Camelot's Sail Notes, Boston Cruise, April - October, 1998

Leg 1: Ft.Myers to St. Augustine

April 15 23:00 Taylors arrive from Dallas.
April 16 2:00 The first of four takes to her bed (Gail)
4:00 Two more hit the bunks (Matt and Pam). Of course Matt had been mostly vegged out in the Rice's living room.
6:30 Everyone is up and working to get ready. No sleep for Captain Butch and little for Popeye, who felt the excitement in the air.
7:00 The decision is made to cut across Florida and Okeechobe Lake. Wind direction told us sailing around the Keys would be iffy and rough, while sailing across would be certain and pleasant!
8:00 Ready for last engine check just before leaving. Hummmmm, now where are the keys? At first, gentle humor, then panicked looking and re-looking... in Camelot, aboard Avalon, in the house, in the car, in the yard. no sign of keys.
8:30 Butch replaces the starter with a new key. (15 minutes)
8:45 Engine on and being checked; Camelot made fast.
9:00 Left dock. 
Motored the day; went through two locks and tied to bollards in Clewiston for the night. (really slick work). Captain Mel Longo on a delivery passed us here. (Mel and Diane Longo are good friends from St. Augustine.)...A 60 mile day. (Sometime several hours after leaving, Pam discovered where the keys had been hiding... Almost in plain sight, just under the Captain's papers.
April 17 6:30 Everybody up.
7:15 Untied from the bollards and headed for Lake Okeechobe just a few miles east. Wind to the SE.
7:20 Matt teasing Popeye and Popeye looks at Matt and says, "What are you doing, Matt?"
8:30 Flew across Lake Okeechobe with three sails flying, no engine. 25 miles in just three hours.
12:00 Mayaca Port and lock (terrible current); then Matt spun the boat holding it into the current while Captain Butch lowered the top mast so that we could get under a 47 foot bridge. (With top mast, we are 53.5 tall; and lowered top mast we are 42)... Then one more lock at Port St. Lucie. Just after this lock we raised the top mast and made a straight stretch of motoring until late in the day when we neared Stuart.  Hit bottom in the channel several times during this stretch.
20:30 Put up the club foot jib and sailed at about 4.5 knots until 2300. We were traveling through a very straight, narrow, shallow channel looking for the perfect anchorage and found it in Ft. Pierce. All of us shared time at the wheel. The Rice's constantly getting Camelot ship-shape; the Taylor's in phone conferences, working on project deliverables, taking care with the business.
23:00 Dropped anchor... An 88 mile day.
April 18 6:30 Everyone up.(winds to the SE)
7:15 Left anchorage and immediately put up main sail, followed by working jib and sailed to Melbourne at speeds ranging from 5 to 8 knots.
14:00 A call from Captain Bill and Becky about meeting them in Melbourne. Taylor deliverables getting shipped via e-mail as the cell phone allowed at 1200 and 4800 baud rates!! 
17:50 Dropped anchor at the Dragon in Melbourne. Well yes, we hit bottom on entry into the anchorage. There was a piece of local knowledge we did not have -- Stay at least 50 feet from the channel marker. :-( Good team work made this a minor offense) This incident is discussed in Gail's story Red Right Returning.
19:30 Bill and Becky arrive for dinner and conversation.
20:10 Remembered we had TV on board and watched weather. Decided the best sail was to remain inside
April 19 Another great day, winds out of the south, coffee cups in hands. Racing forward at peeds of up to 9 knots! It's another great day! Perhaps another 80 mile day UNDER SAIL! Anchorage for the night unknown ... as far as we can reach with the wind! Wind great; skys cloudy; Rice's relaxing a bit; Taylors working on deliverables... and relaxing. It's Sunday!
Current location: Abeam of Cape Canaveral's assembling launch. The last time we were here in 1993, the shuttle lifted. We had been at sea for days and did not know one was due to launch. We could not have planned it better... in fact, we would have missed as the launch was five hours and five minutes late because of strong winds (which we were loving, of course). Here are a few pictures from the first leg of the journey.


Leg 2: St. Augustine to Charleston, SC


April 24 A gorgeous day! Winds were light out of the north.  Felt good to be out on the ocean. The winds were too light to sail, gave the Perkins a good work out. Through the night the captain saw dolphins darting through the water, they looked like torpedos with the green glow of phosphoresence.
April 25 The winds stayed light through the night.  The stars are so bright and the sky so clear.  Capt. Butch gave us all a refresher course on navigating.  Camelots new radar and GPS work so well, but it's still important to know how to plot a course on the chart and dead reckon. We took turns taking hourly fixes. Popeye had a visitor, a sandpiper stopped and took a rest on Camelot.  He sunbathed on the deck until he was rested and then took off.
18:00 We arrived at Charleston entrance channel.  We were welcomed by many large ships leaving the harbor.
19:50 We dropped the hook in front of Charleston's Municipal Marina.  Thirty-six hours at sea, covering 217 nautical miles.
April 26 Pulled into the City Docks the next afternoon to get fuel and dockage. Watch the current here it flows at velocities of nearly 3 knots at times with tides ranging near 9 feet. 


