Tantara July 2006 Log

Tantara Log July, 2006

This Log entry was composed by Julie.

In this log, I will try to share some of the more adventurous and exciting stories of our travels, as opposed to the more mundane activities such as laundering clothes. Although, personally, I think accomplishing clean clothes is exciting, even miraculous!

In early July I was blessed to attend my Faith Academy high school class reunion in Strasburg, Pennsylvania. In the midst of pristine Amish farms, we gathered to remember our shared past as missionary kids growing up in a boarding school in the Philippines. The bond we share is special and unique. Instead of claiming a geographic place, I feel a sense of membership with this group of people called Third Culture Kids. This is my tribe, my people. The sweet fellowship and atmosphere of acceptance and understanding that weekend was truly an encouragement and blessing to me.

Tantara was anchored in Havre De Grace, Maryland during my class reunion.

At this point the editor needs to insert some information about what we did while Julie and her friends were having their reunion. Just before Julie was picked up by a friend to go to the reunion, the Susquehanna river where we were anchored became swollen with rain and debris from flooding up river. This debris included whole tree trunks, tires, road signs and junk. Being at anchor, Tantara was catching much of the debris on the anchor line and the two hulls. Soon we discovered that there was a man on a nearby dock pushing the debris off of his dock, and it was then catching on Tantara. He felt bad about doing this, so he came over to help fend off some of the larger tree limbs from Tantara, and invited us to tie up on his dock. The picture with Tantara and the plane is where we docked while Julie was away. To pay for my berth, and assure Tantara's safety, I helped fend off debris from the upstream side of the dock. In return, the dockmaster invited RED and I to his fourth of July celebration, and RED performed "Triple Dip" and several patriotic songs on the keyboard, Irish whistle, and harmonica. Back to Julie.

We left Havre De Grace and the Chesapeake Bay July 6th and motored through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. We sailed down Delaware Bay and into the Atlantic Ocean along the New Jersey coast. We caught four Atlantic herring (we think) with a hand line and cooked them up for lunch. Delicious!

One evening we anchored in Little Egg Harbor, between islands of salt marsh and bird habitat. After a glowing sunset, we felt content with our natural anchorage and appreciated the twinkling lights of Atlantic City a comfortable distance away.

July 10th we sailed into New York Harbor and found a wonderful anchorage next to Liberty Park with a lovely view of the Statue of Liberty's back side. That night we were treated to a breath taking display of fireworks, lending a sparkling frame to Lady Liberty. Very special!

We stayed at that anchorage for a few days, even though our options for sight seeing were limited due to a lack of security. We didn't want to leave our dinghy unattended at the dock. We found plenty of activities to keep us occupied, however.

Daniel, being the most nimble and courageous of our crew, won the privilege of being raised sixty feet to the top of Tantara's mast in a boson's chair. He reported a great view of the Statue of Liberty and received attention and admiration from other cruisers in our anchorage. Rachel is waiting in line for the next opportunity.

We took turns riding our folding bikes around the park. Steve biked into Jersey City for supplies using our new cargo trailer. The kids and I took a ferry to Ellis and Liberty Islands to learn about the amazing tenacity of millions of immigrants coming to America.

After moving our boat to the more secure 79th Street Marina along the Hudson River, we met up with my nephew Adam Wood who lives in New York City and attends Fordham University. Adam became our tour guide as we took a bus to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and lost ourselves among the hundreds of fascinating halls. We ate dinner in China Town and Adam introduced us to Bubble Tea. Yum! We took the subway back to 79th street near the marina.

The next day, we unloaded all four of our folding bikes and the trailer for the kids to take turns riding in, and we took off on the bike highway that stretches for miles along the Hudson River. We rode to the former sight of the World Trade Center. We pedaled to Battery Park and on to Central Park, exploring the numerous bike trails. In Central Park we watched a Shakespeare theatre rehearsal, listened to classical music and choirs and marveled at the people on rollerblades performing stunts in the plaza. After biking all day, about sixteen miles total, we treated ourselves to New York style pizza.

