Crosstown Traffic

Day 11 - Saturday, May 7th, 2016

After a couple of busy weeks at home and work we picked up a one way car rental at the Rochester airport to return to Norfolk.  We left at 6:00 a.m. on a Saturday knowing that the dreadful DC Beltway was waiting between us and the boat.  We figured that Saturday traffic would be civilized.  Wrong again.  I happened to be driving that section of the journey and the expletives were flowing from my mouth like rain.  These people who put up with this daily are true road warriors.  Call me a bumpkin but I like living where traffic and even rush hour is no big deal and you do not have to pass an Offensive Driving Class to get your license.  Enough road rage rant.

We arrived at the marina around 4:30 p.m. and were amazed at how clean the boat was on the outside, unpacked the trunk load of stuff that we had brought, found a Food Lion to provision up with (oh, how I miss my Wegmans on these trips!).  Lugged the groceries back to the boat, changed all the bedding with the fresh laundry I had taken home and brought back with us.  Went out for dinner, took the rental car back to the airport and got an Uber lift back to the boat.  Anyone who calls this a "vacation", I will smack you!


GIMMEE SHELTER

Day 12- Sunday, May 8th, 2016 -- Happy Mother's Day

My sweetie had breakfast all ready for me since it was Mother's Day after all.  Hmmm, I have spent my birthday and Mother's day on this boat journey this year; I will put that in my book that all us women keep. 

I heard from all our kids telling me  to have a Happy Mother's Day and that made me happy. 

Our silly granddaughters......

Lili lost her tooth at school!

 

 

Carmen likes to play in the mud!

 

We left Norfolk, actually Portsmouth, at 7:00 a.m. amidst all the heavy commercial and military shipping stuff.  Being a history fenatic, I get a charge out of passing by the battle ships and aircraft carriers.  I was taking pix but  military gunboat guy started giving me the stink eye so I put the camera away.
The last time we passed thru here was the spring after 9/11 and I remember a lot more military presence out on the water.  Hope we haven't become too complacent again.  I'm sure there were eyes watching our every move.

After the Pamlico Sound beating that we took a few weeks ago, I was really dreading the big Chesepeake Bay journey.  We entered the bay and to my relief, it was only putting up a 1-2 footer fuss and the sun was bright and the sky and water was a pretty blue.   We headed for the famous Chesepeake-Bay-Bridge Tunnel. 

This amazing structure was built in 1964 and is 23 miles long.  It saves motorists 95 miles on a trip between VA Beach/Norfolk and points north and east of Delaware valley missing the Baltimore-Washington metro nightmare.  It has 2 (1) mile long each tunnels as well as the bridge that takes you so far out to sea it is hard to see land.  I took my gnarly little VW rabbit across this back in the 70's and I remember feeling the car being pushed by the wind on the huge bridge span.  Freaky.  It costs $13.00 to cross but is worth avoiding the lousy traffic.

We passed over one of the tunnels and our goal was to reach Solomons Island, MD before dark.  Mother nature, that bitch, had OTHER plans for us.  The beautiful conditions went almost instantly to hell.  The water turned black, the winds and waves picked up to where unsecured things were flying around the boat including out newish flat screen tv that was tied down but popped loose.  The bilge alarm kept going on and off, just  to add to the chaos.  

Dave told me to get on the Garmin and find a safe anchorage to get off the bay.  That Garmin app, once again, saved our butts.  We had to turn the boat and have the waves crash into us on the sides (a beam sea) and that was really the worst part.  We found a little cove among some cottages, dropped anchor and I waited for my heart rate to get back to normal once again.  I must give Dave credit here.  The old Dave would have pushed on--no matter what the conditions .  The revised Dave has my comfort more in mind.  He's still nuts but I love him.

While I had some wine Dave made a great Mother's day dinner for me.  He really likes to cook on the boat.  Cool. 

We were both pretty rung out from all the earlier excitement.  Dave went to sleep quickly but I've gotten into this bad habit of having to have my audio books put me to sleep--"Mommy, read me a story?".  It works though and has cured my insomnia.  About fifteen minutes into a book I am out.

I woke up a few times during the night dreading the continuation of the Chesepeake Bay journey in the morning.

