Most days, either Scott or I try to do some planning for the day’s trip. We look at the charts and books and try to figure out possible anchoring spots depending on how far we might get in a given day. You don’t want to travel as far as you can and then find out that there’s nowhere to stop for another 10 miles. Last night, I targeted Norwalk, CT as our best bet for where we’d end up. First of all, it was about a 30 mile trip, a nice amount of progress, but not a crazy-long day. We had already decided to do the Connecticut coast rather than the north shore of Long Island. And best of all, Norwalk advertises a public dock with a visitor’s center. According to their website, boats can tie up for up to an hour for free and there are stores within walking distance. Just what we needed – we are desperately in need of provisions, and I’m realizing that it is often difficult to find an anchorage where we can get to shore and stock up.
[Side note: I don't know if people realize this, but getting an overnight slips at a marina is pretty expensive, usually over $2 per foot a night, and we are on a 30 ft boat. So aside from our brief stay at a strangely inexpensive marina in New Jersey - $.75/ft - we're mostly just hanging at anchor, with one of us kayaking to shore when need be.]
So, we get to this public dock, we tie up, and then we go into the Harbormaster’s office.
[Another side note: I really like the title Harbormaster. I think I want to be one someday. But not in Norwalk.]
They tell us that we can stay for 20 minutes for free, and after that, we’d have to pay $.75/ft to stay until 4pm. Not gonna happen. So, I run to the corner convenience store and buy everything that looks like food, while Scott runs into a little Mexican restaurant and gets us some take out, and we meet back on the boat in no more than 20 minutes and take it out to anchor.
The harbor is a nice enough place to anchor (pic above), but I’m still holding a little grudge.
June 19, 2008 at 12:30 pm
Hi Scott & Amy, Did you troops check out Mary Ann’s place. She and her husband have a place at the mouth of the Connecticut River place is Old Lime. If you need e-mail address contact me via e-mail. Am enjoying your blogs…take care. UB sends cheers.
June 19, 2008 at 1:06 pm
As a Norwalk resident I’d like to apologize on behalf of the city…
Unfortunately, as a resident, I’d say, you did 20 minutes for free… No that’ doesn’t sound right. Locals get treated worse. Allow me to was anecdotally a bit.
Dad had a boat, and I had the distinct dis-pleasure of helping him put it in the water and take it out each season.
The retired old goats they get to sit down at the docs are for the most part bitter old men with nothing better to do than exercise what little ‘power’ they have over the equally obnoxious ‘boating public’.
My father knew all these guys from various social clubs, and having grown up in town. Yet despite years of acquaintance, my presence was an anathema to them. I’d read the signs, and try to comply… I’d stay out of the way of boats & trailers. But I never walked up and paid homage to the fat slobs.
Now one look at me and it’s obvious that I was unaccustomed to the waterfront. They’d come waddling over, confronting me as though I just poisoned their dog. “Is that your boat?” “No. I thought I’d steal it and wait to be noticed.” Dad would arrive, and everything would be ‘ok’
So they’ve got a bunch of cliquish dinosaurs working the harbor, and I was definitely not ‘in’
I’m not defending them, but I figured a short explanation might help.
The boaters they are accustomed to dealing with probably contributed to the greeting you received. Many of the yuppies that com down are arrogant, self centered, ungrateful, needy, demanding, pompous, clueless… You get the idea.
Let me ask you one question. If you had driven downtown and pulled up to a parking meter or a pay garage, would you still carry a grudge? Even a little one?
June 19, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Thanks, UB. I’ll contact Mary Ann.
Ctyankee, I don’t think Amy was criticizing Norwalk’s dock policy. It’s your town’s prerogitive to charge for docking. The problem is the false advertising. Amy had researched the visitor’s dock, and we were looking forward to doing a little shopping, and checking out Norwalk. If we had known that we would be limited to 20 minutes, not the hour and half advertised on Norwalk’s website, we might have chosen a different town along the coast to visit.
Sorry you’ve had such a bad experience with the folks who run your town’s dock. We were there for such a short period of time that I can’t comment on Norwalk’s hospitality.
Scott
June 29, 2008 at 2:41 pm
Hey Scott,
It’s cool, I didn’t think the criticism was personal, and in truth I’m embarrassed that the town people would be ignorant of what was posted (not surprised though).
Almost 2 weeks have lapsed and no one from the city has posted or probably even noticed. That was my true motivation for posting. Draw a little attention to the post, perhaps get it brought to the attention of someone that might care or want to do something… But that’s government for ya’
Peace, love, and granola…
June 30, 2008 at 4:21 pm
Thanks ctyankee. We spent over $100 in Norwalk. (Although with today’s fuel prices, that’s not saying much.) There’s a good chance we would have spent more, if we had been able to spend more time seeing the town. I don’t know if the town needs or wants the business of cruisers. I imagine it is pretty busy on weekends during the summer. But when we were there the visitor’s dock was empty, and there didn’t seem to be much going on.