A Busy Day on The Ol' Thames River

SHIP'S LOG:

I had forgotten just how busy the Thames River can be when you are about a mile from the entrance as we are at TYC. You have the Block Island Ferry but that's usually only once in the morning (outbound) and once in the evening (inbound) though it seems that maybe that particular ferry isn't running any more. There is the Fisher's Island Ferry that run approximately on the hour hour and the Orient Point Ferries which seem to run constantly. The older ferries( slow and conventual)make the run in and out seemingly on the hour from both New London(outbound) and from Orient Point(inbound). Then there is the "Hi Speed Ferry" ferry(The SeaJet Catamaran) that runs about every 45 minutes. It can get a little congested in the timing is right and yesterday it was right.

Add to the mix the two outbound and one inbound 688's, with escorting Coast Guard Gunships and a Navy Dive Platform Ship, with accompanying tug, and things really got chaotic. The of course there was the research vessel from UCONN Avery Point, assort lobster boats(professional) and fishermen(definitely non-professional), along with recreational sailors and powerboaters, and it was something akin to the Walmart Parking lot before a big sale.

My own particular part in this play came when I was cruising up the river from TYC and happened to notice a 688 coming through the railroad bridge than spans the Thames. Naval vessels have a designated "exclusion zone" of 500 yards around them, a zone enforced but the Coasties in the rubber boats with the 60mm machine guns. I ducked out of the channels to port, heading off far enough not to attract unwarranted attention from the Coasties. when the sub had passed, I jibed and went back to sailing downwind upriver. After a few minutes, because the wind was so light, I jibed around and b\headed back down river. Since the wind was light, I took the time to get out of the cockpit to engage the mainsail leech line(It keeps the back edge of the sail from fluttering.) Unfortunately, in leaving the cockpit, I let the boat sail itself into irons, that is the boat sailed directly into the wind, lost almost all forward momentum, and the sails couldn't engage the wind. Basically, I was sitting there, dead in the water, a situation that could be resolved but cranking on the engine or waiting a moment or two until the boat, pushed by the wind or turned by the current, shift the angle of the boat sufficiently so that the sails could bite the wind.

At this particular moment, I was being approached by RACE POINT, one of the ferries that run back and forth to Fishers Island. Now I was along the starboard side of the Channel and the Ferry was on the same side, approaching my stern. Now he had the whole rest of the channel in which to maneuver and could easily do so now that the sub and its escorts had cleaned everyone out. I was in irons, sails fluttering and bobbing like a cork not quite in his path. I would presume, if he was looking out his ports, he could see that I wasn't moving, or at least not fast enough to have any real control, and that he would simply shift to port and speed by. But NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!Blast went his horn to inform me of his intention to pass to port. He could very well pass to starboard as a.) he would have hit me; and b.) he would have gone out of he channel. It wasn't like I didn't know he was there. I found out during my trip that most traffic eschews horn signals in favor of communication over the radio. It is a rare event, even in the busy Thames, to heard a horn. Most often, they are blown in a fit-of-pique by commercial vessels at recreational vessels. To make matters worse, as he slid by, his bow wave caught ABISHAG and started to turn her right into him. Thank goodness ABISHAG turns best to port and that he was a small ferry traveling at excessive speed. I was just able to horse ABISHAG around his stern and miss him.

So ends another day on the Briney.