Added Lesson's Learned during the trip to the "Other Stuff" tab.

It's good to be home.  It was a great trip but, as always, it's good to be home where things are so much easier to do and you are around your loved ones again.  The winter has made a mess of my yard but no damage to the house from tree limbs etc. - just a lot of clean up.  Still had a little snow in my driveway but was able to chisel enough away to get my car out of the garage and get up the driveway.
For anyone still following along who has any geeky tendencies, I posted a somewhat lengthy and detailed descriptions of our onboard communications to the outside world.  It is under a tab in the blog that I just renamed "Other Stuff".  Also, I've not posted much about my Dad's health. Two or three days after I joined the Pintita in St. Thomas, he went to the hospital in a coma caused by a brain tumor.  Naturally, it was quite upsetting and his condition has been on my mind a lot during the trip.  I'm happy to report that he is doing well.  He started a 7 day a week, 45 day long, radiation treatment plan about two weeks ago.  He isn't driving but is still living at home, cooking all his meals, exercising, etc. and is doing very well.  I plan on going down and visiting him in the next couple months (we skipped over Florida on the way north).

Last night was a little scary.  The boat was on the T-head at the end of the Getaway docks and the wind was blowing it hard against the dock.  We had 4 fenders out but they were flattened by the drop in temperatures that went from 65 to 35 in just 4 hours and by the force of the winds gusting to 60 mph. The boat was heeling between 20 and 30 degrees and the fenders became stuck under the dock.  Fortunately, the dock had rubber edging that protected the Pintita's hull until I was able to adjust two of the fenders.  Today has been cold (around 30) and windy (still 30 to 40 knots) but the sun is shining.  Cleaned the boat most of the day and posted ads for the Islander.  Captain Phil went to West Marine and got more Captain Tolley's for the v-berth sole.  I caught a ride with him up to the Cook's house (Joan's sister and her husband) and met her at around 3:30 for the drive home.

We're IN.  It's "funny" how Mother Nature has to have the last laugh.  15 minutes before returning to the Getaway docks, the wind went from 5 to 20 in less than a minute and then to over 40 in another 5 minutes.  It made docking at real challenge since it was blowing us onto the docks but we gave Captain Phil a 10 for rounding up, heading into the wind and wiggling the stern back into the dock. 

After a nice dinner last night, and a quiet night aboard at ACM, we fueled up this morning and headed for "HOME".  The forecast was for S at 15 but it never materialized.  We motored up the Bay and into the Patapsco.  We did set the jib but it never did much to help.  We have not filled the water tank since Masonborro NC.  Captain Phil assured me several times that we wouldn't run out of water but, to his surprise, we ran out about an hour out of Baltimore.  Of course, no marinas in the last 300+ miles have had their water turned on anyway so we couldn't have taken any on if we had wanted. 

So, it's good to be in.  Phil and Ollie, and I had an early cocktail to celebrate. Phil posted a photo on his Facebook page. 

 

As a nice welcome home, Brianna left work early and greeted Captain Phil and I with a huge chocolate chip cookie.  Thanks Bri,.

We see light at the end of the tunnel.  It's 1:30pm, Tuesday.  We are just south of the mouth of the Patuxant River (entrance to Solomon's).  We anchored on a one of my favorite creeks last night - Dymer Creek.  It is about 5 miles north of the mouth of the Rappahannock River.  It was a very peaceful evening and night.  The temperature only got down into the high 40s or low 50s so it was comfortable sleeping. This morning, we weighed the anchor just after 7 and were underway.  We have been reading forecasts for a strong cold front moving into the area Wednesday night and Thursday. Preceding it (tomorrow) the weather should be a little rainy with some possible thunderstorms.  Today is bright and sunny (but windless).  So the plan for today is to make it a long one and make it into Annapolis.  We will tie up at the Annapolis City Marina (the regular).  We are calculating we will arrive around 9pm.  Tomorrow will (should) be a short/easy motor/sail up to our Baltimore home port.  Needless to say, we are all getting excited to be home.

It's 10:30pm.  We got to Annapolis at 9pm, tied up at the Annapolis City Marina, and dashed over to the Boatyard Cafe for dinner.  It's nice to have heat again.  Plan to leave around 9am and be in Baltimore around 1pm.  Plan for me is to catch a ride with Captain Phil up to Joan's sister Teresa and husband Robert's house tomorrow evening. I'll stay over there tomorrow night and Joan will drive down and pick me up Thursday. 

