Our 2nd day in Carolina Beach started out very foggy. We had debated leaving after one night on the mooring but because of the complicated forecast and serious wind coming in a few days we decided to stay. This is what we awoke to and had the next 3 plus hours.
Not much to see here. Imagine the waterway. Staying meant one less day hiding out and hunkered down somewhere less comfortable. Also, the fog made it extremely dangerous. A boat we know left after a 2 hour delay. In my opinion they should have waited 3 hours but that puts arrival at the next anchorage late in the afternoon. Something we avoid.
We got underway the next day slightly later than normal due to a bridge opening schedule around 90 minutes away. We made it to the 0900 opening of the Wrightsville Beach bridge but it was a closer call than planned due to an adverse current. Then we were more than 20 minutes early (or 10 minutes late) to the Figure 8 Island bridge opening but after that we had good current the rest of the day. We got to Mile Hammock Basin before 2pm and anchored. A bit breezier than forecast but not terrible. We had gone through the nearby New River Inlet intersection about an hour before low tide. This would have been near impossible a year or so ago but we just had a brief bump as we got a little closer to the red side of the channel than we should have. All good. Mile Hammock is at Camp LeJeune, the Marine Base. Sometimes it is very noisy with Osprey flights, gunfire or things being blown up but it stayed quiet and the wind died overnight.
We got up very early the next morning and started the anchor raising process while it was still dark. We wanted to avoid the construction obstructions at the Onslow Beach swing bridge that could start at 0800 or even 0700 when work often starts. The day before the bridge tender told us via VHF they had not been restricting the channel width lately but he couldn't be sure. We were let through the bridge at 0650 with two other vessels. Interestingly, even though it was clear when we got up, fog formed just before we went through the bridge. At times it was quite dense but it lasted less than an hour. We were in a narrow ICW area so we could see to either side of us even though straight ahead was all gray. Getting underway early turned out not to be neccessary but it got us going before the forecast wind picked up. The rain, too. It was quite pleasant until we got near to Morehead City and Beaufort (Bo firt), NC. It got dark, cold and windy but no rain came. We had hoped to get to Oriental and a free dock there but the webcam showed the slips were taken. Would have been a nice, safe place to hide out from the Gale Watch weather forecast. Plus there are restaurants, groceries, supplies and walks to go on. Nope. Not this trip. We ended up in our usual place at Cedar Creek off of Adams Creek a few miles from the Neuse River and anchored. The predicted wind direction made this an okay spot but we were concerned with the upcoming days of bad weather that were forecast. Boredom is rarely fatal. Gale force winds can be.
It was already windy when we arrived on Friday afternoon. Overnight it started raining and did not stop until mid-morning on Sunday. The wind also increased with the rain, in the 20kt range with higher gusts. When the rain finally stopped the wind actually increased, with gusts that were on the sporty side. Very sporty. Attention grabbing. 1ft waves, too, even without fetch. Although it was noisy, we slept okay. We were reasonably confident in our anchor system holding us in place. After a few days of wind you figure you are dug in and will continue to hold. Hope anyway. It all held. On Monday, it was mostly sunny and the wind was under 20 but not by much. If the direction was behind us (southish) we might have departed but it was exactly, precisely, smack-dab and perfectly on target to be the worst possible direction for the upcoming passage. On the nose. We know from experience how bad it could be on the Neuse. Several experiences. From this very spot. Decided not to depart. Wiser? Or just older? Later reports said it was over 4ft seas. No thanks.
Tuesday we got underway before 0700 and had some difficulty raising the anchor. It was well dug in (this is good) and very heavy with a lot of mud stuck to it. Yuck! Very light north wind and very cold to start. Blue skies make it seem nicer, however. The Neuse was not quite as nice as it should have been because even though the wind was lightish it was still from the north to northeast, a bad direction. We had around 1ft seas. On the nose. Not uncomfortable but we were slowed down a little. We can only imagine the seas on the Neuse the previous few days with the 20-30kt winds. I saw a 4 1/2ft wave report near shore but they were likely higher in the open areas we were crossing this day. We anchored up the Pungo River in a swampy area near the Pungo-Alligator Canal. It was a beautiful, cloudless day that eventually approached being warm.
Clouds were on the horizon, however. We had been following bridge issue information for Gilmerton, a few days away, but suddenly the nearer Great Bridge Lock closed due to a power failure. Not being able use that route for sure, we had to look into going the Dismal Swamp Canal route. This will make for longer days because we cannot do it more leisurely like we normally would, taking extra stops. Taking extra days would mean getting into the weekend closed periods of the Gilmerton Bridge near Portsmouth, VA. The N&S #7 railroad bascule bridge seems to also be having problems with its operations so our worries were building. We also have a marina reservation up the road.
We got up very early to get underway before sunrise.
Gilmerton Bridge at sunrise. Been underway for a while.
Besides being beautiful this got us ahead of all the anchored boats near us and the powerboats at the various Belhaven marinas. None passed us while we were in the narrow Pungo-Alligator Canal. The Alligator River Swing Bridge made us wait a few minutes to let a group of those powerboats catch up to us to make a single opening.
