Friday, September 16, 2016

First Half of September, 2016

Thursday, September 1

We left BSC about 11:30 am and sailed down the Neuse River most of the afternoon.  We had a great sail until it was time to  anchor in Gale Creek near the Hobucken Cut around 6:30pm.

While sailing I was down below getting dinner started. We were heeling pretty good. I had to snap a picture of the effects.



Our friends from the club, Tom and Ollie, and Charlie were not far behind us, having left after us.

We watched as a huge black cloud came toward us bringing light rain all night.

Friday, September 2

We had the anchor up at 7:35 and were anchored near Terry's place at 9:00am.

Terry's place is near the mouth of the Pamlico Sound on Goose Creek.  Each Labor Day weekend he hosts a get together for club members who want to sail down.

We picked up a little hitch hiker.





Little did we know at the time that he had about a dozen friends with him.


This weekend, everyone was watching the weather closely because of the threat of tropical storm Hermine.

Once we were anchored, the boys did their school work and we had lunch.

About 1:30, we gathered dinner supplies and loaded up in the dinghy to head over to the house.

Shortly after we arrived, Terry said we  were all  welcome to stay in the house for the weekend, not wanting us to have to go back and forth to the rocking boats if the storm turned worse.

That night we enjoyed a delicious spaghetti dinner with our friends and some of Terry's neighbors.

Saturday, September 3

Everyone worked together to put on a big breakfast.  We spent the day just hanging out and visiting.



Other friends drove down to visit and help with the big fish fry for dinner.

All together there were seven other club members plus us and the neighbors, who are now friends as well.
Tom and Ollie
Charlie and Marsha
Scott
George
Billy
Benny and Carol
 
We feasted on fried flounder, homemade hush puppies, cole slaw, shrimp, and various desserts.

We stayed overnight in the house again.

Sunday, September 4

 Sunday was much the same as Saturday. Working together on meals and visiting and doing jobs for Terry.






That evening was the grilled chicken dinner. Another feast where no one left hungry.

There was the grilled chicken, boiled potatoes, cole slaw, plus various items folks brought to add to the meal.

The men started grilling about 4:00pm.




While dinner was cooking, a family of one of the neighbors arrived, and they had kids close to the boys ages.

The son taught Caleb and Nathan to catch and throw with La Cross sticks.






Since we planned to leave early the next morning, we headed back to the boat around 7:30pm.

Monday, September 5

We got the anchor up around 7:20am and headed north.

We made it across the Pamlico Sound, further up the ICW and across the Alligator Sound to New River, statute mile 61 on the ICW.

It was a full day, 91 miles.

We carefully anchored among the crab pots and went to bed.

Tuesday, September 6

Anchor up at 6:40 am and followed the ICW to Norfolk/Portsmouth, VA. We anchored in the anchorage near the hospital at 4:00pm.

This was a 61 mile day.

Wednesday, September 7

We moved from the anchorage around the corner to the free tie up wall at the ferry dock.

Another little frog popped out to say hi.  The boys kept busy grabbing them and tossing them into the water or on the dock and watched them climb the wall.



Brian rode the bike to the store and got a new fuse for the alternator. The old one had blown. 




After the boys finished their school work, we all walked around town and spent some time at the library.



We also decided it was time to defrost the ice box. The buildup had gotten pretty bad.







After a few hours we were able to pry most of it off.




Thursday, September 8


We untied from the wall and stopped over to Tidewater Marina for fuel and to top off the water tanks.


Another fuse blew, so he bought and installed a new one.


We sailed out across the bay and made it to Cape Charles at 3:00 pm.

We had wanted to visit Cape Charles anyway, but midway into our journey, it became a necessity to stop there.


When the new shaft was installed in Oriental, it was not properly sealed and we were taking on water.  Too much of that and we would start to sink.

The other issue was trouble with the electrical system.


We tied up to the dock at Cape Charles Yacht Center.



