Encounter with Dennis the Menace Here's a little story I want to talk about which occurred over the 1999 Labor Day weekend while out sailing on the Chesapeake Bay. When I purchased my first sailboat, a Catalina 22 in July 1999, I thought it would be great to go cruising around during the summer and meet other sailors. So, using the Internet, I searched around and found some information on local Catalina 22 sailing groups on the Chesapeake Bay area near Annapolis Maryland. One group that was closest for me was the Catalina 22, Fleet 10. After contacting the group and getting some information, I decided to join. On the group's web site, I found some info about the various cruises that they have during the summer sailing season. As a member of Fleet 10, I received a card from the event coordinator Tom Anastasio for a 3-day cruise over Labor Day with Fleet 10 to Kerwan Creek, Rock Hall and return. I signed up. I notified my girlfriend Tina about the cruise. She said she was interested in going, although she had never been on a sailboat and couldn't swim, but she was willing to sail with me. As I prepare my boat which at the time did not have a new name, I got my food supplies ready, bought a rain suit at Wal-Mart, a GPS at Boaters World, a nice looking life vest or PFD for Tina, and checked over the charts for the cruise. As the weekend drew near, Tina canceled from going due to family coming into to town. So I was on my own. As Saturday the 5th of September dawned, I was ready to take off. From listening to the weather reports over the last week, I knew that Hurricane Dennis had been floundering about off the North Carolina coast for about a week and had shown no indication of moving inland. Weather forecast for Labor Day weekend was scheduled to be cloudy for Saturday with rain showers on Sunday and clearing for Monday. That would change. At 0900 I departed my slip at Pier 7 marina on the South River and headed towards the Chesapeake Bay about 4 miles downstream. I had plenty of fuel for my outboard, the VHF was on, and my new GPS was giving me about 5.2 knots speed. As soon as I broke into the bay, I raised my Main sail and then the Genoa. I guess wind speed was about 10 - 15 knots. As I headed south toward the entrance to the West River for a link up with Fleet 10 members, I continued to watch the sky. Things seen to be going smoothly for now. As I got near the outside of the West River, I made a radio check with Tom Anastasio the cruise coordinator sailing on Meg, his Catalina 25. The link up with the fleet members was at channel marker 1A. Being unfamiliar with the area, I discovered that I was currently in the middle of the bay. After speaking with Tom, I informed him not to wait for me and I would meet him and the others at Kerwan Creek. I continued on sailing toward Eastern Bay, and past Bloody Point lighthouse looking for my first marker to make my turn. Then all hell broke loose. As I rounded marker #G1, which put me on a northern heading up Eastern Bay, the wind conditions increased from the south. The weather channel broadcast was tropical storm warnings for TS Dennis. As the wind increased, I decided to get into my wet weather gear and life jacket before the rains started. The seas were by this time 1 to 3 feet and I guess the winds were about 20 - 25 knots. About 1 p.m., heavy rains started. Sudden gusts of wind began to blow and I started tacking and jibing trying to keep moving in the direction of Crab Alley Bay. Things begin to get out of control. With too much sail up, and not being smart enough to reef the main sail early, the wind soon had me spinning 360's in the water and with a 45-degree heel, I almost flipped the boat over twice. As this happened, I suddenly begin to remember skills that I'd forgotten when sailing under high winds. Such as, when the winds cause too much heel, just turn loose the tiller and the main sail sheets and to boat would right up into the wind. Being alone I had problems keeping headed up into the wind to drop the Genoa. Soon the wind dropped off for about a minute and I dropped the Genoa and rushed up and tied it off so it wouldn't drag in the water. Once this was done, I had control of the boat. By this time I was scared and thinking to myself, "What the hell am I doing out here by myself?", good thing Tina was not there, she would have freaked out! By now, the winds didn't seem so fierce, and my confidence was coming back up. Only thing now was visibility was dropping and lightning was starting to strike all about. As I continued back on my original course, I attempted to raise Meg on the VHF, no luck in getting through. I said to myself, "I hope I see someone out here that knows where they're going". Sailing with only the main up didn't seem to be making much progress, so I started up the outboard. With the winds, rain, thunder, lightning and reduced visibility, I pressed on since I didn't think it was worth going back across the Bay at this time. I started praying. On the starboard side I could see Tilghman Island, and I watched for landmarks that would help me keep track of my progress. Time