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May 26, 2009
Memorial Day Weekend 2009
On Friday morning, before leaving to catch the train to Stamford, I checked the weather. I do this throughout every day, almost as often as I check my email. The forecast was as follows: Saturday east 5-10 knots. Sunday southwest 5-10 knots. Monday northwest 5-10 knots. Almost perfect (we like 10-15 knots). But the changing winds laid out a plan for us - Saturday to Oyster Bay on Long Island, Sunday to Port Jefferson, then back to Stamford on Monday.
We woke Saturday morning to 20 knot winds. I checked weather. Nothing about the forecast had changed. At 10am, the National Weather Service updated the forecast. East winds 20 knots gusting to 30. This complicated our plans. We were joining Sirena and Impulse on the voyage to Oyster Bay. Sirena had the wind on her nose at the dock, making her exit relatively uneventful. Impulse was on a mooring in the harbour, making their exit casual. We had the wind on the beam, pushing us off the dock and onto the boat next to us.
So we helped Sirena get away, then the Impulse crew helped hold us to the dock while we got away. The wind was phenomenal! We put two reefs in the main, and two in the genoa and flew across on a beam reach doing 7.5 knots. We all rendezvoused in Oyster Bay in the anchorage.
Sirena and Impulse returned to Stamford in the morning, and we carried on to Port Jefferson. Despite the ferries and obnoxious water tubing, skiing and otherwise unaware power boaters, this is a favourite anchorage of ours because of the bluffs and beaches. There was less than 5 knots of wind and we motored almost all of the way. We settled in around 5, I had a snooze in the hammock, and we had a lovely dinner of barbecued salmon. We both fell asleep in the cockpit. The chill drove us below at some unknown hour.
Monday we set out early, again with no wind. So much for the forecast. We motored back to Stamford, did a few chores around the boat, and headed into the city around 5.
On the train returning home, I developed a wicked headache. I drank lots of water and some electrolytes, which didn't seem to work. When I got home, I noticed in the mirror that I had a ton of sun. Not a burn, but a lot of sun. My hair was brighter by a few shades, my nose was red, and my neck was dark brown. The headache was obviously the result of too much sun.
Oh my goodness! The season is just beginning.
We leave Friday for 10 days on the boat. Our plan is to sail Friday to the Thimble Islands, then dinner Saturday with friends on Fishers Island, then into Mystic for a couple of days, then to Block Island (a favourite of ours). From there, we may go to see some friends in Mauntauk, then start to make our way back to Stamford. All this is weather permitting, of course.
Posted by dave at May 26, 2009 07:51 PM