Rougher Than a Corn Cob Off-shore

Dolphins travelled with us most of the time while off-shore.

We took advantage of a short weather window that allowed us to head off-shore from Beaufort Inlet, NC and come back into the ICW 70 miles south at Masonboro inlet. We sailed 20 miles off shore, saw one other boat and were accompanied by dolphins and rain most of the trip.  Winds peaked around 20 knots, seas two to four foot.  We sailed at a top speed around 7 knots.  The wind was not bad although it was a little confused.  Fishermen we heard on the radio during the day described the seas as "rougher than a corn cob". It was a relief to see the sea bouy marking the entry to Masonboro Inlet after 15 hours and feeling cold and wet.  All in all, it was worth it.  We did some off-shore sailing, adding to our experience.

Happy Thanksgiving from the ICW!

When we were sorting and packing stuff before shipping our belongings back to Australia, we re-visited some of the priceless works of art created by our boys when we first arrived in the States.  Thanksgiving is indeed all about the turkey..... and about being thankful but 

most of all, about family.  We miss you both!

You can see our Thanksgiving meal on our B.Y.O.G. Food & Wine blog - click on the link at right under "Other Bristol Rose Blogs".

Daisie has to get in on the action from her perch as Robert charts our course for the next few days.

Shannons Are Built for This and More

The minimum height for fixed bridges over the ICW is 65ft. However, like most things in life there is always an exception to the rule. The Wilkerson Creek Bridge crosses the Aligator-Pungo canal just south of the Alligator River, NC, with a vertical clearance of 64 feet! Bristol Rose's vertical clearance is 63 feet. It felt too close for comfort but we managed to make it without any problems except for a few more grey hairs. Good thing the tide was low. It's also a good thing Shannon 43s are built for this; cruising down the Intracoastal Waterway to the shallow waters of the Bahamas.  They are also built for a cruising couple to circumnavigate! Walt Schulz thought of everything!

Crossing The Albemarle Sound

Boats appear to float on the glassy waters of the Albemarle Sound as the 

Alligator River Swing Bridge opens to allow them to pass to the south.

Following a delightful trip through the Great Dismal Swamp we were looking forward to stopping and exploring the township of Elizabeth City. We docked at the free dock with the help of Calvin, a Canadian/Jamaican, sailing his Alberg 30 Voyager from Nova Scotia. No sooner had we docked Bristol Rose, Calvin mentioned that tomorrow will be a great weather day to cross the Albemarle Sound. We decided to go for it and departed around 4am. So much for exploring Elizabeth City. As they say, time and tide wait for no man, woman or dog!

Albemarle Sound is the largest freshwater sound in the U.S. It's also reputed to have the roughest inland waters with the potential to quickly turn nasty. So it's worth taking advantage of a favorable weather window. We had a very pleasant crossing with the water positively glassy. Trish's picture of the boats coming behind us through the Alligator River Swing Bridge will give you a sense of just how unpredictable the Albemarle can be! Ha! Not on this occasion.

Voyager at anchor Pungo Creek early morning after crossing the Albemarle Sound.

Miss Daisie - Boat Dog

Daisie enjoys just being with her family. As a puppy she loved running in the snow but she seems to be feeling the cold. Not surprising given the temps are close to freezing during the day and in the 20’s overnight. Everyone we meet is complaining about the unusually cold weather for this time in the Fall - snow for heaven’s sake! Our Espar heater is keeping us cosy below deck. When Miss Daisie’s warm jacket appears for her to go outside, she tries to hide. She gets to dress up anyway, and we throw a cover over her if she’s resting out in the cockpit.

Before we could tie up at the North Carolina Welcome Center on the Great Dismal Swamp she had jumped off the boat to say hello to some of the locals. We can tell she is missing Owen and Elliot and hugs and kisses from Miss Alyss.