July 15th we left New York City with Adam on board and sailed up Long Island Sound to Bridgeport, Connecticut. Adam and Daniel tried to fish, but with no results. We anchored across the bay from town, near a lonely beach.

The next morning, after breakfast and family worship, we heard a bumping sound and realized that we were aground because of the changing tide. We weren't going anywhere for a few hours, but we understood one advantage of a catamaran - stability.

While waiting for the tide to change, we swam and wandered around the beach, inspecting shells and abandoned beach "treasures." The kids made a raft from an old plastic crate and challenged each other to stay afloat. Adam picked up a large horseshoe crab for the kids to observe, but its stench was repellant enough to quickly send the critter on its way. After noon, Tantara was free again and we sailed to New Haven, Connecticut. Steve took Adam in the dinghy to the town dock to catch a train back to New York City. It was a treat for us to see Adam again and spend some time with him. It was especially fun for the kids as he showered them with attention.

We had hopes of touring Yale University and catching up on laundry and grocery needs, but the town of New Haven was inaccessible from our anchorage and the marina attendant we contacted was unhelpful. We moved up Long Island to the town of Niantic, Connecticut.

In our cruising guide, we read about a beautiful anchorage up the Niantic River, but the highway bridge was broken, so we anchored in the bay since the weather was calm and sunny. We met George, a man who came by in a kayak and invited us to his home to do our laundry at his home on the beach near our anchorage.

George and his wife Lee invited us back the next day and Lee drove me to the grocery store while George took Steve and the kids out for a sail on his Sun Fish, a small but fast sail boat. That evening they invited more people for a lovely dinner party and we made more new friends.

That night we returned to Tantara just in time to button up for a storm more intense than predicted. At dawn we realized our anchor had dragged three quarters of a mile across the bay, next to a pile of rocks! God's hand of protection had been on us that night and we paused over breakfast in grateful acknowledgement.

We had a clear, bright day after the storm and it was my forty-third birthday, July 19th. We pulled up our anchor and moved to the neighboring town of Mystic, Connecticut. Henry and his wife Michael, new friends we had met at the dinner party, live nearby and offered to give us a boat tour of Mystic River. We motored past the town of Mystic, admiring the well kept 18th and 19th century homes and quaint shops and restaurants. Henry showed us a peaceful cove next to the Mystic Seaport Village and Museum where we anchored Tantara for the next week. We celebrated my birthday with a plate full of lobster and chocolate cake.

Our week in Mystic was productive, relaxing and educational. The kids and I spent two days learning all about maritime history, boat and ship building and the whaling ships of a previous era at the Mystic Seaport museum while Steve spent some well deserved quiet time on the boat.

During our stay in Mystic, we also acquired a special sailing vessel, a very stable eight-foot Porta-bote that folds flat, with a red and white striped sail. Steve found her on E-Bay and after winning the bid, arranged for delivery in Mystic. The kids paid for a large portion with their own savings and have proudly named her "Triple Dip," after a piano trio arrangement they love to perform together. Triple Dip was a source of joyful recreation for several days in the tranquil Mystic River. However, we had to steer clear of the young students from the Mystic Seaport sailing school, who were not always entirely in control of their vessels!

July 28th we left Mystic, CT and sailed to Cutty Hunk Harbor. As we traveled, Rachel and I suffered from a stomach illness that we first thought was seasickness, but soon we recognized the symptoms of a stomach bug. I have actually made much progress in acquiring my sea legs and have produced some praise winning meals while underway. We went through the tricky Cape Cod Canal with fast moving current and anchored in the harbor at Plymouth, Massachusetts for the weekend.

Sunday, July 30th we rose early and walked through town looking for a certain church we had heard about, but never found. After walking for several miles around Plymouth, we were hungry and tired and decided to have a "second breakfast" at a restaurant serving pancakes and French toast. In the afternoon, we visited several museums and Plymouth Rock, retracing the steps of the Puritan pilgrims.

As we leave the month of July in our wake, we look forward to spending August exploring the shores of Maine.

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