East Coast of America, Part 1
United States of America – East Coast Before we said goodbye to wonderful Bermuda we were fortunate enough to see the gathering of several tall ships and their departure on-mass for their next destination. We had a tour of one and witnessed another unexpectedly firing a cannon at Hamilton that made us jump out of our skins and duck!
Wednesday 28 June – St George’s Bermuda to USA, Newport Rhode Island, 672 miles, 106.3 hrs (approx. 4.5 days), 50.6 engine hrs, 6.32 knots ave. speed. Total Miles since leaving Falmouth in August 2017: 7286.9 Aura, La Mischief and Tourterelle also left Bermuda on the same day as us, heading for the East Coast of America,. Aura radioed us to say they could see Pilot Whales that were heading our way. They didn’t come very close, but we saw them in the distance. We all kept in constant radio contact giving weather, progress and wildlife reports. The weather for the trip varied from excellent sailing conditions to no wind, to strong winds, squalls, hot days, cold days, good visibility and poor visibility. Nothing to be concerned about and we reduced our sail area in the windier conditions, just to be on the safe side. This is hard work for Ken as he has to go up on deck to the foot of the mast to handle the mainsail. It can get very bouncy at times and would be easier to leave well alone, however, it is not worth the risk should a squall come through. I am not physically strong enough to hoist the mainsail, partly due to its size and weight and partly due to the track it slides up being old and UV damaged. We would get this checked out in the US. We listened to Chris Parker’s daily weather reports and down loaded his e-mails as we were keen to enter and exit the Gulf Stream at the most favourable points. Should the wind be strong and blowing in the opposite direction to the flow of the Gulf Stream, the seas can be rough, uncomfortable and dangerous. We plotted the way-points on our chart plotter of where he advised our entry and exit points should be and headed for these as best we could.
Two Pilot Whales swam right alongside the boat, then under us. A mother and calf. They were not around long enough for me to take pictures unfortunately, but they were a magnificent sight and even better, they were accompanied by a pod of dolphins. On another occasion a massive pod of dolphins swam from East to West ahead of us. Hundreds of them in a long line, some jumping and spinning, generally showing off. The seas were very choppy both entering and exiting the Gulf Stream, but very flat once in it with ideal winds of 15-20 knots. We were being ‘swept’ along nicely. We were aware we were not permitted to take fresh meat, fruit, vegetables or anything with seeds, into the country and containers, wrapping, packaging had to be washed as these are considered contaminated waste and the US charge to dispose of them. We went from eating one apple per day to three as weren’t prepared to waste them, especially as they’d cost a small fortune in Bermuda! We were debating a 6 egg omelette (each) prior to our arrival as weren’t sure if eggs were allowed in or not. We didn’t’ think making Advocaat to be a sensible option as we are a dry boat whilst on passage! There were a few cargo ships about but nothing came close enough that we needed to alter course, other than Ken having an encounter with some bright yellow/orange lights during one of his night shifts. The lights came closer and closer but the vessel wasn’t transmitting AIS so we couldn’t see it on our chart plotter screen. A vessel transmitting AIS tells us its speed, direction, the type of vessel and how close it will get to us. We can then work out if we need to stand on, or alter our course. Eventually our radar picked it up, whatever it was and even when Ken altered course to avoid it, it kept coming closer and closer. He tried to radio the vessel without response so as a last resort he put our spreader lights on, on both masts, plus our deck lights to make us as visible as possible. All of a sudden the vessel put their AIS on and changed course. We think they were either purse seine fishing or were shining bright lights to make themselves visible, but were so engaged in what they were doing they hadn’t seen us! We shall never know. On Sunday 2 July we were praying for wind, something we don’t normally do – careful what you wish for as they say. In order to arrive in Newport Rhode Island before dark we would need to be averaging 6.43 knots over the ground; we were doing 5.4. It was a cold, drizzly, cloudy day with poor visibility. I had to wake Ken at 0900 hrs due to thick fog that lasted for 7 hours. 7 hours of solid concentration and our fog horn blasting every couple of minutes. There were lots of fishing pots too, that appeared out of nowhere, for us to dodge at the last minute. Eventually the fog cleared. We increased the engine revs. to 1700 in order to reach Newport before dark, a good decision as Newport Harbour was majorly busy. We were instructed to moor at the Customs dock and not leave the boat until we had been inspected and completed the necessary forms. We watched an excellent firework display in the bay, building up to 4 July celebrations, had a well-earned glass or two of wine and crashed out. The Customs and Immigration Officer arrived at 1000 hrs the following morning. She didn’t even come aboard so all the excessive egg and apple eating had been in vain! Forms completed, we joined the others anchored out in the bay. They had checked in at a different dock.
We were excited to go ashore and explore, having arrived in America. We also caught the bus to the chandlers, with Tourterelle and Ocean Blue (Derek and Lesley) whom we’d met at the Customs dock earlier. Boat shops are always interesting to yachties and we are always in need of something. We stopped at the Newport Yacht Club on the way back, very much appreciating their cheaper prices in comparison with Bermuda! Sundowners on Lady Rebel for everyone; the last guests leaving at 0130 hrs!! View from Newport Yacht Club
Tuesday 4 July – Newport RI – American Independence Day We were all keen to go to Bristol, Rhode Island, for the oldest independence celebrations in the US. Taking the bus gave us an opportunity to see some of inland Rhode Island. The parade was excellent with several military and marching bands. The small town was buzzing. We returned to Newport to watch the fireworks whilst BBQing aboard La Mischief.
Whilst in Newport we did the coastal ‘mansion’ walk that took us past several stunning mansions. Some you could pay to go inside but we chose not to. One belonged to business magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt!
During a visit to the yacht club there was a presentation to the last finisher of the OSTAR Race from Plymouth UK to Newport RI. Neil Payter, the only British competitor to finish, who sailed single handed in a 33 foot yacht. They encountered a massive storm with 70 knots of wind and 15 foot waves. Out of the 21 boats that started only 7 finished, 4 were abandoned/sunk and 10 retired. Fortunately no lives were lost. Neil was 35 days at sea. He said the force of the boat slamming into the water forced his sea cocks out. Water was pouring in but he managed to hammer wooden chocks into the holes! It sounded horrendous.
On Saturday 8 July we got up at 0330 hrs to watch the rugby, NZ All Blacks v The British Lions in Auckland. It was a very close, fast game ending in a draw and certainly worth getting up for! With five boats knowing each other and anchored close by, plus meeting some locals also anchored, we took it in turns to do sundowners. I was having a bit of a blip, feeling stressed (it’s not all sunshine and sundowners!), missing the security of being on dry land, feeling very homesick and it looked like I wasn’t going to be able to fly back to the UK until September. At least having friends around helped, some had experienced how I was feeling so were very understanding and supportive. On a better day we visited the Herreshof Maritime Museum in Bristol. A family of boat designers and builders from 1851. Two brothers John and Nat; John was blind at 15 years old and Nat became his eyes. Together they built up a very successful business.
First catamaran (hanging from the ceiling)
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