July 16, 2009... Transiting C&D Canal

After another lovely day on the Sassafras River yesterday we decided to take our chances on the weather and head for the Delaware Bay. We checked on the current to make sure we would get a push through the Canal - looked like a noon arrival at Herring Creek would get us the best whoosh. So, packing up and sailing out of the Sassafras to the Chesapeake, motorsailing up the Elk River, and finally onto the C&D Canal. We got about a two-knot advantage from the current. And luckily, only three ships passed in the opposite direction for the entire length of the Canal making the trip pleasant and fairly uneventful. Once outside the C&D, the Delaware Bay was dark and windy. A storm was passing to the north, so our southbound direction was good. We motored against the current... slowly... and found our next anchorage behind Reedy Island with a ‘great’ view of the Salem nuclear plant in New Jersey. Then the sun came out. We hope for a calm, quiet evening; planning an early start for Cape May in the morning.

Reedy Island DE - 39d31'N 75d34'W