Halloween 2007
Even though the rain and wind had not halted we felt compelled to move on from Sarah Creek. Well…at least one of us did. Though the winds were fair, blowing in the direction we wanted to go, there was more than what was needed. The drizzling rain was another unnecessary component. Then after 4 hours, as we rounded Old Point Comfort with opposing wind and tides over Thimble Shoals (a very shallow body of water), the wave action created by all these forces was - in point - very un-Comfortable. One of us was really, really glad to finally arrive at Hampton River.
It took two days for the front to finally move through with all of its wind and rain. The silver lining in all those rain clouds was that it helped us to make the decision to transit the Great Dismal Swamp Canal. The canal, though scheduled for its last day of operation on October 30th due to limited water tables, has now become more doable for us. With our 6’1” draft we barely are eligible for the canals guaranteed 6 foot water depths, but the rains have given us a chance we were not willing to miss.
What a great way to spend Halloween…sailing down the dark, coffee-colored, tree-overhanging, narrowly-winding channel that boasts the motel that Edgar Allen Poe supposedly stayed at the night he wrote The Raven. Though the GDSC is man-made and masterminded by George Washington, it does have an almost primeval aspect. Not that we are sissies or anything, but we decided to ask the crew (Richard and Andrea) of Saeta if they wanted to join us. Being the adventurers they are they said yes, and so we planned on buddy-boating down the swamp together, keeping an eye out for one another and for things that go bump-in-the-night ...and under-the-keel.
We needed to cross the busy and mostly US Navy port of Norfolk before enter the Intra Coastal Waterway system. Many Navy ships, tugs moving barges, containers ships heading both ways....Whew!! We are glad to have that behind us. About halfway through our GPS went crazy moving our position back and forth miles each way. We called a passing tug and asked if he was experiencing the same thing. He replied that he was having radio problems and that he thought the Navy was 'up to something again.' We recycled the GPS and after a prolonged satellite acquisition sequence we were back in busines
October 29th, Day One of our Dismal Swamp crossing began with getting passed through Deep Creek Lock, being elevated 8’ and locked in, and Dismally committed. We docked the first night at an eerily quiet dock. It was a free dock, but we found ourselves wondering what price we would later have to pay. Even the $1.00 beers we found when we dinghied to the only restaurant in town did not ease our minds about the dues we might later get charged.
Next mornings dawn arrived with a vaporous fog that blanketed the water, obscuring our view. What lay hidden in the fog? In the water? What perilous events could occur to Kloosh and crew?
With the bridge opening we were off! The read out on our depth meter looked like a bear market on Wall Street…. had to just get over watching that depressing litany.
Within the first mile there came up from the soles of our feet the vibration of contact with an object with the consistency of granite. After that gut wrenching scrape we had at least eleven more encounters of the too close kind with objects on the bottom. None were close to the intensity of the first and the bottom never did reach up and grasp our keel but our awareness of how Kloosh moved through the water remained at DEFCON 1 ( our national highest alert level).
Trees were close to our mast the whole way and twice as we dodged reported submerged obstructions, getting very close to the banks, our mast touched the branches and twigs fell on the deck.
As we progressed along our way in the 'Swamp' the “Key Lime Pie” like green scum on the water thickened until it was broken only by our bow passing through, then closed quickly astern as we passed.
Even the stray ugly duckling found itself a** deep in green swamp scum….
Though John prides himself in never succumbing
to Halloween decorations this year proved his undoing. While most people we know buy their cob webs at the store we collected ours in the wild. By the end of the canal the boat was draped in cob webs with the crew busy repelling eight legged boarders…arachnophobia afloat!
Our travels were somewhat appeased when we reached South Mills Lock where we were to be released from ‘The Swamp’ and found a TV crew filming the brave (crazy) souls that transited the last authorized transit of the Dismal Swamp for 2007.
October 24, 2007
We wanted to start this entry out with a BANG!!
Now, just to catch up with our slow posting, we stopped in Deltaville, VA after leaving Solomons Island as a dedicated-to-some-maintenance stop. While we were there we did all the scheduled engine and battery fluid changess.
The waterline seems to be a fertile place for the flora and fauna of the sea. Our bottom paint that is designed to protect against this is about ¼ inch short of the new waterline that occurred after we put all our ’Stuff’ on board. So now scrubbing off the growth is similar to mowing the lawn once a week.
We also added AIS which stands for Automatic Identification System. This is a radio based system that any vessel over 300 tons is required to have with a transmitter aboard that sends out pertinent information about that vessel and its movements. We installed a receiver so now we have information about most commercial vessels which overlays on our navigation program. By clicking on a ship icon we find out the vessels name, type of vessel, speed, heading, destination, and most importantly the closest point of approach between us and them and when that will happen. We were able to avoid two tugs the very next day. One by simply changing our course and the other by hailing the captain on the radio and arranging passing directions in a narrow channel.
