SAVE THESE DATES

• October 28, 2000 - As we head into fall, there are only two dates left on our official Chesapeake Morgan Calendar. Saturday, October 28 is the annual Pumpkin Cruise. where members rendezvous on Clements Creek off the Severn River. So light your pumpkin and join the fun. If you are a "southerner" check with Commodore Jay Green to see about rafting in Hickory Landing Creek off Mill Creek, up past Clarks's Landing, off the Patuxent River.

• November 11, 2000 - A very important date this year is Saturday, November 11 for the annual Change of Watch Luncheon. In addition to socializing, the business of the day includes election of new officers for the year 2001. An influx of enthusiastic new members during this season is bringing momentum and vitality to the club, that brings pronise of good years to come. If you would like to nominate someone for office or if you are interested in helping out yourself (in any way, be it as an officer or in assisting with the organization of raftups or other functions), please contact Jay Green or Rita Snyder. There be a seperate mailing giving you details of the luncheon and a proposed slate of officers. Do plan to attend.

SUMMER RENDEZVOUS

• Memorial Day weekend was wet and windy, but Pageantry, Galewynd and Burgee made it to Cambridge where they met Ron and Betty Conrad, resident experts who keep their OI 41 Obsession on the Cambridge Municipal Yacht Basin. They showed the visiotrs around town and introduced them to Elmer's for a nifty breakfast to start the day.

• The fourth of July weekend was a great success, with lots of participation. There were nine boats rafted on Saturday night in LaTrappe Creek and as many (but not all the sames ones) the following night in Trippe Creek. (Photos will posted later.)

• Reports have it that the July Wye River Crab Cruise was wonderful fun, but no crabs were to be had! This did not deter the five boat raft of congenial boats and folks: Jane and Larry Breck, s/v Golden Daze, Kolleen and Dennis Stone, s/v Miss Behaven, Marlene and David Lee, s/v Leeway III, Rene and Bob Gale, s/v Galewynd, and Linda and Smed Clinton, s/v Pageantry.

• Labor Day Weekend Started with a raft at Lovely Cove (Langford Creek off the Chester River) on Saturday and Sunday (with crabs from the local marina!). S/v's Galewynd, Pageantry, and Leeway were the stalwarts who braved the poor weather conditions.

MEMBER CRUISING STORIES

• SNOWBIRDS ABOUND. It became evident at our great Land-Sea Picnic in July at the Chesapeake Yacht Club, that not only do we have experienced "Snowbirds," who have wintered in Florida or the Caribbean, but a number of others in our club who are planning to sail south this winter. Those who are experienced include Louise and Charles Solomon (Wind Gypsy), Elaine and Bob Leigh (Skybird), Margaret and Jack McKim (Karma), Dave Bluthard and Betty Scholle, (Gray Fox), Susan and Larry McDonald (Kanau), Judy and Bud Kennedy (Gonzo), Jan and Hank Zerhusen (Compass Rose) and of course, Deb and Dennis Borner (the W.C. Fields) and Tony Carey (Papeche), who are living aboard and cruising big waters, big time! (There may well be others not known by the editor.) Newcomers for this coming season include Marlene and David Lee (Leeway III) and Sue and Jack Burgess (Burgee) along with repeat performers.

• Deb and Dennis Borner, aboard s/v The W. C. Fields. Deb and Dennis have sent extensive reports of their Caribbean adventures, from such places as Antigua and Barbuda during the earlier part of the year. The following is just one of their excellent travel reports.

  Guadeloupe: Thursday, April 13, 2000. Bonjour from Guadeloupe!

  Our travels have taken us south from the English speaking islands of Antigua and Barbuda to the very French Guadeloupe and the Saints. The large cultural differences, seems to create its own allure and generates a fascination that invites immersion. What we found can only be described as delightful. Our arrival at the small tourist town of Deshaies, located on the northwest corner of Guadeloupe jogged old memory cells of a past visit. The Boulanger (bakery) was just where we left it some eight years ago. You get a very welcome feeling when most of the people you meet on the street greet you with a happy bonjour. Without exception all would attempt to answer our English questions even if in French! Our next stop was some snorkeling at the marine park at Pigeon Island. Lots of fish, but the corals were almost non-existent. Basse-Terre the capitol city was our home for the next few days as we set out to see the big city. Basse-Terre is home to about 14,000 of the 400,000 Guadeloupeans.

