Sea Scout Ship 12, Glen Cove, took delivery of their very own vessel on Sunday, Nov. 21. With an unseasonably mild day, three intrepid members of Ship 12 motor-sailed a 28 ft. Continental sloop from Long Island's south shore, around Coney Island, through New York Harbor and out into Long Island Sound. The 11-hour voyage was spent getting used to the new craft and enjoying the magnificent views of New York Harbor under a cloudless afternoon sky and bright Fall sunshine.

Although it is a little late in the season to think about sailing, Ship 12 couldn't pass up the opportunity to accept the donation of this very seaworthy craft. With the likelihood that the weather could change any day to a typical blustery November, senior advisors Chris Nihill, Frank Sappell and Ship 12 member Eric Sappell, decided on rather short notice, to make the voyage in one day rather than the overnight trip that was originally planned. The German-designed sloop has features appropriate for sailing the unpredictable North Sea, so it proved just as comfortable sailing around the Western end of Long Island in late November.

Ship 12's sailors met with vessel donor Bill Marker in East Rockaway long before sunrise. After loading a few provisions for what could be a cold day underway, we left the dock at about 0630 hours with Bill leading the way through East Rockaway Channel on an escort boat. We witnessed a spectacular sunrise as we turned into Reynolds Channel. Here, the Atlantic Beach lift bridge had to be opened to allow passage of the sloop with her tall mast. Upon clearing East Rockaway Inlet we entered the Atlantic Ocean and headed West for the Verrazzano Narrows, the entrance to New York Harbor's Upper Bay.

This was to be our longest leg (about 9.4 miles) and the early morning sun soon gave way to fog that dropped the visibility ahead to 1/4 mile at times. However, having the foresight to load the GPS navigator with our route, we made good time in spite of the fog and kept to seaward of the Coney Island beaches. With our eyes and ears straining to discover any other traffic near us in the fog, it was a welcome relief when we sailed out of it and passed under the Verrazzano Narrows Bridge towering above us.

We made our way through the Upper Bay and there were numerous freighters and tankers at anchor, which look a lot bigger from a small boat than they appear when looking down on them from above. It was still somewhat hazy so we deviated from our course to sail a little closer to the Statue of Liberty and enjoy the view. Eric took the helm as we approached the Battery, the southern tip of Manhattan Island, and steered the entire East River until we entered Long Island Sound at the Throgs Neck Bridge. Besides taking in all the sights of the Manhattan skyline, this voyage took us under about 10 bridges, many of them awe-inspiring to pass beneath: the Verrazzano with its mile-wide span, the father of suspension bridges, the Brooklyn Bridge, followed in quick succession by the Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges, and the Queensborough (also called the 59th Street) Bridge. At this point, as we approached the Queensborough, a huge splash appeared ahead of us in the water - someone had jumped from the bridge! Immediately, a nearby NYPD patrol boat sped to the scene of the splash and put divers over the side. Fortunately, they had had sufficient notice of the "jumper" to have the police boat standing by. The distraught person was fished out in short order and brought aboard the police boat, but it was not a pleasant day for a swim.

We experienced a fair tide through treacherous Hell Gate and passed beneath the Triborough and the Hell Gate Railroad Bridges without incident. Temperatures were pleasant and the day had cleared nicely. The East River winds its way through the industrial areas of Queens and The Bronx: North and South Brothers Islands, Rikers Island, LaGuardia Airport, and finally the graceful Whitestone Bridge and the Throgs Neck Bridge, delineating the boundary of the East River and Long Island Sound. With the sun getting ever lower on the western horizon, the Autumn chilliness was starting to take hold, but the vessel's stove warmed the cabin, and more importantly, heated the coffee that fueled the crew.

Eric had done well and gained valuable helmsman experience along this picturesque route while Frank operated the camera to document the trip. The one-cylinder diesel engine performed flawlessly as it drove the sloop through the water at about 5 knots (winds were too light and variable for much real sailing). We observed sunset as we passed Steppingstone Lighthouse near the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Cruising into Hempstead Harbor in the dimming twilight, we navigated Glen Cove's Creek and berthed near the Steamboat Landing Restaurant around 1730 (5:30 p.m.), 11 hours after our departure.

We secured the boat and proceeded to the restaurant where we met Sea Scout Ship 12's Skipper Wade Curry and Committee Member Bob Kasindorf. We reported on our successful mission and faithfully continued the tradition of swapping sea tales regarding our recent cruise. The shakedown cruise was an unqualified success and we're happy to report that this vessel will serve the Sea Scouts well in the next boating season.

Sea Scout Ship 12, which was a spirited and accomplished organization in Glen Cove from 1934-1975, was re-activated in the Spring of 1999. Its members hail from Glen Cove, Syosset, Oyster Bay and Levittown. Anyone interested in joining in Ship 12's adventures are welcome - young men and women from 14 to 20 years of age may join Ship 12 to learn about boats and boating, maritime history and traditions. Learn to sail under competent supervision, meet others with similar interests, and basically have fun. Meetings are held on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month at the Glen Cove Yacht Club at 8 p.m. Contact Marissa Nihill at 922-2435 for more information.