lower Delaware local knowledge

PascalG

PascalG

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thinking out of the box here for a second...

typical southbound route is overnighting in Cape May (or Atlantic city for some) and then running up the delaware the next day.

since i dont need to refuel, i dont' have to stop in Cape May as the anchorage is small and crowded.

I'm thinking about going thru the canal then heading north in the lower bay to anchor off East Point/Maurice river cove. With likely northerly winds there will be decent protection on that side; depths look pretty good on the charts 9'+ and i'll have 4+ of tide both coming in and leaving the next morning to rejoin the main channel around Cross Ledge. altogether, it only adds about 5 to 6NM.

I'm thinking that staying out of the center of the lower bay woudl generally result in smoother waters as the current has to be much weaker in that section of the bay, especially on an incoming tide against northerly winds.. (been thru that a few times and it gets real nasty up to Cross Ledge...)

it sounds like a viable option on paper but local knowledge welcome.
 
Why do you go up Delaware Bay? Isn't it much faster to head directly south towards the Chesapeake?
 
for one, it's only 50 or 60 miles longer and there are very few places to come in with a 6+ draft if something goes wrong between the Del. and norfolk. and due to the boat schedule, i'm not in a rush...
 
Pascalg, I have found the Bay ride to be more interesting, with a wide range of ports to visit.

John
 
Have you thought about anchoring in the Cohansey River? It's closer to the channel, and you are out of the bay. The Maurice and Cohansey are great stop off points on the bay, if you want to skip Cape May.
 
Cohansey River or behind Reedy Island would be my choices. There is a bend in the Cohansey where a 70 footer should fit not too far from the entrance, or the cove just east of the opening with good northern protection. I don't have my log at hand with the coordinates on the river and recall the entrance to the cove being somewhat skinny. Reedy Island is kind of exposed to the north though and the current runs pretty good through there.

Cape May is one of our favorite marina stops, so the anchorages (like the one in Atlantic City/ Brigantine ) come into play to maximize our time there more than anything else.
 
There's still quite a lot of debris making it's way down the Chesapeake from the heavy rains and flooding. Use all the eyes you have, some of it is fairly well hidden just barely on the surface. Have a safe trip.
 
Thanks fir the info. Cohansey is a bit too far coming out of Sandy hook at hull speed, even though inusually do an jour or two on plane.I don't think i d try the river anchorage with 6+ draft, the cove would-be a possibility though
 
Maurice Cove would work,,,Silverton plant is at the head of Maurice.

Have a safe one,, Boat shows open in Annap. this Thurs. Sail first then pwr next weekend. We ran across the bay sat. with a fair amount of debris, but after holding up till yesterday with wind and rain, all was gone when we made the trip back.
 
You might want to check Active Captain and see what they have; I recall having plenty of depth at mid tide, hugging the green coming in; we draw 5 feet, keel protected though as you know. It will remind you a little of some of the spots off the ICW in S. Carolina and GA. I had heard about it on the trawler or great loop list. ironically we passed on Maurice in part because it looked too shallow! Note bene: my experience is almost 3 years old.
 
i checked AC, mention of some shoaling at the mouth and then deeper. i dont' need a ton of protection since forecast look ok for fri/sat. I woudn't come in the Maurice river either, just anchor off east point.

i might take a look since i'll have full tide, or check it out with the tender which has a sounder.
 
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