Jersey… I’ve always sailed right on by; a long, monotonous coastline. Like the Jersey turnpike, you just count down the exits till its over. Of course, Jersey does have one thing going for it: Symphony X. But this trip has forced us to spend some time here, starting with Sandy Hook. We enjoyed a glorious run down the East River as the sun began to set. Not knowing where to go with a NW wind blowing 15kts, and some waves building in Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook didn’t seem like the best choice for anchorage. But after some fun sailing-reconnaissance in the dark under reefed main and jib I found a breakwater on the south shore of Raritan Bay, with plenty of room to anchor behind its lee… in thick black mud we discovered the next morning, as our gloves, deck and chain locker got covered in it.

With limited knowledge of the NJ coastline, I decided to pull out a publication our friends Lynne and Brian lent us. They made the East Coast trip last winter on their boat Three Sheets. In a bit of a panic for a place to anchor for the night, Skipper Bob put my mind at ease. Next stop: Manasquan Inlet I declared with a smile. Skipper Bob indicated a sweet little anchorage in a mysterious place called “The Glimmer Glass”…sounded cool to me. Only one caveat,  “The bascule bridge is a very tight fit for sailboats, as it doesn’t open very far.” That’s OK I thought, I was used to the Lagoon Pond bridge in Vineyard Haven, can’t be much smaller then that. Well when we arrived, we found an old rickety little bridge that indeed didn’t open very much at all! I was a little nervous, and didn’t dare look up at the mast while going through. But once inside, what a little oasis. Thanks Skipper Bob! We took all his advice and rowed the dink ashore to the beach by the railroad trestle, found town, and even fit in a movie – for the bargain price of $6 no less! No complaints about Manasquan, NJ.

Two days later, we hauled back our anchors and left the Glimmer Glass bound for Abescon Inlet, better known as Atlantic City; an ambitious run for us of 55 nautical miles. Winds were NE at 10 kts, but forecasted to diminish by afternoon…which is exactly what they did. But I did get in a chance to sail with the Monitor, which I must say has been steering rather poorly this whole trip. Something is still not right… another item on my long list of things that need attention.

Once again Skipper Bob steered us right with our anchorage in Atlantic City, from where I write now. Inside a narrow, twisty and shoaly cut between the reeds, north of the city lies a medium sized basin of 12-15′ of water with room for 10 or so boats. It’s a nice view of Atlantic City (which never goes dark) from here, but we’re surrounded by an insulating wall of Spartina. There are 6 of us here now riding out this gale. Last evening I set my second anchor, I call it my sleeping pill. This AM the gale persists and another low is following in its footsteps. We might be here for 2 more days as it blows 30kts+ from the North. But we’re snug as a bug… heater’s going, pancakes & bacon on our plates, hot tea in our mugs, and a chance to catch up on some work.