It sure is shallow around here!

Yesterday we navigated thru the C and D canal from the Chesapeake into Delaware Bay and on down the bay to Cape May, NJ.

Today we went another 30 or so miles and pulled into a marina near Ocean City.  We can see out into the Atlantic Ocean thru the Great Egg Harbor Inlet.  Here is a snapshot of one of the three different apps that I use for navigation and planning.

We are planning to stay here until at least Saturday morning as a storm passes over Friday.  We will take three or more travel days to get to New York City harbor.  We are traveling the inter coastal route thru New Jersey and there are a LOT of shallow spots and we have to travel from mid tide on the flow until about mid tide on ebb.  This leaves only about 6 hours during the cycle and cuts down on potential travel times and distance.

These two pictures are a shot of the tide table for our anchorage and location.

This is a big power plant we passed on the way down the Delaware Bay.  The waves were not too bad for most of the trip thru the bay.  The wind was about 10-15 from the port front quarter and we hugged the shore along a 10-20 contour so the ride would be a bit better.  This also kept us well out of the main channel.

Here is the chart with our position icon and two potential routes shown with us between them on an approximate 10' contour.  The ride is better staying closer to the upwind shore line and the depths allowed it and also kept us well out of the main ship channel.  We saw several large ships going up the river toward Philly.

Here is a google map showing a bit of an overview of the route we have ahead of us in the next week or so.  We are currently just north of Ocean City.  We will stay on the inside and make our way to Masaquan, NJ where we will go outside on the Atlantic up to New York harbor.

Jim and Jennifer