July 31 - Aug 2 -- Old Saybrook to Charles Island to Norwalk to The Harlem -- Three Passages of 35, 23 and 24 NM

This is the final chapter of ILENE's 2020 Between the Forks cruise, the last three day-passages (heading west in the Sound) and two nights (anchored by islands) before our safe arrival back at the Harlem. How's that for killing, rather than building suspense. Cruiser, nearing the end of his second cruise with us says "What suspense?"

The first two of the three days, after a wet morning due to night rain, we motored all the way, with the mainsail up and got a bit of help from the wind the last four miles. A rather uneventful passage and I whipped some line ends and tried to create a backrest by sewing two square blue cushions together to hang over the lower lifeline and stick down between the helm seat and the stern gate.  I also reckoned that we had been using fuel from the aft tank since our sail with grandniece Sammie, so it was a good time to switch to the aft tank which we had filled at the start of this cruise -- before the forward tank had a chance to run out. 

Like Duck Island Roads, off Westbrook CT, which is only a few miles west from the mouth of the Connecticut River (so we did not stop there this year), Charles Island, off Milford CT, 30 miles further west, provides a good safe anchorage from southerlies behind a small island. Duck Island Roads was created by the building of seawalls leading north and west from the island while  Charles Island, a somewhat larger island, creates its safety with a natural "bar" extending NW from it to the mainland.  

We arrived at Charles and found both plenty of room (only 2-3 other boats) and an afternoon classic rock concert coming to us from Fort Trumbull Beach.  It died down early enough and after a peaceful night's sleep we awoke to find "The Gulf"( the area protected) quite crowded with many small and midsized power boats on anchors. And more were streaming in  around the island from the west when we hauled anchor at 10:40 and headed for Norwalk.   Again, little wind, but with the shorter distance, we tried to sail for an hour, near our destination, but making only 1.5 knots, gave up the effort. Last year, our final night of the RI cruise was spent behind Cockenoe Island, at the extreme eastern end of the Norwalk Islands, where we had not been before. This year our intended anchorage was behind Sheffield Island at the extreme western end of the little archipelago of barrier islands, close to home but new to us. On the chart I have marked the shallow water as a reminder of where not to go.

We dropped where the chart shows "11" feet of water at low tide, just to the right of the purple anchor image north of the western end of Sheffield Island. We were snubbed and set for the night, but the frequent wakes caused by power boats motoring up and down the channel (white strip running to the NE corner of the chart) to the port of Norwalk made for an unpleasant rolyness. After a few hours of this, with twilight approaching, the mate complained and so we took off for Zeigler's Cove, just 2.5 miles to the west (just off the edge of the chart) where we found the same mooring on which we stayed with Sammie in late June, and had a pleasant night. The predicted storm did not show up. 

Next morning we studied the weather -- thunderstorms predicted in the afternoon -- and made a dash for home, dropping the bridle at 7:25. Full sails up before we rounded Long Neck Point and with light southerly winds, favorable tides an only 1500 rpms, we were making seven knots. The coffee that had been brewed before departure was good, as always, and the wind grew so the engine got a rest. The winds grew stronger and it was quite a fun sail, even after we replaced the genoa with the small jib. But the storm clouds were on our bow and the question was whether we could get to our mooring before they did. The New York City skyline loomed ahead in the distance under dark lowering clouds.

We held a single starboard tack all the way to Big Tom's R"2", and were on our home mooring at 10:40 am, with plenty of time to pack up our things and get home in the early afternoon.

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So what sort of a cruise was it, other than a lot shorter and nearer home than we are used to and a lot hotter. We made nine passages in nine days, staying in eight places, only two of them, Noyack and Sheffield Island, new to us. five of the eight nights we were on our anchor and the other three on moorings. We even paid for one of the moorings! 

The Covid pandemic has certainly adversely affected cruising, as it has all else in life. The water is still good and the sailing and just being "away". They still thrill me. But what I like to call "the pleasures of the shore" were harmed: (1) no theaters, movies, museums and historic places, (2) vastly inferior shore dining and (3) very little socializing. 

We will try again, in a different direction, later this month.