AC to Cape May, NJ to Rock Hall, MD
Our trip going along the Jersey Shore was smooth and pleasant with clear skies and calm seas accompanied by a slight breeze. As we passed along the very much populated beach areas our views were clearer than ever before. We did encounter numerous shawls coming off certain inlets and low lying lands. They did not coincide with the GPS and charts for our guiding system wanted us to go right across them which would not have been fun especially at low tide. Being such a lovely day we decided to make the full run to Atlantic City, which turned out to be about 78 NM.
As the day progressed the wind picked up and the sea turned choppy and a bit sloppy again but at that point we were not far from the AC Inlet and our point of destination for today. Golden Nugget Marina we stayed in before on our way going north, except this time we were able to get a face dock which always makes docking and departure so much easier and more pleasant. Thank God for little favors! It was a spectacular sunset and the wind really picked up and was reaching 17 or more KN. Who cares now for we are safe and sound and not out there where the waves would have been cocking and rolling the lovely Contessa.

We decide to stay an extra day and welcome Joe’s sister Grace and her husband Jim to the boat and have dinner in town. It was good to see them both for it has been almost a year since we last were together. Dinner at an Ital restaurant downtown was not great. It was as most places in AC are a factory of mass production of food without flavor and personality. Even the waitress had the same disposition without any ‘simpatico’, just a working machine doing her job. Ah well another lesson learned!

Spending the day in AC and going for a walk along the boardwalk was such a revelation of times gone by and a dying city, as well as industry, if one could even call it that. Walking through a casino hall gives me the creeps. The pressure in my head builds up to such an extent that I can’t wait to exit this environment. May the industrious minds get together and recreate all of this long lost glory into something for families and children of all ages to have fun, learn and create a better future for all mankind!
Tuesday morning arrive with a beautiful sunrise indicating a lovely day, if you intend to spend it on land, I must say, for it also came with lots of wind. Windy conditions and being on open waters of the Atlantic is not the best of combinations. Nevertheless, we are on our way to Cape May in the attempt to reach the resting point for the Contessa now going south. Slowly but surely we are moving along going south towards Rock Hall in the Chesapeake, the final resting point on this leg of our journey.

It was a snotty, bumpy and rough ride down to Cape May. What a difference to the previous ride coming down from Sandy Hook! None the less we arrived safely and soundly at our destination. The South Jersey Marina is well tucked in there in the middle of the channel through which we shall depart going further south. The marina offered several amenities including a restaurant with good breakfast and a shuttle service into town. We ended up using both since we decided to hang out in Cape May an extra day waiting for the anticipated wind to calm down and make it easier for us on our next crossing.
That it is September and the end of summer season is in full effect is very obvious for there is not much traffic in town whether by foot or by car. They have a long and sturdy boardwalk made out of concrete leading along side of a well kept beach. As we learn there are many restrictions and beach charges in effect during the summer months. Now the beach is almost empty and no check points or payment booths are open. The locals have finally gotten their city back. As we walk the streets of Cape May we pass by numerous ornate and some “frou-frou” (as Joe calls them) homes displaying their bright colors and manicured gardens well in the blazing sun today. At the entrance to the open Mall, a street only designated to pedestrians stands a beautiful stone church of Our Lady Star of the Sea. They are auctioning out a C300 black Mercedes and while Joe is buying a couple raffle tickets I am visiting this old church. I have a passion for churches and temples and love sit and pray in them. I used to do that with my grandmother Ljubica long time ago. Every place we went to we always found a church or sanctuary to visit and pray in. She instilled it in me like many other traditions and mystical things she often would share with me. When you visit a temple or church for the first time and kneel down to pray your wishes will be fulfilled and granted, she would tell me!

Today is September 11th and a special day for prayer in memory of so many innocent people that lost their lives and so many more that were in some form or shape affected by this tragedy. I pray that such things do not manifest anymore at any place in the world and in no one’s life just the same! I pray that there is Peace in every Heart and Soul amidst all people of this magnificent blue planet of ours! Amen

Thursday morning early we awaken in order to push of and be on our way towards the Chesapeake. It is a hazy sunrise and the forecast indicated some thunderstorms later in the day. At the lowest of low tides we gently move along the channel of Cape May, exiting at the Ferry docks to Port Lewis which we used on numerous occasions when driving through this area by car. The horizon is all gray and heavily laden with humidity and clouds. The wind indicator is showing 16-17 KN and the temperature is at 74 F and on the rise. Wow, it is going to be a muggy day which might be a welcoming factor for a downpour, just at the right time please! The further up the river we go the less the wind but the temperature is surely going upwards. The C&D Canal is smooth as a lake and there is barely anything in sight.