My brother and his wife drove us down to Catskill where we had a great waterfront dinner after a quick provisioning trip. We made our farewells as the sun neared the horizon. Soon, we were anchored just down river with a fine view of the Catskill Mountains to backdrop the series of deep conversations that has kept either of us from reading a book or writing much in months.
Disappointment at the veiled view of the mountains was soon replaced by joy at the dramatic sight of clouds pouring over the tops.
(All photos by Dreameagle)
One topic of the evening was how different it is to be drawn out on a cruise. I left Portland just over three years ago impelled by the promise I made to myself when young that I would someday live and cruise on a boat. Adding fuel to the fire in my soul was the restlessness of a newly empty nest and a life that I just couldn’t seem to make fulfilling for myself.
This cruise, I would happily still be up on the hill looking over Dreameagle’s wildflower gardens and an almost untouched appearing view of the Berkshire Hills. A rich collection of family and friends were spread out all through the vista below and it has been a summer of parties, dinners, and great conversations.
There is something different about going to sea on a trip like this when you feel absolutely no internal pressure to do so but I am grateful for the excuse to experience the greatest cruising grounds on the east coast again. The prospect of showing the one I love Maine has my heart singing. She wants to go more than I do but I’ve always spent my life around working boats so heading out with such purpose speaks to my soul.
We weighed anchor just as the boat was beginning to swing in the changing current. We swept down river on a hazy day.
We arrived at the New Hamburg Yacht Club exactly in time to dock with just a hint of head current to make for an easy landing. Drinks, dinner, and another wonderful evening with RonRelyea followed.
The next day took us to Croton through the most dramatic scenery on the river. As we came out into Haverstraw Bay, we saw the Clearwater far down the river. We couldn’t quite make out her direction at first and it was a tough choice between running under power for another hour to catch up or setting sail in the beautiful sailing area were the river opens up. We opted for the latter and hope that Dreameagle’s former ship was just doing a daysail back and forth across the river so we could come up on her.
By the time we realized that Clearwater was bound down river, we were enjoying the sail too much to try and catch up. Shortly after we made this decision, we saw here begin to strike her sails for the run under the bridge. We turned back towards Croton assisted by the current which had neatly changed under us.
We docked at the Half Moon Bay Marina for dinner with friends. The evening conversation after they headed for the train station was again about how different this cruise is from when I set out thousands of miles ago. The sense of adventure is gone. Dreameagle was concerned that I’ve gotten bored with it and it isn’t fun any more. No, no. I assured her. Along with that goes the relief from that spice of anxiety that goes with adventure. I’m not worrying about whether I can do it, how I will handle emergencies. Stuff can always happen, just as it does ashore, but feeling just as comfortable and at home on this thousand and a half mile cruise feeds my soul in a deeper way. These words would come back to haunt me the next day.
We were up and bound down river comfortably early, swept along by the current with the engine sounding as sweet, smooth, and dependable as I ever remember it. It was as beautiful a day as a calm and scorching hot day in New York can ever be, relentless sun in a cloudless sky with distant features misted by the weight of moisture in the air.
We ran as close as we dared along the base of the Palisades and encountered the schooner Lettie G. Howard anchored in the stream. I am grateful for a life in which I have been part of seeing things that give many people pleasure go from this:
To this:
We then brought Manhattan Island abeam and Dreameagle, a New York girl for three decades, began to get very excited. Adding to her excitement was the sight of the heavy crush of commercial and sightseeing traffic as we approached Ellis Island and the iconic statue. Her excitement then peaked and mine bumped up a bit when the engine suddenly stumbled and RPM’s began to drop. I must complement her cool when I shut down and took the heavy engine cover/companionway unit out and stuck my head into the compartment to see if there was any air in the filter bowl that would indicate a fuel restriction or air infiltration in the lines. Everything looked good so I closed up and restarted the engine.
I brought the throttle full up to see if there a clogging filter was to blame. Sure enough, the engine shortly dropped back almost to idle. I turned the emergency bypass valve from my fuel polishing system on which restored power. I ran on down into the sightseeing fleet off the “Lady” positioning for the maximum distance I could let the current carry us in the dead calm while I made a “Securitay” call.
I turned off the bypass valve and the engine kept running with occasional minor stumbles. Something wasn’t right but it didn’t seem like a clogged filter which my fuel polishing system makes rather unlikely anyway. We had also picked up something in the prop but the engine sounded better and better so we ran around Governor’s Island and headed up the East River.
Just past the 59 St. Bridge, the engine dropped a couple hundred RPM momentarily again. I diverted into the handy Brooklyn Navy Yard Basin for what we would have called a “Precautionary Landing” back when engines did similar things when I was flying. We anchored off the drydock and the engine cover came off again.
