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September 22, 1988 - Setting Sail Aboard 'SeaWind'Q.ii i' -r a4eetni r �f1c,11toc, C,01� 881?t f� i9dm1nfaA? Page 1IA/The Suffolk Times /September 22, '98$ Setting Sail Aboard "SeaWind" By Paul Stoutenburgh Focus on I'm writing this aboard our SeaWind in beautiful Three Mile Harbor. Barbara and I are on our way home after a week of dropping in wherever the wind took us. I'm not one for schedules (I had to live by them for many years) so when we go boating, we go where and when we want, providing the wind's right. We started by capturing that wonder- ful northwest wind on a short trip to Greenport, where we tied up at some friends' home in a protected little cove. This stop allowed us to take care of last - minute business. It also gave us time to make a short side trip to Orient where our anchor rolled out and dug in oppo- site the Orient Yacht Club. A short dinghy ride and we were off for a mile walk through that enchanting village, headed for a friend's home. How some areas can do such a superb job of capturing the character and flavor of the East End as Orient does is a miracle. Orient has a historic district and perhaps that helps. The next day found us heading across the Sound and up the Connecticut River. Years ago we'd spent a wonderful weekend with friends there. Most boaters know this lovely area and many head for Hamburg Cove, tucked away off the east side of the river. We found few transient boats there. During the summer they say it's a different story. It's become a very popular anchorage, drawing many people. I'm afraid its charm cannot last too long. BY • THE • BAY RESTAURANT • BAR 725FIRST STREET, NEW SUFFOLK, NY *** "THE FOOD? MERELY SENSATIONAL." Mike McGrady, Newsday x �r "THE CUISINE IS ENCHANTING." Joanne Starkey, N.Y. Times Serving Dinner Friday and Saturday, 5 to 11 p.m. Sunday 4 to 10 p.m. W Sunday Special - Complete Dinnerfor$9.95 plus a la carte menu. W Maxine and Elaine will be personally overseeing your dining pleasure this year 734 -6664 Nature Off - Season Luck It was lucky for us to be there in the off - season. There were lots of laughing gulls and terns picking up small shrimp that abounded in the waters. Even the cormorants were busy diving in the cove. When they bobbed up, the gulls would pounce upon them and rob what- ever they had brought to the surface. Some of the cormorants were sitting on pilings with their wings spread out like drying laundry. The wind died down towards evening and we were in a pool of glass. The few boats in the cove sat motionless as the sun sank behind the evergreen wall around us. In the glow of the last rays of sun a great blue heron drifted in to stalk the opposite shore. Then a cloud of swallows began to pass in what seemed like an endless stream. While we were in the light of the set- ting sun, I had to capture with my cam- era a gull that sat nearby on a mooring. It was almost like sculpture and the re- flections on the water made it a perfect picture. The mood of the place affected Barbara and me as we relaxed in the cockpit of the boat. It wasn't long after a lush dinner we headed below to our waiting bunks. We awoke to an overcast day but we wanted to explore more of this beautiful river so we let go our lines. About noontime we found an old, abandoned dock on the west side of the river where a sand and gravel operation must have flourished. We tied up there just as it started to drizzle heavily. This didn't blanket our enthusiasm for the area. The shores were forested right to the water's edge and in many places great outcrop- pings of rock could be seen with deep water below. It was quiet and misty and it made the trip special. On our way back we admired the beautiful homes along the river's edge. Once again the great bridges, like giant erector sets, swung open to let us pass as we headed into Long Island Sound and further east. Visit to Mystic River Our next stop to visit old friends was up the Mystic River, another area familiar to those who cruise. We found a mooring nearby and tied up for the night. After a great dinner aboard, we did a bit of relaxing and then got into the dinghy and putted to town where we tied up at the base of an art gallery. We ex- plored the town. It's an interesting town but one that has growing pains. It has condo -itis like other attractive areas, which takes away a bit of the old charm and ties up valuable waterfront. The next morning we decided to head to Block Island. The sea was choppy and the boat yawed and pitched as we made our way across Fishers Island Sound to Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh HERRING GULL —Our most abundant gull. Perhaps when our landfills close and that food source is shut off their numbers may decrease. the open water. It was clear and we could see our buoys well but the area always reminds us both of once being caught in a fog between Fishers Island and the mainland. It can be quite an ex- perience not knowing where you are. Today we moved through with a good wind behind us and no difficulty. We soon lost the local traffic and headed for that special island. We put our auto- matic pilot on so we could relax. Halfway there Barbara's sharp eyes caught sight of a hawk that flew right by us. It was a peregrine falcon. What a treat! Later on we were to marvel at a monarch butterfly fluttering along as easily as if it were dancing across our back pasture. How that bit of fluff makes its migration south through storms and winds is hard to comprehend. Scoters Here for the Winter I saw my first white - winged scoters fly by as we approached the island, a sure sign of winter's wrath to come. The common, white - winged and surf scoters are found throughout our bays, Sound and ocean during most of the winter. Inside the breakwater we were greeted by terns and laughing gulls dipping down and picking up what we later found to be sand eels. These are long, thin bait fish similar to our silversides or spearing. Once anchored we admired this won- derful harbor and the land that sur- rounded us. We saw two more hawks go by and later a beautiful marsh hawk. It ROLLE BROS. SALES & SERVICE, INC. Leo; Wheel Horse r�`�� r:7--" L3�MIIIIesI Horse r�N AO ILE BR01 �� — - - -- a P.O. Box 840 • 780 Route 58 Riverhead,, LI., N.Y. 11901 • Phone (516) 727 -4383 reminded us that these islands from the mainland act as stepping stones for the hawk migration. As we sat relaxing there was a great burst of fish in pursuit of bait fish right off the stern. We could hardly believe our eyes. The water came alive as if a thousand little beaters worked on the surface and then all at once it would stop, only to appear at a different loca- tion some minutes later. Something was driving the bait fish into a frenzy. I quickly got my pole and jumped into the dinghy to see if I could capture one of the predators but with typical fisher- man's luck they heard me coming and no longer came to the surface. Later we went by dinghy to the old Coast Guard station that is all boarded up. (The government's way of saving money. Wouldn't you know it would pick on an outfit that is dedicated to saving lives.) We found a lot of people trying to Catch the elusive attackers of the bait fish. None was getting anything except one man. He had a technique us- ing sand eels on light tackle and was doing fine. He told us that mackerel were the culprits churning the bait fish out in the harbor and he had caught six of these and one eight -pound bonito. Sure enough, to prove his skill, he caught another mackerel right in front of us and then hooked into a bonito that took his line humming out of his reel. He worked the fish in and then it would zoom out again. This kept up until a boat came along and cut the line, freeing the fish. It was a beautiful scene on a sunny beach. The laughing gulls and terns working over the bait and the man catching the fish beside us all seemed unreal. Later that night the forecast predicted rain and cloudy weather for two days with high winds and so we decided to head back. The prediction was right. Winds and rain pelted us today and we're glad we're half -way home. The trip from here will be an easy one.