It's cool to motor by this creaking hull on the way down the river.
We don't know if she's still working; she wasn't there last year,
so at least she's mobile. Awfully rusty though. This may very
well be her final resting place. Good choice, I think.
One of dozens of Catalina 30s on the bay. This one's in need of
some TLC, although the name and port of call seem to be freshly
applied. I like the all-encompassing idea of just saying plain,
"Barnegat Bay, NJ". I really do. The thought had crossed my
mind before. Who do I know of that sails a Catalina 30?
As we spilled out into the bay from Forked River, this barge was
straining hard to port in hopes of avoiding this can. He did, barely.
When we came back up river later, we saw these guys pulling
a huge stump out of the water directly in front of a launch ramp.
That wouldn't have caused too much of a problem, would it?
Pete at the helm as JT sings on the newly installed stereo.
Living large now. I intended to post a story about the James
Taylor/Carole King concert last night in Philadelphia. One of
the best I've ever seen. I'm 49. I've been to a few good
shows. Unfortunately I wimped out and didn't bring my
camera inside, and therefore used my cellphone for pictures
and video all night. It was a complete waste of time.
Using the cellphone. Not the concert.
Sailing south, approaching channel marker 40, just east of the mouth
of Cedar Creek, the scene of my launching mini-nightmare, regarding
Sea-Tow, low tide and late starts. Water under the bridge.
"Gumbo" is a unique fishing boat; I don't quite know what she goes
out for. Maybe oysters and okra and andouille. Dunno. If I ever
come aside her, I'll ask for sure. You'll all be the first to know.
The view from the BI marker, inside the Barnegat Inlet, looking
out through the inlet itself, with Old Barney standing guard just
to the right. The inlet is notoriously rough and tricky to navigate.
The town that hosts the lighthouse is named simply "Barnegat Light".
That is the northern tip of the world-renowned Long Beach Island,
aka "LBI". You'll see those oval stickers and magnets on cars
from Canada to Mexico. I think Martha's Vineyard started the
whole foreign car "oval sticker" thing with MV. I've got a couple
of those plastered on my original Playmate cooler, which is missing
the spring in the release button to open the lid. Come to think of it,
The land directly north of the inlet is the southernmost tip of
Island Beach State Park, a long strip of pristine beaches and
dunes enjoyed by beach-goers, fishermen, kayakers, and sailors.
Come visit us. You'll be hooked from the get-go.