Bad Idea #381

So now that my inflatable dinghy is fixed, I have to tow it behind me and tend to it when docking and leaving dock. What I've been doing is pulling it up tight to the stern and lashing it to the swim platform cleats using the towing bridles. So far, so good.
Turns out, it's a little difficult to lean out over the swim platform, grab the bridles and tie them securely to the platform. So, genius that I am, I tie a bow line to the dinghy and tie the line to the stern cleat on the boat. Works like a champ. When I want to pull the dinghy in, I just grab the line, haul away and tie the line to stern rail. Easy.
Yesterday, I was pulling into a dock in Lewes, Delaware. Of course, I hadn't secured the dinghy because this was going to be an easy dock. Pulling in bow first, I get the bow line secured. But, the wind and the tide are working against me and pretty soon, I'm sideways in the dock. I put it in reverse to correct the position. But, the line on the bow of the dinghy sunk under the boat and got caught in the prop. The engine comes to an abrupt halt.
We get the boat secured to the dock and the suggestions and comments start to pour in.
Get it towed over to the haul-out facility across the canal. That's about $250 to $300.
Hire a diver. Probably more than the haul-out.
"Yeah, when that happened to me, I broke a motor mount."
"Yeah, I bent the prop shaft like that."
I was getting a little panic stricken.
The Asst. Dockmaster says, "Hey, I get off a 4. I'll look at it"
It took him about half an hour of holding his breath and using my dive mask and it was done. He would only accept a $20.00 tip.
Can't say thank you enough!

Annapolis

From St. Mary's City, I jumped to Solomons, MD. That was one of the roughest days I've had on the water. It was pretty choppy cruising down the St. Mary's river. I was getting hit head on by some fair sized waves, water breaking over the bow. I put on my life vest and clipped my radio to my belt.
About halfway to Solomons, the USCG broadcast a small craft warning (wind 25 to 33 knots and/or waves 5 to 7 feet). I was too far out to turn back.
I had to make a port turn to stay on course. That meant that the waves were bashing me on the starboard beam. Fortunately, that only lasted about an hour. Another starboard turn put the wave to my stern. Keeping a steady course with those waves was a real challenge.
So, it was a scary day, but I made it to Solomons and tied up for the night. The bad weather was forecast to continue, so I stayed at the marina for another night. Glad to say that it was a relatively inexpensive marina.
We got rocked by some huge thunderstorms that night and wind and rain the next day. I was able to get out and go shopping.
From Solomons, I cruised out to an anchorage just about 20 miles shy of Annapolis. One reason I wanted to get to Annapolis was to get my inflatable boat repaired. While I was at St. Mary's, I noticed that all their inflatables came from Annapolis Inflatables (sailing and crew are big at SMCM). Anyway, I spent a quiet night on anchor. I watched Master and Commander, again. I love that movie.
And a 4 hour cruise got me to Annapolis Landing Marina. I arranged to have the inflatable picked up (I hope that they are working on it right now). My daughters brought the grandchildren out for a visit and a quick tour of the boat. We all went out to dinner.
Tomorrow may be my last day in Maryland. The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal is only a day's cruise away.
Waiting on the inflatable.

St. Mary's College of Maryland

I called the director of alumni relations, Dave Sushinsky, and asked him about tying up on the docks at the river front. Dave checked, called me back, and told me that I would be fine tying up for the night.
It was really cool cruising up the St. Mary's River. I went past the replica of the Dove that is part of Historic St. Mary's City. The Ark and the Dove were the two ships carrying English settlers to the new world. They landed near what is now Point Lookout and established the first city.
I cruised around Church Point and right up to the docks. A couple of students were lounging on the docks and I asked for a little help getting tied in. They were very nice. I introduced myself as a member of the class of '04. They said welcome back.
It was really nice to be back. I sat and talked with one student for an hour or so. She made me feel really connected to the school. There is 50 years difference between us, but we have SMCM in common.
I walked around the campus. Yes, it did bring back a lot of fond memories. I walked over to the bookstore. I was hoping to score a new SMCM T-shirt, but they were closed. As was the Daily Grind, the little coffee shop next to the bookstore. I had been hoping for a cup of Starbucks on Sunday morning, but that was out, too.

Dave told me that the bathrooms and shower room would be open all night, so I availed myself of a nice shower. I went back to the boat and grabbed some wine and a glass. I spent a beautiful evening on the upper deck of the River Center watching the sunset.
Even though it was a bit out of the way, I'm glad that I visited the campus. I'll have to make it a point to get to campus for next year's reunion.
Right now, I'm in Solomons, MD. This, too, is bringing back memories. It appears that I'll be in Annapolis with in the next 2 to 3 days.

