Taking another trip

[HeaveToo]

On Monday I am leaving for up to 10 days.  I have no plans after that.

I know that I will head out of the Potomac River towards to Chesapeake Bay.  I am not sure if I should do an East/West trip and head towards Tangier Island, Smith Island, Onancock, etc or try to go South.  It looks like the winds are steady out of the North for most of the time I have off. 

I am looking forward to getting out.  It has been a bit stressful lately so this is a welcomed change.  Nothing like a little hydro-therapy. 

[crazycarl]

not knowing the route or destination is my favorite way to travel.

with today's technologies, i feel too connected most days. (i write on this tablet as we sit at an open air cafe)

i say, weigh anchor, raise the sails, and go where the wind takes you. every sail should be an adventure.

C.C.

[HeaveToo]

Oh, it is shaping up to be an adventure.  According to predict wind app the wind looks pretty steady out of the North East for most of the next week.  Wind varies from 10 knots to 25 knots too.  Majority looks to be in the 10-15 range.

It may be a rough ride if I cross the bay in 25 knots of wind.  I will have to keep an ear/eye on the forecast and see what happens.

[tmw]

I'm completely jealous.  Due to kid requirements, my "near the water" time was less than 24 hours, which consisted of mowing the yard, assembling furniture, recycling run, and sitting in my boat, but not actually getting in the water.  The bay looked like it was still fun with quite a few sailboats today.

Side note:  which wind app do you use?  I look at wunderground, but not sure how accurate their wind predictions are for on the water.

[wes]

Try Wndfinder - it's a free app for mobile devices. It includes a map showing the location of available wind sensing stations, so you can pick one that's closest to your sailing area.

Wes

[HeaveToo]

I use PredictWind.com.  It is free.  It also has an App.

This will be interesting conditions to say the least.  The wind forecast looks like it is pretty high out in the Bay.  I will have to see how I feel before I make the Jump from the Potomac to the Chesapeake Bay.

I am heading down to the boat after work.  Tomorrow morning I will probably pull the 150% jib off and put the 110% on the furler.  I figure that a reefed Main and a 110 should carry me to about 20 knots.  I may end up rolling in some of the jib too.

The wind doesn't bother me as much as the waves.  It could be a nasty pounding on the Chesapeake Bay if the wind is up over 20 knots.  Heck, anything over 15 knots and they can get pretty savage.  4 foot waves with short wave periods are ugly!!

I have options and no where I have to be.  I could always hang around in the Potomac and watch for a weather window to cross over.  According to predict wind the beginning of next week MAY, and the key word is MAY, have a time of lighter winds.

http://forecast.predictwind.com/gmap/GFS/178/876403

Truth is that predicting wind is a tough game.  Most of the time they are kind of right but knowing conditions for this time of year I know that I should probably error on the side of heavier air.

[brackish]

Good for you!  I still remember a past 10 day bareboat charter to the Virgin Islands.  We had four couples on two boats.  Every morning we would raft up and, over a leisurely cockpit breakfast, we would "debate" what our destination would be for that day.  It was great fun to sail without a plan and improvise as we moved along.

[HeaveToo]

It was a good day. I sailed 23 miles with North East wind 10-15 with some bigger gusts. One gust burried my toe rail. I am anchored in Herring Creek, MD.

I have to say that I am impressed how Saga handled 15 knot winds. I have a 110 up and a full main.  I was able to duck the wave action. I won't be able to do that when I enter the Chesapeake Bay.  I am curious to see how she handles being close hauled in three foot waves.

I am sitting here getting a little vitiman R and listening to Stan Rogers.  I highly recommend these activities.  It is cool outside and I am in a jacket!  Much better than no wind and 100 degree heat.

I will try to keep you all posted.

[Bob23]

Please do keep us posted, Mr. Heave!
Bob23

[HeaveToo]

Wow, the wind has filled in. It was 20 knots sustained today with higher gusts. I was using a reefed main and a partly rolled 110.  At times I was on the edge.

I went into Smith Creek and anchored by a Southern Cross 39.  It was a beautiful boat. They must not have liked my company because they pulled their anchor and took off.

Tomorrow I will probably backtrack and go to Breton Bay to reach Leonardtown, MD. I am not entering the ChesPeake with this forecast

The one saving grace it that the wind is out of the North East.  This means thT if I hold the MD shore I am sheltered from the waves.

Btw, Bob,23, I think that Norm said that he bought the 110 that is on this boat from you.  The sail is working great with these higher winds.

[Bob23]

Hmm. Mayve. It's been a while so I don't remember. I think I charge 100 clams for it and I'm glad it's working!

[Norm]

You are right Bob 23.  $100.00

[HeaveToo]

Great sail!

Today I flew the 110 only. I spent most of the day on a tight reach in 15 knots of air with some bigger gusts. It was actually quite comfortable since I was on the windward side of the Potomac River.

In total I did 23 nautical miles and I ended up in Breton Bay at Leonardtown, MD. This will be my first landfall.  I am treating myself to dinner and a beer! 

Interesting fact:  this year not far from where I am now a waterman caught an 8 foot bull shark in a net.  I went right by that location on the way into Breton Bay. Anyone want to swimming?  Lol

What a spectacular day. I don't think it gets much better than this. I almost had the river to myself. The wind was fine where I was and the boat sailed like a dream. I averaged over 4 knots. Left this morning from Smith Creek and came into Leonardtown at 2pm. Not a bad day for a short day.

Tomorrow I head back to Colonoal Beach. I will be pulling the boat out of the water for the season and to do some work.  There is a coastal storm looming and it may be a messy weekend so best not to be out in it. 

[tmw]

Sorry you won't get a full 10 days, and doesn't look good for sailing for me this weekend. Skydiving we had a saying that it's better to be on the ground wishing to be in the sky than in the sky wishing to be on the ground.

There is also the Annapolis sailboat show this weekend.

[HeaveToo]

Leave it to me to get sick on the sailing trip.  I got home yesterday, hauled the boat on the trailer, and headed for home.  I went to the doctor this morning with a sinus infection. 

Between the strong North East wind that pinned me into the Potomac River and this sinus infection I blame it all on bad luck!  Oh well, there is always next year.

I have learned that the  boat sails good in 10-15 and up to 20 if you balance the sails well.  Reef the main and roll up the jib some and it is very do-able.  I didn't try to deal with big waves as I was in the Potomac River and the North East wind means that the windward side of the river was the Maryland side and I stuck to that side. 

Leonardtown was the crown jewel of the trip.  I have been there several times but this trip was nice.  It was my one and only landfall and I had a nice meal in a local bar.  I met some pretty nice people there too, too bad they weren't sailors.