Elizabeth City, NC

Frugal spot #3!  We have been to Elizabeth City twice before, but have anchored north of the bridge mostly due to the wind direction at the downtown docks.  The city maintains 26 free slips for transient boats and the whole town seems to welcome the "boat people" that pass through each fall and spring.  We decided to try the slips as the wind was forecast to be next to nothing and from the "safe"  direction anyways.  We arrived a little after two and had time to kibitz with the other travelers who were already here and to walk 1.3 miles to the Napa store (and back) to buy an extra engine belt.  We also gathered with about a dozen of our newest boating friends for drinks this evening under a tent that Elizabeth City maintains for their Monday-Friday "wine and roses" evening greeting for boaters.

The day started quietly at the Welcome center - not a breath of air and lovely (if not all that warm) sunshine.  Dan walked across the foot bridge to the far side of the canal to get the top picture. I liked the still reflection of the water and the mile marker reminding us we have 750 miles to go until we reach St. Augustine.  Dan enjoyed the warmth of the sun in the enclosed cockpit to study the guide books for todays trip.

We agreed with Marie Lune (the only other boat at the center) to leave together so the footbridge tender would only need to make one opening.   We offered to go first but our French Canadian friends said they'd take the lead.  We were happy they did as we were only a mile down the canal when they alerted us to a submerged log that they had dealt with.  We were able to slide by it without any thumps.  

At one point yesterday the tachometer dropped to zero.  Dan rushed below and checked several things and decided it was the belt.  As things were very quiet (no traffic to worry about) we shut down the engine and coasted while he changed the belt.  We thought all was well...but...   as we headed out this morning the belt began to slip (and smell very hot)  so we coasted again while Dan tightened it tighter than he has ever done before and it seems to be fine now.

Top: The footbridge opened for us as we left the Welcome Center. We then followed Marie Lune, a 49' Meridian, up to the drawbridge/lock combo at South Mills.  We misunderstood the timing and had over half an hour of milling about (without any room for milling about) for the bridge to open and let us into the lock.   I got a kick of the plants growing on the gate of the lock.  It was an 8' drop to the Pasquotank River.  The trip down the River was just as idyllic as the Dismal Swamp and we lazed along to Elizabeth City.  

The little blue arrow point to Brunelle nestled in comfortably for the night.

After our gathering ashore this evening we had dinner aboard and worked with our son Sam to see if we could get set up to have our progress be displayed on the blog in real time.  The wizard that he is... we think were are all set, of course that doesn't take into consideration that we are heading into the notoriously "dead" zone, especially for AT&T.  "Can you hear (see) me now??"

We aren't dreading our trip across the Albemarle Sound as the weather predictions are for light SW winds....we'll see.  ~~_/)~~~M&D

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

June cruise on the Chesapeake

 “Cruise North” June 1-9, 2013

       The 2013 Cruise North started SOUTH of the Bay Bridge but north of Drum Point on the Wye River! Eight boats gathered on Saturday, June 1^st in the lee of Wye Island for an evening of feasting and fables. There were two rafts of three boats and two singletons. Raft #1: Resolve, Mike Vaccaro and Debbie Smith; Brunelle, Dan and Martha Bliss; Escapade, Jon and Marilyn Van Tassell. Raft#2: Andiamo, John and Betty McElderry; Prego, Mike and Marie Yates; Bay Wind, George and Lisa Thuman. Ragtime, Gerry and Jeanne Helldorfer, and Valinor, Jim Mosher anchored by themselves.

      Everyone gathered on Brunelle for a feast of heavy hors d'oeuvres and eventually spread across the three rafted boats as serious discussions developed. The weather was delightful in spite of earlier forecasts to the contrary.

Drum Point Raft-up, June 1st

   Belle, John and Betty's dog, shows Dory, Dan and Martha's new crewmate, what a beach is for.

      Bay Wind and Escapade were planning to leave late morning and opted not to go on a dinghy exploration adventure. Andiamo also had to head home but opted to join the dinghies from Brunelle and Resolve in a trip to Wye Landing. Marie and Mike Yates joined us too. Mike and Debbie turned around at the bridge that crosses over to Wye Island(their 6 horse couldn't keep up) and the other two dinghies continued on to give the two dogs a chance to run at Wye Landing. The dinghies didn't get back until 10:30 and found Bay Wind and Escapade ready to leave. Weather and the tide had George a bit worried. Andiamo joined them---leaving before Bloody Mary's on Brunelle. The remaining 5 boats relaxed and watched the storms brewing to the west, wondering if they would it while we all were aboard Ragtime for a sumptuous feast prepared by Jeanne. Sure enough the storm blew in 10 minutes before dinner, but with 4 guys working, they put Ragtime's enclosure on in record time and the diners stayed dry! All was quiet and clear when we headed back to our own boats (no rafting tonight.)

