June 8                   Manasquan, New Jersey

As we prepared to leave Cape May, we discovered our autopilot was working again.  A great relief!  We were delighted to have another sunny day with little wind for our trip to Manasquan, our next stop on the way to New York. 

Cruising close to shore, we enjoyed seeing the crowded New Jersey beaches and the long rows of condos and beach houses.  David discovered we had a problem with our discharge pump (used to expel waste when outside restricted areas).  We had installed a new pump last year in Maine and so this was an unexpected event.  This meant we would have to rely on time-consuming pump-outs in marinas.

Manasquan is a lovely beach and fishing center.  Hit hard two years ago by Hurricane Sandy, it has recovered well.  All the houses were freshly painted and the debris we witnessed last year had been cleared.  As we arrived shortly before sunset, there was a steady stream of small boats coming through the inlet from the ocean headed toward port upriver.  We docked at Hoffman’s Marina with excellent dock help which was needed because of the swift current.  Heavy rain quickly ensued so we remained on the boat for dinner instead of visiting again the lovely restaurant near the marina.