Our sail from Deltaville to Sarah Creek turned into a rousing day on the water. For nearly three hours we cut the engine and sailed in building winds with gusts to 29 knots. As we rounded the peninsula between the Rappahannoc and York Rivers we went from hard on the wind to wind on our beam and then port quarter. This photo of the red ‘tell-tales’ on our headsail do tell the tale of a sail fully winded and properly trimmed. When the ribbons lay flattened to the sail the air flow over the sail is at its most efficient.
After arriving in Yorktown, VA we first visited the museum and battlefields of Yorktown, the site of Cornwallis’ surrender to George Washington. One only has to stand on the immense earthen works constructed so many years ago by the hands of underfed, raggedly dressed soldiers to be in awe. The opposing will of nations was decided here 226 years ago.
Walking no mans land between the redoubts on a beautiful fall day as a citizen of the prosperous nation that evolved by events settled here is indeed a privilege. And an appetite builder! To remedy that we ordered Fried Oyster Stew to begin our evening meal at the Riverview Restaurant, knowing that our time is coming to an end to enjoy this Chesapeake treat.
Day Two of the American History Tour found us on the bus to Jamestown. 400 years ago the first English Settlers arrived and set up house keeping. It was tough in the first years with only 60 survivors out of the 500 that landed, but more kept coming. At the Historical Jamestown site archeologists are carefully excavating the area attempting to understand more about these adventurous people in our nations past.
At the Jamestown Settlement we took in a recreation of the settlement with period actors, an authentic Palawan Indian village, a fort, and, since it is on an ocean view lot, a marina, with replicas of the first 3 ships that landed here.
As we write this we are hunkered down in Sarah Creek waiting for a front to pass. It has been raining hard so we are hopeful that the Dismal Swamp is filling. This region is experiencing a drought so this afternoon’s deluge is welcomed by the locals and transiting sailors alike. Due to the drought the Dismal Swamp Route of the Intra Coastal Waterway has been limited to only two openings a day of the locks required to enter. We hope this changes that so we can continue south by this colorful alternate route.
Afew more pic's...
In the Wigwam
Tobacco Row
In the Fort
Jamestown Marina....
Thanksgiving is coming up - turkey picking starting soon...
October 16, 2007
Cruising the Chesapeake Bay has been the most pleasant portion so far of our migration south. While the winds have been light we still have been able to sail more when we move from one beautiful secluded anchorage to the next.
From the St Michaels area we continued south along the Chesapeake’s eastern shore, the Choptank River and then on to the Little Choptank River. This area is filled with life but sparsely populated with people from our boating perspective. Instead of rush hour traffic noise in the mornings it’s Canadian Geese waking us. So many flights of them going over in all directions it is truly amazing. We have come to believe all the noise they make is from the ones in the back of the Vee asking “Are we there yet?” over and over. Or maybe it’s the helmsman getting varied opinions from the navigators in the back?
The weather has cooled from the high 80s we had while we were in Annapolis to around 70 during the day and cooler at night. It is wonderful being able to leave the large hatch above our bunk open at night in this perfect for sleeping temperature weather. Added to that is star gazing away from the light pollution of big cities on a gently rocking boat which makes for restful nights.
Since we were so well rested, steeped in serenity, and in need of a few fresh provisions we decided to head across the Chesapeake back to civilization. Our choice was Solomans Island, MD. Seclusion became a distant concept as soon as we entered the harbor. The area of Back Creek the guide book guided us to was absolutely packed with boats. We opted for a mooring and paid $25.00 which gave us all the services of a slip; dinghy dock, laundry, showers, trash disposal, and the chance to hike to the grocery store.
Later we watched a boat at least 50 feet long go past us headed up the creek to the anchoring area. We were amazed that he found room to squeeze in among the boats already there. Of course we both broke out the binoculars and watched. There was some arm waving and discussion from some of the boats there but he stayed.
Hey we’re not nosey - we were trying to pick up anchoring technique? Actually since cruisers don’t have TV watching others anchor through binoculars is a good substitute for evening entertainment. You just know when you pull into an anchorage where there are other boats it is not a good idea to do any scratching, picking, or anything else mom told you not to do in public ‘cause it is your turn to be in someone else’s binos.
We left Solomans Island early bound for the border. Our next night’s anchorage found us in Mill Creek, Virginia. The entrance is a bit tricky but navigator Cheryl saved helmsman John’s bacon once again and kept us from keel anchoring – running aground. Once inside we were the only boat to anchor in a space that would have held thousands of boats at the density of the Solomans Island anchorage. Three other boats came in later but they were all competent so entertainment was confined to browsing the internet.
Our Canadian Goose alarm clock woke us right at sunrise so we took the opportunity to shoot a few. Pictures of the sunrise I mean, it was a Kodak moment.
October 10, 2007
From Rock Hall, MD to Sherwood Forest, MD is a pretty short trip in distance but much longer in the impressions on us.
Once upon a time in Maine we met a wonderful couple sailing on a Pearson 365, called Abottsford II, near Snow Island. This couple actually lives in Sherwood Forest and practices the time honored tradition of reaping riches from the good life ashore and giving to poor itinerate sailors that they invite into their realm. Doug & Charlotte are truly living up to the traditions of their place of residence.
