12-15 Jan - Beaufort, Hammock Bay and Masonboro, NC

 

   We stayed 3 days and 4 nights at Mayo Seafood waiting out the passage of the major winter storm with multiple embedded tornados in the south. 

   After the storm front had passed and another day waiting for the strong westerly winds to die down we headed out and up the Neuse River for several hours before turning south into Adams Creek.

   The sun was out and the winds were light. We were able to sail for a couple hours before we had to turn and head up into the wind up the Neuse.

   We spent a quiet night anchored off Sugar Loaf Island off Morehead City in the Beaufort, NC area. It was a bit cool jumping into bed, about 50 degrees. The nighttime temp was about 45 but once you have the bed warmed up it is toasty under all the blankets. The next morning when we raised the anchor we had a hitchhiker clinging to our anchor. 

   The next morning we were off for Hammock bay, our anchorage halfway down to Wrightsville. There is one shallow spot in Bogue Sound along the way and as we approached it we saw this tug, basically stopped, right at the shallow water spot. There is not room to go around him so we had to wait for him to clear the area. 

   It took him awhile to feel his way through the shallow water. We asked him what water depth he was seeing and he told us he has a 8ft keel and was plowing through the sand. We only need 5ft so once he cleared we were able to proceed through without any problems.

   Passing through Swansboro. Sue loves this tiny house on the island off Swansboro. You can only access by boat. Not sure what they do, if anything, for electricity. 

   There's one opening bridge to pass through today, the Onslow Beach bridge. They are putting a new bascule bridge in to replace the old and slow swing bridge. Sometimes the barges are blocking the waterway but we didn't have any problem getting through.

   We arrived at the Hammock Bay anchorage in the mid-afternoon. No other boats in sight. That's good as there are strong winds coming tonight and we will have to put out 150+ft of anchor chain. In the Spring, this anchorage is always crowded and that much anchor chain and resulting swing room could be a problem. 

   The wind did blow at 20-25kts all night and most of the next day, so we stayed put. Fortunately the temperatures were not bad with 60s in our enclosed cockpit and 40 at night. We decided not to bother getting the generator set up to heat our blanket. We do have a small 12volt electric blanket that Sue heated up and put in the bed and quickly jumped in before it cooled off. I guess next year we should mount a 12v outlet up in the bedroom.

    After waiting a day for the winds to die down, we were now off for Masonboro. It was good we waited for the winds to die down as there were two shallow and complicated ICW sections to pass through and I would not have wanted to go aground with 20+kts of wind blowing us further aground. We made it through without any problems but it was still a little white knuckled. 

   There are multiple dredges working along the ICW. Here we are passing a tug and barge towing the dredging pipes to another work area. 

   We arrived at Masonboro mid-afternoon and just about low tide. Our first attempt to get into the anchorage area ran us aground into a 3ft deep sandbar. We were able to back off, then go further down the ICW and come into the anchorage area from the other end successfully.

  There's always work to be done on a boat. As they say, cruising is performing boat maintenance in exotic places. We were sitting at anchor when we heard a thump and noted fresh water being drained into the bilge. As I suspected, the hot water hose going to the cockpit shower had come off the T junction. We had to unload the back room to get access to the hot water tank hoses. It's easiest for Sue to work back there in the cramped spaces. Sure enough, the hose was unconnected. It should have been a simple job to put it back on and tighten the clamp, but it turned out the reason it popped off was the clamp would not fit properly because the other clamps were in the way. I had to readjust the other two clamps, then I could push the 3rd clamp properly up tight against the T and properly secure it.  All fixed in a short time and we had running fresh water again. Now to restore all our provisions in the back room.

   It was a fairly mild night in the low 50s for our 4th night at anchor. Tomorrow we are off for Holden Beach and will pull into the town dock and plug in to electricity for the next couple nights.

   

   

6-10 Jan - Dowry Creek and Hobucken, NC

    It's been a bad 5-day stretch of weather so we have been holing up in marinas, both to have electrical power to run the heater and to avoid anchoring in high winds (and cold weather).

   We spent 2 days at Dowry Creek waiting for a front to blow through on the 6th. For several hours the winds came from the southeast where our dock slip was exposed to the building waves, but by mid-afternoon the wind had clocked to the south where we had protection. 

   Staying two days gave us two opportunities to check out the craft beers and appetizers at the new marina restaurant. This will be a routine stopping place in the future.

    On the 7th, the winds were down and the sun out and we were able to sail and motor sail across the Pamlico River for the short trip to Hobucken, where we will hole up for 3 more days as a particularly strong storm front blows through. 

