We left at 7 am on a light breezy day, trying to avoid wind against tide conditions, where the waves can be quite steep and challenging on the Delaware Bay. Jason checked an app that a lot of Loopers use, and we had at least 8 other loopers also on the lower Bay with us! On a usual year, about 150 people do the Great Loop (less than the number who climb Mt. Everest). However, rumor has it that there are 250 boats this year. With the bridge on the Erie canal in Phoenix, NY currently not operable, that has grouped some of the western bound boats.
Coming into Cape May harbor, Jason and I had a MBI (marital boating incident). Our marina was actually on an island and Jason thought we could go on the south side and I was pretty sure you couldn't because of a low bridge. Of course, the app we were checking, didn't say anything about the bridge height (only calling it a road). As the navigator, Nancy stood her ground, making Jason go around using the narrow channel dotted with orange race marker balls. We have no idea what they were marking and which side we should go on. Jason wanted left and Nancy wanted right. Jason stopped the boat, reversed and went to the right. There wasn't time for Nancy to gloat about the channel because a large ferry was coming out the narrow channel we were entering. (Jason earned lots of good husband points for listening to his wife)!
Nancy put the lines and fenders out on the right side because we needed to stop at the fuel dock. However, as we turned the corner to the fuel dock, the dockmaster said he could fuel us at our slip, which was two slips past the fuel dock with a floating dock on the left side. Nancy frantically tried to move lines and fenders over. The boat was being pushed past our slip so Jason decided to back in while he had a chance. Turns out that there was not only wind but significant current pushing the bow of the boat more than the bow thrusters could compensate for. Jason aborted and had a successful docking on try two even though Nancy was busily moving lines and fenders and was not providing adequate information to Jason. Fortunately, Sydney stayed focused on the right side.
We felt better a few minutes later after another large trawler was equally surprised by the current and the squeal of his rubrail contacting the slip pilings could be heard across the marina. The current was not showing on the pilings, but it was certainly there. Once we were docked we both apologized to each other for tone and language.
Nancy and Sydney took the marina shuttle to the historic district, (crossing over the non-draw bridge for the island) while Jason took a nap and had a lovely time browsing through shops and stopping at the fudge/candy store for some treats. We went out to dinner at Lucky Bones a couple blocks away that had good reviews by other loopers. However, we found the food subpar.
June 1st - Cape May Day 2
When we woke at 6:30 am, the wind had already picked up and the waves off Atlantic City were 4-5 ft high at a rate of every 6 seconds. We decided that today was not the day to head to New York City. However, we didn't know if we could stay where we were. Fortunately, the marina could keep us in our slip, but we will probably have to pay for the night we had reserved in NY. Frankly, it was nice to finally have a down day, although Jason spent it fixing the center windshield wiper motor, adjusting the bathroom door that wouldn't latch, and finishing up an engine room project. Nancy did some organization but read, talked to other boaters, and did a trip back into town, where she stopped at Peanut Butter Co and had coffee and a cookie in the pocket garden behind the shop. Sydney enjoyed reading out in the sunshine! We grilled steaks for dinner after our afternoon naps.
June 2nd, Cape May to the Hudson River
We woke up to a much calmer harbor, and headed out around 8 am for the 126 mile trip up to Liberty Landing Marina, NJ directly across the Hudson from the World Trade Center. Poor Sydney got seasick about an hour in to the 8 hour trip up the coast. Fortunately, the first aid kit had anti nausea tablets and those helped her. We passed right by the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island on our way into NY harbor. We had quite the treat that evening, the Manhattan skyline was absolutely stunning from our slip. You couldn't capture it on camera.
June 3rd - 6th New York City
Nancy and Sydney headed by trolley, train, and subway into NY and went to the Strand, the
largest book store in the US. Then we met up with Jason and went and finally saw Hamilton on Broadway. It was excellent. King George and George Washington were particularly great.
June 4th, Sydney took the subway with Radar, his first time on a subway, and walked through Central Park. Jason and I went to the Whitney Museum, where my grandfather worked and where Aunt Kay regularly took me. We also checked out a couple blocks of the highline, an linear park created from a old elevated railway line. Then we met my cousin Chuck up on Columbus Circle. Afterwards we went out for Korean BBQ.
June 5th, Sydney had really wanted to go to the American Girl Doll store with us for lunch, but turns out it wasn't open. We decided to stay an extra day, partly to wait for a package (a GPS booster for our ipad). We managed to get the boat washed by a local company. Unfortunately, our delayed start from Annapolis meant we missed our window to have Nancy's brother, Doug, meet them at Troy, and help them with the first few locks on the Erie Canal. He had to head to MD for the high school graduation of Nancy's nephew, Wynne.
June 6th, We sold our 46 ft Prestige, Stowin' Away the Time. The closing paperwork
required a notary, but luckily, one of the people working at the marina office was a notary. We were going to go to the American Girl Doll store with Sydney, but turns out it was stilled closed. Nancy went grocery shopping and Sydney went to a library museum and a public library.
Nancy and Jason met Sydney with her three bags of luggage at her hostel, which was clean and had tiny private bedrooms, but a shared bathroom. We then went out to a Chinese place a couple blocks away, where Jason tried matcha ice cream (but probably won't have it again). The smoke from the Canadian Wildfires had become really obvious, cloaking our up close view of the Manhattan skyline with hazy grey smoke. Due to a draw bridge on the Erie canal being broken, we decided to detour for a few days to Long Island Sound instead of heading up the Hudson as originally planned.
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