Preparation for another season - 2014

To bring everyone up to date, last year our season got cut short by a motorcycle accident.  I was just given temporary clearance to do what ever is want, with moderation. So the first thing I did was jump in the truck and head down to the bay. I thought getting down early in the morning would allow me access at all the marinas and boat yards only to find out hundreds of other people had the same idea.

There were boats being put in at all marinas, as well as the boat ramps.  Boats were out fishing, I will assume for winter flounder or stripers.  Being they were on the Keyport flats, I will assume winter flounder.  Those I spoke to at the ramp who had been out before have not had any luck so far.  I did speak to a couple of guys getting into there truck in Cliffwood Beach that had caught a 27" striper last week off the beach.  There was nothing big yet for what I heard, but the recent warm temperatures will change all that.



I stopped at Keyport Yacht Club to see nothing really going on, but the harbor is full of mooring buoys meaning Olsen's have been busy already. So I took a ride over there to see what was going on and hoping to have a conversation with John Olsen.  Upon my arrival, there was virtually no place to park except in the sand.  Don't really like parking in the sand as it has a history of having screws and nails and has cost me dearly over the years in tire repair.

The were the Keyport Yacht Club launches with a crew working hard to get them ready. Bottoms were already done and they were now making them nice and pretty for the members use over the coming season.   There were also a gentleman laying out anchor chain and rode to make sure he had enough chain to meet his needs.  I watched home lay it out and pace it off the length.  There were many other boats that already had their bottoms done and there were still boats inside the work building.  A lot of activity wherever you looked.

Raritan Bay Winter 2014

It has been a tough 4 months recovering from my motorcycle accident.  Recent surgeries have been completed and I have even been able to take a drive down to the bay.

Visiting the bay during this polar freeze is exciting.  The bay has a lot of ice floating around and really not safe for boating in a smaller craft.  There was only one fisherman braving the cold in Cliffwood beach.  I was only out there a little while and my ears and hands were hurting from the cold.  The marinas and boat yards have hunkered down for the winter with very little activity.  A cruise by Keyport Yacht Club showed two only cars in the parking lot and they were most likely members working inside.  Olsens had such a pile of snow at the beginning of the driveway you could not drive in, but I am sure John and the boys were working in the shop.  Union Beach was empty and not much has changed since Sandy came through in 2012.  The ice piled up on some of the shorelines gives one the impression of Antarctica.  As we cruise down toward the Highlands we see Keansburg is working on the amusement part with equipment sitting there covered in ice.

Losing half the season last year due to my motorcycle accident was a real disappointment.  My doctors have been working on me all winter rebuilding the broken areas, but it is not likely I will be having a early season.  So I will just have to see what is going on and post it here.

In the meanwhile I recently watched ALL IS LOST and was slightly disappointed in the movie.  Robert Redford wakes up to water sloshing around the boat, but the impact of a shipping contained does not wake him.  Give me a break, If my boat touches something I feel it.  It goes on and shows no urgency of the water pouring into his boat.  You would have thought he would have made a makeshift patch to plug the hole and used a board or mop stick to keep pressure against it. When his boat begins to sink there is a location beacon on the back of boat that was never used.  This had to be written by someone who does not sail.  It was not a bad movie, just keep me saying to myself, "What are you doing?"  His boat was not set up as a blue water boat even though he is sailing the Indian Ocean as he did not have a portable VHF, nor did his life boat have a location beacon.  All in all is was okay just because it involved sailing.

Hope to be back soon with more on Raritan Bay.