Captain Clark reviewed the weather reports and wave heights in detail and decided that, with reducing winds, we could leave Cape May around noon and make our way to Atlantic City. With that plan, we dropped our lines just after 11:00 and headed out towards the Atlantic with the idea that if it appeared too rough out there, we could always turn around and come back in for another night.
After exiting the marina, we saw the Coast Guard preparing to dock their boat. While we watched, their rather large boat rocked side-to-side as a huge swell passed by predicting an interesting ride for us.
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| Coast Guard Vessel coming in to dock |
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| Coast Guard Water Tower (same one we could not see clearly through the fog yesterday) |
As we made our way towards the ocean, we passed through an area with dredging equipment scattered along the waterway. We learned, while staying at the marina, that sand is being brought in to replenish local beaches.
Clark called the tug he saw ahead on the VHF radio and asked how to proceed through the area. The tug that responded Tug Pops, however, was not the one we could see, which led to some confusion on the directions we received on how to pass. Fortunately, Clark pursued the information until he got sufficient clarification to travel safely. Had we followed what we initially thought they meant, we would have gone out of the channel and into trouble.
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| Dredging Equipment at Cape May, NJ |
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| Dredging Equipment at Cape May, NJ |
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| Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company Dredging Equipment - Cape May, NJ |
After passing by the above equipment, we finally passed Tug Pops.
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| Tug Pops at dredging site |
As we traveled along the channel approaching the Atlantic Ocean, the swells grew. Four-to-seven foot swells were the predicted wave heights for today. The ones we saw in the inlet came closer to the seven-foot variety rather than the four-foot version. In addition to the swells growing, we found the fog becoming more and more dense.
With the boat rolling over the waves as they came directly towards us, I couldn't help myself from saying "Ye Ha! Ride-em-Cowboy!" more than once. Even as I enjoyed the ride, I wondered how well the boat would fare once we turned north and starting taking these same waves "on the beam". Just before we exited the inlet, a fishing boat appeared out of the fog coming towards us. With the combination of low visibility and large swells, I wondered if my captain would continue on or turn back.
As it happened, once we got into the ocean heading northward, the swells presented no serious problem. Although the swells definitely reached up to the seven-foot height, they appeared like rolling hills as opposed to peaked mountains. We gradually went up and then we gradually went down as the swells passed under the boat. As far as the fog was concerned, Clark turned on the radar and periodically used it to scan for approaching hazards.
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| Buoy in the Foggy Atlantic Ocean |
Most of the trip, we could see nothing but the rolling water directly in front of us and the fog surrounding us. At one point, however, we did see two blips on the radar screen. They seemed to be moving rapidly in our direction. Shortly afterwards, two trawlers passed by us traveling at much higher speeds than our 9 knots. As they passed, Clark surmised that the two boats were most likely driven by captains hired to move the boats.
In the four hours we traveled from Cape May to Atlantic City, we saw no other boat traffic. With the dense fog, we could not make out any of the shoreline until we finally turned towards Atlantic City at the end of our voyage.
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| Foggy shoreline in the distance (look closely to see the tall buildings) |
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| City in the distance |
Amazingly, as I saw Atlantic City materialize out of the fog, I received a message from a very close friend who said, "I'm in Atlantic City today and looked out at the very rough surf ... Hope you're not traveling in this." I assured her that we were indeed traveling in this, and I could see Atlantic City as I read her message. Unfortunately, we would dock too late in the day to get to see her.
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| Foggy Atlantic City - getting closer |
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| Wave Action coming into Atlantic City, NJ |
Active Captain warned that, in September 2016, the channel markers had been re-positioned to include a "dog's leg" passage. We watched the buoys carefully to travel the marked route. Clark steered aggressively fighting the wishes of the following sea. As he fought to stay in the channel, I called out water depths, which changed drastically whenever a swell passed under the boat.
Nearing the beach, we could see surfers paddling out to enjoy the waves.
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| Surfers enjoying some wave action |
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| Surfing from the beach at Atlantic City |
As we did last year when completing our Great Loop voyage, we chose to stay at Kammerman's Marina while in Atlantic City. We find the owners and staff here friendly and welcoming. The view is not bad either.
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| Harrah's (in center) |
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| Harrah's in Atlantic City, NJ |
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| The Water Club in Atlantic City |
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