700 Miles down the Coast

November 3, Wrightsville Beach North Carolina

Following the excitement of our first day in the fog, our electrical problem in Atlantic City, and the rough waters of Delaware Bay, things have settled down. After leaving Annapolis on Friday, October 28, we continued south to Solomons Island on the west side of the Chesapeake Bay. This was a pleasant 50 Nautical Mile cruise down the Chesapeake.

While Solomon’s Island is a beautiful area, Stan and I were lucky enough to dock at Beacon Marina, the home of the Anglers Seafood Bar and Grill where we were treated to the worst Karaoke ever.

While Stan and I were tempted to stay for another night of Karaoke, we had to get to Norfolk, VA on Sunday, October 30 in order to pick up our crew mate and dear friend Randy Bourne at the Norfolk Yacht and Country Club. This 100-nautical mile run from Solomons Island to Norfolk was another nice day with the wind pushing us south along the Chesepeake

I am always amazed when I cruise through Norfolk, home of a massive naval base. This time through we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

With Randy on board, we left Norfolk and headed to Coinjock, NC to connect with Maria and Bob Dwyer and for the Prime Rib. First, Maria and Bob Dwyer are the in-laws of my niece Taylor Bell. Maria and Bob are avid boaters who own a beauitiful Sabre 42 power boat. And, Coinjock NC is the home of the best Prime Rib in the world.

However, before arriving in Coinjock, we had to go through a lock. Locks along the ICW are designed to create a series of steps where boats either climb or descend as they travel upstream or downstream.

The next day we continued from Coinjock to Bellhaven and the Dowry Creek Marina.

Leaving Norfolk is the beginning of the “real” Intercoastal Waterway and things change drastically. The Waterway is a caravan of boats all heading south for the winter. And, it is treacheroulsy narrow and shallow. Speed is greatly reduced as Wakely cannot pass other boats at speed as her wake would rock the boats we are passing. In addition, the waterway’s channels are shallow and narrow. Shoaling, when sand builds up, is very dangerous as it can stretch into the channel. The crew needs to be on a constant state of alert in order to avoid running aground.

One story worth noting is that we were following a 52 foot cabin cruiser down the channel when all of a sudden she veered sharply to port (left). A crewmate jumped out of the cabin to wave us off as they had just collided with a shoal. They managed to back off the shoal. However, in the process they lost power in one of their engines. They were making headway on the other engine but taking on water when the Coast Guard came to their rescue.

After leaving Bellhaven, we continued on to Beaufort, NC where we again met up with Bob and Maria Dwyer for a hamburger dinner on Wakely. Wakely is very pretty at night, if I say so myself.

Tonight as I write this blog, I am sitting in Wrightsville, NC. We stopped here to let Randy spend an evening with a cousin he had not seen for many years. We have been out for nine days and we are getting into a routine that allows us to keep up a very full schedule of cruising, arriving in port, making any necessary adjustments to Wakely, filling her up with fresh water and fueling up every few days.

Tomorrow we cross into South Carolina and stop at Georgetown before continuing onto Charleston and Hilton Head, SC.

Stick with Stan, Randy, Wakely and me as we move ever closer to our final destination, where ever that may be.

Keep Cruisin.