Portsmouth/Norfolk and A side Trip
Tuesday and Wednesday, May 6 and 7
The morning was calm and cool and the rainless clouds would last for the next three days. While waiting for the Enterprise rental car driver to find us, Laurie had a lively conversation with a group of live-a-boards who had gathered in the marina’s office for their daily morning coffee. You know the marina is remote when the driver called 3 times trying to find it.
We drove through Norfolk and quickly got out into the countryside. Car travel plays mind games after weeks of boat travel. You travel in hour what a long boat day will be. More importantly, is the speed of things is so much faster. When cruising, signs can be studied, laughed at and even photographed. When driving, only part of the sign is scanned and the passenger probably missed it all together.
Reaching the coast and heading south toward Hatteras, a stop was made at the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras National Seashore. As former Park Service rangers, we were appalled at the decline of the national park service who now charges $8 for a 45 minute tour and talk of the lighthouse.
One of the unique ways the locals communicate is how they label their home. OBX is the locals way of saying outer banks. We continued for nearly an hour and saw the other side of Pamlico Sound and Albemarle Sound. We turned around in the string of beach homes that was south of of the community of Nags Head that had no real soul or character and whose homes looked like they were waiting for the coming of the tourists. Early May was still too early; even the Dairy Queen was still closed.
On the way back north, the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, or KDH for short was visited. Some observations and take-a-ways from this story:
• A National Memorial means that the exact site of the flight is unknown. The memorial and the visitor center are in Kill Devil Hills (known as KDH, on the OBX), not the adjoining community of Kitty Hawk. The photos show the hill was sand. Today, the memorial is surrounded by development and is grass.
• The locals of KDH assisted Orville and Wilbur who came from Ohio for several weeks at a time in the winter. These local residents also stepped up when the many shipwrecks happened by saving lives.
• Orville and Wilbur worked on this project for at least ten years, that consumed their lives and they were really smart, staying up with the current developments and lessons learned by others.
• They were viewed with skepticism by the media and the government who were watching government sponsored projects. They were dedicated scientists who followed their own path.
A store run was added to the tasks of the day so we returned to the tug for a light dinner as the sun was going down.
The next day, we relaxed in the morning, catching up on small boat projects, and talking of plans. The serendipity was meeting a couple who are new Loopers and who provided the name of source for books and charts, Robert McBride. He had a store but it is currently closed as he is building in a new location and continues to provide maps and guidebooks.
McBride is an example of service that is above and beyond. He was taking the couple to the airport and we met at the marina. He said that the highway tolls into Portsmouth has strangled his Portsmouth store. He offered to drop off a stack of different guidebooks at the marina for Laurie to choose from.
We drove to downtown Portsmouth through the decaying core, hunted for a 2 hour parking space in a field of parking meters, found a parking garage and took the water taxi to Norfolk to visit the Looper’s gathering. There, we found Ann and Rick on their 44 foot Endeavor that we last saw in Fernandina Beach, Florida and they shared their wisdom of the Chesapeake.
We dropped off the rental car and found that McBride had delivered a pile of books for Laurie to look over. He dropped by again, saying he was in the area, and Laurie chose two and received a 20% discount. Over wine, we talked and schemed about how to do this huge gift called the Chesapeake Bay.
The morning was calm and cool and the rainless clouds would last for the next three days. While waiting for the Enterprise rental car driver to find us, Laurie had a lively conversation with a group of live-a-boards who had gathered in the marina’s office for their daily morning coffee. You know the marina is remote when the driver called 3 times trying to find it.
We drove through Norfolk and quickly got out into the countryside. Car travel plays mind games after weeks of boat travel. You travel in hour what a long boat day will be. More importantly, is the speed of things is so much faster. When cruising, signs can be studied, laughed at and even photographed. When driving, only part of the sign is scanned and the passenger probably missed it all together.
Reaching the coast and heading south toward Hatteras, a stop was made at the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras National Seashore. As former Park Service rangers, we were appalled at the decline of the national park service who now charges $8 for a 45 minute tour and talk of the lighthouse.
One of the unique ways the locals communicate is how they label their home. OBX is the locals way of saying outer banks. We continued for nearly an hour and saw the other side of Pamlico Sound and Albemarle Sound. We turned around in the string of beach homes that was south of of the community of Nags Head that had no real soul or character and whose homes looked like they were waiting for the coming of the tourists. Early May was still too early; even the Dairy Queen was still closed.
On the way back north, the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, or KDH for short was visited. Some observations and take-a-ways from this story:
• A National Memorial means that the exact site of the flight is unknown. The memorial and the visitor center are in Kill Devil Hills (known as KDH, on the OBX), not the adjoining community of Kitty Hawk. The photos show the hill was sand. Today, the memorial is surrounded by development and is grass.
• The locals of KDH assisted Orville and Wilbur who came from Ohio for several weeks at a time in the winter. These local residents also stepped up when the many shipwrecks happened by saving lives.
• Orville and Wilbur worked on this project for at least ten years, that consumed their lives and they were really smart, staying up with the current developments and lessons learned by others.
• They were viewed with skepticism by the media and the government who were watching government sponsored projects. They were dedicated scientists who followed their own path.
A store run was added to the tasks of the day so we returned to the tug for a light dinner as the sun was going down.
The next day, we relaxed in the morning, catching up on small boat projects, and talking of plans. The serendipity was meeting a couple who are new Loopers and who provided the name of source for books and charts, Robert McBride. He had a store but it is currently closed as he is building in a new location and continues to provide maps and guidebooks.
McBride is an example of service that is above and beyond. He was taking the couple to the airport and we met at the marina. He said that the highway tolls into Portsmouth has strangled his Portsmouth store. He offered to drop off a stack of different guidebooks at the marina for Laurie to choose from.
We drove to downtown Portsmouth through the decaying core, hunted for a 2 hour parking space in a field of parking meters, found a parking garage and took the water taxi to Norfolk to visit the Looper’s gathering. There, we found Ann and Rick on their 44 foot Endeavor that we last saw in Fernandina Beach, Florida and they shared their wisdom of the Chesapeake.
We dropped off the rental car and found that McBride had delivered a pile of books for Laurie to look over. He dropped by again, saying he was in the area, and Laurie chose two and received a 20% discount. Over wine, we talked and schemed about how to do this huge gift called the Chesapeake Bay.
HAMPTON AND THE HISTORIC TRIANGLE OF WILLIAMSBURG, JAMESTOWN, AND YORKTOWN
Thursday through Monday, May 8 to 12
Under warm and partly cloudy skies, Andiamo left Scott Creek Marina in the mid-morning after a pump-out. The Norfolk harbor was busy with the coming and going of huge container ships, navy warships, tugs, and barges. The VHF radio channels 13 and 16 were busy with announcements and conversations to coordinate ship movements. A first for us was witnessing the departure of a huge warship from its base. The navy base is the largest that we have seen with an aircraft carrier and nearly a dozen other huge warships and support ships. The small security boats were busy zipping between the base’s perimeter fence and the nearby channel markers keeping the pleasure boats, like us, in the main channel. If they had their way, the channel would be farther away from the base.
We had decided to move to the Hampton Roads region because it was close to the historical areas, had an interesting town and was still close to the Norfolk airport as I had a job in the Chicago area in the coming week. Laurie had selected the Sunset Boating Center in Hampton as our destination. The tug followed the shipping channel markers out of the Elizabeth River, crossed over to the peninsula, and arrived two hours and 14 miles later.
