DELMARVA preparations

[Dr. D]

I have read the entries in this forum of those of you voyaging far. Me, not so much. (Well, about 25,000 nm on Navy ships, but that is a different situation). Perhaps you can provide some advice for the following.

My plan (so far) is to sail solo around the DELMARVA in 2022. Why not 2021? I need to prepare myself and my boat for the trip. And there are other aspects of my life which might make doing this in 2021 difficult. Areas I must work on:

1) From the mouth of the Delaware Bay to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay will require overnight sailing (again, solo). As I have not done that before, I need practice. As the boat is mid-Bay, actually sailing overnight around there is iffy. How might I prepare for this part of the trip?

2) Provisioning. I know I will be near places to restock, but I would prefer not to do so. I have not previously provisioned for a 7 to 10 day trip. That I can practice sailing around the Bay. The boat has a refrigerator, no freezer. How many meals could I prepare at home and keep at refrigerator temperature?

3) The water tank">fresh water tank is 34 gallons. The water from the marina is potable, but with a slight smell. That water is good for washing and such, but not for drinking nor cooking. How much fresh water as the drinking/cooking supply should I need? Best way to store it?

4) Probably other aspects of this which have not yet occurred to me. Suggestions?

[redneckrob]

Originally Posted by Dr. D

I have read the entries in this forum of those of you voyaging far. Me, not so much. (Well, about 25,000 nm on Navy ships, but that is a different situation). Perhaps you can provide some advice for the following.

My plan (so far) is to sail solo around the DELMARVA in 2022. Why not 2021? I need to prepare myself and my boat for the trip. And there are other aspects of my life which might make doing this in 2021 difficult. Areas I must work on:

1) From the mouth of the Delaware Bay to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay will require overnight sailing (again, solo). As I have not done that before, I need practice. As the boat is mid-Bay, actually sailing overnight around there is iffy. How might I prepare for this part of the trip?

2) Provisioning. I know I will be near places to restock, but I would prefer not to do so. I have not previously provisioned for a 7 to 10 day trip. That I can practice sailing around the Bay. The boat has a refrigerator, no freezer. How many meals could I prepare at home and keep at refrigerator temperature?

3) The fresh water tank is 34 gallons. The water from the marina is potable, but with a slight smell. That water is good for washing and such, but not for drinking nor cooking. How much fresh water as the drinking/cooking supply should I need? Best way to store it?

4) Probably other aspects of this which have not yet occurred to me. Suggestions?

I did this trip this summer, but in a bigger boat so I can't really comment on your middle two questions. But on your first point, Ocean City and Chincoteague are easy inlets to get into in most weather, Watchapreague is easy if the waves aren't too big. Also if your mast height is below 45' you can go into Indian River and you may even be able to take the little "intracoastal" all the way from Lewes to Chincoteague depending on your drafts (air and water) and conditions. So absolutely no need to do that overnight to the Chesapeake Bay entrance. If fact we took 4 days to make that trip, anchoring every night, and highly recommend it. I also recommend a pdf book called "Circumnavigating the Delmarva Peninsula" by Drew Frye (Sail Delmarva: "Circumnavigating the Delmarva Pensinula" book summary) It's a little dated but I found it pretty useful as there isn't much online about the Atlantic portion of the trip.
I'd also advise that it's not nearly as intimidating as it might seem. You absolutely need to know what you're doing to sail the big ocean, but you don't necessarily need to have 10 years of skipper time to do it safely if you prepare as it sounds like you're already doing in spades. Good luck and enjoy!

[Sparx]

Delmarva is a great sail.

As a single handler learning to operate for 24 hours will really open up the distance making. I think it worth exploring. The Delmarva provides a good opportunity to try this.

Your water tank is sufficient. Consider stopping somewhere to fill it with nice water. And maybe flushing it to clean it up. A half gallon a day of drinking water in jugs will likely suffice for this trip.

We like to have a couple easy to heat up meals for the offshore leg. Maybe freeze a couple casseroles at home?

As an aside...We like pulling in to Chincoteague, tying up at the park in the central part of town. This harbour eliminates the need to run 24 hours through the Atlantic.
Last time we stopped in there we stayed a couple extra days, just for enjoying the place. Just know that it is there if you want it.

