November 11, 2013, Veterans Day. We rented a car in Meredith and drove to
Easton, MD. The boat is in Oxford, MD
(close by) and we will stay with our friends, Jerry and Pan Jana, while we get
Rhiannon ready for the trip south this year.
We have had the bottom painted, new injectors put into the generator, a
six hundred hour service done on the main engine, a new pulpit installed, and
the cockpit enclosure completed. The
are lots of smaller items we will complete before departing.
We are about a month behind on our schedule. Our original plan was to spend a couple of
weeks cruising the Chesapeake and then be in Norfork on November 1. Instead, Lisa had appendicitis, was in and
out of the hospital 3 times and needed time to recoup. She is much better, but still not 100%.
November 13, 2013, Wednesday. On the way back to the Jana’s from the boat
I hit a raccoon who dodged the same way I did on the highway. He managed to break the front bumper on the
rental car. Bummer.
November
15, 2013, Friday. We turned in the
rental car and spent the night aboard.
Departed Oxford Boat Yard at 7:20am. Sunny, high thin clouds. 40 degrees.
Wind WSW @10kts. We watched
fighter pilots maneuver over the Solomon’s from Patuxent River Naval Air
Station. We arrive at Calvert’s Marine,
Solomon’s Island, MD, at 1:35pm. 38°19.83’ N 076° 27.33’ W. 37 Nautical Miles today.
When we were here in the spring, the marina had an OLD Mercedes diesel
as their courtesy car. It is still here
and still running. We went to the
hardware store to get propane. We had
dinner on board. It rained overnight.
November
16, 2013, Saturday. Departed
Solomon’s at 6:15am. Dreary, drizzle,
wind S @ 3kts. 8am, YC bell buoy,
firing range for those fighters we saw yesterday. Wind still south at 3kts, but moving with the tide we are making
7kts over the ground. 11:30am, Smith
Point, we see three pelicans. This is
the same spot where we first saw pelicans last year. Wind east @8kts. Put up
the main and the wind dies out completely.
Dropped anchor at 3:50pm in Fishing Bay, Deltaville, VA. 37°
32°.3” N 076° 20.18” W. 56.9 NM, 67.4 SM today.
Talked
to Darrell and Ruth Richards today (Nite Cap II). They left their boat in Deltaville for the summer and went home
to Nova Scotia. They are ahead of us
and currently waiting on a weather window to cross the Pamlico. We also heard from Dean and Sue Perry
(Autumn Borne). They are just entering
Charleston Harbor.
No
wind at all overnight and a full moon.
November
17, 2013. Sunday. We weigh anchor at 7:30am. Heavy fog.
We follow a motor-sailer out to sea.
Once out beyond the land, the fog begins to clear. 12:50pm making 6.5kts over the ground. No wind, Chesapeake is like a pond. We see a Northern Gannet. They look like a cormorant, but a white with
black wing tips. We arrive at Tidewater
Marina, Portsmouth, VA, at 5pm. This is
where we spent time last year hiding from Sandy. Quite different weather this trip. 30°
50.51’ N, 076° 17.96’ W. 51.6NM,
62SM today. Officiall Mile Marker 0 of
the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway. A
few more boats here headed south late this year like we are. Nice to have company. Refueled – 23 gallons.
November
18, 2013, Monday. Departed Tidewater at 8:45am. Rain and wind overnight, but 60 degrees and fair this
morning. Wind W @ 10kts. We make the Gilmerton Bridge opening at
9:30am in spite of the fact that to old Norfolk and Southern RR Bridge was down
– even though the guide book says it is always open! We arrive at the Deep Creek Lock to the Dismal Swamp Canal at
10:30am with 5 other boats.
The
locks at Great Bridge (Virginia Cut Route) is closed. There is a problem with the main valve, so they can only operate
at low tide. I guess there is a lot of
boats waiting because they are to large to go the dismal swamp route. Today, the corps of engineers has divers in
the lock to assess what repairs are needed, so the lock isn’t available at all.