Sunset Marina is a smaller, laid back operation whose core business model are large dry stacks of day boats and a boat yard. The services for the transient boater is perfectly adequate but the docks are older, the shore power boxes are on land, not on the docks, and the restroom, shower, and laundry facilities are across the property. All of these were fine with us. The moorage rates were low, the town is easy biking and walking distance, and the neighborhood pub, the Barking Dog, is a short walk away.
Over the six days at Sunset Marina, we came to know our two neighbors. Earl and Helen are on their 36-foot sailboat that is new to them and they just got it. They are from Chicago, he is working a temporary job in the area and they are going north but not back to Chicago. A soft-spoken, educated, and older couple, they were easy to talk with. They were the first black couple that we had met who were cruisers. Don and Maureen were working on their older 28 foot Bayliner Classic. He is a retired engineer and was incrementally fixing all the issues that the prior owner had created. They are doing the loop in stages having started in Houston, Texas.
On the first day, the bikes were set up and we explored portions of this peninsula that juts out into Chesapeake Bay much like our homeport, Everett, does in Puget Sound. Hampton also has a similar population size and other attributes. The downtown is rebuilding on the water’s edge and is home to Hampton University. A few blocks away and the rebuilding is just starting in the residential areas.
The next day, we were picked up by Lionel of Enterprise Rental, a pleasant man and former collegiate athletic from nearby Hampton University and immediately went to Colonial Williamsburg, not to be confused with the Town of Williamsburg and enjoyed nine hours of great living history and historical interpretation of life in the pre-revolutionary and revolutionary war years. Some take-a-ways:
• Women were valued and considered equal on some levels but were considered to have neither the time or the interest in politics as they raised the family, provided food, educated and kept everyone healthy, in addition to spending half of their lives being pregnant.
• Based on my profession, my wig would have been blonde and would have 4 or 5 of them. The hair would come from peasant girls who are bred and maintained for their hair.
• A leather bound book made by the bindery would have cost a week’s worth of wages.
Colonial Williamsburg is a huge operation with farms, shops, government buildings, and fields. Costumed employees played the part of shopkeepers, slaves, family members and military officers and they would switch from being the character to being a presenter. The highlights were:
• A monologue by Patrick Henry that illustrated the values and the issues of the day
• Short sketches between characters, slaves, soldiers, and townsfolk that illustrated the issues and challenges of the day
• The binding of books and the creation of wigs
• The procession of the fife and drum corps and the demonstration by the continental army.
Thursday through Monday, May 8 to 12
Under warm and partly cloudy skies, Andiamo left Scott Creek Marina in the mid-morning after a pump-out. The Norfolk harbor was busy with the coming and going of huge container ships, navy warships, tugs, and barges. The VHF radio channels 13 and 16 were busy with announcements and conversations to coordinate ship movements. A first for us was witnessing the departure of a huge warship from its base. The navy base is the largest that we have seen with an aircraft carrier and nearly a dozen other huge warships and support ships. The small security boats were busy zipping between the base’s perimeter fence and the nearby channel markers keeping the pleasure boats, like us, in the main channel. If they had their way, the channel would be farther away from the base.
We had decided to move to the Hampton Roads region because it was close to the historical areas, had an interesting town and was still close to the Norfolk airport as I had a job in the Chicago area in the coming week. Laurie had selected the Sunset Boating Center in Hampton as our destination. The tug followed the shipping channel markers out of the Elizabeth River, crossed over to the peninsula, and arrived two hours and 14 miles later.
Sunset Marina is a smaller, laid back operation whose core business model are large dry stacks of day boats and a boat yard. The services for the transient boater is perfectly adequate but the docks are older, the shore power boxes are on land, not on the docks, and the restroom, shower, and laundry facilities are across the property. All of these were fine with us. The moorage rates were low, the town is easy biking and walking distance, and the neighborhood pub, the Barking Dog, is a short walk away.
Over the six days at Sunset Marina, we came to know our two neighbors. Earl and Helen are on their 36-foot sailboat that is new to them and they just got it. They are from Chicago, he is working a temporary job in the area and they are going north but not back to Chicago. A soft-spoken, educated, and older couple, they were easy to talk with. They were the first black couple that we had met who were cruisers. Don and Maureen were working on their older 28 foot Bayliner Classic. He is a retired engineer and was incrementally fixing all the issues that the prior owner had created. They are doing the loop in stages having started in Houston, Texas.
On the first day, the bikes were set up and we explored portions of this peninsula that juts out into Chesapeake Bay much like our homeport, Everett, does in Puget Sound. Hampton also has a similar population size and other attributes. The downtown is rebuilding on the water’s edge and is home to Hampton University. A few blocks away and the rebuilding is just starting in the residential areas.
The next day, we were picked up by Lionel of Enterprise Rental, a pleasant man and former collegiate athletic from nearby Hampton University and immediately went to Colonial Williamsburg, not to be confused with the Town of Williamsburg and enjoyed nine hours of great living history and historical interpretation of life in the pre-revolutionary and revolutionary war years. Some take-a-ways:
• Women were valued and considered equal on some levels but were considered to have neither the time or the interest in politics as they raised the family, provided food, educated and kept everyone healthy, in addition to spending half of their lives being pregnant.
• Based on my profession, my wig would have been blonde and would have 4 or 5 of them. The hair would come from peasant girls who are bred and maintained for their hair.
• A leather bound book made by the bindery would have cost a week’s worth of wages.
Colonial Williamsburg is a huge operation with farms, shops, government buildings, and fields. Costumed employees played the part of shopkeepers, slaves, family members and military officers and they would switch from being the character to being a presenter. The highlights were:
• A monologue by Patrick Henry that illustrated the values and the issues of the day
• Short sketches between characters, slaves, soldiers, and townsfolk that illustrated the issues and challenges of the day
• The binding of books and the creation of wigs
• The procession of the fife and drum corps and the demonstration by the continental army.
Saturday, we headed to Jamestown and the Colonial National Historical Site that was 20 minutes away and was the second part of the region’s historic triangle. Jamestown is the site of the European Colonists in this part of the country. We had to sort out confusion between Jamestown, the national park service area, and Jamestown Settlement, a living history site operated by Virginia, and the archeological area where the original fort was recently discovered and is owned by a private organization, Preserve Virginia.
The default for a couple of ex-parkies is to go to the national park service area. We took the Colonial Parkway, which is a ribbon of highway with the associated right of way on each side that is owned, maintained and policed by the National Park Service and it connects Jamestown to Yorktown, two different parks and two different stories that are separated by 21 miles and over 150 years of history.
The serendipity was this was the anniversary of the landing by 104 English men and boys on this sort-of-island on the James River. The park was packed with special events and we loved the living history, demonstrations and a talk by the lead archeologist of an active dig. The take aways:
• During the journey from England, Captain John Smith was jailed for his disruptive behavior but they had to turn to him to start the colony. Sometimes good leaders have really bad personality traits.
• The colony nearly collapsed due to bad leadership after John Smith returned to England, they did not prepare for the winter and ¾ of the members starved to death where cannibalism occurred.
• History is always being written. The fort was presumed to be lost for over 300 years. It was found in 1994 and 250,000 artifacts have been found. Graves have been found and the remains have provided a wealth of information.
A thunderstorm with high wind, horizontal rain and hail rolled through the region while we were at the park. Back at Andiamo, the wind gusts of 40+ MPH had ripped a 24-inch length of zipper out of the canvas but that was substantially repaired in less than an hour.
