Left Hampton and Using Weather Apps

23 hours to Cape May.  Took the calm weather for one day mostly motoring.

Leaving Hampton in the Chesapeake.  Fort Monroe from the water.  (Note very calm waters)  There is a tunnel under the water here to go over to Norfolk and come out at Fort Wool on the other side.

Fort Wool

Nice day as we exit through Cape Henry and Cape Charles to the north.  Note the glassy waters.

We sailed north over night.  We encountered a million biting flies out on the ocean that happens at this time of year.   I stood watch down below looking at the instruments.  It was terrible.  We did have a 30 minute sail with the engine off - a wonderful quiet sail.  We motored into the Cape May Inlet about 9:45 am.
A bit rough.  Two rock jetties on either side.  Tide coming out.  Wind against the current.  I'm at the helm swinging around.  It was fun.

We checked in at Utsch's Marina at 10:30, just before the fixed bridge, that's before the canal that is a short cut to the Delaware Bay.  The bridge is 55' not the usual 65' feet for most sailing yachts.
   After securing the boat we immediately went over to the Lobster House for a nice meal.

We decided to explore Cape May a little by bike.  First, we stopped at a little fair for the arts in Cape May at one of it's famous historic homes.

We also biked down to Beach Avenue to a Show House (no inside pictures were allowed), another benefit for Cape May arts.  The show house was built in 1911.  The developers decided streets be made twice as wide as any of the other streets, house lots twice as large as any of the other streets, the houses at least 20' back from the curb, and that they cost at least $5,000.  This show house cost $35,000 in 1911.

 

Across the street is the beach.

A typical beach house in Cape May on the extra wide Beach Avenue.

Okay, okay we can't have too much fun.  Drew came back to the boat and built and installed a new LED light for the tachometer.

On Mother's Day we changed the oil.  Necessary every 150 engine hours.  We are at 135 hours and about to go 250 miles to Cape Cod (40 hours.)  First we have to remove everything from the aft cabin, all the cushions and bedding.  Here it is empty.

We put all the bedding and cushions in the fore cabin.  What a mess.

 You can just see Drew's hand replacing the oil filter.  Here's the supplies to pump out old oil and put in new.  It's a process and takes about 3 hours for us.  The marina takes the old oil for a small fee and recycle/reprocess it somehow.

Now to figure out when to leave sorting through all of the weather apps information.

Oh and Happy Mothers' Day to everyone.  Nice to hear from both my kids and all the grands.  Chris, I miss our walk at Arnold Arboretum on this day.


Mazu sleeping in while we work.