| the Chesapeake Bay Wayfarer Cruise 2007 Crisfield - Smith Is. - Tangier Is. - Watts Is. - Crisfield Fri. 1 June - 6, home & reactions photos mostly by Alan Asselstine and Uncle Al ... |
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| And a closer view of the nest -
do we know what kind of bird's it is? ... |
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| More wildlife ... ... |
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| ... photography from Alan. ... |
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| Back "home" at ... ... |
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| ... Milton Parks' Marina. ... |
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| Ah, yes! The famous speed limit
checked by radar signs as the sailors head out for ... ... |
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| ... a sunset stroll. ... |
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| the ground-level cemetery ... |
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| The route to the beach ... ... |
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| ... is filled with scenes that
look particularly pretty in the light of ... ... |
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| ... the setting sun. ... |
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| (l
to r) Mary, Tony, Richard ... |
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| This time, Alan gets to be in
the picture. ... |
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| It was ... ... |
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| ... indeed ... ... |
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| ... a fine sunset. ... |
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| The following day, our flotilla
had an uneventful run straight back to Crisfield. - click here
to see full-size chart image ... |
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Meanwhile, earlier on the Friday,
Hans (above) and Al had
decided to dawdle on back to Crisfield under jib alone - a trip that
brought some surprises:
...
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But the surprise that nearly
turned out to be very time-consuming was the mistake I made by not
using my chart in conjunction with the GPS. The latter was, of course,
directing us straight to my waypoint at the entrance to Crisfield
harbour, which is a more or less obstacle-free straight-line sail from
Tangier. But from east of Watts Island, going straight to the Crisfield
waypoint would have involved a mile or two of portaging. - click here
to see full-size pic
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| Fortunately, Hans noticed land
off to port where we were not expecting any, and a look at the chart finally made me realize my error. ... |
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So, just in time, we luffed up
into Cedar Straits onto a port-tack reach with the board full down. I
guess we could have tried the other channel via Broad Creek but neither
of us was feeling that
adventurous. Instead, we nipped through between Green Harbor Island and
...
... |
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| ... Watkins Point while ... ... |
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| ... Uncle Al enjoyed the last of
his beer. ... |
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click here
to see full-size pic - By mid-afternoon, we were back in
Crisfield, having easily managed the short beat across Somers Cove to
the launch ramp under jib only. Leaving Al to start the de-rigging
process, Hans walked around to the Marina to pick up van and trailer,
and stopped off on the way back to reserve us another night's stay in
"our" motel. Fortunately, the nasty-sounding, hungry-looking German
shepherd was not on duty this
time.
...A short shower later, we were off to dinner, having decided to try for a new feeding spot. The first place we spotted, right across from the Marina, was The Cove Restaurant where an encouraging number of vehicles were already parked, and where Hans and I committed an act of sacrilege by ordering a very fine filet mignon even though we were in what they bill as the "Crab and Seafood Capital of the World". |
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After an early night, we were
ready to depart for home before 0700 hrs. After a quick stop at Gordon's on the main street for
coffee and a bacon-and-egg sandwich to go, we hit the road. This
time, we would start out using the directions on the Triptyk Hans had obtained from
CAA. We made good time taking the short-cut across the Bay Bridge, and
on this Saturday morning, found the traffic relatively light all the
way up to Harrisburg where we cut north and began to retrace the scenic
route we had enjoyed so much on the drive down.
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| During a mid-morning pee break
at a rest area near Harrisburg, we had to get a picture of this unique picnic table with high chair. ... |
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And then, Hans had to
double-check that his bailers were indeed open. Note the nifty zipper
that permits access without untying the cover. Fully expecting to need
to make one more overnight stop, we were pleasantly surprised that we
seemed to be within easy striking distance of home, even after a lunch
and dinner stop at Eddy's Diner
in Ellicottville around 1600 hrs. Sure enough, Hans dropped me off in
Oakville around 2000 hrs where I was happy to be home after a great
week among the Wayfarers.
