trip planning July

[rodcapedory]

Looking for suggested ports and precautions for first time trip North thru Long Island sound ending it Portsmouth NH. Need advice about dangers along the way and any insight into laying over for a week in Portsmouth New Hampshire. Yacht clubs or transient facilities in the Portsmouth area for temp mooring for a week. Dangers as to depths and other concerns , access to safe harbors and any general advice. Any advice welcome. Are there any planning such a trip North and if so might we tag along. Departing after 6the of July and on into early Aug. with layover in early Aug in Portsmouth or some nearby location.

Rod and Maggie
Gems
cd 330..

[Cathy Monaghan]

Hi Rod,

The next time you're at Lockwood's, come look for us, you know where to find us. We can give you lots of advice and show you (bring your charts) where to anchor and where to get moorings or slips everywhere along your route.

We'll be heading north, probably around the same time. Maybe we can cruise in company, but I haven't really sat down and figured out our cruise itinerary yet. But we'll definitely be heading to the rendezvous on Narragansett Bay and from there we'll be heading to Maine.

Cathy
CD32 Realization, #3
Rahway, NJ
Raritan Bay

[Duncan]

The local gang can probably help out more, but I have been lucky enough to sail LI Sound/Buzzards Bay 4 of the last 5 summers.

Here's the first few things that came to my mind:

1) Get "an Eldridge" - it's an indispensable local guide to tides and currents.

2) The horseflies (or whatever they are) can be terrible. They appear miles offshore, and go for your ankles without mercy. They don't like DEET, though. I killed dozens of them one afternoon, one by one, but at least as many made it through my defenses. DEET.

3) Duck in and sail around in the Narragansett Bay/Newport area, with the Herreshoff Museum in Bristol as a "must see". Dutch Harbour is a nice spot, and you can walk across the island to Jamestown.

4) Cuttyhunk is a sweet place. The college kids in the "Raw Bar" boat will come over to your boat when when you wave, and serve you delicious shellfish.

5) Stay on your toes - I've had some of the most challenging weather there that I've ever seen. It's not Cape Horn, but the wind can kick up, the currents are strong, and the fog is frequent. The sailing is fabulous and easy at times, but every summer I've been challenged by something that reminded me "it's not all smooth sailing". People who sail this area are some of the best sailors I've ever met - I listen carefully to what they say, and I watch what they do.

[jerryaxler]

When exiting the Cape Cod canal going south, if the wind is out ofthe sw-s do not exit with the ebb, but try to time it for slack tide.
The standing waves that form are truly awesome.

[Neil Gordon]

I'll let others comment on Long Island Sound and Buzzards Bay up to the canal. Starting at the canal though...

Time your arrival so that you transit the canal with the current and in the morning. You need to go with the flow and an earlier start will get you somewhere once you're on the other side.

The hazards are well charted and marked and not anything to worry about. Just stay outside of them. Send a PM and I'll give you specifics on waypoints as you head north from the canal as far as Cape Ann.

Scituate is a nice stop and about 5 hours from the canal. You can't anchor there but there are always moorings available. Satuit Boat Club is my favorite. Town is a short walk.

Boston is a bit out of the way but the harbor islands might be worth an overnight.

How many sailing hours a day and how many days do you have? There are lots of nice stops.

[Markst95]

One of my favorite anchorages is Napatree/ Watch hill. A long approach to get there but a great spot to spend a day or two. Summer can be kind of busy, I like the fall when the Monarchs come through.

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[Big E]

Salem Harbor is worth considering...Lots of restaurants, taverns & history in the area. Hawthorne Cove Marina offers slip & mooring rental at reasonable rates. There's a floating bar/restaurant you can tie up to right in the middle of the harbor thats pretty cool. If interested, pm me & I'll show you how to get in (there are a few hazards to watch for.) I know of at least 3 CDSOA members here as well. Good luck on your trip!

[Chris Reinke]

We make the trip from NY to the top of Buzzards Bay each spring, and back again in late summer. We usually grind out the trip to get the boat to/from our summer place so we are not the best to comment on the accommodations of the various ports along the way - but I can certainly let you know which ones are easiest to navigate in poor conditions. How many days have you allocated to make the trip and how many nm do you plan on covering each day? Are you sailing overnight for any portion of the trip?

The consistency of the SW afternoon winds on Buzzards Bay are legendary and can be a fabulous experience...if your running with them. They can push up the wave fronts with an opposing current which can make for a wet ride, but nothing your 330 will mind.

