Hampton to the Dismal Swamp Welcome Center in NC

What a great stop.  We both agreed Hampton was worth the slight detour up the Hampton River.  We didn't rush away, but enjoyed the pleasant morning and finished a few tasks before heading off at 0945.  After a quick trip dodging cargo ships, tugs pulling barges and staying clear of lots of military vessels...

(Obligatory Norfolk pictures!)

we started up the Elizabeth River.  A little over two miles up the river,  we passed buoy #36,  It is considered Mile Marker ZERO for the ICW.      Time to get out and assemble the large BRUNELLE banner that we'll hang off the dinghy on the stern davits.  We learned first trip down that it is a courtesy to have your boat name readable from astern so faster boats wanting to give you a "Slow Pass" have a name to use when they hail you on the radio.  

Dan is a wizard with PVC piping, he built the banner frame 5 years ago and it breaks down neatly into a small package for storage when not gracing our stern.  He built our enclosure frame in a similar fashion.

We managed to time things correctly and made the Wilmerton Bridge for the 1230 opening  and made it to the Deep Creek Lock for the 1330 opening.  We were the only boat being "lifted"  the 5 1/2 feet that took us up to the Dismal Swamp Canal level. 

We entered at 1330 and twenty minutes later we were out the other side and heading down the Dismal Swamp Canal.

It's amazing how straight - - and narrow the canal is.  A very peaceful and beautiful trip (except for a few submerged logs that cause a thump now and then.

We arrived at the Welcome Center at 1700 and were greeted graciously by the two ladies that run the center.  There was only one other boat tied up the the free dock.  Another great and reasonable spot to stop.  ~~~_/)~~~ M&D

Piankatank R. to Hampton Public Pier, Hampton River

It was eold and windy as we headed out of Fishing Bay this morning shortly after 0700.  We were bundled up and buttoned in, but still felt the chill, partly because the wind was on the starboard quarter and it is the one area I hadn't finished lengthening the "skirt" of the enclosure.  Dan described it like a mini skirt on a winter day.  Well, when we arrived here at Hampton, I "lowered" the hem on the starboard skirt.  Hopefully I'll get to the port side before the wind shifts to the East!

We attended a Seven Seas Cruising Association GAM at the end of September and came away with a few pointers about cruising, but the most interesting lecture was entitled, "50 frugal spots on the ICW."  Well, this is one of them.  We rounded the bottom of Hampton neck and headed up the Hampton River to the center of town.  The waterfront has been renovated and the Hampton Public Pier is quite a nice (and inexpensive) marina.

The trip down was a little rolly, but pretty fast with WNW winds 10-20 so we arrived at the dock, after stopping at Bluewater Yachting Center for fuel, at a little after two.  Not much to see along the way... Wolftrap Light presented itself in a rather eerie light,

Dan took pictures of the sunny and the shady side of Brunelle at her slip.  You can see that the sides are rolled up on the sunny side.  It works really well to open the leeward side while sailing...gives you good access to jib sheets and lets you have a clearer view.  

We were glad to leave the Deltaville area without needing some sort of repairs.  We have been watching the progress of others who left before us and it seems to be the spot where things go wrong and parts need to be ordered.  We have been hearing some strange creaks and groans the last two days, so while I was measuring, cutting and sewing, Dan was down in the port lazarette  (a feat in itself) going over the steering system with a fine tooth comb....well actually with several tools that needed to be handed down in the "hole" and he aslo gave the system a good greasing.  Hopefully no more squeaks.  After cocktails aboard, we walked a few blocks to Queens Way where we found a great dinner spot called Venture.  Back aboard for showers and a cozy night.  The heat is on!  It sounds like it won't warm up for a few more days, but we'll be in protected waters for the next few days as we head toward Mile Marker "0" of the ICW tomorrow.  Less sailing from now on.  ~~~_/)~~~M&D

Solomons to Fishing Bay, Piankatank River

The frost may have been on the pumpkin this morning, but not in Brunelle's cockpit.  As soon as the coffee was brewed we weighed anchor (0720) and headed out with the workboats as the sun rose.  We opted to go outside the Naval target range about 5 miles south of Cedar Point and were free and clear of it by 0900.  Twas a good thing!  We spent the rest of the morning listening to Navy Moose and Navy Patrol Boat #301 as the shooed other vessels away from the area.  We did encounter a bit of military action tho, Stiletto (corrected spelling) must have been heading home because she passed us going 29.8 knots. We also encountered another "military" vessel (as identified by AIS -- automatic identification system )  the only other information listed was it's depth -- 84'.  It was (yes, Betty) a submarine.

The submarine was also moving rapidly, 13.9 knots and didn't seem to have the escort we remembered so well from three years ago!

