The Big Apple

We spent the night on anchor in New Haven Connecticut because the marina we had planned did not have room for us. The anchorage provided decent protection from the south winds in the middle of the night. The next day we set out for Port Washington, NY where we had reserved 5 nights due to a low pressure off the coast that was causing strong winds and waves.

Cruising

When we weighed anchor and headed out into LIS (Long Island Sound) the south wind was making the boat rock so we headed directly into it until we hit the LI shore and worked our way west to Port Washington. We were passed by this cool looking boat.

Soon we were passing Execution Rocks Light. It has been rumored that the island got the name “Execution” after slave owners murdered slaves by chaining them to the rocks on the island and waiting for high tide to drown them. I can only hope that that horrible story is not true or the way the island came to be known as Execution Rocks.

We tied up at Safe Harbor Capri marina in Port Washington and doubled up on our lines for the predicted strong winds. A small tugboat came in behind us.

Tug Boats

Not a Nordic Tug

Yacht identification is a hobby of mine. I like to guess yacht manufacturers. It’s never easy and rarely can I say with certainty the manufacturer and model of a passing yacht. Some manufacturers make it easy to identify by always incorporating their signature design element into all the yacht models they produce. Even classifying a yacht as a trawler or as a tug boat can start a religious war among other boaters who argue which design elements make a particular boat a tug vs. a trawler vs. a motor yacht, etc. This particular tug intrigues me as most recreational tugs I see are Nordic Tugs, American Tugs or Ranger Tugs. All nice looking boats in my opinion. Less often I see tugs such as the Gozzard Pilgrim 40 (no longer in production) . This particular tug reminds me of a Lord Nelson Victory Tug?

Damaged Radar

When we arrived I planned on repairing our Furuno 1942 MK2 marine radar system which had stopped displaying targets shortly after we anchored next to the USCG boat in Fishers Island. I often wonder whether powerful military style radar systems that output much higher power microwaves can damage our low power 6.0 KW system?

Once when I was near Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay there was military testing operations going on around me. The warship hailed me on the VHF and warned that if I got within a mile of their vessel that it may result in damage to the sensitive electronics aboard my yacht. That started me thinking… it would be useful for military ships to be able to damage the sensitive electronics on a hostile boat by emitting a focused high energy pulse. Older style marine radars like our Furuno 1942 MK2 (circa 2005) emit analog microwaves using a magnetron like you find in your household microwave oven. These magnetrons have a predictable lifespan. Newer marine radars use lower power digital rather than analog microwave emissions.

Electronics Upgrades

After diagnosing the radar I believe our magnetron had given up the ghost. We need to have radar to travel safely so I ordered a new modern radar system as well as some other electronic navigation upgrades.

GMR Fathom 24 Radome
gWind Wireless 2 Wind Speed / Direction Transducer
GMI 20 Display Instrument
Scanstrut PTM-R1-1 Tapered Mast
Garmin GPSMAP 1243xsv MFD (multi-function display)

Train Ride to the City

It would be days before I could have the needed electronics delivered to the marina so we decided to go into NYC and visit my nephew who was living and working in the city.

We took an Uber to the Port Washington station and hopped on the LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) into NYC (about a 45 minute ride)

We arrived at Penn Station and should have just walked to upper Manhattan but we decided to take a NYC cab ride instead.

I’m not sure I understood any of this conversation

Colin

Waiting for us when we stepped out of the cab was my nephew, Colin who we were very happy to see. We. made him take pics with both of us for the blog. Either we are very short or Colin seems to get bigger every time I see him.

We grabbed lunch at a great little middle eastern deli and Colin had to run back to work. We thanked him for showing us around and we headed off on foot to Central Park just a block or two away.

Central Park

Steinway Tower (Worlds Skinniest Skyscraper)

I recently watched a video about the construction of the Steinway Tower masterpiece of engineering on Billionaire’s row

The Sights

As we walked downtown in search of a decent pub we saw many interesting sights.

Times Square

When we arrived at Times Square we took a moment to look around

By this time our feet hurt and we both agreed we needed a margarita and an IPA. It was almost Margaritaville until it was the Yard House.

On the way back to Penn station Teresa hailed a cab and instead a strange man pulled over and said he was a cab. We both laughed thinking our parents had told us never to get in the car with a stranger but we hopped in anyway. It turned out to be a $20 ride to go the short few blocks to Penn station but our sore feet said it was worth it.

Work on the Boat

Back on the boat and some of the new electronics had arrived. I quickly began to wire them up in the pilothouse to test before the actual installation.

