Rock Hall, MD to Lewes, DE This Weekend

[catsailor]

Yes, there are lights, but they do not light anything up.

Sounds like you should look at some C&D websites if you haven't already. There are streetlight-like lamps all along the waterway, set back and up from waterlevel. Probably not intended to replace sunlight, they look like they out to help light up a freighter? Wish i could be there, too.

They are ~ 400 yards apart and define the channel.

Do not rely on GPS. Mine showed me to be on the access road one trip.

The comments on shore lights are dead on. Very confusing. I would not do it without good moonlight (and I would need a reason), and I have done it many times. Get ready in the dark, but wait until the first rays of dawn. In the rain at night is a nightmare.

It can be a very long day. I did it in a 10 knot cat - in a slower boat it will either take all day, or as several suggested, a stop midway. If you do anchor in the Delaware Bay Tributaries, remember the tide will swing strongly in the night - 2 anchors.

The new docks in Lewes are nice. Been there twice. In the canal, just past the light ship, on the right. It can be hard to find the harbor master (both times).

There is some Delaware Bay stuff on my blog, older posts.

 

[Manny]

I ran the "ditch" in the dark when I moved the boat to the Chesapeake. I didn't find it to be to bad, just boring. I didn't find the lights confusing either, if I remember correctly they had sort of a yellow tint which made them a little more obvious. The hardest part was finding the entrance to Summit North in the dark, we had to use a small spot light to see the sign and the entrance.
Two tips I can offer are when leaving the marina is to first communicate your intentions on the vhf just in case there is traffic approaching the entrance -visibility is poor, then be prepared for the current and plan accordingly when reentering the canal.

Manny

 

[bnort3]

Stu, thanks for the advice. I've decided that I'll take off at sunrise. All of the comments about the drift has my awareness up. It really sounds more like a "river" current vs. a tidal change. Sounds like I should go straight to the opposite (NJ) side of the channel as soon as I get past Reedy Point and stay there on the way down.

 

[MrBee]

I just did the trip a month ago but from Cape May to Chesapeake. ( Actually started in CT.) Maybe I was lucky but I don't know what the big deal is. If you have half a brain and take it easy and pay attention you won't have any problems. Check your charts for Delaware Bay... you don't have to stay IN the main channel where the large ships will be. Plenty of room to roam. When you get up in dark to start the trip don't turn on a bunch of white lights and mess up your night vision. It can be intimidating being that close to those big ships but thats just the way it is. Some thing I try to do when in Confined areas, make sure your Anchor is ready to be deployed, just in case the engine fails. I tend to be over protective.

Bee

 

[bnort3]

I made it safely to Lewes from Rock Hall in 22 hours. Thanks to everyone for their advice and insights. Just a quick recap of how it went. We started out Friday night from Rock Hall thinking it would be good to get a few hours up the bay to Worton Creek but when we started out we saw thunderstorms and decided to go back. Instead of tieing up at the marina, we decided to try our first overnight anchor further up in Swan Creek and found a place with a handful of other sailors anchored. Other than briefly running aground, the overnight anchor experience was fabulous.

We rose at 4:45 am and were underway by 5:15 headed up to the C&D canal directly into the north wind so we had to motor the whole way. Bright sunshine, pleasant temp and running with the tide, we made it the mouth of the canal by 10 am and proceeded to Summit North Marina arriving around 1. After a 2.5 hour rest to retrieve the car in Rock Hall, the conditions seemed perfect to continue our journey so we left Summit North at 4:30 (an hour after high tide at Reedy Point) and headed to the DE bay. Had to run against the current in the canal. Not sure why it would have been running east to west if tide at Reedy Point was supposedly going out, but that was how it was rumming. We ran at 4.5 knots SOG vs. 8 knots on the western side of the canal.

Made Reedy Point by 6 pm. With a nice North wind, outgoing tide and beautiful sunny skies we decided to take advantage of the conditions and go as far as we could. For the next six hours we had a heavenly sail experience with no other boats in sight and a beautiful sunset. Had very nice dinner with some wine and just cruised to our delight.

Then the tide turned, the moon set and as many had noted, the renowned DE chop occurred due to North wind against the incoming tide. At this point we were roughly 20 miles from Lewes. It was quite dark, rough and treacherous as this was first time night sailing. I looked for a suitable place to anchor but once you are below the Cohansey there did not seem to be any places where you could anchor in the lee of the land in a North wind so we had no choice but to continue.

We were sailing largely in the channel as that was marked by flashing lights that we could navigate and it kept us clear of all of the shoals (Brandywine, Brown, etc.). So we had to watch out for cargo ships that were only visible by their lnav lights. Had one relatively close call near Brown shoal when we turned the boat around into the wind to furl the main. Took some chop over the bow when heading North. When we headed south again, there was a tanker a few hundred yards away heading north. That was a little scary. We all had our inflatables on and I had us tied on to the boat due to the rough seas.

We finally approached Lewes and overshot the destination due to the drift so we then were concerned about having to avoid the Icebreakers and the Outer wall.

We ended up making it into our slip around 3:30 am, 22 hours after we left, safe and sound. In hindsight, we should have stayed overnight at the Cohansey and made the trip again the next day when wind was going with the outgoing tide. But we learned a tremendous amount. Thanks again for everyone's advice.

Safe Sailing!

 

[Ron20324]

The suggested plan is to catch the low tide- or soon thereafter- on The Bay end of the canal. The flood will go towards the Delaware. It's in the guide books.

 

[bnort3]

Thanks, Ron. Any recommendation on guidebooks?