Beaufort, North Carolina

November 19, 2006

We are writing this anchored in Beaufort ("Bo-fort"), North Carolina, just east of the southern end of the Outer Banks. Apparently, the town offers free wireless. We left Elizabeth City on Friday morning and had a beautiful sail across the Albemarle Sound. The Sound is reputed to have unpleasant sailing conditions, including short, steep waves, but we picked a day with 10-15 knot winds and were able to cross on a beam reach averaging about 5 or more knots comfortably. After crossing we motored through the Alligator Swing Bridge and then continued to sail the 15 miles down the Alligator River to our anchorage, just at the entrance to the Alligator River-Pungo River Canal.
Alligator Swing Bridge

All the other boats we saw were motor-sailing, but we had a lot of time to make it to our anchorage before sunset so we steadily sailed along at a relaxed pace. The scenery has changed from forests to swamps and marshes.


Our anchorage was a little more out in the open than we've become accustomed to, so we were thankful for our large anchor. We tried out our new Coleman stove-top oven for the first time to make a spaghetti-chicken casserole. Perhaps not the epitomy of culinary arts, but hot and filling, so it passed the test. After dinner we went on the foredeck and marvelled at the stars. We saw the milky way, and there were so many stars that we were unable to find the big dipper. Pretty amazing.

On Saturday morning we woke up warly and started motoring down the Canal with the goal of getting south of the Pamlico River to anchor for the night. The canal was pretty with lots of marshes and undeveloped land, but I think we were both a little too tired and fed-up of motoring to really appreciate it.

On the Alligator River-Pungo River Canal

The shoreline of the Pungo River

Once out of the Canal and into the Pungo River, we were able to unfurl the jib and motorsail. The winds were just not strong enough to sail properly. The first excitement of the day was hearing our friends Rupert and Dorrie over the VHF communicate with another boat. We had caught up with them! We quickly got on the VHF and planned to anchor together in the same creek for the night. The second excitment of the day happened when we left the Pungo River and entered the Pamlico River. All of a sudden two (or maybe it was just one) dolphins were swimming in our bow wave. We both ran to the bow and watched as they swam alongside Whisper and then took off to the side to jump a little. They then fell back just to repeat the process. If we had laid down on the deck we probably could have reached out to touch them. I (Kristen) had hoped we would see dolphins, but I never imagined they would come so close.



Dolphins!

After motoring down Goose Creek for a couple miles, we caught up with Rupert and Dorrie on "Sandpiper" and found a nice spot to anchor for the night. We were surrounded by marshland--very peaceful, until we all started singing (wailing). We had a fun evening eating good food, drinking wine and playing guitar, washboard, flute, etc. and singing.



hanging out in the cockpit at sunset

playing some guitar and washboard...trying to remember lyrics to songs and failing miserably.

Kristen trying out the new dinghy

Whisper at anchor in Goose Creek

Kit kat looking at us from Whisper as we dinghied over to Sandpiper, mad that she wasn't invited to join in the fun.

This morning (Sunday), in anticipation of light winds, we switched the jib with the genoa and weighed anchor around 8:30.

Sunrise

Sandpiper at sunrise.

After motoring a short distance out the creek, we were quickly able to turn the engine off and sail. Unfortunately, after a few hours, the winds died and we had to turn old Boris back on again. We chose good weather for sailing the Neuse River as it has quite a nasty reputation, however we had minimal waves and light winds.

Whsiper sailing wing and wing down the Neuse
A catamaran sailing with their spinnaker. They caught up to us, overtook us and disappeared over the horizon. I swear I heard Whisper say "I want a spinnaker"...

Tonight we're anchored in Beaufort, North Carolina. It's a pretty crowded anchorage, but after a few circles around we were able to find a good spot to drop the hook. Tomorrow we're off to Morehead City, North Carolina, just down the ICW a few miles where we'll tie up to a marina and take showers. I've almost forgotten what it's like to have clean hair.

Elizabeth City

November 16, 2006

We spent the day in Elizabeth City while the wind tried to blow itself out. After a leisurely morning we were called to attention by a big splash in the water nearby. Our neigbor on the dock, Will, from Ontario, Canada, had slipped as he tried to get onto his boat which was pitching quite a bit from the bumpy water, and he couldn't get himself out. Kristen loosened the bow lines to allow Hans to jump onto the dock and help Will get out of the water. Will was fine, just a bit cold, shook up and maybe a little bit embarrased about all the fuss. We were just happy to help out with what could have been a really nasty accident.