I'll post recent photos tomorrow night when I have wifi.

Yesterday was a long, but productive, day.  We made it to Portsmouth on the west side of the Elizabeth River, across from Norfolk.  The entire day was canals, and cuts in narrow rivers and shallow sounds.  I ran aground (for the second time in a week) yesterday.  I was even following behind a barge that made it through but, in some areas, the cuts are very narrow and shoaled into the cut.  Fortunately, the tide was rising and we were off in about 10 minutes.  We went through lots of bridges and one (Great Bridge) lock.  The timing all went pretty well and we got into the Tidewater Marina just after sunset.  Today we will have returned home to the Bay. We are looking forward to sailing again.  The wind today is forecasted to be SW at 10 to 15 so it should be a good sail.  More later.  It's 8am and we need to fuel up and head out.

OK - now it's "today".  It's noon and we are almost half way to our destination anchorage.  We got up this morning to bright sunshine, winds NW at about 10, and temps around 30. We got going at 8am sharp for a 52 nm day.  We motored out of the Pantego River and into the (large) Pungo River.  It was about 8 miles up to the head where we left the river into the south end of the Alligator-Pungo cut.  This (ICW) cut is almost 20 miles long with two 5 degree turns near the center.  So it's two very straight 10 mile stretches till you reach the bottom of the Alligator River.  As I type, Ollie has the "watch" (wheel) and Captain Phil is doing some patch work on the dinghy.  It is nice and sunny.  The temp inside the cockpit is around 65 or 70 and below it's about 55 or 60 - a HUGE improvement over the last 3 days.  I know, though, that the forecast for later in the week (up north in the Bay) is for colder temps again.   

Rev. 1 - it's 7pm and we just dropped anchor in the North River on the north side of the Albemarle Sound.  We ended up making good progress all day and reached our previous destination earlier than expected.  So we decided to keep going.  One factor was that the Albamarle Sound was like glass - making the passage across a piece of cake.  It is notorious for being a real pain.  I've read reports that it is the most difficult stretch of water between Florida and Maine so we are glad to have it behind us.  So, the plan now is to make Great Bridge tomorrow and South Norfolk Monday.

It's now 3/8.  We were docked the entire day and I had big plans to tour the town of Belhaven, do lots of reading, and update the blog.  So much for plans.  It rained and the nor-easter blew through all day yesterday and last night.  We were in a very protected anchorage for the wind direction but we were still rocking and rolling, heeling sometimes to 15 degrees.  It didn't rain the entire day so I was able to go to the head to use the wifi etc.  Wifi was available on the boat but you had to be in the cockpit and that was cold.  The marina was very small but was the owners (a husband and wife) were very nice and had the office and small outbuilding fixed up and decorated very nicely.  The head was set up as a shrine to the owner's uncle who had been in the Navy in the 1940s. It was decorated with 30 or 30 pieces of memorabilia - really cool.

We went out to dinner again last night to and, again, the food was really excellent.  As usual, lights were out by around 9pm.

Don't ever think the weather can't get any worse.  We have "joked" over the last week that we were heading into the "Polar Vortex" of the mid Atlantic and Northeast.  I know we haven't been having the record lows of those back home but when you are boating, 20s and 30s can be a little uncomfortable.  So, if that weren't enough, a big low pressure has developed to our south.  Ever feel like you are being squeezed? We anchored out last night in NE 10 to 15 with temps around 40.  Today, we motored out of "Gale Creek", north into Goose Creek and then into the Pamlico.  The further north we got, the windier and rougher it got.  The swells in the Pamlico River were easily 6'.  We had spray coming over the top of the bimini.   Fortunately, it was only a few miles across to the Pungo River and the Pintita and her engine (Big Blue) took it all and kept is dry and safe.  We pulled into the Belhaven Marina at around 1pm.  Our plan is to sit the low pressure (nor-easter) out until the weather improves (forecast is for Saturday).

