Well folks, eat your heart out: sitting on the breezy porch of the Shelter Island Yacht Club, at Deering Harbor, across from Greenport. Spent the day under sail – starting out with one reef in, on departure from the Great Peconic Bay side of the Shinnecock Canal.
Wind? Plenty of it, on the nose, of course. But a long tack took us across to
Mattituck on the North Fork (yes, the same town as the port on Long Island
Sound, but there is no canal or cut-through – this is just the other side of
the same North Fork town), where the breeze filled to allow approach to Robins Island. Tacked North along the island and into Cutchogue
harbor for a look. Peaceful, quiet,
beautiful: no muscle boats, no jet skis (well, maybe one). Then without the reef, what a relief, South
along Little Hog Neck and round the point and tacked over to the South Fork
(West of Sag Harbor), and then North along Jessup Neck for the exit from Great
Peconic Bay. Then, just a few miles
counter-clockwise around Shelter Island to Deering Harbor – where the Shelter
Island Yacht Club provided our mooring (and dinner) for the evening.
We did a ‘fly-by’ of the club’s mooring field, admiring the
assembled yachts, and were accompanied by a pleasant couple sailing a beautiful
blue hulled Hereshoff 12.5. They waved,
and seemed to appreciate the company of our two catboats.
Well, sitting here now, composing this note, I feel that the
rest of this day is going to go quickly, as we are signed up for an early
dinner on the deck, and on my part, a welcome return to the sleeping bag on
Lovinde – the first evening of the trip on a mooring, and I am looking forward
to the change.
Whoop: Captain Henry Marx (Landfall Navigation, Stamford)
just walked by …. he had been teaching a seminar here on boating safety, fire
extinguishers, etc. with the cooperation of the local marine fire departments
…. He was tired and wanted to get home to Stamford. He turned down an offer of supper, and even a glass of lemonade. Pure Henry.
But he did smile at seeing a local.
OK, then, tomorrow - through Plum Gut on its Flood (starts at
5am – we won’t make that – but we will be on its down-tick and end – and then
try to be as far away before the Ebb starts.
We are talking about Mattituck, or a CT harbor – as Roger has to leave
Owl for a day or so while he takes care of obligations, and then he will return
to pick it up during the week. I will do
the return to Darien solo – either from Mattituck or the undisclosed CT port –
to arrive in Darien …. Well …. Sometime Monday or Tuesday, depending on the
weather and the routing.
OK, now for the inner game of sailing. Today was classic: clear, good winds, a pleasant port awaiting,
and no navigation issues to deal with (i.e. no GPS waypoints) … just practical
problems like: get around this island,
stay clear of that shoal, and come in as close to the shore as prudent on the
short tacks. Part of the fun today was
tacking up along Jessup Neck, where starboard
tack took you out into the white capped waves coming down the bay, while port
tack took you back into the calmer waters where the wind was as strong, but the
intervening sand-bar/groin prevented the waves from building up. Just working the boat to windward – that’s
what we do ... what we are really practicing in the round-the-buoys races … but
in this case – this was for real: getting
up the bay and into the next adventure.
OK – dinner awaits – with a discussion as to the routing
tomorrow - then the launch back to the boats, and a pleasant night on the
mooring.
NOTE – just as I was finishing my lemonade, and getting
ready for dinner – a couple came over to Roger and introduced themselves … they
had recognized him from the harbor this afternoon. Indeed, they were the couple who had handled
the Hereshoff 12.5 so well – and accompanied us down the fairway.
In fact, there was a very good reason that they were
interested in our Catboats – you see, Ed and Joy Bausman are the owners of “Emma”
– a Marshall 18 – exactly the same as Lovinde and Owl.
This afternoon they were out at the mouth of the harbor, enjoying
the superior day in the Hereshoff 12.5 and noticed two Catboats approaching. They deliberately circled around us and
accompanied us into the harbor. Residents
of Shelter Island and members of the Club, they had come over this evening to
seek us out and chat about Catboats.
They have been to many Catboat Annual Meetings and several rendezvous at
Duck Island – Westbrook, CT. A Catboat
veteran of 15 years, Ed was able to provide some advice for getting a Catboat
through Plum Gut. With many things to
talk over about Catboats, junior programs, club operations and the attraction
of new members, the Bausmans asked us to join them for dinner, which we
did. What a delight – and at mid –dinner
we were introduced to the real “Emma,” – their niece, for whom the Hereshoff
12.5 is named (she is working at the Club, awaiting the start of grad school).
By the time we parted, after desert and coffee, we were old
friends, and pledged to rendezvous at the next Catboat Annual Meeting in
January in Mystic.
OK – here ends a very good day – complex, yes,….but a good
day – for all sorts of reasons, y’know?
Best – Frank
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