Our great day of sailing from the day before was due to the brisk northerly that had built in the Chesapeake. Yesterday’s great sail would become today’s upwind battle as we spent 10 hours with water smashing against the hull, wind in our faces and a constant tacking back and forth across the bay. In all we traveled about 50 miles and made good progress back to our northerly destination.
The outcome, however, was two very exhausted sailors. We tied up in Rock Hall Harbor at Waterman’s Restaurant. This is where we’ve historically enjoyed our crab feasts but tonight we were too exhausted to tackle any crab. As we enjoyed our dinner, the restaurant felt like it was rocking – another sign of a long day on the water. Admittedly, I was feeling a bit like a wimp, not tough enough to endure fall Chesapeake sailing, but as David and I enjoyed our meal and we listened to the local conversations around us I began to feel tougher. The hostess indicated that diehard patrons who always made the trip by boat for the oyster buffet cancelled their reservations for today – weather too challenging. Further, patrons were cancelling reservations for the weekend as the weather was supposed to deteriorate further. We even overheard a fisherman indicate that he hadn’t braved the weather to go out fishing today.
Feeling a renewed sense of Midwestern sailing gusto – or stupidity – we returned back to the boat. Lying in bed that night my brain kept telling me something was wrong. It was. The winds had died and we were tied up to a dock in the well protected harbor. All was silent. After a day of constant motion, water slamming and winds hollaring the silence was eerie. So with the peculiar silence, I fell into a well needed restful sleep.
The Admiral
10/22/08
The outcome, however, was two very exhausted sailors. We tied up in Rock Hall Harbor at Waterman’s Restaurant. This is where we’ve historically enjoyed our crab feasts but tonight we were too exhausted to tackle any crab. As we enjoyed our dinner, the restaurant felt like it was rocking – another sign of a long day on the water. Admittedly, I was feeling a bit like a wimp, not tough enough to endure fall Chesapeake sailing, but as David and I enjoyed our meal and we listened to the local conversations around us I began to feel tougher. The hostess indicated that diehard patrons who always made the trip by boat for the oyster buffet cancelled their reservations for today – weather too challenging. Further, patrons were cancelling reservations for the weekend as the weather was supposed to deteriorate further. We even overheard a fisherman indicate that he hadn’t braved the weather to go out fishing today.
Feeling a renewed sense of Midwestern sailing gusto – or stupidity – we returned back to the boat. Lying in bed that night my brain kept telling me something was wrong. It was. The winds had died and we were tied up to a dock in the well protected harbor. All was silent. After a day of constant motion, water slamming and winds hollaring the silence was eerie. So with the peculiar silence, I fell into a well needed restful sleep.
The Admiral
10/22/08
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