  On to the local tourist office we marched to join the morning walking tour of the city. The French have a very active and efficient tourist board, with offices all over. The people who work there are genuinely interested in helping you. The 0900 tour did not exist as such but if we would follow the Madame she would take us to someone who could help. Down the block we went to some government administrative building. Imagine this happening in DC! And remember us in English, she in French! Another office and another walk and handoff. Our final stop resulted in an attractive Guadeloupe woman who worked for the department of tourism and would be happy to give us a private walking tour of the city, in English for a scheduled fee of about $4.60. Off we went to discover architecture, history and religion. In something over two hours we learned that the island was discovered by the Spanish, sold to the French, colonized by the Franciscans, Jesuits and Capuchins who not only cast a blind eye to slavery but who held large land grants that were worked by slaves. The French revolution arrived a few years after [it swept] Europe and slavery was abolished. A short time of English rule and it was back to the French. The abolition of slavery brought a rapid decline in the sugar cane business even with the help of immigrants from India. The religious holdings were broken up and the modern development albeit at a slow pace was begun.

  Today Guadeloupe is the vegetable basket of the Caribbean. Along our tour we saw some remaining row houses used by slaves, and construction to resist earthquakes, where the ground floor is in stone and the second floor constructed in wood. Church steeples and belfries were remotely located so as not to crush the congregation in the event of a tremor. After our tour we went to a recommended local eating establish-ment for lunch. Literally a one-woman operation, for she was the head chef and bottle washer. It was a small establishment, but all who entered greeted us with a pleasant bonjour. . . .

  The Saints located about 12miles south were our next stop. This area is the local tourist destination on the weekends. The population swells to ten times as ferry after ferry (I counted about eight) arrive packed stem to stern with French visitors. After the tourists leave it is a quiet little beach community with many great restaurants. Our final stop is the big city of Pointe-A-Pitre. Seeing high-rise buildings in the Caribbean takes a little getting use to.

  Road Trip: Renting a car for a day, our first stop was CORA, the local version of a giant supermarket. They call this a hypermarket. French wine costs about 28FF or about $4.30 a bottle for decent Bordeaux. Next stop was the Chutes du Carbet (waterfalls of Carbet), a very interesting hike through the lush rainforest to the falls. A clue as to how interesting this hike would be was the pile of rubber boots the concessionaire at the trailhead was renting. We were up to our ankles in mud, and this is the dry season! Not to worry, the 10FF parking fee included use of a hose to rinse your boots off. The French do have class. We continued our circumnavigation of Basse-Terre (this is the western half of Guadeloupe) hiking at the volcano La Soufriere and driving up the shore road then across the middle of the island. The roads are excellent, the people friendly and the scenery beautiful. Fields of banana, sugarcane, and vegetables of all sorts abound. It was kind of interesting to drive after a five-month hiatus. Doing 6-7knts for so long makes 60mph seem like breakneck speed. The French roads are excellent but leave no margin for error; a two-lane road posted at 90kh(56mph) will have hairpin turns and a vertical 2-foot deep drainage ditch on each side. The main roads are posted at 110kh or 68mph.

  Friday, June 09, 2000 12-27'N 061-29'W.

  Hello to all our friends from rainy Carriacou (Grenada). Things that they never told you include "Tropical Waves," more on this later. Many miles and islands have passed since our last note from Guadeloupe. We bypassed Dominica this time and sailed direct to Martinique. The sailing tends to get easier (and faster) from here down as it is mostly beam reaches, something our Morgan ketch loves. However the seas between islands are larger with more west flowing current (2kts) to contend with. Martinique was another French wonder of great food, inexpensive wine, and hospitable people. Highlights were a stop in St Pierre a small fishing village, a hike up Mt. Pelee 1397meters, and a stop in Petite Anse d' Arlets a small resort village where two beers and some frits costs $4.50 at a water (beach) side café.

  We caught up with the rest of the cruising fleet in Rodney Bay, St Lucia. About 15 SSCA boats attended a dingy float reunion, and a good time was had by all. Rodney Bay is a very convenient place to hang out as it has everything geared for the cruiser. Markets, Chandlery, Gregory the fruit/vegetable boat boy and the "Happy Day Bar" where you get 2 for the price of one. This bar is conveniently located right on the way into the inner harbor and creates somewhat of a traffic jam of dinghies. We did two dives at the Pitons, St Lucia. A place very similar to our Tetons, with two mountains that come down right to the waters edge and just continue down with the water depth about 200' just 100 feet off the shore. We did a hike up the Grand Piton (2700ft) where we met some school kids who showed us that you could split open a coca pod and suck on the beans for refreshment. They are just like lemon drops!