Carry On
Day 13-Monday, May 9, 2016.

We woke up to this!  Happy us!  How quickly conditions can change on the water.  We eased our way through the crab pots.  I swear all the crab pot guys got together and had a meeting and decided they would all place the crab pots in the boating channel--just for laughs!

Goal for the day--Rock Hall, Maryland.  That's where we bought Blue Moon and a cute little waterfront town.

There with no issues getting to Rock Hall but had to negotiate the shallow waters into the quaint old marina that is also has an adorable, historic, B&B where we stayed a few years ago while they were getting the boat ready for us.

We called Jack Hefner, the broker who sold us the boat and asked if he and his wife Linda were free for dinner.  They were and picked us up.  We went to Waterman's Crab House and had a great meal and exchanged boating stories.  Jack is a pretty cool guy and looks like Jimmy Buffett.  He's been selling Island Packet sailboats and Menorquins (our boat) among others for years and will sell Blue Moon for us when the time comes.  He also owns a cool tropical Margaritaville style clothing store in Rock Hall.

6:00 a.m. shove off comes fast so we skipped trying to watch a movie and went to bed.  Tomorrow is the C & D Canal into the large Delaware Bay onto Cape May, New Jersey, and then the Atlantic Ocean coast run to New York City.

Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

Day 10-Tuesday April 19, 2016

George Washington once owned the land the Great Dismal Swamp Canal was built on.  Opening in 1850, this is the oldest continually operating man made waterway in the country.  Between 1810-1860 this was an important route on the Underground Railroad and played a part in  Civil War transportation.  But to get the Blue Moon to this magnificent example of human engineering in time for the all important bridge opening to get to the first lock (there are only 3 specific lock openings daily--no exceptions) we had to put the boat up on plane in a very tight, and of course very shallow path to the bridge.  I did not know the boat could go that fast!  We were out in the wilderness flying around twists and turns reminiscent of a scene from Apocolypse Now  where the GI gunboat was whipping thru the jungles of Vietnam looking for VC. 

Around one turn we barley slowed down in time to keep from swamping two very fat guys in a very small fishing boat.  The look on their faces was hysterical.  If I saw Blue Moon screaming towards me I'd have to change my underwear.

We made the lift bridge just in time.  The bridge operator let us through then got in his car and drove to first lock to open it for us.  This was at 3:30 p.m. on the dot.  We entered the Dismal Swamp Canal along with a little sailing ketch with two old hippies.  Dave said to ask them if they had any Maui Wowie and I was amazed that he knew what that was! ha

The canal is about 20 miles long and there was no rush to get to the other end because the next opening was the next morning at 8:30. The scenery is gorgeous and it may have been extremely dismal for the guys who dug the canal but it is not dismal for us pleasure boaters all these years later.

 

I was really glad there wasn't a boat coming at us from the other direction--no room to pass.

 

The water was brown from all the organic material ?

 

We went up top to the flybridge for a very scenic ride down the canal listening to some blues on Pandora while enjoying some wine.  We had to make sure to stay dead center in the channel for enough depth and leave no wake to destroy the fragile shoreline.  We looked for eagles, deer and bears but only saw some ducks.  Oh well.

Around 7:00 p.m. we came upon an idyllic spot to tie up to for the night.  It was a nice wall built next to a bike path.  We grilled a nice pork tenderloin, ate dinner on the back deck and watched the NBC Nightly News on the IPad.  I was thinking maybe the smell of the cooking meat would attract bears or raccoons but none showed up.  The raccoons on the boat while back on the Mississippi was enough wildlife for me.  It was a quiet peaceful night and that's a real good thing on a boat--or anywhere.

This is what we woke up to...

We had breakfast then locked through the second lock.

 

 

This threw us right into the heavy commercial and military area of the Norfolk/Portsmouth shipyards.  Not pretty.  We only had 5 miles to get to the marina where we were to leave the boat for a few weeks but first we had to wait for a railroad bridge to open--about 45 minutes. Then we were home free to the marina.  Dave washed the salt crystals off the boat while I packed up to go home. We Ubered a ride to the airport and picked up our one way rental car.  We wanted to make sure to time our departure so we would hit the DC Beltway traffic right a rush hour--and we did.  I realize this part of the country is a highly desirable place to live but the traffic is a deal breaker.  Just nuts.