      Monday meant Ragtime had to leave us---grandchild's graduation. The four remaining boats headed out the Wye River and into the Miles River. We didn't have enough wind to sail, so we motored past St. Michael's and around the bend in the river to anchor in Hunting Creek. The weather reports were benign so all four, Brunelle, Resolve, Prego and Valinor rafted. Tonight was Marie's turn to cook. (We realized there would be four nights at anchor and four boats along for all or part of the week, so we assigned each boat one dinner, Valinor had the assignment to provide desserts. Everyone agreed it was a great plan---and very easy on the cooks!) It goes without saying that Marie's dinner was fabulous... and so were Jim's desserts!

Hunting Creek, off the Miles River was a lovely quiet anchorage.

     We had arranged to take two slips at the CBMM in St. Michael's because we wanted to attend the free concert given by the Naval Academy's Commandant's Quartet. We had heavy snacks aboard Brunelle before taking our lawn chairs and cushions to join the crowd on the Museum lawn for the jazz concert. The St. Michael's Fire Department was selling food and Rosie's bar supplied drinks. It was a beautiful evening and we all enjoyed the music. Valinor was up and gone before 6 am the next morning.

 Clockwise from the top: Mike, Marie, Jim, Mike, Debbie, Martha(w/ Dory) and Dan.; Dory was the belle of the ball, two anchored out, two dockside, Dan's shot from the top of the lighthouse 

and the Quartet in the center.

     Our longest day was Wednesday. As we headed across the bay in a flat calm, we realized we couldn't keep up with Resolve and Prego. We stopped mid-bay and Dan dove down to check the prop. It was covered with “bumpy stuff” which he proceeded to scrape off in successive dives. After about twenty minutes, we were up and running again, making 2 more knots than before! We all missed our old hangout for the Icebreaker, so we anchored in Harness Creek for the night. Prego called ou Commodoress and invited Diane and Richard out for cocktails. It was great to catch up with them.  Debbie's turn to cook tonight and she wasn't to be outdone by the previous dinners, so we had another delicious meal.

Resolve hosted everyone in Harness Creek.  Girls chatted: Martha, Diane, Debbie & Marie, while the guys BSed: Mike Y., Richard, Mike V. and Dan

     FINALLY on Thursday, we got a chance to sail. We knew the weather was forecast to turn ugly late in the day and tropical storm“Andrea” was going to bring even worse stuff on Friday, so we headed for Brunelle's home marina, Lippincott. Dan arranged for Resolve and Prego to have a slip and Brunelle slipped into her own slip. The original plan had been to be up the Chester at Lankford Bay Marina with a chance for dinner ashore, but instead we headed to one of Grasonville's best---The Jetty for our dinner ashore.

     Friday was as predicted---rain, rain and more rain, accompanied by wind. The girls headed to the Queenstown Outlet Mall while the guys regrouped and relaxed. The girls returned in time to let the guys hit West Marine for their “fix”. Dinner was aboard Brunelle, and not bad if I do say so myself.

Weather forecasts were lousy for Saturday, but CCYC sailors are not to be discouraged and several still planned to join the end of our adventure in Shaw Bay: Raft #1: Brunelle, Dan & Martha Bliss; Rhiannon, Al & Vicky Lohman; Resolve, Mike Vaccaro & Debbie Smith; Raft#2: Prego, Mike & Marie Yates; Sea Cara, Mario Taisch & Lori Burkhart; Refuse, Lewis & Cindy Diana.

Andiamo, John and Betty McElderry and Southern Pilot, Ed & Connie Dooley anchored by themselves.

Luckily the weathermen were wrong and it was a beautiful evening. We gathered aboard Brunelle again for more luscious fare. All in all a great week on the Bay.

We called this the Italian Raft: Prego, Sea Cara and Refuge.

Martha blew her conch horn as the sun set on a wonderful week on the Bay.

~~~_/)~~~Martha & Dan and CCYC