Leg 3: Charleston, SC to Norfolk


April 26 Good sleep for all, pleasant morning, deliberately slow and productive.  Omlettes for captain and crew.  Spent the day on the hook.  Pulled into the city docks late afternoon.  Dock hands here are great.  Tied on the floating fuel dock, very busy place.
April 27 Matt & Gail work and work and work, Captain and first mate do what needs doin and then walk the town of Charleston.  Returning over five hours later, to find Matt & Gail still working.  Gail has rented a car to return home to get more work done.  Matt remains to catch flight out in morning. Matt works all night, 18 hour day.  Captain and first mate getting ready for next leg of trip.
April 28 Matt's off to Denver, Camelots crew drift off, beginning the third leg. Crossing Charleston Harbor, easy but cold.  Coming up to swing bridge, just north of Charleston Harbor, Captain Butch noticed a sailboat that looked to be about  45', waiting impatiently and dangerously close to the swing bridge.  The sailboat was upstream with strong current and very strong wind trying to drive it into the bridge.  When the bridge started opening the sailboat turned and was immediately driven towards it, a nightmare was about to unfold.  The sailboat was on the wrong side of the swing bridge, it was swinging right at it! Fear and panic took over, the sailboat powered full-throttle and veered sharply trying to avoid being driven under the bridge by the strong current. Not able to break free immediately, he screamed along the bridge pilings heading toward shore, parralleling between high voltage wires and the bridge going full-throttle.  Screams came over the radio from other boaters telling the sailboat to back off, back off!  He turned sharply driving the boat aground so hard the back end flew out of the water till you could see his rudder, at the same time his mast impacted the wires supporting the high voltage power pole.  The sailboat finally came to rest entangled in the wires and laying on its side.  When coast guard and sea tow came on scene they removed all persons on board, no one was injured.  With winds near 25 knots steady, and witnessing such horror, we called it a short day. We picked an anchorage recommended by the waterway guide, which turned out to be a very poor anchorage.
April 29 We got an early start and headed up the waterway.  We went past Georgetown, entered the beautiful Waccamaw River. We were looking for a good place to hold up for the coming storm,  Jericho Creek off the Waccamaw River fit the bill perfectly.
April 30 Constant rain.
May 1 Early start, long day.  We went through more beautiful river, cypress trees and heavy growth, very few homes.  Then we entered North Carolina with a pontoon bridge opening only on the hour.  It takes the bridge 20 minutes to open and close.  Spent the night in Southport, tying up at dusk, perfect timing.
May 2 Lots of shallow water, somewhat repetitious.  The water was cleaner then what we had been in.  The bridges are pretty screwed-up.  Only opening on the hour, you can get yourself into trouble if you're not careful.  Anchored by Little River Inlet, in a U.S. military basin. The holding  was very poor.  We heard mortar and automatic gun fire that evening, they must have been doing military exercises.  The military owns all the land from this point on for about 5 miles up the waterway.  They use this land for military exercises and training. Occassionly they close off the waterway to all traffic for your own protection.
May 3 Got underway at 06:00, made it to Beaufort, NC by noon.  Saw one of Camelot's sisterships by the name of Three Belles.  She was the eleventh and last Mayflower built, Carl and Reeva Wesson and daughter Ivy are the owners, very exciting for us and Camelot to meet and compare vessels. Carl knew of a mooring Camelot could use.  What a treat in such a crowded anchorage off the town. She would be secure here for the second wave of bad weather coming.  We were told the maritime museum had loaner car for transient boaters to use, we were able to use it to do some provisioning.  It's nice to visit a place that actually caters to boaters.
May 4 The morning starts with Carl and Reeva coming over for coffee.  Carl annouced that it was business and wanted to pick the Captains brain for ideas for the restoration of Three Belles.  After coffee they invited us to come aboard Three Belles it was interesting to see the similarities and differences, mostly differences.  The afternoon left time for a few projects on the boat.  The evening approaches and so does the storm, lo and behold the boat that entangled itself in the wires by the bridge shows up with his traveling companion in another boat.  The first is warned about running aground by Three Belles, he was heading for the shoals at full speed, the later dropped his hook right off Camelots bow.  Mother Nature was ready to rock n roll with 30 knots of wind and high gusts to 55knts, occassional hail with reported tornadoes and water spouts.  Approximately 00:00 hrs. Captain Butch noticed the later boat that had anchored in front of Camelot was dragging.  It seemed impossible to wake him up.  He grugingly acknowledged and upped his anchor.  It was a close call for us and the boat moored next to us. Through the night there were seven distress calls made to the Coast Guard, three found Look-out Shoals, another had his cabin ripped off.  Things calmed down a bite by 03:00.
May 5 Beautiful morning, checking the weather forecast, we find we have another system moving in by the end of the week.  Got a message late afternoon,  Matt & Gail are meeting us in Norfolk on Saturday,  we need to make way immediately. 
May 6 Underway at day break.  Running until late.  Made our best day run so far, 124 miles.
May 7 Had a good day, made a run from North River to Willoughby Bay in Norfolk.  Made it through the gauntlet, as Captain Butch calls it.  It's all in the timing. The lock at Great Bridge and 6 scheduled bridges. We docked at Rebel Marine, home of the  re-nound Norfolk Rebel (a sailing tug) and Captain Lane A. Briggs founder of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race. Lane and crew announced we made it just in time for the barbecue, and welcomed us into there group. They made us feel at home. What wonderful, kind people.
May 9-13 Had a week of bad weather. Rebel Marine was the perfect place.  Matt and Gail arrived Saturday night.  The people from Nasa's Navigation Center at Langley made an appointment to meet with Matt and Gail aboard Camelot on Monday evening.  The hopes of a sunset sail were washed away with the weather.  Matt and Gail left Norfolk on the 13th.


Leg 4: Norfolk, Va to Port Unknown

 

May 14 Heading north on the Chesapeake Bay for Washington D.C. So much for the fair weather reports, encountered winds of 25 knots and better out of the north, with an opposing current causing waves to be very steep and reaching nearly 6 feet. We spent the night in Great Wicomico River, just south of the mouth of the Potomac River.
May 15 We start up the Potomac River, it's very wide.  It will be a 100 mile trip to Washington D.C. About 6 miles from D.C.there is a main highway bridge crossing the river which only opens between 5:00AM to Midnight with a 12 hour notice.  We decide to stop for the night about 30 miles from D.C. 
May 16 The morning started with a cup of coffee and a climb to lower the top mast.  After the top mast was secure we made way for D.C. Arriving at the dock around 17:00, where Matt met us.  With a helping hand from Matt we proceded with the task of raising the top mast for the next days coming sail.  Gail arrived from Hilton Head a few hours later.
May 17 A busy day ahead.  Matt & Gail have guests coming for a sail on Camelot and the blessing of the fleet is taking place in the harbor.  The tall ship Endeavor is participating in the event. A treat is instore for all. The Endeavor is a replica of Lt. James Cook's ship, H.M.Bark Endeavor.  The overall length of the Endeavor is 109ft.3".  It was very exciting seeing her underway sailing along side Camelot with cannons shooting-off. After the blessing we sailed to Alexandria, where the Endeavor was docked.
May 18 Winds were light so Matt and Gail worked on board Camelot, they met with a friend and also had a business meeting.  The captain and first mate did some varnishing and a little sight seeing.  So much to see.
May 19 Matt and Gail had a full day of meetings. Captain & first mate did more varnishing and sight seeing.
May 20-22 Matt and Gail left early in the morning for Hilton Head. Captain and first mate spent the rest of the week in D.C.
May 23 Left the dock at 6:00, have to make the opening for the highway bridge. Having the current with us we made good time down the Potomac River.  Anchored in the St. Marys River near the mouth of the Potomac.  Rolling hills and beautiful landscapes.
May 24 Light winds, Camelot has full sail up.  We arrive at Solomon's Island, on the Patuxuent River, early afternoon. It was very crowded, marinas everywhere you look.  We found a very sheltered place to anchor.
May 25 Left the crowd behind, had a great sail to Oxford, Maryland.  Trying to decide where to drop the hook when, Bubbles, a man sailing by, told us we could tie to a yacht club mooring.  From the water, the town looks small and quaint.
May 26 Oxford is two miles up the Tred Avon River from the Choptank River. It has the oldest private ferry in the country, it began service in 1683.  It runs people and cars to Bellevue and back. The walk through the village was peaceful and friendly.  We stopped at Cutts and Case Boatyard,  and had the pleasure of getting a tour of  there wooden boat building operation.
May 27 Drizzley morning. We decide to check-out St. Michaels from the back creek.  We went into Broad Creek which is west of Tred Avon River off the Choptank. Dropped the hook and dingyed up San Domingo Creek to St.Michaels. The local people are very friendly(we got offfers for rides by 2 people). The shops and homes are charming and quaint. The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is St. Michaels major attraction, it is devoted to the culture and history of the bay. 
May 28 We start off for Annapolis.  The captain see's a big vessel in the distance, who is it but the Endeavor.  It seems we are traveling the same route they are, the captain takes Camelot close by, we take photo's, the crew aboard Endeavor take photo's of  Camelot. We have a good sail to Annapolis, when we pull into the harbor the boaters of Eastport were protesting their association with Annapolis, they were shooting off cannons at the city of Annapolis from their boats,  they want their independence! Wouldn't you know we would come in the middle that.
May 29 We have a good sail to Rock Creek, off the Patapsco River.  We are anchored off Maryland Yacht Club, where we've come to meet some boat friends. We're about 10 miles southeast of Baltimore.

Leg 5: Baltimore, Ma to the Ports of L.I. Sound

June 8 The day starts out with a dead house battery, a new one is needed. With help from Al Freeman at MYC we were soon on our way.  He deserves a special thanks.  The forecast called for 10 to 20 knot winds, but it turned out to be 25 to 30 knots, we flew.  What a great sail, just wish it would get warm! Made it to junction of the C&D canal, the end of the Chesapeake.
June 9 Weather, weather, oh boy, here comes another weather system. We started the morning going through the C&D Canal, a 12 mile ditch that takes you from the Chesapeake Bay to Delaware Bay.  With the current flowing with us Camelot was through the canal and in the Delaware Bay in a short time. The Delaware Bay is over 50 miles long, it can be very rough in certain conditions, because of strong tides.  We had a good run.  Entering Cape May Canal was fairly easy, but once getting inside depths were shallow.  There are two bridges (55 ft. clearance) plus an old swing railroad bridge which is open all the time but the guide did not mention that the width of the opening was only about 35 ft.  Camelot has a 13 ft. beam.  What a trip, it looked like you could touch the sides of the bridge.  The captain did an excellent job taking Camelot through the harbor. The weather cooperated for this run, as the day went on it became overcast.
June 10 Bleak morning, the serious weather still hasn't arrived.  With what looks like a week of bad weather on the way, the decision was made to do the off-shore run to Sandy Hook.  Satellite pictures showed better weather north of us.  As we headed north we entered a patch of sunshine, as evening approached the clouds moved in.  We arrived at Sandy Hook around midnight. 
June 11 New York Harbor, wow!  Sailing amongest all the freighters, seeing the Statue of Liberty, the buildings on Manhattan, what a sight.  It was very cool. 
Matt was in New York City, so we decided to stay on a mooring at the 79th St. City Marina in the Hudson River.  The current can rip down the river on the ebb sometimes reaching velocities of up to 4 knots, we were told we would have to keep watch on the ebb tide to make sure the mooring didn't drag.  We picked Matt up at the outside breakwater of the marina.  Pulling up to the breakwater/dock you have to remember the fast moving current, the captain used it to his advantage, excellent docking.
June 12 Foggy! Rainy!  Woke early to take Matt to the dock. Captain & crew spent the day on the mooring. Weather reports call for a weather system to come through each day for the next week !! 
In the evening we had dinner aboard Camelot with Matt and Bob Schwartz.
June 13 Foggy! Rainy!  Woke early to take Matt to the dock.  The captain & mate meet with Kelvy Bird and her mother, Nicky.  We returned to the mooring with Matt and Mark Molitor.  We returned to the dock in a complete downpour.  We all got a little wet!  Matt was off to California.  The captain & mate returned to the mooring, then came back to the dock to get groceries Kelvy & Lisa Piazza had picked-up for us. Then  returned to the mooring for the night. 
The stay in New York City has definitely been a practice of docking and mooring.
June 14 Foggy! No rain yet!  Lisa Piazza is cruising with us for a few days.  We waited for the fog to clear before leaving New York City.  We need a minimum of one mile visibility to go by La Guardia Airport, because of the height of Camelot's mast, also it would be a good idea to have good visibility going through New York's busy harbor. We have to time the tide going through Hell Gate, currents can run to 5 knots on the ebb creating whirlpools and crosscurrents.  The timing was right, the trip going around Manhattan(The Battery), under the Brooklyn bridge, through the East River and Hell Gate was good. 
We entered Long Island Sound, it is a nice change from busy NY harbor.  We anchored in Mahasset Bay, NY.
June 15 We get fuel and check out the arrangements for getting to the airport from Mahasset Bay.  There is a clearing in the weather and wind, so we decide to head east to Oyster Bay.  The clearing didn't last long, more rain and fog.  We arrive in Oyster Bay, we look at high bluffs with beautiful estates and sand beaches.  It's very pleasant.  We anchor for the night.
June 16 We woke to pea soup fog, as the day went on the fog burned off, the sun came out.  We decide to explore the city of Oyster Bay and check out arrangements for Lisa to get to La Guardia Airport. The city is nice. The train station is just a couple of blocks from Oyster Bay Marine.  It's a good drop off point for Lisa. 
The captain and Lisa take a sail in Pendragon, to check out the harbor's beach.
June 17 We took Lisa into shore around noon, so she could hop the train to NY.  Randy, Captain Butch and Pam's son, will be arriving Thursday sometime. We spend the rest of the day anchored in Oyster Bay.
June 18 The captain did maintenance on the main boom and Pam did some varnishing. Randy arrives around 11PM.  It is great to see each other again.  Good time. 
June 19 We move on to Huntington Bay.  We take Camelot into Huntingtion Harbor to provision, they have a courtesy dock where you can tie up for l hour.  The rush was on.  We raced to the grocery store.  On the return a fellow boater gives us a ride in his truck, so we didn't have to carry all the groceries.  We fill the water tanks and are on our way.  We left the harbor and dropped a hook in Huntington Bay, by a sandy beach called Sand City Island.
June 20 The captain starts the day with engine maintenance.  It's a busy Saturday by Sand City Island.  A fun scene, many people having a good time, boating, swimming and playing on the beach.
June 21
 We reserved a mooring for Camelot at Huntington Yacht Club.  We will wait here for Matt to arrive.  We did more provisioning and the laundry.  Matt arrived around 7:30pm.
June 22
 We use Matt's rental car to do more provisioning.  We got weather forecast for the next few days and learned some new terms. Today fog will give way to late day hazy sunshine, tomorrow fog should give way to cloudy sun. We're anxious to see these new weather phenomenons.
June 23
 Gray, gray, gray day! 
We've decided that we may have seen hazy sun, but aren't quite sure, haven't seen it before.
June 24
 A day trip to Northport to check out the harbor and reserve a mooring for the weekend.  Matt has business in Boston and will need to reconnect with Camelot.  Looks like Northport will be a good place.
June 25 The captain sanded the decks. Pam worked on the rigging.
June 26 The captain finished working on the decks. Then we headed to Northport Yacht club around 1600 and tied to one of their moorings.  They have a launch service which makes it convenient to go to shore. We took a walk through the quaint village of Northport.  Matt and Randy returned to Camelot from Boston around 23:30.
June 27 The day began with Stuart Silverstone coming aboard Camelot for business and pleasure.  It was a stormy looking day, with plenty of wind. A jet skier rescued Matt's hat.  Camelot got hooked on a lobster trap float, the muffler exhaust pipe on the starboard side sticks out about 3 inches from the hull, the float hung up on it.  The boat hook and turning Camelot a bit released it.  We had a good sail.
June 28 We sailed Long Island Sound, wherever the wind blew us.  We sighted the 158' tall ship, Ernestina.  We sailed past her, then came about and followed her for awhile. We tacked back, and through Huntington and NorthPort bay to the mooring at Northport Yacht Club.  Another great sail.
June 29 Bob Kraska came aboard Camelot for a visit. The crew did the laundry and provisioning.  Capt. Butch, Pam and Bob took an evening sail in Pendragon (Camelot's dinghy) to the village of Northport.
June 30 It looked like a stormy day.  Capt. and family went to a matinee. Matt and Bob stayed aboard, getting some work done. Evening storms, lots of activity on the marine radio. 
July 1 20 to 25 knot winds were good winds for a morning sail with Bob Kraska.  Matt picked Gail up at the airport they arrived at Camelot around 14:30 with the wind blowing.
July 2 Capt. and Pam woke early to take Randy to the airport. 
Had a light wind sail with Matt and Gail.  Anchored for the night by Sand City Island. The day ends with a Gorgeous sunset.


Leg 6: Cruising the Ports of L.I. Sound

July 3 Spent the day anchored by Sand City Island. Then motored over to Northport Yacht Club for the night.  We'll be picking up guests here on the 4th.
July 4 Today is Matt and Gail's 10th anniversary with Camelot.  Austin Fitts and Lincoln Ellis were their guests arriving around 11:00. It was a foggy, hazy day with generally light winds. We sailed to Stamford, CT, which is about 7.5 miles across Long Island Sound from Huntingtion Bay, we motored through the harbor then we sailed back to Northport Yacht Club.  We saw fireworks from a distance. 
July 5 Matt took Gail to the airport, she is going to Palo Alto.  Capt. Butch and Pam sailed Camelot to Oyster Bay where we met up with Matt.  Matt spent the afternoon sailing Pendragon.
July 6 We sailed across Long Island Sound, to Greenwich, CT.  We anchored by the Captains Islands.  It's very pretty, you can see the buildings of NY City. The Islands look pretty nice with heavy vegetation and some nice beachs. We anchored just north of the beach at Little Captain Island. A Ferry brings Greenwich residents only out to the Island. 
July 7 We spent the day anchored by the Captains Islands.  Captain Butch and Pam took a sail in Pendragon, Matt stayed aboard Camelot getting some work done.  We were disappointed sailing up to the island and reading the sign stating for Greenwich residents only.  We walked the tide line of the island. We went to Stamford, CT.  in the evening and anchored behind the breakwater.
July 8 The captain did some computer work.  Matt was busy all day, so we just stayed anchored. The weather is so grey and damp. 
July 9 Capt. & Pam did some sanding and varnishing.  We got fuel and water at Stamford Harbor Park Marina.  We also decided  to spend a couple nights here.  Matt has to go to Boston, so this is a good place for him to catch the train.
July 10 Camelot got a bath, also an oil change and some varnishing.  She's looking pretty.  Being at the dock Camelot gets all kinds of admirers.  Matt returned from Boston in the evening.
July 11 The Parade of the Tall Ships, what a great experience. It was very exciting, with winds of 15 to 20 knots and the sun shining it was a great day. Camelot was sailing beautifully in the parade.  We were sailing with the Bounty, Half Moon, Red Lion, HMS Rose, and the Libertad.  After the parade the ships moored to barges anchored in Hempstead Harbor, by Glenn Cove.  We anchored close by to watch the festivities.  They had a fireworks display in the evening.  It was a grand event.
July 12 Boats were almost anchored on top of us, so we left Hempstead Harbor early. We got a closer look at the tall ships and had a chance to talk with some of the Crew members, taking Camelot up along side them.  These ships are very cool,  as we were admiring them the crew's on the tall ships were photographing and admiring Camelot. After which we headed out to Manhasset Bay, Matt is flying out to Palo Alto, this was a good place to get a taxi to the airport. After getting Matt landside, Captain & mate sailed east, dropping the hook back in Huntington Bay at 22:00.
July 13 Heading out of Northport bound for Port Jefferson, we had light winds. Arrived in Port Jefferson Harbor around 18:30.  We tied to a mooring and went ashore, the town is located on the water and is very nice. Here they have a car ferry that travels to Bridgeport, CT. The habor has several little bays on the north side in which you could anchor, with good access to beachs. We did not have time to explore these spots but hope to on the way back. 
July 14 We left early morn.  Started with light winds, as the day went on the wind blew harder.  We had a great sail, plus the captain flagged a lobster boat while underway and bought fresh lobster. The currents are very strong at the eastern end of Long Island Sound, the timing of the tide is very important in going through Plum Gut, the cut between Orient Pt. and Plum Island where the current can run up to nearly 5 knots.  This takes you into Gardiners Bay. We then proceded west  to anchor on the north side of Shelter Island, across from Greenport.
July 15 There were two tall ships in for the Americas Sail event at Greenport, Simone Bolivar and the Providence.  We took Camelot alongside them for a close look.  We then went into the inner harbor of Greenport for possible mooring but were told we were to large for their moorings so left and dropped the hook in Pipes Cove, just  west of Greenport.
July 16 Spent the day getting ready for Gail's arrivel.  We took Pendragon to Greenport to figure out how we would get Gail aboard and do provisioning.  It's a very nice town, with a conviently located grocery store, hardware store, marine store and train station by the waterfront. The tall ship, Simone Bolivare of Venezuela was at the town dock. In progress was the award ceremonies for the tall ships race, we were able to go aboard and have a look around, these ships are amazing.
July 17 Gail arrived today. We met her at the town dock. The train only comes to Greenport twice a day, the last was late in the day, so she rented a car and arrived in Greenport around 13:00.  Gail had to return the car to S. Hampton so we met her with Camelot at Sag Harbor Yacht Club.  We anchored in a pretty cove off Shelter Island for the night.  The fog rolled in.
July 18 We had a beautiful sail to Block Island.  Block Island Sound is open to the Atlantic Ocean, we encountered incoming swells broad side, they were gentle but quite large.  We arrived at Block Island around 14:30, the harbor was filled with boats.  Block Island is pretty with high clay bluffs and sand beaches. Gail and Pam took a launch to the shore, while the captain stayed on Camelot. The boat traffic was incredible. The island was populated with tourists walking, bicylcing, and driving. The place was hopping with activity The town has quaint shops and many bed and breakfasts. For dinner that night we bought lobster from the local fish market. They seem too small. What's happening here? 


Leg 7: Block Island to Boston, MA

July 19 The morning started with a man from Aldo's Bakery yelling "Andiamo." He was in a Boston Whaler full of cinnamon rolls, turnovers, crossiants. and bread, selling them to the yachts in the Block Island anchorage.  The cinnamon rolls were delicious. We left Block Island around 10:00 for Mystic Seaport.  We had a short sail, arriving at the mouth of the Mystic River around 14:00.  We followed the Mystic Whaler up river to the Museum.She is an 83 foot New England Windjammer.  Once we went beyond the Mystics bascule bridge the river opened up to a harbor of another century.  The Mystic Seaport Museum is a re-creation of an old New England waterfront village complete with the old stone wharfs, old sailing ships, cobble stone and dirt roads, horse and carriages and shops. The museum takes you back in time.  The captain pulled Camelot alongside an old stone quay.  It seemed like another time.  The fog moved in after we tied up.  It really seemed like Mystic. 
July 20-23 We decided to spend a few days at the Mystic Seaport Museum.  Gail had to leave for Cambridge in the morning and Matt will be arriving Wednesday night. This was a good place for Camelot, she made herself right at home.  Tourists visiting the museum thought Camelot was part of the museum. The museum is very interesting and fun.  Going aboard the whaling and fishing ships was great, they set sails and showed how they handled them.  They had different activities all through the day.  The exhibits of figureheads, scrimshaw, ship models and many others were excellent. They are also constructing a replica of  the Armistad. There was history to see. Very interesting place. Matt was able to continue business with pleasure, Mark Molitor was aboard Camelot on Thursday. We met a very interesting captain from England, his yacht was named Rosalind. It was built in 1903 in England, it had been a fishing boat. We all enjoyed his stories, and his beautiful vessel. 
July 24 Matt was busy all morning, we left the museum around 13:00. We had to time the bascule bridge to leave.  The Seaport Museum was having it's antique show, so as we were leaving it was a parade of wood boats, mostly motor boats. Still nothing like Camelot. 
We had a gentle sail to Judith Point, dropping the anchor at dark. 
July 25 We left Judith Point around 09:00.  We sailed east to the end of Buzzard Bay.  It was a great sail.  We anchored near the Cape Cod Canal. 
July 26 We woke early to go through the Cape Cod Canal on a flood tide.  The current was running at times around 4 knots.  We had a calm ride to Boston, arriving to find ridiculous and very confused wakes in Boston Harbor. The inner harbor was brimming with idiocy, power boats running at full speed every where, an absolutely insane scene! The tall ships were here.  The Libertad and the Bounty were leaving the harbor.  The Providence, H.M.S. Rose and Eagle(the coast guard tall ship) and the USS Constitution were tied to the wharfs.  We secured a dock at the Shipyard Quarters Marina, and walked the wharf that evening. 
July 27 Matt had a design shop at Cambridge, he left in the morning.  The captain and Pam did some sight seeing.  We saw the tall ship Eagle leave the dock and we went aboard the USS Constitution.  It was all quite a sight. The shear size and enormity of the Constitution would take your breath away.  It's something you have to see in person to really appreciate. 


Leg 8: Boston Area Sails

July 28 We did some provisioning, then left the marina late morning.  We checked the harbor for possible places to anchor.  We ended up southeast of the inner harbor, anchoring by a little island called Bumkin Island. It was a nice uncrowded anchorage. As you enter  outer Boston Harbor there are many small islands, some with old forts, Bumkin Island was one of these. 
July 29 A very wet and windy day. Good day to set at anchor. 
July 30 A good day for varnishing and other maintenance done on Camelot. 
July 31 Foggy Morning, didn't clear up till around 13:00.  We weighed anchor and  headed up Boston Harbor to meet Matt.  We spent the night at the marina. 
August 1 We took Bill Rutley and his parents, also Bob Kraska for a sail in Boston Harbor. It was a gentle sail except for all the wakes from the power boats and ferrys. 
August 2 A day at the marina. The captain and Pam sanded and varnished one side of Camelot. 


Leg 9: Boston to New York

August 3 Matt had to fly to New York. The captain and Pam are going to meet him in Long Island.  We headed south.  We left the marina around 11:30.  Went throught the Cape Cod Canal and anchored at dark on the east end of Buzzards Bay. 
August 4 Left early and made it to the end of Long Island Sound. Anchored at sunset. 
August 5 We decided to weigh anchor and check out some of these beautiful areas in what people call the fish tail of Long Island.  We anchored by a long sand point in Noyack Bay.  There were signs all over the point, stating it was a natural refuge and you were not allowed on shore.  It was very disappointing. We were able to walk a short part of the point that goes under water at high tide.   It really is quite pretty, with colorful pebbles along the shore. They were so perfectly laid out that it looked like a cobblestone road. We did some exploring with Pendragon and found a beautiful hidden cove. 
August 6 We had another day at the fish tail.  We went to Greenport and filled Camelot's fuel tanks.  We dropped the hook by Orient Point, this is by another long sand point.  We were disappointed again to find signs, this time stating you were allowed access by car at the park entrance, access by boat was not allowed. We're disgusted. 
August 7 We weighed anchor very early in the morning, we're timing the very strong currents  at Plum Gut to be favorable, this will also give us a ride on the tide up Long Island sound most of the way to Northport.  We powered about half the way and sailed the rest.  It was a very pleasant day.  We dropped the hook by Sand City. 
August 8 We need to pick Matt up, so Northport Yacht Club was the place.  The people here are the friendliest and most helpful on Long Island. This has been our favorite place on the trip so far. Matt arrived around 11:30. While he was settling in, the Captain and Pam hopped a ride to the store from Don and Katie, aboard the powerboat Good Enough.  They were people we had met while cruising through Northport and Stamford on the way up. They took us around town to pick up provisions and supplies, then brought us back out to the boat they were so kind to help us we invited them aboard Camelot, we all enjoyed the visit. 
August 9 We took a good day sail in Long Island Sound.
August 10 Relaxing and productive polishing & cleaning day on Camelot. 
August 11 Matt left early in the morning for Block Island and returned late evening.
August 12 Matt left the boat around 11:30. Captain and Pam left Northport.  We did some sailing.  We went through Hell Gate at speeds of 13 knots at times, what a ride. Arrived in New York Harbor around 18:00, it seemed right to keep right on going down to Cape May, the forcast was for light N.E. winds. 
  A couple hours into the dark, and we got nailed. Near gale force winds, Camelot surged head on her ears exceeding nine knots trying to head up, auto helm laboreded then seem to just bang and grunt then slipped the auto helm couldn't handle the load. We immediatly got to the task of reducing sail. We were dropping the working jib when the main ripped.   We were about 2 to 3 hours from Sandy Hook, depending on how bad the sea would get. The decision was made to turn around.  Not knowing the condition of the main sail and having the whole night still ahead and an unknown wind, (it was not forcasted on NOAA) we felt it was right to go back to Sandy Hook.  We dropped the anchor at 24:00.


Leg 10: New York to Port Yet Unknown

August 13 We woke and got the newest forcast and were not supprised when they talked about a second front that passed through the area last night as if they knew about it all along, but didn't need to tell anyone about it. The weather wasn't right for running down the coast of New Jersey.  We looked the mainsail over and put sail tape on the rip ( it's about 4 feet long). Butch put some latches on a couple of doors. 
August 14 We motor sailed in winds of 15-20 knots out of the ESE to SE in about 4 to 6 foot seas.  The captain decided to go in at Atlantic City, we hadn't been there before. It was like a roller coaster ride going in through the cut. The tide was coming out and the waves were rolling in.  The waves were very steep. We surfed Camelot on several large seas, it was quite a ride. The handheld marine radio decided to jump ship, what a bummer! 
We stayed at the Trump Marina, all the entertainment you'd want was right there, the marina seemed the size of a small city. We filled the water tanks, fuel tanks, and got the laundry done, and caught bits of the live band in-between. 
August 15 We left at the crack of dawn, the winds were lighter then the day before. We had an excellent run.  We arrived at Cape May at around 11:30, went through the Cape May Canal, and up the Delaware Bay, through the C & D Canal and dropped the hook in the Bohemia River in the Chesapeake Bay at around 19:30.  It was an excellent run, the Captain had timed the currents, they were running with us almost the whole trip.  This really makes a difference on time. Total run in daylight hours was 110nm. 
Pam spent most of the day repairing the sail in hopes we would not need to take it in to get repaired.
August 16 We decided to go up the Sassafras River, and are glad we did. The rolling green hills and valleys are gorgeous. The river is fresh water and the temperature was great for a swim.
August 17 It was a good day to sit, foggy, cloudy and wet.  We had a surprise,  Cindy Rutley and her boys rode by on a jet ski.  She was as surprised as we were to see each other in the Sassafrass River!
August 18   Northwest winds are forcasted for the day, perfect for heading south, but they didn't show up till late. It didn't really matter, the repair on the main wasn't holding up. We anchored off of Maryland Yacht Club, where we had spent some time on the way up. 
August 19 We got lucky, there happens be a canvas shop right here in the harbor.  We were able to get the main sail repaired while we waited.  We did some varnishing and put the main sail back on, we had to relash it to the mast and both booms. The evening included dinner with Robyn and friends at Maryland Yacht Club.
August 20 We took a land trip to the Funny Farm.  Our friends Don, Robyn and Samantha bought an old farm and are restoring it. Plans are to make it a bed and breakfast. We helped out for a day.  It was good seeing the Lee's again.
August 21 We took Camelot into Baltimore,  we'll be meeting Matt here. We were going to anchor in the harbor, but there were just to many paddle boats and too crowded. So we decided to stay at a dock right on the main waterfront. We really liked what Baltimore has done with the waterfront, there is alot to see and do. The board walk surrounds the main harbor. There are many waterfront restuarants, a science museum and sea aquarium  We were able to listen to a couple bands at the open pavilion.  Very cool. 
August 22 Provisioning day, the people docked next to us at the marina were nice enough to take us to the grocery store in their car.  We're getting ready for Matt's arrival.  We toured the town, saw more bands playing.
August 23 Matt arrived around 9:00.  We sanded and varnished the starboard side of the hull. 
Matt had a meeting with Mike Bednorek. 


Leg 11: Baltimore to Norfolk, WV

August 24 We sailed out of Baltimore Harbor, at the opening of the harbor we saw a tug boat lifting a jet airliner out of the water, which looked like it had crashed and burned.  None of us had heard of a crash, so the Captain called the captain of the tug and asked him what happened.  They were setting the jet airliner up for a movie set, a movie that Harrison Ford was making.  You never know what you're going to see out on the water. We arrived in Annapolis around 17:00, we tied to the dock.  We are keeping an eye on Hurricane Bonnie. 
August 25 Matt spent the day on the telephone, while the captain took a long walk to get the propane tank filled(we ran out in the middle of cooking a spagetti dinner last night). 
Pam did some sanding and varnishing. The Captain and Pam met a couple running a 92 ft. power yacht, we found out that they knew some friends of ours from years back, when we were living in Marathon, FL.  It was fun. 
August 26 Matt left for Canada in the morning.  The Captain and Pam took Camelot up the Severn River.  It's a good place to wait and see what Hurricane Bonnie will be doing. 
The Severn River is really nice, small bluffs, and lots of trees.  It's beautiful.  We anchored in Round Bay,  tucked up behind an island.  We found out that the navy brings there ships up in there when a bad storm comes. There were many moorings marked with navy lingo. 
August 27 It looks like Bonnie will probably stay away. We got a little rain and some wind, but felt very comfortable anchored in this spot. 
August 28 We decided to get some things done on Camelot.  Will go in search of a dentist tomorrow. 
August 29 We left the Severn River decideding to go to St. Michaels. It is located in the Eastern Bay. which is located ,of course on the eastern side of Chesapeake Bay.     The weekends always bring out the boaters, it was very busy. 
We saw a ship built as a replica of the Pinta,  we got a close look and talked to the captain, they use it as a training ship for kids. 
We arrived in St. Michaels arround sunset. 
August 30 The Captain came down with a nasty cold, he was in bed the whole day. 
August 31 We went on a search for a dentist.  The Captain has his ways,  we were walking down the dock and saw a couple crabbers on there boat.  We greeted them, finding out they weren't having such a good morning, they had to fix their crabbing line puller.  So the captain says he'll make them feel better, telling them that he needs to get a tooth pulled and did they know a dentist in town.  Well, he was in luck, they knew of one and you didn't even have to have an appointment, the one man said that it was to far to walk and he'd give us a ride. The captain was able to get right in to see the dentist.  The crabber was so nice, he said he'd wait until the dentist was done and take us back to the dock.  Every-thing worked out. Cool!  We did provisioning and were back on Camelot by 15:00. 
Sept 1 We left St. Michaels around 10:00, and decided to see what the Wye River was like. It is a short distance from St. Michaels.  The Wye River branches off into creeks and flows around Wye Island, the shores are natural with some farmland and a few homes. It is a peaceful place. 
Sept 2 Day of rest.
Sept 3 Went south to the Tred Avon River, found a beautiful place to anchor, we plan on staying here through the Labor Day weekend.
Sept 4-6 We had a pleasant stay on the Tred Avon River.  We were able to sand and varnish the hull. We met someone local who came by in a small skiff. We were anchored close to a popular anchorage and were able to boat watch.
Sept 7 We went southwest to Solomons.  This is a harbor full of marinas so it's hard to find enough room to drop a hook. We did squeeze Camelot into a good spot.
Sept 8-9 Solomons is a great place to provision. The dinghy dock is a couple of blocks from the grocery, post office, laundry and hardware. We met a man that knew the Mayflower, named Mayflower,  she was hull # 1 of the Mayflowers the first boat built of this design. to have seen her She is supposedly all original with no modifications, would have been interesting to have seen her, She was located to far up Patapsco River for us to visit. The interest is due to Camelot being her sister ship. 
Sept 10 We had a great sail going south to the Piankatank River. Winds were a blow'n. Run'n wing on wing at around 7 to 8knts with winds 25 knts and gusting, it broke.The strap that attaches the dead eye to the hull for the wisker stay ripped apart, A Jury rig and things were fine again. the wind eased as the day went on to near calm at sunset. We dropped the hook at sunset, but it didn't want to grab, the bottom is a very hard clay.  We tried setting the anchor several times, it seemed like we drug it half way across the bay it just wouldn't bight. We decided to try a different area and finally did get the anchor to hold. It was very dark by now.
Sept 11 We headed south for Norfolk, we anchored in Willoughby Bay.  No wind this day. Worked on and replaced the broken strap for the wisker stay, stb side