The next day, we put on our Sunday best, which is pretty low and took the rental car to St. John’s Episcopal Church in downtown Hampton, one of the oldest protestant churches in North America for their 10:30 AM service. The choir, organ and bell choir were outstanding and the minister had a great message.
Being Mother’s Day, Laurie did an hour of video chat at the boat while much of the salt that had adhered to the gelcoat was removed. After lunch, we fought the very congested westbound traffic to get o Yorktown. A park ranger marred our visit with a surly attitude at the visitor center, who lacked all warmth, talked down about the exhibits and was clearly having a bad day. This is another example of the demise of the national park service where the performance at the bottom reflects the attitude at the top as this ranger’s supervisor allows this behavior to happen.
However, we had a great experience on the battlefield car tour when we stopped at the Moore House where the British agreed to the terms of surrender and found a seasonal park ranger who was interesting and inspiring. The story of Yorktown is the symbolic end of the Revolutionary War where Continental Army was heavily assisted by the French and forced the British to surrender after laying siege for two days with heavy artillery. With a total of over 20,000 troops on each side, the surprising fact was the very, very low fatalities.
The default for a couple of ex-parkies is to go to the national park service area. We took the Colonial Parkway, which is a ribbon of highway with the associated right of way on each side that is owned, maintained and policed by the National Park Service and it connects Jamestown to Yorktown, two different parks and two different stories that are separated by 21 miles and over 150 years of history.
The serendipity was this was the anniversary of the landing by 104 English men and boys on this sort-of-island on the James River. The park was packed with special events and we loved the living history, demonstrations and a talk by the lead archeologist of an active dig. The take aways:
• During the journey from England, Captain John Smith was jailed for his disruptive behavior but they had to turn to him to start the colony. Sometimes good leaders have really bad personality traits.
• The colony nearly collapsed due to bad leadership after John Smith returned to England, they did not prepare for the winter and ¾ of the members starved to death where cannibalism occurred.
• History is always being written. The fort was presumed to be lost for over 300 years. It was found in 1994 and 250,000 artifacts have been found. Graves have been found and the remains have provided a wealth of information.
A thunderstorm with high wind, horizontal rain and hail rolled through the region while we were at the park. Back at Andiamo, the wind gusts of 40+ MPH had ripped a 24-inch length of zipper out of the canvas but that was substantially repaired in less than an hour.
The next day, we put on our Sunday best, which is pretty low and took the rental car to St. John’s Episcopal Church in downtown Hampton, one of the oldest protestant churches in North America for their 10:30 AM service. The choir, organ and bell choir were outstanding and the minister had a great message.
Being Mother’s Day, Laurie did an hour of video chat at the boat while much of the salt that had adhered to the gelcoat was removed. After lunch, we fought the very congested westbound traffic to get o Yorktown. A park ranger marred our visit with a surly attitude at the visitor center, who lacked all warmth, talked down about the exhibits and was clearly having a bad day. This is another example of the demise of the national park service where the performance at the bottom reflects the attitude at the top as this ranger’s supervisor allows this behavior to happen.
However, we had a great experience on the battlefield car tour when we stopped at the Moore House where the British agreed to the terms of surrender and found a seasonal park ranger who was interesting and inspiring. The story of Yorktown is the symbolic end of the Revolutionary War where Continental Army was heavily assisted by the French and forced the British to surrender after laying siege for two days with heavy artillery. With a total of over 20,000 troops on each side, the surprising fact was the very, very low fatalities.
Monday was the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News and it came recommended from several chance conversations. This is a huge facility and has some of the best modern interpretative and educational mediums seen. The central story is the civil war battle between two ironclad ships, the Union’s Monitor and the Confederacy’s Virginia. But is far more than that being the repository of the Monitor’s artifacts that were brought up 250 feet when it sunk in a gale off of Cape Hatteras.
We enjoyed the full size replica’s, the walk –through of the mock-ups, and the best produced audio-visual. The museum has several other stories that were all compelling: a large collection of small vessels, the history of the U.S. Navy, the evolution of maritime technology, and tales of shipwrecks and survival at sea. The museum happened when private wealth was partnered with extraordinary vision.
I flew to Illinois for a presentation that was memorable for the nightmare that Delta Airlines created. On Tuesday, Laurie did errands and caught up on her to-do list.
A health-related event is unfolding back home that calls Laurie back and she will leave in a few days with an open-ended return date.
We enjoyed the full size replica’s, the walk –through of the mock-ups, and the best produced audio-visual. The museum has several other stories that were all compelling: a large collection of small vessels, the history of the U.S. Navy, the evolution of maritime technology, and tales of shipwrecks and survival at sea. The museum happened when private wealth was partnered with extraordinary vision.
I flew to Illinois for a presentation that was memorable for the nightmare that Delta Airlines created. On Tuesday, Laurie did errands and caught up on her to-do list.
A health-related event is unfolding back home that calls Laurie back and she will leave in a few days with an open-ended return date.
UP THE WESTERN SHORE: DELTAVILLE, VIRGINIA
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, May 14, 15, and 16
Under low clouds and fog in the main channel, Andiamo left Hampton at about 0900 hours and skirted the eastern edge of the shipping channel to round the peninsula and head north on Chesapeake Bay. The water was lumpy with a 1 to 3 foot chop as the wind and the currents were opposing each other. The tug ran with the radar finding targets, the chartplotter updating our current position and the VHF radio was monitoring the conversations and alerts by the many commercial pilots that were using this section of the bay.
When the visibility was over a mile, Andiamo was motored up to its fast cruising speed and continued that for 2 ½ hours, as it was the most comfortable. The shoals kept us away from the shoreline and the low clouds cloaked over the land. There was little to see except for sea, crabpots and low clouds. The swells and chop from the northeast made the ride at the slow cruising speed less comfortable because the tug is a cork, weighing about 14,000 pounds. So, the speed was welcomed and using 24 gallons of diesel to cover the next 50 miles was acceptable.
At the York River, the expanse was so wide, that no land in any direction was seen. The AIS and the radar found military vessels doing training exercises and a handful of pleasure craft on the bay. Our initial taste of the Chesapeake is a sailboater’s paradise with lots of room and often a steady breeze.
After crossing the mouth of the Piankatank River, that is the south shore of Middlesex Peninsula, Andiamo was turned to port at Stingray Point to find the entrance to Deltaville. Laurie had chosen this destination as the forecast was for 25 MPH southeast winds with gusts to 45 MPH and marinas in this bay provided the maximum protection. Dozier’s Regatta Point Yachting Center catered to Loopers and had ample room.
Andiamo was next to Chuck and Margaret’s 39-foot Bayliner who left Peoria, Illinois in the fall. We walked the docks and enjoyed the mid-80’s temperature. The air was still and the humidity was nearly 80% with the foretelling of change in the weather. There was discussion and planning for Laurie’s trip to Seattle next week.
The next day, Andiamo went to a nearby marina for fuel, as Saturday would be one of the longest travel days we have done and need the added fuel for a buffer. In another boat, I ran of fuel 100 yards from the fuel dock and learned to always have at least a 20% reserve in the tank. The price on the diesel pump was nearly $5 a gallon. The dockmaster reassured us the price was different and hand-calculated it with our BoatUS discount and a recent drop in the price to $3.73 a gallon.
After lunch, the bikes were setup and we cycled the mile into the community of Deltaville, past four boatyards and three marinas that fill this small bay. The cycling was on a narrow and scenic country road that did not have a shoulder. The business community fronts the road, with no blocks or side streets and is, therefore, about 3 miles long. There was no agenda; we were getting outside before the wind and rainstorm thundered in from the southwest.
