We had earlier hoped that we would get further north than here, but it looks like it is not to be this season.  I have been watching for a weather window for the first leg of our southerly migration for the winter.

Unfortunately, the prevailing winds on the east coast are from the south, making a trip in that direction a bit of a challenge for a sailboat.  I have been watching the weather for the past couple days looking for a window where it will be more conducive to a sail A front is moving through right now, and behind it the winds clock around to the northeast and then the east for a few days.

We’ll be out of Newport Harbor first thing tomorrow morning after putting the dinghy away, and filling the water tank.

Our destination is the central Chesapeake Bay, but we have two ways of getting there.  We could turn right at the southern end of New Jersey, head up the Delaware River, and cut through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.  That would start our cruise in the northern reaches of the bay.

Alternatively, we could further continue south, and enter the main entrance of the bay and work our way north. There is no over-riding reason to chose one route over the other, so it will depend on the state of the wind and tide as we approach.  Right now, based on the forecasts, I am expecting the southern route.