After that excitement we went for a little walk around town, browsed the hardware store, and decided that it was an excellent day to fly a kite!




For lunch we tried the local deli's Reuben sandwiches (they were good). Then we went to the Museum of the Albermarle, a museum in it's infancy, but with a few interesting exhibits. One exhibit displays the restoration efforts of a 1760 North Carolina farmhouse. Since the museum is so new, we were able to meet the man who was restoring the house, and we got an impromptu private tour of the house and the work he's been doing. The house was originally built of popler and white cedar (also called juniper in these parts). The restorer showed us some indications of possible floorplans and uses of the house, such as grooves in the floor--indicating where a door had been, etc.

We were invited to a happy hour on a neigboring boat named "Christine," a 1974 Irwin and then Will took us out to dinner to thank us for helping him out this morning. The weather gurus have said that the conditions will be ripe to cross the Albermarle Sound tomorrow, so we're going to be up by first light to check it out and will probably set off at 6.00 tomorrow morning.

the Dismal Swamp

November 15, 2006

Hans and KitKat after breakfast

At 8.30 on Wednesday morning we entered into our first lock, the Deep Creek Lock, which Robert, our lock tender, informed us is part of the oldest continuously operating lock system in North America. Deep Creek lock raised us 8 feet into the Great Dismal Swamp Canal. While we were waiting for the lock to fill with water, Robert offered us danishes & fresh coffee which he provides every morning for the first lock opening. Robert is a very friendly, informative man who seems to really enjoy his job. After we passed through the lock, Robert jumped in his truck and drove a quarter mile down the road to the drawbridge which he then opened for us and 5 other boats. He encouraged us to stop at the Great Dismal Swamp Visitor Center to pick up some free literature.
Whisper & crew in Deep Creek Lock (photo courtesy of lock tender, Robert)
everybody leaves their boat name & direction of travel on the walls of the locks
Kristen holding the bow line in the lock while the lock fills with water
Hans in Deep Creek Lock

The first 20 miles of the trip to South Mills was beautiful. Highway 17 runs parallel to the canal on the east side and the Dismal Swamp runs on the west side. The traffic was light so we were able to hear some birds and appreciate the wildlife. Kristen found herself wishing she knew more tree types. Many slaves used the Great Dismal Swamp as an escape route on their way north. Some lived off the land in the Swamp while others just traversed through in order to catch a boat north in Norfolk, VA. It's easy to see how the Great Dismal Swamp could be used as a hiding place as we could barely see more than 10 feet in past the riverbanks because the undergrowth was so thick.

Parade of boats heading south



By the time we got to South Mills Lock, we were old pros at locking with a sailboat. This lock lowered us back down 8 feet. From South Mills it is 18 miles to Elizabeth City, NC where the city offers free docking to transient sailboats. (Elizabeth City also offers free wifi which helps with the blogging.) About 4 miles after South Mills, the canal ended and we entered the Pasquotank River, which, in turn, empties into the Albemarle Sound. The Pasquotank River is very scenic & windy with almost no development. It was a little odd to see sailboat masts winding their way down through the turns.
Wakeboarding in November

Boris, Whisper's 13.5 hp Beta engine, was not only able to keep up with bigger boats, but we passed a couple easily. Just in the past 2 days, people have been asking "what do ya got under your hood?". Way to go Boris!

We arrived in Elizabeth City a little after dark and, with a few tribulations, were able to back into a slip, which we discovered today is the "Clark" Slip (each slip is named and dedicated by local residents, similar to park benches). We went on a short walk to get some beer and found a seafood market which sold us 2 uncooked crabcakes for $5! Dinner was rice, asparagus & crabcakes with beer. Hard to beat!