...Thanks to one and all who made the 2007 Chesapeake Cruise a wonderful experience for me and Hans. Uncle Al (W3854) |
| Participant Reaction to the Cruise ... |
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-----
Original Message -----
From:
Al Schonborn
To: Tony Krauss W2389 ; Richard Watterson W10245 ; Hans
Gottschling W938 ; Dick Harrington ; André et Monique Girard ;
Alan Asselstine W7346 ; Al Schonborn W3854 ; Roger Girard Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 10:00 AM Subject: safely home Hi, gang: Here Hans and I are, reporting in, electronically if not by VHF. We had a relatively uneventful sail back to Crisfield on Friday, checked into our motel one last time, packed up the Nuts Hell, had a lovely steak dinner at The Cove and an early night. Being wide awake at 6 AM, we left Crisfield by 7 AM after getting OJ and egg & bacon sandwiches to go at our usual breakfast spot. Driving back across the Bay Bridge as recommended by Dick, we made quick progress through the Saturday traffic and found ourselves back at home by 8 PM last night. Hope you all made it back in fine style to Tangier on Friday and Crisfield yesterday. Do please send me a report and any pictures you may have. Thanks to one and all, and especially Dick, for being such great company. Best regards, Uncle Al (W3854) -----
Original Message -----
From:
Tony and Mary (W4105)
To: Al Schonborn
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 2:02 PM
Subject: Friday's
sail?
Mary wanted to wander around town a little and was also a bit uneasy in the slop at the southern end of Watts Island (there is still the question of Trouble's buoyancy and whether she would be self-recoverable - a question I intend to answer as soon as the opportunity presents itself) and so you can imagine how the numbers got crunched ... Best to please her and introduce the grand idiocy gradually, I think. Still, she's a good sport, and we had a lovely sail anyway. Mary was really worried when the others didn't get back until 1630 or so: was afraid we'd have to sail back Saturday alone. She'll come around or perhaps throttle me, the latter doubtless the more rational course ... Rock Hall! Almost have Richard II convinced to race. It's too bad Hans has too much work, as I think the experience would have convinced Richard we're not going to either laugh at him or pick on him on the course. The goal is to encourage participation and all that. Of course, if he starts winning, then he's meat. Along the mellowing lines, I even heard Richard say "It doesn't matter." in response to a question from Alan about how to stow the boom for travel - words I never thought I'd hear him utter. And I told him so, too. See you in a couple weeks: you're welcome here as always. -tmk & mla -----
Original Message -----
From:
Al Schonborn
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 10:38 PM
Hi, gang:
Thanks, all, for the
additional info. Sounds like everything went like clockwork. ...
Hans and I had a great
time once again and we thank you all for being such great company.
Best regards,
Uncle Al (W3854) and Hans (W938)
-----
Original Message -----
From:
Alan Asselstine
To: Dick Harrington ; Al Schonborn ; Andre &
Monique Girard ; Roger Girard ; Richard Watterson ; tmk-W4105
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 9:45 PM
Subject: Ottawa
crew is home.
The Ottawa crew has able to leave Mary and Tony's by 6:00 a.m. and get home by a little after 4:00 p.m. - an uneventful trip. Alan W7346 -----
Original Message -----
...and I was just remarking to my wife what a leap of faith (it was for
Alan) to sail with someone less experienced and of unknown
temperament. I truly appreciate the trust that Alan
showed in me, and the patience he had while we sailed together. I
thought we worked well together as a team, and I am most grateful to
him for that. I also am grateful to everyone on the cruise for
the great camaraderie and good times, to Dick for organizing, to Tony
and Mary for their gracious hospitality, and to everyone else for the
fun times. From:
richard watterson
To: Alan Asselstine
Cc: Dick Harrington ; Al Schonborn ; Andre &
Monique Girard ; Roger Girard ; tmk-W4105
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 9:54 PM
Richard -----
Original Message -----
From:
Andre Girard
To: Richard Harrington
Cc: Al Schonborn ; Roger Girard ; tmk-W4105
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2007 11:42 PM
Subject: It
was a wonderful week
Dick,
Thank you again for organizing the 2007 Chesapeake Rally.
Except for my initial incident that fortunately could be corrected with
the team's help, everything went perfectly. The winds were just right
and the distances just long enough to make it interesting. As expected
from Wayfarer sailors, the group was very interesting, and I thoroughly
enjoyed the conversations we had. I will certainly keep very good
memories of this rally and hope to repeat the experience next year.