The filter bowl was surgically clean. I had changed tanks just past the north end of Manhattan so as to draw from the deeper one which is less likely to suck air in rough water. The problems began immediately after. The fuel boost pump, necessary for the new tank due to its location deep in the keel, didn’t appear to be working. I didn’t want to spend very much time anchored in the basin next to a bunch of NYFD Fireboats, so I transferred fuel into the main tank from both the keel tank and one of the jugs of spare fuel in the cockpit locker. This would get the fuel level in the tank which can gravity feed high enough not to need to worry about air getting into the system. Further investigation could wait.
I headed back down towards the Battery for a while in case the engine stumbled again so I could nip back into the basin. I wanted to be sure of at least having power reliable enough to get us across the river so a dead engine wouldn’t result in our being swept down the wrong side of Roosevelt Island and under the railroad bridge (now, that would make a post!) Everything sounded good and the prop was gradually shedding whatever it had picked up so we did a “U” turn and headed through Hell Gate and out into Long Island Sound without incident.
It was hot enough that we knew we would be more comfortable moving than sitting at anchor. Thunderstorms were also forecast for the midday following so we elected to push on to anchor in Northport Bay at the end of a 72 nm day.
We left Northport in a promising wind which had us soon setting sail. The wind did not pan out and we were a powerboat again not an hour later, deadheading across the sound to Milford. The noon storms did not materialize so we anchored off Charles Island for a walk ashore before heading into Milford Landing and dinner with Dreameagle’s brother and family.
Sitting on the boat for happy hour, we watched a huge thunderstorm which caused damage in Danbury go out over the sound just to the west. If we had stuck to our original plan, we would have been right in its path. (See Title)
Today, we re-provisioned the vessel and had a family BBQ after which everyone came down to see the boat. With so many to see me off, I figured I might as well leave and anchor in the outer harbor.
Dreameagle, as I mentioned before, leaves the boat here to go back and take care of some things upstate while I deliver Strider to Maine where she will join me.
I’ll get an early start down the sound in the morning. Everything is on schedule. You can keep track of my progress here:
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0AckC5GqogSJmieLPEtBunICxVztYVRlg
Oh yes, I checked later and the fuel boost pump seems to be working fine. Either it is developing and intermittent problem or, which I think is more likely, I delayed a bit too long in changing tanks and the heavy wake which reminded me to do so (I can draw the tank down much further in the flat calm water we had been running in) caused it to suck a bit of air which had to work its way through and out of the system.
Disappointment at the veiled view of the mountains was soon replaced by joy at the dramatic sight of clouds pouring over the tops.
(All photos by Dreameagle)
One topic of the evening was how different it is to be drawn out on a cruise. I left Portland just over three years ago impelled by the promise I made to myself when young that I would someday live and cruise on a boat. Adding fuel to the fire in my soul was the restlessness of a newly empty nest and a life that I just couldn’t seem to make fulfilling for myself.
This cruise, I would happily still be up on the hill looking over Dreameagle’s wildflower gardens and an almost untouched appearing view of the Berkshire Hills. A rich collection of family and friends were spread out all through the vista below and it has been a summer of parties, dinners, and great conversations.
There is something different about going to sea on a trip like this when you feel absolutely no internal pressure to do so but I am grateful for the excuse to experience the greatest cruising grounds on the east coast again. The prospect of showing the one I love Maine has my heart singing. She wants to go more than I do but I’ve always spent my life around working boats so heading out with such purpose speaks to my soul.
We weighed anchor just as the boat was beginning to swing in the changing current. We swept down river on a hazy day.
We arrived at the New Hamburg Yacht Club exactly in time to dock with just a hint of head current to make for an easy landing. Drinks, dinner, and another wonderful evening with RonRelyea followed.
The next day took us to Croton through the most dramatic scenery on the river. As we came out into Haverstraw Bay, we saw the Clearwater far down the river. We couldn’t quite make out her direction at first and it was a tough choice between running under power for another hour to catch up or setting sail in the beautiful sailing area were the river opens up. We opted for the latter and hope that Dreameagle’s former ship was just doing a daysail back and forth across the river so we could come up on her.
By the time we realized that Clearwater was bound down river, we were enjoying the sail too much to try and catch up. Shortly after we made this decision, we saw here begin to strike her sails for the run under the bridge. We turned back towards Croton assisted by the current which had neatly changed under us.
