Neither of us slept well last night as the boat was jumping around pretty good with the wind and waves. Because of all the boats anchored here, we couldn't really get behind the breakwater and the winds were N-NE which was right off the bay. We had 2-3 foot seas bouncing the boat around all night but our anchor held fine. I wasn't worried because I've anchored here at least 20 times and never dragged anchor - even in 50 knot winds. The bottom is mud and shells which our anchor digs right into.
During the day, the winds clocked to the east which made the anchorage much better. I called the yacht club to see if they had a mooring available and they were full up. Per their recommendation, I did make out a reservation request on Dockwa (a marine reservation app) and it came back "added to waitlist". We decided to sit out the day, work on the boat a bit and relax.
In the afternoon I checked our main engine (normal daily checks) and found that two of the new belts I had put on in Catskill were a little loose. This is normal for new belts that will stretch a bit when first used. Also, our LoPro bilge pump was turning on every few minutes even though there was just a little water in the bilge. This usually means either the boat rocking is turning it on or the sensor is dirty. I changed into my bilge-monkey clothes and got to work.
A few minutes later I had the alternator and raw water pump belts adjusted then cleaned the LoPro. I should mention it is very important to NOT OVER TIGHTEN belts on this Perkins engine. Most of the problems I've had in the past were self-inflicted from over-tightening something. Keep the belts too tight and you will be replacing pumps because of worn bearings. Our raw water pump is $600 (I know from experience). The LoPro still wasn't happy when I turned it back on so I just shut it off to give it a break. We have a giant 2,500 gallon per hour bilge pump as backup but it will let the bilge get higher before starting.
Later in the afternoon the big winds finally calmed down to mid-teens. A few hours later I looked out and there were several additional boats anchored around us. Two were in a more sheltered spot where I was thinking of moving if we didn't get a call for a mooring. Oh well. I wasn't too concerned since the lower winds were supposed to last all night.
Our little wind generator has been cranking over the past 24 hours with the high winds. Even though it's been cloudy and we haven't had any solar power, our batteries were in good shape. That doesn't usually happen with no Sun so really shows how high the winds have been.
Laura and I watch the rest of The Ranch latest season which I had downloaded to our iPad then also watched two Kevin Costner movies - The Upside of Anger and Bodyguard - and Sister Act. She made Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner which was our first "hot soup" meal of the Fall season. It was 93 yesterday as we passed NYC but only went to 64 today here. We went right to sleep on a calm boat.
Friday, October 4th
The day breaks sunny and only about 10-15 knot winds. They are supposed to pick up later in the day so I'm looking for a more protected place to anchor. Lots of boats around us so not much room. But, we can move up about 150 feet which will put the breakwater more on our beam for a little more protection. Before breakfast (and before anybody else comes into the anchorage), I start the engine and we pull up the anchor. After moving upwind farther into the anchorage as far as I feel safe, we drop the anchor and feel a little better. After securing everything, I said to Laura, "Maybe I should have gone up a little farther. Someone might come in and anchor between us and the boat in front of us." This has happened several times in the past. I want about 150-200 feet between us and other boats. Some people think boats are like cars in a parking lot and squeeze into the cracks.
Wouldn't you know that not 5 minutes later a 35 foot Hunter sailboat comes in and drops anchor right next to us. I went out on the bow and watched as they drifted closer and closer. Finally, when the guy managing the anchor looked over at me, I gave him the "thumbs-down". They eventually moved over about another 50 feet which was OK. Also, two of the boats in front of us left so, right after breakfast, we did it all over again to move another 150 feet behind the breakwater. Now we were in a nice spot with much better protection when the winds clocked tonight from NW to N to NE.
A few hours later the winds really start honking. I turned on my instruments and the winds stayed in the 25-30 range for several hours. There was a little 1-foot chop coming down the anchorage but didn't seem like much after the last couple days. I could see the waves out on the lower bay were steep and breaking.
Just before lunch a couple other sailboats came into the anchorage. Both drove around for awhile and anchored away from us (yea!). I noticed it was high tide and the winds were crashing the lower harbor waves right over the breakwater. It was pretty awesome! Check it out in the picture above.
Laura and I worked a few boat projects and decided to not drop the dinghy for a walk in town because the boat was blowing around so much. I'd rather stay here and watch things.
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