  We went back up to Rodney Bay for the St Lucia Jazz festival. Saw Patty Labelle, Spiro Gyro, Hiroshima and a local group "The Sisterhood" (a very sixty's-ish style) one of whom wrote "get there while you can" for Whitney Houston. We also saw a virtuoso Pan (steel drum) player. His hands moved so fast you couldn't see them move. He played mostly classical pieces. Traveling down the windward side of St Vincent, our next stop was Bequia, followed by Canouan, Mayreau and the Tobago Cays. These islands all have that small island charm. They are not on the big cruise ship stops, and have a limited economy, mostly subsistence fishing and agriculture. Mayreau does not even have electricity. What tourism exists is from the charter and cruiser boats. The local people are generally glad to have you visit, and happier if you spend some money.

  A note on boat boys, these guys (I haven't seen any females yet) who work hard to get minimal pay. We have found most [are] friendly and eager to talk. They will do almost anything for a buck. Only a rare few are aggressive, and we have not met them.

  If you will picture for a moment a dog with its head out the window of a car doing say 60 mph. Now think about sitting in a theater watching a tempest of a storm on the screen in front of you. This is the Tobago Cays. You are at anchor behind a reef with the entire Atlantic Ocean crashing before you, wind howling in your face, sipping a cold one with only the slightest chop to rock the boat. You realize how exposed you are when the red Sahara sand lands on your boat. Dingy moorings are provided out in the reef so you can snorkel. A myriad of reef fish and crazy charter boats ragging at anchor are all about. Which brings me to the subject of Tropical Waves. These bump like perturbations of the isobars travel east to west at a rate of about 5 degrees of longitude a day, bringing increased winds and rain squalls. They are generated off Africa at the rate of about one a week during this time of year. You need to start picking your weather window if you want to travel in comfort. The exposed conditions of the Tobago Cays are not the place to be with the tropical waves, so we moved on(out of the wind) to Carriacou. . . .

  Editor's note: When last heard from, The W.C. Fields was at anchor in Trinidad, waiting for Deb to return from the states where she flew to visit her Mom and attend a college reunion. Dennis was spending the time on the hook, teaching a ham radio course to cruisers.

• Tony Carey, aboard s/v Papeche with greetings from Rota, Spain

Tony describes a passage through the Strait of Gibralter, and told of his summer adventures in the Balearics, Ibiza, Majorca, Palma, for example, before setting sail for the French Riviera. The following is an excerpt from one of his stories: July 13 . . .

We've moved over to the Balearics and are presently anchored outside the old town of Ibiza, locally called Eivissa. We left Alicante around 3:30 pm with nice southwest winds that gave out to he old iron jenny. We had an 18-hour run in front of us. It was wonderful to sail at night again…well motor sail. The sunset was spectacular followed by a strange period of overcast skies. Around midnight, the skies cleared again and the winds picked up. Off goes the iron genny…ahhh peace! As the daylight appeared on the horizon, we were under full sail again, but the winds had changed to the east, which gave us a wonderful beam reach, but the seas became very confused and un-comfortable unfortunately. The winds change from one direction to the other here fairly rapidly and create a hectic wave pattern. We slammed our way for the next 6 hours in very short period 4 to 6 foot waves. It was quite rough.

On my off-watch, half asleep, I heard Jim yell out "land ho!" I thought - yeah yeah, I'm going to sleep, we're still at least 4-6 hrs from our anchorage. We were approaching the tiny island of Formentera (14 x 7 km.). There are quite lovely anchorages there, but due to the strong and unforecasted northeasterly winds of 17-21 kts, we chose to sail on up to Ibiza.

I had no idea the island is as big as it is. I thought it was some lil' place like Key West, where the islands tiny and the partying is hard-core. Anyway, good ol' Papeche just loved the windward sail and kept on climbing up to the island. We anchored around 1pm in the lee of a large cliff making it a 21 hr run. We had a peaceful lunch among some rather large modern motor yachts speckling the coast. I dove in for an afternoon swim. The water is really clear - around 50+ feet of visibility. Unfortunately, there's no longer any sea life to speak of. Jacques, Frenchman single-hand sailor, anchored quite a ways from us, so I decided to swim on over. I was finning and snorking it so it didn't take long to swim the 200 yds. Not one fish seen…it's strange and sad at the same time.