Big, Scary Place

I approached the crossing of the Norfolk Naval Shipyards and Hampton Roads with a great deal of trepidation. Norfolk is the fifth busiest port in the USA. And, of course there is all the naval ship movement going on.
As it turns out, my fears were all for naught. The hardest time I had was getting through the railroad bridges. Some of them sit down as close as 5 feet above the water. They swing out of the way, rise straight up on enormous structures, or rise to an angle using counterweights (Bascule Bridges). I wound up navigating through 2 bascule bridges, 1 vertical lift bridge, and one lock. That all cost me more than 2 hours of travel time.
I passed a lot of big commercial ships as well. I got a kick out of two of them, they were registered in Majuro. I've been there. I'm pretty sure that the ships are nearly as big as the atoll and probably more heavily populated.
Surprisingly, there was virtually no Navy traffic. I passed one destroyer that looked like it was coming back from sea trials. I did pass by a lot big navy ships, several aircraft carriers. It was an interesting day. Best of all, the water was relatively calm.
I had a nice cruise and got to Salt Ponds Marina. I got fuel and tied up for the night. Nothing too exciting. The restaurant that was advertised had closed about 2 years ago. Fortunately, I had supplies in the fridge from the trip to Walmart. They did give me a free beer cozy, however.
I got up after a good night's sleep and headed out. I am now officially in the Chesapeake Bay. I'm anchored out for the night in a lovely little inlet. I've already been approached by two local boats. The folks were admiring my boat and asked about where I came from and where I'm heading. Everybody likes my "cute", "little" boat.
It looks like tomorrow will be my last day in Virginia. I'm going to try to get to St. Mary's College on Saturday. I was hoping to anchor in the St. Mary's River, but as my dinghy is still non-functioning, I'll try for a marina... again.

Chesapeake, Virginia

I've been wanting to get north of Norfolk, VA as hurricane season started June 1. For all intents and purposes, I've made it.
So much has happened, I'm not sure where to start or where to end. My excuse for the long silence is, it's hard work doing all this cruising. It's not just the cruising, which takes up 6 to 8 hours a day, but all of the work before and after the cruise takes time and effort. Not whining, just explaining.
I stayed at a really nice marina the other night, Dowry Creek by name. They had free laundry and a free courtesy car. They also had the cheapest diesel fuel around. There was a great captain's lounge and beautiful clean showers. We (several fellow loopers and I) had happy hour in the lounge two nights in a row. While I hated loosing a cruising day due to bad weather, we had a good time partying and shopping in the nearby town. While I was there, I hired a marine electrician and got my spotlight fixed. I was really glad to get that done. Now, in the event of an emergency, I'll be able to move at night.
I cruised into Atlantic Yacht Basin the other night. I needed to get some prescriptions filled and I needed some groceries as well. So, an Uber over to Walmart fit the bill. That was Sunday afternoon. I got up Monday and did a search for a retinal specialist. I've had trouble with my eyes and I was told to check in with a specialist on the cruise. I found one that could take me today (Tuesday 6/13). I was glad to get that done. He seems to think that the cause of my eye problem is my blood pressure medicine. So, I called my regular doctor and I'll stop the meds for now and see how it plays out.
While I was tied up here, I got the name of the boat applied to the port and starboard sides of the pilothouse (pictures to follow). I also removed a seat cushion and replaced it with a piece of plywood. Now, I'll be able to mount a cup holder and a few other things for my galley on my new wall.
Tomorrow, I hope to start fairly early and get into the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. I may be in the St. Mary's river in the next couple of day. Looking forward to that.

Recap

Over a month ago, I said that I was going to recap month one. I never did. So, here is some of the data from my first month cruising:
Cruised - 505.4 nautical miles (according to my GPS)
Burned - 82.5 gallons of diesel fuel
Spent - $206.40 (avg 2.50 per gal)
Marina Nights - 21
Anchor Out - 7
Free Docks - 2
Too many nights in marinas and not enough on anchor. But, I was forced to stay in marinas longer than anticipated because of foul weather.

Second month cruising:
Cruised - 730.5 nautical miles
Burned - 85.95 gallons of diesel fuel
Spent - $223.32 (avg 2.60 per gal)
Marina Nights - 18
Anchor Out - 10
Free Docks - 3
An improvement in the anchor out vs. marina ratio. This month's excuse is that I had to wait for engine parts for some overdue routine maintenance.