 

We got home around 1:00 a.m. and crashed. 

 

Part 2 and the final trip home to continue in May.

 



 

19th Nervous Breakdown

Day 8-Sunday, April 17,2016

The pie was southern sin on a plate.  Lemon and chocolate fudge with homemade meringue.   Zena dropped it off and offered to do my hair for me.  She said she would curl it for me.  Like I need more curls.  It was then that I found out that her name isn't Zena at all. It's Tina.  Tina Turner.  Again, I shit you not.  I declined the hair styling offer.

Next morning, today, we had to time our departure to make a nearby swing bridge that opens strictly on the hour.  If you are five minutes late too bad for you.  It is near Camp Lejuene and they do live ammo exercises in the area.  Sometimes the ICW is closed for a few hours while they practice. Luckily, that was not the case today.  We made it thru the bridge and some serious zig zagging around the never ending shoaling--reminiscent  of Georgian Bay; only there you hit granite and not soft mud.

We passed this house:

 

Wonder who he's voting for??

 

 

Then the real challenge began.  How can I even explain the next part of the trip?

 

Imagine you are on a really freaky, extreme roller coaster ride that you wish you weren't on for 3 1/3 hours?  or you have strayed into a really bad part of town and can't find your way out? or you are cornered by some Jehovah's Witnesses in really bad suits and can't escape?  well, maybe not that one.  Anyway, on a scale of 1 to 10 the ride across Pamlico Sound was a 0.  A big fat 0.  The wind was blowing 25-30 mph with guts up around 39 mpg.  The sea was frothy white and crashing into the windshield and up over the boat (like on Deadliest Catch).   The windshield was a salty mess and the wipers could no way keep up.  Nine footers put me so far over my comfort level. Heavy duty Blue Moon was made for this, me?  Not so much!!  So why were we even out there in those conditions?  Good question.  We made the classic mistake of trying to keep a schedule on a boat.  Trying to get home makes you do questionable things.  I was a very unhappy camper until we got across the big bay and into a channel.

 

Now, this being hell is all from my normal person point of view.  My dear husband, who apparently has the "fear" chip missing from his hard drive was cool with it. 

 

We travelled up the calm channel for awhile until we came to the Mungo River.  River, big deal you think.  Piece of cake.  Time to hit this:

 

 

The same nasty ride up this river as the Pamlico Sound.  This time only 1 1/2 hours of feeling like you are in a blender on the puree setting.  I was so thrilled when we pulled into a little marina and there were 4 very sympathetic dockhands waiting to help us in the wind.  I tried to sell one of them the boat but no luck.

 

They have had boaters at their marina waiting 5 days for the wind to subside so they could do what we did today.  They are a whole lot smarter than us.

 

I was trembling for hours inside and had to walk around on solid earth for awhile to get over it.  I usually try my feeble attempt at humor in these blogs but this day was not in the least funny to me.

 

Dave has been stepping quite gingerly around me since we docked I must say.

 

But, tomorrow is another day.  The winds are supposed to subside and sun and warmth return.  We might traverse the picturesque Dismal Swamp.  It involves two little locks that only open certain times so we will decide that one in the morning.  Norfolk is our goal for Tuesday and then rent a car and go home  until Part 2 continues in a few weeks.



Southern Cross

Day 6 - Friday, April 15, 2016

Rainy-cold-wanted to stay in Charleston and watch Robbie race but we needed to move on.

 

Our race home is not all gorgeous sunsets and rainbows.  There are those wet and windy days.

 

 

 

Working our way up the ICW brought us through the Cypress forests.  They are such mythical looking trees.  They look like giant tree people walking in the water.  The base of the trunk would make an awesome table base.  I couldn't get Dave to stop and get one for me though.

 

 

 

We tied up at Barefoot Marina in North Myrtle Beach among the mega condos and restaurants.  Mike got an Uber lift to the airport to pick up a one way rental car to drive home tomorrow; back to Wikki-Wachee, Florida.  Sounds like a Looney Tunes cartoon name of a town to me.  I wish they weren't leaving us.  They came aboard as casual friends and now I feel that we are good friends and they are welcome to cruise with us on these little trips anytime they can.

