Irene: Hurricane Holes Near Eastern Long Island ?

[heatherbrie]

I'm currently in Greenport, Long Island, and planning to leave tomorrow to find a good hurricane hole in case Irene whomps the sound. Does anyone have any recommendations for the best spot within a one or two day sail of here? I'm looking at Point Judith Pond, which is a day's sail away, and was wondering if anyone had experience there (especially in a 6' draft boat) and if there were any other tested holes in the area.

[PamlicoTraveler]

Long Island? A bit premature, don't you think?

[smurphny]

Instead of stopping at Pt. Jude, I would keep going on up into Narragansett Bay, past Newport to Potters Cove. I weathered a nasty gale there a couple of years ago. Good holding, good protection from all directions. It's on the north end of Prudence Island: 41 38 34---71 20 11 Up the Connecticut River? Coecles Harbor ? Up in Mattituck Inlet? Setauket Harbor (way up inside near Little Bay)? No matter where you go down there, go early because lots of others will be thinking the same way. Just don't try to stay on your boat. A hurricane is exponentially worse than a gale.

It's good you are thinking ahead. Most others will wait until the last minute to come up with a plan. Hurricanes seem to be drawn to Eastern LI/Block I.

If it were to be a cat.3/4 with a huge storm surge, the only one of these I would feel confident of would be up inside Setauket Harbor. 20' tides would probably make the rest untenable. The Conn. River was devastated by the hurricane in the 30s. Actually, if I were in Greenport right now, I'd be motoring for Setauket or looking for some place to haul out and do some bottom work to get ahead of the rush.

[heatherbrie]

Premature? No. The current models mostly have it tracking up the east coast and making landfall again on eastern LI on Sunday/Monday. It will take me one to two days to get to a decent anchorage, and some time to remove sails/lines/solar panels/etc, prepare chafe gear, and otherwise prep the boat for a major storm. Also, most hurricane holes fill up early. I'd rather sit through a minor storm because the hurricane tracked away from me than lose my boat because I was lazy.

[zeehag]

go up a river.

[smurphny]

Originally Posted by zeehag

go up a river.

That would normally be true but the Conneticut River and R.I shoreline face due south and get the brunt of a storm surge right off the Atlantic. Same for the Pt. Jude breakwater which would likely become submerged in a large hurricane. E. LI and surrounds are a nasty places in bad weather, compounded by thousands of boats and mooring fields. The poster is wise to be thinking about it early.

[zeehag]

i was thinking hudson river-- but is that too far away?

[hellosailor]

I would also think Mattituck, if you can get in, since you'll have land sheltering you to the south.

Northport Harbor, or Huntington Harbor, again if there's space.

[tartansail]

To the OP. At this time of year, if you're looking for a hurricane hole, you're right to look early. They will fill up quickly. Another spot to consider up Narragansett Bay is the Kickemuit River on the east shore of Bristol facing Mount Hope Bay. It is essentially landlocked after entering a VERY narrow, but deep channel.

[colemj]

A close hole for you would be to go over to New London and sail several miles up the Thames river into the Norwich area. The river there cuts through very high hills and makes many twists and turns that will keep the wind down. The bottom is thick mud and you can get good holding. Get up into 8-10' of water, let out lots of scope and storm surge won't be a problem. Lot's and lot's of room. And if gambling with with a hurricane isn't thrilling enough, you can even go to the casinos while up there!

Pt. Judith pond will be tricky with your boat (I'm assuming it has more than 4' draft), and there is very little room up there. You will get your butt handed to you in Coecles Harbor. Same with 3-Mile Harbor (although I would take that over Coecles). Montauk pond has good holding, but you will take the full brunt of wind and probably a lot of chop. If you do drag there, the bottom is soft and forgiving. Potter's Cove in RI might work, but that area will be a parking lot of boats and finding safe room will be tough.

Good luck.

Mark

[d0ug]

You should have said what long island you are talking about if it is the one in the Bahamas you better get out of there or really hunker down

[zeehag]

i think they mean the one across from connecticut......

[nv5l]

Any reason you wouldn't head west? There are lots of good spots along the north coast of long island. I'm tucked into Oyster Bay, but Port Jefferson should be good and that's not too far from you.

[smurphny]

Originally Posted by zeehag

i was thinking hudson river-- but is that too far away?

Yes, going up the Hudson to Haverstraw or Esopus would be a great choice but it's quite a hike from where they are. I was around where they are now a few weeks ago and have gone WAY up the river---all the way to Champlain
It would take about 3 days to travel up to Haverstraw Bay. I sat out a tropical storm in there last year when heading south. It has great holding, and almost no boats to look out for.

[patoot]

An earlier post mentioned Setauket Harbor which is a good option. Another would be Conscience Bay (check the charts as it can be a bit shallow). "Pirates Cove" in Port Jeff harbor just east of the mouth is a popular spot for hiding from hurricanes. It is surrounded on three sides by two hundred foot bluffs. Good luck and be safe.