5/3/10

Hey! Here we are in VA. We are in the eastern branch of the Corrotoman River, which comes off the Rappahnock River. There, now you know as much about it as I do. Let me get you there from our last posting. Last we spoke (geez, Chuckie, that's only a figure of speech) we were anchored in the Little Alligator River just south of the Albemarle Sound waiting, & hoping, for the wind to die down. Wasn't bad in the morning, so off we went, past the nasty shoal between G9 & G7 and into the sound. Wow! What a ride! And that was before the winds kicked up. Sorry, no pics, I couldn't let go of the helm. Besides, you've seen one big breaking wave beside you, you've seen them all. Suffice it to say that we were really glad to get the crossing over with. That led us up the Pasquotank River thru Elizabeth City, NC. We did not stop here, as we wanted to make the 1:30 lock opening into the Dismal Swamp Canal. Could've, 'cause we didn't. The trip up this river, thru the woods was a real eye opener. Top left is a picture of the river just north of Elizabeth City; basically the beginning of the leg to the canal. Under that is the river midway thru the upriver journey. It is gorgeous, lots of greenery, wildlife, & curves galore. Always a surprise when Bubba comes blasting around a tight corner in a full bore bass boat turn. As you will see, there is not much room. It got tighter as we progressed; but still an amazing trip that brought us to the South Mills Lock. This lock is the first lock when going north in the canal. One makes a hard right turn, then an immediate hard left turn, all blind turns due to brush and find yourself sitting in front of the lock; as did Scooter and crew. Hot 'n sticky were the operative words that afternoon. The lock keeper shows up, opens the lock, you tie up to the wall, he fills the lock up, opens the gates, jumps in his truck, & runs down the road to open the drawbridge. From there Scooter entered the Dismal Swamp Canal enroute to the Dismal Swamp Canal Welcome Center. Great complex; had AC! We rafted to a Canadian boat for the night, as we were just a bit to long for the available dock space. Next morning, off we went, headed for Deep Creek Lock & Bridge. This leg was about 18 miles long; all of which is run at NO WAKE speed, about 6mph. While a lovely trip, it is, I must say, different. As you can see, it is a tight squeeze for a 38' boat that is 13' wide. Won't be any turning around if the bugs get bad! Thru the Deep Creek Bridge, then into & thru the lock; incidentally this lock is the oldest operating lock in the US. From there it is a mere hop, skip, & jump to Norfolk harbor & mile marker zero. Thus endeth the ICW portion of the trip. We continued winding our way up the Elizabeth River, past the Navy yards & base to the Poquoson River. Anchoring again in Cheasapeake Bay water felt pretty good in the present, sad in the thought that the trip is ending. Ah, well, press on! Today's leg took us from Chisman Creek on the Poquoson, to our present spot. Tomorrow may well find us in Olverson's marina off the Potomac River. We'll need fuel, some groceries, etc & his facility has a courtesy car & the dock is free to MTOA members. We'll see how it goes.

Be safe, be happy; we'll catch you on the flip side

4/30/10

I'm happy to report that Scooter seems well and is underway again. We were escorted out of Tooley Creek by Capt Ron in the TowBoatUS little red boat and sent on our way early this morning. 8 hours of running, some of them at high RPM, showed that Gerald's prop work is nothing short of fantastic. No vibrations or stutter at all. Technically, it seems the pitch may have come down a bit; that would result in a little less forward movement per turn of the prop, or, a higher RPM, thus more fuel burned, for a given speed. For now, I'm content that the boat is doing so well. Only down side we found was that the rudder stuffing boxes are letting in a fair amount of water. One we were able to tighten down, the other may not be so simple. My guess is that the heating on the one rudder may have cooked some of the packing. The other side remains a mystery for now; it feels like it has run out of packing material. Time will tell. In the meantime, we'll press on & keep an eye on the bilges.

Currently, we are at anchor in the Little Alligator River, listening to the wind howl as it supposedly gets ready to diminish. Tomorrow we will cross the Albemarle Sound headed for Elizabeth City, NC and the Dismal Swamp canal. Right now, we are wondering if the NOAA folks have gotten the forecast even close. Scooter is rocking & rolling, the wind is moaning through what rigging we have, and sleep is looking a little doubtful.

We'll check in again with a progress report tomorrow. Have a great weekend

Onward?

