Cape Cod Canal, and Entrance to Buzzards Bay

Last night our calm anchorage in Plymouth Harbor became more exciting after midnight, when the winds picked up speed and the tides and current swung the boat around. Luckily, the girls slept through the whole thing and our anchor held strongly. Brian and I didn't sleep much, though. The combination of wondering if our anchor was dragging, hearing different sounds, and feeling the rocking with the waves and wind did not provide much chance for that.

All of us slept in and headed out of the harbor at breakfast. It was clear and sunny, but windy with 6-8 foot waves at the mouth of the harbor. Some waves were even 12 feet! It was definitely challenging. With the help of our personal pharmacy, none of us got too seasick, except Madelyn a little bit (since she didn't want to take the medication at the beginning).

The Cape Cod Canal was really enjoyable. The water in the man-made canal was flat and there was not much wind. This made lunch possible. :) On either side, there are high banks with long bike trails. You can see people on benches, roller blading, or biking and waving to the boats going by. We went with the fast current, and even reached 12 knots of speed, which is twice our usual sailing speed. It took just under 1 hour, then opened into Buzzards Bay. For the rest of the day, we sailed westward through the bay, hoping to make it to Newport, Rhode Island before dark. It was windy, and we lost a few quick reference cards in the wind, but it was a lot more tolerable than the morning. The girls enjoyed fresh air, sunshine, and games while in their lifejackets up in the cockpit. They like to pretend the rails on the bimini are their "tricycles" and the pedal along with the boat and race each other.

We arrived in Newport Harbor just at sunset. The mansions were breathtaking on the cliffs at the entrance. We saw flashes from cameras at an outdoor wedding on the grounds. By this time, the girls were fast asleep. Aimee made at least 20 calls to various marinas, but they were all full, since it is the last night of the holiday weekend. Finally, as we were literally dropping our anchor just by Fort Adams, we got a phone call "It is your lucky day, you just got the last open mooring in the entire harbor!". Newport, a capital of sailing vessels, is littered with hundreds of boats. We were relieved to have a place to stay, and we're looking forward to a good night's sleep.

We will stay in Newport a few nights, and do some sight-seeing. Madelyn has requested a visit to the library and a toy store. We'll keep you posted.

Here is a photo of our mast as we went under one of the bridges in Cape Cod Canal.