Unplanned Stop in Atlantic City

Atlantic City's boardwalk on a cool, damp day.

Yesterday it was foggy at Cape May. We waited for the fog to clear and then at about 11:30, along with Plumpuppet, we went out of the inlet with the intention of possibly going all the way to Sandy Hook where we would anchor. (Sandy Hook is close to New York City.) That would have meant traveling through the night and reaching our destination early the next day. Once out on the water we were met with patchy fog - sometimes dense, sometimes clearing a little and then closing in again. We put on the radar and found the purple blob on the screen that was Plumpuppet ahead of us. The waves were probably about 4 or 5 feet - it's always hard to know exactly - they were long and rolling (not breaking) but they were coming at us either on the nose or on our forward quarter. Eventually, the light north wind shifted enough so that we could put out our head sail and pick up our speed to 6 kts plus. It was not a comfortable ride and was the kind of rock and roll that would eventually make me queasy - a long overnight ride in these conditions was not in the cards for me. We decided to call it a day at Atlantic City and Plumpuppet did the same.

Once we were in the harbour the fog lifted and we were very glad to see the markers leading into a snug little anchorage described in Skipper Bob's guide. Good old Skipper Bob - if you follow his instructions to the letter (he's pretty skimpy with instructions) and you cross your fingers while going carefully into narrow, shoaled entrances ("feeling your way in" as Skipper Bob says) - all will be well and you can drop the hook in some of the most surprising places. Here we are in sight of Harrods Casino in a well protected "pool" of water - no hint of wind or the rolling seas outside.

We woke this morning to dense fog. The forecast is the same as for yesterday - more uncomfortable seas so we've decided to stay put for another night. We'll drop the dinghies and go in to see what we can see.

Tomorrow we hope to leave very early. The wind and wave direction will be from the south and we can only hope that the cool air temperature coupled with the higher water temps won't create more mist!

Beach at Atlantic City: mid-afternoon and there's still fog covering the top of buildings

Light show in the mall at Caesar's Palace Casino