Day #1 on the ICW

November 14, 2006

We left Norfolk on Tuesday afternoon and motored for 3 hours to the Deep Creek lock where we anchored to await the first opening the next morning. On Tuesday we passed Red Marker #36 which is also the official mile zero of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.
Red marker "36", which indicates Mile Marker "0.00" of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway

We both did a little celebratory dance in the cockpit during which Kristen's beloved green John Deere hat was blown overboard. No worries, this gave us a chance to put our man overboard plan into effect, and we recovered the treasured object without too much fuss.
International shipping in Portsmouth, VA
Two of the many bridges we'll encounter down the ICW.

Some of the bridges have restricted opening times during rush hour, others are usually always up, and yet others require the Captain to call the bridge tender to request an opening.
The entrance to the Great Dismal Swamp Canal via Deep Creek
Sunset over Deep Creek, VA
Whisper's crew reading at night

time for a splash

November 13, 2006

All the work is complete on the engine and Whisper is getting splashed first thing tomorrow morning. Finally! This week seemed to take forever, I suppose because we thought the job would only take 2-3 days. At any rate, we're clean, have gotten a good TV and internet fix, and have eaten more Sonic burgers than is healthy in one week. Ready to hit the high seas, unfurl the sails and feel the fresh air on our faces. Wait...that won't happen until we cross the Gulf Stream into the Bahamas in the middle of December. I'm getting ahead of myself here.

This next leg of our trip is on the Intra-Coastal Waterway (the ICW) which is basically a mostly man-made canal that extends from Maine to Texas. The part of the ICW from Norfolk to Key West is almost all through canals where we'll have to pilot our way through locks and under various types of bridges, including swing and lift bridges, not to mention the basic fixed and draw bridges. We'll have the sails neatly furled underneath their covers and the engine will be running full steam every day for probably 8-10 hours. Luckily, we have a small, efficient diesel so it shouldn't be too costly, well, not nearly as expensive as the gasoline engine power boats. Our friends Rupert & Dorrie are a couple days ahead of us, so we hope they'll do some sightseeing and drag their feet so we can catch up with them.

Our first town of any significant size is Elizabeth City, NC: http://maps.google.com/maps?oi=map&q=Elizabeth+City,+NC

we'll probably be there on Thursday.

From this point on, our blog entries will be less frequent as we won't have unlimited internet access like we do now, but we'll try. If anyone knows any interesting, out of the way spots down the ICW, let us know. We have bikes so can travel at least a couple miles in each direction.

a trip on a ferry

November 11, 2006

After spending a few hours this morning working on some odd jobs on Whisper, we took the scenic route that runs NW along the south side of the James River. We stopped for some top rate Reuben sandwiches and then continued on to the James River Ferry, a free car ferry that is run by the Virginia Department of Transportation. We missed the first ferry (by 3 cars--it runs every half hour and gets full pretty quickly on the weekends), so we caught the 3:30. Some people got out of their cars, but I was surprised at how many people stayed inside. It was 79 degrees, warm, sunny, and we were on a fast ferry across the river. Oh well, maybe they were all engrossed in page-turning novels. It only took about 15 minutes to cross the river. We planned to go to Historic Jamestown, one of the first settlements by Europeans, but by the time we got there it was closing in 30 minutes. We drove on the Colonial Parkway to Williamsburg where we got an ice cream. Colonial Williamsburg is very touristy, but the buildings are all authentic and very pretty as is the College of William & Mary. I talked to a friend in Wisconsin and it was surprising to hear it was 28 degrees there today, while I was in jeans and a t-shirt in 50 degree warmer weather.

Kristen on the Jamestown ferry

foliage

another ferry crossing the river in the opposite direction

cars on the ferry

cotton field

our ferry "Pocahontas"

Jamestown as seen from the ferry

odd jobs

November 10, 2006


Anyone need a boat engine?

An old Coast Guard ship. Our mechanic, Mike, designed this when he was an engineer in the Coast Guard for 28 years.

Whisper being put up on blocks in the Travelift

Hans working on some touch-up paint jobs.

Hey! who graffitied on Whisper's hull?

We'll be on the hard here in Norfolk (Portsmouth) until at least Monday afternoon, so we're trying to take care of some odd jobs on Whisper. Some touch-up paint jobs, raising the waterline, reorganizing storage space down below, etc. The weather is beautiful, sunny & warm, so it's hard not to be in a good mood even though our stay in Norfolk is longer than anticipated.
Meanwhile Kristen is becoming a real southern gal: "We don't have no rush" she exclaimed recently...