 

 

 

We took advantage of Mike's car and picked up a few groceries.  We indulged ourselves once again at a House of Blues restaurant and were disappointed that we missed the Greg Allman band by a week or so. 

 

Day 7, Saturday, April 16,2016

 

We bid goodbye to Mike and Andrea, filled up with fuel and were off by 7:30.  Yesterday was a pretty raw day but today it's bright and sunny, if chilly.  I prefer this to 90 degrees anytime.  About and hour down the ICW we got good and stuck in the sandy mud.   Dave managed to wiggle us off again and we were outa there.  So shallow in this part of the south!  The shoaling in of the ICW is not a big priority for the Federal government apparently; much like the little emphasis New York State places on taking care of the  Erie Canal. These areas are mainly used by recreational boaters.

 

 

The name of this boat is hard to read but I shit you not it is "Buttery Nipple".  Does anyone know the origin or meaning of such a name?  Makes your mind conjure up all sorts of possibilities doesn't it? 

 

We've decided to perservere and get Blue Moon to Norfolk, VA by Monday so we can get a rental car and go back home for a couple of weeks.  So much going on for us right now. So what else is new?  We found a marina in Norfolk where Blue Moon can safely stay while we are gone.  Norfolk will put us a bit more than half way home.  I never thought we would get this far so soon!

 

After the Buttery Nipple passed us, we had to wait for an old swing bridge that only opens on the hour.  Of course we arrived at the bridge about 10 minutes after the hour so Dave had to hold the boat in the wind and the current until 5:00 on the button rolled around.  Reminded me of waiting for the locks on the Mississippi.  This forced us to stop for the night at a marina sooner than we planned.  If we went beyond this marina we surely would have been trying to find our way at low tide- in the dark-in a shallow ICW.  Uh-uh!!

I was already freaked out today by going under a bridge that I swore was too low for us.  The Captain was right and we got under it with maybe 6" to spare.  I might start drinking more.....

 

Anyway, I'm glad we ended up at the Swan Point Marina in Snead's Ferry, NC (right next to Camp Lejuene).  It's a rustic little marina owned by a mother and daughter.  Zena, the daughter, is the type of 40 something southern girl that country and western songs have been written about.  She met us on the dock to help us in wearing a shocking pink shirt and a southern accent so thick I could barely translate it.   Once we got tied up she hugged us both and welcomed us to Snead's Ferry.  Never been hugged by a dock hand before.  I shoulda' took her picture.  Right out of central casting.  I just know that on her arm she has her past beaus' names tattooed, crossed out, tattooed again and so on.  I love these little marinas--so reminiscent of the places we stopped at in Kentucky and Tennessee.  She said she will bring us some of her mama's homemade pie later tonight.

 

After a nice glass of wine we settled down and made dinner.  Looking forward to the pie that was promised us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 





 

 



When I'm 64

Day 5-Thursday, April 14, 2016

So we didn't make the carriage ride in time yesterday. There were slow going no wake zones and a rather choppy ride across Port Royal Sound and of course the stop by the sheriff ate up some time.  We made Beaufort City Marina in a swift current and windy situation.  I spotted some fellow Loopers docked on a trawler who saw us and jumped to our docking aid.  Boaters helping boaters.

We put on some warm clothes and walked into town.  Beaufort is MY city of choice in an alternate life.  It oozes southern charm and style and the  aura of American history is thick in the air.  You can feel it everywhere there.   Dave and I have spent some time  in Beaufort in years past looking at homes, writing purchase offers and then chickening out and wasting realtor's time.  We have tried to figure out a reason to be there long term but come up empty.  Too far away from family.  Family trumps all.

It was difficult choosing a restaurant because there were so many adorable ones to pick from.  We found one that was just right and had a wonderful meal.

Next morning (today) was indeed my 64th birthday and I woke up to Dave singing Happy Birthday in my ear.  This is my second birthday spent on a long boat journey.  First one was when I turned 50 and we had made the crossing to Pt. Lucaya in the Bahamas.  That morning I woke up to 50 pink, plastic, very tacky, flamingos attached all around the boat railing and a huge sign announcing my advanced age.  Dave, John and Ryan had gotten up early to place the little pink birds all around.  Haha  Still owe them for that one.

