A Tale of Two Chemists: Back in the Saddle

Back in the Saddle … Tuesday 9^th June 2015

It has been almost a year since Gloria shattered her hip jumping onto the dock at Sebasco harbor. I’m delighted to say that she is now mostly recovered and that we are back on Cotinga and will be taking another crack at running a charter sailing business up in Sebasco Harbor, Maine.

During the winter we had a lot of work done on the boat, including a major service of the engine and installation of new rudder. Now we really need to earn some money! We re-launched Cotinga early in May and brought her over to our mooring at East Greenwich Yacht Club. We were able to do some test sails and a couple of overnight trips to Potters Cove and planned to set off for Maine on Friday 29^th May, but lousy weather forced us to delay departure until Tuesday 2^nd June and as it turned out it was a bit of a shaky departure.

Gloria’s brother Rod joined us for the trip and we left the dock in East Greenwich in the early afternoon in stiff northerly winds and intermittent showers. The previous day had equaled a 143 year record for the coldest day in June and it wasn’t much better on Tuesday. After motor-sailing with the genoa for about an hour we realized that the rudder was very stiff and difficult to turn. Our first thought was that the auto-pilot wasn’t dis-engaging correctly, but this turned out not to be the case. Rod then realized that we were dragging something behind the boat, presumably wrapped around the rudder. Potters Cove was nearby so we headed in and picked up a mooring. It became evident that we had snagged a lobster pot and line, but no amount of pulling would free it up. We tried to come up with a good solution but none seemed attractive, so Mike put on wet suit and dived on the rudder. He was able to cut one end of the line with a knife and Rod was then able to pull up the other end from the deck – much to everyone’s relief. Mike took a quick shower whilst Gloria and Rod dropped the mooring and took us out of the cove. We then motored for another couple of hours down the Sakonnet River and dropped anchor at Fogland, about 6 miles north of the entrance to Narragansett Bay.

On Wednesday we motored out of the Sakonnet River and turned to the east to head up Buzzards Bay. Initially there wasn’t much wind but after an hour or so it started to fill in and we had a fine sail to Hadley Harbor. We anchored off to the side of the entrance channel in a small cove and had a pleasant and restful evening. The following morning we got up early and were underway by 6:45am, motoring up the bay to catch favorable current through the Cape Cod Canal. We timed it well and made the passage through the canal at speeds of up to 11 knots. At times the eddies in the water would have us pointing directly towards shore, but other than that it all went smoothly. Once clear of the canal the winds were so light that we ended up motoring the 20 miles up to Provincetown. Once there, we dropped anchor several hundred yards from shore, but with protection from the north easterly breeze. Our plan was to rest up for the afternoon and try and get some sleep, before heading out in the early evening for Maine.

We raised the anchor and headed around the hook of land that marks the northern end Cape Cod. Winds were light and from the north east and for the first couple of miles we were able to sail wing on wing with the genoa poled out. Once we turned to a more northerly direction, we took down the pole and sailed on a beam reach for a couple of hours until the winds eased to the point where we were no longer making good progress. We then motor-sailed overnight in comfortable conditions. The sunset was spectacular as was the moon-rise about an hour later. With an almost full moon and clear skies it was quite bright. Along the way we encountered a number of large transport ships and some fishing vessels. The AIS (automatic identification system) is terrific. It allows us to see information of any other ship that is using the system and also for them to see us. It makes it much easier to identify potential collisions and take corrective measures. The sky gets light at about 4.30am and a few hours later the winds, now from the south-east, strengthened and we were able to sail the final couple of hours into Sebasco harbor. We covered the 105 miles from Provincetown to Sebasco in about 17 hours, arriving about 11 am on Friday.

On Saturday, Gloria’s other brother Paul and his wife Fran came and picked us all up in their van and drove us back to Rhode Island. Of course we had to stop for a fine lunch in Portland. Clam or haddock chowder followed by haddock sandwiches or lobster roles were the chosen meals. Then in the evening Rod’s wife Sue cooked us a fantastic dinner of chili verde followed by blueberry cobbler. Gloria and I then returned to our house in Sudbury and spent Sunday at home.

On Monday we drove our car back up to Sebasco Harbor, so now we have transport. The weather was miserable from a boating perspective - strong southerly winds and big seas. We took the dinghy out to Cotinga and spent the rest of the day inside as the boat rocked and rolled in the wind and swell. Sebasco Harbor has only limited protection from the south and it was a bumpy 18 hours. We slept in the main cabin rather than the V-berth because there is less motion.

This morning the weather has improved a little, but the forecast still calls for strong winds and high seas through the day, with thunderstorms likely in the afternoon. Today was the first day that I was supposed to be Captain of the Ruth and there were trips planned for both the morning and afternoon. However, I made the call to cancel these. This was not an easy decision, but the poor weather and “small craft advisory” that is in place all day, coupled with the fact that I currently have zero experience driving this vessel, made it seem sensible to cancel. Tomorrow there are no trips planned and better weather, and I will use the time to familiarize myself with the Ruth.

Mike