Saturday November 14^th

We were once again greeted with warm temperatures, sunny skies, and a light breeze as we pulled up our anchor and continued south through Norfolk and Portsmouth and eventually onto the ICW.

While we’ve transited this area several times in the past two years, I always find it thrilling to sail or motor past the US Navy ships of the Atlantic Fleet that are docked here.  Two aircraft carriers were in port along with a handful of cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. The ships docked here in Norfolk all look like they could be ready to cast off their dock lines and be out at sea in no time at all.  As we sailed further up the Elizabeth River and into the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard area, the ships there are in varying states of repair or overhaul and are obviously not ready for heading out to see anytime soon.

We cleared Hospital Point in Portsmouth at 1007 and were now once again officially on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) headed south! This will be our third trip down the ICW, but the first time we really haven’t had any schedule so, as we mentioned previously, we aren’t in a hurry and are looking to explore new areas and  have new experiences along the way.

Less than an hour after entering the ICW we got a chance to have our first ‘new to us’ experience. We reached Gilmerton Lift Bridge (the first opening bridge along the ICW) just before 11 am. As required, we called the bridge tender on the radio to request an opening and he informed us he was still clearing traffic from his previous opening, but would be able to open again for us in just a few minutes.  While we were waiting, we heard on the radio that the railroad bridge (normally left in the open position) located right on the other side of Gilmerton would be closing to allow two trains to pass. This meant that the lift bridge would not be opening again until the trains cleared the railroad bridge. No worries, we hadn’t seen a train crossing from the water before so we were mildly excited to get to see two pass.

The first train took a few minutes to finally arrive and since it was a rather long train, it took a few minutes for all the train cars to make it across the bridge. So we waited.  We figured the next train would be there in a few minutes so we waited some more.  After thirty minutes had passed and the second train hadn’t shown up yet, the bridge tender along with several other boaters began calling the railroad company on the radio to ask the status of the next train crossing and when they would be able to open the bridge for boat traffic to pass through.  The dispatcher assured them the other train was on it’s way and would be there shortly. So, we waited some more. We were really getting an opportunity to test this, ‘no schedule, no hurry theory’. Finally, after nearly an hour, one train engine pulling no more than six or seven cars total s-l-o-w-l-y made it’s way across the bridge. 

Once it cleared the bridge, the railroad bridge opened as did the Gilmerton Lift Bridge and we were once again on our way south.

Rather than take the faster Virginia Cut route into North Carolina, we decided that we would take the Dismal Swamp Canal.  We took this on our first trip south and did enjoy the scenery and the slower pace one takes while transiting the canal. On our first trip south in February 2019 there were very few if any other boats transiting the canal with us. Since it is mid-November and hurricane season is over, there are more boaters on the water heading south this time of year, consequently we were getting to experience some traffic in the canal.  There were at least six other boats with us as we went through the first lock at 1:30 pm in the afternoon.  Several of them elected to tie-up and spend the night at the first set of docks in the canal, but some others continued on with us.

Because they only open the locks four times a day (8:30, 11:00, 1:30, and 3:30 pm) and we entered the canal at 1:30, there was no way we could cover the 22 mile transit in 2 hours to make the 3:30 lock opening to exit the canal. Consequently, we were planning to stop and spend the night at the free dock at the Visitor’s Center near the mid-point of the canal.  Apparently, we weren’t the only ones who had that same plan.

When we arrived at the Visitor’s Center all the slips were occupied and there aren’t really any anchorages in the canal. Fortunately for us, when all slips are occupied, the boats that are tied to the pier will typically allow other boats to tie up to them in a process called ‘rafting’. 

We slowly approached one boat, asked the captain if he minded if we rafted up, and he said ‘sure, why not’. We thanked him and then tossed him one of our dock lines which he tied to his boat and then passed him two more lines to tie to his boat.  With three lines tied, we were secured.

Typically after rafting up, boaters will get together, chat, and visit each other’s boat. But as we all know, these aren’t really typical times.  We did chat some, but we each remained on our own boats.

It was a good first day back on the ICW.

Sunday 15 November

 We rested well and woke to more pleasant weather.  Before turning in last night, we did check to see when the boat we were tied up to planned on getting started so that we could time our departure not to impact or delay them.  They weren’t in any hurry either but wanted to leave in time to make the 11:00 am opening at the southern end of the canal. That meant we would need to leave close to 9:30.

We enjoyed a nice breakfast and since it was Sunday and we didn’t have to leave before 9:30, we were able to attend our church service virtually!

We got underway just after 9:30 and headed south in sunny skies and calm winds.  The forecast for the afternoon was for the wind to start to increase and build over the next several days, so we wanted to get to an anchorage or slip before conditions got too bad late in the afternoon.

We entered the South Mills Lock with four or five other boats right at 11am as planned.  Once clear of the locks, we all continued south. Several of the boats that had spent the evening tied to the Visitor’s Center with us were all headed to the same place for the afternoon – the next free dock along the route, the Elizabeth City Town docks – so we all travelled in a loose caravan of boats.

As predicted the wind did pick up and was blowing 15 to 20 mphs most of the afternoon.  Our caravan made it’s way safely to Elizabeth City and tied up just after 3pm . Once at the docks, we were greeted by a volunteer who checked to see if any of the boaters needed assistance with anything, offering free shuttle trips to the grocery store, hardware store, laundry mat, etc.  These volunteers are known as the ‘Rose Buddies’, for in years past, they would greet the visiting boaters at the docks and give the ladies onboard roses.  It’s a nice service, but Diane and I didn’t need anything so we thanked them for their hospitality and took advantage of an early afternoon to walk around the town and stretched our legs before settling in for the evening.

Monday November 16^th

Even though we intend to generally travel at a leisurely pace this trip, there are times when by design, we will need to have a long day.  This is one of those days. 

Travelling south, after leaving Elizabeth City, we cross the Albemarle Sound (about 14 miles), travel up the Alligator River, and then enter the 20 mile long Alligator-Pungo Canal. Belhaven, NC is only a few miles south of the canal and the next logical town for us to visit.  The trip from Elizabeth City to Belhaven is just over 80 miles which should make a nice leisurely 2 day trip. Unfortunately, there are only a few possible anchorages along the way. Two along the Alligator River (one 30 miles from Elizabeth City and the other one 50 miles at the head of the canal). 

Our plan was to leave early, which we did, and travel the 50 miles or so to the head of the canal and anchor for the evening. This would leave us just over 30 miles to cover on Tuesday, putting us into Belhaven early in the afternoon.

