So, how many are wondering what happened to me. Several things actually. The foremost reason I haven’t provided updates more regularly is that that is going to be a bridge closure on the Intracoastal Water (ICW) just north of Charleston, SC on November 11, and the bridge will not reopen until after Nov 23. So, I needed to get through the bridge before the 11th of November. To make sure that happened, I had to leave Norfolk, VA before November 1st. The problem with that is that the boat would not be insured until November 2nd south of Norfolk because of the hurricane season. Insurers have fared badly in recent hurricane on the east coast, so they include a stipulation that they will not insure below Norfolk (or there abouts) during hurricane season, which runs from June 1 through November 1. I didn’t want it to get out that I had taken the boat south earlier than November 2nd. Make sense? I hope so. The other reason for being delinquent in getting information on the trip out to everyone is that cruising can be very exhausting when done alone. With no one to help, It gets sort of stressful doing all the planning, sailing, motoring, steering, maintenance, cooking, cleaning, washing, etc. every day. My day usually starts at 5:30 when I get up, have breakfast, check the engine, do dishes, review the days travel plan, hoist anchor, and head out. Then I have to steer (or help my autopilot in the narrow passages, which there are many),keep lookout, dodge crab pots and logs, keep the boat tidy, navigate, update the days travel plan if necessary, and finally anchor. Then, it’s shower, dinner, dishes, plan the next day’s journey, get ready for bed, and fall asleep, so I can start all over again tomorrow. Oops, I forgot the updates! But I seem to have found a routine that is working now.
So, what have I been up to? On Sunday, 10/25 I left Deltaville, VA in windy conditions, 20-25 knots from the north. Was an interesting ride to Norfolk, VA. Anchored across the Elizabeth River from a place called Harbor Walk in Norfolk, were I spent a relatively quiet night (for a city). On Monday I started my journey down the Intracoastal Water. I started by going through the Dismal Swamp, which was a great experience. I had to go through a lock that rose me up to the level of the swamp, then motored through the Dismal Swamp Canal. About half way, I stopped at a visitor center with fellow cruisers for the night. The visitor center provided a history of the construction of the canal, which was very interesting.
On Tuesday, I went through another lock that dropped Navigator back down to the level of the water at the other end of the canal. Both locks have about 8 feet of movement. I spent Tuesday night in Elizabeth City, NC. It is a great little city (town?) They have free dockage for up to 2 nights, have a nice visitors center, and have a wine and cheese reception for the cruisers every night there are boats in, which this time of years is almost every year. The next day was raining and blowing pretty hard, so I stayed in Elizabeth City for another day. Went to a free museum which gave the history of the Abermarle region of North Carolina, then went to a dinner theater where you get to eat dinner before the movie, then turn your chair around to fact the movie screen and watched the movie. It ended up being a very enjoyable stop for 2 nights. By Thursday, the 29th, the wind had died down to 10-15 knots, so headed out down the Alligator River, through the Alligator-Pungo Canal to the Pungo River, where I anchored for the night. I traveled about 75 statute miles in 10 hours, and that was the longest day so far. It just does not give me enough time to do all the things that need to get done. So now I try to keep a days travel to somewhere between 40 and 60 miles.
The next day, Friday, headed toward Oriental, NC. Had my first encounter with a barge, actually 2 barges (but not at the same time), one passing in my direction, the other in the opposite direction. They are big and worthy of a lot of respect, but the captains are always nice and friendly, and like to talk on the radio. It helps break up the monotony. Anchored in a little creek called Broad Creek about a mile north of Oriental, NC. I wanted a break, so I stayed there Saturday as well, and did some defense contractor work like I used to do all day. If I get it typed up and sent out it will be a big load off my shoulders. It was supposed to be done by Oct 31. On November 1st, Sunday, I was supposed to meet some boating friends in Morehead City to celebrate a birthday, however because of windy conditions, on of the bridges on the watereway couldn’t open, so they could not reach Morehead. I stayed at a dock in the Morehead City Yacht Basin for the night, and celebrated the friends birthday myself by going out to dinner. On Monday, Nov 2, I set out from Morehead City in 15 knot winds down the ICW. Nothing really eventful today, just a lot of beautiful scenery and water. Spent the night at anchor in a basin used by camp LeJune for training at times. No training that night, so the Marines do not hastle the boaters, and let them stay there. There were nearly 20 boats in the basin. By Tuesday, the weather began warming up, it topped out at 71. I have a clear plastic enclosure around the cockpit, and in the sun it got really toasty. Made the run from the Marine training basin to Wrightsville Beach, NC in about 5 hours, then proceeded to run aground when I was trying to find a place to anchor for the night. Fortunately, the tide was low and coming in, so with patience, is just waited to be floated off, which took about and hour and a half. Go anchored, and had dinner ashore with the friend who had the birthday earlier in the week. They finally caught up with me in their big powerboat! Had a better time celebrating the birthday than doing it by myself. Wednesday turned out to be another beautiful day, with temperatures in the 70s again. Stopped in a town called Little River, NC, just north of the South Carolina border. A friend from work, Lee Bragg retired to there this year, so we got together for dinner. Thanks for a wonderful dinner, Lee. On Thursday, I only had a 30 mile run to a place called Wacha Watchie in South Carolina to meet up with the birthday boy on last time before they head back to Pennsylvania by car (they keep their boat down in South Carolina for the winter and visit once in a while).
That brings us pretty much up to date. Today, Friday, Nov 6th, I traveled to McClellanville, SC and anchored in a small creek. They have 6 foot tide change here, so when the tide is running, it is moving a 2-3 knots. That really speeds you up, or slows you down. It becomes very interesting to try to maximum you speed by using the current. Anchored about 2:30 and did some small repairs, showered, and had homemade spaghetti for dinner. Now I am typing this to keep everyone informed on what I have been doing. I hope you find it interesting. It certainly has been, and continues to be, interesting to me. Tomorrow I will head out to Charleston, SC, passing under the bridge that will be closing later this month, before it closes! What planning. I will spend a couple of days in Charleston to sightsee before heading south again. Need warming weather. Even though the days are warm, the nights still get into the 40s.
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