slid slowly by. About 4:30 p.m. I came along Tilghman Point and I could hear the swing keel start to drag so I headed further east into deeper waters. Now at this time I should have continued north towards Kerwan Creek, but I was looking for a speedy end to this trip. A couple of large sailboats cruised by and disappeared into the mist. As I came past Tilghman Point, I spotted 2 sailboats ahead of me and followed. I told myself that I must be on the right track, but didn't care at this time. I saw a lady drifting on the water in a sailboat and came by to see if she needed any help. Her engine had died and she had already called for a tow. By now it was almost 7 p.m. and I soon saw a creek opening on the left near where I thought Kerwan Creek was, so I headed into it thinking that at last I was at my destination. I was looking forward to meeting up with the Fleet 10 members and taking a break. When I turned into the creek, the rain had fallen to sparatic showers and it was almost dark. As I cruised up this creek I looked and didn't see and Marinas around or any sailboats. I started to wonder where was I. I passed a small motorboat, circled and came back and asked if I was at Kerwan Creek near Kent Narrows. I was surprised to be told that I was in Leeds Creek across from St. Michaels MD. What a shock, I had sailed off to the wrong area. Kerwan Creek was due north and I was about 7 1/2 miles south of where I supposed to be. Well, I'd have enough for today. With the storm continuing I decided to stay and ride it out. I didn't know anything about St. Michael's and didn't feel like calling for a slip at the marina. I motored over to a sheltered area near a small trawler, dropped anchor and called it a day. Next course of action was to notify someone that I was still alive so I called Tina and told her I was ok. After reassuring her I asked her to called Chris Warren the Fleet 10 captain who wasn't able to sail with the group and let him know what happened in case other members of Fleet10 were concerned about my whereabouts. With that I settled in for the duration. I spent Sunday listening to the radio, sleeping, drinking beer and basically chasing down water leaks caused by the storm. Apparently, Tropical Storm Dennis had caught everyone off-guard and moved into North Carolina and tracked north with no notice. Monday, Labor Day dawned clear and bright. After packing away my gear and raising the anchor, I was ready to head home. I left Leeds creek about 8 a.m. with no breeze. As I motored along the Miles River, I noticed no one on the river. By the time I was a mile down river from St. Michael's, I saw the first sailboats heading out. Cruising on most waterways near the Chesapeake Bay you have to watch for the numerous crab pots in the water. The Miles River was no exception. After 40 minutes the wind began to pick up from the south and I raised sails. With a steady wind, I was soon sailing wing in wing. The wind was steady at about 5 - 10 knots. As I cruised along, I could see other larger, faster sailboats passing me by. Soon there was 7 sailboats lined up in a row, cruising toward Tilghman Point. When I sailed passed Tilghman Point, I took a port tack into the Eastern Bay heading southeast. With that change in direction, my boat heeled over sharply and I scrambled to adjust the Mainsail to ease the wind. The conditions were perfect! Everything that happened on Saturday seemed like an old memory. After clearing the entrance to Eastern Bay, I turned and sailed past Bloody Point Lighthouse into the Chesapeake Bay. Being this was a holiday; the bay was alive with numerous sailing races. As I approached Thomas Point Lighthouse and the entrance to the South River, I had to start dodging the various sailboats racing. After I cruised about a mile up the river, I dropped the sails and started up the outboard engine. The South River is known as a power boat river and they were zooming up and down the river throwing up large wakes. In a small sailboat you have to watch for powerboats because they regularly exceed the posted speed limit of 6 knots. As I neared my marina and approached my slip, I noticed that it was close to peak high tide and the water level from the storm surge was lapping over the edge of the slips. I tied up with no problem and was ready to kiss the docks. I was glad to make it back! Total time coming back was 6 1/2 hours. I had no immediate plans to get back out on the bay anytime soon! I guess lessons learned are: 1. When there is any chance major storms are possible, stay off the water unless you know what you are doing and are willing to take the risk. Also don't sail alone. 2. Proper safety equipment is a must! I failed to have a safety harness on and could have easily fallen overboard and could have drowned. I was lucky. 3. Proper skills. It had been 10 years since I had done any real sailing and my sail handling skills were rusty. Sailing in Hawaii where the conditions are near perfect every time will not prepare you for sailing in a gale. 4. And finally, never sail alone if you are not exactly sure where the heck you're going!