bsangs
E35-3 - New Jersey
My apologies to all the old salts for gushing like a newbie, but, well, I still kinda am one.
We set out with "Radiance" on our first extended cruise a couple weeks ago, from NJ to Block Island, RI, then back. Aside from a broken pinky toe (wife, she's tough as nails), and hands sliced by barnacles hiding on a mooring line (me, not quite as tough), it couldn't have been more enjoyable. We criss-crossed the LI Sound, stopping in places like City Island, Port Jefferson, Montauk, Old Saybrook, Mystic, New Haven and Oyster Bay. We grabbed a town mooring ball on the Great Salt Pond in Block Island, which is quite the daily hunting game - luckily I'm a very early riser - and stayed for a few days. Glad we were on that ball as the winds whipped past 30 knots one night. On our side of the island, harbor patrol was out, making sure no boats were dragging away in the anchorage area, while on the other side of the island, the winds helped fuel a fire that destroyed an historic hotel.
The stops were great, but the best part was the sailing. Before this venture, we'd sail in our comfort area. Up and down the Hudson River, into NY Harbor, out to Coney Island, past the Verrazzano Bridge, a little bit into the East River, which is a lot of fun, but the traffic is almost as bad as in NYC itself. This was the first time we were able to let "Radiance" rip - and rip she did. One particular 52-mile stretch from Mystic, CT to New Haven, was picture perfect. On a sun-soaked windy day, we put her on a starboard tack, and for 48 miles just sailed, reaching nine knots a couple times. Not a single tack the entire stretch. (Toward the end, when the gusts started creeping up to 25, we prudently reefed the 135 genoa a little bit.)
Another day, our trek coming back to NJ from Oyster Bay, the Predictwind app forecast no winds. (Don't get me started about the accuracy of that app.) So we'd begrudgingly resigned ourselves to motoring all the way home. Didn't even bother getting the main ready. My first mate gets very sulky when motoring is involved. But as we turned out of Oyster Bay into the sound, we had wind. Enough to sail. We'd heard from the previous owner that she sailed great under genoa alone, so we let it out and it carried us along for two hours, hitting nearly six knots once or twice, as the winds reached 15 knots. Sure it was through a driving rain, which also wasn't forecast that morning, but it was fun. The entire trip we learned so much about the boat and what she can do.
Anyway, this is exactly what we were hoping to accomplish when we took up sailing a few years ago. I'll admit though, I didn't see it coming this quickly. We bought "Radiance" last May and if you'd have told me we'd be out to Block Island just over a year later, I'd have thought you crazy. But we poured ourselves into it, and here we are. As I type this, the first mate is sitting across from me, planning our next adventure. A lot of people here helped get us ready, btw. This place has been a valuable resource. Fair winds all.
We set out with "Radiance" on our first extended cruise a couple weeks ago, from NJ to Block Island, RI, then back. Aside from a broken pinky toe (wife, she's tough as nails), and hands sliced by barnacles hiding on a mooring line (me, not quite as tough), it couldn't have been more enjoyable. We criss-crossed the LI Sound, stopping in places like City Island, Port Jefferson, Montauk, Old Saybrook, Mystic, New Haven and Oyster Bay. We grabbed a town mooring ball on the Great Salt Pond in Block Island, which is quite the daily hunting game - luckily I'm a very early riser - and stayed for a few days. Glad we were on that ball as the winds whipped past 30 knots one night. On our side of the island, harbor patrol was out, making sure no boats were dragging away in the anchorage area, while on the other side of the island, the winds helped fuel a fire that destroyed an historic hotel.
The stops were great, but the best part was the sailing. Before this venture, we'd sail in our comfort area. Up and down the Hudson River, into NY Harbor, out to Coney Island, past the Verrazzano Bridge, a little bit into the East River, which is a lot of fun, but the traffic is almost as bad as in NYC itself. This was the first time we were able to let "Radiance" rip - and rip she did. One particular 52-mile stretch from Mystic, CT to New Haven, was picture perfect. On a sun-soaked windy day, we put her on a starboard tack, and for 48 miles just sailed, reaching nine knots a couple times. Not a single tack the entire stretch. (Toward the end, when the gusts started creeping up to 25, we prudently reefed the 135 genoa a little bit.)
Another day, our trek coming back to NJ from Oyster Bay, the Predictwind app forecast no winds. (Don't get me started about the accuracy of that app.) So we'd begrudgingly resigned ourselves to motoring all the way home. Didn't even bother getting the main ready. My first mate gets very sulky when motoring is involved. But as we turned out of Oyster Bay into the sound, we had wind. Enough to sail. We'd heard from the previous owner that she sailed great under genoa alone, so we let it out and it carried us along for two hours, hitting nearly six knots once or twice, as the winds reached 15 knots. Sure it was through a driving rain, which also wasn't forecast that morning
, but it was fun. The entire trip we learned so much about the boat and what she can do.Anyway, this is exactly what we were hoping to accomplish when we took up sailing a few years ago. I'll admit though, I didn't see it coming this quickly. We bought "Radiance" last May and if you'd have told me we'd be out to Block Island just over a year later, I'd have thought you crazy. But we poured ourselves into it, and here we are. As I type this, the first mate is sitting across from me, planning our next adventure. A lot of people here helped get us ready, btw. This place has been a valuable resource. Fair winds all.