Please feel free to drop me a PM if you want to go over specific ports.

[Captmarklp]

I have been up and back, Chesp. to Maine, a few times and up and back to Cape Ann many more times.

Like a preceding comment said, "Take an Eldridge". Don't try to understand it just-in-time, read ahead. Do time the East River transit and also the Sound's E. end, whether at Fisher's Island or The Race. Also time the Cape Cod Canal with great care.

I have anchored off of City Is. with success and that is not too bad if not a weekend. On any Sunday, the CT coast is regatta after regatta -- a great spectacle.

I love, though, Oyster Bay NY: the West Harbor is an absolute hurricane hole. Last time through there I had a very Southern drawled woman aboard and she was able to get us of huge bucket of their hardstone clams for $5. It is a long trip into the harbor but can be well worth it.

Huntington Bay also offers several sweet anchorages. Not a short ride in though. On the CT shore, you have less tight anchorages but there are a good # of marinas and spots that you just have to come up and live with.

Duck Is. Roads, CT is a good mid-Sound achorage -- right "off the path". It has Pilot Pt., a Brewer yard behind it (not very visible but for masts). It is superb... with fuel, restaurant and they-fix-it. At the head of that harbor, there's another restaurant where they treat boaters like royalty. One rainy night and by dink, we found it was "Oldies Nite" which meant that everyone in a walker or near that and within 20 miles, tossed the walker aside and got roaring drunk and danced like there was no tomorrow.

Further east, the CT River is so special...but can be very tight. Mystic too and that's best to find yourself at the Seaport's docks for a night. Fisher's Is. south side has a phenomenal beach with eskers (polished rocks moved with the last glacier there). Stonington is good yet on the other side of Sound, Shelter Island beckons me more.

Dutch Harbor, RI as mentioned, is a great find. You'll earn your dinner getting to the Newport side of the island. Galilee can be an interesting stop. And Newport is always worth the bucks...check out the jazz club right behind all the waterfront stuff.

Around the corner...Cuttyhunk is great if it is not too packed. Padanarum, on the mainland, is cute. Woods Hole is always a treat to experience yet the W. entry can trap the unwary. Marion, back on the mainland, is quite exclusive and non-commercial.

On the N. Shore of Mass Bay, do try to see Manchester. Gloucester and the tight canal there v. going around Cape Ann is a choice not easily made. Rockport is so picturesque but not worth it if you have to get to it in foul weather.

Sorry to run on so.

[Carl Thunberg]

Hi Rod,

Portsmouth is my home port. My mooring may potentially be available if the timing works out. It's very likely I will already be heading north for the CDSOA Maine Cruise at that time. The Piscataqua River has a nasty current, but if you time your passage at slack tide, it's no big deal. If you must time your passage with an adverse current running, stay close to shore and favor the Maine side of the channel. The channel is exceedingly well marked, even at night. Kittery Point Yacht Club and Portsmouth Yacht Club both have transient moorings available. I know KPYC monitors VHF 16/68. I'm not sure about Portsmouth YC.

Send me an e-mail so we can talk details about moorings and facilities in Portsmouth. BTW - my mooring is well maintained with new 3/4 inch chain and a new pendant this season.

Portsmouth is a great town. There's lots to do in downtown Portsmouth. Make sure you spend at least one night at the Isles of Shoals about 6 miles offshore from Portsmouth. I recommend the trails on Smuttynose Island, which are open to public and accessible by dinghy. Most people go over to Star Island, but Smuttynose is much quieter and in my opinion, much prettier. Your chances of finding a mooring in Gosport Harbor at the Isles of Shoals is pretty good mid-week. Weekends are another story.

[Carter Brey]

I plan to leave around June 28th for points north/east, and will be gone about ten days. My mooring at Barron's Boat Yard, on City Island, will be free during that time.

Others have listed many fine stops in the area. A few more not yet mentioned are Coldspring Harbor, Charles Island (Milford, CT), Old Lyme Marina on the Connecticut River, and Third Beach near Suchuest, RI. Shelter Island boasts several beautiful harbors including Coecles and Dering. Three Mile Harbor is another nice place off Gardiners Bay.

Carter Brey
Sabre 28 MkII #532 Delphine
City Island, NY

[Bob L]

Last year we anchored above the bridge, in the narrow channel between the eastern shore and Goose Island. This was in late June and no other boats were there.

Bob