LORD’S PRAYER LOG, Part 810:

Monday, September 13, 2010

Anchored Sassafras River, northern Chesapeake Bay

0430 I can hear the first waterman of the day motoring out in his workboat in the Sassafras; moments later Lord’s Prayer is rocking gently from the wake.

0500 As I get up to start the day the wind in the anchorage is calm.

0530 The wind forecast for the Chesapeake has changed from last evening. For the remainder of the overnight the forecast is for NW 10 kts, then backing CCW to SW 10-15 G 20 kts.

0606 Lord’s Prayer is underway, bound for home, a distance of about 63 nm.

0612 As I exit the Sassafras on a westerly heading, the planet Jupiter lies over the port bow; it bears 253°T at 12° of altitude; it is the only celestial body visible in the morning twilight.

0625 The wind is W 4 kts. The sky to the east is clear; to the west there are scattered low clouds and to the NW it is overcast also with low clouds. Visibility is limited by thin mist. Air temperature is a comfortable 70°F.

0640 I turn briefly into the wind to hoist the mainsail and then return to a new course at Howell Point of WSW; Lord’s Prayer is motorsailing close-hauled under just the main. The wind is stronger now: W 9-10 kts.

0642 Sunrise.

0648 Low clouds cover the entire sky now and the sun is barely visible… just a red ball rising above the tree line to the east.

0650 I pass a moored barge to port just outside the buoyed channel; it’s apparently positioned here to support dredging operations.

0655 I turn just a bit further south and then haul out the jib. Lord’s Prayer is on a close starboard reach motorsailing under jib and main.

0705 With Still Pond off the port hand, I pass a large drag-line dredge to starboard belonging to the Norfolk Dredging Co. (can’t quite read the name); it’s working in the buoyed channel and nearby there is the tug Taft Beach maneuvering a very large barge. The tug Capt Ed is also in proximity to the south; it’s near dead in the water and tied to a barge that’s riding quite low in the water.

0715 The tug Elizabeth Ann passes to starboard at a half mile pushing an enormous barge NE at about 3.5 kts.

0811 A NOAA motorboat about 50’ in length with a white hull motors past to starboard, opposite course doing about 15-20 kts. I cannot see a name on it.

0814 The wind is NW 5-6 kts. The clouds overhead are breaking up; and the sun has just popped out. My speed: S 6.3 kts, SOG 6.5 kts.

0817 There’s a thump forward; I just hit a floating log, low in the water and barely visible. No damage.

0830 I’m passing Tolchester 0.7 nm to port. The wind is NW… 6-7 kts. S 6.4 kts, SOG 6.5 kts. I think I’ve seen about the end of the fair current for this morning; but no matter! The Bay is getting wider as I go south (except in vicinity of Kent Island) so what current I do encounter will generally be fairly weak from this point on.

0924 The wind is NW 5-6 kts. A monarch butterfly flutters about the bimini as I motorsail past Rock Hall 2.5 nm to the east; and here the Bay Bridge comes into view 9 nm ahead.

1015 The wind is tending more from the west now WNW 3-6 kts and periodically it luffs the sails; this may be a precursor of the SW wind that’s forecast for later today. S 6.5 kts, SOG 5.9 kts. I’m approaching the north end of Kent Island.

1030 The wind is SW 5-6 kts; it is too close to the bow to carry the jib now so I roll it up.

1058 I motorsail beneath the Bay Bridge in the Eastern Channel and continue on course. The steel work overhead on the westbound span is showing some rust and it will need some maintenance work one of these days soon. The steelwork on the eastbound span, however, appears to be in pretty good condition; it has only been a few years since it was completely repainted… an enormous task… and very expensive. It is nice to see one of our national infrastructure assets in good condition. For my grandson Grady, who left me a voicemail not long ago asking, “Grandpa, How deep is the Bay Bridge?”, here is my answer. There are two shipping channels that pass under the Bay Bridge: the Chesapeake Channel and the Eastern Channel. The Chesapeake Channel is where the bridge is the highest and here the water depth is about 50’; the vertical clearance here for ships passing underneath is 182’. Over in the Eastern Channel the water depth interestingly is deeper (about 75’) but the vertical clearance is a lot less than it is in the Chesapeake Channel (here the vertical clearance is only 58’); that is too little for a lot of ships to pass under. In fact the vertical clearance here over the Eastern Channel is inadequate for a lot of sailboats as well. That is not a problem for Lord’s Prayer, though, because my mast height (including the VHF radio antenna) is about 47’. When I pass beneath this part of the bridge, there is about 11’ above the tippy top of my antenna. Hope that wasn’t TMI (too much information). Love, Grandpa.

