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| The view as we head out Absecon Inlet towards the ocean. The Waterside Apartment complex is front and center. It was built in 1962 and was recently sold for more than $23 million; a condo conversion is being planned. To the right is Absecon Lighthouse, which was built in 1856 but is no longer used. |
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| Looking southwest at the attractions along the shoreline, as seen from the mouth of the inlet. |
Sunday, June 24, 2007
As we raised the anchor this morning, the chain had many finger-size mussels clinging to it, plus hundreds and hundreds of tiny pea-size baby mussels, as well as occasional sheets and strips of bright green sea lettuce. We cleaned the chain carefully with the washdown hose, since we didn't want the critters to die and rot in the chain locker and stink up the boat. Given that the chain came up teeming with life and we saw several clam dredges in the working harbor, this must be a very favorable area for mollusks.
We motored out the inlet just after 9:00 am in sunny and pleasant weather. As we reached the ocean, another sailboat motoring out the inlet passed us nearby and spoke to us. They were Eclipse, from Sunapee, New Hampshire, bound for Boothbay, Maine. All the other boats in the anchorage left this morning, too, except the sailboat from Pittsburgh.
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| Eclipse, a Caliber 47 Long-Range Cruiser hailing from Sunapee, New Hampshire, passes us bound for Boothbay, Maine. You can read a short review of this very boat online (see the internet link, below). Click on the left-hand picture to see a bigger version; use your browser's "back" command to return here. | ||
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| Looking back at the shoreline of Absecon Inlet; Absecon Lighthouse is in the middle of the picture. |
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| We're now out on the ocean, looking straight down Absecon Inlet at the highway bridge (Brigantine Blvd, NJ-87). We had been anchored at the far left side of the picture (you can just make out the sailboat from Pittsburgh, which is still there). |
Once out on the ocean, Jerome turned to head up the coast, and we settled in for a long day of coastal cruising. We saw a number of dolphins in the distance, probably feeding, with a few birds circling overhead. Shortly, we passed a catamaran named Didgeridoo. We saw more gannets today, which are birds that look like boobies. As you might be able to tell, there wasn't a whole lot going on today.
The winds were from the northeast at 5 to 10 knots, so we were motorsailing with the mainsail up. Jerome seems to have great faith in the short-term weather forecast, but they haven't been very accurate lately. Last night, they said "west at 5 to 10 knots" for this morning, but today the winds started out northeast at five knots. The forecast this morning said "north or northeast at five knots," which wasn't too daring a forecast since it was already happening. The forecast claimed the winds would later become "south at 5 to 10 knots," but the actual winds became east at 10 knots, then southeast at 10 to 15 knots.
We came up the coast all morning and afternoon, the winds allowing us to stay a couple of miles offshore. In early afternoon, I took a break and went below to rest for a couple of hours (but didn't fall asleep), then Jerome took a break. In late afternoon, the winds picked up, and from a good direction, which made for good sailing. This caused a problem with our trip planning, because we had been planning to go slowly so we would arrive at next morning's flood tide. Right now, we're going too fast, so the trip won't take as long as planned.
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