Now hopefully the removal of the old radar and install of this new tech goes smooth tomorrow… Stay tuned.

NYC – Norfolk VA

We departed Port Washington and perfectly timed our arrival to the east end of the East River. We had a fair current giving us a strong push on our stern all the way through the East River and into NYC Harbor.

East River

Once in the East River you come upon Laguardia airport and Rikers Island.

Just past Rikers Island you’ll find the “The Boat” or as it’s more formally known, the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center.

A wee bit further down the East River and you come to an infamous location known as Hell’s Gate. This is where the Harlem River dumps into the East River. Our planning placed us here at max ebb current because it’s a great feeling being pushed in such a strong current.

Buddy was at the helm calmly making helm corrections as quickly as possible to keep the pointy end of the boat pointing in the right direction.

Roosevelt Island was off to port.

Past Roosevelt Island it can feel like a war zone as helicopters and water-taxis buzz all around you.

NYC Harbor

At this point you are nearing The Battery or the southern tip of Manhattan. The skyline looms above you.

Next up is Ellis and Liberty Island and that famous tall green lady of liberty.

The famous Staten Island Ferry wizzed past us.

Weather Changes Plans in NYC

We had planned on spending a couple days in NYC harbor and visiting Manhattan but our weather heading down the NJ coast looked great for the next 38 hours. We had a quick discussion at the helm and decided that we would go offshore. Stopping in NYC would have meant being trapped for the foreseeable forecast.

Offshore Voyage to Norfolk, VA

Going offshore to Norfolk would require a helm watch schedule. We like to call it a port & starboard watch meaning that there would be two teams. Team 1 = Buddy & Renee. Team 2 = Marty. When you’re on “helm watch” the other team is relieved of any responsibilities other than to rest up for when your watch starts.

Night watches means keeping an eye out the pilothouse windows for any lights. The moons phase was only a sliver of a crescent and it did not rise till 4AM. We chose a route between 2-3 NM off the coast and that allowed us to see the twinkling lights of shore as we made way south.

For those uninitiated in night watches you will have to become comfortable with staring intently at your radar screen while you push into the blackness. Looking forward out the pilothouse windows all you see is black and the few instrument lights that reflect off the inside of the glass. You’ll need to determine if any of those red, green or white lights are coming from a boat or a buoy. If the light blinks, it’s a buoy. If it’s solid, it’s a boat.

One night I come off watch and lit the underwater lights so I could stand on the stern as the propeller wash boils up from below as the lights of shore pass.

Here is a short video of a boat passing on our starboard side. You can clearly see the other vessel’s red-portside-light as well as it’s white-steaming light. When I zoom in the camera was able to pickup the white water wake in their stern light.

When I left my home port in Warwick, RI, a few fellow boaters, friends were also making the trip south for the winter. MV Ship Happens, a large sport-fishing boat, was heading south and we had been communicating thinking we’d cross paths eventually. I received a photo via text from Capt. Dan and to my surprise it was of MV Simple Life as they zoomed past us. Although MV Ship Happens left port days after us, she has a much faster cruise and eventually overtook us.

Capt. Dan snapped this pic of us on the way past us

During the day we were graced with the presence of whales. I captured a short video of a whale coming to the surface off our starboard side.

Whales off the Jersey Coast

While we were off the coast, our VHF crackled to life with the USCG issuing a securite broadcast about an overdue 43′ Benneteau sailing vessel out of Jamestown, RI called the “Carol K”. They had left before us and were somewhere along the coast with us. We attempted to hail the Carol K but got no response. We hoped that they would be found safe and several days later they were found 100 miles of Cape Henry, VA.

As we approached Cape Charles in Virginia we thought it best to tuck under the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and find a quick place to anchor for the night.

The trip down the busy channel into Norfolk, VA is best done in the daylight. I could tell you a story about nearly getting run over by a warship a few years back but that story is best told over a few beers. 😉

We searched our Aqua Maps charting app for an Active Captain anchorage and found one called “Concrete Ships”. The wind was out of the east but the forecast predicted the wind would clock around to the south and strengthen. This particular anchorage offered the best lee from the wind within the distance we were willing to travel.

My website/blog has a button that you can click to see the real-time location of MV Simple Life. Here are some pics of that my Garmin InReach Satellite communications device makes available to you.

