• Tangier Island, VA to Great Bridge, VA
• Great Bridge, VA to Columbia, NC
• Columbia, NC to Aurora, NC

October 19-21

playing limbo under the boom

First of all, I’ll just get my complaining out of the way right now.  No, I’m not going to complain about the brown water, or waiting for draw bridges to open, or the monotonous yet stressful navigation of this LOOOOOOONG stretch of water.  I am, of course, going to make a grammatical complaint.  This 1,658 mile stretch of connected canals, bays, and rivers runs from New York to the west coast of Florida.  It is called the Intracoastal Waterway, which should be abbreviated to the IW, not the ICW.  Ok, I’m done.  No more complaining, though most laypeople will wonder why I’m NOT complaining by the time I’m done describing the last three days.

Container cranes in Norfolk, VA

We left Tangier Island like we were on fire.  We are getting pretty antsy about getting to North Carolina so that we can start in on our long and growing list of boat projects before we leave for the Caribbean on or about November 4^th.  The wind was 15 knots and pushing us onto the dock, but Chris laid on the starboard bow thruster until we managed to push off, gunning it so that we wouldn’t crash into the pilings.

Here comes a container ship now…

We headed into the CPB (I’m going to start calling the ChesaPeake Bay this just to drive home my point.  Ridiculous, right?) and set a rhumb line for Hampton Roads, Virginia, the bay that encompasses Norfolk and Hampton.  We planned on staying in Hampton for the night and starting the ICW the following day.   We managed great time and hit Hampton Roads by 1500.  We were tired from three days straight on the move, but we decided to push on and get some of the ICW under our belts.  After all, we had to traverse 150 miles of it to get to Aurora, where my mom and Sal live.  As soon as we made that decision, Chris went down below for something and we hit two pieces of wood with huge nails coming up out of them.  There was a thunk-thunk-thunk and then they spit out the back of the boat.  I spent the next hour waiting for the boat to just start sinking.  Chris was more practical and pulled our bed apart to look at the hull to see if any water was coming in.  We don’t see any damage, but I’m sure the bottom of the boat didn’t get away unscathed.  We won’t know until we dive under the boat when we get to the Caribbean.

We think red buoy “36” is Mile Marker 0 on the ICW

We motored past Norfolk after waiting 15 minutes for a cruiseship to leave the dock.  It needed the full width of the channel to maneuver.  We took a picture at mile marker “0” and we were on our way.  The ICW is known for its shallow depth, bridges, and locks.  It is quite narrow at times and contains bodies of water such as the Albermarle Sound, which is large and shallow, creating choppy and confused seas that can stop boats in their tracks for days.  You might be wondering why we have chosen this route, with names like Alligator River and The Dismal Swamp?  Apparently, as awful as this route is, it is way less daunting than going “outside”, in the Atlantic Ocean.  I’m still not sure why, since we sailed 270 miles through the ocean to get to the Delaware Bay and we are about to sail TWELVE HUNDRED miles through aforementioned ocean to get to the BVI’s.  But the ICW it is.

big ships in Norfolk

Before docking for the night, we went under 8 bridges and through one lock.  Some of the bridges are fixed and have a vertical clearance of 65 feet.  Our boat needs 62 feet of vertical clearance, so we basically held our breath going under those ones.  The other bridges are closed and you have to hail the bridge operator on the VHF to request an opening.  One bridge only opens on the half hour, so we had to wait around in neutral for about 20 minutes for that one.  While we were waiting, Chris whipped up some lemon chicken with rice and peas.  I ate standing up at the helm, trying to keep a 47 foot sailboat from moving around.  We wound our way down the ICW, under the bridges, past all the buoys, and constantly checking our paper charts, our iPhone charts, our laptop charts, and our chartplotter, which is built into the boat.  The dredged channel in some areas was extremely narrow and we had very little margin for error.  If we veered off course for even a few feet, we could find ourselves grounded in four feet of water (we need 5’ 7” of depth).

