Back on the boat after leaving Shawnee at Ms. Wanda's for a week

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We suddenly had to leave our boat and drive a rental car up to Schenectady, NY to see my mother-in-law (ex) who went into Ellis Hospital with a deteriorating kidney at 102 years of age.  We all went to visit and help out.  She is now in a hospice situation in a nursing home.  Rhona Twombly is a wonderful, kind, accepting person I love and have known since I was 18, a second mom.  She's as sharp as a tack.  We will head back up there once we secure Shawnee in a place where she can stay for a couple of months.
 Ms. Wanda allowed us to keep our boat for a week at Alligator Marina, her place.  She drove us to the rental car place in Devil Kill Hills, NC so we could drive up to the emergency. 

This is Shawnee at Alligator River.  The slip is 14' wide and we are 13' wide.

After seeing Rhona we drove straight down 11 hours from New York and arrived Thursday AM in time for Wanda to take us to return our car.  We hopped back on the boat by 10:30 and motored 8 hours to Bel Haven, NC where we could anchor (yeah, one free night!)  The weather was better as we sailed down Thursday.  We dinghed the dog in for a break.  She dutifully sat outside while we ate at the best restaurant, Tavern at Jack's Neck,  Bel Haven's colonial name.  It's only been open a year and we highly recommend it.  We met a bunch of sailors in there, each with their own boat expense horror story - one was buying and installing a new engine for $15,000 after having a calamity or two at sea.  Another had hit a submerged log so hard the splinters were stuck on the drive shaft and bent the propellers, and another was having a new transmission installed.  All stuck in Bel Haven for a while.  We felt last year's expenses were at least in the ball park with theirs. 
    I decided that there are two kinds of expenses:  preventable expenses that have to do with spending money to maintain and check the boat thoroughly before things break.  If you don't change the oil and do the recommended needed care for the boat and replace and upgrade as needed then you'll be in trouble, big more expensive trouble.  And there are expenses that occur beyond your control like hitting stuff submerged in the water.  When I am at the helm I look through the binoculars for debris as we motor along, but I'm afraid there's no way to see something submerged unless it has some little different wave action around it.  Anyway, we've been lucky, and I don't complain about trawlers or big yachts passing us anymore  - they can forge the way and hit stuff ahead of us.  We also have 3 navigation systems I've talked about before. 
The large scale paper charts that show depths and routes.

We also use Navionics on the Ipad that I chart before each trip.  I like it the best because it also shows the boat going on the route through the water with the depths. Drew plots on Max Sea, the boat's computer navigation system that connects with the Garmin radar and routing system.  It moves through the radar but doesn't show the depths on the screen.
   Since we read about two lows converging here for some real fowl weather and gusts to 50 k for Saturday and Sunday we went into River Dunes Marina tonight, one that had been recommended last year because it's cheap, very protected from big blows, and is a luxury facility.  We can't figure out why it's so cheap, but we'll take the 6 water jet showers, fabulous bar, fitness center, beautiful restaurant house, pool, cabana, courtesy car to get groceries in Oriental, bikes, kayaks, beautiful architecture, and comfort.  This place is also a wedding destination booking spot.

The front of the House at River Dunes                 Back of River Dunes

Marina

Pool

The usual last picture from the upstairs dining room, bar and porch with fireplace. Sunset overlooking the marina.
The calm before the storm.

Waiting at AYB and then to Midway

 

This is not us but what we look like on a nice day on the ICW

There were a few projects for the day that kept Drew nose to the engine: adding engine coolant that helps stop corrosion and is supposed to be done every couple of years.  We heard about how we were supposed to do this during the Snowbird Rendezvous in Hampton, but we weren't sure we'd ever done it or had a boat yard do it.  The engine is behind the companionway.  We had to take off the stairs to get to it. 
Shawnee was tucked behind AYB in the shade so we had the quiet side of things. 

Our boat was docked behind all of the sheds full of boats. We had to walk through 3 enormous sheds.  Here's Mazu way at the end.  Below is one of the cool wooden boats.  AYB is an enormous boat yard with both motor and sail yachts.

Here's what Mazu and I saw on our 3 hour walk.  