Still in Norfolk

November 9, 2006

We got the word from Mike the mechanic today, that the shaft is bent beyond repair and that we'll have to replace it. The story doesn't end there, however. Our old shaft was a metric one (25mm), which is an unusual diameter here in the States, so our options are to wait for a piece of (ridiculously expensive) 25mm stainless to be delivered to the machine shop, then have the shaft machined to fit our boat, or to replace the 25mm shaft with a 1 inch shaft (slightly thicker). So what's the big deal? Well, going with a less expensive one inch shaft would require us to replace the cutless bearing, which holds on to the shaft at the propeller end, as well as possibly replacing the flexible coupling between the transmission and the shaft (which holds the front end of the shaft). All in all, there isn't any one easy and inexpensive solution, which is usually the case on a boat project anyways, so no surprises really!
Whatever the case it looks like Whisper might not go back in the water until Monday. In the meantime we're busy with other little projects on the boat and Hans is finishing up the last of his wedding work.

Seaford, VA to Portsmouth, VA

November 6, 2006
Happy Birthday Pete!

8:20: weighed anchor in Chisman Creek, light wind, motoring.
8:34: the snubber worked loose of its knot on the anchor rode and the anchor pulled easily out of the mud. We'll need to get a chain hook to prevent this. On our way to Virginia Boat Yard to have the mechanic check out Boris.
9:32: main up, motorsailing. Poquoson Flats to starboard
11:11: 4 Navy boats cruised past us to Stbd. heading NW.
12:23: on approach to Hampton Roads - Benetau First passed heading north sailing close hauled then a few minutes later, an Island Packet following behind. We're fighting turbulent seas, opposite tide, strong current, slow slow speed. rolling a lot, Kristen is feeling rather naseous.
13:06: crossing Harbor Tunnel
13:46: Norfolk Navy terminals to Port, an aircraft carrier and what looks like battleships. A radar recon plane is continuously circling overhead, fighter jets are overhead as well as helicopters. A Navy transport ship was also anchored in the harbor. Norfolk is definitely the busiest waterway we've had to pilot through, but we're just staying on the edge of the channels so we can easily steer clear if we need to.
15:02: Entering Elizabeth River on Lambert's Bend. Goodbye Chesapeake Bay! We could be sailing but we need to meet the mechanics. bummer.
15:50: arrive and tie-up at Virginia Boat yard - some confusion as to the exact location and we actually went too far and had to backtrack.

We're stopping here to deal with what appears to be a bent prop shaft. We'll stay with Roy & Sue while the boat is out of the water.


Kit Kat helping us navigate through Norfolk Harbor

our next boat?

Deltaville, VA to Seaford, VA

November 4 to November 5, 2006

We're headed to Seaford, VA to spend the weekend with Luke & Kate Barlow, Jake Barlow and to meet the new member, Bryce Barlow.

8:45: let go of docklines at Deltaville, Marina
9:15: beam reach out of Deltaville Bay, course 150, speed 5.2. Sailing out of Deltaville Harbor, south to Chisman Creek, beautiful weather, cold wind, few clouds, forecast for winds to subside in the afternoon.
9:43: rigged preventer, heading south, course 210, speed 4.8
11:34: passed Wolf Trap Light, changed course for York River, wind is slowing down a bit, seas are calming.
13:39: Wind almost died, Boris on, sails down.
16:32: anchored in 6 feet on Chisman Creek. Had to try 3 times to set the anchor but we're holding now. (in mud).

Luke, Trevor, Cheryl & Jake all came out to pick us up with the Barlow Water Taxi. We spent Saturday & Sunday nights with Luke & Kate--dinner on Sat. night with Roy & Sue, then we went to No Frill Cafe for lunch on Sunday. Pats game on Sunday night--not the highlight of the season. It was pretty cushy sleeping in a warm bed, taking hot showers and hanging out with friends.


Whisper at anchor in Chisman Creek, Seaford, VA

Jake Barlow ready for the game

mom and Bryce

Dad doing some work on Sunday night

Mill Creek, VA to Deltaville, VA

November 3, 2006

Destination today: Deltaville, VA. We're meeting Anne & Jonathan Hutchins at Annapolis Yacht Sales who sold us Whisper a year ago. We also shipped our life raft to them so we're on our way to pick it up. Anne & Jonathan have sailed and worked in the Caribbean for many years and have given us lots of good advice.