We
make it through the Deep Creek Lock at the 11:30am opening and make the Dismal
Swamp Visitor Center at 3pm. There were
already 5 boats on the free dock. The
dock really only hold 3, so other have to raft to boats already there. 3 of us rafted – the raft now three deep –
and the other headed for the next lock to tie up to the wall. We are tied up to GARI, an Island Packet Cat
35 with Richard Mansfield and George Gould aboard. George had a stroke a few years back and yet still travels the
waterway with Richard’s help.Weather had been beautiful all day – 60-65 with
sunshine – wind W 5- 10kts. It was
supposed to be blowing 20-25, according the weather experts. 36° 30°.39’ N, 076° 21.35’ W. 23NM, 28SM today. MM 28.
November
19, 2013, Tuesday. Up at 6:30am and
gone from the raft at the Visitor’s Center at 7:15am. Made the South Mills bridge and lock at 8:30am. Sunny and 45 degrees. Arrived at Lamb’s Marina in Elizabeth City
at noon. High winds in Abermarle Sound
today and tomorrow. Lamb’s is $35 a
night, including electric, they have a courtesy car and laundry, showers,
etc. It is a small marina and a tight
fit for us, but they put us on their gas dock, which is getting new pumps. GARI, Gypsy, Samjac (a Black Lace 40 we met
in Tidewater) and Mariners Dream are in this marina. Others are tied to the wall before the bridge in Elizabeth City,
anchored behind Goat Island or tied up at the visitors center in Elizabeth
City. With the winds howling out of the
east, the docks at the visitor center will be very uncomfortable. 36°19.35’ N, 076° 10.65’ W. MM46.
Only 18SM, 15NM today.
GAR
I(Richard and George) and Samjac (Pat and Ron Brodie) join us for dinner
at Track One, which is right across the
street from the Marina. Great
food! Good Prices! Prime Rib dinner special $13.95 and it was
great and enough for two people.
November
20, 2013, Wednesday. Winds are NE
15-20kts out on Abermarle Sound. We
stay put. Went shopping for groceries
and clothes for Lisa utilizing the free courtesy car. Lisa made a stew using veggies and the left over prime rib and we
took it over to GARI. The stew was
terrific and the evening done in pleasant company.Samjac
left today and we received a text that they really had a rough crossing of the
Abermarle and the Alligator River.
November
21, 2013, Thursday. We departed Lamb’s a 7am. Cloudy and wind N @ 6kts.
We managed to leave our large (expensive) piling fender (bumper) tied to
the dock at Lamb’s. We tried to contact
Mariner’s Dream to see if the would retrieve it for us, but they, too, had
departed. We considered going back, but
Lamb’s is very tight and the tide was out so there was very very skinny water
at the marina entrance. We called the
marina and the dockmaster, Dave, met us a the dock in Elizabeth City with the
fender. We gave him a nice tip so he
could go to Track One for prime rib!
The folks a Lamb’s are some of the friendliest and most helpful we have
encountered in out travels.
GARI
made the 7:30am bridge at Elizabeth City.
We made the 8:30am opening with Norne Gaest (who we met the first time
in Vero last May), Mariners Dream (Cathy and Derek Day, Alberta, Canada, a 36
foot converted lobster boat), Outlaw (cabin cruiser), and two other sail boats.
There was also a sailboat headed north through the bridge (don’t see a lot of
that this time of year).
Abermarle
Sound was flat and calm until we got to the other side and the Alligator River
Bridge. Must be the geography, but the
wind was NW 15-20 kts at the bridge!
Once in the river, the wind eased to 10 kts and now we have drizzle. We hear at least 6 boats on the radio who
are ahead of us.