By the way, this youtube video is crazy.  A boat with an 85 foot mast had to get under the 65 foot fixed bridge.  See how he did it.  Tell me you don’t watch it and think, “This guy has b—s.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiv0fxFcV3I

workers going home for the night

Due to the delays from the cruiseship and the one bridge, we didn’t get to the locks until it was dark.  If you aren’t familiar with locks, they are a system where one body of water is dammed into two parts so that one side can have a higher level of water than the other.  In order for boats to get from one side to the other, a middle “room” is made, with swinging doors on each side.  One set of doors is opened and the boat enters and ties up to the side.  The doors are closed and water is pumped into the “room” to bring the water level up to that of the other side.  Then the opposite doors are opened and the boat can leave.  Boats coming the other direction do the same thing except that the water is drained from the “room”.  Don’t ask me why they have to have the water at two different levels.  I have no idea.

yup. we have to get under that bridge.

Well, we have never gone through locks in our boat, so we were pretty nervous.   I have been through locks many times.  I lived on a boat on the Shinnecock Canal in Hampton Bays (Long Island, NY).  There is a lock system on that canal as well.  The only trouble is I was about 16 years old the last time I went through.  Not exactly fresh in my mind.  The fact that it was pitch dark out didn’t help.  I guess that was poor planning.

plenty of inches to spare

We approached the 4 red lights ahead, which was all we could see, and had no idea what to do next.  So we hailed the lock operator on the VHF and I just admitted that we didn’t know what we were doing and we needed help.  Please.  Thanks.  The operator was very friendly and came down to help us tie up alongside.  The whole place was lit up with lots of floodlights, so it ended up being easy, fun and exciting.  The lock operator even called ahead to the next bridge to let that operator know we were coming and needed the bridge to be lifted.  He also told us that we could tie up on the pier just past the bridge and stay for the night for no charge.  Yay!

We went under the bridge, stopping up Saturday night traffic on the highway for about a mile, and pulled up to the pier.  We tied her up, went inside, and I couldn’t believe how tired I was.  I had to lay down for ten minutes before I could even think about what else we needed to do.  We got the kids to bed, Chris started working on the head, I did the dinner dishes, and then I decided that I had hit a wall.  Tangier Island to the Great Bridge Bascule Bridge in one day.  Holy Smokes.

the kids play Legos….

The next morning, Chris and Bryson started up the engines early and we were on our way before the rest of us woke up.  We had a full day ahead on the ICW, including many more bridges and the dreaded Albermarle Sound.  The wind was looking after us and we were running with the current all day.  With the current and the wind behind us in the Albermarle, the waves didn’t act up and we sat back and enjoyed the sunshine, being careful not to look down, else we be reminded of the mud brown water below us.

…while I clean the fenders. (before and after)

By evening, we had made it to the Alligator River Bridge.  We decided to stay at the Alligator River Marina, due to the glowing reviews they gave themselves in the cruising guide.  Oh, and the fact that this was the only place to get fuel before we hit my mom’s house.  We got diesel, tied up the boat, took showers, and headed to the Restaurant, which just so happens to be attached to the Gas Station and the Convenience Store.  We all chose to have the “Country Fried Chicken”, which the menu claimed was “worth the extra wait”.  I’m not sure what possessed us to do this since it had taken 15 minutes just to get our menus.  I think the waitress was also the chef and the checkout person at the convenience store.  I would not be surprised if she was also outside pumping gas in between customers.  The kids and I amused ourselves by going “shopping” at the convenience store while we waited for our food, assuming that we would be waiting awhile.  Chris wanted circus peanuts, but we couldn’t find any.  Here’s what we did find:

• T-Shirts featuring the Guist Brothers from Swamp People
• Box wine on the same shelf as the motor oil and cleaning supplies
• All the beef jerky you could imagine
• “Souveniers” from the Alligator River (such as baby sharks preserved in formaldehyde, “displayed” in glass containers)
• Pork Rinds, Little Debbie Cakes, devil dogs, Sno Balls, etc, etc.  But no circus peanuts.

We finished our dinners and went right to bed, tired as the dickens.  At midnight, the security alarms started blaring from the Restaurant/Gas Station/Convenience Store.  Being as we were 7 miles from “town”, it was awhile before we had quiet again.  We decided to lock the door.

up and at ’em!

Up again early, and we were the first ones out of the marina, followed closely by two decrepit sailboats that looked like they had been around the world six times.  We called to have the bridge opened for us as we motored towards the sunrise.  Another long day lay ahead.  We had to go 70 miles to get to Mile Marker 155, which is where Campbell Creek veers off of the ICW towards their house.  The day went on and on, but we got lots of schoolwork done and I spent every minute on watch scrubbing our fenders.  I have tried every vinyl cleaner and fender cleaner out there, but it turns out that Black Streak Remover is the magic potion.  You know.  In case you are having similar fender issues.