We went over to the Great Great Bridge Lock and saw the boats waiting for the lock to open on the hour.

Along the canal.

The Great Bridge is a draw bridge that opens on the half hour.

Wednesday morning we left AYB early through the ever changing depths of the twisty ICW.  I was trying to get a video that would show you the 5.9 ' it would dip down to and then back to 11', but couldn't capture it.  This is the depth finder I watched all day.  If we veer a few feet left or right of the set route the depth can drop very quickly.  Every boat does this.  Sailboats draw more than power boats, i.e. their keels go deeper.  We draw 5'.

We arrived here at Midway Marina about 2:00, me at the helm all day.  This marina is opposite famous Coinjock, (NC $2/foot, we just crossed the state line from VA).  Coinjock is famous for their 32 oz prime rib - not my favorite.  This side has "Crabbies" famous for the crab cakes. ($1.50/foot to tie up dockside.)  Tonight the weather is predicted to blow to 35 k. so we chickened out of anchoring for free further south at a guide recommended place.  Here's Mazu, always happy to get off the boat.  You can see a slice of Shawnee's stern with yellow dinghy in the background.

Left Hampton Town Pier at 9:30 heading south on a brisk sunny win-in-our-face kind of day

We headed down the Elizabeth River past our US Navy boats and lots of traffic.  So much going on.  We are about one week ahead of last year, and there are many more boats.  We were the 9th boat to go in a group through the lock at Great Great Bridge Lock (yes, 2 greats).  We are headed down the ICW, Inter Coastal Waterway, to avoid going outside Cape Hatteras which is usually pretty rough.
Here are some pictures to show some of the activity on our way today.

There are 3 tugs and 2 loads, one is a double cargo tanker.

At the end of the day in the back nice and quiet.  Supposed to be nice the rest of the week so we shouldn't be hampered by a weather stop.

Snowbird Rendezvous through Saturday

Mazu is alive and well, loving this nearby dog park in Hampton.  Beautiful weather.

Unfortunately we have some very sad family news.  Rhona Twombly, age 102, who is a remarkable person, the mother of Angus, my x-husband, and a wonderful friend; she is in the hospital with congestive heart failure, but a stout heart nonetheless, and lucid.  We are all praying for her and visiting Schenectady, NY in turns, getting twice daily reports.

Drew and are are attending the Snowbird Rendezvous seminars on boating, but ready to leave if need be.  I ran into Jacqui Gravelle here, former employee at Portsmouth, NH School Department, like myself.  She and her husband are living aboard their trawler and headed to Florida as well.  We are sailing south from Hampton on Sunday with Shawnee, seen here at the dock surrounded by Monk trawlers.  We plan to get as far south as possible first on the ICW to Moorehead City then possibly outside straight to St. Augustine before driving to New York for Sarah's baby shower Nov. 8th, Thanksgiving,  Christmas and the birth of Sarah and Yeang's daughter the end of December.  We'll see how the weather cooperates.

Out at Sea Sat through Tues morning's arrival and rainy Wednesday

Before we left Pocasset we had to take the outboard off the dinghy and secure it to the cockpit post.  It's all wrapped in bubble wrap so we don't get injured on the propeller. Tweety is hanging off the davits on the stern.

 Out at sea. No sense of time.  Clouds cover the sun.  The gray green of the water meets the horizon to a gray blue sky with no lines marking the stratus cloud cover, just solid grays east over to the west; no camera can capture, a dome of the same color.  When I awake I wonder is it morning, afternoon or evening?  No sun to show the time - feels like it's endless.
  White caps and roiling waves roll under us.  An occasional big one sends stuff flying in the cockpit and salon in spite of securing everything before we left.
  In the cockpit: light sleeping bag - temperature in the 50s, Ipad with Navionics tracking our route, binoculars - 2 pairs, one cheap, one expensive with a stabilizer, two jackets, a panting, trembling, Mazu, one PFD - personal floating device - life jacket, Shawnee log book containing, maintenance notations, fuel consumption, and the cruising information we record every hour or so (They are fun to read later) one personal locator beacon in case Shawnee sinks, ear phones for Audible books, and a water bottle.  The other PFD is at easy access below.  Like most boats our rule is never leave the cockpit without wearing a PFD and another person watching from the cockpit.
  Now the clouds are lifting.  By my watch it's 10:30 am with 17 hours to go until Hampton Pier, VA.  Here's a video of the sea in every direction - no land in sight 360.