All in all, not too bad. I wanted to make Norfolk, VA by June 1. I didn't make that, but I'm not going to miss by too much. It's about 220 miles from here to Norfolk.
I met a couple from Annapolis here in Morehead City. They are on their way home and plan on being in Annapolis in about 2 weeks. They cruise at about the same speed that I do. It'll be exciting to get to Maryland. I hope to stop by St. Mary's College of Maryland. I haven't even looked at the Chesapeake, yet. I guess I'll have to get some planning done.

Kilkenny Marina

My last stop in Georgia was at Kilkenny Marina. I had read about the marina on ActiveCaptain (web site for cruisers). They said that is was a little run down, but the people were really nice and it did provide basic services. ActiveCaptain was correct. I pulled in, got tied up, and fueled up. Real easy.
When I checked in, the dock master mentioned that there was a restaurant just down the road, easily walkable.
To be honest, I didn't expect too much. But, I was very pleasantly surprised by Marker 107. The restaurant is really popular with the local crowd, and with good reason, the food is amazing.
Now, I base this on one visit and on one dish, but the restaurant is great. The seafood jambalaya was one of the specials of the day. I had that and a side of coleslaw. It was absolutely delicious. Lots of fish and shellfish and really good sausage. It was all served over rice.
I also have to say that the wait staff were really nice and I saw the owner making his rounds to the tables.
After dinner, I had a glass of Drambuie. Life is good.

USCG Rule 34

Harken back to the days of steamboats and steam engines . In those days there were few methods of ship-to-ship communication. One method was to use of their steam whistles, and so whistle signals became common.
Although, today, we use horns (electric, electronic, and compressed air), the term whistle signal is still used. If you intend to pass another vessel on your starboard side (their port side), you should give two blasts of your horn. If you intend to pass them on your port side, one blast is sounded. If the vessel being passed agrees they return the same signal.
I had read about whistle signals a long time ago. Just salted away in my memory. I've been cruising for over two months now and I've been passed by, perhaps, thousands of boats. Remember that I cruise at about 5 knots. Some boats have contacted me on the radio. Most just speed by and leave me in their wake.
So, it was with great surprise the other day that I heard one blast. I turned around and saw a 40' cruiser right behind me. I returned the blast and they proceeded to pass me on my starboard side.
As they passed, they waved and gave me a thumbs up. I suspect that they were as surprised to get the correct signal back as I was to get their signal in the first place.
USCG Rule 34 specifies the whistle signals and how to use them.
So endeth today's lesson in nautical knowledge.

Month 3 Begins

I've been trying to stack up lots of miles so that I can be north of Norfolk. I was aiming to be there by June 1, but clearly, I didn't make it. The weather worked against me, some technical needs worked against me, and only making about 5 knots is working against me.
But, I've been having a good time. After visiting Stan and Connie, I anchored out and then made a long run to Fort George Marina in Jacksonville, FL. I stayed over a second night because, 1.) it was pretty windy and 2.) I was having a really hard time finding a route north with my limited resources. So, I took a ferry over to the mainland and an Uber to West Marine. I had them hold a MapTech book of charts for me. It was a big investment, but it made clear the way I needed to go.

First day in Georgia

I anchored out again on the 21st. Not much has been happening during the cruises. They've been pretty, most of them pretty smooth. I did cross some big water and got knocked around a bit (nothing like crossing the Gulf). I got to Morningstar Marina on St. Simon's Island, GA. After more than a month and a half, I'm finally beyond Florida. Uneventful there. I Ubered over to Publix for some much needed supplies. It was a bouncy night tied up to the dock, but I had fresh water, food, and a full fuel tank. Life is good!
I headed out for an anchorage a little more than 25 miles north. I was a narrow, but protected creek. I anchored about half a mile north of a ferry landing and thought I was safe. Then the thunderstorms rolled in. I was listening to the weather radio, watching online radar, and looking at WeatherUnderground. Tornadoes had been reported, water spouts and been reported, and the thunderstorms were crashing over my head. I was pretty scared. Scared enough to put on my life vest and hook my portable VHF to my belt. I had a pretty miserable night's sleep and got up the next morning to more storms, rain, and wind. The tide had gone out, which effectively made my anchor line longer. I watched as my boat swung ever closer to shore. Finally, I heard the skeg crunch onto the bottom. I started the engine and jumped to the bow of the boat. I hauled in the anchor and moved another 2 miles upstream. It was a little wider there, so I rode out the rest of the storm and collapsed into bed around 9p. Worst 2 days, so far. Hoping to not have to repeat any of that. But, I survived and I guess it just goes with the territory.