2nd day Heading South -Bahamas Bound

We left lovely Yorktown early and worked our way back out to the Bay. We arrived in Norfolk, Mile Marker 0 on the ICW at 2:30 and we stopped for the day because we could not make it through the bridges by their published closing time, most at 3:3o, one at 4. The weather report was correct today: windy and stormy seas. The choppy seas were a bit uncomfortable, but more so were the many commercial vessels, mostly tugs pushing, pulling or leading container ships. They took the channel,

sometimes hailing you to move out of the channel, sometimes not hailing you and you just knew to move out of the channel


So, tomorrow are the bridges. We were not too unhappy to put them off for one more day. We are a bit over whelmed with so much new info and action, but loving it all at the same time.
Weird? You can see from the cockpit pic that we have charts everywhere, as well as 'Otto,' our favorite guy, binoculars, and anything else we can grab to 'help' us.

Goodby Deltaville (Deltavillains describes a few folks)

Tuesday, early am, December 3rd:
Simple Plan. Spend months preparing, then start the engine, untie from the dock, and head out. But, wait, we didn't move. An exceptionally low tide had us grounded! We had moved our boat closer to the front of the marina to a dock with cleats only and no pilings to not only escape the strong wind but to also have a faster get-away. The dock was supposed to be deep enough for our 6' draft and we had no trouble docking there.

So we did a few more chores, wiped the remaining frost from our enclosure, questioned Mother Nature, and had a good laugh. Around 11:00, still not tied to the docks, Lapidus started floating. We quickly started our engine and crept out into the shallow narrow channel. Our depth finder indicated several times that we should be grounded, but we kept moving, so we were probably traveling in mud. Grounding in this channel is all too common.

With the wind and the current on our nose, we motored; our speed was much less than we wanted. But, the sun was shining, our enclosure kept us warm, and we were on our way. What a beautiful day.

The Hampton Roads harbor is home to vessels of all kinds, including commercial and military. We did not want to face this nautical freeway after dark. So, around five, we turned into the York River channel and went up the river to Yorktown. This area too has some commercial and military traffic, but it's not heavy and the river is wide and deep. We moved to the edge of the channel as a tug pulling a large barge passed us, and we followed him in. We were docked by 8 and enjoying a cocktail in one of our favorite spots that we often visited when we were staying in Glocester. We had not planned to visit here on our boat. But we didn't plan to leave late and dock at night at an unfamiliar dockage. So go plans. All in all, we loved our first day headed south.

So, today, we'll plan to enter the Hampton Roads harbor and Elizabeth River. The first 8 miles from Mile Marker 0, Norfolk, are congested with six bridges that we have to go through. More about that later.
My connection is iffy here. More pics tomorrow (if I can hook up).

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving in Deltaville, VA. –not what we planned, but in addition to being thankful for our friends and family, we’re thankful for our home on the water and the many great people in this small community that make their living from boaters. These past few weeks have been full of projects, mostly completed, but not quite yet. I’ve been thinking of a quote by Hillary Clinton while she was still First Lady. “It takes a village” is a reminder that educating our children involves all of us. As a former educator, I know how important these words are, but right now, this quote reflects what has been going on on our boat.

Crews who have been working on our boat include canvass, sail makers, air/refrigeration, rod rigging, line rigging, electronics, and plumbing. Having professionals available has enabled us to check all equipment, making repairs and replacements as necessary. We’ve replaced the Hot Water heater and replaced our new inverter for a larger one. We’ve added lighting, stereo and speakers, and CruiseNet (a wifi extender). Our new chart plotter was installed while the boat was on the hard, and we later decided to upgrade to the newest radar as well. Our electronics guru is having a heck of a time getting the Furono NavNet 3D chart plotter to work correctly and to synchronize with the other equipment on the boat. One nice feature of the chart plotter is we can view and make points/routes on our flat screen TV in the cabin. We’ve also used this time to get to know our boat. She’s quite a change from a 30’ Catalina and this area is quite a change from Lake Texoma.

Deltaville is located at the end of Route 33 on the Rappahannock River and the Chesapeake Bay. Over thirty marinas and boat yards surround the narrow finger. At the end of the finger is historical Stingray Point. On July 17, 1608 John Smith and his crew were fishing in the shallows of the Chesapeake Bay, spearing fish with their swords. Smith unknowingly speared a cow-nose ray; as he attempted to pull it off of his sword, its barbed tail sank into his wrist, causing immediate pain and considerable swelling of his torso and arms. Smith, fearing death, instructed his crewmembers to dig him a grave. But in a few hours he recovered enough to eat the stingray for dinner! Smith named the location "Stingray Point" after his painful experience.

In addition to the marine experts in Deltaville, many fishing boats go out daily. A local fish shop does lots of business plus the local restaurants offer fresh catch everyday including grouper, rockfish, oysters, scallops, crab. In fact, today at the Galley Restaurant, we enjoyed fried oysters along with Virginia ham and turkey. But the fish variety and numbers are far less than when John Smith was exploring and charting these waters. Efforts are being made to sustain the fish, mainly by taking better care of the Bay.

I missed posting for a great but different holiday. This marina takes Halloween seriously. The slice of pizza and the Miller beer are Jack and Craig, the owners of Regatta Point Marina.