André
-----
Original Message -----
From:
Mike Zmolek
Sent: Monday, June 04, 2007 2:47 PM
Subject: it
was good meeting you
Dear Al, I hope the Wayfarers had a great sail in 2007. How did you fare with Tropical Depression Barry? Had you mentioned you were the Wayfarers, I would have realized you were the folks whose website we linked from our site. Let me know if you update your site. I had fun chatting with all of your group. Hope you made it home safely. Cheers, Michael Zmolek Smith Island Marina / Chesapeake Sunrise B&B 410-425-4220 (filling in for my sister, Pauli) -----
Original Message -----
From:
Alan Asselstine
To: Al Schonborn ; tmk-W4105 ; Richard Watterson ;
Dick Harrington ; Andre & Monique Girard ; Roger Girard
Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2007 11:14 AM
Subject: Chesapeake
photos
You can download any picture you wish by clicking on the picture to expand it, clicking on the all sizes button on top of the picture to select the size you want and then clicking on the download button. I do not remember anyone else with a camera. Others took pictures with yours and my cameras. For some reason the pictures on my web page are in reverse chronological order. As the pictures show, we had lunch, a walk on the beach and a skinny dip (not shown). Great reach back to Tangier at average speeds of close to 6 NM/Hr and short spells over 7 NM/hr (just planing). In Tangier, we had the family dinner of all you can eat at the Chesapeake House. Sail to Crisfield was a run (10 t0 15 NM/Hr out of the south) with an average speed of over 5 NM/Hr and surfed down some waves to momentarily hit 8 NM/Hr. All speeds based on GPS. Alan -----
Original Message -----
From:
Al Schonborn
To: Alan Asselstine
Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2007 2:23 PM
Thanks, Alan. I figured
out the correct order PDQ - saved them by their camera number P101001,
etc. for the right order. Which leads me to believe you went for a
sunset walk to/on a beach at Tangier on Friday. Was that the beach
facing west behind the Bay View Inn
B&B where Hans, Mary and I stayed??? Thanks for the
additional info which will be useful for the report which I hope to do
in the next few days.
Uncle Al (W3854)
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Original Message -----
From:
Alan Asselstine
To: Al Schonborn
Sent: Tuesday, June 05, 2007 4:03 PM
Alan W7346
-----
Original Message -----
From:
Andre Girard
To: Al Schonborn
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2007 7:50 AM
Do we have editing rights on the
lies?
André
-----
Original Message -----
From: <Roger Girard>
To: "Al Schonborn" <uncle-al3854@cogeco.ca>;
<Dick Harringtom>; <Tony Krauss>; <Richard Watterson>;
<Alan Asselstine>
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2007 11:40 PM
Great photos (Thanks, Al and Alan). Even the close-up of me came out better than I expected. I love the way you arranged the photos, and the timely captions. It is like being there all over again. Dick, Thank you for organizing and running this cruise. I had a great time and I learned a lot. Tony and Mary, Thank you very much for your warm and generous hospitality! The whole gang, It was great meeting you all. André and Monique kept telling me how great a group of people you, wayfarers, are. It was really nice finding out for myself how right they are. Roger ... and a last word plus a look ahead from our beloved cruise director (so to speak): -----
Original Message -----
From:
Richard Harrington
To: Alan Asselstine ; Al Schonborn ; tmk-W4105 ;
Richard Watterson ; Andre & Monique Girard ; Roger Girard
Cc: MKAnspach@aol.com ; Bob Frick ; Tom Graefe
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2007 1:28 PM
Greetings
everyone,
Yes, I agree
we really enjoyed an outstanding cruise. With the added
participation (five boats/nine of us) and the terrific
weather, it easily outshone last year's cruise. On top of
that, now that Tony and Mary have become the Chesapeake Cruise
social directors (for the second year in a row), as well as the
"Wayfarers' B&B along the way", it is hard to think of
any way to make improvements ...
It
was unfortunate, but not unexpected, that we
didn't manage to get to picturesque and historic
Onancock. On the other hand, our three-boat
impromptu landing on Watts Island was
a delightful experience and offered a bit of the feeling
of exploration and adventure that comes with cruising this
area. In fact, it took some real persuasion to get
Richard Watterson to raise his anchor, as the cove we arrived at,
would have been a great place to just spend the rest of the
day and camp overnight. Had Tony and Mary not
been back at Tangier wondering where we might be, that
could have been a strong likelihood.
So, with the following thought in mind, I invite you (already!) to begin thinking about next year's Bay cruise. If we are the same group, do we do the same thing again or do we branch out? Visiting Smith Island and Tangier, where the amenities are great and the need for boat camping is essentially non-existent is certainly strong drawing card for the sailing ladies. Nevertheless, I can see where some of the guys might want to explore other parts of the beautiful and more remote sections of the Eastern Shore, as exemplified by our visit to Watts Island. I have been there, done it, and can lead that kind of cruise as well. Also, it is possible to combine both elements into one slightly longer cruise. Anyway, I toss you that thought as something to think about between now and Killbear, or later on. You were
all delightful company to sail with. Thank you for
the fine Wayfarer spirit and camaraderie.
Sincerely.................DICK
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