The forecast was amazingly accurate today.  We encountered WNW winds 10-15 with gusts to 20 knots all day.  We were able to sail, mostly with full sail, all day and averaged 7 knots all the way.  We passed Smith Point Lighthouse around 1230 and decided to cut inside to get better lighting for a picture.... considering all the residents (several hundred gulls and cormorants) we probably made a good choice to stay to windward of it!

The trip across the mouth of the Potomac was less eventful than we expected, but we did experience stronger winds and more slop as we crossed the Rappahannock River on our way to our anchorage in Fishing Bay on the south side of Deltaville.  Things did quiet down as we maneuvered the twisty entrance to Fishing Bay.  We joined several snowbirds again as we dropped the hook. A very pretty spot with yet again a lovely sunset.

They say tomorrow will be colder still, but that it will be close to 80 by Saturday!  We'll see.  We should make it to the Norfolk area tomorrow, cold or not.  ~~~_/)~~~M&D

Home port to Mill Creek, Solomons, MD

We weren't daunted by the driving rain and chilly temps as we headed out of our slip at Lippincott Marina this morning...we have an enclosure!  Eight AM was the departure time and we made it right on schedule.  Not a lot of traffic on our way out to the Bay proper, and not much out there either.  True to form, tho, we did run into some military vessels as we headed south.(Sorry Betty, no submarines!) The first was a military ops vessel (a very strange looking catamaran) that was hovering at the southern end of Poplar Island.  Aptly named Stilletto.  it wasn't concerned with innocent sailboats, I'm not sure what it was waiting for!  We were also passed by another military vessel called BrasilNE and we couldn't determine if she was US or Brazillian.  The grayness of the day seemed appropriate for the sighting.

The cold front advertised didn't fully materialize until mid afternoon, so we dealt with East winds instead of the forecasted NW.  There wasn't enough to keep us moving very fast, so we motor-sailed until after lunch.  We did cut the engine and get a nice sail in before turning up the Patuxent River to drop the hook in Mill Creek.

Even when the sun came out, we were very happy with our new cockpit enclosure.  I can't say it was actually warm, but it was really quite pleasant.

As we rounded Cove Point heading into the Pax River, Dan couldn't resist getting a picture of the lighthouse.  It's one of his favorites.  (When I enlarged this picture it somehow ended up looking like a painting...don't know why.)

The sun was low in the sky and the breeze almost non-existent as we headed up Mill Creek to join several other "snowbirds" who were already anchored there.  I don't remember seeing these tugs hanging out the last time we were in Mill Creek.

We miss our newest crew member...Dory, a very cute vivacious cockapoo puppy.  We had intended to bring her along, but a last minute check with SW Airlines alerted us to the fact that it would be almost impossible to fly her home with us for the holidays.   So she is happily forgetting any training we have been working on while she spends a month with Julie, Mike and the girls!   She'll join us after the holidays when we drive down to pick up the boat in St. Augustine.

Dory with Clare, Grace and Alice

Early start tomorrow... ~~~_/)~~~M&D

Brunelle is ready to head to Florida - - - all the way around to the west coast - - - to hang out in Ft. Myers we hope.

It's that time AGAIN!  We're ready to head off on another Brunelle adventure.  Quick update... we're up to 8 grandchildren now.  Danny and Natasha had a beautiful little girl in August.  We flew out to San Diego in September to meet her. Everyone out there is doing great.  We had recent visits with all the girl grandkids. Julie, Michael and their three girls, Alice, Grace and Clare sailed with us two weekends ago, then last weekend Kath and Ryan dropped Zoe and Kinsey off with us while they flew to Florida for Ryan's grandmother's funeral.  We haven't been able to connect with Sam and Jess and their sons Ben and Oliver...as "O" has been too busy with trips to the ER.  First for swallowing a quarter and then for 6 stitches in his chin.  Boys will be boys!!  Everyone is fine now but Jess is sure she is going to find a gray hair any day now.

We are sitting here in our slip at Lippincott Marina, Grasonville, MD loaded and ready to go. We've spent the last couple of weeks preparing, which included retro-fitting an enclosure for our cockpit generously donated by Andiamo's crew, John and Betty McElderry.  Dan built an ingenious framework system to make it work for our boat and I've been doing a bit of sewing to do the rest of the fitting.  It looks GREAT and we aren't worried about the forecast that predicts a big cold front arriving tomorrow...just as we head off.

This is what the enclosure looks like from the outside.

This is the view from the inside, facing aft.

As I headed off this evening for one last trip for....what....but of course,  last minute PROVISIONING!  I took this shot out the car window.   Fall sunsets are the greatest....even if they seem to show the edge of the cold front headed our way.  

Tomorrow we head SOUTH.  ~~~_/)~~~M&D