The winds were blowing 10 to 15kts out of the NW, the sun was out and the humidity was low. Perfect conditions for sailing south from Rock Hall to HHN. We slipped our lines at Rock Hall Landing Marina about 11:30 after pumping out the holding tank. It was pretty rough exiting the narrow channel between the breakwaters and the crew was pretty quiet except for a occasional screech from Sylvia who was up at the bow. After clearing the outer marks we set the yankee and turned for the bay bridge to the south. This was a new sail configuration for the crew. Questions were asked about sail trim and choice. We were doing about 6 to 6.5kts over the bottom as evidenced by the gps.
Once we had cleared the bridge we set the main. Now we were doing over 8kts and having a ball. The crew each had ample helm time and they did wonderfully keeping our course even tho some gusts reached 25kts. We turned the red 2 just north of HHS about three thirty and doused the headsail choosing to motor sail with just the main north toward the entrance to our home base. We backed the Hatter into her slip at 4:30 just a little over four hours since leaving Rock Hall about 30 miles away. Great trip, great sail, great winds/conditions and a great way to complete our journey. We were all feeling tired but a good tired filled with the experience of the past six days of cruising.
About the crew. They could not have been more compatible, eager to learn, full of good questions and generally very enjoyable to spend time on the water with. Hopefully they will remember some if not all the lessons learned and bring that knowledge with them every time they hit the water in the future.
Signing off this is Cap'n Dave. Look for future opportunities to sail aboard the Hatter to local places of interest such as St Michaels, Oxford and Cambridge as posted on "The Sailing Academy" website.
Ciao
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