Great New England November sail

[slaume]

I got the chance to sail our CD-30 from Noank, CT to Montauk, NY over night and back with my 16 YR old daughter this weekend. There were several firsts on this trip. Winds out were forecasted 5 to 10KTS out of the West and may have been a bit higher. We sailed with main and drifter. At one point while under the influence of the outgoing tide in the Race we were logging 9.2KTS on the GPS! Well that never happened before! Overall we had a very fast passage to Montauk. I had never been there before and there sure isn't much going on this time of year. We were the only boat anchored in the "lake". Coming back we had about 5KTS more wind and it had shifted to the SW but we were stuck with a foul tide. We still made very good time. The Race was kicking up pretty good. I figured if I sailed up in the eddy of Race Rock Light I could gain a little bit of shelter from the flow and it would get me into the favorable flow of Fishers Island Sound the fastest. We had a reef in the main and all head sails set with which we had been making good progress. Sneaking up behind the light was a good idea until we had to cross the rip. The Cape Dory is an amazing boat and I felt at ease. We just were not making that much headway against the flow in some very steep and confused seas. Well at one point we were pooped! That never happened to me before in any boat other than my kayaks. It was not that a wave broke over the stern. The stern just seemed to settle and our wake combined with a wave to create a whole lot of foam that just overwhelmed the stern. It was pretty cool actually. The water came sloshing over the stern into the cockpit and splashed up against the bridge deck. It took longer than I would have imagined to drain 4-5 inches of water and all was well. After making the smooth water we were only gaining by about 1 knot. While my daughter was down below, putting on dry pants, I saw an oceanic sunfish! This guy would easily go 500LBS. I yelled for her to come up and see while I tried to keep an eye on him/her and maneuver a bit closer. Niki never did see him but we drifted back into the rip and took a bit more foamy water over the stern. At that point I figured it was time for the fun to end as Niki was short of dry pants. I started the motor and motor sailed out to smooth but still contrary water and our way home. All in all it was a very exciting weekend of sailing. Trying to make up for a lack of sailing this summer, Steve.

[Brian A.]

Hi Steve, I was sailing on Gardiners Bay yesterday, but not on a CD. Indeed, the actual wind velocity was somewhat higher than forecast. It was blowin' steadily in the mid twenties with gusts in the 30's. In short, a perfect Cape Dory day. Glad you had fun too. Cheers, Brian

[Joe Myerson]

Hi Steve:
What a beautiful weekend for late fall sailing! I'm so glad you got to enjoy it. I, unfortunately, have already stripped my boat in anticipation of her being hauled, so I spent yesterday raking leaves instead (grrrrr!). But at least some Northeast boaters don't haul this early.
Best of luck,
--Joe Myerson

[Bill Chapple]

Steve, sounds really fun. We were down in Stonington Sunday and saw a number of boats out - a beautiful day. I can only dream of next season
Bill Chapple