Chef Chris delivers fresh made pizzas to me while I’m driving down the ICW

sunrise going under the Alligator River Bridge

i don’t see many sunrises:)

In two spots, the dredged channel was so narrow that our depth sounder made our hearts pound as we watched it plummet, not realizing we had veered out of it.  It was strange to be in a river that was ½ a mile wide and only be able to stay in the middle, with about 10 feet of error on each side of the boat.  We learned not to hug the marks, but to stay directly in the center of the channels at all times.  At one point, the sounder said “6.2”.  Not possible since we draw 6’ 7” empty.  But we didn’t run aground.  Knock on wood.

We are followed through the Alligator River bridge by two other sailboats going south on the ICW

As we approached Campbell Creek, we radioed ahead to Mike and Kathy Orr (my mom and Sal’s neighbors, whose names are so similar to our Ho-Ho-Kus friends, Mike and Kathy Orbe).  Mike and Bill Garrison came out on Bill’s fishing boat to guide us into the canal, which is off our chart and very shallow in places.  We felt like superstars, getting our own private escort up the creek.  We would have enjoyed it more if Chris and I weren’t holding our breath, waiting any moment to run aground.  But we didn’t.  Knock on wood.

our private escort up Campbell Creek!

Coolest part of the ICW: seeing a Bald Eagle

We tied up easily at the Orr’s dock, right next to their sailboat, s/v Braveheart.  We welcomed them aboard and shared sailing stories for awhile before we had to finish cleaning up and packing up some clothes for the kids, who would be sleeping at Gma and Gpa’s house.  We made it, but we were too pooped to celebrate.  I refuse to acknowledge that we will eventually have to leave here and continue on in the ICW.  Welcome to the Hotel California…

waving to one of the many bridge operators along the way

Almost half-way to Aurora….

Annapolis, MD to Solomon’s Island, MD to Tangier Island, VA

October 16-20 (way before Sandy)

“An electrician, a rigger, and a mechanic walk onto a boat…..”

Reese earns some allowance while we take care of boat projects

We spent another two days in Annapolis, getting some work done.  This time we stayed on Back Creek, at a marina.  We were able to borrow a car to get supplies from West Marine and the supermarket, which was great.  The electrician came and inspected all the electrical systems on the boat, especially the batteries.  We were concerned about how they were charging, but he gave us the “all clear” on everything and we breathed a sigh of relief.

Reese works on her October book report.

Next came the rigger.  We had a new halyard installed for our mainsail, fixed the inner forestay, re-spliced the halyard that broke, and moved the spare jib halyard to the port wing halyard (for the spinnaker or to pull the dinghy out).  He was up the mast for hours but all went smoothly, except when a bird flew right into him, 62’ up in the air and he started screaming.  I flew up top in a panic, thinking that his harness had broken and he was about to plummet to the deck.  Even the dockmaster came running over and was worried.  It was kind of funny after we all calmed down.

Finally, Karl the Mechanic came.  He is an expert on Fisher-Panda generators and walked us through changing the oil and the maintenance schedule.  He also pointed out some installation errors that had been made.  More items for Chris’ project list…

Jeff and Mary from s/v Echo

Meanwhile, the kids and I were busy with schoolwork.  I also did laundry and started plugging away at paperwork that has to be done before we leave the states.  We found some time to paddle board over to s/v Echo to see Jeff and Mary before we left.  They were also getting work done on their Beneteau 473.  I enjoyed sharing storage and outfitting ideas with them, since our boats are so similar.  We applied the name of our website to our boom as well, which was a difficult project.  It took four of us to put it on evenly without any air bubbles.  Chris and I worked late into the night, installing our new Manson Supreme anchor, cutting our anchor chain and marking it with depths to make it easier to deploy.

I’m told that if two boats are sailing in the same direction, they’re racing.

We left Annapolis on Thursday, October 18^th and are seriously “headin’ south” as the cruisers we meet like to say.  Seems you don’t have to be any more specific than that when conversing, probably because most of us haven’t completely solidified our plans. Hurricane Season officially ends in less than two weeks, which means that all of us who are “heading south” are gearing up, provisioning with food and other staples, doing last minute boat projects, and checking the weather forecasts.  What we are NOT doing is actually deciding where to go and how exactly to get there.  There is no right answer and too many viable options, none of which are without challenges.

