Day 1, Year 11: Passage to Little River, SC—Racing Along
Date: Friday, October 23, 2015
Weather: Sunny, Cool, and WINDY—20-25 NNW Turning 15-20 NNE
Latitude: 41 15.824 N
Longitude: 071 53.725 W
Location: Just S of E Tip of Fishers Island, RI
Miles Traveled: 59.5 Nautical Miles (4:50 pm)
We are flying along. A few minutes ago James noted that our speed over ground hit 9.1. We are sailing west in the Long Island Sound off Rhode Island and are currently in an area referred to as the The Race because the current runs fast through here. Right now we are gaining 2+ knots of speed from the current and it will increase as we get into the middle of it. Thankfully the current is going our direction. But regardless, we have been traveling between 6-7 knots most of the day. We thought we were making great time, but Chris and Geoff of Shambala left an hour later than us and they are miles ahead. Fast boat! This morning and part of the afternoon we had a bit of a rough ride sailing a close reach. James suffered a bout of seasickness during this time, so he decided to accept our offer of a scopolamine patch. You put this little circle that looks like a band aid behind your ear, sleep for a few hours, and wake up feeling fine. By the time I started writing this log, he was up and feeling good again. But even when he was feeling terrible, he was still able to help Mark with the sails. And we did a lot of sail changes today . . . main up-full, main double-reefed, main back-up full, main single-reefed. We are currently on a gentle beam reach with 15 knots of wind and everyone is doing fine. I just asked Mark and James if there was anything they wanted me to say about today in the log and James’ reply was, “Don’t send a search party yet.” All is well.
Sometime tomorrow morning we will reach the western end of the Long Island Sound and enter the East River. Despite its name, it is not really a river. It is a salt water tidal strait that runs through New York City connecting the Long Island Sound on the north to the Upper New York Bay on the south end. We are all looking forward to ‘touring’ New York City by sailboat.
As I am completing this log we are getting ready to head through the fastest part of The Race. Our speed over ground is now between 8 and 10 knots. The sun is getting ready to set and we are passing the Race Rock Light. Life is good.
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| 151023 Day 1 Passage to SC–Long Island Sound |
