Port Washington to Block Island

Nick - I have made very similar trips but leaving mostly from further east on the LI side of the Sound so I am not too familiar with Stamford. We usually do the opposite and head out to Block stopping at ports on the LI side and then on the way back stop along the CT coast. However last year on our way back from Newport and Block Island we stopped in Stonington, CT which is in Fisher's Island Sound and is a very nice little sailing harbor with some very impressive boats in it and is an easy sail to or from Block. You also have Mystic right there as well which is a fun little town with the whaling village and all of that to do. The next night we stopped in Clinton and would prob not go back because we were the only sailboat out of about 300 powerboats. The cruising guide advertised it as being a boaters heaven... it did have a pool and hot tub and a kind of outdated restaurant but that is it so personally I would skip Clinton. Other places in CT that is within a half day sail from Port Washington that we liked is Milford which is very clean, pretty town with plenty of restaurants right off the dock, Norwalk, and Captains Cove Marina in Black Rock which has more of a party atmosphere.

The trip is plenty doable and you should have a great time! I would get a LI Sound Cruising guide so that way if you feel like making a longer run one day or stopping short, you can look up all the places to stop in as there are plenty. My gf and I will be headed east in August and are going to try some new spots in CT on the way back. Have fun!

-Nick

Hey Nick,

I'd second Nick #2's suggestion about Clinton and pass it by. If you want to make it a bit of a longer trip on day #2, heading up the Connecticut River to Old Saybrook (via North Cove) or Essex (right on the river a few miles past I-95) might be other spots to consider. Keep an eye on the tides, though, (especially if your heading all the way up to Essex) since it may cost you 2 or 3 knots of headway at max ebb.

Note that North Cove can get somewhat shallow at low tide although I keep hearing their going to dredge in there (don't know if its happened yet or not).

Have a great trip!

Take care,

Bill
O'Day 302 - 'Antares'

Barry, what if I sailed Port Washington to Sinai, spent the night and we left Sinai together? I've never made a straight run from Sinai before but I know for a fact that time of the year the wind is very undependable in the Sound and that 70 miles may as well be a million. I had that problem last year and motored quite a bit. I took advantage of the good winds at dusk and dawn and the rest of the way I motorsailed. 12 hours to do 70mn I think is a bit of a stretch though. That's almost 6 knots the whole way and with the wind not being great its pushing it, at least for my 27' footer.
Anyway, whatever timeline we decide on closer to departure date, I'm in. I'd love to raft up with whoever would like, cook a feast, tell boat stories and share drinks. That's why we sail isn't it? Whoever dives will want to bring dive gear along on this trip. The diving is AMAZING out there compared to the rest of the east coast this far north.

The trip last year was amazing but we wasted too much time with a broken alternator belt and mainsail issues that needed adjustment, etc... I put a lot of new stuff on the boat and didn't get a chance to iron out all the issues before setting out. Being the first time to Block we didn't know what to expect when we got there so we wasted a lot of time exploring ports along the way we should have skipped. So the trip was as follows; we left Glen Cove late afternoon and sailed to Stamford and decided to rest for the night. We got up the next morning, explored Stamford for the day and then headed to Black Rock. Blackrock was a good time, had dinner, explored some more, stayed the night and left forClinton (boring stop), we were tired so we tied up, took the dog for a walk and returned to cook dinner on board and sleep. The next day was an early start and we went from Clinton to Fishers Island (beautiful and peaceful), waited the night and at first light headed for Block.
I spared you all from reading about the nightmare of changing the alternator belt while three A**HOLES on jet skies circled me playing tag with each other while I was down below working in 3 foot waves wanting to puke my guts out. And the fact that when the sail loft installed my Dutchman system the day before we left the sheet was on the wrong side of the main so every time I raised the main the track was sawing into it until it finally snapped and all the crap came crashing onto the deck sending my spinnaker downhaul up to wrap the spreaders ( talk about Murphy crewing that run), to this day I think its impossible to replicate that event but sure as heck it happened to me. Anyway, I'm ready for run #2......WHO'S IN !?!?

You can count me in for the cruise to Block next year. I am in Mt. Sinai as well with Barry and John (Wandering Star). I have been going to Block each year for the past 3 years since I have been sailing and I love it. I always did a post with pics of our trips but we usually head out with the tide, stop at Mattituck then head out with the tide again the next morning for a straight shot to Block.

Barry - The only downside I can think of by leaving Mt. Sinai at 10PM and doing a straight shot all the way there is we are pretty much guaranteed to be going against the tide doing 3knts or less for about 4-6 hours and maybe more of the trip. That's why I usually make it a two day affair by leaving with the Ebb to get to Mattituck and then for the longer leg from Mattituck to Block sometimes leaving at 3:30am to catch the start of the Ebb because so I can hit the Race at peak Ebb tide sometimes doing 10.5 knots over the ground making the whole trip ALOT quicker. Since the current in the east end of the Sound is so strong, if you do it that way you won't see below 7.5-8knts on your GPS the entire time. However I would love to do the trip in one shot though and especially if we have a fleet with us so I am in either way.

Jeez I just can't wait for this winter to end and to get back out sailing again with all this planning for next season already!

-Nick