LORD’S PRAYER LOG, Part 776:

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Anchored Still Pond in the Northern Chesapeake

0001 I’ve got no joy on a Verizon wireless signal here; at least not one that works. Two bars are showing on the phone but it won’t connect. I think I remember having this problem here on a previous occasion. There are plenty of TV signals coming in though, which is a change from the summer’s experience with this dandy new digital TV.

0720 I add a quart of oil to the engine and about a half ounce of hydraulic fluid to the autopilot reservoir. I tighten a bleed valve atop the secondary fuel strainer. I clean around the engine and replace the Oilsorb pads underneath.

0755 A few days ago in Maine, looking down through clear water from the dinghy, I found myself wondering if I had thrown the zinc off the back of the propeller; I couldn’t be sure from what I was seeing. So this morning I go over the side into nice warm water for a swim to check the prop zinc. It IS missing! Replacing that will go to the top of my to-do list after I get home. I also notice that the bottom of the boat is slimier than I expect it to be. The Interlux Micron 66 bottom paint that I started using a year ago last spring isn’t doing as well as I thought it should; the paint’s performance just doesn’t seem to be living up to the rave reviews that I’ve read in Practical Sailor Magazine.

0815 I haul up the anchor and get underway for home, a distance of 57 nm. I take up a southwesterly heading to go down the Bay.

0840 The wind is W 11-13 kts; as I turn further south, I’ve got enough of an angle on the wind to get the sails up. I turn into it and hoist the main, then fall back off onto course.

0856 I set the jib; Lord’s Prayer is motorsailing SSW under all plain sail at 6.5 kts; the engine is turning at 2100 rpm. The wind is WNW 9 kts.

0917 I cross over to the west side of the ship channel, which kind of hugs the eastern shore of the Bay for a stretch of about 3-4 nm here just north of Tolchester Beach.

0922 The wind has abated a bit WNW 7-8 kts; speed 6.2 kts. The current is fair: 1.2 kts (SOG 7.4 kts).

0952 I pass port-to-port with a tug in the ship channel towing a barge astern on a short towline.

0958 I cross to the east side of the ship channel, which has taken a turn away from the shore.

1002 I pass starboard-to-starboard with the tug Anacostia pushing a double skinned fuel barge and headed north in the ship channel.

1024 I am passing Rock Hall off to port; the Bay Bridge is visible now in haze some 9.6 nm ahead.

1032 A bright shiny red fire rescue boat overtakes and chugs past me to starboard headed south; its name is Patriot and the hailing port on the stern is Tampa. I am wondering if it might be a brand new boat just being delivered.

1120 The wind has veered and slacked off: N 5 kts; I advance the engine rpm to 2400. The apparent wind is about zero now so the sails are hanging straight down; I leave them be in case any wind comes back. I open the central hatch over the cabin to get some air circulating into the cabin, as it is beginning to feel a bit warm.

1146 With no air moving it is getting too warm for my liking; I open port holes, roll up the jib, raise the hatch over the forward cabin, and turn on the fan in the main cabin. I pull the canvas shades over the isinglass skylights in the bimini to block some of the sunlight from coming into the cockpit. And I roll up the isinglass at the front of the dodger to let some air pass through.

1155 I pass beneath the Bay Bridge. The ebb current is evident by looking at water streaming past the bridge piers; there’s about 0.8-0.9 kt of fair current evident by a comparison of the speed and SOG.

1159 The wind appears to have veered to E 2-4 kts here south of the Bay Bridge. I retrim the mainsail.

1334 I pass Bloody Point Bar Light 200 yards to port.

1418 The wind is calm as I motor into the passage behind Poplar Island. The tide is on the rise now; I’m showing about 0.7 kt of flood current on the nose.

1459 I enter Knapps Narrows.

1505 The bridge to Tilghman Island opens on request and I pass through.

1509 I exit Knapps Narrows into the Choptank River.

1513 There’s a light breeze in the Choptank (SE 5-6 kts); it’s a bit too close to the bow to fuss with the sails. However, it provides a welcome cooling effect aboard Lord’s Prayer.

1545 With the internal fuel quantity gauge indicating 17 gallons in the main tank, I start transferring fuel out of the last of the plastic jugs into the main tank.

1600 Once the fuel transfer is complete, all plastic jugs onboard are empty and the main fuel tank gauge is showing 26 gallons internal (9 gallons below full).

1553 I pass Castle Haven Point.

1730 I am finding that the engine is tending to overheat a little when I run it above 2500 rpm in this warmer water of the Chesapeake (the temperature of the water here in the Choptank is 76°F). Clearly I’m going to need to do a little cooling system maintenance sometime this fall. It’ll be new learning experience for me; a new challenge!

1755 I pass around Hambrooks Bar and head for Cambridge Creek.

1810 I enter the Creek.

1825 Lord’s Prayer is secured in her home slip in Cambridge Creek, MD after an 88-day, 1805 nm voyage to Maine and back. Position: 38 34.266 N 076 04.455 W. Engine time at shutdown: 3199.5 hrs. Fuel state: 25 gallons.

END OF LORD’S PRAYER LOG, PART 776

END SUMMER VOYAGE 2009

Christine & Jim Kidd

Lord’s Prayer