   This is the Mayo Seafood docks in Hobucken. It is mainly a commercial shrimp boat facility but they let recreation boaters tie up on the end of the dock. Its a bit rough but they have power which means heat for us and the price is right - $15 per night - which is good since we will be here for 4 nights. 

   Its not really the Women's latrine anymore, they have bathrooms inside the ship's store but, it fits in with the local atmosphere. I guess at one time is was the working Lady's room. Funny there's no Men's room. Guess they had to go onboard the shrimp boats.

   The storm front came through on Tuesday afternoon and evening. Of course the strongest winds came at 9pm, always in the dark. 

  All afternoon we had 20kt winds pushing us against the dock pylons but, fortunately the waves were only about 1ft with the protection we had in the canal. 

   We were able to position are 10in fenders to keep us off the dock and they did there job.

   We were a bit worried as the wind was forecasted to go to 30-35kts with higher gusts and that would build the waves up even higher but, to our great relief, when the higher winds came they had clocked to the south, directly astern, and that kept the boat off from the dock. By 9pm the wind was steady at 30+kts with higher gusts into the 40s. We had one severe gust that I was able to record at 58.8kts. I was watching the multiple tornados on my phone radar picture and happy to see none coming near us. By 10pm the front was through and the wind had shifted to the SW pushing us well away from the dock and dying back down to the 20s. We had a Baileys on ice and celebrated our successful weathering the storm with no damages.

   Morning came with blue skies but still stiff winds from the west, again pushing us off the dock.

   We had doubled up our bow, stern and spring lines but didn't have any problems. Better safe than sorry. There sure was a lot of creaking and straining on those lines during the night.

   We were able to walk each day we were at Hobucken. Here is a shot from up on the bridge looking at the whole facility. That is us tied up way on the end of the dock. 

   The winds were still brisk from the west on the 10th, so it was not a good day to bash westerly up the Neuse River. We will be off tomorrow early to motor on down to Beaufort, NC. 

5 Jan - Alligator River Anchorage to Belhaven, NC

    Up and underway and into the Alligator-Pungo River canal on another crisp and sunny day.  It's only a 5hr trip to Belhaven so we didn't have to depart early. We spent that extra morning time in bed under the covers where it was nice and warm.

  It was 48 down below when we jumped into bed last night at 8pm with PJs on under 2 blankets and a comforter.  The bed quickly warms up and I was shedding PJs and 1 blanket during the night. But, with the inside temp at 39 in the morning, it was great to stay under the covers until time to depart at 9am.

   We do have a Honda generator that we can set up and it will run our electric blanket to heat the bed before we jump in but, it's a cold job getting the generator out and setup on the bow and not that bad biting the bullet for just a few minutes getting into the cold bed and warming it up with body heat. Not a problem for one night. Although Sue reminds me each time we do this, she doesn't know anyone else that would agree to this without complaining.

   This trip through the canal we saw 5 bald eagles. We normally see 1 or 2 but this was a new high. They always look majestic. 

   Also, this trip we saw a flock of 7 all-white snow geese for the first time. At first we thought they were swans but, as we got closer we could see they are not as big as swans and have a thicker and shorter neck. 

  With the sun out it warmed up quite toasty in the cockpit. The thermometer in the direct sunlight said 82degrees but I think it was closer to about 70 actually. By this time we had taken off 3 layers of clothes from our departure from the anchorage at 32 degrees. 

   Its a 5hr trip to Belhaven and Rivah spends most of the time laying in the sun. 

   Yes, it is a fact that ocean levels are rising around the planet and not some fake news from leftist environmentalists. Today the trees are dying from the rising salt water levels. In the future, we humans need to start getting more serious about what we are going to do about global warming. We have been warned but like typical humans we tend to just ignore inconvenient facts. 

   Soon we are approaching our next stop at Dowry Creek Marina. Easy entrance to our slip with no wind or current. We were soon tied up and plugged in with heat on.

   We are planning to stay here for 2 nights as the weather is going to be bad tomorrow. There restaurant is now open so we will have to check it out. Hopefully it's good as this is a nice place to stop along the ICW trek through North Carolina. 

4 Jan Coinjock to Alligator River Anchorage, NC

   We're off across the Albemarle Sound and conditions are ideal right now. We motored down the North River from Coinjock for 3hours with no wind. As we entered the open waters of the Albemarle, the wind is picking up from the northwest. Ideal for us as that wind is off the starboard quarter and the waves are still mild from the shore protection. We soon secured the engine and were sailing at a good clip across the Sound.

   It's only a couple hours across the Sound and that was a good thing as the wind and waves continued to build as we sailed across. You can't see large wave heights in photos but basically we went from 1-2ft to 3-4ft over the 2hr passage. By the time we arrived at the Alligator River entrance, the wind was up to 20-25kts, the waves over 4ft and we were surfing down waves at speeds over 8kt.  Given that the maximum hull speed of our boat is 7.2kts, this was impressive and some of the fastest sailing we've ever done. Good thing it was downwind and no bashing, only rocking.