The serendipity was finding a strawberry stand that was selling berries that were picked just hours ago. Berries required getting shortcake at the nearby market. The cruising guide series, “The Waterway Guide” is published here. We stumbled into the office and offered our critique of their product: hard to understand as, like all the cruising guides, is written for cruisers coming from the north and going south.
We stopped and explored the boatyards and marinas and found the number of sailboats outnumber the trawlers by 5 to 1. With winds building to a steady 20 MPH, Andiamo’s lines were adjusted. Met Herb and Mary on their Nordic 37 who started the loop from Wisconsin in the fall. Some of his questions about his Raymarine chartplotter answered from our experience. The evening was closed with grilling chicken breasts that was served with steamed broccoli and strawberries over shortcake.
The rain came earlier than predicted and the intensity woke us up. By late morning, the wind and rain had shifted 180 degrees as the storm went over us.
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, May 14, 15, and 16
Under low clouds and fog in the main channel, Andiamo left Hampton at about 0900 hours and skirted the eastern edge of the shipping channel to round the peninsula and head north on Chesapeake Bay. The water was lumpy with a 1 to 3 foot chop as the wind and the currents were opposing each other. The tug ran with the radar finding targets, the chartplotter updating our current position and the VHF radio was monitoring the conversations and alerts by the many commercial pilots that were using this section of the bay.
When the visibility was over a mile, Andiamo was motored up to its fast cruising speed and continued that for 2 ½ hours, as it was the most comfortable. The shoals kept us away from the shoreline and the low clouds cloaked over the land. There was little to see except for sea, crabpots and low clouds. The swells and chop from the northeast made the ride at the slow cruising speed less comfortable because the tug is a cork, weighing about 14,000 pounds. So, the speed was welcomed and using 24 gallons of diesel to cover the next 50 miles was acceptable.
At the York River, the expanse was so wide, that no land in any direction was seen. The AIS and the radar found military vessels doing training exercises and a handful of pleasure craft on the bay. Our initial taste of the Chesapeake is a sailboater’s paradise with lots of room and often a steady breeze.
After crossing the mouth of the Piankatank River, that is the south shore of Middlesex Peninsula, Andiamo was turned to port at Stingray Point to find the entrance to Deltaville. Laurie had chosen this destination as the forecast was for 25 MPH southeast winds with gusts to 45 MPH and marinas in this bay provided the maximum protection. Dozier’s Regatta Point Yachting Center catered to Loopers and had ample room.
Andiamo was next to Chuck and Margaret’s 39-foot Bayliner who left Peoria, Illinois in the fall. We walked the docks and enjoyed the mid-80’s temperature. The air was still and the humidity was nearly 80% with the foretelling of change in the weather. There was discussion and planning for Laurie’s trip to Seattle next week.
The next day, Andiamo went to a nearby marina for fuel, as Saturday would be one of the longest travel days we have done and need the added fuel for a buffer. In another boat, I ran of fuel 100 yards from the fuel dock and learned to always have at least a 20% reserve in the tank. The price on the diesel pump was nearly $5 a gallon. The dockmaster reassured us the price was different and hand-calculated it with our BoatUS discount and a recent drop in the price to $3.73 a gallon.
After lunch, the bikes were setup and we cycled the mile into the community of Deltaville, past four boatyards and three marinas that fill this small bay. The cycling was on a narrow and scenic country road that did not have a shoulder. The business community fronts the road, with no blocks or side streets and is, therefore, about 3 miles long. There was no agenda; we were getting outside before the wind and rainstorm thundered in from the southwest.
The serendipity was finding a strawberry stand that was selling berries that were picked just hours ago. Berries required getting shortcake at the nearby market. The cruising guide series, “The Waterway Guide” is published here. We stumbled into the office and offered our critique of their product: hard to understand as, like all the cruising guides, is written for cruisers coming from the north and going south.
We stopped and explored the boatyards and marinas and found the number of sailboats outnumber the trawlers by 5 to 1. With winds building to a steady 20 MPH, Andiamo’s lines were adjusted. Met Herb and Mary on their Nordic 37 who started the loop from Wisconsin in the fall. Some of his questions about his Raymarine chartplotter answered from our experience. The evening was closed with grilling chicken breasts that was served with steamed broccoli and strawberries over shortcake.
The rain came earlier than predicted and the intensity woke us up. By late morning, the wind and rain had shifted 180 degrees as the storm went over us.
SOLOMONS, MARYLAND
Saturday, May 17
The wake-up alarm was set, which is a rare thing, as we wanted the most amount of time to do about 65 miles to the Calvert Marina in Solomons, Maryland. The fresh breeze was the first indicator that the weather was not going to follow the computer model. We left at 0715 with Chuck and Margaret getting to leave and Herb and Mary in the Nordic 37 were already gone.
After clearing the narrow channel, the bay was already lumpy with 2-3 foot swells and with the occasional whitecap. The ride at 8 MPH was rolling and uncomfortable. Andiamo was powered up to 3200 RPM and headed north at between 11 and 12.5 MPH. The speed was slower because of the slamming seas on the bow and all the tanks were full. In a few miles, the seas were 2-4 feet with all whitecaps. Spray was dousing the cabin and going over the roof. Handholds were gripped, it was to rough and to eat or drink anything and all concentration was on the path ahead as the occasional line of crab pots was avoided. This continued for about 20 miles.
The Potomac River is 14 miles wide at its junction with the Chesapeake. The cruising guides described this section as often the worst part of the Chesapeake and it lived up to its reputation. When Andiamo entered it, the waves grew to the next level and were 3-5 feet with an occasional 6 footer. The speed was dropped by 200 RPM to slow the intensity of the bow slamming into the waves.
For the next hour, hundreds if not thousands of gallons of seawater were sprayed and poured at the cabin and deck. Sheets of water slammed into the windshield. Windows started to fog as all the windows were closed, items were thrown from the galley shelves, the utensil drawer wanted to open, and maps and cruising guides spilled onto the floor. There were groans from deep in the tug that were never heard before as the hull would rise over the wave and fall into the trough.
Yet the BMW diesel was steady and consistent with the same coolant temperature, oil pressure, RPM’s, engine load percentage and the turbo’s PSI. The holding tank got a good stir and the shower sump tank vomited up some sludge into the head. The places that leak rain water, leaked seawater. The tug left Virginia in its wake and entered Maryland after crossing the Potomac.
About 10 miles after crossing the Potomac, the waves scaled back and the white caps were gone. A rattle on the roof overhead caught my attention and pulling back the canvas cover on the hatch showed a view of the tower but the two guy-cables were detached from their roof fittings and swinging. With life jacket on and turning the tug around to glide with the waves and at their speed, I went on the foredeck as Laurie held the helm. Unexplainably, each turnbuckle that controls the tension of the cable had unscrewed. The fix was easy and no damage was discovered.
Andiamo turned to port to enter the Patuxent River and headed to Solomons, which is a cluster of marinas that are in a group of deep creeks. The seven marinas could probably handle 200 transient boaters. This made Solomons a common destination for Loopers.
The water was flat and calm and the tug would use the next 6 miles to cool down after running nearly 6 hours at an engine load of 80%. Laurie had chosen the Calvert Marina because it had good moorage rates and the reviews described it has being laid back. After a pump out and a quick rinse of the tug, the staff put us on a fixed dock where the long-term boaters stay. We heard Herb and Mary and their Nordic 37 coming behind us with Chuck and Margaret behind them. Andiamo had taken us 68 miles in six hours and used 43 gallons of diesel to deliver us safely through the toughest waters we had experienced on this trip.
