Voyage 2008-2009: Chapter 2

We left the well at 0710 ET with W@15-20 kt winds and a chilly 57 degrees F on our face. We motored to Herring Bay G1 and unfurled the jib and 'jigger'. Winds were puffy but we achieved 8.3 kts STW which for us is lightning fast. Not bad. All was well until we turned into 'Pax' river and Ann slumped to the cockpit floor and begged "douse the gennie!" Bob obeyed and life was good. The wind was very puffy in the river and was nearly on the nose. The anchor was dropped at 1330 ET. SV First Edition followed us in and anchored just a bit close to Jule. We looked. They looked. Oh well, there was no wind and we were swinging at about the same rate. We said hi and they said hi. Not bad.

Today, First Edition left for repairs on their chartplotter which had been attacked by a lightning bolt a few weeks back. We headed for shore in the dinghy and tied up at the Holiday Inn where we subsequently found a Roy Rogers fast food restaurant. We loved Roy Rogers but there are not many of them left. Sadly, we really enjoyed our feast.,,so much that we bought a few more burgers for dinner. Lynn and Peter of SV First Edition returned to the anchorage but put a little distance between the boats. They invited us for drinks which we gladly accepted. We had a good time chatting and comparing notes. The next morning, we were greeted by two native swans who were interested in breakfast. Bozo Bob left his hat on First Edition so we hailed them and did a hat transfer as we left.

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5 Oct 2008, On to Reedville VA, 37 50.37 N/ 076 16.85 W

We left Solomon's at 0715 ET with light SE winds. At 0845, the winds increased to SE@15-20 kts. We raised the jib and 'jigger' but we were pinching and getting he heck beat out of us. So we turned around like the fair weather sailors that we were. However, at 0950 we received the latest weather report which indicated that the wind would back to the east today but veer to the south tomorrow. Fortunately, the wind was already heading for the east so we turned around again. It still was not very comfortable, especially as the wind died and the sea did not ease. We used the motor much of the day. We entered the Great Wicomico at 1550 ET and headed up the Cockrell Creek to Reedville. Anchor went down at 1650 ET with one other boat anchored near the Crazy Crab restaurant. Several of the locals came by to say 'hi' and tell us we should anchor on the 'good' side of the creek. We told them we would check it out the next day.

We got up at 0710 ET and proceeded to debug the 'toy' (chartplotter) as it was failing pretty routinely. While Bob was working on the 'toy' he broke his 12 volt outlet board. Needless to say he was not very happy. He managed to repair the board but another day would decide whether he fixed the toy. Later, we headed for the Crazy Crab for lunch (very good) and then explored the town. Part of the exploration was at the local ice cream store. Then we hopped into the dinghy to explore the 'good' side of the creek as we had promsed. There we met Dave working on his sailboat. He told us of the 5,000 sq ft house that was for sale next to him. Hmmm. No, not now.

The night was calm and the sunset quite brilliant as we contemplated the victory of the Washington Redskins against the Philadelphia Eagles (American football). Ann is crazy about football and her 'Skins'. We readied the boat for tomorrow's departure to Norfolk, weather permitting. Forecast is OK but who knows.

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7 Oct 2008, Leaving the Bay for Norfolk, 36 50.69 N/ 076 17.99 W

We awoke at 0530 ET as we needed a full day to arrive at Hospital Point before dark. Engine was on at 0640 ET and we discovered that the wash down pump was not working. It had lost prime with all of the pounding on our trip to Reedville. Bob quickly re-primed the pump and we were off at 0700 ET. Wind on the Bay was NE@5-8 kts. Needless to say we motorsailed a lot with only the genoa. As we approached Norfolk, we called BoatUS to extend our insurance policy, called friends of the family to arrange a meeting, and then motorsailed up the Norfolk Channel to the Elizabeth River. At 1800 ET, we anchored at Hospital Point in the midst of many crabpots.

The next day, we did some more toy debugging and found that our AIS receiver had gone 'bonkers' and was sending garbage to the chartplotter. Fortunately, we had a spare AIS to verify the condition. Then we hopped in the dinghy, went to the dinghy dock at Waterside Marina, dumped our trash, and took a much needed shower. Not bad. Bob is fascinated with the Battleship Wisconsin located in downtown Norfolk. Wonder why USBS Wisconsin is not in Wisconsin? Later, we went to Hooter's to meet some family friends where we met the nicest family of Christine, her husband Ronnie, and their kids. It was nice to see her again. BTW, the stock market began its rapid drop of 1,300 points today. Quite sad.

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