Re: [Cal_Boats] Cal 33-2 ocean sailing

Hi, Jonathan. Most of the responses you have received are related to seamanship - what one must do to survive (and maybe prosper) under any conditions that Mother Nature may throw your way. Important stuff. My discussion will deal more with the route. Many years ago, there was a DelMarVa (DMV) circumnavigation race starting in Annapolis. I was on it as deck ape a couple times. We used to go North first, so the ARC is a reverse. No GPS at the time. I am putting out some old memories. I do not know the full itinerary, but I will say that rally or not for everyone, Tangier Island is a bucket list destination (before the whole island sinks). It is a place in a very different time, when watermen and fishermen ruled the Chesapeake. As down home as you can get. Had the best crab cake of my life there. The majority of the folks are either named Crocket or Pruitt, and their kids (few that they are) must take a ferry to Crisfield on the Eastern Shore for school. The Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake farther south can be a bit frightening at night (as I'm sure you know). Very little over there. Daaark. Also, the freighters close in on you a lot quicker than you might imagine. If you see a red light and a green light way up in the air, prayer may be the only solution. I know ARC is aiming for daylight in Hampton Roads and Norfolk. Hope so. A lot of Navy and commercial ships, and they are not forgiving on course. I'm sure you know all about this as well in the Southern Bay. Chances are you will be able (at least maybe) to stay in sight of land while in the Atlantic. The curvature of the coast is favorable for that. Once again, there is very little to light up the Eastern Shore of Virginia. On one race, we spent a day becalmed off of Ocean City, MD. I think the ocean passage may be less eventful than other parts of the trip. The Delaware Bay and River can be ghastly places in a blow. It is shallow, so the seas can build to a short high chop with winds from NW or SE. Hope that your passage is not to windward since the channel is narrow and there are numerous large freighters. I assume they will give you timings to pass through the C&D Canal under motor. The currents (tidal) can be substantial. There will probably be timing windows to pass through the canal. Maybe Schaefer's Restaurant on the west end of the C&D is on your itinerary. Right on the water. It is fun to see the boats try to tie up at the bulkhead when the current is really running. The northern Chesapeake is beautiful, but also shallow. Once again, the shallowness makes it prone to short high wave action. Havre de Grace is rustic and neat. So is Rock Hall farther south. Around Baltimore and south, the number of navigational marks can make your head spin. Once again, the freighters can come up on you real quick if you are in one of the channels. Don't know if any of this is useful. Just my 2 cents. Will you be pulling into Annapolis before the rally? Cheers Charlie Annapolis CAL 25