Days past, I have made the trip south from Cape May, NJ to Norfolk, VA by going outside along the coast before. Those times, I had chosen to anchor nightly along the coast. There are few decent anchorages along this stretch of coast. One anchorage I have used before was inside the Great Machipongo Inlet. I recall how tricky getting through the shifting shoals dotting the inlet was. As we passed, I could not help but notice that the latest update of the NOAA charts shows a similar sized vessel to MV Simple Life wrecked on those same shoals. (Me thinks…) I’m happy I bailed on my inlet entry that stormy night.

Ghost Ships

When it comes to ship building there are many hull materials to select from. One such material/method is ferrocement construction. It’s a cheap way to build a hull/boat but has fallen out of favor with the advent of materials such as FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic).

We had arrived at our anchorage with plenty daylight left. We shot some video and snapped a few pics of the ships as we arrived.

Standing on the bow at night in the breeze we were flanked by ghost ships with their ghostly pale white shapes faintly materializing though the inky black of night.

Next up Norfolk Navy Yard …

Manasquan River Inlet – Jersey Shore

We left Port Jefferson, NY before sunrise.

It was dark pulling out of the anchorage but the only other boat in the anchorage was stationary when we left.

Along the way into the East River we passed several tugs pushing barges in the rain and fog.

Tug pushing a barge hailing us by name via AIS

Several hailed us using “MV Simple Life” due to our AIS. They say things like “We’ll meet you on the two” meaning a starboard to starboard pass.

The weather was not nice and I always smile when I see fishermen out in small skiff’s on crappy weather days. How much do you need your fishing fix?

Once you pass Execution light,

LI Sound really starts necking down.

Good thing LIS was necking down because the wind was whipping up a good beam sea

You enter the East River by going under the Throgs Neck Bridge and we always time our entrance with the current tables

Max Ebb, Flood and slack with current directions

Whenever we enter the East River we are looking for bodies like on Law and Order.

Law & Order starts most episodes with finding a body in the East River

Soon your going by LaGuardia airport, Riker’s Island and the floating Jail boat

LaGuardia Airport & Riker’s Island in the East River, NYC

Riker’s Island Jail – Can you say Law & Order?

Then it’s the city that is thrust upon you.

Traffic noise was really loud. Seemed odd to be on a boat surrounded by deafening city noise

I think the Staten Island Ferry docked here?

The sound of police sirens, helicopters, jets, traffic, everywhere.

The Brooklyn Bridge with the Stars N Stripes flying proud.

Apparently they even have boat bulletin boards.

Soon we were dodging water taxis and ferries like the Staten Island Ferry

Then it was by Lady Liberty

Under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and out to sea.

Here we found lots of large container ships surrounded by oversized tugs.

Container ship talking to the oversized tug who is delivering the harbor pilot

I want a tug boat.. I’m sure everybody does

Be careful of Romer shoal. You can’t miss the breaking surf on a lumpy day.

I also noticed that Sandy Hook kinda looks like the boot of Italy, no?

Soon we were heading due South and that’s where you find a winter beach.

180 Magnetic is the direction of our Winter beach

The wind was about 20 kts but it was an offshore wind.

That meant we could hug the lee shore and have a comfortable ride.

We were traveling only 1/4 mile off the beach and you could watch the waves break.

It was dark as we made our way down the Jersey shore.

There was a SCA (Small Craft Advisory) in effect

Waves were small but the swell was large.

This shows up in the depth sounder’s and looks like a lumpy bottom.

Soon we were making our way into Manasquan River Inlet in the dark.

The tough part is that the channel is very narrow and shallow.

We had to use our searchlight to light the unlit daymarks.

Twice we had to stop because of less than 5′ of water and poke around to find the channel.

Rather than anchor in the shallows we found a Brewer’s Crystal Point marina.

Tonight we are tied to the fuel dock and we’ll be gone before sunrise bound for Cape May.

Gale Winds and Manasquan River Inlet

YCWe awoke while it was still dark. Checked the forecast one last time. Active gale warnings withstanding, we decided that there was a short weather window. A few hours in the early morning to make our passage South down the Jersey shore.

forecast Manasqan — Small Weather Window Early Sat Morning

We left NYC @ Sunrise. I returned our dock key, untied our lines and crept out of our slip before anyone knew we were gone. There was a beautiful sunrise over NYC Harbor.

Liberty Landing Sunrise — Manhattan Skyline @ Sunrise

We quickly headed out of NYC Harbor which was littered with commercial traffic (tugs, barges, tankers, cruise ships, etc).