We
decide to anchor off Tuckahoe Point at the north end of the Alligator-Pungo
Canal. There are three boats already
anchored off Deep Point and GARI is anchored off Tuckahoe. 5 more boats anchor off Deep Point and 2
more anchor where we are before dark.
3:50pm,
our anchor is down in 8 ½ feet of water.
The sun is peeking out and there are rainbows! 35°
40.38’ N, 076° 05.97’W. 45.3NM,
54.3SM today. MM 104.
Dinner
on board and early to bed.
Mosquitoes
tonight – the first we have encountered on this trip.
Some
boats in the anchorage:
Sea
Major
Oh
Hana
Quicksilver
Amber
Sea
Mahina
Second
Mates
Outlaw
November
22, 2013. Friday. Up at 6am. Anchor up at 6:30am. No wind. Sunny. Beautiful sunrise and the sound of
shot guns as the duck hunters are out.
A bunch of the boats are already gone.
As we traverse the Alligator-Pungo Canal, the shore is lined with huge
cypress stumps, some 6 –8 feet in diameter.
They have been here awhile and are deterioting, but at one time, these
must have been huge trees. Strangely
enough, there are no cypress trees here now.
8:30am we passs a large tug and tow headed north. 10:30am Richard (GARI) called. George is seeing double and they are pulling
in at Dowrey Creek Marina to have George checked out. We asked if there was anything we could do or anything he needed,
but he said he was all set and would keep us informed.
4pm
Anchor down in Braid Creek, north of Oriental, NC. 70 degrees and sunny. Wind W @ 6 kts. There is a big resort marina (River Dunes) just to our south and
three more marinas farther up the creek.
35° 05.38’ N, 076° 36.6 W
57.3NM, 68SM today. MM 175.
We anchored on the north side of the channel
next to R4. There is supposed to be 8-9
feet of water at least halfway to the south shore. A trawler comes in and anchors in that spot at dark.
November 23, 2013, Saturday. The wind came up a coupel of time overnight
and there were showers when we awoke at 6am.
Underway @ 7am, 60 degrees and
cloudy. Lots of mud came up with the anchor and chain, but good holding for the
anchor. 8am, some clearing. Wind W @ 8kts.
On our nose – again. 11:30am –
south end of Adam Creek Canal. Misty
rain. Wind N @ 13kts. 12:30pm we arrive at Morehead City Yacht
Basin. Very protected, nice floating
docks. Several other boats a holed0up
here also as the next few days are supposed to be stormy. We tried to get into Town Creek Marina,
which is where we stayed and had work done last year, but they are full. Samjac is there for a couple of weeks. 34° 43.3’ N, 076° 42.27’ W. 28.4NM 34SM today. MM 204.
Fuel
26 Gallons
The
wind builds over night and is blowing 25+kts Sunday. Monday turns out nice, but high winds and a winter storm moving
in from the Midwest for Tuesday and Wednesday cause us to stay put. We did some shopping and Lisa and Marguerite
(Edwards) (from Quicksilver) have been playing cards and board games. Also on board QuickSilver is her husband Jon
and 20 year old son Aaron. They brought
dinner over to our boat on Monday and Benny made George and Susan Barlow’s
chicken and pear curry for dinner with the Edwards on Tuesday.
Tuesday
night we had gusts in the slip to 45kts and a tornado touched down just two
miles from the marina. We are fine and
the boat is fine, but what a night. At
one point there were air-raid sirens, then all the electricity everywhere went
out. Scary.
November
27, 2013, Wednesday. Today is windy and rainy, but it is supposed to clear
off and hopefully we will get out of here and head south tomorrow. We had hoped to get to Myrtle Beach to have
Thanksgiving with the cousins, but we’ll be late getting there.
We
had dinner tonight at the Ruddy Duck, a tavern, which is walking distance on
the Morehead City waterfront. The food
was very good and reasonable.
There
are several other boats here waiting out weather, Quicksilver, Aisling, atleast
3 other sailboats and two large power boats.
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