Boring

Cape May, NJ
No LL

I generally don't like saying bad things about places we visit, but the Delaware River is *boring*. Our assessment seems to agree with just about all the other boaters we have talked to about the subject. There is nothing to see, there are no places on shore to put in, there's lots of ship and barge traffic to watch out for, and there are nasty little shoals to run aground on if you don't pay attention.

One bright spot though; the Salem/Hope Creek Nuclear Power Plant was especially beautiful today. They have one of those giant hyperbolic cooling towers. Today, as we sailed past, there was zero wind. The plume of water mist coming up of the tower gave evidence of that as it lifted about 1,000 feet in to the air almost vertically. By the time it reached 1,000 feet, all the mist evaporated so the plumes at the top just disappear. With a bright blue sky behind it, the white plume looked great. (Jeez, what a geek I am. I think a nuclear power plant can be beautiful.)

This morning was also quite pretty. We got up at 0500. It was cool and a bit foggy. Soon, we had a strong tidal current with us and we zipped past Chesapeake City doing 7.5 knots. By the end of the day though, the wind was against us, the tide was against us, and progress was pitifully slow. Boring.

Tomorrow after lunch, we put to sea heading for New England. Our plans are no firmer than that. Hopefully, the window with 10-15 knot winds will last long enough to get us there.