Update
Out of Boston on Friday. Steady westerly10-15, with gusts (day before was like a hurricane, SUV blow over warnings on the radio). Got late start, but in to Scituate around 5:00. Harbor doesn't really officially open for all services until May 15, but everyone very accomodating, waited for one day for new crew (brother in law) and left Sunday at 6:00 a.m. for New Bedford. Southwest wind right into us, but we arrived an hour early for the Cape Cod Canal and did some sailing in the sunshine waiting for the current to turn. Nice weather. SW starts to pick, we go into canal and come out on the other side to fog 1/2 mile, gray weather. We got absolutely pounded, making slow progress against very large waves coming right at us on the nose along with the steady, now very strong SW wind. Boat was like a rocking horse, vis declining with more fog. I become concerned that we don't get into New Bedford until well after dark and its my first time in. We divert to Mattapoiset, but come in sort of blind as fog is down and relying on GPS to take us to Nye ledge bouy, which is just outside harbor. This is the last waypoint I have on my GPS as I had not planned coming in. I don't trust getting coord. from map and putting in GPS as I can't stand up long enough in cabin to feel confident what I'm getting. I figured the angle we needed to turn at Nye bouy, but it was rough as I did not have (didn't think I would need) divided rule. So we make the turn and enter harbor blind after 200 yards due to fog, trying to pick up string of cans to our port and not knowing how much we were being set by SW winds and how far set by current still running roughly opposite direction. Fortunately, we pick up a nun out of the fog, make a deduction and keep going, watching exposed ledge on our port at edge of fog. Eerie. Anyway, we are well into harbor eventually, before seeing shore and getting in and moored. Learned some lessons for next time, but would like to share with Ericson owners that my little 25+ took on a couple hours of pounding and rode admirably through it, feeling sturdy. My little stock diesel saildrive plowed on and did not fail us. The only thing that was going to get us in trouble on the trip was me, not the boat or its rig.
Last leg from Mattapoisett to New Bedford in a few days.