The Calvert Marina Office had the pungent smell of dogs and cats and the animals greeted us as they clearly lived there. The staff were long-timers and the Matt, the owner, offered to take us to the Avis rental car office in nearby Lexington Park as his courtesy car was out of commission. We piled into the front seat of his Dodge truck and he told us about this community, the influence of the Navy from the nearby air station, as he drove.
After getting the Chevrolet Impala, a quick store stop, we arrived back to microwave an Italian dinner and to walk the docks.
Saturday, May 17
The wake-up alarm was set, which is a rare thing, as we wanted the most amount of time to do about 65 miles to the Calvert Marina in Solomons, Maryland. The fresh breeze was the first indicator that the weather was not going to follow the computer model. We left at 0715 with Chuck and Margaret getting to leave and Herb and Mary in the Nordic 37 were already gone.
After clearing the narrow channel, the bay was already lumpy with 2-3 foot swells and with the occasional whitecap. The ride at 8 MPH was rolling and uncomfortable. Andiamo was powered up to 3200 RPM and headed north at between 11 and 12.5 MPH. The speed was slower because of the slamming seas on the bow and all the tanks were full. In a few miles, the seas were 2-4 feet with all whitecaps. Spray was dousing the cabin and going over the roof. Handholds were gripped, it was to rough and to eat or drink anything and all concentration was on the path ahead as the occasional line of crab pots was avoided. This continued for about 20 miles.
The Potomac River is 14 miles wide at its junction with the Chesapeake. The cruising guides described this section as often the worst part of the Chesapeake and it lived up to its reputation. When Andiamo entered it, the waves grew to the next level and were 3-5 feet with an occasional 6 footer. The speed was dropped by 200 RPM to slow the intensity of the bow slamming into the waves.
For the next hour, hundreds if not thousands of gallons of seawater were sprayed and poured at the cabin and deck. Sheets of water slammed into the windshield. Windows started to fog as all the windows were closed, items were thrown from the galley shelves, the utensil drawer wanted to open, and maps and cruising guides spilled onto the floor. There were groans from deep in the tug that were never heard before as the hull would rise over the wave and fall into the trough.
Yet the BMW diesel was steady and consistent with the same coolant temperature, oil pressure, RPM’s, engine load percentage and the turbo’s PSI. The holding tank got a good stir and the shower sump tank vomited up some sludge into the head. The places that leak rain water, leaked seawater. The tug left Virginia in its wake and entered Maryland after crossing the Potomac.
About 10 miles after crossing the Potomac, the waves scaled back and the white caps were gone. A rattle on the roof overhead caught my attention and pulling back the canvas cover on the hatch showed a view of the tower but the two guy-cables were detached from their roof fittings and swinging. With life jacket on and turning the tug around to glide with the waves and at their speed, I went on the foredeck as Laurie held the helm. Unexplainably, each turnbuckle that controls the tension of the cable had unscrewed. The fix was easy and no damage was discovered.
Andiamo turned to port to enter the Patuxent River and headed to Solomons, which is a cluster of marinas that are in a group of deep creeks. The seven marinas could probably handle 200 transient boaters. This made Solomons a common destination for Loopers.
The water was flat and calm and the tug would use the next 6 miles to cool down after running nearly 6 hours at an engine load of 80%. Laurie had chosen the Calvert Marina because it had good moorage rates and the reviews described it has being laid back. After a pump out and a quick rinse of the tug, the staff put us on a fixed dock where the long-term boaters stay. We heard Herb and Mary and their Nordic 37 coming behind us with Chuck and Margaret behind them. Andiamo had taken us 68 miles in six hours and used 43 gallons of diesel to deliver us safely through the toughest waters we had experienced on this trip.
The Calvert Marina Office had the pungent smell of dogs and cats and the animals greeted us as they clearly lived there. The staff were long-timers and the Matt, the owner, offered to take us to the Avis rental car office in nearby Lexington Park as his courtesy car was out of commission. We piled into the front seat of his Dodge truck and he told us about this community, the influence of the Navy from the nearby air station, as he drove.
After getting the Chevrolet Impala, a quick store stop, we arrived back to microwave an Italian dinner and to walk the docks.
Sunday to Monday, May 18-26
Laurie flew to Seattle on Sunday and we are waiting to see what happens there and how that impacts the trip. I would spend the next 8 days doing a variety of boat projects, working on writing projects, doing errands, kayaking around the bay and seeing friends who were also on the east coast.
One part of this trip is about serendipity, the unanticipated discovery. This serendipity was:
A. Spending time with Steve and Tina who were long time Ranger 25 owners and now have an American Tug 34, which they keep in the Pacific Northwest. They provided great counsel and wisdom as the Seattle health crisis slowly unfolded. You can be 2,800 miles from home and still have a connection to good friends.
B. Another Ranger 29 Tug owner, Dave, was attending a course at the nearby FBI Academy and we spent an evening together at the academy. The experience Dave is getting, I had long envy for and after taking in the whole experience; I am at peace with the cards that were dealt me.
C. Speaking of envy, a Helmsman 38 took the slip right behind Andiamo and the couple are just finishing the loop. The boat had previously done the loop with its first owner. These owners put to bed the doubts I had about the Helmsman in comparison to the interior design of other boats.
D. Steve, Tina and I spent a day in Annapolis that happened to be the week that the Naval Academy was graduating its seniors. Parking was easy to find at the marina we chose to walk around and, as it turned out, was an easy walk to the academy where we saw a changing of command ceremony, enjoyed the academy’s museum, and the highlight was an up close view of the Blue Angels performing. My grandfather attended the Naval Academy and I was awed by the visit.
Laurie flew to Seattle on Sunday and we are waiting to see what happens there and how that impacts the trip. I would spend the next 8 days doing a variety of boat projects, working on writing projects, doing errands, kayaking around the bay and seeing friends who were also on the east coast.
One part of this trip is about serendipity, the unanticipated discovery. This serendipity was:
A. Spending time with Steve and Tina who were long time Ranger 25 owners and now have an American Tug 34, which they keep in the Pacific Northwest. They provided great counsel and wisdom as the Seattle health crisis slowly unfolded. You can be 2,800 miles from home and still have a connection to good friends.
B. Another Ranger 29 Tug owner, Dave, was attending a course at the nearby FBI Academy and we spent an evening together at the academy. The experience Dave is getting, I had long envy for and after taking in the whole experience; I am at peace with the cards that were dealt me.
C. Speaking of envy, a Helmsman 38 took the slip right behind Andiamo and the couple are just finishing the loop. The boat had previously done the loop with its first owner. These owners put to bed the doubts I had about the Helmsman in comparison to the interior design of other boats.
D. Steve, Tina and I spent a day in Annapolis that happened to be the week that the Naval Academy was graduating its seniors. Parking was easy to find at the marina we chose to walk around and, as it turned out, was an easy walk to the academy where we saw a changing of command ceremony, enjoyed the academy’s museum, and the highlight was an up close view of the Blue Angels performing. My grandfather attended the Naval Academy and I was awed by the visit.