   It was a bit tricky doing the S-curve entrance into the Alligator River without jibing the mainsail but, we made it. Inside the protection of the river shore we continued to sail at 7+kts with the waves back down to 1-2ft. 

   At that speed it was only 20mins to the Alligator River swing bridge. No problem with a timely opening there and we motor-sailed through with the main out and the motor running.  Then we secured the engine and sailed 3 hrs down to our anchorage at 7kts. Our best trip yet across the Albemarle.

   There are no convenient marinas between Coinjock and Belhaven so, this is the one night we have to anchor out. This is a photo of the shore from our anchorage. We are about 1000ft from shore; it is too shallow to get any closer but, this is close enough to get protection from the big waves being blown down the river from the NW winds. We are tucked up against the northern shoreline and you can see the waves are less than a foot. The wind is forecast to die down after dark and that's what it did.  Ready for a frigid night - will let you know how it turned out in the next blog.

3 Jan - Great Bridge to Coinjock, NC

 

 

 Departing Great Bridge on a clear and brisk morning. A heavy frost on the deck and enclosure glass but, the sun is out and will soon warm us up. No need for an early departure as you can't pass through the Centerville bridge until 0830 after the morning rush hour closure. 

 We were off at 0830 for the 9am opening. Its a relatively short day to Coinjock, only about 5-6 hours. You can't pass Coinjock in the wintertime if you want to plug in to power for heat as the next convenient marina is 85 miles away.

    Heading down the Currituck Sound. Not much wind today and it is basically a motoring trip. But it's nice to have the light winds on the beam to give a smooth ride and not slow us down. 40 degrees outside but mid-60s in our enclosure in the sun.

   The ocean off the NC Outer Banks is out there on the horizon off the port bow.  We could barely see the Currituck Beach Lighthouse as we passed by miles inland.

   Tied up and plugged in at Coinjock. Rivah was happy to take a long walk and take care of business.

   We passed on the famous Coinjock 28oz prime rib for $52 and had a nice dinner onboard.

   We'll be off for crossing the Albemarle Sound and down the Alligator River in the morning. Will be an early departure as we want to get across the Sound before the wind comes up.

2 Jan - Great Bridge, Virgina

 

   Jan 2nd and we are off and heading south. Yesterday there was no wind so we decided to better store all the provisions on the boat, make a couple last trips to the house, get a good night's rest onboard and head out this morning. A good decision as the sun was out most of the day heating our enclosed cockpit and the wind was 15-20kts from the north blowing us down the bay to Norfolk. 

   It was still a chilly morning, 36 degrees, but comfortable in the cockpit. 

   It was a quick trip down the bay with 20kts of tailwind and we were soon passing Old Point Comfort lighthouse at Fort Monroe in Hampton, VA. 

   For awhile we had 3-4ft seas rolling us back and forth as we sailed downwind, but once in the lee of the Hampton peninsula the wind and waves eased and it was a pleasant passage. Rivah finally left her secure bed down below and joined us in the cockpit once the rolling was down.

  We've got plenty of photos of Navy ships, but it's always an impressive sight to pass by the aircraft carrier piers. Pier 14L, the far left spot, is where the USS Theodore Roosevelt, my ship, used to normally park.

   Not very much action around the Navy piers on 2 Jan, didn't even see the security patrol boats. 

   An amphib carrier with a Harrier jet on the bow. Sitting next to the main carrier piers.

   There's lots of maritime sights in Norfolk, the main East Coast Navy base. Down the Elizabeth River we pass by the Nauticus Maritime Museum where the battleship Wisconsin is moored. Between the pier and the Wisconsin sits the schooner Virginia. 

   

  Passing the downtown Norfolk waterfront with its marina and restaurants.

   This is the official mile 0 of the Intra Coastal Waterway, which extends from here to Key West, FL, over 1000miles. We'll take the ICW at least to South Carolina, avoiding passing offshore around Cape Hatteras, the 3rd most dangerous waters on the planet (after Cape Horn and Cape of Good Hope). 

   Two sailboats sank off Cape Hatteras this November in different storms.  I'll pass on that option.

  We had to wait about 10 mins at the Gilmerton Bridge for a train to pass, a very long coal train heading back to West Virginia - but, that was a lot shorter than some of the waits we've had before.

   With the quick trip down, we were at the Great Bridge Lock for the 3pm opening. Blue skies and sun were preferable to the rain yesterday afternoon. Still it was brisk in the breeze. 

