Stonington

We checked the temperature in the cockpit and it was already 89F at 7:30am! We looked at the nearly possible anchorages for lower temperatures and found Stonington forecasted at only 84 for a high so Stonington it was! We stopped for fuel and found the same guy there who’s been there for many years. He prefers the heat to the winter cold. He also fuels the boats in January, not a good job.

We sailed for awhile before the wind died and we shifted over to motoring once again. At least the temperature was less on the water, only 80 or so. We had the tide with us so we made Stonington by 3:30 and dropped the hook, plenty of room. Our anchorages are require Hoolie relieve nearby and Stonington is no different. The relief in this case is at the breakwater at the entrance to the harbor. It’s enough for Hoolie. A sailing class came by the boat on their way into harbor, a pretty sight. A dragonfly paid a visit for awhile on the wheel.

Now we’re settled in and it’s cooled to 75 so far, a vast improvement to Branford in that respect. Tomorrow we’re headed for Block Island.

Branford and Lenny's

There was not a breath of air in the morning, the water was as still as a mill pond and the heat had started in early, 85 by 8:00 am. With that we started out early for Branford, better with moving air than stagnant air even if it’s only from the movement of the boat. The Sound was glassy-smooth so we motored forth once again, more motoring than sailing this cruise thus far.
Branford has two great attractions: a first rate swimming pool for the kids and Lenny’s. We stayed at Bruce and Johnson Marina which has the pool and this time we had a ride to Lenny’s since Philip had his car parked there in advance. It hovered around 95 or so in the cockpit and even at 9:00 tonight we still have the A/C on, a record for us. However, Lenny’s was air conditioned and going full blast, it felt good. Even with all our traveling up and down the coast, we’ve found nothing that came close to Lenny’s frie4d clams (whole belly, not the sissy clam strips). It’s been reviewed in the New York Time\s food section and is Zagat rated. They have two people outside directing the traffic and post an outside sign on the wait time for a table, it’s a popular place. But arriving at 5:00, we got a table right away – at 6:00 it was full with a wait line. As usual, the meal was delicious.

Wednesday we’re headed further east, possibly Fisher Island to find a little cooler weather and then out to Block Island to further escape the heat. In past summers, we’ve been wearing windbreakers in Maine, what a change.

Monday Night Hot

Summer has arrived in earnest in Long Island Sound and probably everywhere else nearby. However, we were on the water and had cooling breezes. The kids swam off the back of the boat all morning as we watched boats leaving in a steady stream. Part of the reason for the very large crowds must have been the fireworks last night which we didn’t know about unit they started. Not only were there lots of boats but we counted 12 on one small boat, typical of many.

We did have wind so we sailing out and back for several hours before returning to Port Jefferson and anchoring west of the entrance instead of east as we had done for the last two days. With the thinning out of the boats, three was room for one more. With chicken cooking in the galley, we relented and turned on the genset and the A/C, much better for the cook.

The kids settled down into another session of watching movies, this time “Cars”. It doesn’t matter that they’ve seen it 10 times, they continue to watch it all the more. I watch a movie once and I’m done, not so with the kids. Tomorrow we’ve off to Branford and dinner at Lenny’s!

Saturday Night Fireworks

In the morning we saw a Port Jefferson Fire Boat come by and practiced spraying the pier next to our anchorage. We didn’t think anything of it at the time but should have known something was up. The morning was spent in water sports off the back of the boat as we relaxed in cool breezes but it was certainly warming up.

In the afternoon Philip and family dinked into the Sand Pit to explore. The beaches are better there and there’s a high hill of sand to climb, fun for the kids, challenging for the adults. As Philip grilled pork chops off the end of the boat, we saw people starting to gather at the nearby beach. Something’s up we thought and for the first time thought there might be fireworks at PJ. Many of the towns around the Sound had cancelled fireworks due to budget problems but PJ evidently saved money for the entertainment.

As now expected, the fireworks started in earnest at dark and were spectacular! Matthew rated it as the best fireworks he had ever seen, quite an endorsement. The display specialized in “shaped fireworks” with stars and smiley faces along with the usual fans and explosions. Hoolie was at my feet the entire time, trembling. I rubbed his back but he just shook all over until it was over. All the kids said they wanted to come back next year to see the fireworks again! We plan on sailing some today before finding another spot for the night.

We Gain Crew! Then on to Port Jefferson

The plan was to get a dock at Milford and take on crew there. However, it was the 4th of July weekend and there were no docks available, so much for the recession. We headed out from Northport but had to motor due to little wind and having to be there by noon. We wound up anchoring in the outer harbor and dinking in to pick up Philip, Monique, Sarah, Natalie and Cody (the dog). With the main salon table dropped into a bed, there’s room for all, even the two dogs.

Once again we had to motor on our way to Port Jefferson to look for a place to anchor. Our usual spot was full of boats, more than we’ve ever seen there. We went across the harbor near the sand pit and found a spot outside the anchorage. Again, so much for the recession.

We always pick a spot near a beach for dog relief and this time it spelled double duty for exercising the kids. The breeze was cool, the air was dry and the temperature was in the low 80’s, a perfect day. Everybody is now tucked in, all nine of us.

Hook Mountain to Northport anchorage

Ahoy it’s me Matt. On Thursday I started my Fleetwing Cruise after getting back from Alabama. This morning I woke up at Hook Mountain and went ashore to walk the dog. Then we weighed anchor and started down the Hudson. I watched movies for most of the time. Then we had lunch, I had a huge boil of pasta left over from the Eveready Diner. Then I watched some more movies until we got in to New York Harbor. Then I came up on deck and took tons of pictures and we even saw 6 helicopters land and take of in the same spot. Afterwards I played some games until we got to Northport in the Long Island Sound. Then I went swimming and after a couple of tries I got in to the dink in the middle of the water. I also perfected my dive and swam with out my life jacket. But then I accidentally knocked my goggles into the water and didn’t get them in time and now are at the bottom of the Long Island Sound. Then we had cheese, steak, and pita bread. Then I watched a movie and now we are going to shore to walk the dog.

As you can see, Matthew is with us and he started his blog today. He’s growing like a weed. He enters 8th grade next year, time flies. We left Hook Mountain with a following tide and rode it all the way to Execution Rocks in the Sound before losing it. The extra two knots makes a big difference to a sailboat (you motorboaters can ignore the comment). The motorboaters also miss the joys of rounding the end of Manhattan and going up the East River to Hell Gate, they take a short cut with bridges too low for us sailboaters.

We made it to Northport by 3:30 or so in preparation for picking up Philip and family for a weekend on the boat, it’ll be fun! We ran the dog and the kid on the beach, both getting wet! Back on the boat, we got our first sunset picture of the trip.

Hook Mountain anchorage

We left Poughkeepsie Yacht Club with a following tide, a great way to start our Long Island cruise. A front came through yesterday so the air was cool and there was no threat of thunderstorms. We made many trips down the Hudson River for our yearly cruises and mostly it was motoring. This time was no different except when we got to Haverstraw, the wind picked up out of the north and we put up the headsail for a nice end to the first day. On the way we passed by West Point as usual but it’s always an impressive site.

The forecast was for a northwest wind which would have been perfect for the Hook Mountain anchorage. However, it was “promises, promises” once again from NOAA. The wind was out of the northeast and blew directly into the anchorage with gusts to 20 kts! The dink ride to shore for Hoolie relief was wild but we made it without getting wet. Hoolie appears to be back to his twice a day routine. We sat on the back of the boat and watched the lights appear on the Tappan Zee bridge, a very pretty sight with the lights like sparkling diamond necklass across the river. Tomorrow it’s Hell Gate!