We docked at the Half Moon Bay Marina for dinner with friends. The evening conversation after they headed for the train station was again about how different this cruise is from when I set out thousands of miles ago. The sense of adventure is gone. Dreameagle was concerned that I’ve gotten bored with it and it isn’t fun any more. No, no. I assured her. Along with that goes the relief from that spice of anxiety that goes with adventure. I’m not worrying about whether I can do it, how I will handle emergencies. Stuff can always happen, just as it does ashore, but feeling just as comfortable and at home on this thousand and a half mile cruise feeds my soul in a deeper way. These words would come back to haunt me the next day.
We were up and bound down river comfortably early, swept along by the current with the engine sounding as sweet, smooth, and dependable as I ever remember it. It was as beautiful a day as a calm and scorching hot day in New York can ever be, relentless sun in a cloudless sky with distant features misted by the weight of moisture in the air.
We ran as close as we dared along the base of the Palisades and encountered the schooner Lettie G. Howard anchored in the stream. I am grateful for a life in which I have been part of seeing things that give many people pleasure go from this:
To this:
We then brought Manhattan Island abeam and Dreameagle, a New York girl for three decades, began to get very excited. Adding to her excitement was the sight of the heavy crush of commercial and sightseeing traffic as we approached Ellis Island and the iconic statue. Her excitement then peaked and mine bumped up a bit when the engine suddenly stumbled and RPM’s began to drop. I must complement her cool when I shut down and took the heavy engine cover/companionway unit out and stuck my head into the compartment to see if there was any air in the filter bowl that would indicate a fuel restriction or air infiltration in the lines. Everything looked good so I closed up and restarted the engine.
I brought the throttle full up to see if there a clogging filter was to blame. Sure enough, the engine shortly dropped back almost to idle. I turned the emergency bypass valve from my fuel polishing system on which restored power. I ran on down into the sightseeing fleet off the “Lady” positioning for the maximum distance I could let the current carry us in the dead calm while I made a “Securitay” call.
I turned off the bypass valve and the engine kept running with occasional minor stumbles. Something wasn’t right but it didn’t seem like a clogged filter which my fuel polishing system makes rather unlikely anyway. We had also picked up something in the prop but the engine sounded better and better so we ran around Governor’s Island and headed up the East River.
Just past the 59 St. Bridge, the engine dropped a couple hundred RPM momentarily again. I diverted into the handy Brooklyn Navy Yard Basin for what we would have called a “Precautionary Landing” back when engines did similar things when I was flying. We anchored off the drydock and the engine cover came off again.
The filter bowl was surgically clean. I had changed tanks just past the north end of Manhattan so as to draw from the deeper one which is less likely to suck air in rough water. The problems began immediately after. The fuel boost pump, necessary for the new tank due to its location deep in the keel, didn’t appear to be working. I didn’t want to spend very much time anchored in the basin next to a bunch of NYFD Fireboats, so I transferred fuel into the main tank from both the keel tank and one of the jugs of spare fuel in the cockpit locker. This would get the fuel level in the tank which can gravity feed high enough not to need to worry about air getting into the system. Further investigation could wait.
I headed back down towards the Battery for a while in case the engine stumbled again so I could nip back into the basin. I wanted to be sure of at least having power reliable enough to get us across the river so a dead engine wouldn’t result in our being swept down the wrong side of Roosevelt Island and under the railroad bridge (now, that would make a post!) Everything sounded good and the prop was gradually shedding whatever it had picked up so we did a “U” turn and headed through Hell Gate and out into Long Island Sound without incident.
It was hot enough that we knew we would be more comfortable moving than sitting at anchor. Thunderstorms were also forecast for the midday following so we elected to push on to anchor in Northport Bay at the end of a 72 nm day.
We left Northport in a promising wind which had us soon setting sail. The wind did not pan out and we were a powerboat again not an hour later, deadheading across the sound to Milford. The noon storms did not materialize so we anchored off Charles Island for a walk ashore before heading into Milford Landing and dinner with Dreameagle’s brother and family.
Sitting on the boat for happy hour, we watched a huge thunderstorm which caused damage in Danbury go out over the sound just to the west. If we had stuck to our original plan, we would have been right in its path. (See Title)
Today, we re-provisioned the vessel and had a family BBQ after which everyone came down to see the boat. With so many to see me off, I figured I might as well leave and anchor in the outer harbor.
Dreameagle, as I mentioned before, leaves the boat here to go back and take care of some things upstate while I deliver Strider to Maine where she will join me.
I’ll get an early start down the sound in the morning. Everything is on schedule. You can keep track of my progress here:
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0AckC5GqogSJmieLPEtBunICxVztYVRlg
Oh yes, I checked later and the fuel boost pump seems to be working fine. Either it is developing and intermittent problem or, which I think is more likely, I delayed a bit too long in changing tanks and the heavy wake which reminded me to do so (I can draw the tank down much further in the flat calm water we had been running in) caused it to suck a bit of air which had to work its way through and out of the system.