With the winds behind us, we were able to make great time down the Pasquotank River and across the Albemarle Sound. We cleared the Alligator River Swing Bridge shortly after 11 and covered almost 40 miles by noon. At this rate we would reach our intended anchorage by 2 pm and were facing a dilemma. Do we anchor at 2 pm or transit the canal knowing on previous trips it has taken us 3 to 3 ½ hours to transit and that there are no anchorages inside the canal itself.  One of the factors influencing our decision was Tuesday’s weather forecast.  The winds in the early morning were supposed to be light, but by mid-day they were forecasted to be a steady 20 knots with gusts to 30 knots throughout the afternoon and evening. The current forecast for Wednesday was the same. Not the type of conditions we really want to be sailing in or trying to dock in. If we didn’t get into Belhaven before noon, we were most likely going to need to find a sheltered anchorage and remain onboard for the next day or so.

Transiting the canal in the afternoon and anchoring at dusk would put us less than 10 miles from Belhaven, a distance we could easily cover in the morning before the winds picked up.  Additionally, we were familiar with the anchorages at the south end of the canal and knew we could find our way even if we ran out of daylight. 

We decided to make it a long day and entered the canal just after 2 pm. We had uneventful passage and found our anchorage just as the sun was going down. We were rewarded with a great sunset and calm water.  The moon set shortly after dinner and the night sky was really clear. The stars were so bright and the water so flat that we were actually able to see the reflection of the stars in the water. It was a beautiful evening.

Tuesday 17 November

We got up and got underway just after 8 am. We pulled into a marina to refuel and fill our fresh water tank before heading into Belhaven. It took 30 gallons to fill the diesel tank – we had burned just over 0.6 of a gallon per hour since our last refuel in Solomons. Not bad.

We got back underway and were tied to the Belhaven Town Dock by 11 am.  The wind was just starting to pick up, and was pushing us onto the dock,  making docking relatively easy and uneventful. By 1 pm the winds were blowing a steady 15 to 20 knots with gusts close to 30 as predicted. Docking in those winds would not have been fun; and given the narrow approach to the channel and the small turning basin in front of the docks a more accurate description would be unsafe.  In fact, later in the day, several boats did approach the marina but immediately turned back out into the channel and elected to go find an anchorage rather than attempt to dock and risk damaging their boat or others. So, putting in a long day on Monday paid off for us.

Belhaven is another town we have never been to via water.  I say, ‘via water’ because back in the summer of 2019 we participated in a short term mission trip repairing flood/hurricane damaged homes in the area and one of the homes we worked on was just outside of Belhaven. Our work team was actually based out of another nearby town and we would drive into Belhaven in the morning and head back in the evening without having time to explore. So, we were excited to have the opportunity to have time to explore.

After checking in with the dock master we set out on foot and started exploring.  One of the main roads in town runs right along the banks of the river so as we walked, we could see the course we had made an hour or so before, when out on the river.  From the road, the large stately homes we had seen from the river were even larger and more impressive. Most were private homes but a few had been converted into Bed and Breakfast Inns.

We walked down to River Forest Manor Inn and marina located right on the point at the entrance to the harbor. The Manor has been restored and now serves more as a wedding venue with a fantastic view of the river than an Inn or hotel.  Even though the marina’s docks were located inside the breakwaters, they were exposed to the wind enough that most of the boats were rocking pretty severely in their slips. Still glad we were tied to the town docks.

Along our walk we met another cruising couple and struck up a socially distanced conversation from opposite sides of the street.  Their boat was docked in a marina next to the town dock and they were out exploring as well. Their homeport is Oriental, NC just a few hours further south and the next destination on our list, so we spent time asking them about places to stay and things to see there.

We ended up walking along and talking with them for almost an hour. It never ceases to amaze me how nice and friendly most boaters are. Back in the late 60’s Honda motorcycles used an advertising slogan that said, ‘You meet the nicest people on motorcycles’. While that’s been my experience, I also think the slogan rings true for boaters.

After our walk Diane and I grabbed burger from Farm Boys, a local burger and fried fish stand just across from the marina.  It wasn’t the healthiest meal we’ve had on the trip so far, but it tasted great and their hush puppies were delicious.

Later in the afternoon we were greeted by someone from the chamber of commerce and visitor’s center who walked over to the boat and dropped off information about the town and various restaurants and shops. They also let us know that they have a cruisers lounge (large living room with free wifi and a book exchange) that they keep open anytime boats are tied to the town docks. So after dinner, Diane and I headed over to the lounge and took advantage of a strong internet connection to take care of some administrative stuff. We had the place to ourselves and it was nice to be able to spread out. Once we got caught up on computer stuff we headed back to the boat for the evening. The forecast for Wednesday was improving some but wasn’t great so we went to bed undecided as to whether or not we would be moving tomorrow or staying another day in Belhaven.

Friday November 13th

The skies were grey, but there was no rain in the forecast for our trip to Norfolk.  We got underway just before 7 and headed out of the East River.  As we sailed across Mobjack Bay towards Norfolk and we met up with another Island Packet sailboat (Linda Lee from Tampa, Fl). We hailed them on the VHF radio (that’s how you communicate with other boaters on the water) and asked them where they were headed for the day. The skipper mentioned that he too was eventually heading back to Florida, but was planning on spending the afternoon and evening in Hampton Roads. He said the anchorage was good and you could take your dinghy to the town docks, tie up and easily explore the town on foot.

Since we had not been to Hampton Roads before and it was almost as close to the ICW as where we typically stay in Norfolk, we decided to follow him in and drop anchor just across from the town docks and Hampton University. After making sure the anchor was holding, we spent a few minutes stowing all our gear and tidying Eos up a bit and then got ready to row ashore & go explore Hampton Roads.

It was only a short distance from the boat to the town dock so we decided rather than spend the time putting the motor on the dinghy we would get some exercise and row to shore. When we are moving from one port to the next, we typically travel with the dinghy lifted out of the water and hang it from a set of brackets on the back of the boat called davits. We also remove the motor and carry it mounted on a separate bracket on the port side of the boat. This ensures the motor is stored securely and also lessens the weight the davits need to support. It sounds more complicated than it really is, but it does take a few minutes to get everything either attached correctly before we can go exploring. So, if we don’t have too far to go in the dinghy sometimes, like today, we simply don’t install the motor and go ‘old school’ and row!

We rowed to the town dock, secured the dinghy and then went to check in with the Harbor Master to let him know we’d be staying for the evening.  He gave us a few suggestions of places to see and off we went.

Our first potential destination was Fort Monroe which we had passed by on our way in. Since we were on foot, covering the 3 miles each way wouldn’t leave us much time to actually explore the fort and still have daylight to walk back. So, we decided we’d take a short stroll through the campus of Hampton University. We were actually anchored right off the campus so it only made sense to be neighborly and walk over for a short visit. As we reached the entrance to the campus (a mile away) we were greeted by a nice security guard and several signs informing us that the grounds were closed to visitors due to Covid. So, we changed plans and decided we’d explore downtown instead.

We had initially seen a large building downtown with a NASA emblem on it, but had decided to pass on that in favor of a walking tour of the university.  “Guess we’ll walk back to that building and see what it’s all about”, we said to each other.  Turns out the building with the NASA emblem is actually The Virginia Air and Space Museum. Hampton Roads has played an important role in aviation and space exploration and we were excited to learn more. Langley Air Force base is located close by and in the late 1950’s and 1960’s NASA scientist and engineers in Hampton Roads were involved in the planning and execution of the early rocket launches.  A few years ago, they made the movie, Hidden Figures, which tells the story of a group of young female African American mathematicians who preformed by hand the complex calculations for success space travel.  These ladies and their co-workers were referred to as human computers.  One of the major characters in highlighted in the movie, Dr Katherin Johnson, was eventually awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama for her role service and role in our Space program.  If you haven’t seen the movie I’d highly recommend it.

As we approached the museum we couldn’t help notice that it didn’t look very busy. In fact, it looked closed. The signs in the window would probably give us some more information.  The museum wasn’t closed because of Covid, but it was closed for renovations. Hopefully, renovations will be completed by the time we return in the late Spring.

Not to be deterred, we continued walking through downtown. Although it wasn’t an ‘official attraction’ we did spend a few minutes observing a worker sort and prepare bushels of crabs for steaming.  As we were just looking into the back of this plant from a foot bridge, we weren’t close enough to see all the steps involved but what we did see was interesting.  He was apparently sorting crabs by size and if any were too small, he’d reach into the bushel basket, grab it with his gloved hands and ‘gently’ return the crab to water by flinging it into the harbor 10 or 15 yards away. Once he had a basketful of correctly sized crabs, he’d attach the bushel basket to a hoist and then lower the basket into a large stainless steel barrel that had steam spewing out of it in several different locations. Once the crabs were put into the steamer it was apparently time for the worker to take a break so we didn’t stick around to see the end of the process.

Our next stop was the Hampton Roads visitor center and museum.  We planned to stop in just long enough to grab some brochures or pamphlets on other attractions in the area and then get on our way. It must have been a slow day in the visitors center as the two attendants/hosts were excited that we stopped by and everytime we thought we could make an escape they would begin to tell us another story about the area or attraction. Finally, after they told us about a great donut shop just around the corner, we had our out and were able to leave, but not before being loaded up with a ton of flyers and brochures.

We managed to finally find the donut shop after asking two or three locals for directions. By the time we did arrive the donut shop was closed.  Apparently, they only make enough each morning to sell through about lunch time and once those are gone, they close for the day. Another miss!

With our luck and daylight running out, we returned to the town dock area to grab a warm appetizer or two in a local brew pub before we rowed back to the boat for the evening.  Fortunately, the pub was open and we were able to order our food and grab a table outside on the dock.  We then rowed back to the boat and settled in for the evening.

Even though we weren’t able to fully experience all Hampton Roads has to offer, we did actually enjoy our afternoon walking around and will definitely plan on stopping here again.

November 11^th & 12^th

We were pleasantly surprised when we woke up Wednesday morning to learn that the forecast for the day had changed in our favor. The rain showers that were to blanket this part of Virginia were now not supposed to arrive until later in the afternoon giving us an opportunity to head a little further south if we wanted too.  The forecast for steady and heavy rain on Thursday hadn’t changed, so wherever we anchored Wednesday afternoon would be our new home port until Friday morning.

We got underway from Antiposion Creek just before 8 am and retraced our track (path) out of the creek and headed for the mouth of the Rappahannock River. Navigating our way out the creek was really not difficult, but there was a rather large collection of sticks stuck in the water near the creek entrance that we wanted to avoid. Apparently, this collection of sticks is actually a trap for fish that local waterman routinely erect in shallow water along the Bay’s edge. They are rarely marked and can be difficult to see in anything other than broad daylight. We were fortunate though, this particular fish trap was clearly visible because there were several dozen gulls and other sea birds either sitting on the sticks or flying overhead.

Once we crossed the Rappahannock we would have several options along the Western shore of the Bay that could serve as good anchorages for a day or two. We had favorable currents and calm seas allowing us to average over 6 knots (yes, that’s 7 miles an hour) and were making good progress so we skipped the first anchorage in Deltaville and decided to continue on towards Mobjack Bay. According to our cruising guides Mobjack Bay and its tributaries have some of the best cruising grounds and most scenic anchorages in this part of the Bay.  Sounds like a great place to spend a day or two, unfortunately for us I’m not sure how much scenery we’ll be able to see in the rain!

The bay’s entrance is guarded by the ‘old’ New Point Comfort Lighthouse. The stately 63’ sandstone structure is no longer operational, it’s navigation duties were usurped by a pair of standard lighted bouys back in the early 1950’s. The lighthouse was originally built in 1804 and is still standing. It is currently undergoing renovations, but to think it has survived over 200 years of wind, rain, and storms is impressive. It’s nice to see some conservation or preservation group is undertaking the restoration to hopefully preserve the lighthouse for another 200 years.

Four rivers, The East, North, Ware, and Severn make up the major tributaries of Mobjack Back. We chose to find an anchorage up the East River. We travelled about 6 or 7 miles from the mouth of Mobjack Bay to Put In Creek, just south of Matthews, Va. As an aside, the parents of one my college roommates moved down from Long Island, Ny to Matthews when they retired. I was hoping to be able to contact them, but was unsuccessful, so I don’t know if they are still in the area or not.

We ended up anchoring just north of Parson’s Point, a beautiful  1850’s home on  a 22 acre piece of waterfront property. (According to Zillow, it’s currently available for just under $1.5 million if anyone is in the market). We anchored just before 3 pm and the rain came shortly after 4 pm as predicted. It didn’t stop raining until almost 24 hours later – the forecast called for 2 to 4 inches of rain and it seems as though they nailed that one.

With a lazy day in front of us tomorrow, after dinner we decided to get crazy, played a game or two of checkers and tried to see if we could stay up past 830!  (it gets dark sooooo early!!!)

Unlike Wednesday morning, Thursday’s forecast was spot on.  It was raining when we woke up, it rained all morning, and into the late afternoon. Fortunately, we had installed our enclosure earlier in the week giving us essentially an extra room to spread out in throughout the day.

I was up at 530 am, did some reading, and then was able to join a Zoom call with a group of guys from my church at 630 am.  I’ve met with this same group of 6 to 8 guys weekly on Thursday mornings for almost 10 years or so now. We spend time learning more about our faith and supporting each other through prayer as we each navigate our way through life. Zoom has been a blessing through Covid, allowing us to all stay connected and continue meeting during ‘these challenging times!’

I spent the rest of the morning catching up on blog posts while Diane took care of some administrative stuff for the boat & our bills. Even though we’re retired, we still have bills to pay and a house/boat to manage. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and reading.

The constant rain did give us a chance to play a new game – ‘find from where that drip comes  and see if you can stop it’. I admit, it’s probably not a game that will be on many of you guys’ Christmas wish lists, but it did keep us occupied for a few minutes.  Fortunately, the majority of our hatches (over head windows) and ports (side windows) seal very well and don’t leak. We did have two of them that were allowing small drips to seep through. We found them, marked them, and will address the source of the leak once things dry out.

We finished off the day by making pizza and enjoying a glass or two of red wine with dinner.  Fortunately, the rain did finally stop and the forecast for the next several days was once again, sunny and dry.  Tomorrow we will continue south to Norfolk, head of the ICW. (Intracoastal waterway)

Tuesday 10 November

After a peaceful night anchored in Mill Creek we got underway just after sunrise. We wanted to get an early start so that we would have time to cross the Potomac River at the very least or hopefully make it further south just to above the mouth of the Rappahannock River by the early afternoon. We wanted to be anchored before 4 pm so that we still have plenty of daylight left while we finally installed the enclosure.  The forecast for Wednesday and Thursday was calling for two rainy days with expected rain fall between 2 to 4 inches over those two days.  Wherever we anchored on Tuesday evening it was a good possibility we’d be staying there for two days.

Once again we were blessed with beautiful weather – clear skies, temperatures in the mid-70’s, but not wind. Yep, great weather to be on the water, but without any wind we’d be ‘sailing with the iron genny’ (iron genny is a sailor’s affectionate term for the boat’s motor).

We reached the Potomac just a little before 11am and decided we were making good enough time to easily reach the Rappahannock, anchor, install the enclosure, and make a few other preparations for the rain before the sunset. So we ‘sailed’ onwards.

Heading south down the Bay, the Great Wicomico River is the next river you reach after the Potomac. It does have several good anchorages, one at Mill Creek (yes, it’s a popular name and you’ll find a Mill Creek off many rivers along the Bay) where we stayed on our first trip North. Since we are trying to explore new places this trip we didn’t want to anchor here again.

The other option on the Wicomico is Reedville, Va. Reedville is the home of the Chesapeake’s only Atlantic Menhaden fishing fleet and processing plant. The local fleet catches juvenile Menhaden fish in the Bay and then cooks and processes them at the plant in Reedville. Humans don’t actually eat the fish itself but we do consume the product that is produced here. The plant cooks the fish and then extracts the fatty Omega-3 acid which is used in Fish Oil food supplements. After oil extraction, the processed remains are used for pet food and or fertilizer.

Given the pungent aroma that the plant can sometimes expel and the fact that because of the impending bad weather we might potentially be spending two days wherever we anchor, we decided Reedville wasn’t an option either.

The next options for good anchorages were just north of the mouth of the Rappahannock in Fleets Bay. Our cruising guides listed several good options – Indian Creek, Dymer Creek and Tabbs Creek to highlight a few.  However, we couldn’t pass up staying in a place called Antiposion Creek. With a name like that, we just had to check it out.

Legend has it that this is the creek where Native Americans provided Captain John Smith with a poultice that counteracted venom from the sting ray’s dart after he had been stung on the wrist by one.

We didn’t see any sting rays on our way up the creek but did manage to find a great spot to drop the hook and settle in for a day or two. We ended up getting in with just enough daylight to get the enclosure installed and to haul & secure the dinghy.  We had been towing the dinghy behind us on this part of the trip so we could take it to shore without having to raise or lower it from it’s normal stowage spot hung from the davits on the stern.  But with several inches of rain expected over the next couple of days, we needed to raise the dinghy out of the water, pull the drain plug, and position it so that rain water would simply run out to the dinghy rather than fill it up like a bath tub. After another great day on the water and with our enclosure securely in place, we settled in for the evening and waited for the rain to come in the morning.

Monday November 9^th

As we mentioned in previous posts, we’re planning to travel at a much more leisurely pace this time south, so we decided we’d spend this first Monday of our trip exploring the town and resume the trip south tomorrow.

In the 1970’s my parents kept a boat in Solomon’s at Zanhiser’s Marina and we spent many a Spring and Fall weekend sailing the waters of the Patuxent River and this part of the Bay. In the summer, we’d typically spend several weeks sailing south to Norfolk to visit an aunt and uncle, or head east and explore Tangier and Smith Islands. My parents eventually sold that boat as we were all entering middle school and/or high school as our school activities began to pick up. In the mid-1980’s my parents bought another boat and kept her here in Solomons until the late 1990’s. So, Solomon’s Island holds a special place in our family history. It was going to be fun to explore the area again.

Solomons was founded in the 1600’s and was originally called Bourne’s Island. It changed names again to Somerville’s Island in 1740 and finally became known as Solomon’s  Island in 1867 when a waterman, Isaac Solomon opened an Oyster packing facility.

During the War of 1812, British invaders plundered & burned towns & plantations along this part of the Bay and the Patuxent River. They blockaded the river’s mouth trapping Commodore Joshua Barne’s and the Chesapeake Flotilla. The Commodore escaped 4 miles upriver, seeking refuge in St. Leonard’s Creek. I found this point interesting as St. Leonard’s was one of the creeks we would often visit during our weekend sails years ago. Perhaps my parents were seeking refuge there as well!

To get to St. Leonard’s Creek one has to navigate Point Patience. The point is a long sandy neck that extends out into the river and because of the strong tides and winds in the area, it proved to be a formidable obstacle to mariners wanting to head upstream. Captains would stay in the stream and wait until conditions were favorable for them to proceed upriver, hence the name.

Although we are travelling at a slower pace this trip, we didn’t have the ‘patience’ to spend another day or two in Solomons to revisit St. Leonard’s. Instead we were going to head into town, explore, and hope to find some good ice cream.

On our way into town we walked passed Lore’s Oyster Packing Plant. Today it’s not operational but is a part of the Calvert Museum. When we first came to Solomons in the 70’s my parents would stop here at the end of a weekend and pick up a few dozen fresh or canned oysters to take home for oyster stew or fried oysters. Another of our old stopping points, The Pier Restaurant, was still operational.  Probably not surprising to you all, but disappointing to me, all of the ice cream shops/stands we saw were closed for the season.  I guess that’s to be expected since it is November after all! We ended up having to ‘settle’ for a Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream sandwich from the marina store later in the day.

After several hours of walking around town, we made our way back to the boat and motored over to the fuel dock to top off our tank and to get that ice cream sandwich. We then motored around the corner to Mill Creek to anchor for the evening.  Mill Creek is positioned just inside the mouth of the Patuxent River and would position us for an early start on Tuesday.

After dinner we did some star gazing from the cockpit as we still have not installed the enclosure for the season. The weather has been so nice during the past few days that we haven’t felt the need for the additional protection from the wind and rain that the enclosure provides.

November 7^th & 8^th

We spent our first evening anchored in Bodkin Creek just off the mouth of The Patapsco River. During the summer Bodkin Creek would be a beehive of activity with lots of jet skis, water skiers, and others out enjoying the water for a few hours during a weekend. This time of year, that was not the case.  We had the anchorage to ourselves and enjoyed a quiet evening relaxing and talking about places we want to visit on the trip south.

Saturday morning the water in the anchorage was flat, the wind was calm, and the forecast called for temperatures in the low to mid 70’s.  A beautiful day to be on the water, but with no breeze we would need to motor rather than sail to our next destination.  Although we would rather sail, we were excited to be able to motor under the Bay Bridge and head across the Bay to Kent Island where we would meet up with some friends.  During the past several years we had attempted to meet up with these friends several times when we were in the Annapolis area, but schedules never aligned, and the visit never materialized. That was not the case during this trip and we were able to spend the afternoon catching up.

We motored over to Kent Island and anchored in another small creek, Shipping Creek, just off the Eastern Bay.  Since we were anchored and not tied up to a dock in a marina, in order to meet up they were either going to have to swim out to us, or we were going to have to use the dinghy and drive to shore to meet them.  Fortunately we had the dinghy ready to go, so once we were confident the boat was securely anchored we launched the dinghy and headed to shore. They took us for a quick tour of the island and we enjoyed a nice lunch at a restaurant on the water.  After visiting their home we came back to the boat for a quick tour and some more catching up.

With the sun setting, we got back in the dinghy and ferried them back to shore.  It was great way to spend the first full day of our trip.

The weather Sunday morning was the same as Saturday morning – flat seas, no breeze, and warm air. Again, great weather to be outside, but a sailboat does need wind in it’s sails if its going to sail! So once again, we turned on the motor and headed south. While motoring out of Shipping Creek and into Eastern Bay we still had good enough cell service to watch and attend our church service online. The move to providing online worship services as a result of Covid has been a blessing for Diane and I while we travel. It has enabled us to stay connected with our church family even though we are traveling.

We motored most of the day and made our way down to Solomons Island, Md on the Patuxent River. Solomons Island and the Patuxent River is where I spent many weekends and summer days as a youngster sailing on my parent’s boats.  Diane and I sailed our other boat here for a year or so before moving it closer to home almost 20 years ago. Even though we hadn’t been back to this area in nearly 20 years the approach from the water was just as we remembered it.

We ended up anchoring in Back Creek just a few hundred yards from the marina my parents and sister sailed their boats out of.

November 6^th

It’s been almost a year since we posted anything on our travel blog so we definitely have some catching up to do, but we’ll save that for a later post. For now, we wanted to let you all know that we pulled in our dock lines at 230pm on Friday November 6^th and headed south. 

We anchored 3 hours later in Bodkin Creek at the mouth of the Patapsco River.  The Patapsco is the river that leads into Baltimore Harbor and is typically quite busy with commercial shipping traffic and not known for beautiful scenery.

Although it was a short and uneventful motorsail, the passage was significant to us. Untying those dock lines and getting underway meant that several months of boat projects and a hectic week or two of final boat prep and provisioning were behind us and we were finally beginning this trip.

As with most things having to do with 2020 our exact plans are still up in the air and we’re prepared to be extremely flexible and open to what lies ahead and simply let this winter and spring unfold. We would like to hopefully get at least down to Florida before Christmas and then depending on any Covid related travel restrictions we might head over to the Bahamas or stay in Florida and explore Keys and Gulf Coast.  Regardless, we’re looking forward to spending the next several months floating along, enjoying some warm weather, catching up with friends and hopefully making new ones along the way.

We will be travelling at a much slower pace this fall than our previous trips for several reasons. First of all, in previous trips we typically have had to be at a final destination at a specific time, thus dictating our schedule and pace. We don’t either a final destination, nor timeframe this trip.  Additionally, since we are leaving in November and the daylight hours will continue to get shorter for the next 6 or 7 weeks we have less traveling time each day.  On our other trips we typically had 12 to 14 hours of daylight so at our average speed of 5 knots we could cover 60 to 70 miles a day.  Now with only 8 to 9 hours of good daylight, our range is reduced to only 40 to 50 miles a day.  That will make for some early evenings! The other reason we’ll be travelling at a slower pace is that we want to take advantage of the time we have to explore the waterway and towns along the way while we can. 

We intend to keep the blog/travel journal updated as we go so that you can follow along with us and enjoy the trip south too. As always, we appreciate your prayers for our safe travels along the way!

By Pamela Brown, Vice-Commodore, Catalina 350 IA, S/V TIKI

This poem was originally published in the December 2019 issue of Southwinds magazine (www.southwindsmagazine.com) and we wanted to share it with you all.

 ‘Twas the night before Christmas when all through their boat

Not a leak was occurring; it was safely afloat…

Their bow lines were tied on the pilings with care

In the knowledge their boat would remain safely there!

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The Captain and first mate were snug as could be

Having just settled themselves from a long day at sea…

When up on the deck there arose such a clatter

They sprang from the V berth to see what was the matter!

.

Away to the companionway they flew with a dash

Climbed up the stairs and threw open the hatch…

The winter night sky and the enormous full moon

Shone on the marina as if it were noon!

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Their wandering eyes simply could not stop staring

As they saw a donned dinghy pulled by eight great blue herons!

With an old dinghy driver, what they saw gave no pause…

They knew in an instant it was Capt. Santa Claus!

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More rapid than seagulls his herons they came…

And he whistled and shouted and called them by name!

Now Skipper, now First Mate, now Anchor and Chain

On Starboard, on Port, on Genoa and Main!

.

To the top of the bimini, to the top of the top of the Yawl

Now fly away, fly away, fly away all!

As safe harbors that before a wild hurricane blows

When they meet with wind gusts that they take on the nose

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So up to the mast tops the herons they flew…

With a dinghy of new boat parts, and Capt. Claus, too!

And then in a twinkling they heard such a thing…

The flapping and flying of each heron’s wing!

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As they watched in amazement, it all happened so fast…

Capt. Claus was descending down a ketch’s tall mast!

He was dressed all in white, with some nautical trim…

And his crisp captain’s hat very much suited him!

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The bundle of boat parts was flung on his back,

And he looked like a mariner opening his pack!

His eyes – how they squinted, his brows were quite bushy…

His skin was quite tanned, and his middle quite mushy!

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His weather-chapped lips were dry and wind seared,

And there on his chin a full-grown sailor’s beard!

A sailor’s knot bow line in his hands he did cling…

And it circled himself like a bright orange life ring!

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He had salty features and a sailor’s keen eye…

That many a time through an eyeglass did spy…

He was crusty and wind-swept, a right craggy old tar;

And I knew his eight herons had taken him far!

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A wink of his eye and a muttered “heave ho” …

He was one old seadog, he gave me to know!

He spoke nothing else, but whirled like a propeller

And under the dodger left a brand-new impeller!

.

And jerking the sailor’s knot bowline quite fast…

Like magic he rose back up the tall mast!

He jumped in the dinghy, and the herons they knew…

So, they sprang from the boat and off they all flew!

.

And Capt. Claus said as the herons took flight

“Fair winds, following seas, and to all a good night!”

Dec 8th

After a peaceful night at anchorage we were greeted with a beautiful sunrise over the eastern shoreline of the Alligator river. Unlike a few days earlier, it was almost 60 degrees both inside and outside the boat in the morning so we took our time getting ready to depart and enjoyed the view.

Today’s itinerary has us transiting the 20 some mile long Alligator Pungo canal which should take us right around 3 to 4 hours. The canal is very straight and narrow and typically can have a fair amount of barge traffic on it. When we travelled through here last May we needed to pull to the side of the canal out of the channel to allow a large barge to pass us. (There wasn’t enough room for us both to be in the channel). This trip though we only encountered several small boats and one or two sailboats so there was plenty of room for all.

The canal runs from the head of the Alligator River to the Pungo River and ends just north of Bellhaven, NC. This is the same general area in NC that a group of us from our church came down to in June to help restore a few homes that had suffered flood damage back in the fall of 2018.  We debated on whether to stop, spend the afternoon walking around town and overnight here.  However, that would make a very short day on the water and leave us with either a very long day on Monday, or put us on track to only travel 30 to 35 miles a day the rest of the trip.

Since the weather was nice today and the forecast was for rain early Monday, we decided to keep heading south to take advantage of the beautiful weather.

We traveled south for several more hours and anchored early in the afternoon in a very quiet anchorage off Goose Creek.  Although we did spend time looking, we didn’t see any geese flying or swimming around.  Our anchorage was close to mile 153 on the ICW so we ended up traveling right about 50 miles today.

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Monday Dec 9^th

Since we are approaching the winter solstice the sun is continuing to rise just a little later each morning and set a little earlier each evening giving us less and less daylight each day to safely travel down the waterway. This makes accurately planning out our destinations more critical and it feels like we have fewer choices on where to stop. With the daylight we had in the spring we could travel close to 70 miles a day (10 to 12 hours) compared with the 50 miles a day (8 to 9 hours) that we have right now.

It was a little over 110 miles to our final destination of Harbour Village Marina in Hamstead, NC which was mathematically possible to travel that distance in 2 days. However, there aren’t any good anchorages or marinas close to the half-way point so we were going to need to split this last leg into 3 days.  The Beaufort and Moorehead City area was 50 miles south at mile 202 and our anchorage for Tuesday evening would be Mile Hammock Bay at the south end of Camp LeJeune Marine Corps Base at mile 244. After Mile Hammock Bay there aren’t any good anchorages or suitable marinas for another 15 to 20 miles, hence we’ll stay there on Tuesday and then travel the last 25 miles to Harbour Village on Wednesday.

We had a very pleasant trip down to Beaufort and ended up getting a slip right downtown along Front Street, the heart of the shopping and restaurant district.  We tied up to our slip shortly around 330, checked in with the Harbor Master and paid for our stay.  Along with access to showers, free Wifi, and a few discount coupons for some of the nearby shops, the Harbor Master gave us two wooden nickels that were redeemable at a local restaurant for a free drink.

We walked around town, visited several of the shops, and took advantage of being on land to stretch our legs until we ran out of sunlight. As one would probably expect, the town was quiet on a Monday evening in early December. It wasn’t hard to imagine though how this quiet little town and downtown area could quickly become very busy and full of tourist during the spring, summer and early fall.  We definitely plan on stopping here again.

Once we returned to our dock, we took our wooden nickels and headed to the restaurant for our free drink.  As we walked into the restaurant, we noticed a sign advertising the happy hour specials for the week. Monday’s special was $1 meatballs. We figured we’d enjoy our free drink, have a meatball or two and then head back to the boat to cook dinner.  Well the $1 Meatballs ended up being $1 Meatball SUBS so the cook and galleymate wouldn’t be cooking tonight! We cashed in the wooden nickels for a free glass of wine, splurged and ordered 2 meatball subs each and enjoyed dinner, drink, and tip for under $10!

Dec 10^th

On Tuesday morning the ‘slack’ tide would occur a little after 7 am so our goal was to be underway as close to that time as was reasonable.  Slack tide is the time period between a high or low tide when the current slowly begins to change direction and speed and has minimal impact on the boat as we maneuver away from the dock. 

The currents through the channel where we were docked can be fairly strong so we did want to time our departure with a slack tide if at all possible. As I mentioned, slack tide was around 7 am, so that aligned perfectly for an early morning departure.

We finished breakfast, untied our lines, and got underway without incident and entered the channel. Love it when a plan comes together!

We weren’t the only ones taking advantage of the slack tide.

 The inlet at Beaufort and Moorehead City is large and is one of the primary access points to the Atlantic Ocean along the east coast.  It is the first major inlet south of Cape Hatteras so many south bound boaters choose to travel down the ICW from Norfolk to Beaufort rather than stay in the ocean and have to round Cape Hatteras. Conversely, north bound boaters may sail offshore directly from the Bahamas or Bermuda and then enter the ICW in Beaufort to continue their journey north and again, avoid Cape Hatteras.  Moorehead City is also fairly busy commercial seaport for large ships.

As we rounded the island at the end of the small channel for the town docks and prepared to turn into the main channel, we were met by a large shrimp boat and an even larger container ship traveling out to sea.  The shrimper was moving out of the main channel to give the container ship a clear path to sea, and we maneuvered away from the shrimper so he could move away from the container ship. Fortunately, there was only one container ship in the channel and he was moving pretty fast so we didn’t have to wait long before be could resume our journey south.

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The sun was out most of the day and the temperatures finally reached the low 60’s.  We rolled up the windows in the enclosure and enjoyed the nice breeze and sunshine. We traveled through Bogue’s sound, passed by Swansboro and continued south.

We planned to anchor in Mile Hammock Bay at mile 244 at the southern end of Camp LeJeune Marine Corps Base. We’ve anchored there before and knew it provided decent projection from the wind in most directions and offered good holding for the anchor.  Just after Mile Hammock Bay is the New River Inlet at the northern end of North Topsail Island. 

Although the New River Inlet does provide access from the ICW to the Atlantic it is really only used by small boats and jet skis with powerful engines that allow them to power through the approaching surf and swells.  It would not be safe for a sailboat to use this inlet to enter or leave the ocean. Additionally, the inlet is subject to continual shoaling as the ocean currents either deposit into, or remove, sand from the bottom so the actual channel used to safely cross is constantly changing.  Fortunately, the Coast Guard and Army Core of Engineers survey the channel regularly and will reposition the channel markers so you know how to cross. Unfortunately, the position of the markers on the paper and electronic charts we use to navigate can often lag these physical changes so it is not an inlet we want to cross at night or in low visibility. Hence, we’re stopping at Mile Hammock Bay in the evening and leaving the New River Inlet for Wednesday morning!

We reached our anchorage late in the afternoon and treated ourselves to ice cream treats we had in our new freezer. We were treated to another beautiful sunset.

Dec 11^th

Unlike yesterday morning when we were shooting for an early departure, the forecast for Wednesday was calling for rain and overcast skies in the early morning until around 9 or 10 am. So, we went to bed on Tuesday planning on waiting for the rain and skies to clear before we got underway.

When we woke in the morning it wasn’t raining and the Weather Channel radar didn’t show any rain in the area.  The skies were grey and the wind was blowing around 20 mph, but there wasn’t any rain that was going to effect our visibility crossing the inlet.  High tide for the morning had been at 7 am and low tide was later in the day at 1 pm.  The longer we waited to cross the inlet, the shallower it would be until the tide began to rise again after 1pm.  So as soon as I was sure we wouldn’t be crossing with rain in our face I was ready to leave even if it was windy.

We ended up getting underway a little after 9 am and the wind gusted to close to 30 mph as we crossed the inlet.  Again, thank goodness for our enclosure!  

Despite the wind and grey skies, we did make it across without any incident. About an hour later, close to our originally planned departure time of 10 am, the winds died down and the skies cleared to a nice bright blue as if to remind me that it can pay off to be patient!

We only had just over 20 miles to travel from Mile Hammock to Hamstead, NC where we had arranged to dock EOS over the holidays and into the first part of the year. The miles flew by quickly and we ended up reaching the marina shortly after 12:30.

We tied EOS up into her new slip and enjoyed a quiet afternoon. We celebrated our arrival later that evening with a homemade pizza and glass of champagne.

Tomorrow we would clean the boat, grab a rental car, and head to North Topsail Island to check out my parent’s beach house.

Dec 12^th

We cleaned and packed up the boat, took an Uber to pick up our rental car, loaded up the car and headed to the beach.

It was a great trip south. We enjoyed our time being back on the water and successfully moved EOS south. We plan on coming back down later in January splitting time between the boat and the beach house as we still have work to do on the house. Once we finish unpacking the remaining boxes, hanging pictures, etc, we hope to be able to continue further south later this winter.

As always, thanks for your prayers and for following along.

And if we don’t talk to you in person before then, we hope you and your families have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.

Dec 6^th &  7^th

We woke early on the 6^th to an outside temperature of 28F. It wasn’t nearly that cold inside the cabin, but we were definitely thankful that we had warm sleeping bags and sweats to keep us toasty throughout the night. Our plan was get underway around 8am so we would have a nice leisurely day down to Coinjock, NC where we would stop, get a slip, and enjoy a nice prime rib for my birthday dinner.

After a birthday breakfast of bacon, eggs, and English muffins, we left the cabin and went up on deck with every intension to get underway.  As we stepped up on deck we realized we wouldn’t be getting underway anytime soon.

Earlier we mentioned that one of the recent upgrades we made to EOS was new canvas and a full cockpit enclosure.  The canvas which covers the entrance to the cabin, the cockpit, and the helm station was in ok shape but the old plastic windows were hazy, scratched and getting hard to see out of.  We did try to polish the haze and scratches out with a product we found online that was ‘guaranteed’ to be able to restore your old windows to look like new.  We removed the front canvas and window covering, called a dodger, took it home, and spent several hours applying the three step miracle process only to be out about $40 and still had scratched and hazed windows!

So we began the process earlier in the summer to contact canvas fabricators and discuss our options for replacing the windows. One of the contractors we met with was Top Stitch Marine canvas, a local fabricator just a few miles from our marina.  Zack and Josh recently purchased the business from the previous owner and were enthusiastic to work with us on our project.  In addition to replacing the front windows, we were interested in adding side panels to the rest of the canvas so that we could have a fully enclosed cockpit providing extra protection and extending our cruising season.  My sister and brother-in-law had done the same upgrade to their boat before heading south back in the early 2000’s and continued to say the enclosure was the best investment they made for their boat. We ultimately ended up patterning our enclosure off photos we found online of their old boat!

As previously mentioned, Zach and Josh did a great job on the enclosure and we have thoroughly enjoyed the protection and extra warmth it has provided on this trip south. Too bad boat enclosures don’t have electric defrosters as we could have certainly used one! When we stepped outside into the cabin we realized we wouldn’t be getting underway any time soon as the entire enclosure was covered in frost.  Fortunately, it was a sunny morning and the sunshine ended up defrosting the windows a little after nine.

We did take advantage of the short delay to walk around the park by the town docks, walk over to a nearby marina and pick up a few items we needed, and enjoy a second cup of coffee. We ended up getting underway shortly after nine.

The trip south was pleasant.  It is always fun to travel through the Norfolk / Virginia Beach area.  Between the ships ready for sea at the Naval base, all ones undergoing refits in all the shipyards lining the Elizabeth River & Portsmouth, and the fighter jets flying from Naval Air Station Oceana, there is always something to see and constant reminders of those serving to protect our freedom.  There were several fighter jets flying overhead throughout the trip south, and while they are difficult to see at times, you can definitely hear ‘the sound of freedom’ as they soar overhead.

As we made our way south, we reached out to our friends from Harley-Davidson that live on the Albemarle Sound and invited them to join us for dinner at the marina. They are a few years ahead of us on this retirement journey and besides being fellow boaters, they have traveled all over the world. We enjoy hearing about their travels and love to pick their brains about some of the places they’ve been that we might want to add to our future travel plans. 

Despite the short notice of our invitation, they were able to join us for dinner.  Diane and I both wanted the prime rib for dinner.  Neither of us ordered the 32 oz Captain’s cut, opting for the still huge 16 oz First Mate’s cut.  We probably could have ordered only one, as we each ended up only eating about half the portion and saving the rest.  (Steak sandwiches for lunch are now on the menu for later this week!).

As part of my birthday celebration, we ended up paying the extra ten dollars the marina charges for electrical service and plugged our electric heater in for the evening. When we woke the next morning the cabin was a toasty 62F!

Saturday December 8^th

The cabin was toasty and it wasn’t nearly as cold outside and we didn’t have any frost on the enclosure.  It was very breezy though. The forecast for the day was winds 15 to 20 mph, with gusts up to 30 mph. Fortunately the winds were coming from the north which meant they would be behind us if we decided to get underway and make the 14 mile crossing across the Albemarle Sound.

Although it’s not an extremely large body of water like crossing an ocean, it’s consistently uniform shallow depths of around 12 – 16 feet allow short choppy waves to develop in even moderate winds. So depending on the direction of the wind and waves relative to the direction you need to travel, crossing the sound can be an unpleasant experience. 

The combination of winds from the north and protection from our full enclosure had us leaning to making the crossing on Saturday rather than staying tied up for another day.

While being in a marina does allow us to enjoy extra comforts like plugging in our heater at night, it also means you have to maneuver out of a slip, or off the dock, to get underway.  Rather than many individual slips for each boat to tie up to, the marina at Coinjock is actually just a very long sea wall and board walk that boats tied up to.  When you approach in the evening, you call the marina on the radio or by phone and they tell you where on the pier they want you to tie up. The staff then meets you on the pier, takes your docks lines and helps move you into position by pulling your dock lines since you are essentially ‘parallel parking’ your boat along the wall. 

Since boats of all sizes from small 20 footers to large cruisers/powerboats of 60’ tie up to the dock there are no specific parking spaces. The staff generally has you pull directly in front of the last boat on the wall and pulls you into final position leaving only a few feet between the stern (back) of your boat and the bow (front) of the boat behind you.  That’s a great plan for the marina, allowing them to park as many boats as possible along the wall.  Unfortunately, it can make getting underway in the morning very tricky.

Generally speaking, the boats tend to leave in reverse order that they came in the evening before. Meaning the boat that pulled in later in the afternoon than we did and was parked ahead of us would leave first, thus giving us a clear path off the dock. Sometimes though people have different plans/timing for departure and there’s not as much room around you as you would like to make a safe departure.

As I mentioned the forecast was for it to be a very breezy day and a potentially choppy crossing. Most of the south bound boats were in fact going to leave, but several were electing to wait another day for a possibly calmer passage.

Last spring in Charleston we had ‘an incident’ leaving the dock in tight quarters and strong current and knew not to underestimate the challenge of safely leaving the dock.  While we were waiting for the boat in front of us to depart, we assisted the marina staff in handling lines for one or two boats that were looking to depart sooner than we were.  Besides helping these other boats leave the dock, it also gave us additional time to see the effect the wind and current had on the boats as they maneuvered off the dock.

The recommended departure plan was to initially have three lines holding the boat to the dock, a bow line up front, a spring line at midships (middle) and a stern line at the back. Once the engine was started and the boat was ready to leave, they would release the bow line first, and then gradually release the stern line, with the midships line holding the boat against the wall. As the stern line was gradually released, the combined effect of the wind and current (both moving from the back of the boat to the front) would begin to push the stern away from the dock out towards the channel as the boat pivoted slightly on the midships line. As the stern moved further out into the channel, the plan was to slowly put the boat into reverse, thus backing into the wind, current, and channel.  Backing too quickly, or going forward would not allow the wind and current to move the boat into the channel, and in fact would probably cause you to contact the dock or possibly a boat in front of you.

The first boat captained followed the staff’s recommendation exactly, was patient in applying power to his engine, and backed out into the channel perfectly.  The second captained seemed to go into reverse either too soon or applied too much power before getting into the channel and actually started getting pushed towards the boat in front of him.  Although he managed not to contact the boat in front of him, he did end up hitting the stern of his boat into the dock very hard. Hard enough to put a pretty nasty gash in his transom (back of the boat).

When we finally got ready to leave there were no boats in front of us, but a nice big catamaran directly behind us. Wanting to make sure we had plenty of room to maneuver, I had the marina staff help pull us down a few more feet from the boat behind us. We then followed the same plan for releasing the bow, then stern, and finally the midships line and allowed the wind and current to move us off the dock without incident!  We learned last year not to be in a hurry.

The wind did blow 15 to 20 mph most of the day as we crossed the sound, but since it was on our stern, the ride across was not rough.  Again, the enclosure provided plenty of protection from the wind. The 14 miles crossing was enjoyable.

We were travelling between 6 to 6.5 knots most of the day covering 5 miles in right around 45 minutes.  Once we crossed the Sound we entered the Alligator River and had to continue south another 4 to 5 miles to the Alligator River Swing bridge at mile 84.5.  If the winds are over 30 mph then bridge tender may or may not open the bridge. Above 35 mph, they definitely don’t open.  Fortunately for us the winds didn’t get much over 25 mph, so at 230pm we went through the bridge.

The river faces almost due south for another 12 to 15 miles before turning due west at mile 100. The shoreline is pretty straight and there aren’t many protected spots to anchor between the bridge and the turn, especially if the winds are blowing from either the south or the north, so we wanted to anchor after turning west. The chart showed several potentially good spots at mile 101, 102, and 104. So we had just under 20 more miles to go. Taking 45 minutes to cover 5 miles meant we it would take us almost 3 more hours to reach the most protected anchorage at mile 104.

Traveling the 20 miles in 3 hours wasn’t a concern. We’d reach the anchorage around 530 pm. Having daylight left while we anchored was going to be a challenge since sunset was right around 450 pm.  Since we had traveled through this area twice already, once last February and again in May, we were generally familiar with the area and felt confident in anchoring as long as there was some light.

We ended up reaching the anchorage shortly after 5 pm and enjoyed a beautiful sunset, homemade pizza and a glass of wine for dinner. A great ending to another good day.

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