[Dr. D]

I should have added draft a bit over 5’, air draft 53’. I will look up Chincoteague. Thanks!

[thinwater]

I've done that trip nearly a dozen times and there is some stuff on it in my blog (see signature).


Ocean City is another possibility, just not if there is on-shore swell (Chincoteague is safer if there is on shore weather--it doe snot break). I don't care for Ocean City much, though, and would just anchor south of town. Watchapreague can break and the depth at the bar may be iffy at low tide (it's deep inside).


Ocean entrances are MUCH different from the Bay. They should always be approached with caution, and even more caution if there are onshore waves.


The main thing is to allow plenty of time, both for weather AND so you can savor it. You don't want to feel rushed. It just sucks.


(Chincoteague Town dock, about 7 years ago)

[NedX]

Originally Posted by thinwater

Ocean City is another possibility, just not if there is on-shore swell (Chincoteague is safer if there is on shore weather--it doe snot break). I don't care for Ocean City much, though, and would just anchor south of town. Watchapreague can break and the depth at the bar may be iffy at low tide (it's deep inside).

Thinwater, what's the deal with Great Machipongo? It looks like it's pretty deep and then there's an unmarked section of the chart... I guess that means shifting conditions? Is it navigable by a keel boat? [I promise to read your blog now]

UPDATE: That's an incredible blog (and not just because my signature and your intro quote the same knowledgable rodent)

[Dr. D]

thinwater: I took a quick look at your blog. Nice! I hope to have time soon to read through it.

[NedX]

Originally Posted by Dr. D

thinwater: I took a quick look at your blog. Nice! I hope to have time soon to read through it.

Seconded. Definitely one of the better sailing blogs I've seen! So much cool stuff.

[redneckrob]

Originally Posted by NedX

Thinwater, what's the deal with Great Machipongo? It looks like it's pretty deep and then there's an unmarked section of the chart... I guess that means shifting conditions? Is it navigable by a keel boat? [I promise to read your blog now]

UPDATE: That's an incredible blog (and not just because my signature and your intro quote the same knowledgable rodent)

One important thing to keep in mind with the inlet charts on the Atlantic side of the Delmarva, they only faintly resemble the actual conditions. For example, when you come into Chincoteague, you'll be transiting over areas the chart shows as dry ground. And there will be areas that show 20' depths that are clearly islands you could camp on. At least this summer, by next summer it could be entirely different. The inlets shift radically, so you don't use charts in them at all, you follow the buoys and if you're lucky follow a local in. Anything within a mile of shore is shifting conditions, charts absolutely can't be depended on for depths.

As far as your question, I think the only issue with Great Machipongo might be finding a place to anchor that isn't in the channel and doesn't dry up to mud at low tide. That said there's so little traffic there it might not matter. I also wasn't sure what the depth was on the bar before you got to the channel, and the seas were big enough when I passed by there not to want to test it out. My experience in Watchapreague was a non-event going in on a calm day and very crappy doing the bit from about 1/2 mile offshore to 1 mile offshore when departing because the waves really steepened up on that 8-10' water out there.

One other random thing to think about, the currents are very fast when anchored inside the inlets and swap direct ant every tide. The bottom is mud and holds well, but make sure you have an anchor that likes mud and can handle the changes in direction with 2-3 knot currents. My Fortress did just fine, I'm sure any anchor that does well in mud would as well.

[dougweibel]

If your head does not use fresh water 35 gallons will be more than enough. My wife and I figure 50 gallons a week for the two of us with just normal conservation. Sailor showers. Just a trickle to rinse dishes. Etc. If you were worried you could carry a couple jerry cans for an extra ten gallons or whatever, but I wouldn't worry about it. If your marina water doesn't taste good bring 5 gallons of good water. That should last you even in the summer.

Provisioning for a week is no problem. My wife can provision for 3-4 weeks and we eat well the whole time. The biggest issue is if your galley is bare right now you need to think a bit about pantry staples - i.e. cooking oil, spices, baking powder, that kind of stuff. You don't need to try to take fresh food for all your meals, though depending on your storage space this may be no issue for the week or less you would need for the Delmarva.

I do not sail solo, always with my wife, so I cannot comment on that aspect, but we have never worried about sailing the Chesapeake at night. Stay in or near the ship channel to avoid crab traps and fish nets and keep an eye out for fishermen and ships. AIS is helpful but there will be fishing boats that don't show up so you need to pay some attention.