Son of a son of a sailor

Cruisers are holing up in places like Hampton, VA; Beaufort, NC; and Morehead City, NC.  Some will go to Bermuda, some to the British Virgin Islands, some to the Bahamas, and some will head straight down the coast to Florida.  Our plan is to stay in Aurora, NC, where my mother and stepfather live, until October 30^th.  We will complete a number of boat projects and provision with food, school supplies, and anything else we might not be able to get outside the U.S.  On October 30^th, we will move the boat to nearby Beaufort, NC, where we will go Trick-or-Treating with our friends from the Full Monty and maybe even Anything Goes.  My dad should arrive shortly thereafter so that we will be able to leave for the British Virgin Islands as soon as we are given the okay by our weather guru, Chris Parker.

One project checked off: new boom lettering for our website.

Projects to complete by November 1 include, but are definitely not limited to the following: fix the aft head ASAP; install our new watermaker; change the oil in the engine and outboard; make an additional bookshelf; complete Satellite phone setup; install new WiFi system; seal forward hatches for passage; install new magazine racks; install shelving in the aft starboard locker; clean and tape the stantions and railings; polish and buff hull and transom; fill propane tanks; buy replacement PFD cartridges; practice EPIRB drill; practice emergency engine start and shutdown; sew canvas storage bags for aft starboard cabin; buy storage bin for freezer and bins for bilge; and thoroughly clean the boat while we have free and easy water.

Reprise pic of my new boots from FB

We have started plowing through some of these items, focusing on ordering any parts and supplies we need from the internet so they are delivered to my mother’s house before October 30^th.  Meanwhile, we still have to get to Aurora.  We left Annapolis on Thursday, October 18^th with dim prospects for a decent trip.  Sure enough, the wind was on our nose and the seas were 3-4’ and growing.  There was a small craft advisory in effect.  It was a slow, bouncy ride and we didn’t get to Solomon’s Island, MD until sunset.  After borrowing Chris’ Dubarry seaboots on our last passage, I finally broke down and bought a pair at the Annapolis Boat Show.  The only thing that made this trip bearable was that I had the perfect excuse to bust out my new boots.  Oh my.  They are sublime.  Warm, dry, and comfortable all day.  I even slept in them for a bit while snuggling with my tired little Porter.

Staying up on deck feels better in the swells

We had a tough time docking the boat because the wind was pushing us onto the dock.  I had to set all four dock lines and line up the fenders perfectly to the pilings after jumping off a moving boat, onto a wet and slippery dock, in heavy winds.  It wasn’t pretty, but we managed.

I can assure you that a beer never tasted this good.

A short walk up the dock brought us to the clubhouse of the Solomon’s Island Yacht Club.  What a nice and homey setup they had.  The main floor was one open room with a bar on one end.  There were about 15 people there, talking, drinking, and laughing.  The crowd was older and they were all very nice to us.  We each had a well-deserved beer to celebrate the long trip and to warm our insides.  The bartender gave us three Shirley Temples to bring back to the kids on the boat.

I brought the drinks to the kids, who were still on the boat, and they decided to go up to the clubhouse to thank the bartender and collect Chris, who was still schmoozing with the folks at the bar.  Apparently, they don’t get many kids around, because they fell in love with Bryson, Reese, and Porter and had them telling our whole saga.  They came back to the boat with gigantic smiles on their faces as they plopped down a bag of Halloween candy that the ladies had insisted they take back.  Super.  But now they had to go back with our boat cards (business cards with our names, email address, website, and cell numbers.  All the cool cruisers have them:)  They handed out half a dozen and met the Commodore of the club while they were at it.  We fell asleep after eating a quick dinner of sausages and spaghetti with salad.

Chris splices ropes, following instructions on YouTube, while “driving” the boat in the middle of the Chesapeake. You know, hard core, old school style.

By 0730 the next morning, we were getting under way again.  It would have been fun to spend more time on Solomon’s Island, but our project list and that departure date are making Chris and I pretty antsy.  The sooner we get to Aurora and get started, the better. There were more small craft advisories in the forecast for Friday, but when we got up, the waves were quiet and the wind was still at bay.  We got fuel and a pumpout and raced out of the harbor, following another sailboat and a large powerboat.

