cape cod canal

[rtbates]

The History channel is currently broadcasting a show on the history of the Cape Cod canal. I found it very interesting and I've never seen much less traveled this waterway.

[Neil Gordon]

I was watching it, too.

The canal is a great way to go really fast over the ground!!! Consult the current tables and go with the flow. Watch for the square waves when current and wind run into each other at the Buzzards Bay end.

[Ron M.]

The canal is an interesting transit. current can reach 6 knots at times. In a sailboat it's wise to begin at slack tide or when it's going in your direction. There is no place to stop for about 6 miles, a small marina in Sandwich at the eastern end. You can have sail up but it is required that you motor. As Neil said, Hog Is. Channel and Buzzards Bay on the western end can be very invigorating.
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Medical Marijuana Card

[Al Levesque]

We had our CD33 peak out at 12 knots over the ground with a 35 knot tail wind and max current in our direction. We had entered with storm sails and decided we didn't need more. I still remember watching the sides of the canal fly by. Most other passages have been more mundane but I don't recall a single mundane exit into Buzzards Bay!

[Oswego John]

Tues. 7:04 PM

I just finished watching the History Channel's show re: Buzzards Bay Canal. A great show, very interesting. Well worth the time to learn of some of the details of it's construction and rehab through the years.

O J

[Parfait's Provider]

Thanks for the clue on the History Channel program. Had to cook and watch simultaneously, but it was a good show. Commercials can be useful....

[Carl Thunberg]

This sort of ties in with Joe's thread on cruising goals. I've always headed northeast to Maine waters, except for one trip to Stellwagen Bank. Next summer I'm planning on sailing down to visit my brother who lives in Falmouth and works at Woods Hole. Are there any words of advice for someone exiting the canal for the first time? Phrases like "invigorating" and "look for the square waves" give me pause. I go in and out of the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth with 2-ft standing waves all the time, so I'm accustomed to current. Also, how's the shipping traffic? Any words of advice would be appreciated.

[mahalocd36]

Also, how's the shipping traffic? Any words of advice would be appreciated.

We've been lucky and haven't hit any shipping traffic in the
canal. They are pretty good about giving Securite's on 16, so
you can avoid them. There is a hard to see traffic light on both
ends of the canal, and if it's red, you can't enter, presumably because there's some big ship coming the other way. (Personally haven't experienced this).

We've hit nasty waves on both ends of the canal after fairly peaceful transits. Don't worry, your boat can take it. I really don't have advice on avoiding it as it seems to almost always happen, particularly on the Buzzard's Bay side. Worse when the
wind is opposing the current, or you are approaching slack so the tide is turning. (Slack lasts all of 2 seconds ). On the Cape Cod Bay side we just headed straight into the waves and they slowly diminished as you got further away from the entrance.
On the Buzzards Bay side, you just gotta grin and bear it, it's usually from around the Mass Maritime Academy down past the entrance to Onset. Once you get in the Hog Island Channel it usually calms down. A lot of that is caused by wakes from power boats who want to get their last speed in before they slow down (or not) in the canal which has a 10 knot speed limit.

Having some sail up sometimes helps, depending on where the wind is coming from, or sometimes hurts as it just flogs and bounces all over the place. Keep your motor running until you are out in the Bay.

It's really not as bad as it sounds. Particularly because it's
shortlived, unless it's one of those days on Buzzard's Bay where the whole bay is like that. For your first time into Buzzard's go when the wind is forecast to be pretty calm. Not one of those 25-30 days.

[Al Levesque]

The usual rules apply. Transit at slack or favorable current. The sandy bottom outside the breakwater at the east end holds well for waiting out the current or spending the night. The small inlet just inside the canal has slips and fuel.

Avoid exiting into Buzzards Bay in the afternoon, especially if the prevailing SW wind is expected. With or without opposing current the SW wave action builds up to its greatest right there at the exit of the canal and makes the length of the Hog Island channel a miserable trip.

Shipping traffic is not frequent but when transiting alongside a ship or tug with barge you get less room and need to be more alert to what they might do. Staying behind sometimes gives a break in the wave action. Perhaps more problematic are the overpowered pleasure boats that use their power to keep control in the chop and thereby create a wake that is worse than the chop.

Woods Hole is another great experience. My most memorable moment was going through at the wrong time with our CD25 with a 6hp outboard. We had the genoa and mainsail pulling and the engine wide open and the channel marker was still gaining on us. We trimmed the sails to perfection and barely escaped being backed up into the marker. Again, choose the slack current or the mildly favorable one. Hadley Harbor is a great place to wait it out, you will probably want to spend at least a night there anyway.