Thursday afternoon, I was focused on interior projects and not paying attention to the weather forecast. Afterall, Andiamo was securely tied up at marina, what could happen? When I stepped out to take the garbage out, it was then that I noticed the sky turning dark with thick, rolling clouds. Then, opening the Weatherbug app, I read the thunderstorm warning with possibility to 2-inch hail and wind gusts of 70 miles per hour. A look at the weather radar showed dark orange and red cells bearing down on Andiamo.
Extra spring lines were put on the windward side and the piling on the leeward side was lassoed in the case the wind shift around. The lessons from Hampton, Virginia were remembered to take down the side canvas in the cockpit to let the wind blow through unobstructed. The transom cabinet is not watertight and never can be but the canvas cover does a nice job keeping out 95% of the water. All windows and hatches were double-checked.
The curtain of rain was on the other side of the bay and I just barely made it inside the cabin and closed the door when a huge gust of wind slammed into the marina with horizontal rain driving hard into every vertical service. Visibility dropped to less than 100 feet as the hail pelted the windward side. Being in Andiamo was like being inside a snare drum; it consumed nearly all the senses with sound, warmth, boats heeling over, and lines straining under the onslaught of wind and hail. Fifteen minutes later, the storm had passed on eastward, the wind stopped, the temperature as an even 82 degrees and the bay became flat and calm with the skies clear and blue. Andiamo did not sustain any damage. This was not the case with many boats whose clear Isinglass was pocked-marked or penetrated.
Extra spring lines were put on the windward side and the piling on the leeward side was lassoed in the case the wind shift around. The lessons from Hampton, Virginia were remembered to take down the side canvas in the cockpit to let the wind blow through unobstructed. The transom cabinet is not watertight and never can be but the canvas cover does a nice job keeping out 95% of the water. All windows and hatches were double-checked.
The curtain of rain was on the other side of the bay and I just barely made it inside the cabin and closed the door when a huge gust of wind slammed into the marina with horizontal rain driving hard into every vertical service. Visibility dropped to less than 100 feet as the hail pelted the windward side. Being in Andiamo was like being inside a snare drum; it consumed nearly all the senses with sound, warmth, boats heeling over, and lines straining under the onslaught of wind and hail. Fifteen minutes later, the storm had passed on eastward, the wind stopped, the temperature as an even 82 degrees and the bay became flat and calm with the skies clear and blue. Andiamo did not sustain any damage. This was not the case with many boats whose clear Isinglass was pocked-marked or penetrated.
A FOUR-WEEK PAUSE
Many Loopers had experienced an unplanned interruption of their trip that is often caused by those needs and responsibilities from the life they had left behind. This is the case with Andiamo’s crew as a cherished family is in their last chapter of life. The news and realization of what we needed to do came in doses over 7 days. While Laurie dealt with the most important topics of life and love in Seattle, I spent a day researching the options and making the arrangements to leave Andiamo and get back to Seattle. We could be away for weeks or months.
The serendipity was conversations with people who shared their wisdom and choices on what worked for them on transportation to the airport, that moving the tug to other ports was not the wisest use of time, effort and money, that the option of spending the remaining days cruising other parts of the Chesapeake was stalled because of a weather system that was keeping the power boats in the marina, and what our options were when the trip could resume.
To do the Loop means getting on the conveyor belt of a moving weather window and staying in that window. The length of the window is soft and changes but as a notion it is about 8 to 10 weeks long. Traveling before the window finds the weather too hot or too cold, rivers & canals can be choked with debris and a blasting current. Traveling after the window means there may not be enough time to get through a coming leg due to the changing seasons that brings adverse weather and insurance companies may set calendar days to be out of hurricane season or before the storms of Great Lakes take over that region.
The traveling window is playing on our minds. Can we re-start and enjoy parts of the Great Lakes before the fall storms come in? Rushing the trip to cover mileage is an option but that is not the core reason why we are doing this. Do we really want to store Andiamo on the east coast, on the hard, for nearly a year, while not being absolutely certain that we can do the Loop in 2015? Does it make more sense to bring the tug back to the Pacific Northwest during the prime cruising season and use it all year?
Many Loopers had experienced an unplanned interruption of their trip that is often caused by those needs and responsibilities from the life they had left behind. This is the case with Andiamo’s crew as a cherished family is in their last chapter of life. The news and realization of what we needed to do came in doses over 7 days. While Laurie dealt with the most important topics of life and love in Seattle, I spent a day researching the options and making the arrangements to leave Andiamo and get back to Seattle. We could be away for weeks or months.
The serendipity was conversations with people who shared their wisdom and choices on what worked for them on transportation to the airport, that moving the tug to other ports was not the wisest use of time, effort and money, that the option of spending the remaining days cruising other parts of the Chesapeake was stalled because of a weather system that was keeping the power boats in the marina, and what our options were when the trip could resume.
To do the Loop means getting on the conveyor belt of a moving weather window and staying in that window. The length of the window is soft and changes but as a notion it is about 8 to 10 weeks long. Traveling before the window finds the weather too hot or too cold, rivers & canals can be choked with debris and a blasting current. Traveling after the window means there may not be enough time to get through a coming leg due to the changing seasons that brings adverse weather and insurance companies may set calendar days to be out of hurricane season or before the storms of Great Lakes take over that region.
The traveling window is playing on our minds. Can we re-start and enjoy parts of the Great Lakes before the fall storms come in? Rushing the trip to cover mileage is an option but that is not the core reason why we are doing this. Do we really want to store Andiamo on the east coast, on the hard, for nearly a year, while not being absolutely certain that we can do the Loop in 2015? Does it make more sense to bring the tug back to the Pacific Northwest during the prime cruising season and use it all year?
WE ARE BACK!
On June 18, two weeks after the passing of Laurie's dad, she sat at the dining room table, looking at the flowers on the deck and said,“I want to re-start the trip” and with those words, Laurie signaled that the grief and sorrow that she felt with the passing of her father could come and go it did have to happen only at home. Most of the family was supportive of the decision to return. I accepted Laurie’s theme that she could only visualize the trip through mid-September. We wanted to enjoy we what happened without being on a schedule or being rushed. Enjoying Washington DC and New York City would be done on another trip as there is a possibility of a wedding in that area. If we were through Chicago in mid-September, we might go on to Mobile, Alabama or we might end the trip. If we were not through Chicago, we would ship the boat home from the Great Lakes.
Getting the house closed down and putting the business of living back in trip-mode was very easy. I had a workshop to attend in Chicago on the coming Monday and Tuesday; the start time was chosen.
RESTARTING FROM THE SOLOMONS
Wednesday, June 25
I met Laurie at Reagan National Airport in DC and 90 minutes later, we were on the tug. Andiamo was in great shape with little evidence of wear. Laurie took the rental car to the store for the major provisioning. I tested the systems, setup the kayaks on the roof, purified the water system and re-filled the water tank. The holding tank was already empty and the fuel tank needed topping off. Laundry was done and the west coast clothes were packed away.
New neighbors in a sailboat moored next to us. They had sailed from Dublin, Ireland years before and were doing a boating adventure in 6-month installments and earning money for their cruising kitty for 6 months. They always anchor and this marina was their first marina experience in months and we enjoyed their laughter at using water and plugging into shore power.
On June 18, two weeks after the passing of Laurie's dad, she sat at the dining room table, looking at the flowers on the deck and said,“I want to re-start the trip” and with those words, Laurie signaled that the grief and sorrow that she felt with the passing of her father could come and go it did have to happen only at home. Most of the family was supportive of the decision to return. I accepted Laurie’s theme that she could only visualize the trip through mid-September. We wanted to enjoy we what happened without being on a schedule or being rushed. Enjoying Washington DC and New York City would be done on another trip as there is a possibility of a wedding in that area. If we were through Chicago in mid-September, we might go on to Mobile, Alabama or we might end the trip. If we were not through Chicago, we would ship the boat home from the Great Lakes.