We rescheduled the carriage for this morning.

 

 

We did this same carriage ride 14 years ago on the last trip up the East coast but it was worth repeating.  We had the whole carriage to ourselves and a very interesting tour guide.  I love the Civil War stories and history of the houses.  Beaufort was one of the few southern cities that the Union did not burn.  That's because they were garrisoned there. 

 

There were dozens and dozens of huge oppulent mansions but this one would be just fine.  It's called the Itty Bitty house.

 

 

 

These hundreds of years old live oak trees are amazing.

 

 

 

The branches that touch the ground are revered and called angel wings.

 

We had to continue with the mission North and shoved off.

 

It was sunny and calm and a smooth ride up the ICW to Charleston.  We docked at Charleston City Marina on the Mega Dock row among vessels of beheamouth size.  Our boat looked like a dinghy to one of them.  But, those boats are run by crew and we are proud to say that we do it all ourselves.  

After some wine and cheese on the back deck we were off.

 

 

Mike had the Uber app on is phone so we pretended to be Millenials and took our first Uber ride!  Our kids should be so proud of us!  I am hooked on Uber now.  What a super idea.  Our daughter Crissy who lives in Denver uses it all the time.  I see why. 

 

We went to the Market section downtown and checked out some of the chic little shops.  Since it was my birthday the restaurant was my choice.  I wanted to go back to a place where we had eaten years ago.  Poogan's Porch.

 

 

It was written up in Southern Living magazine and it did not disappoint.  I was in search of fried green tomatoes.  I grew up on my mom's fried green tomatoes.  It's not really a northern thing so when in the south I always look for some and also pimento cheese.  After a 45 minute wait we enjoyed our meals including peanut butter pie in lieu of birthday cake.  We sang the Beatles When I'm 64 at our table at the risk of embarrassing ourselves. Then the waiter and the rest of my entourage sang Happy Birthday to me.  Carmen also face-timed me  and sang to me.  Such a lucky lady I am to be surrounded by all this love.

 

We waddled back to the street and I used my brand new Uber app.  Our car was there in 3 minutes.  It was his first night as a driver.  We went back to our Mega Dock and walked around looking at the huge boats for awhile before turning in for the night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 



 

 

 

 



I Fought The Law and the Law Won

Day 3-Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Under cloudy but dry skies we shoved off around 7:00 a.m.  While underway and in the shower I felt the bottom of the hull "kiss" the sandy bottom.  Capt. Dave managed to wiggle us out of it.  Still being in the Lake Ontario-plenty of water-state of mind, we neglected to check the tide tables and it was indeed low tide.  We continued on and got behind a string of slow moving sailboats in a very tight and shallow passage.  The upside was that it was a manatee area and we were entertained by these slow moving mammals also known as sea cows.  They live in 3-6 ft of water and sleep 50% of the time although they have to surface every 20 minutes to breathe.  They can live up to 60 years if man leaves them alone.

Throughout the day dolphins continue to chase the boat and it never ceases to emit squeals of joy from us. 

We said when we left home that this was not going to be a race to New York but I'm kinda' feeling that it is indeed the Cannonball Run 2.  We have so much going on at home and I really hope to be home for that magical week in western New York when the trees bud out and it looks like fairyland. 

It  was a calm and pleasant afternoon so we started researching anchorages for the night.  We were headed for a spot called Wolf Island Wildlife Refuge but first we had to negotiate some extremely shallow and troublesome shoaling areas--again at low tide!  Impatient we are...

We anchored in an idyllic spot just in time to enjoy some wine and dinner and catch a gorgeous southern sunset.

We assumed the bugs would drive us in and we were armed and ready with bug spray but no bugs.  It was a nice motion less night at anchor and we all slept peacefully.

Day 4 - Wednesday, April 13th, 2016

Dave and Mike got up at first light.  I did not.  I heard the anchor being lifted and felt the forward motion of the Blue Moon.  Not a particularly pretty day with a little drizzle going on but the boat needed a good boat wash to remove the salt crystals. Rain is a free boat wash. It was also a bit chilly out  but we were nice and warm in the cabin and our very aggressive goal for the day is Beaufort, South Carolina and a carriage ride through the antebellum city.  Last ride is at 5:00 p.m. so I hope we make it!

