North Carolina to Maine, TE 28

[Tom Myers]

Although the TE 28 is basically a weekender, we decided to stretch ours into a "Coastal Cruiser" last summer. We left Beaufort, North Carolina on the Southern Outer Banks and cruised north to Southwest Harbor, Maine and back. Total time = 9 weeks, approx. 2800 statute miles, 1,406 gallons of fuel and a wonderful time. We have a 2001 TE 28 with the 6BTA 330 hp Cummins. It is a "Plain Jane" (no heat or air, no generator, no autopilot and no electric anchor winch), but we have a good chart plotter and a simple radar. Just a simple basic boat! We spent about 7 of the 9 weeks sleeping on the boat each night, the remainder being 2-3 days ashore every couple of weeks at the home of friends along the way.

A highlight was joining the Maine Albin Rendezvous near Harpswell, ME. for 3 days of visiting with Albin owners we had know only from email. There were nine A-25s and A-27s. We were the only A-28, but they welcomed us and awarded us the trophy for coming the longest distance (a washed up Maine lobster pot float).

The biggest limitation on the A-28 for extended cruising is the small size of the holding tank and the limited number of working pump out stations.

Tom Myers
TE - 28
Beaufort, NC

[Mariner]

Pump out stations? What are those?

[Veebyes2]

Yeah right! Pump out what?

Guess I'm lucky. Out here in Bermuda holding tanks are not required. Just as well. There is no place to pump them.

Before everyone goes EEEEEEYUUUUCK!, by comparisson to big US boating areas we have very little boat traffic. We have a good tidal flow twice a day &, besides, just where does everyone think the fish dump?

[jcollins]

Just about every marina in our area has one. I never gave it that much thought. That could be a problem on a long trip.

Tom, did you keep a daily diary of the trip? How was the Chesapeake leg?

[Tom Myers]

Yes, we kept a daily log of the whole trip. Northbound through the Ches. and Delaware Bays = Pungo Ferry, VA, Deltaville, VA, Solomons, MD, Deale, MD, Rhode River, MD, Rock Hall, MD, Summit North in Middletown, DE (in C&D Canal), Lewes, DE. Southbound = Cape May, NJ, C&D Canal, St. Michaels, MD, Oxford, MD, Solomons, MD, Deltaville, VA, Coinjock, NC. The Ches. Bay was great except for a short but violent thunder storm off Deltaville, between Wolf Trap Pt. and Stingray Pt. Seas over the cabin top for a few minutes. The size of the range towers marking the ship channel north of the Bay Bridge was a big surprise. They are so tall, we had trouble reconciling them with the chart since they were visible for such long distances and were right in the middle of the Bay. Our range markers are simple skeleton towers and much lower, usually on shore.