock, ending our adventure with an exchange of good wishes and hopes to see
one another in the future. While it is always pleasant to return home from an
extended voyage, I regret the disbursement of this fine crew who behaved
magnificently throughout the voyage, and I hope to see them again. Captain
David Gifford
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