I've sailed from Newport to Block island on a 40 footer, and it was
gorgeous. I've owned my Potter for only 1 month now, but I feel certain
that it would be a great sail. Surely, the waters offshore of New
England CAN get nasty anytime, but good seamanship ought to get you
through. Approaching Block Island is tricky. First of all, the northern
point (I forget what it's called) shoals out to a couple of miles, and
under the right conditions, even on nice days, the currents, tides, and
winds can set up some extremely choppy seas. I spent a summer on Block
Island when I was younger, and I've seen 5 foot waves breaking over a
mile out on those shoals. It IS marked by a buoy, but you've got to
navigate well. Most boats prefer to visit New Harbor, inside the Great
Salt Pond. It is the larger of the 2 harbors on Block Island, and it
offers the best protection. It has a narrow entrance, but once inside,
it's quite safe and large. Some ends of it are shallow, but that's =
where
a Potter would excel. I suppose the biggest thing one would have to
worry about sailing there is fog. It can develop anytime, and quite
rapidly too. Again, learn to navigate.
My wife and I are thinking of going down sometime next summer. One =
could
make it in a weekend by driving down to RI on Friday night, launching
and just staying in port that night. Saturday morning, get an early
start, and plan on something like 6 hours if sailing from Newport for
example. Arrive in New Harbor mid afternoon, and explore ashore. Return
to the boat Saturday night, and get a real early start back to the
mainland on Sunday morning. The winds are primarily from the southwest
during the summer, so the sail out would be a close reach, but the
return sail could end up being a nice beam or broad reach. Finally =
drive
home exhausted, but having an island passage experience.
If we don't do that, we'll probably make it a week long deal dividing
lodging between the boat and a hotel or guesthouse. I repeat the =
initial
query - has anyone else done this whose experience we can draw from?
Andy
-----Original Message-----
From: William Kevin Scanlon
[mailto:westwightpottersofne@starting-point.com]
Sent: Friday, October 23, 1998 12:11 PM
To: wwpotter@tscnet.com
Subject: Potttering to Block Isl. RI ?? Doable?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -=20
West Wight Potter Website at URL=20
http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - =20
Hi Folks,
Some of us Potters from N.E. were wondering if there are any of you who
have made or attempted this trip. It's not a long distance from shore,
guessing 10 to 15 miles, but, the seas can be rough. Block Island is
also very reachable from Long Island NY and the CT coast .. It is also
a very beautiful place to vacation regarless of how you get there!
Bill Scanlon
Boston, Mass.
WWP 19, MicroShip Hull # 870=20
http://www.ultranet.com/block-island
http://www.block-island.com/flybi
I think that a Potter sail to Block Island would take a pretty
experienced sailor and certainly a very careful eye on the weather. I
have made many crossings on the ferry from Galilee to Block Island that
were very rough indeed. The waves and chop can be formidable. Of
course there have been days when there was no wind at all. I wouldn't
feel comfortable in my Potter attempting it without the company of =
other
boats (and not five miles out ahead of me) , but I suspect others might
feel differently. Why not put a post to the potter web pages to see =
if
anyone has made the trip in a potter?
=20
above from Joel
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