With bad weather forecasted for today and especially tomorrow and Friday, Dad decided trying to make it to Norfolk was too risky.  To be on the safe side, he rented a car in Morehead City this morning and began a 7 hour drive home.  We will miss him - especially on "anchor detail".  So now it's down to Captain Phil, Ollie, and me.  We left Morehead City at around 9am in a light sprinkle and about 40 degrees.  We had the current with us motoring up the Adams Creek canal and were through Adam's Creek and into the Neuse River by about noon.  We were making such good time, we decided to head up the Neuse and into Bay River.  We are now anchored in Gale Creek on the north side and near the head of Bay River.  The "silver bullet" (generator) has been running for about an hour, we have transferred fuel from the 150 gallon aux tank to the 55 gallon main tank.  We all are enjoying our favorite adult beverage and Phil is reading and Ollie is playing with his phone. The forecast is for NNE 15 to 25 tomorrow so we plan to cross the Pamlico river and head into the Pungo River.  Near the head of the Pungo is Dowery Creek Marina where we plan to stay tomorrow night.  Tomorrow should only be a short 30 mile day.  We have not had sun for 3 days now and it has been raining off and on.  The wind and rain is supposed to pick up tomorrow and Friday but the forecast is for sun and warmer temps starting Saturday.  We can't wait. 

Ever try typing on a keyboard that is 45 degrees?  Weighed two anchors with very muddy 150' rodes this morning at 7:30am - on an icy deck.  What a mess.  Underway now, headed north. Just passed the dreaded inlet where Pintita ran aground on the way south (green 61a).  The buoy has since been moved from the east side of the ICW to the west side. 

We are underway again.  Left the dock at Masonborro YC at around 8am and stopped for fuel at Wrightsville Beach.  Wrightsville Beach seems to be a very affluent area with lots of very nice homes and marinas etc.  Our plan is to go just 37 miles today to a large anchorage just NW of the New River Inlet (south of Moorhead City by about 40 miles).  Last night low temp was around 50 and it's currently around 55 with SW winds around 15.  The wind is supposed to "haul" around (CW) to the west and then NW and begin blowing this afternoon and evening. Well,  its now 6:30pm and the wind did haul - and picked up to 15 to 25 from the NW.  We dropped the anchor (both of them) at about 5pm and have been running the generator (for heat ever since).  The temp has dropped to around 40. It's nice to be in safe.  It is howling outside and the boat is healing (under bare poles) from side to side.  Tomorrow will be a long day to get past Moorehead City and up to Adams Creek.  From Moorehead City on will be familiar territory for me from my trip there two years ago.

Given all the talk about cold weather coming from up north, we decided to make today a boat work day.   Having temps in the 60s, sunny skies, and light winds helped in the decision.  This morning, Captain Phil did laundry and went got a ride to the grocery store with one of the marina employees.  We began working on sail slides around 9am.  Every one of the slides on the boom had broken and 6 or 7 on the mast.  It appeared that UV in the sunlight had caused the plastic in the slides to become brittle over time.  Ollie had ordered 15 new slides for the mast from Sailrite.  A couple weeks ago, we realized the slides for the boom were a different size so he ordered 15 of those.  We used all but 2 on the boom.  Anyway, it's nice to know the mainsail is now fully attached to both the mast and boom.  Tonight we ate Ollie's Wife Ann's 2 x 4 soup, French bread and a salad.  The soup was a real hit. During and following the movie, we watch "The Wild Wild West".  Tomorrow, we plan to leave Masonborro around 8am for a short 37 mile motor up the ICW to some anchorage I'm not yet aware of.  

After almost 12 hours of sleep, it was up at the crack of dawn for a planned 65 mile day - hoping to get to the Wrightsville Beach area of NC. As I type, Captain Phil is preparing a gourmet breakfast of smoked salmon and beagles (with lots of toppings).

It's now almost 5pm.  It's been a long day of motoring.  Fighting a 3 to 4 knot current for several miles north Cape Fear didn't make it any easier.  From the Cape Fear Inlet, the ICW joins the Cape fear River for about 5 miles and we passed through at max ebb (see video).  We are approaching the Masonborro Yacht Club and Marina where we will stay overnight.  This was the location where the Pintita stayed for a week, waiting for a weather window to head offshore for the passage to St. Thomas (last November).  I think this might be a little nastalgic for Captain Phil since he has now completed a loop from which he left for his voyage.