We chatted for a while and decided that we'd anchor in the cove of Calla de Vadella. Up come the anchors from a lovely lunch break and off we go for the 10-mile jaunt along the southwestern corner of the island. Approximately 500 yds from the coast are two enormous rocks that jut straight up into the air - one has to be over 500'. It was quite spectacular to sail between them and the island. In no time, we were anchoring in Calla de Vadella. It's a tiny cove about 250 yds deep cutting in from the rocky face of the island. Inside there's a nice beach with a cozy little resort community. There were mooring balls everywhere so we decided to tie up and find out how much it cost - "it couldn't be expensive - it's just a mooring ball…right?" NOT, out comes a young guy in a dink telling us it's 2000 ptas a night…like what?? $14 US! Here! No way! Welcome to the Balearics in the summer season. Ok, I'm not paying I'm going to anchor - the guy laughed. !!!! you! I anchored and got my anchor in good, which is quite a feat in these waters. Long story short, we stayed 2 nights there. The cute little town was full of Germans, French and Italians in order of numbers. It was hard to remember to speak Spanish to the shopkeepers! It was nice though.

We took off with the nor'wester down the island to go around to the eastern side where the city of Ibiza is. That was a strange sail! Down the western side of the island passed the two big rocks again was lovely. It gave out because we were in the lee of the island…but! Oh no! The night before a couple of hundred miles away to the southwest of us, there was the Poniente (westerlies) winds clocking around Force 8 (34-40 kts) that kicked up a swell that was coming up at us, now on the southern side of the island, and of course bouncing back from the island - so…confused seas…what else is new! The forecast for the day was northwest Force 3-5 (Beaufort Scale - 7 - 21). Whatever. They had not got it right yet.

Sure enough when we passed through the strait between Formentera and Ibiza- the wind slammed us on the nose out of the east- but of course, would you like some Grey Poupon with that monsieur! Bienvenidos al Mediterraneo! Bien Venu dans la Méditerranée! Velcome to zee Med monsieur! We [threw] out the sails and took off on probably one of the best sails I've had in a long while! Now you must realize that this strait has probably 1000 boats go through a day if not more. It's quite a busy place. You see, all the nuts from the town of Ibiza bring their ego toys out. Ibiza is predominantly a motor head town. You should see the boats! Anyway, we turned up wind into Papeche's favored tack, close hauled scooting along at 7.6 kts! In to the wind! Yahoo! We even broke an 8 during a 21 kt puff! I just giggled. . . .

Editor's note: Reports are that Tony has enjoyed the summer cruising Papeche and skippering charter boats in the Med. And he reached a special goal: . . .

After an incredible passage from Mahon, Menorca, across the ill-fated Gulf de Lion with large dangerous seas and very strong winds, to the incredibly beautiful shores of the French Riviera, I have finally arrived in Antibes. This morning I completed a long journey. Six years ago, I bought a boat, as you all well know. My goal was to retire from the military and sail off into the sunset bound for the foreign port of Antibes, France. Along the way, I modified the goal to drop anchor in the little bay at the Cap d'Antibes, where I learned to sail 28 years ago. More recently, the goal was embellished by turns of events so that I could plan to drop my hook in this little bay called La Garoupe, located on the southeastern corner of Cap d'Antibes, on my 40th birthday. Well, I'll be damned if it didn't all come true!! You have to watch out what you pray for! It just might come true!

This morning, I dove from my most wonderful vessel, Papeche, into the crystal clear waters and swam the 200 meters to the shore, where I first hoisted a sail on an Opti, to complete the journey. (For those that don't know, I spent my teen years growing up in this fantastic part of the world - I was very lucky.)

CMA COOKS' RECIPES

• CHILI (from Rene Gale)

2 cans Bush's Chili Mac
2 cans DelMonte chunk style tomatoes
1 pound ground turkey
1 large onion (preferably Vidalia), rough-chopped
1 tsp sugar

Brown onion and turkey together in nonstick pot. Add Chili Mac and canned tomatoes. Cover, lower heat to simmer for 10 minutes. Add sugar to taste. If you like it meatier, use 1&1/2 pounds turkey. Tastes even better if cooked a day ahead.

• CURRY DIP (from Sue Burgess)

1 pint mayonaise
3 Tbsp chili sauce
3 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp grated onion with juice
1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Mix and chill. Excellent with raw vegetables. Keeps well if refrigerated.

MEMBERS CLASSIFIEDS

• Morgan 382 - 1987. Owned by Jan and Hank Zerhusen, s/v Compass Rose, is well-equipped, including refrigeration, 5 batteries, dodger, bimini, new sails and upholstery. If interested, please call Warren Cook at Capital Yachts, Port Annapolis, 1-800-636-7245 or 410-974-8339.

Disclaimer: The CMA is a private voluntary social club. The CMA and this Web site are not associated with and do not represent Morgan Yachts nor any of the other businesses or individuals mentioned herein.

These pages created and maintained by Michelle d'Aoust, Webmaster.