The "Treacherous" Deleware Bay Conquered!

We left Chesapeake City bright and early this morning and reentered the C&D Canal headed for Cape May New Jersey.

There were a multitude of large vessels again today that fascinate us as they pass. Their size and the countries from which they have travelled are overwhelming.

After exiting the canal we traveled on the Deleware River for about an hour. We both commented on the fact that we don't know a whole lot about this river other than the fact that Washington crossed it during the Revolutionary War. If slack time ever hits us we will do some research or if any of you know who explored it, etc, you could post it in the comments!

One special treat was a lighthouse named for John! It is formally called the Ship John Lighthouse. Gail decided that it is the best looking lighthouse she has ever seen!

Crossing the Deleware Bay was much smoother than we had anticipated. Every boater we have talked to about crossing it has told some kind of horror story about it. It is usually a chore to cross but we found it very beautiful. It was fun to actually be out of sight of land for awhile.

While talking to Durelle on the phone as we were about to approach Cape May, we commented on the fact that the water actually reminded us of Pensacola Bay but that we had not seen any dolphins. Low and behold, a pod of them jumped just off our bow as we said that.....they must have heard us. As we continued on two more pods welcomed us to the shores of Cape May. Upon arrival, we entered the Cape May Canal where we were waked a multitude of times and then were unsuccessful in finding a good anchorage due to high winds, shallow waters, and strong currents. On our third attempt, we discovered Lower Thoro creek and have settled in nicely among the shrimp boats.This is a fascinating community, reputed to be the first resort city in the country. They fish for marlin, tuna, crabs and lobster. We have read that whale watching is a favorite pastime, so we are excited to see if we can spot one when we, weather permitting, make our first leg of the trip off-shore tomorrow.

Monarch has been performing splendidly. The new equipment; inverter, flo-scan fuel monitoring system and electronics are all working to perfection and making life on the water much more comfortable. Its also nice that the engine starts on the first push of the starter button, purrs contentedly all day and burns not a drop of oil.

As if all our days adventures weren't enough, God treated us to one last gift for the day. As the sun was setting there were a thousand gulls settling into the sweet grass flats right across from the boat. Their "night prayers of praise" can still be heard as we write this. Among them there are two very majestic white heron who have claimed a very large space as their dwelling place for the night.

It doesnt seem possible that we haven't set foot on land for three days and feel more comfortable with the boat each day!!