Brielle Marina, NJ to Cape May

We were sailing in the Atlantic Ocean. Blue Grace had made it.

We reached down the coastline and late in the afternoon, stopped at Brielle Marina, Manasquan Inlet in New Jersey. We tied up at the dock and wandered ashore for showers and dinner. We went to do groceries and caught a taxi back. I was exhausted and turned in early and while Bill, Sue and Patrick headed out for drinks and dinner.

The next morning was beautiful. Clear and sunny. High 70's. The winds were blowing gently out of the north. Sailing out of Brielle Marina was uneventful. As we sailed farther and farther into the ocean, we could make out the coast of Atlantic City, our destination for the night. The fabled Trump Towers beckoned. Being out on the sea that day was not magical. Although we spotted Atlantic City from some twenty miles away, we wanted nothing more than to get to shore.

Late that afternoon, we docked at the Trump Castle and secured Blue Grace before jumping ship and headed in to the showers.

After finishing, we set for the Gambling Casinos. We all were fortunate enough to come away with slightly more than we entered with and decided to splurge it on a dinner.

We wandered back to Blue Grace and settled in for the night. Tomorrow. with Bill and Sue gone, I would be on my own, and would have to teach Patrick what I knew about sailing. Before leaving, Bill asked me to call every week, collect, and report on the progress. I thanked him for all his help and he and Sue wandered down the docks. Again, wondering when we would again see each other.

The following morning we slept in and started the day slowly with a leisurely breakfast and a stroll around the docks, looking at the yachts and admiring some of the pieces of equipment we coveted.

We fueled up around noon and motored out two miles before raising the sails. A close reach course kept us on a steady course straight out to sea, next land, Bermuda, about 700 miles. We decide to fall off on a broad reach towards the Cape May Inlet, which is where we really wanted to go.

The sun has set and we are slowly sailing in as over the radio we heard a warning to Blue Grace come in loud and clear. I rushed below to hail repeat and the U.S. Oceanographic Research Vessel charting the area was informing us that we are in her path and she has limited maneuverability. We confirm the message and head back up on deck to look for her.

She is approximately 2 miles astern of Blue Grace, still out in the ocean.

By the time she overtakes us, we are anchored and sitting on the deck, preparing dinner . We watch as they pass less than 1,000 feet from us, electronic equipment whirring and spinning. The evening passes in peace and we go below decks to plot the next days course towards the Delaware Bay.