When he returned, we got ready and by 7:30 we pulled up the anchor and set out for our cruise up the New Jersey intracoastal. It was a beautiful day with temperatures in the 70’s. The ICW along this part of the Garden State is lined with comfortable well-cared for homes, many with a Dutch Colonial design that reminded Lynn of her New England roots.
We cruised by a collection of traditional and beautifully restored cat boats similar to the Atlantic City cat boat we owned before our trawler.
When we reached Manasquan, we headed out into the Atlantic again for the run up to New York. It’s always inspiring to see the NYC skyline over the horizon! Our cruise into New York Harbor went very smoothly.
We were heading to the Great Kills Yacht Club in Staten Island which provides great rates to people who are part of the American Great Loop Associstion. Although we are not doing the complete Great Loop, we are doing a significant portion of it and we had done the Down East Loop two years ago. One of the first signs of our welcome was this family of swans.
As we came up to the dock at Great Kills we were met by several of its members and fellow cruisers who tied us up lickety-split. John, our host explained how everything worked and was most gracious in welcoming us. This is one of several small yacht clubs that line a perfectly protected harbor in Staten Island. Afterwards, we walked up to the yacht club’s bar to have a beer and explore the comfortable facilities.
We were docked next to Marilyn and John on their North Pacific named BlueGoose. We had met them at the St. Petersburg Boat Show where we were all volunteering at an MTOA ( Marine Trawlers Owners Association) booth this past winter. They kindly invited us over for a drink and we had a nice visit comparing notes on our upcoming journeys.
Afterwards, we returned to Zendo where Jonny made a nice dinner and we stayed up late watching The Remains of the Day.
Wow, so great that you met up with Blue Goose! We are excited for our fellow Punta Gorda friends to be doing the Loop, just as we are excited for you to be experiencing the Great Lakes. Good stuff.
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