Days 279 and 280 - Great Kills — Captain Father John

Miles cruised 48, fuel purchased $0, slip fee $100, daily high temperature 78° F

Monday was a quiet day in Brick, NJ. George and Pat invited us use their washer and dryer so we washed a few loads of laundry. George has a full size Lionel train set in is office, the tracks run through the closets so he can open the closet doors.

They introduced us to their neighbors Lou and Judy. Lou and Judy live across the street and run a successful solar panel business. During hurricane Sandy they had to be evacuated from their home by boat. They have since rebuilt their home and raised the foundation 8 feet.

Lou and Judy were kind enough to chauffeur us around.

Priscilla and I took a dingy ride on the waterway around George and Pat’s home. There is a bird sanctuary nearby and there are flocks of geese and a pair of swans. The wind has been blowy all day from the south. Barnegat Bay was full of white caps. We tried to take the dingy out on the bay but it was too splashy so we turned around right away.

We had a tour of the towns along the east side of Barnegat Bay. This included a view of the Manasquan Inlet where we will exit to the Atlantic Ocean on Tuesday. Dinner was at a famous thin crust pizza restaurant.

We shared four extra large pizzas between 8 of us. If you can eat an extra large pizza by yourself you get a coveted Carmen’s Pizzeria T-shirt. George has at least one Carmen’s T-shirt

No dinner in south Jersey is complete without a stop for ice cream at Hoffman’s Ice Cream and Yogurt. The line of customers was still out the door at 9:30 pm.

On Tuesday we shoved off from Ernie’s dock at 9:30 AM after a fond farewell to George and Pat for their wonderful hospitality. It was a 10 mile winding course up Barnegat Bay in thin water. We passed through the Point Pleasant Canal to the Manasquan River and then out onto the Atlantic Ocean. The forecast had winds from the south at 10-15 mph with gusts to 20 mph and waves to 3 feet with an 8 second interval. In reality it was much flatter and we cruised 25 miles north from the Manasquan Inlet to Sandy Hook in one hour.

Several yacht clubs on Barnegat Bay were hosting junior sailing programs.

The Looper NY harbor host John Calascibetta made our reservation at the Great Kills Yacht Club on Staten Island. He met us at the dock along with a cast of thousands to take our lines. The YC only accepts checks and cash. We are tied up on a floating dock that is very low. We tied a swim ladder to the side of our boat for the first time so we can get off the boat. John mentioned that the Looper on the end dock was leaving tomorrow and we can move there. Then we will be able to climb on and off our boat using our swim platform.

Make your own fenders for the locks. George has an ingenious idea to make inexpensive tear drop fenders. He bought an exercise ball and two basketball nets. He sewed the basket ball nets together with the exercise ball inside. Then he ties a line on the nets and has a robust fender for transiting the locks.

We passed Great Kills Light as we entered Great Kills harbor on Staten Island.

Bonus photo

We will say in Great Kills for four nights and then cruise up the Hudson River to Croton-on-Hudson and stay there for seven nights. We have finished cruising on oceans. The remainder of our Great Loop adventure will be confined to cruising rivers, lakes and canals.

Carl (Chef) Wooden – quote of the day.
“There is a rule in sailing where the more maneuverable ship should give way to the less maneuverable craft. I think this is sometimes a good rule to follow in human relationships as well.”

Joyce Brothers

Joyce Diane Brothers (née Bauer; October 20, 1927 – May 13, 2013) was an American psychologist, television personality and columnist, who wrote a daily newspaper advice column from 1960 to 2013. In 1955, she became the only woman ever to win the top prize on the American game show The $64,000 Question, answering questions on the topic of boxing, which was suggested as a stunt by the show’s producers. In 1958, she presented a television show on which she dispensed psychological advice, pioneering the field.