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Advice for coastal trip.. Newport to New Jersey

3K views 10 replies 6 participants last post by  SHIMSHON 
#1 ·
I Am Most likley taking delivery of Cal 39 in October. Boat has GPS, LORAN everything else you could thing of as well, sail inventory, creature comforts.. You get the idea.

I Am planning on keeping her in New Jersey. I Have been sailing for years but limited to Maryland (for the most part). Never did an off shore trip. So, do I (with crew) sail her down myself? Or; hire a captain since this will be my first time with this type of trip.. Estimate right around 40 hours non-stop. Worst case... Can go 60 hours without re-fueling. Advice wanted.. You can e-mail me at andy@wepi.com Also, let me know if you would like to go..!!
 
#2 ·
It is always hard to give you a real answer because it is hard to assess another person''s ability from a post on the Internet. You did not say where the boat is now and where you are going with her. There is obviously a huge difference between going between Rhode Island to Sandy Hook vs going from Annapolis to Sandy Hook for example.

I think the best clue here is your own concern. I would suggest that you try to find a more person with more offshore experience than you have and see if they want to join you on the trip. You might consider hiring a knowlegeable delivery skipper to come along with you so that you have a back up. You will need to explain you objectives to the delivery skipper in advance. I suggest that your objectives are 1. getting the boat delivered safely, 2. Getting some offshore experience because cruising in New Jersey means a fair amount of time offshore, and 3. Learn something about what you don''t know so that you can know what you need to study. Some delivery skippers may not be willing to do this or are not suited to this kind of thing but most are used to have owners on board.

One thing that concerns me is that you seem to see this as a long motoring trip. Does this mean that the boat is not is shape to be sailed? I would not want to do a trip that is that long and depend on motoring the whole way in an unfamiliar boat.

Regards
Jeff
 
#3 ·
OOOOPPPPPPS- I just reread the title of your post. You did say were you were going; Newport to New Jersey. There are normally two ways to make that trip, up Long Island Sound, or ''outside''. At this point I understand that the East River is closed to yacht traffic so your only choice is outside. If the East River is open, then the trip down Long Island Sound is pretty much like cruising the Chesapeake except for deeper water. The ouside route is probably faster but it takes vigilence and a proper weather window. If you cna inside I would think you would not need a delivery skipper (as long as you had some crew to share the work). If you go outside, expecially in October, then experienced offshore crew or a dilivery skipper is a good idea.

Regards
Jeff
 
#4 ·
Jeff:

Thanks much for your advice. You are correct in assuming that I am looking or off-shore experience, as I have very little and also some lessons in navigation As I do not want to depend on electronics all the time.

The boat is in excellent shape and is in real good "sailing" condition.
I thought I would head out of Newport stay on the outside just a few miles and head south .. given the appropiate weather window. If worst came to worst, (in terms of Navigation that is).. I figure it would be hard to miss Atlantic City. Boat has GPS, Loran, Computer (Navtech charts coupled to GPS and Auto pilot) Robertson AP, good sail inventory, Invertor, smart charger and so forth..

Is there anything particularly hazardous about this trip? I defineitly wanted to take crew with experience or a delivery captain who will let the "customer" come with. I will be keeping the boat in Atlantic City, hence a whole new adventure in terms of my sailing expeience.

I have spent many years sailing the in the Annapolis area in various weather conditions in a Cal 2-27 just about year-round. But, It is the Chesepeake Bay. Also, this is a Cal-39.

Thanks again,

Andy
 
#5 ·
Thats a great trip to take. Just be aware of your weather. Have you sailed at night? Some people find this to be an errie feeling. I have made the trip several times and found the mid to end of October a good time to go--but once again I waited for a good weather window. Be particularly cautious if any nor''easterns are brewing. Most of coastal Long Island, due to your draft, will be closed to you. However, places like Atlantic Highlands could be a nice break for you. In addition plan several alternative safety harbors just in case weather gets snotty ie Manasquan, Atlantic City, Cape May-other New Jersey inlets can be difficult in bad weather without local knowledge. Good Luck!
 
#7 ·
In answer to your question--yes. Be careful if going into Atlantic City at night. With all the casino lighting it is very difficult to pick out aids to navigation. outside of the channel water shoals pretty rapidly. The Senator Farley Marina at the Trump Casino is an okay place to stay. It gets pretty noisy in AC at night and can be a little dangerous once you are off the board walk-stay alert if you go walking any where. I would also study some of the other Inlets just in case you have a problem or weather forces you in.
 
#8 ·
With all this great advice, it still sounds like you have some doubts. I suggest taking a sailing buddy that was some experience and have them be your crew. That way you''ll gain confidence and experience. Two heads are usaully better than one. The first time I went out to Catalina Island from San Diego (at night) it was kinda scary, but confidence builds quickly. ANother thing, go on a full moon, the extra light is comforting.
 
#9 ·
Given that the boat is new to you and that you lack offshore experience, I would suggest that you take at least one person with considerable offshore experience and perhaps one or two more with some offshore experience. Your insurance company may require a professional captain and a certain number of crew for such a passage. I would also suggest that you stock up on spare parts and tools in case of rigging or engine problems. Be conservative and be safe; rig jacklines, wear harnesses, etc. Good luck.
 
#10 ·
I think it would be helpful for Andy, and me,
to have a suggested route, complete with
waypoints. But, I don''t see many folks posting such information. I''ve heard suggestions to keep 3-7 miles off the NJ
shore, ducking in when necessary, some cautions about various NJ harbors but none of
the "specifics."
 
#11 ·
When are you going? If you search the web at various marine publication sites, you should be able to come up with a list of pubs which have waypoints for both GPS and Loran. The Loran waypoint pubs were very common back in the mid to late 80''s also a current Light''s List will have the lats&longs for all of the aids to navigation and if you plot a course along the offshore buoys you should be able to establish a reasonable chain of waypoints to your destination. Also the Mid- Atlantic and Northern Waterway Guides will have some valuable information in them. If you have a laptop several of the navigation software programs could be of use-ie The Captain, which I have found to be very user friendly and makes an enormous amount of data avaiable to you. Reed''s is also a source of useful information and has a lot of local knowledge in it. Staying 5-10 miles off the New Jersey Coast is a good bet and should keep you out of a lot of local fishing traffic. Commercial traffic ie freighters tend to sail farther off the coast. Other then the major inlets, you should not attempt to enter the others, especially in a following sea unless you have local knowledge. You can also call the coast guard or talk to local fishing boats as to the current status of the minor inlets ie. shoaling etc.



Happy to answer any other questions.
 
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