We originally thought we would leave Port Jefferson to have some current with us but we woke early...real early. We are so far east now that it is bright enough to wake up at 4:30. So we had coffee, got dressed, and reviewed our options. By 6:30 we were ready to leave even though we had some current against us we would pick it up again in 6 or 7 hours. Today's trip is 75 miles and goes through a narrow cut through 2 islands. The current can be so strong that it is impossible to get through. Timing is everything for today's trip. We were approaching the cut about 1:30 and noticed the current change. Our boat speed started increasing. By the time we got to Plum Gut we had a 2.5k current with us going through. The day was beautiful and much cooler than the last 2 days. We knew the heat wave was over. The wind increased and the sails went up. On a close haul straight to Block Island we were loving it.....until we heard the Coast Guard put out a weather warning for sever storms over Long Island and boaters should seek safe harbor immediately. We were not in Long Island anymore so Jane checked the weather radar on the phone. Sure enough most of the storm was moving north of us but there were other cells moving in our direction. We kept the sails up and motored as well with only 12 miles to go. We could see Block Island in the distance. With only 4-5 miles left the winds started to increase, indicating the edge of a front, so we reefed both sails but kept up our boat speed. At 6PM we entered the harbor under half sail....so happy to beat the storm but so happy to be back again. We were able to pick up a mooring ball just before the storm broke. The wind gusts picked up immediately and the 2 smaller motor boats started swinging wildly. The boat behind us was too small to pull back on his mooring chain and he swung behind us dragging his mooring ball and line under our transom making the wheel swing wildly around. Fortunately there was no damage to our rudder.
The rest of the evening was spent with our friend, Ian Mc Mahon and his sister Fiona, who came to our boat for dinner. We grilled steaks and had shrimp & mashed potato. Yummy! The next day Peter assembled our folding bikes and we rode into town. The quaint New England atmosphere was every where....and the profusion of flowers. That is part of what we miss after moving to Florida.
 |
| Local hotel |
 |
| Fiona and Ian |
 |
| Harbor from 'The Oar' bar |
The rest of the evening was spent with our friend, Ian Mc Mahon and his sister Fiona, who came to our boat for dinner. We grilled steaks and had shrimp & mashed potato. Yummy! The next day Peter assembled our folding bikes and we rode into town. The quaint New England atmosphere was every where....and the profusion of flowers. That is part of what we miss after moving to Florida. 
1 comment:
What a wonderful weekend we had sharing your company on Block Island. Thanks for dinner and breakfast aboard Kinvara, and especially the brow bread and jam. Fiona has since baked some loaves with Guinness Stout.
Post a Comment