Not many log entries today...I guess we were tired from yesterday!
9:49: weighed anchor
13:00: 3.4 miles north of Windmill Point, winds subsiding, rolling a bit.
15:04: motoring into Jackson Creek, Deltaville, VA.
15:39: tied up at Deltaville Marina fuel dock.

After getting fuel, we met up with Anne & Jonathan who gave us some hot tea, then a quick trip to West Marine. We went back to their house for luxurious showers, cheese, crackers, wine and nourishing butternut squash. They were on their way to an Oyster Roast so we went back to the boat, got into our sleeping bags and had an early night.

Some notes on the ship's cat, Kit Kat: kitkat is proving to be a real ship's cat. She loves to be out on deck and even snuck out onto the foredeck while we were sailing yesterday. The other night, she jumped from Whisper into Ding-Ding. Brave on her part, but a pretty close call for a nighttime swim. When Boris is running, she hides in the clothes, but she seems to be ok while under sail. Yesterday, she came out into the cockpit when Boris was running so she seems to be getting braver every day.

Solomon's Island to the Wicomico River

November 2, 2006

Destination today: Mill Creek, VA, off the Wicomico. We've anchored there before--it is a beautiful, calm creek with only a few houses.

7:20: weighed anchor
8:02: unfurled jib, turned off Boris. Forecast for 20kn winds, gusting to 30kns from N-NW, perfect to push us down the bay. Gray right now but forecast to clear by afternoon.
10:50: Point No Point lighthouse to starboard, course of 210, speed 6kns under jib alone, winds N-NW at 20 knots, waves 4 feet.
We had an exciting morning. Almost lost Ding-Ding but were able to recover him, minus oars and seats. Probably a terrible idea to tow him in the first place. Winds picked up once we got into the bay and the waves are fairly steep. Sailng under full jib alone.
11:46: cold front is passing us, sky to north has no clouds, sun will be out soon, 2 sailboats behind us are catching up.
12:43: sun is out!
13:46 crossed the state line into Virginia
16:48: dropped anchor in Mill Creek, VA, off the Wicomico River.

sailed approximately 42 miles today for 9.5 hours=approx. 5knots sailing speed.


Point No Point Lighthouse


Captain Kristen

Annapolis to Solomon's Island

November 1, 2006

6:50: washed the mud off the chain while motoring out of Back Creek
7:45: quite a few oyster boats were working in the dawn hours
8:15: past Thomas Pt. Lighthouse
8:30: oranges, toast & cheese & tea for breakfast, listened to NPR
10:08: deployed fishing gear (retrieved later without any sign of dinner)
14:51: Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Plant to Starboard (West these days), changed course for Solomon's Island; two F-18s flew overhead
17:00: dropped anchor in Mill Creek
17:01: jumped in dinghy to get crab cakes for dinner

At one point in the afternoon, we heard a very proper British accented gentlemen call for Sheltered Harbor Marina over the VHF. His call sign (and name of the boat) was "Itchy Feet." As we dinghied up to the restaurant, lo and behold, there was "Ichi Feet" docked at the marina (a 56' Oyster)! We stopped to chat--they are heading up to Baltimore and will be in Antigua for Christmas. Do you think they'll have us over for Christmas pudding?


Chesapeake watermen at dawn.

Hans' first (unsuccessful) attempt at an eye splice in a double-braided line. What went wrong?

Provisioning in Annapolis

October 31, 2006
Halloween

Trick or treaters were not to be found on Back Creek, so we gave our charitable donations to Fawcett's Boat Supply in exchange for some shackles, line, hose & a couple books. We spent the afternoon tidying up the boat, had leftover pumpkin soup for dinner and then we took the dinghy ashore to meet Jeanne Malley for a couple drinks at Davis's. We were entertained by some co-workers of Richard Simmons who were demonstrating the beneficial health effects of leg lifts and butt presses on the bar floor. Happy Halloween!

We were in bed by 11PM to get a good night's sleep before leaving first thing on Wednesday morning.