day by day

Boy howdy, but time do fly by!. I believe we were at Dowry Creek trying to peddle free "feesh" last time we posted. So, let's move on; April 21: Scooter and crew travelled to the Little Alligator river. No issues; passed thru the infamous Alligator-Pungo canal with ease; altho' sometimes that is not the case. When we arrived it was calm, cool and peaceful; and then..... What can I say; not so peaceful and quiet anymore. Amazing what you can sleep thru.

April 22: Up early to get across the Albemarle Sound before the winds picked up. Forecast was for 5-8kts; 1ft seas. Piece 'o cake for Scooter. 30 minutes after we left the anchorage, we were in 3-4' seas, 15-20 kt winds. 'Twas not a fun ride. Scooter  prevailed, and we got to Elizabeth City's municipal marina in good form. The city has a tradition of giving roses to visiting boat crews; gender specific, of course. Started in 1983, the tradition called for a wine and cheese party if there were 5 boats at the dock, plus roses for the female crew members. Continued to this day, but without the enthusiasm of earlier times. Nice town, friendly folks, good food.

April 23: Out of Elizabeth City, thru the Pasquotank River, by far one of the prettiest rivers of the whole trip; thru the South Mills lock , into the Dismal Swamp canal. Hardly wider than some of the local streams in PA, it actually handles an amazing amount, and type, of traffic. Fact is, possibly to Scooter's detriment, a large cruise boat apparently preceded us thru the canal. Since the controlling depth is only 6-7', large boats have a tendency to stir up "stuff" on the bottom. It hangs there before sinking; next boat thru has a good chance of catching a prop. Some thumps as we transited the canal, but no serious vibrations at this point.  We arrived at the Deep Creek Lock in time to clear the bridge and tie up at Elizabeth's dock for the night. Deep Creek is not a jumping burg; good thing, in our opinion, so it was really quiet and really starry. Up early on the 24th, into the lock to be lowered down to Deep Creek. Kind of an interesting experience.
Off Scooter and crew went ; thru the industrial environs of Norfolk, thru the might of the US Navy, past all the super toys used in big ship work. Tedious at times; one no wake zone after another, enforced by fast RIB's with M-60's; technologically enthralling at others.
Finally into Mobjack Bay, East River anchorage. From there, on the 25th Scooter wandered around into the Rappahanock River and the port/town of Urbanna, VA. for a visit with an acquaintance of ours from Mathews county. Honestly, the visit was like a leap back into the 40's. Model A Fords in plentiful supply, old style gasoline pumps; you know, the kind with the hand pump on the side and a glass cylinder at the top. Could that be where the term" fill 'er up" came from? Unfortunately, at the moment, technical difficulties are preventing me from posting the pics. Later, Chuckie. April  28: Scooter left Urbanna and crossed to the Corrotoman river for the night. Plan, based on the forecast was to cross the Bay to Crisfield,  Maryland. Ha! Blew out of the Corrotoman the 29th in good conditions, An hour later we were wishing that we had stayed put. Patience, determination, a good boat, and 6 hours later, found us tied to a dock in Crisfield. Short walk to Dollar general for the correct cat food  ( sorry, RCO's food) kept the fuzzy crew's  morale high. rest of the crew strolled to Bubby's for burgers and ice cream

Currently, Scooter and crew are in San Domingo Creek, just behind St. Michael's MD. Plan is/was to cross the Bay to Essex tomorrow, then traipse home Thursday. NOAA, however has just issued an advisory for high winds in the am. Soooo, I guess we'll do the old"wait and see" thing to see how it should be played. Be safe, catch you on the flip side