We spent a full day in the boatyard today, doing boatyard things: watching, waiting, hoping, then, gasp, paying. Scooter suffered some damage in this episode; bent rudder(s). Bent props, etc. Actually, as bad as it seemed, it could have been a lot worse. The port shaft miked out just about zero, while the starboard shaft miked out at 8. The interesting thing is that shaft was a bit out of true when we bought Scooter 5 years or so ago. Consensus of opinion was "its your call. capt'n" . try making sense out of that one on the spur of the moment. So, anyway, Scooter sat in the slings all day, much to the pleasure of the marina bookkeeper. But, in all honesty, it may have been probably good that it all happened when it did. Scooper's bottom was pretty cluttered with growth; so much for much touted Pettit bottom paint, and all the zincs were shot. The shaft zincs were actually gone, while the rest were all but gone. Obviously we replaced all that while the boat was hauled, cleaned the bottom, straightened the starboard rudder, & redid both props. The port rudder has a slight twist in it, but there is not much we can do about that unless we replace the rudder, Since the starboard unit also has some imperfection in it (ie, twist), maybe they'll balance out & Scooter will go like a train. Our thanks to all the guys that worked on the project; JW, Gerald, and Jake, the resident Golden retriever, and captain Ron, the BoatUS guy. A really great bunch of folks, that did a great job at a reasonable price.

Tomorrow calls for an early get up'n go; stop up the road for fuel, pump out, & water, then back up the Alligator/Pungo canal again to the Albemarle Sound & possibly Elizabeth City. Try, try again; hopefully we'll do better this time.

We'll check in again with a report on the effectiveness of the repair, and our progress thru the logs, stumps, and waves of the Alligator/Albemarle area. Be safe, be happy, we'll catch you on the flip side.

Bad Day on the Pungo Canal

Great day to start; cool temps, breezy, but not over whelmingly so, boat running well. So off we went, out Slade Creek, into the Pungo River and north to the Alligator River -Pungo River Canal, a narrow, tree & stump lined canal running from the Pungo River , yep, you guessed it, Chuckie, the Alligator River. So, off we went, up the canal headed for the Alligator River swing bridge & an anchorage behind Durant Island to await calmer winds on Thursday for the Albemarle Sound crossing on the way to Elizabeth City. Plan was to be in the lower end of the Chesapeake by Saturday or Sunday, and Essex by the end of the week or so.

Great thing about plans: not many get to survive combat, or, in this case, real life. Just after we passed under the Fairfield Canal bridge we hit a submerged log that was apparently lying along the edge of the channel. One minute 12' of water, the next minute; THUNKety Thunk. Our Verizon network abandoned us, no one answered channel 16, we were stuck in more ways than one. We wiggled around, moved weight forward, drained the fresh water tank, and put the dink in the water. That seemed to lighten things up a bit, so we tried to idle off the log; Thunk, no dice! Altho' we had tried kedging earlier, only to lose that anchor, we decided to try that again. By some judicious use of passing boat wakes we were able to get Scooter floating properly again, and, joy of joys, recover that anchor. Unfortunately, when we powered up to start down the canal, there was a lot of vibration; possibly bent shafts, possibly bent props. In the interim, a kind hearted sailboater had managed to make contact with TowBoat US, our AAA of the waterways. Once we arranged the relays & made contact, we limped in their direction, picked up the towboat and were towed to what we hope will turn out to be a reasonably priced repair facility with the time & parts to get our work done expeditiously.

I guess the next few days will be interesting, possibly frustrating, but certainly part of our ICW

experience.

Have a great week, we'll send some pics & keep you tuned in to all the upcoming events. Be safe, dodge the logs, and keep the faith!

Update again

I gotta tell you; shore leave is tough. Eat, eat, and eat some more. Quiche, key lime pie, strawberry shortcake, steak, geez; Scooter had to get going, no matter that small craft cautions were in effect or that the wind was gusting to 25 mph. Our thanks, once again, to Jim & Mae for their wonderful hospitality. Please be safe on your trip home next month. To bring you up to date: Scooter moved North on the 21st of April, to New Bern, NC. We were actually a day early in an effort to avoid forecast weather; some of which materialized as we came into the upper end of the Neuse River. We got wet pulling into Northwest Creek marina, but that's boating. Nice place, previously visited by Scooter & various crew members. Lots of sailboats, lots of wind & rain. But it cleared. The people came out, the rain stopped, and life was good again! Next day, life still being good, Scooter moved over to Spring Creek to temporarily join Admiral Jim's fleet at rest behind the main club house. Lovely spot in a great area. From there we drove to Oriental, NC for a town tour & lunch at one of the waterfront eatery's. Biggest discovery there; an incredible nautical consignment store ( boat stuff someone doesn't want, Chuckie). I'd still be there, but.....!

New Bern was on the list for a driving visit. That town is celebrating it's 300th anniversary this year; lots' of good stuff going on all Summer & Fall. Jazz festivals, etc. Pretty neat old town, actually. We roamed about the neighborhood catching some of the local wildlife while they watched us parade around. Made for an interesting walk. Anyway, each time we decided to get on the move, weather intervened, sometimes even measuring up to the forecast, sometimes not even being close. Night before last was pretty fierce in the forecast, with yesterday being just a bit on the nasty side, but the moon slid up out of the pines into a beautiful, clear sky, wind calmed down and it looked like the forecast was going to err in our favor. The decision was made to press on. Fortunately, while really strong, the wind was behind us most of the way down the Neuse River. Incidentally, that sucker is 6 miles wide at the mouth. making for a lot of fetch and other delightful boat stuff. In fact, the trip was not all that rough until we got to the Pamlico River. Then it started to get ugly, wind, towering cumulus, rain squalls, etc, as a cold front moved in. Having come far enough at that point, we elected to anchor in Slade Creek, just off the ICW from Belhaven, NC. Surrounded by pines and whippoorwills, we are tied tightly to the bottom awaiting the frontal passage. Then on to the Albermarle Sound, Elizabeth City, & The Dismal Swamp Canal.

