Sunday July 20, 2008

Sunday July 20, 2008

Mid 90's F, winds 10 knots out off the southwest with gusting to 15.

Around Little Tinicum counter clockwise at flood after slack in an informal race against a new Hunter. I take the shoal wide at lower end of Little Tinicum in at least 9ft of water but slow and close to due southwest, the Hunter cuts across the shoal close to a bearing directly south with good speed.

I begin, once in the main shipping channel, to close the distance at 4.5 knots, but the Hunter staying close to the south shore of the island gets the 15 knot gusts at the east end of Little Tinicum by the airport and surges ahead. I pick up the gusts at the airport as the Hunter goes through the narrow channel between Mifflin Dike and the east shoal of Little Tinicum against the flood tide and into the wind. I stay in the main shipping channel until past the shoal before heading north on a beam reach to Mifflin Dike.

The flood tide is beginning peek flow as I enter the narrow channel, with the wind now out of the west and my heading due west, but I am not willing to risk a tack onto the shoal to gain forward speed, Motor on and drop the jib until I am clear of the shoal, then motor off and jib up again for a slow tack back to the marina.

The gulls are lined up on the shoal feasting on the fingerlings as the tide rises. The Hunter with a shallow draft drop or wing keel, anchors for lunch at the sandy beach on the Pennsylvania side of the island protected by the shoal.

The Hunter had a better sailor and faster boat.

Up river in the Tinicum Range, south side of Little Tinicum.

A tug pushing down river in the Tinicum Range off Thompson Point.

To clear the west end shoal of Little Tinicum I need to stay west of a line between Thompson Point and the bascule bridge on Darby Creek until close to the main channel.