Boneheaded mistakes & living under a lucky star

dLj

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Mar 23, 2017
3,371
Belliure 41 Sailing back to the Chesapeake
We'll be in the Chesapeake for about a month before heading south. Sharing adult beverages and telling highly accurate recounting of sailing and life adventures would be no doubt a pleasurable event.

There are 2 routes to the C&D canal, around Cape May and up the Delaware Bay or the short cut by way of the Cape May Canal. The canal transit is limited by the 2 bridges with 55' clearance at high tide. With a mast height of close to 55' we went through the bridges at low tide and long before the sun rose.

Getting the tide right is key to getting up Delaware Bay. With a favorable tide you can get .5 knot to 2 knot boost. We made it from Cape May, through the CM canal and through the C&D Canal in about 12 hours with a favorable tide and following winds.
I think I'm closer to 65 feet tall... I'm actually going to measure this weekend to know exactly. So around Cape May for me. Wow, 12 hours for that, a lot faster than I thought. Nice.

I should be there before you go. We'll definitely have to find a tall tales - I mean accurate stories - time to enjoy...

dj
 

dLj

.
Mar 23, 2017
3,371
Belliure 41 Sailing back to the Chesapeake
Because I have a friend with a beach house in Lewes, DE I have observed boats anchoring in the lee of a jetty there. There could be a depth issue for dLj, but I've seen many sail boats anchored there. FYI. Protected from almost any wind direction. 'NorEaster maybe not so good.
Although I'm zoomed out on this image so you can't see the depths, this whole area looks pretty good for anchoring. Getting up close to the shore near Lewes gets a little skinny for me, but not where I'd probably want to anchor anyway. It's not a designated anchorage on the charts, but as you say except for a Nor'Easter looks might protected.

dj

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Oct 26, 2008
6,041
Catalina 320 Barnegat, NJ
Well, that's another part of my story that I didn't exactly reveal. We did alright with 2.5 days not generating electricity. I did start with a cold fridge but reduced the output and watched the amps and voltage like a hawk. We had cold drinks all along. I haven't figured it out yet, but my alternator isn't generating right now. I don't know if I've ruined the alternator, or the regulator, or if I just haven't got everything wired correctly. All I know is that the belt rotates normally but no amps are being put into the battery. I recently installed a new batt monitor and found after all summer that I'm not producing while the engine is running. Before I realized my problem, I bought a new regulator because I wanted the newest technology. I haven't installed it yet and my work schedule has been off the charts this summer so no focus on it yet. It didn't stop me from sailing off on a little trip, though! :facepalm:
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
Well, that's another part of my story that I didn't exactly reveal. We did alright with 2.5 days not generating electricity. I did start with a cold fridge but reduced the output and watched the amps and voltage like a hawk. We had cold drinks all along. I haven't figured it out yet, but my alternator isn't generating right now. I don't know if I've ruined the alternator, or the regulator, or if I just haven't got everything wired correctly. All I know is that the belt rotates normally but no amps are being put into the battery. I recently installed a new batt monitor and found after all summer that I'm not producing while the engine is running. Before I realized my problem, I bought a new regulator because I wanted the newest technology. I haven't installed it yet and my work schedule has been off the charts this summer so no focus on it yet. It didn't stop me from sailing off on a little trip, though! :facepalm:
Experience is a great instructor, albeit sometimes painful and sometimes expensive. ;)
 
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Jan 1, 2006
7,039
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
Although I'm zoomed out on this image so you can't see the depths, this whole area looks pretty good for anchoring. Getting up close to the shore near Lewes gets a little skinny for me, but not where I'd probably want to anchor anyway. It's not a designated anchorage on the charts, but as you say except for a Nor'Easter looks might protected.

dj

View attachment 198541
Yeah, inside the "Delaware Breakwater West End Light 3." I've waded out a few hundred yards and swam off that beach but it's shallow out quite a bit - a few hundred yards. Stay to the breakwater. Otherwise, not a bad stop. You can access town with a dink but not really in rowing distance.
 
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Likes: dLj
Oct 26, 2008
6,041
Catalina 320 Barnegat, NJ
@Scott T-Bird
Fun reading. I think your daughter brought you the good luck. Great weather for the trip. Very nice!
As usual, I left my phone in my car so I didn't have it for 3 days! I didn't get any pics ... Linda took a lot and was posting on IG, I believe. 3 days (5 if you count Saturday & Wednesday) with absolutely no contact with my office! Lucky there were no problems. I did show up on a job site during my last day off and I left out of office message. Good thing I work with relaxed people! :cool: