SHIP'S LOG:
Moved the boat 700 yards to the Tidewater Marina. Had wanted to meet with some friends who live in Glenn Allen, VA and everything was planned but circumstances arose which prevented us from make a meet. I am glad that I was able to see them on the way down and am saddened that we couldn't hook up this time. But I got a shower out of the deal and didn't have to ride out an rather nasty thunderstorm at anchor. All in all, a good deal.
MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:
I have meet some rather wonderful people on the trip up & down "the Ditch" and there is simply not enough time to write about them all.
It was great to see my dear friend Gerry again. It was also great to finally meet his wife Lucille. They are obviously very happy and that was a real joy for me. Gerry always had time for me as well as lots of words of encouragement and always seem to have an answer for any little "nautical" problem that raised its ugly head. The depth of the man's knowledge and experience and common sense is really remarkable. A true great guy and I hope he and Lucille can make it north some time in the future.
And there was Guy McSweeney, a man I had never met before who basically was as warm and open and giving as if he had been a friend of years rather than of days. I met the man only four(4) times and yet it is as if I have know him for years. The welcome he gave to me and the graciousness he showed were remarkable. And his buddy David Dixon was much like him. Dave couldn't do enough for me and like Guy I had never met him before either. If I had asked him to rewire the boat I have no doubt that he would have and would have done so with pleasure and without cost.
Bob & Chris at the Cocoa Village Marina at Christmas time made what could have been a lonely time into a real family time. They gifted me with friendship and companionship, as well as with a couple of bottles of wine and a free couple of nights.
And there was Mike Tolover who rowed up to my boat in Daytona as I dropped anchor and asked if he could take me to the market or any place I needed to go. And Brad Smith, the "boat-builder" at Fort Pierce, who never went by without asking if there was anything he could get for me and who really enjoyed discussing everything as we worked on his boat.
When I begin reflecting on all these people and all of the others the point that comes across so clearly is that they were the most open and generous and friendly people I have ever come across. I was constantly amazed at there generosity as they would so easily give of what they had to help me in my need and were so happy and appreciative of even the smallest bit of assistance that I could provide for them.
I loved all the stories that they told, of hearing of "their adventures" and their travels, and sitting around "gaming"- as sailors call it - was a wonderful way to spend an evening. You would show up at anchorage or a marina and you had an instant community of people, always family, and I hated when it broke up and people went their separate ways, but it always reformed in another spot with different people(sometimes some of the dsame) and it was every bit as much a community, a family. It has been a very unique experience, one that I have not experience in quite the same way anywhere before. And I will miss it greatly if it does not happen again.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Reflections - I
SHIP'S LOG:
Unmoved in Norfolk at Hospital Point.
MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:
Unmoved in Norfolk at Hospital Point.
MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:
I had a whole day to sit and reflect on my trip up & down the Intracoastal Waterway from Hospital Point to Miami and back to Hospital Point. It is 1,089 statute miles one way for a total of 2,178 miles not counting all the mileage for the little side trips here and there, nor the stretch from New London to Hospital Point and back. It is actually a lot of miles and I can remember just about everyone of them, including several that I would like to forget. As I sit here, waiting for the rain NOAA "promised" would be falling all day to day (nary a drop!) it is a bit difficult to grasp that I have done it and though I have to complete the trip by getting back home "unsunk," I have amazed myself with what I have done so far. What I have left to do doesn't really bother me at all except for the fact that it is still about 300+ miles left with the outside stretch up the coast of New Jersey yet to come. That will probably be the most challenging part left to do but it surely doesn't worry me the way it did on the way down. The Delaware Bay too can be a nasty piece of water and it has been bad both times I have traveled on it. I don't expect this time to be any different but it won't be anymore trouble than what i have already experienced and i can always drop a hook and crack a good book. I talked with Fred last night and he said, "You sound like an ol' salt. Talking about the trip and what remains , it just comes out nice and easy. No more white-knuckle sailor." I suppose he is right, If anything untoward should happen, i would probably be more "pissed-off" than scared and so if it's weather-wait it out; if it's mechanical - fix it; if I go aground - call Towboat/US(they're probably feeling lonely); and if the boat sinks, - Call the Coast Guard. Other than that, lay out the course each day and sail it with the experience I have gain, and really let God take care of everything else.
The people I have met for the most part have been great. And I think I will save them for tomorrow's blogg. I need more reflecting.
The people I have met for the most part have been great. And I think I will save them for tomorrow's blogg. I need more reflecting.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Out Of The "Ditch"!
SHIP'S LOG:
Hospital Point:36'50.781N/ 076'18.090W
At 12:32pm, I passed Intracoastal Waterway Mile Marker "O" and official (and geographically) let the ICW. I anchored off of Hospital Point right across the Elizabeth River from the Battleship "WISCONSIN" and spent the afternoon savoring a wonderful achievement.
My last day in the "Ditch" was hot(80's) and humid and there was very little wind and I went through the last 6 bridges I expect to go through for a long time. By the way, the award for the "Nastiest Bridge Tender" goes to the "lady" who tends the Steel(Dominion) Bascule Bridge. There was a two knot current running toward the bridge and there were five of us(1 power/3sail) waiting of it to open. It made maneuvering a bit trickey as we kept getting swept toward the bridge adn had to keep backing off while the "lady" bridge tender kept telling us to keep close if we "want to go through in this opening." Less you think that it was just anxiousness on my part, she was as nasty to people when I passed through back in October.
Hanging on the "wall" with me last night was a guy from Maryland traveling all by himself. While I try to atleast have a plan for the follwing day, he really wings it and just goes. A really free spirit but not that well grounded in reality as he didn't even remember that there weas a lock a Great Bridge. "I don't remember it from when I came down last fall!"
This section of the ICW is all industrial and Naval. It is certainly unlike the stretches I have been on where there was nothing but beautiful vistas all around you for days. Then again, the original intent of the ICW was for use by commercial traffic. Speaking of which, I saw two tugs hauling tows that were easily almost 1/4 of a mile long if not more. I can not for the life of me figure out how they can work those things around some of the twists and turns I've been through just in the past few days.
I'll be hold up here in Norfolk for at least tomorrow and possibly Wednesday as NOAA says there is a chance of rain( and they gave a percentage 50% and we all know what that means.) Where i go from here is the question. I might make a 30 mile detour up the York River to see some friends. I also want to cruise the east side of the Chesapeake which I missed on the way down. I am also hoping to meet with friends in Annapolis but haven't heard from them. The Chesapeake itself is a three day sail up and the Delaware is a two day motor down to Cape May. From there it is one day to Atlantic City. One day to Manesquan. One day to Sandy Hook. Then a timing run with the tide through NYC to Little Bay off Throggs Neck. Then a day to Milford so I can give Bob the bucket he had his head in most of the way down last October. The two more days to TYC in New London.It will be an interesting couple of weeks ahead. Hopefully the weather will continue to cooperate. Hear that NOAA!
Hospital Point:36'50.781N/ 076'18.090W
At 12:32pm, I passed Intracoastal Waterway Mile Marker "O" and official (and geographically) let the ICW. I anchored off of Hospital Point right across the Elizabeth River from the Battleship "WISCONSIN" and spent the afternoon savoring a wonderful achievement.
My last day in the "Ditch" was hot(80's) and humid and there was very little wind and I went through the last 6 bridges I expect to go through for a long time. By the way, the award for the "Nastiest Bridge Tender" goes to the "lady" who tends the Steel(Dominion) Bascule Bridge. There was a two knot current running toward the bridge and there were five of us(1 power/3sail) waiting of it to open. It made maneuvering a bit trickey as we kept getting swept toward the bridge adn had to keep backing off while the "lady" bridge tender kept telling us to keep close if we "want to go through in this opening." Less you think that it was just anxiousness on my part, she was as nasty to people when I passed through back in October.
Hanging on the "wall" with me last night was a guy from Maryland traveling all by himself. While I try to atleast have a plan for the follwing day, he really wings it and just goes. A really free spirit but not that well grounded in reality as he didn't even remember that there weas a lock a Great Bridge. "I don't remember it from when I came down last fall!"
This section of the ICW is all industrial and Naval. It is certainly unlike the stretches I have been on where there was nothing but beautiful vistas all around you for days. Then again, the original intent of the ICW was for use by commercial traffic. Speaking of which, I saw two tugs hauling tows that were easily almost 1/4 of a mile long if not more. I can not for the life of me figure out how they can work those things around some of the twists and turns I've been through just in the past few days.
I'll be hold up here in Norfolk for at least tomorrow and possibly Wednesday as NOAA says there is a chance of rain( and they gave a percentage 50% and we all know what that means.) Where i go from here is the question. I might make a 30 mile detour up the York River to see some friends. I also want to cruise the east side of the Chesapeake which I missed on the way down. I am also hoping to meet with friends in Annapolis but haven't heard from them. The Chesapeake itself is a three day sail up and the Delaware is a two day motor down to Cape May. From there it is one day to Atlantic City. One day to Manesquan. One day to Sandy Hook. Then a timing run with the tide through NYC to Little Bay off Throggs Neck. Then a day to Milford so I can give Bob the bucket he had his head in most of the way down last October. The two more days to TYC in New London.It will be an interesting couple of weeks ahead. Hopefully the weather will continue to cooperate. Hear that NOAA!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Not The Longest Jaunt Of The Journey!
SHIP'S LOG:
I didn't move all that far today, just to the other side of the bridge at Great Bridge(0.5 miles) where the free dock is legal and open for business. I went through about 9am with 9 powerboats. The hung up between the bridge and the lock gate and I found myself on the wrong side of the channel. I had to carefully maneuver through them to get the the proper side and lash myself to the pilings. There is actually no "dock"just about 200 feet of pilings in front of a metal retaining wall. But it is a good spot, however it only has a 24 hour mooring rule in effect. Depending on the weather I will either move the ABISHAG off, go through the lock, lock through, turn around and come back for another day, or simply make the 10 mile journey to Mile Marker "O" at Hospital Point in Newport News and anchor there. If the weather is to be crappy, I'll do the ICW shuffle and end up right back here. If the weather for the next few days is OK, I'll head to Hospital Point.
Not much traffic passed by today and what there was was mostly powerboats. It was hot and humid and the storms predicted by you know who for the morning didn't materialize. Though they are getting better, the storm showed up in the afternoon. At helacious downpour that was over in 10 minutes and then the heat and humidity returned.
A couple of boats joined me on the wall and we all got together to shot the breeze - where are you from?; where are you going?; how was your trip, etc. etc. etc. It is always a fun way to spend some time and everyone played can you top this! Men talked about storms and dragging anchors and the like, the women about the more pleasant aspects of cruising.
Along this stretch of the waterway, most of the marks have big osprey nests built on them. Ospreys are very territorial and make a heck of terrible racket when you get to close, which is another reason to stay in the middle of the channel.
One of the local fellas was crabbing along the wall and offered me a dozen or so blue shell crabs. I had to turn him down as crabs and I don't get along well at all.
When I anchor at Hospital Point, I will be officially out of "The Ditch." For the first time in a long time, I will be able to sail and I will no longer have a channel in which I have to stay. Not surprisingly, it causes a bit of unease. I will no longer have the luxury of Mile Markers and closely spaced buoys. Then again, it will be good practice for the trip down the Delaware Bay and up the Jersey Coast. I am hoping that the Chesapeake will show her calmer side, certainly a better weather side than when I came down during October. I have alt least one more stop to make(in Annapolis) perhaps two but that should be it. I may not make it back by Memorial Day Weekend but certainly shortly thereafter. It is all up to the weather. Of course, the thought of depending on NOAA . . . . . . .
I didn't move all that far today, just to the other side of the bridge at Great Bridge(0.5 miles) where the free dock is legal and open for business. I went through about 9am with 9 powerboats. The hung up between the bridge and the lock gate and I found myself on the wrong side of the channel. I had to carefully maneuver through them to get the the proper side and lash myself to the pilings. There is actually no "dock"just about 200 feet of pilings in front of a metal retaining wall. But it is a good spot, however it only has a 24 hour mooring rule in effect. Depending on the weather I will either move the ABISHAG off, go through the lock, lock through, turn around and come back for another day, or simply make the 10 mile journey to Mile Marker "O" at Hospital Point in Newport News and anchor there. If the weather is to be crappy, I'll do the ICW shuffle and end up right back here. If the weather for the next few days is OK, I'll head to Hospital Point.
Not much traffic passed by today and what there was was mostly powerboats. It was hot and humid and the storms predicted by you know who for the morning didn't materialize. Though they are getting better, the storm showed up in the afternoon. At helacious downpour that was over in 10 minutes and then the heat and humidity returned.
A couple of boats joined me on the wall and we all got together to shot the breeze - where are you from?; where are you going?; how was your trip, etc. etc. etc. It is always a fun way to spend some time and everyone played can you top this! Men talked about storms and dragging anchors and the like, the women about the more pleasant aspects of cruising.
Along this stretch of the waterway, most of the marks have big osprey nests built on them. Ospreys are very territorial and make a heck of terrible racket when you get to close, which is another reason to stay in the middle of the channel.
One of the local fellas was crabbing along the wall and offered me a dozen or so blue shell crabs. I had to turn him down as crabs and I don't get along well at all.
When I anchor at Hospital Point, I will be officially out of "The Ditch." For the first time in a long time, I will be able to sail and I will no longer have a channel in which I have to stay. Not surprisingly, it causes a bit of unease. I will no longer have the luxury of Mile Markers and closely spaced buoys. Then again, it will be good practice for the trip down the Delaware Bay and up the Jersey Coast. I am hoping that the Chesapeake will show her calmer side, certainly a better weather side than when I came down during October. I have alt least one more stop to make(in Annapolis) perhaps two but that should be it. I may not make it back by Memorial Day Weekend but certainly shortly thereafter. It is all up to the weather. Of course, the thought of depending on NOAA . . . . . . .
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Risen From The Dead . . . Zone
SHIP'S LOG:
May 11, 2011 Wednesday - 35'40.168N/ 076'01.849W
Left Upper Dowry Creek heading for the Alligator River. Stopped off first at the Dowry Creek Marina for Ice and a Pump & Dump & Pump. There was a lot of hazy and I found out from the dock crew that there was a peat fire up north at Stumpy Point. It seems that there is a near by bombing range and practice the previous day had set the peat on fire. They said that it happens every now and again but that it takes a moth or so for it to burn itself out. Sort of smelled like Woodstock, or so I am told, but without the beneficial side effects. There was also some honest to goodness for and the two mixed which made for an interesting though limited view of things.
I entered one of the most boring, if not the most boring stretch of the ICW, the Alligator River- Pungo River Canal. It is dead arrow straight for 7 miles and then a turn and then another five miles of absolute straightness. It might be 150 feet wide . . .maybe but the channel is a lot more narrow and you really have to watch what you are doing. Lots of snags and stumps and deadheads. Of course it didn't stop the popwerboaters from seeing it as a dragstrip and several rather large and powerful boats came ripping up the canal. It would have been nice if they slowed down but for the most part they did not. I was disappointed to note that they were all from New England states. There wakes really tossed me around and it was hard to stay in the channel. Even when I slowed down to let them pass quickly they never reciprocated.
Out in the middle of the canal, there was a house with nothing around it. I couldn't see field or even roads though there must have been some. No other houses anywhere around. It had a dock and a boat but that was it. Talk about being out in the middle of no where. It was surely a house only visited by the closest of friends.
When I finally exited the canal, the wind picked up to a nice steady 15 out of the North. The spot where I had planned to anchor which would have been sheltered from the north wind was all filled in with crab pot buoys. There are a lot of them around now, more so than on the way down. It must be the season for crabbing or else things are just so tight, everyone is looking to make a few extra bucks. Whatever the reason, the spot was unusable and I had to anchor in a more exposed portion of the Alligator River. It was shallow and there was no need to worry as there was also miles in which to swing. The wind from the north and the current of the river, also from the north, made swinging even less of a worry. This spot was the "silent spot" I experienced on the way down. Then there was no sound and I mean NO SOUND. It must have bee a one shot deal as there was plenty of noise this time. Dropped the hook about 3:05pm and settled in for the night. When the wind finally died down, I could see the peat fires, or at least the smoke from them, at Stumpy Point. A major conflagrations by the size of the smoke plume.
Amy 12, 2011 Thursday 36'12.217N/ 075'56.790W
The Alligator River leads into Albemarle Sound and it also contains the first spot I went aground and needed a visit from Towboat/US. When I got to the spot where I went aground, I could see where and how it happened. Sometimes it is just very difficult to relate what you see on the map and the GPS with what you see in real life. Truth be told, once again if you followed the little Magenta line that indicates the ICW, you would definitely go aground. To much shifting bottom and considering how inexperienced I was in the ways of the ICW, it is no wonder I touched bottom. This time however, relying more on the depth sounder than the GPS and the maps, there was no problem whatever.
I was looking forward for a real sail across the 10 miles of Albemarle and it was exhilarating for the first mile and then the wind died. The wind never seems to want to blow when I want it to blow and always seems to do so when I want it calm. There just doesn't seem to be a happy medium.
Not much in the way of traffic, if you don't count the tugs and barges of which there were plenty. "Lucky Four Us" and "Six Pence" out of Boston, Mass. , were the only two pleasure craft I saw crossing the sound, which they did at a high rate of speed with the expected results. Once I cross Ablemarle Sound and got into the North River, a huge motor Yacht cruised by. She was from Shelby Forest, Tennessee, and I wondered how she eve got to her home port. I think she had an accident of some kind after she passed as I ran into a lot of spilt diesel fuel in the water and she made some strange maneuvers in front of me. Perhaps she had spilled some diesel into the bilge and pumped it overboard which is a no-no. It sure stinks when you run through it.
I made a left turn off the ICW and proceeded a mile to the mouth of Broad Creek. It was strange to go so far out of the channel by choice and not run aground though the water was never more than 10 feet deep. I eventually anchored in about 9 feet of water but it still seemed weird to be where I was, with no other boats around. I called up the Coinjock Marina and reserved a spot for the next night. It was only 11 miles away and I wanted to be sure I had a spot for there was little or nothing between where I was and where I wanted to be except Coinjock. It is also the home of the ICW famous 32 oz Prime Rib, something I missed on the way down.
May 13, 2011 Friday 36'20.866N/ 075'56.966W
It was a short day. I left Broad Creek and got into Coinjock by 11:30. It was good as I needed to do laundry and take a shower. I was beginning to smell like an unclean yak.
On the way, the North River goes from miles wide to a couple hundred feet wide with lots of turns and twists. I find it amazing that the tugs and barges can maneuver along the ICW especially in places like this with all the twists and turns. Usually, the tought of tugs and barges bring agita for they tend to move like a semi on ice. But today it was wonderful to see them as they "controlled " the rambuncious behavior and high speed of the powereboats that also showed up today. The tugs & barges might have been making a little over 7 knots and you could just hear the powerboaters grinding there teeth for in most places there was no where to pass and they hated it. I loved it! Passing for powerboats was also limited by the huge numbers of crab pot bouys that line what straight aways there were. Then of course there were we sailboats as well. The North River ends at the Coinjock Cut which as a strict idle speed limit. I am sure that once they transited they floored it but for awhile, it was like heaven.
I pulled into the Coinjock Marina and right down the dock was that huge Motor Yacht from Tennessee. He was fueling up. When I walked by on the way to take a shower, he had already put in 357 gallons. When I got back, he had put in over 1,687 gallons. I stopped to chat and asked how much fuel he carried. 3,200 gallons. At $4.85 a gallon, well you figure it out.
A sailboat came in towing another sailboat. They were buddy sailing when one's engine quite. They maneuvered very well and got both boats to the dock with no muss, no fuss. I was quite impressed. Despite the hoped for verdict that it was merely clogged filters, it turned out to be a fuel pump which had given up the ghost. Boating would be a whole lot more fund if, when things broke, they didn't cost so much to replace.
And no, I didn't have the 32oz prime rib. That's half a cow. I got the smallest size they had . . .16 oz. and it was GOOOOOOOOOODDDD!
May 14, 2011 Saturday 36'43.246N/ 076'14.284
I thought I lost a day. The NOAA weather report kept talking about Sunday. I thought I must have slept through Saturday but I didn't. Never did figure out why NOAA was ignoring Saturday.
It rain throughout the night, some NOAA also missed in its weather report the day before and the skies looked ominous but I had to move. I wanted to get to Great Bridge where I could hang for a few days at a FREE DOCK! The weather is iffy for the next few days and being at a dock, especially if its FREE, is better than being at anchor.
The current through the Coinjock Cut is totally wind driven and it is DRIVEN! Got up to 7.5knots without half trying. I had to cross a nasty piece of water called Currituck Sound. The wind was out of the South East and right on the quarter. With her keel configuration, ABISHAG doesn't do really well and tends to roll a bit and fishtail. So I decided to run with the Genoa up. Again, there is not a lot of maneuvering room but the channels are fairly straight and long. It didn't qite work as I had hoped. The speed went up but the rolling and fish tailing didn't stop. After about three miles I drop it and just kept motoring.
I was buddy sailing with Lucky Bird, a Moody 42. I let him go in front as I figured that he had more speed but he never really pushed it. The sky kept both of us alert for the predicted " widely scattered thunder storms with hail" that the boys and girls of NOAA were calling for. (They never showed!) We entered the North Landing River, another of those twisty, turny stretches. Powerboats continued to give themselves a bad rep, topped only by the idiot who was water skying in the narrow part of the ICW. we went by the first place I "kissed bottom" . . . it still looked as though it could be a good anchorage.
When we got to the North River Landing Swing Bridge at about noon, we were told that the next bridge up, the Centerville Turnpike Swing Bridge, was having repair work done and wouldn't open again until 4PM. It was less than 4 miles away and so we dawdled as much as we could and still got there by 12:30. Bob and Alice of Lucky Bird anchored in mid stream about a mile from the bridge and I rafted to them. The only thing we could do was wait. Other boast showed up and it got to be quite a party. We had to wait 3 1/2 hours and then got through the bridge. I was concerned that the free dock I was hoping to use would be filled up. But as luck would have it, there was plenty of room. Me and two other boats are tied up. Oh, the reason that it was empty is because it was closed! They are doing some construction work next to it and there were signs, which I didn't notice until after I was all tied up, saying NO TRESPASSING- DOCK CLOSED. I figured that I would be good for the night and tomorrow I will move through the Bridge at Great Bridge and tie up on the free dock on that side. I had dinner with Mark and Liz from the sailboat right behind me. It was wonderful. I had tried to help him with a leak i his stuffing box(while we were waiting) but all of my efforts were in vain. Dinner was the pay-off. I got the better of the deal!
May 11, 2011 Wednesday - 35'40.168N/ 076'01.849W
Left Upper Dowry Creek heading for the Alligator River. Stopped off first at the Dowry Creek Marina for Ice and a Pump & Dump & Pump. There was a lot of hazy and I found out from the dock crew that there was a peat fire up north at Stumpy Point. It seems that there is a near by bombing range and practice the previous day had set the peat on fire. They said that it happens every now and again but that it takes a moth or so for it to burn itself out. Sort of smelled like Woodstock, or so I am told, but without the beneficial side effects. There was also some honest to goodness for and the two mixed which made for an interesting though limited view of things.
I entered one of the most boring, if not the most boring stretch of the ICW, the Alligator River- Pungo River Canal. It is dead arrow straight for 7 miles and then a turn and then another five miles of absolute straightness. It might be 150 feet wide . . .maybe but the channel is a lot more narrow and you really have to watch what you are doing. Lots of snags and stumps and deadheads. Of course it didn't stop the popwerboaters from seeing it as a dragstrip and several rather large and powerful boats came ripping up the canal. It would have been nice if they slowed down but for the most part they did not. I was disappointed to note that they were all from New England states. There wakes really tossed me around and it was hard to stay in the channel. Even when I slowed down to let them pass quickly they never reciprocated.
Out in the middle of the canal, there was a house with nothing around it. I couldn't see field or even roads though there must have been some. No other houses anywhere around. It had a dock and a boat but that was it. Talk about being out in the middle of no where. It was surely a house only visited by the closest of friends.
When I finally exited the canal, the wind picked up to a nice steady 15 out of the North. The spot where I had planned to anchor which would have been sheltered from the north wind was all filled in with crab pot buoys. There are a lot of them around now, more so than on the way down. It must be the season for crabbing or else things are just so tight, everyone is looking to make a few extra bucks. Whatever the reason, the spot was unusable and I had to anchor in a more exposed portion of the Alligator River. It was shallow and there was no need to worry as there was also miles in which to swing. The wind from the north and the current of the river, also from the north, made swinging even less of a worry. This spot was the "silent spot" I experienced on the way down. Then there was no sound and I mean NO SOUND. It must have bee a one shot deal as there was plenty of noise this time. Dropped the hook about 3:05pm and settled in for the night. When the wind finally died down, I could see the peat fires, or at least the smoke from them, at Stumpy Point. A major conflagrations by the size of the smoke plume.
Amy 12, 2011 Thursday 36'12.217N/ 075'56.790W
The Alligator River leads into Albemarle Sound and it also contains the first spot I went aground and needed a visit from Towboat/US. When I got to the spot where I went aground, I could see where and how it happened. Sometimes it is just very difficult to relate what you see on the map and the GPS with what you see in real life. Truth be told, once again if you followed the little Magenta line that indicates the ICW, you would definitely go aground. To much shifting bottom and considering how inexperienced I was in the ways of the ICW, it is no wonder I touched bottom. This time however, relying more on the depth sounder than the GPS and the maps, there was no problem whatever.
I was looking forward for a real sail across the 10 miles of Albemarle and it was exhilarating for the first mile and then the wind died. The wind never seems to want to blow when I want it to blow and always seems to do so when I want it calm. There just doesn't seem to be a happy medium.
Not much in the way of traffic, if you don't count the tugs and barges of which there were plenty. "Lucky Four Us" and "Six Pence" out of Boston, Mass. , were the only two pleasure craft I saw crossing the sound, which they did at a high rate of speed with the expected results. Once I cross Ablemarle Sound and got into the North River, a huge motor Yacht cruised by. She was from Shelby Forest, Tennessee, and I wondered how she eve got to her home port. I think she had an accident of some kind after she passed as I ran into a lot of spilt diesel fuel in the water and she made some strange maneuvers in front of me. Perhaps she had spilled some diesel into the bilge and pumped it overboard which is a no-no. It sure stinks when you run through it.
I made a left turn off the ICW and proceeded a mile to the mouth of Broad Creek. It was strange to go so far out of the channel by choice and not run aground though the water was never more than 10 feet deep. I eventually anchored in about 9 feet of water but it still seemed weird to be where I was, with no other boats around. I called up the Coinjock Marina and reserved a spot for the next night. It was only 11 miles away and I wanted to be sure I had a spot for there was little or nothing between where I was and where I wanted to be except Coinjock. It is also the home of the ICW famous 32 oz Prime Rib, something I missed on the way down.
May 13, 2011 Friday 36'20.866N/ 075'56.966W
It was a short day. I left Broad Creek and got into Coinjock by 11:30. It was good as I needed to do laundry and take a shower. I was beginning to smell like an unclean yak.
On the way, the North River goes from miles wide to a couple hundred feet wide with lots of turns and twists. I find it amazing that the tugs and barges can maneuver along the ICW especially in places like this with all the twists and turns. Usually, the tought of tugs and barges bring agita for they tend to move like a semi on ice. But today it was wonderful to see them as they "controlled " the rambuncious behavior and high speed of the powereboats that also showed up today. The tugs & barges might have been making a little over 7 knots and you could just hear the powerboaters grinding there teeth for in most places there was no where to pass and they hated it. I loved it! Passing for powerboats was also limited by the huge numbers of crab pot bouys that line what straight aways there were. Then of course there were we sailboats as well. The North River ends at the Coinjock Cut which as a strict idle speed limit. I am sure that once they transited they floored it but for awhile, it was like heaven.
I pulled into the Coinjock Marina and right down the dock was that huge Motor Yacht from Tennessee. He was fueling up. When I walked by on the way to take a shower, he had already put in 357 gallons. When I got back, he had put in over 1,687 gallons. I stopped to chat and asked how much fuel he carried. 3,200 gallons. At $4.85 a gallon, well you figure it out.
A sailboat came in towing another sailboat. They were buddy sailing when one's engine quite. They maneuvered very well and got both boats to the dock with no muss, no fuss. I was quite impressed. Despite the hoped for verdict that it was merely clogged filters, it turned out to be a fuel pump which had given up the ghost. Boating would be a whole lot more fund if, when things broke, they didn't cost so much to replace.
And no, I didn't have the 32oz prime rib. That's half a cow. I got the smallest size they had . . .16 oz. and it was GOOOOOOOOOODDDD!
May 14, 2011 Saturday 36'43.246N/ 076'14.284
I thought I lost a day. The NOAA weather report kept talking about Sunday. I thought I must have slept through Saturday but I didn't. Never did figure out why NOAA was ignoring Saturday.
It rain throughout the night, some NOAA also missed in its weather report the day before and the skies looked ominous but I had to move. I wanted to get to Great Bridge where I could hang for a few days at a FREE DOCK! The weather is iffy for the next few days and being at a dock, especially if its FREE, is better than being at anchor.
The current through the Coinjock Cut is totally wind driven and it is DRIVEN! Got up to 7.5knots without half trying. I had to cross a nasty piece of water called Currituck Sound. The wind was out of the South East and right on the quarter. With her keel configuration, ABISHAG doesn't do really well and tends to roll a bit and fishtail. So I decided to run with the Genoa up. Again, there is not a lot of maneuvering room but the channels are fairly straight and long. It didn't qite work as I had hoped. The speed went up but the rolling and fish tailing didn't stop. After about three miles I drop it and just kept motoring.
I was buddy sailing with Lucky Bird, a Moody 42. I let him go in front as I figured that he had more speed but he never really pushed it. The sky kept both of us alert for the predicted " widely scattered thunder storms with hail" that the boys and girls of NOAA were calling for. (They never showed!) We entered the North Landing River, another of those twisty, turny stretches. Powerboats continued to give themselves a bad rep, topped only by the idiot who was water skying in the narrow part of the ICW. we went by the first place I "kissed bottom" . . . it still looked as though it could be a good anchorage.
When we got to the North River Landing Swing Bridge at about noon, we were told that the next bridge up, the Centerville Turnpike Swing Bridge, was having repair work done and wouldn't open again until 4PM. It was less than 4 miles away and so we dawdled as much as we could and still got there by 12:30. Bob and Alice of Lucky Bird anchored in mid stream about a mile from the bridge and I rafted to them. The only thing we could do was wait. Other boast showed up and it got to be quite a party. We had to wait 3 1/2 hours and then got through the bridge. I was concerned that the free dock I was hoping to use would be filled up. But as luck would have it, there was plenty of room. Me and two other boats are tied up. Oh, the reason that it was empty is because it was closed! They are doing some construction work next to it and there were signs, which I didn't notice until after I was all tied up, saying NO TRESPASSING- DOCK CLOSED. I figured that I would be good for the night and tomorrow I will move through the Bridge at Great Bridge and tie up on the free dock on that side. I had dinner with Mark and Liz from the sailboat right behind me. It was wonderful. I had tried to help him with a leak i his stuffing box(while we were waiting) but all of my efforts were in vain. Dinner was the pay-off. I got the better of the deal!
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
It' The Economy, Stupid! or Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right And A Third Can Really Mess Things Up!
SHIP'S LOG:
Still in Upper Dowry Creek!
Actually, when I think about it and look back on the last 8 months, it is really a wonder that it hadn't happened before. Indeed, I am kinda amazed that it wasn't a bigger "major Whoopsie" than it was.
You have to understand that my income is a little over 2 Marine Units a month. Considering also that my expenses run pretty close to four(4) Marine Units a month, you can see that finances can get more than a little tricky. Yes, you have it right, about twice as much goes out as comes in! And no, I don't work for the federal government. However, living frugally as best I can and with the help and generosity of relatives, friends and neighbors, I am usually able to cover my financial obligations and put just a tad aside for surprises. And surprises there have been. There was that regulator back in Bodkin Creek(MD) that ran 1 1/2 Marine Units with installation. And there was the raw water pump for the engine in Jacksonville(FL) which was a little over two(2) Marine Units and that was with a 10% discount because of a friend of a friend. And that doesn't take into consideration those trips to West Marine and othere such marine establishments for necessary items for require repairs . . . and surely it doesn't take into consideration THE SHEAR PINS! ! ! ! There were also those times when necessity - read the weather - forced me to tie up in one of those hideously expensive marinas which were usually .20 of a Marine Unit a night. During my sojourn, diesel has gone from $3.45 a gallon to about $4.45 a gallon.
And the funds that come to me, aside from the 2Marine Units+ that are direct deposited, go to a Postal Mail Box and are then picked up by a friend who deposits any funds he finds in my account.The information, along with letters are scanned an sent by email. Occasionally, the info comes in a phone call, but either way,contact is not always swift, clean and clear. All of my bill paying is done by debit card and/or through a bill paying feature on my banks website. The QUICKEN Accounting program on my computer handles the record keeping and all I have to do is input the correct information and everything goes smoothly.
Can you see the flaw in the concept? "I" have to enter the "correct information," and there were have the crux of the problem that I ran into in Swansboro. I went to "Yana's Old Fashion Drugstore Restaurant" of a 62nd Birthday lunch and my debit card "bounce" or whatever they call it when you have insufficient funds to cover a bill. Thankfully I was able to scrape up enough to cover the bill and the tip. When I got back to my boat I spent a good part of the afternoon trying to discover what had happened. According to my Quicken Accounting Records, I should have had almost 2.2 Marine Units available in my account. The mortgage had been paid. The debt reduction had been paid and I had yet to begin paying the months bills so there should have been enough. In fact, I was looking forward to the first month in awhile where I was going to get though without having to ask anyone for "a little/some/a lot" of help.
I am not very good with math(it's the dyslexia) hence the accounting software. Between phone calls to the bank and going over statements and reconciling them with the accounts, all I could really discover is that my bank charges me $22 if you overdraw your debit card. (I always found charging someone more of what they don't have doesn't make a great deal of sense!) But I was also moving and when I got to South River, I was without any internet access so the problem stewed for two days. When I got here to Upper Dowry Creek, I had internet access again and took all day today to find the problem. Part of the problem is that most of the "bankers" I spoke with couldn't help you unless you were sitting right there with them. About three O'clock I found it. I had several deposits that total 2 Marine Units and in my Quicken Accounting Records I had listen individually and also as a total sum deposit. Basically I entered them twice and that was the reason for the discrepancy. I actually hadn't been carefully saving money so much as I had simply thought there was more money than there was to begin with.
I was blessed to have my cousin Kathy and her husband, Harold, seen me a chunk of cash and now I will be able to fuel ABISHAG and pump out the holding tank. As full as the holding tank is is as empty as the fuel tank is and I was getting just a wee bit concerned. Of course, I could always pump the holding tank overboard surreptitiously, but even if I did, I would still have no means to fuel the boat without the cash. I am not quite sure exactly where I shall go from here, that is the next step to take in a financial frame of reference, but I will figure that out. Long voyages are very good for reflection and coming up with ideas. Then again, there is always THE PUBLISHERS CLEARING HOUSE SWEEPSTAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Still in Upper Dowry Creek!
Actually, when I think about it and look back on the last 8 months, it is really a wonder that it hadn't happened before. Indeed, I am kinda amazed that it wasn't a bigger "major Whoopsie" than it was.
You have to understand that my income is a little over 2 Marine Units a month. Considering also that my expenses run pretty close to four(4) Marine Units a month, you can see that finances can get more than a little tricky. Yes, you have it right, about twice as much goes out as comes in! And no, I don't work for the federal government. However, living frugally as best I can and with the help and generosity of relatives, friends and neighbors, I am usually able to cover my financial obligations and put just a tad aside for surprises. And surprises there have been. There was that regulator back in Bodkin Creek(MD) that ran 1 1/2 Marine Units with installation. And there was the raw water pump for the engine in Jacksonville(FL) which was a little over two(2) Marine Units and that was with a 10% discount because of a friend of a friend. And that doesn't take into consideration those trips to West Marine and othere such marine establishments for necessary items for require repairs . . . and surely it doesn't take into consideration THE SHEAR PINS! ! ! ! There were also those times when necessity - read the weather - forced me to tie up in one of those hideously expensive marinas which were usually .20 of a Marine Unit a night. During my sojourn, diesel has gone from $3.45 a gallon to about $4.45 a gallon.
And the funds that come to me, aside from the 2Marine Units+ that are direct deposited, go to a Postal Mail Box and are then picked up by a friend who deposits any funds he finds in my account.The information, along with letters are scanned an sent by email. Occasionally, the info comes in a phone call, but either way,contact is not always swift, clean and clear. All of my bill paying is done by debit card and/or through a bill paying feature on my banks website. The QUICKEN Accounting program on my computer handles the record keeping and all I have to do is input the correct information and everything goes smoothly.
Can you see the flaw in the concept? "I" have to enter the "correct information," and there were have the crux of the problem that I ran into in Swansboro. I went to "Yana's Old Fashion Drugstore Restaurant" of a 62nd Birthday lunch and my debit card "bounce" or whatever they call it when you have insufficient funds to cover a bill. Thankfully I was able to scrape up enough to cover the bill and the tip. When I got back to my boat I spent a good part of the afternoon trying to discover what had happened. According to my Quicken Accounting Records, I should have had almost 2.2 Marine Units available in my account. The mortgage had been paid. The debt reduction had been paid and I had yet to begin paying the months bills so there should have been enough. In fact, I was looking forward to the first month in awhile where I was going to get though without having to ask anyone for "a little/some/a lot" of help.
I am not very good with math(it's the dyslexia) hence the accounting software. Between phone calls to the bank and going over statements and reconciling them with the accounts, all I could really discover is that my bank charges me $22 if you overdraw your debit card. (I always found charging someone more of what they don't have doesn't make a great deal of sense!) But I was also moving and when I got to South River, I was without any internet access so the problem stewed for two days. When I got here to Upper Dowry Creek, I had internet access again and took all day today to find the problem. Part of the problem is that most of the "bankers" I spoke with couldn't help you unless you were sitting right there with them. About three O'clock I found it. I had several deposits that total 2 Marine Units and in my Quicken Accounting Records I had listen individually and also as a total sum deposit. Basically I entered them twice and that was the reason for the discrepancy. I actually hadn't been carefully saving money so much as I had simply thought there was more money than there was to begin with.
I was blessed to have my cousin Kathy and her husband, Harold, seen me a chunk of cash and now I will be able to fuel ABISHAG and pump out the holding tank. As full as the holding tank is is as empty as the fuel tank is and I was getting just a wee bit concerned. Of course, I could always pump the holding tank overboard surreptitiously, but even if I did, I would still have no means to fuel the boat without the cash. I am not quite sure exactly where I shall go from here, that is the next step to take in a financial frame of reference, but I will figure that out. Long voyages are very good for reflection and coming up with ideas. Then again, there is always THE PUBLISHERS CLEARING HOUSE SWEEPSTAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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