After the bridge, it was decision time. The usual route or the Dismal Swamp route? A final check on the Great Bridge Lock situation said we could not take the chance so we went to Route 2, the Great Dismal. The only real problem is it is farther to the Elizabeth City stop, about 10 hours, vs. our first stop on the Virginia Cut route (about 7 hours). The days after that are not too bad lengthwise. We got to Elizabeth City about 1600 but had to wait until 1630 for the bascule bridge to open. We tied up at a free dock provided by Middle Atlantic Christian University. Free showers, water and dumpsters included. Nice deal. The other free dock in town is nice, too, but showers are $5. We decided we could not make the next morning's first lock opening at 0830 because it is 18 miles away and would take almost 3 hours from our predawn departure time of 0615. Our 0715 departure got us to the lock at 0945 which meant more than an hour of waiting for the 1100 opening. In the past the South Mills Lock has opened early for us due to the lack of other traffic. Not today. The lock operator seemed to think we boaters mess up his day by requiring him to do his job. Seems it has always been the attitude of the personnel of this lock even though they have changed over the years. The lockmaster at Deep Creek, our next lock, may have been the best anywhere. He was helpful, courteous and friendly and had lots of knowledge about the canal and the Great Dismal. Unfortunately, he died at a very young age a few years ago.
Since it has been at least 6 or 7 years since we took the Dismal Swamp Canal route, some info: George Washington was involved in the surveying of the canal, mostly hand dug by slaves. Today's name doesn't make sense because a dismal is a swamp so the name means 'swamp swamp'. The older name is the Great Dismal which makes more sense. Back to our travels...
The passage up the canal was slow and we bumped the bottom, or the logs at the bottom, frequently. We only hit one tree overhead. Not me. This time. The new (to us) guy at the lock seemed helpful and nice at first contact. A bit chatty but we discussed our previous visits and our deaĺings with the late Robert Peek. We spent the night at Elizabeth's Dock outside the Deep Creek Lock. We have tied up here several times in the past but it has been improved since our last visit. Nice. We went out for a great pizza and some grocery shopping and were ready at 0830 for the first lock opening.
Elizabeth's Dock, Deep Creek, Chesapeake, VA.
After clearing the lock we went back to the 'regular' ICW and turned SOUTH. What??!!??? We actually needed some fuel and the marina was only a mile or so in the wrong direction. No problem. Then it was a trip through Portsmouth and Norfolk, VA. The first bridge encounter had some equipment attached to it making the clearance 10 ft less. Oops. But, fortunately the platform was narrow and only blocked a small part of the overhead and we made it through okay. The next bridge was the dreaded Gilmerton Lift Bridge with the associated Norfolk and Southern #7 railroad bridge. Luckily they were both open as we approached and the bridge tender was nice enough to hold it open a couple of extra minutes to let us through. Very nice. The Norfolk and Western railroad bridge was closed as we approached even though we had never seen it closed before. We only had a minor slowdown as it opened before we got to it. Lucky again. If we didn't have some light rain showers it would have been a very lucky day. We ended up at our planned stop at Hampton City Marina. Had to pay for the tie up because we did not have a free coupon this year. Oh, well. Cleaned out our head, got water, did deck cleaning, laundry and took showers. All set for our push home and entering the Chesapeake Bay from Hampton Roads. All set except for maybe future shore showers for us somewhere.
Leaving Hampton Roads and entering the Chesapeake Bay was easy this year. Very calm and not cold. It was all gray with thick overcast, fog ahead of us and gray oily seas. Oily seas do not have oil. They are calm with left over energy from past winds. Makes for easy, slow movement. Smooth and shiny. Gray because of the overcast. Later, a little breeze picked up and seas built to 4 or 5. Inches. We anchored in Cockrell Creek in Reedville, VA. Near the Memorial Chimney.
We got underway just before sunrise with blue skies and a light SW breeze. Nice. Seas were almost flat, a few ripples. We had the current with us when we crossed into Maryland and started across the mouth of the Potomac River. The current only got better and our arrival time to Solomons was before noon. It was so nice we decided to continue on to Annapolis. Of course it got cloudy within an hour or so and the seas built up. To 8-10 inches. And behind us. At times our speed over the ground (SOG) reached 8.5kts. Very fast. Combining two day-passages into one passage let us beat an increase in the wind and a switch to a slightly worse direction. It would not have been bad but our last day before Annapolis was great and we took advantage of it. Well after we decided to continue to Naptown they posted Small Craft Advisories for the next day, probably for gusts, not sustained winds. We arrived to a City mooring in Back Creek. Eastport, MD at about 1630 so not too late of a day. 10 hours. Not too bad but only because of having great current with us. The current cut roughly 2 1/2 hours off the trip.
We plan to spend about a week in Annapolis. Depends on the weather forecast for the push to home. Relax. Maintenance. Groceries. Restaurants. Fuel. New stuff, maybe.
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