Getting the house closed down and putting the business of living back in trip-mode was very easy. I had a workshop to attend in Chicago on the coming Monday and Tuesday; the start time was chosen.
RESTARTING FROM THE SOLOMONS
Wednesday, June 25
I met Laurie at Reagan National Airport in DC and 90 minutes later, we were on the tug. Andiamo was in great shape with little evidence of wear. Laurie took the rental car to the store for the major provisioning. I tested the systems, setup the kayaks on the roof, purified the water system and re-filled the water tank. The holding tank was already empty and the fuel tank needed topping off. Laundry was done and the west coast clothes were packed away.
New neighbors in a sailboat moored next to us. They had sailed from Dublin, Ireland years before and were doing a boating adventure in 6-month installments and earning money for their cruising kitty for 6 months. They always anchor and this marina was their first marina experience in months and we enjoyed their laughter at using water and plugging into shore power.
OXFORD, ST. MICHAELS AND LEAVING CHESAPEAKE BAY
Thursday, June 26
Watching the winds in the bay kept as at the dock until noon as 20-knot winds create uncomfortable waves when they have 50 to 100 miles to buildup. The Sailflo and Windfinder apps are my preferred sources for this information. In the meantime, the trim tabs were heavily encrusted with barnacle creatures and a stiff paint scrapper removed the ones that could be reached from the swimstep. 43 gallons of diesel were bought at $3.70 a gallon and we headed out into the bay feeling slightly anxious after being dock-bound for 5 weeks. We were headed north and toward the Eastern Shore and to the rich cruising grounds and where the book, The Chesapeake, was set.
Andiamo was fine but she could not reach her normal cruising speeds at the normal RPM’s and the engine load percentage was higher than normal. She was working harder.
34 miles and 4 hours later, Andiamo arrived at Oxford, Maryland and explored the waterway and marinas of this quaint town. We opted to anchor off the main channel of the Tred Avon Creek with 2 feet of water under the keel. As the sun was going down, the temperature in the cabin was 92 degrees and the humidity was high. We were living the reason why the boats on the Chesapeake have air conditioning. The evening was filled with phone calls to friends and relatives and cooling showers. A phone consultation with Rich Odendahl and he suspected that barnacles where the cause of Andiamo’s performance malaise and especially those on the propeller. I was going to use the dive gear for the first time on this trip tomorrow and make a systematic attack.
Friday, June 27
We slept well on the tug even though the night only cooled to the mid-70’s. After breakfast, the tools were assembled and mask, fins, dive boots, lightweight gloves and the dive hood were donned and I stepped in the 80-degree water. The rudder and the propeller were covered in tiny to small barnacles. The trim tabs had an inch-deep layer hanging on their underside and this slightly obstructed the stern thruster. Also, the anode on the end of the propeller shaft was completely gone. The anode protection system was still intact with one on each trim tab and the huge transom mounted plate were all intact. It took an hour to scrap away the troublesome creatures and to change out the prop zinc.
By mid-morning the task was completed, the gear was rinsed and drying, the tools put away and the anchor was pulled. Oxford was one place that was not kayak friendly but we did not look very hard. We felt the need to keep moving on and to shake the dust out of our cruising shoes. The next destination was 14 miles away to St. Michaels that is easily accessed on two sides of a peninsula. We opted going to the “backdoor” and not the $4 per foot marina. Once out of the channel, Andiamo was powered up to the efficient cruising speed and she was back to her old self of humming and sipping fuel.
We arrived two hours later, snaking up Broad Creek to San Domingo Creek and idled into the shallow arm that meets a city park. At the low tide, the anchor was dropped in 1.5 feet of water under the keel. We would never do this in the Pacific Northwest with its 12-foot tidal swings and rocky bottom.
Anchor scope on Andiamo is done to the formula of: depth + 7+ tide X 3 or 4. How it works: the depth sensor tells us the number of feet under the keel, not from the waterline, 7 is the number of feet from the bottom of the keel to the anchor roller, tide is the number of feet the tide will rise while we are anchored and the multiplier is for normal, calm cruising conditions. When the wind approaches 15 knots, the multiplier is increased to 5 and more for small craft warnings and when it is 25 or more.
While Laurie made lunch, the kayaks were readied. The paddle to shore was easy and we found a nice ramp to bring up the crafts and stow them. The town was walked, shops explored, the town dock was walked and great ice cream was enjoyed at Jo-Jo’s.
The afternoon wind from the east was hard on the town dock marina but was quite comfortable on the protected arm that Andiamo was anchored in. We were alone but dinghies passed us throughout the afternoon from boats who had deeper drafts than our 2’-6.” The late afternoon was cool, in the low 80’s, and the shade from the cockpit canvas made a pleasant place to relax.
Tom is a skipper of sailboat and met us when he was taking his 18-month sheltie dog to shore. He was attracted to the lines of the tug, that Andiamo Mojo, and our home port on the stern. Retired from the navy, he had sailed Puget Sound and spent the last 15 years sailing on the Chesapeake. He told us that jellyfish usually choke these waters in June and make swimming or dipping impossible.
Saturday, June 28
The small fleet of waterman leaving before the 0500 hours sunrise woke us but we did not get up until 0700 hours. Waterman is a term that makes sense. Rather than crabbers, shrimpers or fisherman, they are people on the water who are making a living. The anchor was pulled at 0800 hours and we idled out of this empty arm that was too shallow for the sailboats and the big yachts and past the nine sailboats and one trawler that were at anchor in deeper water. The skies were clear, the water was flat with a very light wind and the temperatures were in the mid-70’s.
Nesting ospreys were found on nearly channel marker. Months ago, these were seen in Florida. Now, the parents were raising their young and little fuzzy bird-heads were often seen as Andiamo slid by their homes.
Back on the Choptank River with depths ranging from 12 to 20 feet, the river is 3 to 5 miles wide as it heads to the Chesapeake. There is rarely any elevation higher than 50 feet above the water. The Chesapeake has 1100 miles of shoreline and many boaters never leave it. On this weekend day, there were sailboats, powerboats, charter fishing boats, and waterman in constant view. Toward the mouth of the river, Andiamo was turned north to take a short cut through the Knapps Narrows, a slim canal with bridge that opens on demand. The place was busy with boaters and we slipped on through without stopping. The narrow channel was bounded by one to two foot water depth that extended outward a half mile from shore.
Andiamo entered Eastern Bay, motored near an island that was being reconstructed from dredge spoils and skirted past at least 100 boats, both pleasure and charter, that were fishing these grounds. The destination was either Wye Island or the Kent Narrows. We had time to explore and stay at either and after seeing the many boats turning toward Wye Island and thinking we wanted to keep heading north, we opted for the Kent Narrows that is a cut through Kent Island. Before the narrows, Andiamo was taken around the Hog Island on an unmarked channel for a lunch stop. We thought about staying the night there but it was unremarkable.
Moving on through the narrows and not requiring the bridge to be opened for us, the next destination was Rock Hall that was 12 miles away. The constant radio traffic with the two marinas at Rock Hall signaled that this was going to be a busy place and we desired another quiet anchorage. Laurie did the research while Andiamo headed toward Baltimore that was in the distance. She settled on Worton Creek that was a bit off the beaten path, had a narrow approach and protected anchorage that was past the two marinas.
