Oriental NC

We're settled in Oriental to have our last bit of engine work done at Sailcraft Service. They are an excellent yard and we'd like to have had all our work done here. In the pic below you can (barely) see the slippage the engine has done as it settled. The lower left arrow points to the temporary fix I did by placing a stainless steel pole beneath the wood block that the engine mounts rest on. The mount is the red circle, and you can see the washers underneath that are a temporary support. The whole thing has sunk the engine down about a half inch on the left side. This is bad, as it throws the engine out of alignment with the prop. Anyway, it all comes out and gets new supports, engine room painted pretty white and secured like Fort Knox.
In more fun news, we've really enjoyed Oriental. A nice town that is definitely a sailing town, and the Halloween party last Sat was a lot of fun. We'll be off to Beaufort next week, and ready to blast south.

Elizabeth City

We departed the dismal swamp canal in good spirits (pun intended) and went through the south lock to continue on in North Carolina. Our next stop would be Elizabeth City, where we really got into the full swing of the cruising community headed south. We've met interesting people (in many ways) during our stay, including resume guy who continues to tell you his past experiences and how you need to do everything. We enjoyed hot showers at the local fitness center (thanks fitness warehouse!) and a birthday dinner with our French Canadian friends. The kids all had a blast running around after being cooped up on a boat all day, and the language barrier wasn't even noticed as they played frisbee.
We departed and made our longest day yet across the albemarle sound and down the alligator river (none sited) to a remote anchorage at the south end of the river. It was so quiet and just a few lights to remind us of civilization. We managed to sail for almost half of the trip, making very good time.
We continue to move south, spurred on by cold fronts biting at our heels. It may be one more trip to the engine doctor for our boat to resolve engine mount issues once and for all in the near future at Beaufort NC, so that is our destination with a few stops on the way.

On the move

We finally got the boat fixed well enough to move on. We spent two weeks at big sisters house waiting for the work to be done and had a great time. Thanks big sis for the hospitality!
We left the boatyard this morning and made it out of the industrial zone and to the quieter waters of the Dismal Swamp. We went through the locks and motored about 20 miles to the visitors center for the nite. Strange and interesting motoring down the canal, with one water pump failure to add some spice to the trip. It took longer to find the spare pump than it did to replace.
We are now rafted next to a French Canadian family enjoying the company and scenery. Onward tomorrow further south.

Summing up

Time for a little reflection. We've been at this for three weeks or so, and completed the Chesapeake part of the trip. The spectrum of emotions has crossed from "I want to quit right now" to "this totally rocks and I could do it forever". It all ends up with being about 80 percent positive overall, so we'll press on. Besides, it's early in the season as one coach said.
We've been off the boat for a few days while some engine work is underway, and we're itching already to get back and continue the journey. When I look back over the people we met, the places we visited and the experiences logged it has been great - amazing really. Adjusting to a new pace of life, letting go and not having as much control over basic things that we take for granted on land has been eye-opening to say the least. We're on land right now, and having hot water, endless wifi and plenty of arm space is soooo cool. Who'd of thought?
We're planning now for the next phase through North Carolina and further, and itching even more to get back to moving on. The picture shows our major stops so far for the Chesapeake portion.

Portsmouth

We've been settled in Portsmouth for a few days, rented a car to go see family, and are still here awaiting some engine work. The trip down from Deltaville was good, and we saw our first dolphins. They're in the picture, just squint a little more... A little more...
Passing through Hampton Roads was busy. Lots of Navy and commercial ships going to and for at a rapid clip. All hands on deck and all that, keeping an eye out.
This afternoon was a trip to the beach, which was a nice break. We stopped at the store for some planting material for a home schooling project (yes, we're famers too) and tomorrow is a tour of the power plant that makes electricity by burning waste which is also another homeschooling project.
Hopefully we'll be out by the end of the week, once the transmission has been touched up a bit. Until then...

Fishing Bay

We're nestled into Fishing Bay, prepping for a run to Hampton tomorrow.  A front came through the last few days so we caught up on projects, schooling and groceries.  Staying in Deltaville marina for one night proved to be a great idea. We did laundry, used the courtesy car for a produce run and took advantage of the hot showers.  The plus was that The previous evening was the slip holder picnic, which included crabs and beer. We were invited to attend even though we were not staying until the next nite....ummm, ok, crabs and beer it is.  What nice people at the marina and the boat owners were a fun group to talk to. The extra plus was the following day when we did stay in the marina there was still leftover beer.  And it was Sunday.  Which means football.  A great day, and the kids camped in the lounge for a wifi session that would make the Olympic wifi team.

We did some dinghy sailing today, and enjoyed the protection of the bay.  On the road tomorrow for our last long sail before the intercostal waterway.  The bike picture is from Solomons, on our way to the museum.

Now the words for the pictures below...

> We've had the full experience the last three days, to include a blustery day, a visit to Solomons Isle and then another great sail to Tangier Island.
> We departed to Solomons on a day that promised a nice north wind and a front coming through, but with 5-10 knots of wind. Great, lets go! Well, by the time we hit the bay proper, the winds were 10-15 knots with gusts to 20 we think, some rain and cloud cover, and 4-8 foot waves. The toll on the boat was one bent stainless steel rod that held our dingy, one broken cleat (made of plastic, and not worthy of keeping anyway so no big loss) and a broken wisker pole (again, old and too small for our boat and we knew it). The toll on the crew were a few frayed nerves as the autopilot could not keep up with the following waves and downind blast we were on. We did make record time to Solomons and the crab dinner erased all the day's woes (with help from a few pints as well).
> We spent a fabulous day in Solomons at the maritime museum, biking there and to the store for fresh produce. The hot showers removed all memory of the previous day's sail, and so the next day we departed for Tangier Island, something always on our list of places to visit. We sailed 35 miles on a perfect day of sun and a good wind for half the trip.
> We settled in Tangier for a day or two to explore and take in the sights. We've already had the required crab dinner one evening at Hilda Crocketts. The dinner was served family style, and we were the last to arrive before closing. We were seated with three others couples, one of whom were newlyweds. Food was served from big bowls and passed around to all for an endless supply of crab cakes, clam fritters, corn pudding, green beans, slaw, pickled beets, fresh bread, applesauce and pound cake. All washed down with tea. Needless to say, we're full. burp.
> The photos above are from Tangier. Lots of cats around, even at the firehouse. The birds also enjoy the use of the island, and the tourists invade for a few hours when the ferries arrive. It's nice in the evening when they've all left and you can listen to the locals talk to each other in their dialect.
> We departed Tangier and had another nice sail back across the bay to Deltaville, Va. We're still adjusting to walking great distances for things after the nice closeness of Tangier.