Dreamtime Sailing

Well….we spoke too soon regarding the hydronic heater unfortunately.  When we tried to fire it up last evening the blowers wouldn’t kick on and there were flames coming out the exhaust.  We don’t always agree on everything, but this time we both agreed this was not a good sign.

Undeterred, we rugged up in our winter woolies this morning and untied the dock lines before 0800 and headed south to Solomon’s Island.  It was a dreary overcast day of rain and wind on our nose again, but from within the confines of our full enclosure we had a lovely and comfortable day, motoring along the Bay.

For most of the day we didn’t see another boat, but this is a photo of a neighbor who we tracked on AIS as he followed us for a couple of hours and finally passed us.  That is a tugboat towing a large platform and what looked like another tug on a barge.

Christina took the opportunity to practice and hone her chart reading skills and figuring out how far away land/water marks were.  She must have done a good job as we arrived at Solomons Island and docked at the marina with no incident.

Bob enjoyed just sitting back and letting the autopilot do most of the steering.

The marina and quaint village of Solomons Island  looks like a nice place to spend some time…. maybe we will plan to do that on the way back north in Spring.  But for now, depending on weather tomorrow and how long we want to motor, as wind is expected to still be from the south (on our nose), we will head to Point Lookout, MD or Reedville, VA. (a new state!!!!)

(A sidenote – as this is being written, Bob is looking at the weather forecast and our planned route for the next week and colorful language and expletives are being uttered…. oh boy.  Let’s hope somebody is wrong here.)

After enjoying 4 days in Eastport (Annapolis), waiting for parts for the hydronic heater, parts were received and the heater was re-installed and ultimately became operational at 1600 on Friday.  Woo hoo!!!

This morning (Saturday, 24 Oct 2015) at 0840, we released the dock lines and headed south for a few hours.  With the wind on our nose we had an uneventful, albeit chilly, motoring experience navigating around the multitudinous lines of crab pots.

We safely arrived and docked at Herrington Harbour South Marina to spend the rest of the day and night.  (http://www.herringtonharbour.com)

Tomorrow’s forecast is for more cold, mixed with rain and high wind.  As we are planning to take a leisurely pace down the Bay we’ll decide in the morning if we venture out and fire up the now working heater.  If so, we plan to get as far as Solomons Island.

On 19 October, a very brisk morning of 39 degrees Fahrenheit/3.9 degrees Celsius, at 0940 we untied the dock lines and left Rock Hall for the last time for at least the next 6 months.

We consider this the next big adventure as we begin our journey south to Florida.

First stop:  Annapolis – to try to get our hydronic heater repaired for the trip.  If successful we reckon we have ensured a warm trip, if not, the winter woolies will be close at hand.

For the first time this summer there is a named storm headed this way and as of today where we have our boat docked is within the possible trajectory for a Monday morning encounter.  (See image above from U.S. National Hurricane Center.)

One of the joys of owning a sailboat is being able to go to quiet anchorages, drop the anchor and feel like you are alone in the world.

Just to ensure all systems for anchoring and a night at anchor were operating as expected and convince ourselves that we knew what we were doing, we decided our first anchoring experience would be relatively close to home.

On a quiet day with no wind (…again!), we motored out of the harbor, into the bay, and “around the corner”.  We navigated through another channel (where we don’t mention we had grounded our charter boat 5.5 years ago – but learned that lesson well), and up Swan Creek to a small anchorage.

Although if you looked in one direction you could see the marina from which we chartered in 2009, by turning our focus in the other direction we felt like we were miles away from civilization.

The water was calm, with no current and no wind, and all systems worked perfectly, as we anchored and lived on the hook for the night as if we were pros and had been doing it for years.  Although no wind, it was a comfortable temperature and we had a lovely evening watching the sunset and enjoying the gentle swaying of the boat.

We considered staying out for another night, but hadn’t brought enough beer for Bob for two nights –  Another lesson learned.

The next morning lifting the anchor was again done smoothly and we motored back to our marina counting the experience as a success on many levels.