Traveling with a pooch can be a challenge, not so much for us but for her. Daisie is sweet tempered and easy to have on the boat with us. She has some basic needs, like regular trips ashore. She loves the dinghy rides when we are anchored out. She barks encouragement at the outboard and you’d swear she thinks the dinghy is hers exclusively.

Frost covers the dinghy.

The greatest challenge is getting Daisie to “go potty” on command when we are underway and can’t get to shore at her usual times. Daisie’s training; so far, ongoing! We are using the pungent canine training drops that when dropped in the appropriate place, should prompt a response in dogs to “go potty”. She’s holding on like a trooper not wanting to mess on the boat. Time for the Daisie dinghy dash to give her some relief poor pooch.

The Great Dismal Swamp Aboard a Shannon 43

At the end of the Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia - entering Elizabeth City, North Carolina.  It's quiet except for the sound of our engine and utterly beautiful. We savour every sight and moment in the Swamp, knowing we will probably never pass this way again. Trish, tending the lines in the South Mills Lock and doing a good impersonation of the Michelin Woman, all rugged up. It's cold out here!

River Tapestry - this one is for you, Dawn, a little quilting inspiration?

Walt Schulz designed the Shannon 43s with the ICW in mind.  Not only is the draft shallow enough to navigate the Great Dismal Swamp, the mast is just under the height of the many bridges that cross the 3000 mile (4,800km) waterway from Boston around the southern tip of Florida to Brownsville, Texas.

Five Foot Draft Pays Off Motoring Down the Intracoastal Waterway ICW

The Day of the Triffids, Norfolk, VA.

Anchored overnight at ICW Mile marker 0 in Norfolk, Virginia. We left Friday am between snow flurries and with wind threatening to blow us over crab pot buoys as we raised the anchor. We had memories of anchoring one dark night off Deal Island on the Chesapeake only to awake and find ourselves in a sea of crab pots. Robert had the joy of an early morning swim that time, hoping no crab men were watching as he cut the offending line from our prop. Fortunately we were positioned outside swinging distance of the pots in the anchorage this morning.

After the late start from Norfolk, we arrived after 3:30pm, Friday and had to tie up and wait for the 8:30am opening at Deep Creek Lock, Mile 10.5. We were the only boat in sight. Daisie enjoyed dinghying ashore for a run in the park at the lock. We motored all day Saturday through the Great Dismal Swamp. We're glad we took this route at the last minute. We'd planned to take the Virginia Cut route down the Virginia-North Carolina part of the IntraCoastal Waterway until a call to the North Carolina Welcome Center confirmed there was plenty of water in the canal for our 5ft draft. Times like this a fairly shallow draft (4'9" with a retractable centerboard lifted) really pays off in being able to get to places most 40-50ft boats can't go.  Clever Shannon Yachts!

Sailing into port Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is a busy port with war ships and commercial shipping at every turn.  The sights to be seen along the waterways, heavy with industrial and naval history, hold their own unique beauty.

Reflections.....and Changes

Life has been so hectic over the past few months that we’ve barely had time to reflect upon all the changes. Even as we sail south, there are still some details to be completed. Any one of the life changes we are going through would be enough to create a stress overload; retirement from a job of 21 years, selling a home, (talk about bad timing thanks to a financial crisis in the US!), packing up worldly goods and shipping half way around the world, embarking upon an extended cruise to the Bahamas and the Caribbean, and the most difficult change of all, becoming “empty nesters” and leaving our young adult sons in Maryland.

After 12 years in the USA, it’s hard to untangle the mess of emotions we’re feeling as we go through the process of uprooting and moving back to Australia. Friends and family ask “Are you excited?”. We can only respond that excitement is just one of the emotions that come to mind, and not necessarily the first.

