We had a blast in Atlantic City! The weather was chamber of commerce perfect! High yesterday was 74’! We needed to wear long sleeve shirts and carry a sweater at night; even slept with a/c off and the hatches open!

Our location in the marina was tops! We were about halfway down the dock, perpendicular to the bandstand on the plaza outside of the casino. After dinner we decided to hang around the bar area near the bandstand. A fantastic band performed, and we danced for hours before we decided we needed to head back to the boat. The crowd was fantastic, too! A great stop!

Today we made the run to Manasquan River / Brielle, NJ in 5’ seas and a head wind. Traveled at only 8 mph for the first couple of hours and had waves cresting and breaking over the bow totally drenching the boat. The Admiral wasn’t too excited about the ride, but I thought it was awesome! The boat handled well, and I never felt vulnerable or threatened. Eventually we started making turns to the north and were able to catch a trailing sea. At that point I could finally put her up on plane and start making some tracks. Again, not many boats out in the open waters. First time in weeks (months?) that we haven’t run the generator while in transit.

We’re at Hoffmann’s Marina on the Manasquan River about a mile in from the inlet. Tides are about four feet here and the current and weekend boat traffic are fierce. I had gunned the engines in order to back the boat into the slip against the current and tide. My dock mate was not as fortunate. He took his wife and a friend out for a Sunday afternoon cruise but when returning couldn’t maneuver the boat back into the slip due to the tidal current. Instead, he got T-boned / pinned into the pilings and boats on the other side of the fairway. He had to wait for slack tide before he and two dockhands could help him out of his mess. Got to love this place though; across from the marina is a 3.5’ high bascule rail bridge that is an AMTRAK commuter line. The bridge stays open most of the time but about twice an hour sirens sound and the bridge lowers to allow a train to pass. This backs up traffic on the river and once the bridge is raised all hell breaks loose! My other dock mate calls this the "Sunday Sh** Show!"

Tomorrow is NYC. While we will pass the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, etc. on our port side, we decided to stay up the Hudson River at Croton on the Hudson, near West Point and the US Military Academy. We chose this location because it was closer to the two things we wanted to see the most: West Point and the Culinary Institute of America. We can catch a train and get to the city and see the 911 Memorial. We’ll be at Half Moon Bay marina.

Yesterday we studied our routes to northern MI and have chosen to go via the Erie Canal to Oswego, NY and Lake Ontario. Weather has been good to us, and I hope it continues. The ocean water is colder than NC; today it was 74’!

Going to have a bite of dinner at the marina restaurant and see if we can pick up some local goodies. Then to bed early.