Some where near Savannah.....

 

Just a warning "this time".  While the sheriff was writing this welcome to Georgia for us, boats were blowing past us leaving huge wakes but they were all local and never got a head turn from Bubba the cop.  Oh well, Dave took it all in stride and off we were--a bit slower.  I understand the rules although THIS time we were going about as slow as Blue Moon can go and still maintain control of the displacement hull.  Cop did not care about our hull design.  (Oh Miz' Scarlet, I don't know nuthin' about birthin' no babies..."--I realize  very few of you will get that one.)

 

I hope this little delay doesn't make us miss our carriage ride!

 



 

 

 

Homeward Bound or With A Little Help From My Friends

Sunday, April 10, 2016

 

The big day finally arrived.  After 2 years the trip home-Part 1 begins!  We woke up to a perfect Florida boating day.  We are happy to have Mike and Andrea Stasko, friends from Pt. Breeze, along for Part 1.  We returned our rental cars and shoved off.  A big Selene trawler "Duet" that was docked across from us, left a bit earlier to make their 18th trip up the east coast to Rock Hall, Maryland, where we bought Blue Moon.

 

We familiarized Mike and Andrea with Blue Moon's little idiocyncrasies and settled in.  Our first hurdle of the day was waiting for a bridge passage about 1/4 mile from where we left.  Seems a barge was trying to squeeze through and it was a slow go since he only had inches to spare.  Mississippi River Deja Vu!  Hope that's the last barge we have to deal with until we get to New York City Harbor!

 

After being away from all this for 2 years Dave and I were a bit rusty.  Lost our boating mojo?  Naah.  We were about 1/2 hour up the river before we remembered that the large ball fenders were still swinging off the side of the boat.  Oops.  Slowed down to bring them in.  Do not want to loose them.  With Blue Moon's unique hull shape; those work the best for dock protection.

 

It was a nice, uneventful trip up the ICW (I think uneventful in boating and flying is a GOOD thing).  Since it was a pretty mild day we decided to anchor out for the night.  Using my trusty Garmin Bluewater Mobile App on the Ipad, we found a nice little anchorage called Honeymoon Lake.  There were a few other boats anchored there for the night, which always gives me that false sense of security that I am constantly looking for.

 

The anchor held in a nice sandy bottom while we enjoyed the homemade baked ziti that Andrea had brought along.  We sat on the back deck and had some wine and toyed with the idea of watching a movie but as usual, the sun and excitement of the day made us all pretty tired so we all went to bed early. 

 

It was a bit breezy and the boat was a bit bouncy and woke me up quite a few times during the night.  Our stateroom is in the bow of the boat so the constant slapping of the water against the hull and the sometimes squeeking of the anchor chain takes some getting used to again.  Therefore, I slept in the next morning while Dave and Mike maneuvered Blue Moon out of the anchorage and back onto the busy ICW.  There are many winter boaters heading north right now on this water highway.

 

Monday, April 11, 2016

 

Monday brought us fewer recreational boaters to deal with but there was this guy...

 

 

We  traveled steadily without major slow downs all day.  One sad little incident:  a bridge tender  on the VHF radio alerted boaters that there was a mother porpoise with a dead baby to look out for near the bridge.  She was pushing the baby along--aware or unaware of it's death?  Will never know.  We were joined by some playful dolphins a few times through out the day.  That made us feel better.

 

In the afternoon we all went up to the flybridge to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful homes and docks along the way.  We all fantasized about which one we would buy.

After nearly 12 hours on the water we pulled into the St. Augustine Municipal Marina.  We were here 14 years ago when we made this trip.  St. Augustine is still gorgeous.  There was a huge, new and shiny, 65 ft. Sea Ray docked next to us.  Do not miss the "plastic boat"--no offense Sea Ray owners.

 

The Stasko's treated us to a great dinner at the A1A restaurant.  It's so nice to hop off your boat and be right in the middle of a pretty little city within walking distance.

 

Again, we all crashed early knowing that tomorrow might be our last dry day for awhile.