Leg 12: Norfolk, WV to Hilton Head, SC

Sept 12 Went through Norfolk and all the bridges, through Great Bridge Lock, and docked at Coinjock. Here we refueled, topped off the water tanks. 
Sept 13 We call this part of the ICW (Inner Coastal Waterway) no-man's land. It's beautiful, yet earrie somehow.  We anchored at the upper Pungo River surrounded by grass patches, deep to the edges. 
Sept 14 Traveled through more no-man's land, we anchored up the South River, an off shoot of the Neuse River. There was absolutely no boat traffic, nothing 
Sept 15 We spent the day sanding and varnishing and doing some boat maintnance. Still no boats, strange after spending so much time in over conjested waters of Long Island and the Chessapeke. We loved it! transom got a new coat of varnish, new strap for the port wisker stay, close inspection showed it was also ready to fail. 
Sept 16 We made it to Beaufort, NC, where we met up with Carl, Reva, and Ivy, aboard Three Belles. Three Belles is in the boat yard, they are rechaulking all the seams.  They took us out to dinner, we had a pleasant visit. 
Sept 17-19 We were able to get provisioning done, with the use of the Marine Museums courtsey van. Of coarse a nasty storm hit when it was time to transfer all the provisions to the dingy and run out to the boat. I can't put into words how much fun that was, but I'll never forget it.The next day we found a place that would certify our propane tank and fill it. Good news cause I was gettin tired of carting this tank around and comming back with no more in the tank than when I left, and we were getting low.Next day we explored the island by the anchorage. We walked the sand flats and watched the wild horses grazing on sea grass. 
Sept 20 A long day, making good about 80 miles. We anchored by Wrightsville Beach at sunset. 
Sept 21 We found a free dock at Barefoot Landing, just north of Myrtle Beach. 
Sept 22-23 You can stay a maximum of 3 days at Barefoot Landing.  There ia a large open shopping mall located here.  There is a lot to see and do.  You are about a mile from the beach, where we spent our free time. 
Sept 24 We had a short day, we anchored in Prince Creek off the Wacamaco River. Had some fun with anchors after we thought we were settled in, just seems like these things like to happen in the dark. 
Sept 25-28 We had a very peaceful and productive stay in Prince Creek, we varnished the hull and other things.  Talking about events happening at dark, the current runs fairly strong through the creek, the captain noticed what looked to be a branch caught on Camelot's anchor line. So he got the boat hook and proceded to try to get it loose, well it wouldn't come loose, he pushed and pulled it just wouldn't come loose, we discovered it was a tree, roots and all, it had gotten hooked on both anchor lines.  We ended up using the dinghy to get the tree loose, with a couple of lines on the tree we towed it to shore, so it wouldn't be a navigational hazard. We were finished with all this fun by 8:30 pm.  This was also a good place to see what Hurricane Georges was going to do, and all the other hurricanes. 
Sept 29 We cruised to just north of Charleston.  We anchored in Dewees Creek, in between the marshes. 
Sept 30 Thought we'd wait for the rains of Georges to go by, spent the day polishing brass. 
Oct 1 We had a good run, we are in 6 to 7 ft. tide area's now, so the currents run strong. 
Oct 2 We made it to Hilton Head. 


Leg 13: Hilton Head, SC to Ft.Myers, FL

Oct 3-14 We arrived in Hilton Head, we stayed at Harbour Town Marina.  Camelot was docked right in front of the Light House, pretty much in the middle of the tourists,  she had many admirers and picture takers. Matt and Gail were here and did a couple of day sails.
Oct 15 The day started with a sail with Matt and Gail, Lori Bergeron, Patsy Kahoe, and BC, Kareen,Chandler, and Jill Huselton.
After the sail Camelot started south for Ft. Myers, FL.  We decided to travel the ICW. Anchored in Red Bird Creek at 20:00.
Oct 16 Windy, windy, day.  We traveled through Georgia, it's beautiful with all its grass flats, so many different little islands. The birds gave us quite a show towards evening, we were traveling through huge floating flocks of sea gulls. They wouldn't move until we entered the flock then they would all lift off at the same time. The sight was magical and so beautiful you new it was a special moment in time. The moment is just that a  moment just ahead was St. Andrews Sound and everything was about to change.To cross St. Andrews sound you need go out the cut and do a dog leg back in along Cumberland Island, now this gets a bit rough with heavy winds. We got a real good adrenalin rush out of that short crossing.We wanted to get some video of the experience but was afraid of losing the camera. We anchored a short distance past St. Andrews sound in a little creek called Shellbine. Strong currents, and a mild swell made for a soothing motion that lulled us to sleep.
Oct 17 We were anchored across from Cumberland Island, what a beautiful sight.  There were horses grazing along the water. This is a gorgeous area.  This day brought us to Florida, with palm trees and clear blue skies.  We dropped the hook just south of St. Augustine. 
Oct 18 Easy day, shorter than usual run only 64 miles, the skys are starting to show signs of an approaching weather sytem.We had a smooth run most the way, until we got to the cutoff north of New Smyrna. Two tugs were trying to get over a shoal that stretchs all the way across the channel. After about an hour they succeeded, then it was our turn, cautiously we proceeded even at a crawl the bottom hit hard then we'd work free only to hit again this was nerve racking, one more bump and we were through. What a relief, now a short distance and we arrive at the anchorage. A  quiet spot just off the intercoastal behind an island. It's so calm here you wouldn't know you were on a boat. 
Oct 19 Another beautiful day, hope to make Melborne. We had a chance to sail good part of this run, really makes a big difference in life aboard. We actually made it further than planned.
Oct 20 No wind, nothing, early start hope to make Stuart. We have a strong weather system heading this way and hope to cross lake Ockeechobee before it gets here. That lake can become very rough and even dagerous in heavy winds. We hope to cross it tommorow. The winds are predicted to pick up tommorrow afternoon, cutting it close.
Fortunately we made real good time and made it almost to the lake, we'll be able to cross it in the morning before the winds start to blow. Indian Town Marina is where we stayed for the night. Here we lowered the top mast and called it a night.
Oct 21 Long day we were able to make it home on this run, we started experiencing bad weather right around dark, of course. Coming up to a lock under almost 0 visibility is no picnic. It was pich black out and the rain was like a water fall and just wouldn't quit, so we very slowly entered and locked through. The rain let up as we headed out of the lock only 4 more miles and the trip will be over. Strange feelings as we tied up to Avalon we were home.

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