  We have to motor to go faster and with sails up for stability in order to beat the bad weather that's coming Tuesday afternoon.  ETA now is 6 am Tuesday.
  Compared to last year this is easier.  Or maybe we feel more experienced.  Don't enjoy seas over 4', but here they come; those big swells from the east hitting us broadside since we're headed south.  Shawnee is a little self contained eco system off the grid.  Energy from solar panels, a wind generator, and a motor fueled by diesel all recharge the battery banks to keep refrigerator, watermaker, lights, and computers running.  It's cozy on the sturdy boat.  I feel totally safe on this Island Packet 380.
  Got bored and baked brownies in the galley oven. No picture of me because so grubby.

   Drew said years ago, if you fall in you're dead - hypothermia (60 or less degree water) and the difficulty of seeing a MOB (man over board) between the waves makes survival difficult.  In an emergency don't abandon the ship; only leave when you are stepping up to another boat or life raft as the boat sinks. Boats are built to withstand many severe problems.
   From the survival books I've read serious situations,i.e. a sinking boat, arise from hits to the boat beyond the captain's control.  Hits from debris, a floating container (Robt. Redford Movie "All is Lost"(terrible inaccurate movie for sailors), whales, rock or a sharp log. For us we are prepared with a life raft, ditch bag, first aid kit, and hopefully personal fortitude. One great read is Adrift: Seventy Six Days Lost At Sea by Steven Callahan (1986) www.stevencallahan.net.  This author was the consultant for the movie "Life of Pi." I'm going to add a page at the top of the blog for good sailing books to read.
   We arrived at our  destination Tuesday morning at 7 am.  We did a little shopping,

 saw a few people for the Rendezvous seminar we will go to over the weekend.
   Today, Wednesday I'm doing a rainy day project: covers for the portals in the head (bathroom) and fore cabin (bedroom) because we are at a slip where boats are close together and can see in.  We want privacy but also want to be able to have air circulation.  I had scrappy cardboard over the windows before.  Here's what we devised:  vinyl shelf paper so it's translucent, cut to the size of the portal, attached with double sided tape.  We can still open the window to get air without lifting it all the way up.  They can be removed easily as well.

Of course, a picture of the amazing sunset.

Still getting ready then motoring Friday : )

Thursday  10/9   FIX IT DAY…AGAIN

These fix-it days are not what I signed up for.  But, you don’t always get what you signed up for. 

Bilge pump and pump switch in my hands ready to put below the floor. Not so glamorous.

Fixes again… here are pictures of me helping with the bilge pump problem that ended up being the switch.   We now have a spare pump aboard – always good to have spare parts.  We took the launch back to West Marine to buy a new switch control. 

 

  Up side down in the bilge I replaced it after Drew hooked up the electrical wires. We replaced it with an $80 one when the original one was $165, oh well.  As we were testing the bilge pump the water maker blew and water went everywhere in the cubby.  We turned it off quickly.

  When Drew went to get his electrical tool kit under the NAV station he found quite a bit of water – 3 pails full that I scooped out.  The water was fresh and had to come from somewhere.  The adjacent bin holds the water pump and valves.  We opened that bin up and found it filled.  

  The brown color is the rusty water with the container floating.

 As I bailed again 4 buckets I could see the leak.  Drew took the day until 2:30 am to fix the water leaks and get the boat ready to sail at dawn.  Not a particularly fun day.  When I’m not helping I’m reading or writing or making lists.

Friday  10/10  the same day we left last year.

Waking up with Mazu in our forward berth.  She's a morning snuggler.

I put on my Transderm anti seasickness remedy at 2:30 am when Drew went to bed.  It lasts about 3 days…so I’m good.  At 6 under a full moon I dinghied the dog into the dog park for her last time before the 10 hour trip.

 Mazu on a nice day at the US Marine Air Corps Dog Park that's adjacent to the club and opposite our mooring.