We anchored in Brewer Creek, a most picturesque spot, in front of their house and went with them to the Annapolis Boat Show on Friday and the SSCA Gam on Saturday. The Boat Show is billed as the largest in the world and is filled with boating enthusiasts and those that prey on them. Boats, boat parts, clothing, anything and everything that you didn’t even know you needed for your boat is proudly displayed with “Boat Show Once In A Lifetime” prices. Cheryl and I were strong and resisted for the most part, of course, we went to the seminars so were out of the commercial side for most of the day. What an educating experience to listen to and to meet sailing icons Don Street and Jimmy Cornell!
Saturday was the SSCA Gam, (Seven Seas Cruising Association party), which was jam packed with even more pertinent information. We learned rope handling, boat odor control, and listened to a couple from Colorado that circumnavigated South America.
We also met others doing the same thing as we, which is a great encouragement to us to persevere when conditions are less than desirable. Knowing that others we’ve actually met have put up with worse for longer periods of time gave us incentive. Some actually survive to tell the tale complete with slide shows.
After leaving Sherwood Forest and our fine hosts from Annapolis, MD we have been experiencing some of the best cruising we have had so far. The winds are light but that means the seas are flat. The Eastern shore of Maryland is so full of empty anchorages it is truly amazing. We just choose a river and then follow it until a likely looking creek forks off and we have found one serene anchorage after another. (Shaws Cove, Long Haul Creek) Most nights we are the only boat in sight and if it wasn’t for all the birds, especially the Canadian Geese, flying over there would be total silence. Of course we have some really loud Rap Music we play if any boat comes along that looks like they want to anchor near us - seems most of the yachting community is not into Rap??
Did we mention that Kloosh and Krew can stop traffic...both ways? With a mere radio call even bridges raise for us. Here we are transiting the Knapps Narrows, a canal through Tilghman Island.
Tonight we anchored off the Choptank River in the truly beautiful La Trappe Creek. With the water temperature in the mid 70’s as soon as we pulled in we took a dip to cool off before supper. This practice has been so totally relaxing that we have been unable to update the blog and wouldn’t have tonight either, if Cheryl hadn’t taken a chapter from Capt. Blye’s manual and threatened to let the cat out of the bag. (You’ll need to read up on the cat’o nine tales to know about this very effective tactic.)
More Later…
October 4, 2007
A little stow-away we found at the helm on our overnight sail off NJ
No blog updates have occurred until now because we have been out sailing! In fact, we have crossed the line…the Mason-Dixon Line that is. In the last five days we have moved from Sandy Hook, New Jersey, down it’s coastline to Cape Henlopen, Delaware, up the Delaware Bay and through the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal, to the Bohemia River in the Chesapeake in Maryland, to Rock Hall, Maryland where we finally set foot on land. Whew. A full five days of delivery mode was gratefully ended with a trip to shore to celebrate having arrived in the Chesapeake.
Along the way we had our first overnight sail, sailing about 140 miles in 27 ½ hours. During the day we had a beam reach with 15-20 knot winds and actually had to reef down the sails during the night to avoid arriving at Cape Henlopen in the dark and against the tide. We slowed Kloosh to about 3 knots off the shore of Atlantic City and enjoyed seeing the lights for most of the evening.
About 3 ½ hours after we arrived at Cape Henlopen Richard and Andrea Black on s/v Saeta arrived. They had sailed down from NYC during the night as we did. It actually turned into a Secptre sailboat rendezvous as Saeta is a sistership to Kloosh. Richard came aboard and we enjoyed talking with another Sceptre owner. Here is the website for Richard and Andrea. click here
We left early the next day for another full day (abut 67 miles) of sailing. Running with the tidal flow of the Delaware Bay helped us make good time when the light winds didn’t. The eastern winds of only 5-10 knots did help to keep the seas flat as they blew in the same direction as the flood Having heard about how treacherous the Delaware Bay can get with opposing sea and tides, we felt fortunate to again have nature’s forces working with us and not against us.
Arriving at the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal during its ebb to the west also helped pull us through at a decent clip. And when we departed the canal into the Chesapeake we felt a sense of relief. We had planned on getting Kloosh to the Chesapeake for over two years. And after sailing 997 miles we had finally accomplished just that. Sleep came easily that night as we anchored in the Bohemia River and lasted a little longer into the morning, too, which might have something to do with our celebrative nightcap of sixteen year old Lagavulin.
After a leisurely breakfast we sailed 36 miles to Rock Hall, Maryland, where we splurged for a slip for the night at the North Point Marina and a crab dinner on the town. It felt so good to set foot on land again that we even enjoyed our several mile walk to the grocery store the next morning. Kloosh had to feel good again, too, after we gave her a fresh water wash-down and scrubbing to clean off the sticky salt deposits.
Now our plans are to meet up with some friends and attend the Annapolis Boat Show, the world’s largest boat show… Stay tuned for more updates…