Destination: Cape May, NJ (the real Jersey Shore)

Nine hours underway flew by today. Little Bel Sito performed admirably. No major drama, which isn't always the case when going through the C&D Canal because it's a narrow man-made channel that big, honkin', humongous, gargantuan ships traverse right along side us mere passenger craft.

"So it's like going through the Lincoln Tunnel in a sports car surrounded by 18-wheelers?" asked Lad Paul. Yes, indeed.

 [click for more]

We covered 73 miles today cruising at about 7.5 kts. That's just under nine miles an hour. Think your suggested speed in the Costco parking lot. If we were to go just one knot faster we'd consume almost twice the fuel, so what's the hurry?

This whole speed thing I find quite fascinating as there are varying cultures around boats which I find almost as curious as our national political divide. My first experience sailing with Richard 12+ years ago was aboard a 41 Bristol and we spent most of the weekend in a storm - sailing. Winds like that can cause a sailboat to heel (TIP) at quite an angle. Novice that I was, I truly loved it, which was a necessary outcome for a second date. And I was fascinated to hear him report to others later about our speed as 'screaming down the Bay'. 'Screaming' in a sailboat is about half the speed the little fishing boat I'd rent at Lake Okoboji would go, but all things are relative.

'Sailboat racing' is an oxymoron, in my view.

Now, I love sailing. The sailing part that is. Those moments when the wind lifts you through the water in sweet quiet and transports you to wherever she blows. It's heaven.

But here's what really happens. No matter what the plan of the day might be, the weather changes. And after the sail covers come off, then the sail ties, then the jib is unfurled and and the main sail is hoisted - all requiring great manual effort - the wind dies. Or shifts.

Our friends Beth Newbold and her husband Pat Winkler took their 56' Tazwell on an extended Caribbean cruise last winter and ended up motoring over 70% of the time.

So even though the Captain of my Heart is a sailor to his core he's no dummy. About the time the first AARP card arrived trawler thoughts started seeping into his consciousness....and here we are.

I'm a little nervous about taking Bel Sito into the ocean...but we'll wait a day or two here at Marina in Cape May until we have a perfectly calm sea.

- Posted by Julie Gammack using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Cape May

The C&D Canal, Delaware Bay

The first picture in this stream is of the place near Turkey Point where we anchored last night. As I write this we are a few hours from today's destination; Cape May.

Check out the history of the C&D canal on Wiki then imagine what it took to dig this waterway by hand. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_and_Delaware_Canal
Also pictured here is a shot of the Raymarine GPS. That's us in the ship icon.

I'll post more tonight when we are tucked into a marina. Can you see the video? It's of the Ship John Shoal lighthouse on the Delaware Bay.

- Posted by Julie Gammack using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Delaware Bay

Anchored Off Turkey Point

We are just west of the shipping channel near Turkey Point in the north end of the Chesapeake.

We were underway about five hours, covering 40 nautical miles. Skipper G calls this our shake-down day. Everything seems to be working so far.

Richard spotted a Venture Newport 23 at anchor nearby, reminding him of his first sailboat 'Rainbow'. He figured he's sailed 20,000 miles since then, including a personal milestone that began 20 years ago when he and a group of 5 guys took off from Huelba, Spain celebrating the quincentennial of Columbus' discovery of America.

Being at the helm of a powerboat like Bel Sito is a whole new way of viewing the waterways. Plus, there is a bit of satisfaction chugging up the Bay while our sailor buddies are becalmed.

Tomorrow we'll go through the Chesapeake/Delaware canal - a 20 mile stretch that takes us to the Delaware Bay...that's the plan, anyway.

It appears as though the 'comments' feature of the blog isn't working, darn it! I know some of you have tried to post a comment and it didn't work.

We've had 436 unique page views already! Richard and I figured some of you might roll your eyes about blogging - you know who you are - and yet others will say it's fun to follow as our digital crew. This is for you!

Off we go!

We took off around 11:45 a.m. with the Sassafras River as today's destination








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- Posted by Julie Gammack using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Just north of the Bay Bridge

Adventurer Matt Rutherford Introduces Poseidon to Bel Sito

One must be very mindful of Poseidon when re-naming a boat. There is absolutely no one better than Matt Rutherford to take part in a boat name-changing ceremony, and that's Matt pictured above introducing Poseidon to Bel Sito, formerly known as 'Sunshine Tyger'. Here he is giving the Greek God his sip of the bubbly to make friends with the newly named vessel about to embark on Poseidon's territory (the sea).

In May of this year, Matt completed a 309 day voyage in a 27' boat, circumnavigating the Americas. Trust me. This is huge. Historic. He did it all by himself, non-stop, in a boat most folks wouldn't spend ONE night on, let alone 300+.

