Delaware Bay

I had heard a lot of stories about how difficult Delaware Bay can be. We were very fortunate in that yesterday the water was calm, and even the temperature was warmer than normal for this time of year. We were able to sail in the southern part of the bay, but eventually the winds shifted to the west and lessened to 3 to 4 knots. We motored the rest of the way.
There is a lot of commercial traffic on Delaware Bay, so it is good to stay out of the channel as long as possible. It was a relaxing day with great weather. We are now in the CDC Canal that connects the Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake Bay. The canal is 12 miles long and does not have locks. It is very wide and deep because it is used by so many commercial ships.
We attended our first sun downer last night on board Northern Lights. They came up the bay at the same time we did, (buddy boating). We had a couple cocktails with Jeff, Neala, and Grady, and discussed how fortunate we were that the Delaware treated us well.
I am looking at an outboard today...a used 2009 Tohatsu that Shirl saw an ad for. We need a motor for our Dink, as lightweight as possible, but with enough horse power to plane. I researched the motor last night and discovered that Tohatsu makes Nissan, as well as all Mercury small motors. I really wanted to get a Yahama, but if the Tohatsu is in great shape, runs well, and the price is right, I may purchase it. It is a four stroke, which is fine with me and only weighs 81 pounds.
We are undecided if we will travel today. After I check out the motor Shirl and I will review the Chesapeake Bay charts and Waterway Guide and come up with a decision.

We cruised from Cape May...blue star at bottom, to CDC Canal...blue star at top. Check the Spot Tracker!

 Northern Lights leaves the Cape May Inlet ahead of us. She is a great boat!

 This was a fantastic sunrise...there is a fishing boat right next to the sun.

 We were greeted with calm waters as we entered Delaware Bay...not expected after our sail down the coast.

 The Grand Pearl, not to be confused with the Black Pearl, came up behind us in the channel...I moved over. 

 Grand Pearl as she passed us...notice how close she is to the right side of the channel. We are out here with the big boys!

 Sunset in the CDC Canal. Time to rest.

 Shirl is feeling better...we are back to a full crew.

The water in the upper bay was as smooth as glass.

There is a lot of talk about the storm that could come up the coast. We will keep an eye on that one.

Update: Our "car" has an engine. The Tohatsu has less than 20 hours on it. It runs well. I put it on the dink and took a long ride. It cost significantly less than 50% of the price of a new one. So Tahatsu it is. I will include a picture with the next post.