  After checking everything over, it was determined we would need to be hauled out to do some of the repairs.  They scheduled us for Saturday morning.

The sunset that evening was georgous.




Friday, September 9


That morning I did laundry on the dock and the boys and Brian helped wring it out and hung on the life lines to dry.

Brian  rode to the hardware store and bought weather stripping for the icebox and refrigerator.  He came back and installed it.  Our freezer shouldn't get so built up with ice now.

The boys scrubbed the cockpit.

That evening we walked to town and stopped at the Brown Dog Ice Cream shop only to find it was closed.  It had been highly recommended and we were a bit disappointed.





We walked a few doors down and found a specialty store that sold it in pints, so we handed over $8, grabbed four spoons and headed for the beach.

We chose the flavor Muddy Hummock. It was dark chocolate ice cream with chocolate covered almonds.  It was very rich and tasty


Walking back from the beach, we found a pizza place called Dead Rise Pies, after the dead rise style boats used in crabbing and fishing,  and stopped in for a pie.








The boys and I had fun playing giant Jenga and giant Connect Four.



Saturday, September 10



The boat was hauled out at 11:45 and the area near the shaft was re-fiberglassed.  We were to spend the night in the slings while the fibergalss cured.






That evening, the boys and I walked to the park for a free concert.

The guys had a blast at the playground with a bunch of other kids.  Caleb became the designated swing pusher and merry-go-round spinner for the younger crowd.

Sunday, September 11

We remembered this day 15 years ago.

Our boat was lowered back into the water and we tied back up to the dock.

Brian and I borrowed the Yacht Center's van and went into town and had chinese for lunch and picked up a few things at the Food Lion next door.

That evening was another beautiful sunset.



 Monday, September 12

A new voltage regulator was installed to replace the failed old one.

The boys did school. Brian and Caleb discovered a long piece of rope attached to something in the water.  They worked at pulling it up, but whatever it was attached to was firmly stuck at the bottom.  Brian took the kayak out and cut it so that other boats would not get tangled up in it.


After dinner we walked to the beach and watched the sun set. 










Tuesday, September 13

Exciting Day!  One of the main reasons we have been trying all summer to get back to the Chesapeake was to take our friends sailing.

When we were here last year, Paige had a broken leg and could not go.  She has been patiently waiting and today was the day.

Paige and three of her boys arrived a little after 11am.  We ate lunch then threw off the dock lines and went out into the Bay.



It was a nice calm sail and so good to catch up with the first friends we made after moving to Kinston.


After sailing awhile, we came back to the dock and headed to the beach to swim.


It was a great day.


Wednesday, September 14


With the repairs all done, it was time to move on.  We left the dock at 6:45 am and had a good sail across the bay to Deltaville, VA.  We anchored in Jackson Creek at 12:55pm.

After lunch, Brian and Caleb put the dinghy in the water and went to see what they could see.

Not much, it turned out.  They came back shortly, and we decided to move on north the next day.


Thursday, September 15


We pulled anchor and headed out at 7:45am.

A few minutes later there was a huge jolt. We had run aground in the middle of the channel.  Brian expertly got us off and we stuck a bit closer to the mark.  Storms can cause shoaling and I guess that is what had happened. 


Shortly after that, Brian discovered trouble again with the electrical system.  We decided it would be best to go back to Cape Charles and get it looked at before pushing further north.


It was a rough and rolly ride.  Thankfully it calmed down after a while, but that is not the kind of sailing I enjoy.



We arrived back at Cape Charles at 1:45pm.

Jake met us at the dock and helped us tie up, then he and Brian checked things over.


It was determined the alternator was shot.  He took it off and was going to take it to a shop to be rebuilt.


So here we are.  Thankfully Cape Charles is a friendly little town and you can't beat the sunsets. 


Not sure how long it takes to rebuild an alternator, but hopefully after is it done and reinstalled we can continue on.