I hope you get to try it. I am sure you will enjoy it. After our initial lessons we enjoyed it many times in both our CD25 and later in our CD33. By the way, you can actually put your hands and feet in the water without having them turn blue.

[Oswego John]

Hi Carl,

Al L. just about said it all. I'll tack on my 2¢. Maybe it could be called "Riding the current, 101".

It's basically this. Whenever you have to sail in waters that are affected by currents, especially strong running currents, timing is essential. Try to work the current to your advantage. As a rule, this applies to all rivers, canals and any water that the current reverses itself. Hell Gate in NYC is a prime example.

In the average canal or river with a current, the current is usually stronger in mid stream and weaker closer to the river banks. If you're coasting downstream, stay to the middle as far as practical. The same idea applies if you're bucking the current heading upstream, stay to the side as far as practical. Watch for the channel buoys.

As far as commercial traffic goes, I give them the main track. They aren't as facile in maneuvering as you are, and you don't require the draft that they do.

I'll never forget the time that I almost cashed my chips in. We were motoring upstream in the Detroit River in the fog when out of nowhere comes this huge, and I mean HUGE, freighter loaded with iron ore headed downstream. Yes, our running lights were on and the bell was ringing. The noise that these behemoths make, no one probably heard us. If he picked us up on radar, there wsn't much that he could do about it.

This floating juggernaut passed us, port to port, I would estimate about 200 feet away. It seemed more like 20 feet. It took about 30 seconds for him to pass us but it seemed like an eternity. There was no way that this laden giant, barreling downstream, could maneuver to avoid a collision.

I will never forget this episode. Yes, I would advise you to keep a wary eye on commercial traffic and give them as wide a berth as practical.

Have a good one.
Have fun,
O J

[Neil Gordon]

Just a few additional points/pointers...

As OJ said, ride the maximum current in mid channel. The notion that "still waters run deep" isn't true... the quieter water will be in the shallows on the side.

Where wind opposes current, getting out of the maximum flow might flatten the water a bit. Consider which will give you the best ride and best speed over the ground. You can't go very fast uphill into big waves.

If you are going to transit Woods Hole, slack water is a must. It's not just the inability to make good against an adverse current... the current doesn't follow the channel and your keel might not fit where the flow takes you. Watch also for buoys that should be there but have been sucked under by the flow!

That said, just be prepared but don't be afraid.

[Stan W.]

1. The traffic signals only apply to large ships. Cape Dorys can ignore them.

2. Al is right. The best way to avoid square waves exiting to the west is to time your arrival for before lunch or after cocktails. Afternoon almost always brings steep rollers right on the nose.

3. In my experience, you don't need slack water to transit Woods Hole, but you do want to be damn sure which of the two channels you are in when you exit to the east. It can be difficult to correlate what you see on the charts with what you see on the water in the area where the channels cross.

[Cathy Monaghan]

Hi Carl,

This sort of ties in with Joe's thread on cruising goals. I've always headed northeast to Maine waters, except for one trip to Stellwagen Bank. Next summer I'm planning on sailing down to visit my brother who lives in Falmouth and works at Woods Hole. Are there any words of advice for someone exiting the canal for the first time? Phrases like "invigorating" and "look for the square waves" give me pause. I go in and out of the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth with 2-ft standing waves all the time, so I'm accustomed to current. Also, how's the shipping traffic? Any words of advice would be appreciated.

Speaking of interesting and "invigorating" places to sail or transit, 2 have now been mentioned in this thread -- the Cape Cod Canal and Woods Hole! Speaking of Woods Hole, while you're there, be on the lookout for Mike Heintz aboard his CD30MKII Macht Nichts. He keeps her there for most of the summer.

Cathy
CD32 Realization, #3
Rahway, NJ
Raritan Bay

[Chris Reinke]

Hi Carl - It is not as bad as it sounds. The winds in Buzzards Bay are known for picking up in the early afternoon and slowing as the sun gets low in the sky. If you exit the western end of the canal between 1:00 - 4:00pm you may find the wave action less then pleasing, but certainly something your CD can handle. You can always jump into Onset. It is not difficult to find...just follow all the less capable "cruising" boats looking for a place to hide from the 15knt winds. If you wait a few hours for the winds to decrease you could still depart at 4:00pm and make Falmouth by nightfall for cocktails with your brother. We usually head out of Onset in the afternoon and count on the afternoon winds to provide some GREAT sailing. Onset is a well protected harbor where many boats spend the night waiting for favorable tides or winds in the morning. It is also home port to several CD25's, in addition to our CD330. If you are making the trip you should also consider spending a night at Cuttyhunk (the western most of the Elizabeth Islands).

[Carl Thunberg]

Once again the collective wisdom of this board does not disappoint. I guess what I take from all this is plan ahead, hang onto your hat, and enjoy the ride !