Be safe, be careful, be hopeful. We'll catch you on the flip side!

4/20/2010

Today was decreed a day off; no moving the boat northward. We're in a nice spot, it has been a beautiful day, and there were things to do. So, laundry, lunch and explore some of Carrot Island, which is part of the Rachel Carson research center. Actually , we were looking for some of the Shackleford horses that live here. We ended up picking up trash; first, a floating plastic bag, then used that to police cans & bottles in the park area we walked thru. Filled it up in a blink! I used to be employed by the USFS in Montana ( way back, Chuckie, early 60's). Our rainy day work was to cruise National Parks in the area and police trash. I was appalled, as much then as I am now, by American's absolute lack of respect for the environment and the gorgeous country that we are blessed with. Even with all the "Green" noise we live with, some of us just can't seem to understand

"Nuff of the sermonizing. we dinked the trash back to town and headed for Scooter; felt good to get home. Then, 'lo & behold, we looked out the windows & what did we see. Yup; a Shackleford horse, mare, in this case. Chuckie, I just know, OK! Tales of the origin abound, so I guess it really doesn't matter for this blog. Suffice it to say that they are small, a bit scrawny, nasty when approached, and live here. Continuing in the wildlife vein, we saw American Ibis, tri-colored heron, and sea skimmers as well. There is, however, one critter that continues to elude me; has for the whole trip. I have tried to get a picture of a bottle nosed dolphin; porpoise in most of our thinking (like piper cub fits all small airplanes). Its like shooting pool in a dark room; you know its there, but not quite where. Tonight I came closer than usual, so I'll post the pic, and keep trying.

Weather looks like it may deteriorate starting tomorrow; wind, rain & frontal activity. The plan was to head for New Bern, NC via Oriental & The Neuse River. So, we'll keep an eye on it and press on as far as safety and common sense will allow. Naturally, we will keep you updated as we go along. Be cool, be safe, and remember the following saying: " Red touches black, a friend of Jack; red touches yellow, could kill a fellow" . That would be the mystery quote.

Later, all

4/19/2010

It has been pointed out to this writer that there has not been any mention of our partaking in the national day of agony & remorse; April 15th, tax day. Hey, man, we're cruising; there's no time for that sort of stuff; I believe the proper terminology for that attitude is "no problem, mon". However, on a more serious note, thanks for reminding us in such a diplomatic fashion; I feel your pain!

Unfortunately, the morning brought the news that Clyde would not be coming in until the afternoon, so I was unable to get a pic. After dealing with that disappointment, we departed Dudleys & downtown Swansboro bound for Beaufort (pronounced Boe-fart; no, honestly, that is how it is pronounced) NC. We anchored in front of the town dock & waterfront, and fired up the dinghy to explore. One of the local things is the presence of the an estuarine conservatory named in honor of Rachel Carson. It consists of 3 miles & 2600 some acres of island land set aside for the preservation of wildlife & plants. Wild horses, grey fox, all thrive here much as they did on Cumberland Island in GA. Naturally, we took off in the trusty dink, powered by Honda, I might add, to march among the pines and admire the wildlife. I gotta say, for little horses, those guys & gals can really pile it up. Other than that evidence, I am sad to say that we did not see much wildlife.

So, back to the town dinghy dock, set neatly among prop busting rocks at the East end of the town docking area. Apparently, we just missed a free wine tasting "do", so we were left to wander about the town. Honestly, I was more impressed with this 'burg than I have been with some of the others we have visited. Not much fluff yet, just some nice stores and a clean presentation. You sense that the fluff & $$ seeking attitude will be arriving in the future, but, for now, it was a pleasant spot to visit. The waterfront has a pretty boardwalk running along a lot of its length. There are a number of historic buildings in town, some of them quite imposing. There are peaceful spots in the midst of the goings on that surround a renovating town and its tourist followers. I found the old civil war cemetery to be a fascinating, but calming environment; blazing color emphasizing the somber monuments marking the grave sites. In the shade of the live oaks, amidst the fragrance of the azaleas & wisteria, if you but stopped for a moment & allowed yourself to be there, you could almost feel the spirits at rest in this peaceful place.

Having spent the afternoon tromping; over hill, thru the island dales, and around the town, we paused to accomplish one more painfully necessary task; to sample the local general store's ice cream. That job was given to Scooter's captain. Shrug off the pain and get 'er done , I say. Agony, the agony of it all. How true it is that pain can sometimes be so gratifying!

You folks have a great day tomorrow; we'll catch you on the flip side! Be safe!