Shawnee at dawn with a full moon to the west.  6 AM.

We motored out of Marblehead Harbor at 6:45 AM under clear skies with the wind almost to our back, temperature about 55. We rounded the turn at Marblehead Light to motor south at 7 knots, a good speed, all sails up.  I slept almost all day until we reached the Cape Cod Canal.  With a 5 knot current we blew through the Canal at 11.4 knots.  I think that’s the fastest we’ve ever gone – no sails up.  Required to motor through the canal. 

Turning from Buzzards Bay past the lighthouse after the Canal.

The motor was on the entire time so we could reach Parker’s Boat Yard before it closed.

   

We got to the Boat Yard at 4:15 and fueled up with diesel at the dock.  I took the dog, who was shaking throughout the entire day – who knows why since it wasn’t particularly rough, for a walk down the nearby Cataumet Trails.  Drew had a business call.   

Bold swans greeted Mazu hissing at her.

We hopped onto a mooring, had dinner, watched HBOgo “VEEP” episode via Verizon MIFI (hysterically funny).  Thanks Dillon for the HBOgo connection through your subscription.  Drew zonked out at 7:30, me at 8:30.  WHEW!

2014-15 SAILING AWAY AGAIN

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Trying Verizon’s MIFI tonight to see if the blog will fly out to you all. It connects my computer to WIFI from our mooring.  Please put your email address in the upper right hand corner if you want to get these posts when I write them (not daily).  Also love to read comments you can write below.

   First night back on board, readying Shawnee to sail south.   

   My sister, Chris, and her husband, Bill, who live in Sharon generously donated time to drive us to the boat otherwise we’d have to take an expensive cab ride.  During the week Drew and I drove down to Marblehead from Exeter several times to load up. Since the MYC launch doesn’t run Mondays and Tuesdays at the end of the season we used our dinghy, Tweety, back and forth. 

   The four of us stopped in Salem (Drew with a witch city ghoul) 

to view the Alexander Calder exhibit at Peabody Essex Museum – a great show with his well known mobiles and stabiles.  We had a delicious lunch in the garden café on a spectacular sunny classic New England fall day.  Chris and Bill then dropped Drew and me off with all our food at the Marblehead Yacht Club.

   To keep up with the repairs we did have the genoa repaired last week after splinters were found in a ripped seam – an untold accidental error when workers took off the sails and laid them on the dock to do the bright work this summer (varnish the teak).  The teak does look beautiful.

   The bilge pump isn’t working properly and Drew will find out why. (It’s under the floor of the salon where water can collect.) . Usually, automatically, the bilge pump sucks the water out. It’s a pretty important feature to prevent the boat from filling with water.  All boats include a hand pump to empty the bilge from the cockpit in an emergency.

 Mazu is on board getting ready to sail.   

She just passed her Pet Partner test last week that keeps up her certification as a therapy dog – allows us to take her everywhere and gives her a liability insurance policy. Looking a bit pensive here.

  We are having our dueling weather apps discussion tonight, reading information from about a half dozen sources to see what the wind and weather forecasts are for the next 4 days so we can arrive safely in Hampton, VA.  There is usually a debate between us about when is the best time to leave, what time is slack tide at the Cape Cod Canal, when is the ideal and safest time to go through, must figure in time to fuel up in Pocasset, MA, etc.

  I prepare sandwiches ahead and leave a list of food we can grab as we sail off-shore for 3 days straight taking turns at watch (Zone bars for Drew, cheese sticks, nuts, fruit cups, yogurt cups, apples, bananas, cold tea, cold-cuts, cereal, water, peanut butter crackers for Deb.  With the rocking and rolling I only “cook” scrambled eggs and Stouffers frozen meals on the gimbled stove/oven at sea. 

   It can get boring at night unless a tanker gets in our path or comes zooming up behind and scares the #*&#! out of us. Audible books app reads aloud to me through my night watches, Zero to One presently.  I am at the helm 10 to 2 AM with my headphones on, eyes open.  Of course we are on auto-pilot, a preprogrammed route the boat follows through a navigation system with way-points. 

  Beautiful moon tonight.  More later.