Yes, we are finally sailing!

We bid Annapolis adieu Sunday morning. Decent wind finally came on Monday and increased Tuesday allowing us to be powered only by sails for about half the day.  It’s hard to take a picture of your own boat under sail, but by far the most fun location to try to do that is lying on my back on the trampoline rocking and rolling with the waves at 7 to 8 knots.

Under engine power we were averaging 5 to 6 knots, so 8K, with about an 18mph wind pushing, felt fast. Having only the sound of the water and wind is wonderful!

Tuesday afternoon brought us to Norfolk where we anchored in Willoughby Bay right next to the Naval Base. The afternoon entertainment was the Navy Seals training about a quarter mile off our anchorage. A helicopter hovered over the water and eight Seals bailed out. A line was sent down to pick up one and then that person was lowered and “rescued” another. When all were collected they flew off and then returned and did it all over again…six or seven times!

Leaving Norfolk was quite exciting with all the Navy and Coast Guard craft including aircraft carriers, warships and tugs.

 Hope you can see the gun mounted on the front of this boat!

Little tug pushing this disabled ship

We passed by shipyards for an hour or so before entering the Intercoastal Watersay (ICW) which goes all the way down to Florida. The lCW comes with the warning that if you say you never went aground in the ICW then you are either lying or you didn’t do the ICW. So far so good on that!  

entrance to the Dismal Swamp

Five miles down the ICW we take a detour down the Dismal Swamp which, despite the name, is the scenic route.  And it is indeed lovely. Much more narrow than we’ve seen for awhile, tree lined banks, a few homes but also very rural and fairly shallow water.  

Not far down the Dismal Swamp we came to our first lock, Deep Creek. We were the only boat going through the lock this afternoon and we had a nice chat with lock keeper Robert who was also very helpful in instructing us on how to maneuver the lock. Robert has been here for 20 years and is the newest keeper on the canal.

 the lock doors close

 almost full of water now

open gates and on our way

A little history is worthwhile at this point. Dismal Swamp Canal was first proposed in 1728 by Colonel William Byrd after he surveyed the Virginia-North Carolina border for the English. He and his party had to go through the dense undergrowth of the swamp and he made some comment on how repulsive and dismal it was giving it its name. The canal was completed in 1805 making it the oldest operating canal in America today. 

                                      

office of the lock keeper

Lock keeper Robert blowing his conch shell

Robert is a historian as well as lock keeper, bridge keeper and general maintenance man in the area. He invited us to dock immediately after the lock passage and told us to come by the next morning when he arrived before 8am and he'd have the coffee on! There is a small park behind the lock also, so we had a nice evening walk in the park and then had the biggest calzone I've even seen delivered to the boat for dinner.

yes, we have a basil plant now and it is surviving nicely

Thursday, June 26

After OJ, coffee and more stories of the Dismal Swamp from Robert we shoved off, went through Dismal Canal Pontoon Bridge (which Robert runs down to in his pickup to open for us) and proceeded down the canal. The passage is narrow and occasionally you have to watch out for tree tops hanging over that might hit the top of the mast. 

It was hot and humid and it seems we are in the middle of a 4-6 week invasion of deer flies. Sure glad we bought that package of 3 fly swatters back in Annapolis!

the bridge at South Mills

welcome to North Carolina

Forty miles, one more lock and a couple bridges later we came into Elizabeth City, NC. We anchored out and then had the treat of meeting friends Joan and Howard who live nearby. 

Joan brought a fantastic taco casserole, salad and blueberry cobbler with blueberries from their farm. We really enjoyed the visit with them and may even get to hook up again further south. 

Today we'll enter the Abermarle Sound with more open waters and possibly a chance to sail again.