Through the Cape Cod Canal - not over it!

This time we crossed under the Cape Cod bridges and not over! We left Boston at 1 PM and entered the narrow channel into Scituate Harbor guarded by it's lovely lighthouse. The harbor was packed with boats but Satuit Boat Club had a mooring for us for two nights. We walked all over the town and enjoyed the great ice cream. Searching for ice cream shops became quite a habit with us when we got into port. 
We left early for the long day's trip south. By noon we were off the entrance to the canal and drifted around while enjoying lunch waiting for a positive current. It was a very exciting trip for us through the canal. So many times we've driven over the bridges and looked down envious of the boaters. No it was our turn. 

We exited the canal at Onset around 3 and discovered choppy waves, a usual on Buzzard's Bay. It wasn't far to Mattapoisett and the free moorings at Brownell's. This is a great spot although not terribly protected in bad weather. Dick and Debra Bond drove down to spend a day with us and we sailed out towards Falmouth. It was windy and Deb didn't much like being "on the rail", but it was fun sailing and the boat handled beautifully. On the way back to our mooring we recognized Russ, Marty and Jenny Wolf on another small boat. They were sailing with their friends Janet and Bob, who invited us to their home on the harbor for dinner. What a coincidence! It was a really fun evening.

Our next stop was Quisset Harbor near our friends Ted and Karen Martin in Falmouth (that's them with myself above). We left Mattapoisett at 7:40 AM and were at our new mooring by 9:30 AM. Ted picked us up and I stayed with Karen while Scott, Ted and their young friend Matt went back to the boat for a sail. Unfortunately the mooring caught tight on the rudder and they had to call Boat US over to cut if off - no time left for a sail. Diane & Mitch Korbey joined us all for a great dinner at their home and then left with us the following morning for a few days sailing. 

We left Quissett at 5:20 PM (can't remember why so late) and roared through the Woods Hole Cut at top speed at 5:50 PM. It's really hard to navigate this area as there are many different channels and markers - and you're going likity split. But we managed and had a fast trip too over to Oak Bluffs harbor on Martha's Vineyard for two nights. Talk about packed in harbors - you could pass the Grey Poupon to your neighbor from the cockpit!
During the next day we rented bikes and had a great trip along the long beach and down to Edgartown. The weather was really lovely and stayed that way for our following day's sail down the Elizabeth Islands. We anchored for lunch and a swim at Tarpaulin Cove. I think this was the first time we put down the anchor! Diane and Mitch spent 8 years cruising the Caribbean so we had experts with us. From there we had a fast sail through Quick's Hole and back to Quisset Harbor. A lovely but too short visit.
The positive current through the canal was in the early afternoon so we left Quisset at 12:30PM and were out the Mass. Bay side by 3:45 PM. We put the pedal to the diesel and motor sailed up the coast for Scituate. Once off the entrance however the motor failed. It was too rough and now getting dark for Scott to make repairs so we called Tow Boat US and they brought us in. It was a huge relief to tie up to the mooring - at 8:50 PM. We were tired.
Scott was able to replace the raw water impeller and solve the immediate problem but this situation repeated itself several times before we figured out the cause. The next day we had a series of severe thunder storms pass over. It was nice to be on a secure mooring in a protected harbor.