Leaving Annapolis on Wednesday, 5 August, with Christina at the helm, the sails were raised for the first time and we sailed!  

There wasn’t much wind that day, averaging 5 – 6 knots with an occasional gust, but it was great to be able to turn off the engine and let the wind take us – albeit slowly.

Bob had fun continually  trimming the sails attempting to eek out just another fraction of a knot of speed.

The past month has been full of taking care of things.  The boat needed to be hauled out of the water to get some work done, so we took the opportunity to drive down to Virginia Beach and visit with Bob’s brother and tend to some family business.  And thus no blog entries for a while – but all is good.

We are back on track this month, and last Sunday, 2 August, we headed over to Annapolis for a few nights.  We did end up motoring the entire way as there was absolutely no wind…again.  (The story of our lives sometimes — when we cycle there seems to always be wind – in our faces, when we sail there is usually no wind…oh well.)

But after 3 hours of pleasant motoring across the bay we arrived in Annapolis harbor and successfully picked up a mooring ball to spend the next 3 nights.

We enjoyed a relaxing time exploring Annapolis, eating good food at different restaurants, and enjoying feeling the boat move under our feet as we bobbed around on the ball.  (Yeap those sea legs definitely need to be developed still.)

A few evenings ago we met another couple who have been cruising for 10 years between the Chesapeake and the Caribbean.  They have made the difficult decision to put their boat (40′ Island Packet) up for sale and are moving back to land with mixed emotions.  Better to make that decision on their own terms rather than the sea or life in general making the decision for you they thought.

In the past 10 years they have done a few home visits, and in the past year have only spent 3 nights in a marina.  So they really have been living on the hook.  They are finishing their rendition of the life we are just embarking on and it was great to just sit and chat with them over a wine and beer.

What struck me when talking with them was the contentment they had regarding the decisions they made and the life they chose to live for the past 10 years.  They talked about how their relationship grew stronger because of it, and because of all the time they spent with just each other.  It was really quite lovely. I could see them remembering the excitement and newness we are currently experiencing with a twinkle in their eyes.

It really is good to connect with people who have been living the dream.

What’s that behind Bob?  Could it be land?

And what’s between Bob and the land?  Could that be water?

Yesterday we ventured out of the slip, past the breakwater and into the Bay by ourselves – woo hoo!!!!

There was absolutely no wind and the Bay was like a lake of still water, so the sails did not go up, but we did go out.

I must report that I LOVE the new headsets we bought.  They are bluetooth connected and allow Bob and me to talk to each other as if we were right next to each other even when we are on opposite ends of the boat.  It was great to have him right in my ear.  I was able to tell him when the dock lines were free, when I saw crab pots to avoid, and he was able to tell me what he needed me to do.  Bob reported loving them too – that is until I sneezed and nearly blew out his eardrum, oops.  And again as we passed by some new friends (more on them in the next post) and I called over to them while still wearing the microphone.  Lessons learned – cover the mouthpiece when I am not talking directly to Bob and when sneezing.

We left the slip, motored out into the Bay for about an hour or so getting more familiar with the navigational aids and markers,  and re-entered the slip without incident.

I enjoyed being at the bow and seeing the sights.  Osprey nest atop the channel markers but don’t like boats getting to close to their young.  This mother let us know she was not pleased.

When we returned to the dock we tested the genoa (front sail) and staysail (middle sail) to be sure they would run smoothly and we would have no major surprises when we actually get to use them.

We are definitely getting better with prep work before departure and set-up work after arrival.  The air conditioning was re-installed easily, the sail cover was reattached relatively easily (it probably helped that the sail hadn’t been used), the windshield/windscreen cover was replaced easily and even the middle piece of canvas between the bimini and dodger was reattached without drama (or cussing).  We didn’t time the process, but it didn’t seem to take nearly as long as the first two times.  But yes, we were both still covered in sweat by the time the processes were over.

The weather forecast for the next few days is rain and thunderstorms, so we probably won’t go out again for a few days.

Our next planned adventure may be our first overnight excursion to Annapolis.  Will keep you posted.