TripSailor.com® Sailing Blogs

Monday morning was another beautiful morning.  I made a cup of coffee, cleaned up a little oil out of the bilge, and cast off the see where I would end up.

The inspection of the bilge once I was out of Port Jeff harbor seemed ok, so I decided to continue the trip.  I was in a sailboat after all, with a full complement of perfectly good sails, and an unlimited gold BoatUS towing plan. 

So, I made it from Port Jefferson to Guilford, CT today. Sailing on a dead run most of the way, plus bucking the current for the morning which made for only a 4 knot groundspeed for much of the trip. A run is my least favorite point of sail, as it takes constant attention to keep the jib full and avoid an accidental jibe. Plus the boat isn’t very stable on a run with following seas, so trying to type on the Blackberry or make phone calls or even study charts can be difficult. 

There were some scattered thunderstorms around, but luckily the storms stayed to the north, and the wind was fairly constant out of the west. 

This part of the sound is maybe 20 miles wide, so I couldn’t see the Connecticut coast very clearly for much of the trip. Was also a little hazy today. 

I’m sure that taking down the sails when single handed looks like a 3 Stooges bit missing Moe and Curly, but I always seem to manage.  A power boat tied up near me at the Guilford Yacht Club, and the guy on the boat had seen me getting the sails down.  He was complimentary, but perhaps he was just being nice. 

Guilford is in a little narrow channel that is surrounded by rocks, but it is well marked and easy to navigate. The yacht club is fantastic, with sturdy new concrete floating docks, lots of maneuvering room, water with hoses, spanking clean bathrooms, a huge pool, tennis courts, etc.  The pool felt great after being in the sun all day. 

I have a friend from work who happens to live in Guilford, so he picked me up at the yacht club, and we went out for dinner.  Guilford is a charming town—the quintessential small Connecticut waterfront sort of place, complete with a large town square with a gazebo in the middle.  After a quick trip to WalMart for more diapers and paper towels, I was ready to call it quits for the day. 

Dusk brought out swarms of mosquitos. I rigged up mosquito netting over all the hatches, and only a couple made it into the boat, with none surviving to tell the tale.