October 10, 2010

Southern Belle with Lynn and Sally and their friends, Ann and Steve Kurz, left Greenport on the morning of September 18, 2010, aiming to spend the winter in the Bahamas. In order to do this we have to sail west through New York City and south down the entire East Coast of the United States. Our plan is to cruise down the intracoastal canal as much as possible, as Sally is a bit wary about sailing out in the open sea. So the first part of our voyage had us motor/sailing around Orient Point to Branford, CT, where we visited with a sailing friend before going on the next day to City Island. The next day, Sept. 20th, was a sunny, blue sky day with a northerly breeze, so we put up just the main, with one reef, and motored and sailed through Hell's Gate and down the East River.

There was almost trouble when we were diverted from the usual route, the western channel, around Roosevelt Island to the eastern channel, which we were not familiar with. New York City Harbor Police told us the western channel was closed and to take the eastern one with no further explanation. We wondered if there was a terrorist problem, but it turned out, thank goodness, that it was a meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations and the diversion was for security purposes. Reportedly, that day it was New York spending millions to protect Mohammar Ghadafi, who was speaking. Anyway, going down the east channel of Roosevelt Island, we approached a railroad bridge, which Steve had heard a story about from a boat delivery captain on the docks at City Island the night before. In this story a yacht had hit that railroad bridge with its mast, causing serious problems. As we approached the bridge, moving at 9 knots motoring with the current (quite fast for a sailboat), Steve asked what the vertical clearance was. It turned out to be 40 feet if the bridge wasn't raised, which it wasn't. And, a catamarran,named Algernon (boy, do we owe that guy a drink!) sailing right behind us began to honk its foghorn, warning us of the imminent danger. So we turned around and began to motor against the current, essentially holding our position just upstream from the bridge. Within a few minutes, the Harbor Police boat came downstream, flashing its blue light and the bridge began to go up. We passed safely underneath and continued a great day, but phew! Close call. It was one of the early events that shook our confidence in terms of being able to handle the demands of this sailing trip.

The rest of that day, we went through New York City, out the harbor under the Verranzano Bridge to Sandy Hook, where we stayed a couple of days. Friends Ann and Steve left and another friend, Stephen Lee, came aboard to help us do the 120 mile length of the New Jersey coast. Bad weather and contrary winds blocked our first effort to go and Stephen had to go back home. So Lynn and Sally enjoyed living on anchor behind the breakwater at Sandy Hook, waiting for a weather window to start down the coast.