Have fun!

[NedX]

Originally Posted by redneckrob

One important thing to keep in mind with the inlet charts on the Atlantic side of the Delmarva, they only faintly resemble the actual conditions. For example, when you come into Chincoteague, you'll be transiting over areas the chart shows as dry ground. And there will be areas that show 20' depths that are clearly islands you could camp on. At least this summer, by next summer it could be entirely different. The inlets shift radically, so you don't use charts in them at all, you follow the buoys and if you're lucky follow a local in. Anything within a mile of shore is shifting conditions, charts absolutely can't be depended on for depths.

As far as your question, I think the only issue with Great Machipongo might be finding a place to anchor that isn't in the channel and doesn't dry up to mud at low tide. That said there's so little traffic there it might not matter. I also wasn't sure what the depth was on the bar before you got to the channel, and the seas were big enough when I passed by there not to want to test it out. My experience in Watchapreague was a non-event going in on a calm day and very crappy doing the bit from about 1/2 mile offshore to 1 mile offshore when departing because the waves really steepened up on that 8-10' water out there.

One other random thing to think about, the currents are very fast when anchored inside the inlets and swap direct ant every tide. The bottom is mud and holds well, but make sure you have an anchor that likes mud and can handle the changes in direction with 2-3 knot currents. My Fortress did just fine, I'm sure any anchor that does well in mud would as well.

Rob, that's great intel. Sounds a lot like Ocracoke, N.C., or my local favorite, Chatham. If you draw 6' 5," stay away. If you're a swing keel with a sense of adventure and there's no breakers that day, maybe give it a shot. Or if you're a local, or following one in.

[bensolomon]

Done this trip many times. My recommendation is to do the Altanric portion overnight and land in Cape May. Pick a full moon night, and get some help from professional weather routers like WRI. The Delaware coastline really isn't that "usable". Once you head out into the Atlantic, plan on staying out until lewes or cape may. You can probably get under the cape may canal bridge with your mast. You can provision enough food for 5 days on your boat, and water, too. Easy peasy.

Get an Eldridge tidal pilot and plan your return up the Delaware river with tides, as well as the C&D. You must catch the rides at the C&D. Anchor at the elk or bohemia on your way back.

[bensolomon]

Ok...re-read. so ... your going up Bay, then out the C&D, down the river, then into the Chesapeake past cape henry. So.....sailing the Chesapeake at night is fun, and not to tough. Get the Eldridge, and plan backwards from the easterly C&D tide. Your average will be 5 knots, so use that in your calculations when planning your transit of the C&D.

So......from your home base to bohemia river, drop the hook. Bohemia through C&D to Cape May. Marina or hook. Cape may to Hampton, and then home.

If you want to go down the Delaware during the day, then time your C&D transit accordingly. I usually do that part at night so that I enter port in the daylight.

Ben

[Dr. D]

Originally Posted by redneckrob

One important thing to keep in mind with the inlet charts on the Atlantic side of the Delmarva, they only faintly resemble the actual conditions. For example, when you come into Chincoteague, you'll be transiting over areas the chart shows as dry ground. And there will be areas that show 20' depths that are clearly islands you could camp on. At least this summer, by next summer it could be entirely different. The inlets shift radically, so you don't use charts in them at all, you follow the buoys and if you're lucky follow a local in. Anything within a mile of shore is shifting conditions, charts absolutely can't be depended on for depths.

Can't trust the charts? Doh!

How do I hail a local on the VHF to follow them in?

Good info, thanks.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by NedX

what's the deal with Great Machipongo? It looks like it's pretty deep and then there's an unmarked section of the chart... I guess that means shifting conditions? Is it navigable by a keel boat?

UPDATE: That's an incredible blog (and not just because my signature and your intro quote the same knowledgable rodent)

It would probably be best to avoid both the Wachapreague Inlet or the Great Machipongo Inlet unless you have some sort of an emergency.

Wachapreague itself is miles from the inlet and there are lots of low spots going in.

You need local knowledge for the inlet if you have a normal draft.

There's nothing in the Great Machipongo inlet that would be worth going in there for except for shelter from bad weather.