We first learned of Matt through Tom Harkin who got caught up with the Quixotic odyssey when Matt was just a few weeks away from the finish line in Annapolis. Tom thought it would be good to have some folks greet Matt upon his arrival, and so he wanted to make sure I knew about it, being a part-time Annapolitan and sailor. The Harkin connection is at least two-fold: Matt's doing something akin to what Tom dreamed of doing before getting sucked into politics, PLUS, Matt did this crazy thing to draw attention to a tiny non-profit in Annapolis that provides sailing opportunities for people with disabilities. The handful of people who will read this blog probably know, so may this serve just as a reminder: Harkin was the lead sponsor/driver of The Americans With Disabilities Act, and is keenly aware of the importance of providing work and recreational opportunities for the disabled. CRAB does just that here in the Annapolis area. 

Here's a speech Tom made on the Senate floor that got us, and hundreds of others, glued to Matt's trip: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGbRpFsEZKw

And here's a link to Matt's blog about his journey: http://www.solotheamericas.org

By the time Matt got home, this previously unknown young man, got a huge welcome ...fire boats, big speeches, lots of media and a flotilla of family and fans to greet him...

So, Matt gets back to Annapolis and is, well, homeless. We took him in over the summer and he lived in our efficiency apartment in the lower level of our home. He's moving back to his boat in a couple of weeks as we're putting our house on the market,  but we'll stay in touch. He has an extraordinary adventure planned. Here's Matt's website: http://oceanresearchproject.org

Our trip to Nantucket will be an adventure to us, but in the big scheme of things it is truly NOTHING compared to what Matt has experienced. All of our electronics are state-of-the-art, we have  a refrigerator, nice showers, ice-maker and air-conditioning! Plus, we won't be going more than a few miles offshore. But most importantly, Matt has told Poseidon to protect Bel Sito, and that's about as good as it gets.

Here's Matt doing a TED talk this month: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHQUjguIVHk

Matt's news clips: Washington Post Article (Feb, 2012)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/annapolis-sailor-on-unprecedented-around-the-americas-odyssey/2012/02/06/gIQAp5p6uQ_story.html

SailingWorld.com blog entry from Tim Zimmerman (Jan, 2012)
http://www.sailingworld.com/blogs/keelboat/a-voyage-to-inspire

Cruising World Magazine Feature Article (Jan, 2012)
http://www.cruisingworld.com/people/sailor-profiles/one-waypoint-at-a-time

NPR Interview during resupply (9/30/11):
http://www.npr.org/2011/10/01/140974717/sailor-charts-solo-trip-into-the-record-books

North American Sailor Website Article (9/19/11):
http://sailing.about.com/b/2011/06/21/solo-nonstop-sail-around-the-americas.htm

Sail-World.com article (6/28/11):
http://www.sail-world.com/USA/Solo-sailor-attempts-circumnavigation-of-the-Americas-non-stop/85203

About.com Sailing Article (6/21/11):
http://sailing.about.com/b/2011/06/21/solo-nonstop-sail-around-the-americas.htm

WBALTV News Interview
http://www.wbaltv.com/video/28080793/detail.html

Spinsheet Magazine, May 2011 – page 24-25
http://issuu.com/cdeere/docs/spinsheet0511

Spinsheet Magazine, November 2010 – page 16.
http://issuu.com/cdeere/docs/ss1110

Spinsheet Magazine, July 2010 – page 41.
http://issuu.com/cdeere/docs/ss0710

Spinsheet Magazine, June 2010 – page 42.
http://issuu.com/cdeere/docs/jun_ss_2010_v2
The Capital Newspaper (Annapolis, MD)
http://northwestpassage2011.blogspot.com/2011/02/going-solo-annapolis-sailor-plans-23000.html

Testing various blog apps

I am typing this from the Blogger App on the iPad. Blogger is a Google product and I now have an app on the iPhone and iPad that allows me to manage the blog. See the picture below? I dug that out of my photo library that - thanks to iCloud - is on my iPad, iPhone and computer. This is a photo of Beth Newbold and Pat Winkler in the main salon (and only 'salon,) of Bel Sito. Our good buddies will be joining us in Nantucket and cruising back to Annapolis after the wedding.



- Posted by Julie Gammack using BlogPress from my iPad

Waiting, waiting, waiting

Bel Sito patiently waiting for her skippers to get their act together...

Captain Gilbert

Skipper Gilbert at the helm in  the flybridge of Bel Sito, our 38' Pacific Seacraft 'fast' trawler.

 We're in the process of getting the boat packed, provisioned and ready for a long (500 miles) journey to Nantucket. She's had the bottom cleaned (scrapping barnacles can add a full knot of speed), and lot of maintenance work done by Andy Hoyt and Dock Call. We bought her in May and have thoroughly enjoyed every bit of this 2000 vessel.

We named her Bel Sito (the rough translation from Italian is 'beautiful situation') after a hotel where we stayed in Lake Garda, Italy. 

Getting ready for a great adventure

Julie handles the blog; Richard handles oil changes (etc.)