The anchorage was delightful and we were the first powerboat to anchor among the 12 sailboats. Andiamo covered 64 miles in about 8 ½ hours and the cruising was easy. Dinner was chicken and veggies in foil pockets on the grill with dark beer.
Thursday, June 26
Watching the winds in the bay kept as at the dock until noon as 20-knot winds create uncomfortable waves when they have 50 to 100 miles to buildup. The Sailflo and Windfinder apps are my preferred sources for this information. In the meantime, the trim tabs were heavily encrusted with barnacle creatures and a stiff paint scrapper removed the ones that could be reached from the swimstep. 43 gallons of diesel were bought at $3.70 a gallon and we headed out into the bay feeling slightly anxious after being dock-bound for 5 weeks. We were headed north and toward the Eastern Shore and to the rich cruising grounds and where the book, The Chesapeake, was set.
Andiamo was fine but she could not reach her normal cruising speeds at the normal RPM’s and the engine load percentage was higher than normal. She was working harder.
34 miles and 4 hours later, Andiamo arrived at Oxford, Maryland and explored the waterway and marinas of this quaint town. We opted to anchor off the main channel of the Tred Avon Creek with 2 feet of water under the keel. As the sun was going down, the temperature in the cabin was 92 degrees and the humidity was high. We were living the reason why the boats on the Chesapeake have air conditioning. The evening was filled with phone calls to friends and relatives and cooling showers. A phone consultation with Rich Odendahl and he suspected that barnacles where the cause of Andiamo’s performance malaise and especially those on the propeller. I was going to use the dive gear for the first time on this trip tomorrow and make a systematic attack.
Friday, June 27
We slept well on the tug even though the night only cooled to the mid-70’s. After breakfast, the tools were assembled and mask, fins, dive boots, lightweight gloves and the dive hood were donned and I stepped in the 80-degree water. The rudder and the propeller were covered in tiny to small barnacles. The trim tabs had an inch-deep layer hanging on their underside and this slightly obstructed the stern thruster. Also, the anode on the end of the propeller shaft was completely gone. The anode protection system was still intact with one on each trim tab and the huge transom mounted plate were all intact. It took an hour to scrap away the troublesome creatures and to change out the prop zinc.
By mid-morning the task was completed, the gear was rinsed and drying, the tools put away and the anchor was pulled. Oxford was one place that was not kayak friendly but we did not look very hard. We felt the need to keep moving on and to shake the dust out of our cruising shoes. The next destination was 14 miles away to St. Michaels that is easily accessed on two sides of a peninsula. We opted going to the “backdoor” and not the $4 per foot marina. Once out of the channel, Andiamo was powered up to the efficient cruising speed and she was back to her old self of humming and sipping fuel.
We arrived two hours later, snaking up Broad Creek to San Domingo Creek and idled into the shallow arm that meets a city park. At the low tide, the anchor was dropped in 1.5 feet of water under the keel. We would never do this in the Pacific Northwest with its 12-foot tidal swings and rocky bottom.
Anchor scope on Andiamo is done to the formula of: depth + 7+ tide X 3 or 4. How it works: the depth sensor tells us the number of feet under the keel, not from the waterline, 7 is the number of feet from the bottom of the keel to the anchor roller, tide is the number of feet the tide will rise while we are anchored and the multiplier is for normal, calm cruising conditions. When the wind approaches 15 knots, the multiplier is increased to 5 and more for small craft warnings and when it is 25 or more.
While Laurie made lunch, the kayaks were readied. The paddle to shore was easy and we found a nice ramp to bring up the crafts and stow them. The town was walked, shops explored, the town dock was walked and great ice cream was enjoyed at Jo-Jo’s.
The afternoon wind from the east was hard on the town dock marina but was quite comfortable on the protected arm that Andiamo was anchored in. We were alone but dinghies passed us throughout the afternoon from boats who had deeper drafts than our 2’-6.” The late afternoon was cool, in the low 80’s, and the shade from the cockpit canvas made a pleasant place to relax.
Tom is a skipper of sailboat and met us when he was taking his 18-month sheltie dog to shore. He was attracted to the lines of the tug, that Andiamo Mojo, and our home port on the stern. Retired from the navy, he had sailed Puget Sound and spent the last 15 years sailing on the Chesapeake. He told us that jellyfish usually choke these waters in June and make swimming or dipping impossible.
Saturday, June 28
The small fleet of waterman leaving before the 0500 hours sunrise woke us but we did not get up until 0700 hours. Waterman is a term that makes sense. Rather than crabbers, shrimpers or fisherman, they are people on the water who are making a living. The anchor was pulled at 0800 hours and we idled out of this empty arm that was too shallow for the sailboats and the big yachts and past the nine sailboats and one trawler that were at anchor in deeper water. The skies were clear, the water was flat with a very light wind and the temperatures were in the mid-70’s.
Nesting ospreys were found on nearly channel marker. Months ago, these were seen in Florida. Now, the parents were raising their young and little fuzzy bird-heads were often seen as Andiamo slid by their homes.
Back on the Choptank River with depths ranging from 12 to 20 feet, the river is 3 to 5 miles wide as it heads to the Chesapeake. There is rarely any elevation higher than 50 feet above the water. The Chesapeake has 1100 miles of shoreline and many boaters never leave it. On this weekend day, there were sailboats, powerboats, charter fishing boats, and waterman in constant view. Toward the mouth of the river, Andiamo was turned north to take a short cut through the Knapps Narrows, a slim canal with bridge that opens on demand. The place was busy with boaters and we slipped on through without stopping. The narrow channel was bounded by one to two foot water depth that extended outward a half mile from shore.
Andiamo entered Eastern Bay, motored near an island that was being reconstructed from dredge spoils and skirted past at least 100 boats, both pleasure and charter, that were fishing these grounds. The destination was either Wye Island or the Kent Narrows. We had time to explore and stay at either and after seeing the many boats turning toward Wye Island and thinking we wanted to keep heading north, we opted for the Kent Narrows that is a cut through Kent Island. Before the narrows, Andiamo was taken around the Hog Island on an unmarked channel for a lunch stop. We thought about staying the night there but it was unremarkable.
Moving on through the narrows and not requiring the bridge to be opened for us, the next destination was Rock Hall that was 12 miles away. The constant radio traffic with the two marinas at Rock Hall signaled that this was going to be a busy place and we desired another quiet anchorage. Laurie did the research while Andiamo headed toward Baltimore that was in the distance. She settled on Worton Creek that was a bit off the beaten path, had a narrow approach and protected anchorage that was past the two marinas.
The anchorage was delightful and we were the first powerboat to anchor among the 12 sailboats. Andiamo covered 64 miles in about 8 ½ hours and the cruising was easy. Dinner was chicken and veggies in foil pockets on the grill with dark beer.
CONTRADICTIONS AND JUST FOR FUN
Your tax dollars at work: This is the Colonial Parkway that is heavily used that is not stripped with either a center line or fog lines. In the more efficient state and local highways, newly paved roads receive temporary lines before the permanent lines are applied.
Eyebrows on a car? Does it flirt too?
What is unusual about a leaf stuck to the cockpit? When the nearest tree is 3/4 of mile away, 50+ mile an hour gust can plaster it in place.
This is the hourly rate for St. Michael's marina and this is what the market will bear. What do you get for this high rate? Donuts to the boat, sharply dressed dock hands, deliveries to the boat?
Primitive camping resort on the Bay?
