Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Philadelphia to Cape May

It was hard but I refrained from eating at my new favorite restaurant chain, The Chart House, until we could have dinner last evening with Lolligag Crew Member Georganne who crossed the Delaware to join Captain Mark and me. Unfortunately, Crew Member John was in Florida working hard to ready their new home and was unable to join us. The food was excellent and we had a delightful time laughing and chatting away the evening before we had to say goodnight.

Isn't this just the cutest boat that you have ever seen? People call the Lolligag cute all the time, which is fine and we certainly do not mind at all, but this tug is REALLY CUTE!

This morning it was literally up at the crack of dawn as Captain Mark wanted to get to Cape May in one day making it the longest distance that we have traveled in one day. I lasted just about long enough to perform my Deck Monkey duties of recoiling the lines, tying down the cooler and securing the fenders before I announced to Captain Mark that this Deck Monkey was going to take a nap. The last thing I remember seeing was the skyline of Philly as we left.



I awoke with a start as we passed the Salem/Hope Creek Nuclear Power Plant located in New Jersey. I could say that I “felt” the radiation in the air but that would just be the environmentalist in me whining again. In fairness, I will add the following: The Hope Creek unit was placed in operation in 1986 and is a boiling water reactor. Nuclear power, including that produced at Hope Creek, produces nearly 50 percent of the electricity consumed in NJ. It has also played a vital role in the reduction of pollution in NJ’s air. Hope Creek is a major contributor to South Jersey’s regional economy, creating hundreds of jobs and contributing millions in taxes and economic benefits to the region.


Now awake, I was able to appreciate the beauty of the rest of my surroundings as we entered the Delaware Bay. We could not have requested better weather or seas. The sky was the most beautiful blue without a cloud to be seen and the water was a gently rolling 1-2 foot seas. It is so cool to first spot a lighthouse and then to make out the shape as we draw closer.

There are two ways to enter Cape May at the southern most tip of New Jersey. Since we were coming from the Delaware Bay and it had been such a long day, Captain Mark chose to take the man made short cut named cleverly The Cape May Canal thereby cutting off over an hour of travel time. Our destination was Utsch’s Marina located within a reasonable walking distance to downtown Cape May.



Hours on the water: 10.25
Nautical miles traveled: 87.2
Number of bridges to be opened: 0
Time spent waiting at bridge: 0
Next Destination: Atlantic City
What we are listening to: Started and Finished Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone by JK Rowling
Lesson for the day: Naps are a good thing for the Deck Monkey
Obligatory knitting report: Purple Lace Shawl for BFF Linda

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