...to GO or NOT to go...

With the new water pump installed, it appeared that First Light was travel-worthy once again. And, once again, we can consider ourselves lucky. The old pump was damaged in a way that suggested a catastrophic failure, one that could have easily done major damage to the engine itself, was imminent. The pump blades, made of stainless steel, were chewed up. The only way that happens is if the shaft bearings were failing, allowing the shaft to wobble, resulting in the blade damage. At some point the assembly would have just disassembled itself. And that would have made for a rather bad day.

A big shout out to Eckels in Cape May. They were quick and at a great price.

With the engine fixed, all we needed was a weather window to try and be on our way once again. And we had one, sort of. From what the forecasts suggested we would have an eight hour window in which to do a seven hour trip starting at around 0600 in the morning. The next window will open several days later. We also had to consider that we had just completed more repairs on the boat. We would be making a “sea trial” on the Atlantic Ocean likely several miles off shore.

So, make the run and hope the weather doesn't catch us flat-footed on the Atlantic and that the boat doesn't break...again? Move to the anchorage and wait it out without spending hundreds of more dollars in dock fees? Or pony up the bucks and continue to enjoy the perks that come with being dock dwellers? Much debate between the two (ex) pilots/(ex) Coast Guard Captains resulted as we reviewed various weather apps and compared weather models. In the end we decided to decide in the morning.

So come about 0415 we had to decide. Both of us were on the brink of waiting it out either on the Cape May anchorage or just coughing up the cash to stay put. I was leaning toward just staying on the dock, but Deb seemed okay with heading out. Since neither one of us wanted to be the one to suggest staying, we pulled in the lines and headed out. Later, she told me that she was leaning toward staying in the anchorage at least, but the need to just make some sort of progress north weighed heavily in her decision. 

The narrow exit at Utsch's Marina in Cape May

It was a bit of a roll with the swells on the aft starboard quarter but about what we expected and pretty close to what had been forecast. We made better time than our estimate, so there were two hours left in the forecasted weather window when we dropped the hook. So now we sit, the only boat in a secluded spot overlooking Atlantic City. An anchorage with virtually no fetch in any direction. With winds forecasted to be 20+ we will almost certainly be spending the next several days here. But the holding tank is near empty, the water tanks are full, there is food in the fridge. The anchor is set and we are riding to the snubber. The wind is starting to pick up as forecast, keeping it cool and blowing the bugs away. The next few days are an open question. Going by boat it is a long way to the New York Harbor from here. Even though it may well be our last ocean passage, we are both eager to put it at our stern. We have been salt water sailors. Being fresh water sailors now is okay with me.

The narrow entry/exit at Utsch's Marina in Cape May

0500 sunrise at Cape May, NJ

The entry into the Atlantic at the eastern end of the Cape May channel

Atlantic City, NJ comes into focus.