We're doing the reverse of the usual empty nesters’ scenario of American families. We’re stretching our wings with our sailing plans and eventual return to Australia; Owen and Elliot remain in Maryland for the near future to complete technical college and work. We’re sad to be traveling without our children, even though they are very capable young adults, happy with their chosen fields of study and work. We’re missing you and wish you could be traveling with us. We’re looking forward to a break in your schedules - and warmer weather, when you can join us. Daisie is also missing you.
We are grateful to have had many opportunities to expand our horizons while in the USA, both through work and the friendships we have been fortunate to make. We are going to miss our friends and expect to see you in Sydney whenever you can make the trip.

When the time comes to take the final step in our return to our Sydney home, we’ll be looking foward to seeing friends and family there once more. For now and the next few months, we’re excited to be experiencing the wonders of the USA, in our very comfortable home on the water.

Hardy Minnesotan Winter Training Comes in Handy

My first overnight sail south from Baltimore to Norfolk VA
 

Our overnight sail down the Chesapeake Bay provided us an excellent opportunity to re-live our four years of winter weather training in Minnesota. Winter survival lessons learned sure came in handy. We may have set a layering record with Robert achieving a 4 and Trish achieving a 5! Daisie decided not to layer-up, preferring to curl up on a settee in the warmth of the cabin. Comfortable, lucky dog! 

Amid snow flurries in freezing temperatures (the 20’s F) we’re sailing out of the Magothy River in Maryland, south under the Chesapeake Bay Bridges and on to Norfolk, Virginia. It will be 24 hours before we drop anchor at the Mile 0 mark on the Intracoastal Waterway, (ICW). We need to get south before it gets to the point where staying would mean winterizing the boat and waiting a year to make the trip. Bristol Rose and crew are leaving behind snow flurries and frosted docks for Florida. Come New Year 2009, we hope to be sailing the islands of the Bahamas and the Caribbean. 

Although we’ve sailed at night, this is our first overnight sail. We have a weather window that should allow us to get to Norfolk before high winds and snow is expected in the area. We’ve taken Dave’s advice (S/V Starshine), and timed our departure to arrive in Norfolk during daylight. We’re making good speed, up to 8 knots. Sails are set on a beam reach to close haul. It’s dark now, bitterly cold and cloudy but the sailing is good and steady with both of us managing to get in a few hours of sleep in turn. Close to the shipping channel in the Bay, there’s plenty to keep our attention focused and no chance of falling asleep at the helm, even with BR’s autopilot doing the steering. A glance back over the transom and, oh s#@t! Is that a container ship bearing down on us? Get the engine started, quick! better to move a little further away from the channel. 

In the heat of a Maryland summer you don’t have much appreciation for heating aboard a sail boat. You know it’s cold when ice falls out of the flaked sails onto the deck. We are now benefitting from outfitting decisions made during the semi-custom build of Bristol Rose. Walt Shultz, Shannon Boat Company in Rhode Island got it right adding Espar diesel heating to his Shannon boats. BR is very comfortable below decks right now. 

We had a wonderful farewell with our boys and all our friends coming to bid us farewell.  We’ve been very busy with last minute preparations during our short time at Ferry Point Marina. The owner, Al, John who manages the yard, and everyone at FPM have been very helpful to us and we're grateful. 

Wow, hard to believe we are leaving Maryland

First fall of snow today. Must be time to head south.

So what have we been doing?

• Left our jobs. What! are you crazy?
• Sold our house, settlement is 19th December. In this terrible market!
• Boys have found an appartment in Catonsville, and will move in December 13th.
• Shipped all our stuff in a 40ft container to Sydney.
• Donated a ton of stuff.
• Elliot is doing a great job selling the rest of the stuff. He has 2 great Honda's for sale.
• Preparing Bristol Rose ready to leave. This will continue with reprovisioning, maintenance etc from port to port. Staying ship shape and ready for passage making is a never ending job.

So tomorrow, at noon, we will leave Ferry Point and look forward to meeting new and old friends along the way. We will be doing our first all night sail, getting into Norfolk, Thursday morning. From there, we will head down the Intracoastal Water, ICW, or the ditch, all the way to Florida.
Stay tuned.