Tanker NYC — Passing a Tanker Entering NYC Harbor

Under the Verrazano Narrows bridge and out to sea.

This was Leg 4 of our journey South looked like below

The sea conditions were great but as early morning gave way to late morning the sea state started to deteriorate a bit as the winds backed around to the South.

We made a steady 9 kts down the coast and arrived @ Manasquan River Inlet just in time for max ebb.

Manasquan River Inlet Current arrival — Max Ebb 11:31AM

Entering an inlet off the Atlantic ocean can be hazardous due to currents, standing waves, shoaling, etc. The best time to enter most inlets is during slack current but max ebb is better than max flood. It’s better to have the current rushing under your bow and pushing you backward than running under your stern and pushing you forward.
Every boater has had that nightmare where the currents are pushing you fatefully towards a narrow or too low bridge! Piloting can get tricky.

manasquan_satellite2 — Manasquan River Inlet Satellite

We chose a North Pacific Yachts raised pilot house 43 for many reasons but the one I’ll talk about now was the full keel. North Pacific 43 Pilothouse

A full keel is reassuring when you run the Manasquan River channel that at times almost dragged our keel on the bottom. While offshore boaters would be horrified at the though of “running aground”, in the ICW it’s simply a fact of life. Dredging the channels to keep a controlled depth of 6′ is costly and difficult to keep up with. MV Simple Life has a draft of
4’6″ dry but closer to 5′ loaded the way we are. If you must run aground, do it with a full keel and skeg like ours to protect the running gear (propeller and rudder) from damage.
That said when the current is pushing you the full keel can get caught in the current and cause the boat to veer to port & starboard. Our Raymarine auto pilot has a “response” setting that when set to “9” will turn the rudder as fast as it can to keep the bow pointed straight ahead. Switching to auto pilot to standby (off) in favor of hand steering can be even more harrowing. As we passed through the Manasquan River Railroad bridge @ max ebb we were forced to throttle up to avoid an untimely bow swing that could bring the boat close to the bridge abutments.

Manasquan River Railroad Bridge2 — Manasquan River Railroad Bridge

While the river is full of passing traffic and shallows we made it to Crystal Point Marina and Dockmaster Todd caught a line for us as we pulled into our slip.

Crystal Point Marina 1 — MV Simple life Slipped @ Crystal Point Marina

After a short walk under a bridge we arrived at River Rock Bar in Brick, NJ. River Rock Bar in Brick, NJ

Bridge Fall — Kelly joking that she would likely fall in the cold water

Right away we spotted the Captain Morgan behind the bar and knew we had landed in the right place 😉

River Rock Marina Bar 2 — Kelly’s Down with the Captain

There was a local artist playing acoustic guitar in the corner and they had Sculpin IPA on tap! We had a great dinner & drinks and made it back under the bridge to retire for the night.

Shortest Ferry Ride Ever

We are still here at Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City, NJ.
It’s a beautiful marina in the shadow of Lady Liberty. From the boat you can see the NYC skyline of lower Manhattan.

Kelly stayed behind while I took an Uber to the market to purchase turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing for Thanksgiving. Much to my chagrin the market that the marina recommended was an Asian market and it seems Thanksgiving was nowhere to be found. I must have spent 10 minutes staring at the store’s spice display rack trying to find Cumin, Sage and Rosemary.

After coming home to the boat defeated we decided that we’d go out in Jersey City for a drink or two. The marina manager told us about a great place called White Star Bar and it was just a short ferry ride away. So off we ran to catch the ferry. We no sooner boarded the ferry and it pulled away from the dock. We heard the loud bow thruster spin us around 180 degrees. Suddenly the ferry lurched forward and docked on the other side of the channel 50 feet away. We were told to pay our $2 & exit. It was then that we knew our NYC water taxi experience had been ripped from us.

littlelady-photo-homepage — Picture Shows How Far the ferry Ride Was

We hurried down the cold street in wearing the warmest clothes we have aboard. There are no ski jackets or gloves aboard Simple Life. The bar was warm and we enjoyed dinner and drinks. Though they got Kelly’s Captain/Diet Pepsi/NFL (No Freaking Lime) wrong TWICE. Once it was scotch & Pepsi and the other some vanilla liquor & Pepsi. The waitress could not explain it but we were just happy to be in off the cold street.

As for getting further South… The active gale warning has given way to a gale watch for the waters off Manasquam River Inlet.

With this in mind we’ll be checking the forecast tomorrow as well as the real-time buoy data. Fingers crossed that we can again make our way South to warmer weather.