   Through the lock and on to the Great Bridge bridge. We'll stop for the night just after the bridge at Atlantic Yacht Basin. Top off the diesel fuel tank with fuel to take us to South Carolina.

   We plug into shore power at the marina so we can run the onboard heater (runs off 110v power) and plug in the electric blanket. Will be a comfortable night with little wind. Tomorrow its on to Coinjock.

Preparing for 1 Jan 2024 Departure for Florida and Bahamas

 

   December 2023 and Tides Inn is sitting peacefully waiting for the final stores onloading. 

   After returning from Florida in May 2023, we refinished the teak trim during the summer and repainted the bottom in the Fall, again raising the waterline a little bit. 

   The boat is loaded with fuel and water, plus 150# of dogfood upfront, balancing the dinghy and outboard hanging on the stern. Still need to load food stores for 4-5 months.

    Preparing for 4-5 months of stores takes a bit of planning and arranging, starting at home. We will be able to grocery shop in Florida for perishables but, we try to get everything onboard that we will need for a couple months in the Bahamas where the stores are scarce and prices high.  

  Best to do a bunch of shopping at Costco before departure.

  Once everything is carted down to the boat, its another round of organizing what to store where. Items that we need early on go in the salon behind the settee cushions. 

   There are large storage areas under the settee seats but they are all full of sailing gear, tools and spare parts.  The starboard side shelves are full of sailing gear and not available for stores. 

   Items that we won't need until later in the cruise go into bins and bags in the aft cabin. We still have a couple more blue crates to place in the open area.

  Once loaded up, we still have cockpit folding chairs and dodger covers to store back here. 

  Hopefully this year we won't have to unload all this to access the engine, transmission and shaft. The last 3 trips south we have had to unload it all at least once enroute for unplanned maintenance issues. 

   We have 3 bins of clothes for the homeless that we take and provide to shelters along the way. Sue collects these clothes all year long and we take them south.

   Just about fully loaded now and I see just a sliver of bottom paint still showing at the waterline. Perfect. As we eat our way through our stores we will rise up towards our normal level. 

   All still on track for a 1 Jan departure.

Dismal Swamp 24 Apr

 

   The Pasquotank River is another of the prettiest sections of the ICW. The river winds it way up from Elizabeth City to South Miles where you enter the Dismal Swamp Canal.

   An interesting observer watching the boats go by on the Piankatank. Fits right in with the Cypress swamp lands.

    Entering South Mills Lock. Got here about 30mins early and they finally opened the gates 8 mins before scheduled time.

   Wow, they really packed us in tight and the two lines holding us to the wall were not ideally placed so the boat could surge forward and back. We had about 3ft of space in front but only 1ft astern. 

   Then the water came boiling in from the front gate rocking all us pretty extensively. It was a rough rise of 8 feet.  

   But, all turned out ok with no contact with the wall or other boats. A bit nerve racking though.

   After a long delay getting the front gate open, they finally decided tha only one gate was going to open. We carefully made our way over to the other side of the lock and proceeded out slowly. 

   Clear of the locks and heading up the Dismal Swamp Canal. Turned out to be a nice day although on the cool side. Sue is up on the bow sitting on our pulpit seat.

   Here's the view of the canal from the front of Tides Inn. 

   The main thing to watch for in the canal is the overhanging trees. There are some places where you have to maneuver a bit to avoid hitting the branches with the mast - which could take off the $500 wind instruments up there. We made it through with no incidents.

   We did hit one log with the keel, a typical event in the canal. The solid full length keel and protected prop and rudder on the Island Packet is perfect for canal running. 

   Sue, trying some artistic photos of the sky reflected in the water from the bow. Not a breath of wind down here beneath the trees.

   Three hours later and we are in the Deep Creek lock being lowered back down about 8 ft. Its a much smoother ride going down. We also had a lot more room with only 3 of us in the lock.

   One of our few Bald Eagle sightings this trip north. This guy hangs out at the Deep Creek Lock most every day they told us.

   We got through the lock at the 4pm opening, then went up to Top Rack Marina to top off the fuel tank, at about $1/gal less than most other places in the Chesapeake. 

   We were then ready to head through the Gilmerton Bridge at 1730 after the rush hour closure period. However, the railroad folks had other plans.  Fortunately we only had to wait 30mins, the tug and barge ahead of us and others were waiting for 60mins. 

Finally at 6pm the bridge opened and we were on our way.

   The Portsmouth basins were full so we proceeded up to the anchorage off of Hospital Point. It was relatively empty, except for the buoy in use for the Monday night racing club. We got to watch the racers round the course in some fairly light but gusty winds. 

   It was a quiet night and we were on our way for Fort Monroe the next morning.