Union Lunch Break.

It was raining, but the radar showed that we would sail out of it pretty quickly.  We sailed out of the rain, and into the fog.  Heavy fog stayed with us for a few hours but then it cleared and the sun came out.  It was another long day at sea, but it makes such a difference when you aren’t smashing into the waves.  We were able to do our schoolwork without a problem and Chris even worked on small projects up in the cockpit, such as splicing lines (braiding the end of a rope back onto itself).  I got to catch up on the phone with my friend Christine and Reese texted her friend Kelli.

entering Tangier Island’s harbor

When we finally saw land again (that’s right.  The Chesapeake Bay is so large that you can’t see across it at this latitude.), we were thrilled.  Tangier Island, VA  was our next stop.  The Chesapeake guidebook didn’t make it sound too promising, but we went in anyway and yelled over to the dockmaster that we wanted a slip for the night.  He told us to take slip number 8 and pointed to the right.  We made our approach and both Chris and I agreed that the pilings were a little too close together for a boat of our size.  The cross wind would make it an extra-tricky to back into the slip.  The dockmaster walked over to assist us and Chris yelled over the wind, “How wide are the pilings?”  He deadpanned back, “Wide ‘nuff.”  We decided we liked him right then and there.  Hilarious.  But he took pity on us and found a dock space for us to pull alongside, which was marginally easier.

We were told ahead of time that the accent of the locals is heavy and laborious but that it is getting weaker now that they have television.  Now that they have television?  But the dockmaster was very pleasant and great to talk to.  I asked him what we should see in town and he said, “Weeeellll, I don’t really know.  I just moved here.  Eighty years ago noooowww.”

The tide is high, but I’m holding on…

He then went on to tell us all about the place, starting with his house, which was conveniently located at the end of the dock.  He told us all about the 17 cats he owns.  He also suggested that we wait a bit till the tide goes down before exploring town.  I wasn’t sure what that meant until the kids and I walked to the end of the dock and discovered not only the 17 cats, but that, sure enough, the high tide was up and over his lawn, the “road”, and pretty much everywhere else we could see.  Yup.  Might want to wait apiece…

Porter climbs over the wreckage of a fish shack since the road (left) is under water. No, not from Hurricane Sandy. Just “high tide”.

Tangier Island is a small place and feels a little lost in time and kind of down on its luck.  There is no internet or cell phone coverage, which seems to be my new barometer of a place.  I’ve definitely been living in suburban NJ too long!  There is one tiny grocery store, two closed gift shops, and two restaurants.  A church, a post office and a school round out the town.  People drive around in golf carts, though we did see one car.  The houses were sadly run down and some were even falling apart, left in a pile of rubble.  We were told that the island was so remote for so long that a large number of inhabitants share one of only three surnames.  The water table is so high that the cemeteries are “New Orleans” style, with the concrete crypts above ground.  What is a little more unusual is that some graves are placed right in people’s front and backyards.  I have never seen that before.

We spent the afternoon on boat projects, chatting with the two other boats that came in just before us, and playing with the kids.   One of the boats was called “Cool Change”, which is the name of my favorite song about sailing.

Porter pulls the kids up the mast (sort of. he’s just tailing the line.)

Bryson and Reese got a huge treat in the late afternoon.  They have been wanting to go up the mast on our bowson’s chair so we set it up and offered them the chance.  They loved it!  Be sure to check out the videos we took on YouTube once I post them. Bryson wore our GoPro Hero video camera on his head and the views are really cool.  How many of you would try it?  If you said “yes”, how about if Porter was in charge of tailing the line????  We suddenly realized that it was getting late, so we ran up the road to the restaurant for dinner. Thank goodness it was low tide!

Bryson on his way up…

Reese and Porter waving to Bryson

proud and happy

62 feet above the deck…

all smiles

When can I do it again?????!!!!

They can probably untie the dock lines at this point…

Sunset on Tangier Island

Flat Mema and Flat Bestefar drive the boat for awhile so we can have a rest…

Note in “realtime”: To all our northeast coast friends and family, we are so concerned about all of you and hope you get power restored quickly and repairs done safely.  We love and miss you all and hope that reading about our adventures will provide a moment of relief and pause during this stressful time.  Stay tuned for our own saga of surviving the storm in North Carolina…