Happy Thanksgiving and keep your fingers crossed for our heading south next week.

Quick Update

Moving out or moving in - just exhausting. But after two months of living in a hotel room, our bodies needed some conditioning. Our moving aboard is not completed, but we've made great progress. The boat already has a large inventory of items, so going through everything and deciding what stays and what goes takes a while.

We kept our plans to attend the Annapolis Boat Show since our boat needed fluids and everything checked before it could be moved to our new slip at Dozier's Regatta Point. We have been to the Boat Show four of the five years we've been sailing. Usually, we look, dream, buy a few items, and just enjoy the outing. This year, of course, we made purchases of specific items and equipment we wanted plus we wanted to talk to the reps about some of the equipment already installed. Wednesday night before the show, we met up with a great group for dinner, including former and present Cedar Mills Marina folks.
Left to right, Kate (who hosted a lovely happy hour in her Annapolis home), Steven, Larry, Paula, Di, Jay, Bob, Bev, Kathy, Mike, Nancy, Jim, and Steve.The food was excellent, but the artwork stole the show. Check out the swan carved from a turnip.

Annapolis is such a beautiful city. And the views of the boat show are impressive, especially from Pusser's patio.

Virginia and Maryland have many rivers, but the Potomoc River that separates the two states is certainly one of the most famous.


We are really pleased with our new marina -nice facilities and a great staff. The best feature is viewing all the boats that stop by for the night, or maybe several days, depending on the weather.


We'll have more pictures of Lapidus soon, but these two show our current favorite additions. The custom-made seven inch thick latex mattress is the most comfortable mattress ever!
This week, our balmy weather ended abruptly with a cold snap. The enclosure offered needed protection from the rain and wind.

We'll be traveling until October 28. We'll be attending our son Trent's wedding. He and lovely Cristen live in Austin, but the wedding will be in Boerne, Texas, an historic resort town in the Hill country. We will also be leaving our pickup in OKC and flying back. Yes, the pickup is currently loaded with items that didn't make the cut. We have great storage, but ........

This schooner is in Yorktown, one of our favorite places. It takes paying passengers on a short excursion of the river. Mainly, it just adds another beautiful dimension to a lovely area.

SPLISH SPLASH

Nice to not see a ladder leaning up against Lapidus. Of course, you might also notice there are no sails on the boat. The sails were removed for UV treatment and will be put on while the boat is in the water. The attractive white hull and the royal blue boot stripes make a nice background for the name and hailing port. Plus the blue goes great with the new toast canvas. New thru-hulls. Check out the trip to the water below.




















And that's how it's accomplished. More to be done
now that she's in the water, but what great sight!

Boat yard Time

Lapidus is still on the hard, BUT (drum roll) the long awaited air handler is to be delivered today. So, we're planning on getting wet by the end of the week.

Parts not being shipped as scheduled as well as projects not being completed as scheduled by the boatyard have become the standard. Plus, sometimes, projects just don't go as smoothly as planned. Whatayougonnado? Deltaville is home to several boat yards, and Schroeder Yacht Systems was recommended' to us as one of the best and most efficient yards. Hmmm!

Reverse Cycle Heat and Air, Generator, AIS, Furuno NavNet 3D Chartplotter ---lots of new items to add to our enjoyment and safety and to become familiar with. The EPIRB and Winslow Liferaft are back on board after being updated. And much more has been done. I'll be posting pictures soon.

We've also experienced our first hurricane (rain and wind for this area) and our first Nor'easter (more rain and much more wind plus really high tides and rough seas). Mostly, though, the weather has been about as gorgeous as Virginia. We spent a beautiful day at the In-the-Water Virginia Boat Show, on the Norfolk waterfront on the Elizabeth River. In fact, we took the ferry from Portsmouth to Norfolk, crossing the river where we will be sailing as we head south. Pretty cool!

We took a little side trip to Hertford, NC for our first taste of North Carolina Bar-B-Que. The food was delicious and we thank Ginny, one of our good friends from Cedar Mills Marina (Shawn and Ginny on S/V Ta-Keel-AH) for the tip.

Last weekend we attended the SSCA GAM in Annapolis. We met up with Jim and Nancy Aadland, S/V Solitaire. They kept their boat at Cedar Mills Marina when we first bought our Catalina 30; now they cruise full time. They introduced us to other cruisers at the GAM and we met many others as well. We look forward to seeing these friends as we head south and while we're in the Bahamas.

Right now, we're just excited that we really are going to have our boat soon.

Beaverdam State Park

Today, along with everyone else, we're awaiting the arrival of Hanna. The locals say we need rain, but are wishing for moderate amounts plus less wind than predicted. They still remember the damage Isabelle caused several years ago. Lapidus is still on the hard, and hopefully, safe from the coming tropical storm. Progress continues to be slow; that's about all I can offer without whining.

Every day before we (or sometimes just Larry) go to the boatyard to work on Lapidus and/or oversee current projects, we like to get a little exercise. Recently, we discovered Beaverdam State Park, a beautiful lake and recreational area. The 635 acre lake and surrounding nature and hiking trails present a spectacular way to begin the day. Usually we walk the trails, but a canoe trip was perfect for capturing a few pics of another lovely piece of Virgina.a.