I headed out of Portsmouth about an hour before dawn and met one of the longest lines of lobster boats I have ever seen leaving a port. I kept to the side of the channel and felt like one of those little boys marching alongside a parade beating an imaginary drum.
It was surprisingly pleasant motoring across Ipswitch Bay. There were large swells from the hurricane far offshore but just enough wind for a bit of jib to steady the boat nicely as sunrise lit up the Isles of Shoals through a hole in the clouds.
I went inside the breakwater off Rockport and then passed between Thatcher Island and the outlying shoals. That was a mistake. Very large swells,broken into random fragments by the Londoner shoals reflecting back off the island with a large tidal stream. The ledges were having the reverse of the breakwater effect I expected and I found myself suddenly down in a deep hole about spreader height looking up at all this stuff. I called Scotty to pump some more Dilithium crystals into the mass converter and give me maximum warp drive out of there. Then, it began to rain.
By the time I got my rain gear on, the sky had suddenly cleared and a brisk wind sprung up right on the nose. It would have been great sailing anywhere except the direction I was going and it was rapidly getting wet and sloppy as the rising waves ran against the swell. I ducked behind the Gloucester breakwater for lunch and a nap.
The wind had eased by the time I woke up and I had a pleasant powerboat ride in bright sun down through the islands and ledges off Marblehead which holds so many memories of my early cruising days three decades ago.
I ended up anchored close in on the southern side of Boston Harbor's Long Island for shelter from the NW winds predicted to come up in the night. Instead, the winds blew right down the narrow slot from the open sea bringing with them swell and slop which made sure I was awake enough to appreciate the drumming of hard rain on the cabin top.
I was woken by thunder and lightning and turned on the radio to hear a special bulletin about a severe thunderstorm bearing down on Boston Harbor with possibility of waterspouts. "SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY!" That get's your attention when you are half asleep but it went by just offshore.
It’s just getting light. The wind is light from the north and the weather report is for a plausible day to get to the canal. The buoy reports are still showing brisk east winds though and this turbulent weather system seems to be defying prediction so I’m still undecided about what to do. http://share.findmespot.com/shared/gogl.jsp?glId=0JjTC23pqUeh7ugZrB7KECYzoDc5YLsHO
It was surprisingly pleasant motoring across Ipswitch Bay. There were large swells from the hurricane far offshore but just enough wind for a bit of jib to steady the boat nicely as sunrise lit up the Isles of Shoals through a hole in the clouds.
I went inside the breakwater off Rockport and then passed between Thatcher Island and the outlying shoals. That was a mistake. Very large swells,broken into random fragments by the Londoner shoals reflecting back off the island with a large tidal stream. The ledges were having the reverse of the breakwater effect I expected and I found myself suddenly down in a deep hole about spreader height looking up at all this stuff. I called Scotty to pump some more Dilithium crystals into the mass converter and give me maximum warp drive out of there. Then, it began to rain.
By the time I got my rain gear on, the sky had suddenly cleared and a brisk wind sprung up right on the nose. It would have been great sailing anywhere except the direction I was going and it was rapidly getting wet and sloppy as the rising waves ran against the swell. I ducked behind the Gloucester breakwater for lunch and a nap.
The wind had eased by the time I woke up and I had a pleasant powerboat ride in bright sun down through the islands and ledges off Marblehead which holds so many memories of my early cruising days three decades ago.
I ended up anchored close in on the southern side of Boston Harbor's Long Island for shelter from the NW winds predicted to come up in the night. Instead, the winds blew right down the narrow slot from the open sea bringing with them swell and slop which made sure I was awake enough to appreciate the drumming of hard rain on the cabin top.
I was woken by thunder and lightning and turned on the radio to hear a special bulletin about a severe thunderstorm bearing down on Boston Harbor with possibility of waterspouts. "SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY!" That get's your attention when you are half asleep but it went by just offshore.
It’s just getting light. The wind is light from the north and the weather report is for a plausible day to get to the canal. The buoy reports are still showing brisk east winds though and this turbulent weather system seems to be defying prediction so I’m still undecided about what to do. http://share.findmespot.com/shared/gogl.jsp?glId=0JjTC23pqUeh7ugZrB7KECYzoDc5YLsHO
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