1134 As I motor south along the west coast of Kent Island, there are 3 merchant ships off to starboard lying to their anchors in the roadstead that is south of the Bay Bridge. They are the cargo ships E.R. Brazil (L 958’ x B 148’ x D 41’), Cape Eagle (L 919’ x B 148’ x D 35’), and the tanker SKS Tana (L 797’ x B 138’ x D 31’). On the AIS, all three ships show their destination as Baltimore: the Brazil on 29 Aug; the Cape Eagle 17 August and the SKS Tana on 12 Sep. All 3 ships are floating high in the water, so I am guessing they have probably already been offloaded and that they are not awaiting a pier assignment in Baltimore. Perhaps the crews are taking a break, or I am guessing more likely, the ships may be awaiting their next assignment from company headquarters.

1241 Upon passing beyond the south end of Kent Island and the Bloody Point Bar Light, I turn SE and head for the passage behind Poplar island. This little turn fills the mainsail, which has been luffing a bit over the last mile or so.

1256 The bay water just to port in the entrance to Eastern Bay is suddenly rippled and substantially disturbed by a school of little fishes evidently under attack from larger predators below. A seagull suddenly sweeps down and picks off a little bait fish. The little fish must have been completely distracted by the threat underneath. A bad day for the little fishy… but not such a bad day for the gull. Lunch!

1314 As I turn into the passage east of Poplar Island, the wind comes onto the nose; I drop and stow the mainsail. I’m motoring at 2500 rpm: S 5.5 kts, SOG 5.6 kts. What an utterly perfect day it is on the water today: a nice breeze, comfortable temperature, low humidity, good visibility now, a clear sky, sunny, just beautiful. It doesn’t get any better than this! Life is good!

1404 I enter Knapps Narrows.

1408 The bridge to Tilghman Island opens on request and I pass through.

1413 I exit Knapps Narrows into the Choptank River.

1425 With the internal fuel quantity gauge indicating 13 gallons in the internal main tank, I start transferring fuel from plastic jugs into the main tank.

1450 I transfer 3 of the 4 plastic jugs of fuel into the main (internal) tank. This brings the gauge up to just under full (probably about 31 gallons). I don’t think there is enough room in the internal tank to empty the last jug, so I will hold off on that for now.

1507 The wind is S 8-9 kts; I turn into the wind, hoist the main, resume course, haul out the jib, and secure the engine. Ahhh! Bliss! Lord’s Prayer is on a close reach, on starboard tack, headed up river. S 4.9 kts, SOG 5.0 kts.

1549 The breeze has picked up: S 12-13 kts. What a perfect moment this is… sailing home in the Choptank! This is the kind of a sail and the kind of a day on the water that a sailor remembers for his lifetime!

1604 I pass Castle Haven Point. Another Monarch butterfly flutters about the boat and cockpit; I must have seen a hundred of these little guys on this trip! Even off the coast of New Jersey!

1615 The breeze freshens: S 14-15 kts. The lee rail goes down near the water. Good speed on flat water: S 6.6 kts, SOG 6.3 kts.

1649 I pass around Hambrooks Bar and head for Cambridge Creek.

1705 I douse sails.

1715 I enter the Creek and head for my slip.

1718 I pick up Chris and we go back out to go for a sail together; we reach out toward Howell Point and back. It is a perfectly delightful sail and a time to catch up on ordinary stuff! Chris adds: I’ve been in touch with Jim throughout the day, always wanting to know where he was and what time the GPS said he’d be home.  On my last phone call he was close to Hambrooks Bar and was having a great sail.  I expressed my jealousy and he offered to take me out for a sail.  What a sweetheart and what a great way to spend time after work.  Thanks, Captain, and welcome home!

1850 We re-enter the Creek and head for our slip.

1900 Lord’s Prayer is secured in her home slip in Cambridge Creek, MD after an 82-day, 1447 nm voyage to Maine and back. The trip has been completed in 5 days. This is the quickest trip I have made yet out of 13 such trips sailing Lord’s Prayer home from Boothbay, Maine. Both the wind and current clearly have conspired quite perfectly to make this a faster trip than any before. And certainly the prayers and wishes of our many friends who have asked blessings for a fast, safe voyage, and fair winds must have given the Good Lord ample reason to smile upon the trip. For that I offer my personal thanks to all my well-wishers. Thank you! For my own part it has just simply been a matter of following the advise of a childhood hero of mine, the legendary Harriet Tubman (once a slave in Dorchester County… now my home) who as a conductor on the famed UGRR in the mid 1800’s, with extraordinary courage and cleverness, and absolute faith in God, provided the this simple advice to many, “Keep going”.  For my part, that is all I have done; I have just kept going! The rest was in the hands of the Good Lord. Our position here in the slip: 38 34.266 N 076 04.455 W. Engine time at shutdown: 3439.2 hrs. Thank you again… to all… for your many kind prayers, wishes, and thoughts.

END OF LORD’S PRAYER LOG, PART 810

END SUMMER VOYAGE 2010

Christine & Jim Kidd and Sailor Cat Harley

Lord’s Prayer