Cruising Blind

Our northward progress is going well.  Of course, there have been a few glitches, but nothing extreme.  After leaving Charleston we traveled to Southport, North Carolina, where we put the boat in a marina, for 5 days, and rented a car to drive to Atlanta for the final grandchildren visit.

We saw plenty of cargo being moved…this ship is really loaded.

Interesting architecture.  This design is supposed to be hurricane ‘proof’!

Obviously, some boaters don’t ever look at a chart!  That sandbar was clearly identified.

The timing was perfect for our Atlanta visit.  We were able to attend Alexis’ gymnastics competition.  She was AMAZING!

We made time for a little mountain fun, but she was too light to make it to the end of the zip line.  They were able to retrieve her quickly.

On the other hand, my excessive weight allowed me to smoke Gage in our zip line race!  Funny how he thought his youth and fitness would give him the edge😀

After a wonderful weekend it was back to the boat, and northbound to Norfolk, VA

Where once again, the wind pinned us down for 6 days…ugh!

Whitecaps in the anchorage didn’t stop me from cooking. I was able to spend that time preparing large scale batches of beef stew, chicken & dumplings, stuffed peppers, and mini meatloafs.  My efforts allowed me to stock frozen portions for our freezer, and my Dad’s freezer.  Thanks to Shelly, from Oh Henry, for enlightening me to the concept of grocery delivery.  I know that has been a ‘thing’ for a long time, but I never considered it was an option for someone without an address.  My first attempt with Kroger was a massive FAIL, because they wouldn’t deliver to an address other than my ‘official’ address. Walmart, on the other hand, had no such qualms!  I am definitely a convert…easiest shopping experience of my life!!

Finally, on one evening the wind, clouds, and rain gave way to an amazing sunset.  

Everything in Norfolk Harbor was golden.

Beautiful!

When the wind finally died down, we were able to continue our trek north.  However, the old adage, “be careful what you wish for” came into play.  The wind did stop, just as we had wished, but that meant that there was nothing to blow away the fog!  We planned to travel up the Bay, to our home port in Pasadena, MD, in two (long) 75 mile days.  They turned out to be the strangest two days of navigation we have experienced to date.

This is literally the view we had for 10 hours each day, for 2 consecutive days.  Visibility was less than a quarter mile for 95% of this trip.  Keith described the feeling as someone turning a Tupperware bowl upside down over the boat. Between the fact that there were no waves, and we couldn’t see the relative motion of objects as we passed, it essentially felt like we were not moving at all.

Radar was our best friend, but not foolproof.  This shot clearly shows two sets of York River channel markers, but what is the blob almost dead ahead? For those of you unfamiliar with radar…we are the dot in the center, and the line running from us to the top of the screen represents ‘dead ahead’ at that moment.

This is the chart for the same location. The blue boat is us, and the yellow square is the unknown object.  In these conditions you must watch the course and speed of all objects to make sure you are never on a collision course.  This example is pretty simple. Keeping an eye on one object is easy peasy!

This example is a totally different story. There are at least a dozen targets, within a mile and a half, that need to be analyzed (for speed and direction) and tracked.  This type of navigation is exhausting!  The big green blobs you see on the left are land (we certainly don’t want to hit that either).  During one of my helm duties, I had a brief scare when a small target appeared to approaching from behind and gaining quickly.  I stuck my head out to listen for a small outboard, or possibly jet ski…nothing, no sound. However, the radar showed the object passing us up the port side, only an eighth of a mile away. Then the target started to turn in front of us…’WTH’ (what the heck), I shouted as I grabbed the throttles ready to pull back, and instantly two pelicans broke through the clouds and cut right across our bow. Unbelievable! 

I thought, WOW!  Our radar is amazing…until…

While Keith was at the helm this sailboat came from our starboard (right) side and cut right across the bow.  We were both totally shocked, because there had been NO indication this boat was there.  NO radar signature, NO engine sound, NO fog horn. If you operate a sailboat in fog, PLEASE invest in a radar reflector! The life you save might be your own (or mine).

Finally, 4 miles from our home anchorage the fog lifted just in time for us to have a nice view of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, as we passed under!