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Ft.Lauderdale to the Chesapeake: March 2003

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Monday, August 01, 2005

Here is the log from our trip to bring "Adventures" home from Florida: 

1305 statute miles / 1134 nautical miles

This log describes our experiences with a new-to-us trawler and chronicles a number of "firsts" on an interesting trip from Florida to the Chesapeake Bay.  For anyone thinking about a trip like this, or wondering what it's like, or if you're taking the plunge and doing something that's new-and-a-little-scary - we hope this might be helpful.  Thanks to Joyce Cantrell for some of the wonderful pictures!

Saturday-Sunday 8-9 March - Arrived in Lauderdale and found that the yard hadn't completed all the work on the boat, even though they claimed they did (and we paid the bill!).  We hope to get everything resolved quickly on Monday morning (3/10) so we can head up to Lake Worth to rendezvous with our buddy boats. Cleaned the boat, provisioned for part of the trip and filled the gas tank for the dink.  Waited for the yard to open early Monday morning. 

Monday 10 March - Yelled at the yard and got a crew aboard to complete the unfinished work.  Learned that it's easy to break things in the process of fixing other things!  ;-)  Fussed, paced, and finally got things wrapped up by 1600.  The run to Lake Worth is about 7 hours, and we really need to get up there to meet our traveling companions - they are pushing north tomorrow morning. We would have preferred to run in the ocean (it's faster!), but were unsure about the condition of other systems on the boat after all the work that was done.  You just never know...
So, we bit the bullet and decided to make the run up the "inside" (the ICW) - since half the trip would be at night.  We've been this way before about 6 weeks ago, so it wasn't a big deal.  Beautiful homes along the way, with 18 bridges that have to open for us!  We had to work a bit when we hit Lake Worth - the shoreline is dark with mangroves and the channel is narrow in a wide body of water.  Binoculars, a good chart, and a sanity check from the electronic chart/GPS and radar worked just fine.  Got the anchor down among our buddy boats by 2315.  Whew!

Tuesday 11 March - We made it up to Fort Pierce, and are anchored just south of the inlet.  Pretty evening!  Our caravan consists of 3 other boats - a Grand Banks 49, a Grand Alaskan (DeFever) 60, and an Ocean Alexander 50.  The OA has a leaky fuel tank on one side and he lacks stabilizers, so we're going to stay on the "inside" for the duration of the trip.  That's what buddy-boating is all about though - stick together and help anyone who needs it.  Adventures runs about a knot slower than the other boats (they have bigger engines and/or longer waterlines), so we're leaving a tad earlier tomorrow (0600) to get a head start - tomorrow is a long run - about 80 miles to Titusville!  The boat is running well, and we're settling into a good routine for the day's run.  Our latest "first" was launching and testing the dinghy for the first time this afternoon - it worked perfectly.  Dinner at anchor tasted good...  and we're just finishing up our piloting chores in preparation for tomorrow's run.  Time for some sleep! 
27 degrees 27.4' N   80 degrees 18.2' W 

 

 

 

Wednesday 12 March - We got the anchor up and were underway by 0620.  It was a long day so we didn't get to the anchorage north of the Titusville Bridge until almost 1700.  Another nice dinner at anchor, and another pretty sunset.  We're getting used to "life at 8 knots" - time to enjoy the scenery, and plenty to do to run the boat.  The weather has been quite beautiful - temps in the 80's and pleasant nights.  Although we really hoped to get out in the ocean, the scenery along the ICW is always interesting - sometimes developed with enormous houses, sometimes just nature.  I've enjoyed the bird watching, and have added a few birds to my life list.  We've seen manatees, stingrays jumping, and LOTS of dolphin.  Our companions have said that they encounter more dolphin in the ICW than in the ocean.  They're everywhere, and they love to ride our bow waves - sometimes tilting sideways to look up at us.  
As we passed the "Space Coast" we could see NASA's big Vehicle Assembly Building at Cape Canaveral, and we thought about the Columbia.  We traveled under some bridges in this part of Florida that I have driven over during the past few years - and every time I drove over them I would dream of the day when I would be under (not over) them in my own boat.  It felt good to go under those bridges today...  it meant a lot.

Thursday 13 March - We left Titusville together this morning (Thursday) at 0700.  The winds were calm and the skies clear, but we ran into heavy fog about 2 miles up the channel.  We had to slow down quite a bit, and were glad to have radar, electronic charts (the channel is VERY narrow), and company.  We made slow progress for a bit, then decided to pull out of the channel a bit and drop anchors until the fog burned off.  We were underaway again about 40 minutes later, with plenty of visibility and light winds.  Much better!  It was an easy run to Daytona, and we were glad that we arrived a bit later than our companion boats - so they had time to fuel and tie up to the dock before we arrived to do the same.  There is no room for 4 boats to mill around!  We took on about 200 gallons of fuel and tied up with our companions.  We scrubbed the decks and got the worst of the salt off the transom, then showered and went to town for dinner with the group.  Wonderful!  We'll be here for a few days, and will catch up on chores and take some walks while we can.
29 degrees 12.1' N  81 degrees 00.7' W 

 

Friday-Sunday 14-16 March -  We're spending a rare stop in a marina on our way north - we're in Daytona Beach to finish provisioning for the push home to the Chesapeake - expecting to arrive there around Sunday 30 March.  We are in the company of 4 other vessels now - with the addition of a Chris Craft 42 "Mainsqueeze".  Tomorrow we'll walk to the local West Marine, and will hit the grocery store later in the day.  We will depart from Daytona on Monday morning, and will only stop at a marina for an overnight and to fuel once a week until we arrive in the Bay.  
There are some nice restaurants and shops around here, so we'll do some exploring on foot tomorrow before we make the big grocery store run. Then we'll work on some boat chores - fixing the things that are most annoying for the trip, and the things that we can tackle without major hassle.
There is always something to fix on a boat, but that's part of what makes it challenging and interesting.  We had a great visit from the Fulfords on Sunday!  We're getting good practice running the boat and getting used to her quirks.  After saving our pennies and dreaming about this for so many years, we're happy to report that cruising in a well-found trawler is even better than we imagined. Nature is at our doorstep, and we'll be keeping a close watch for manatees in the marina - I've heard they visit often!  
29 degrees 12.1' N  81 degrees 00.7' W 

 

Monday 17 March - We left Daytona this morning - it was a beautiful place with a nice restaurant on premises.  We walked to the local West Marine a few times, and did a little shopping for various tools, parts, and all the groceries and supplies we'll need for the next 16 days.  We caught up on a few boat chores, and had the chance to visit with our buddy boat companions in person (instead of the occasional wave when passing on the water, or chatter on the radio).  We also had a wonderful visit from our friends the Fulfords, who recently built a gorgeous new home in Palm Coast. It was a good break before our long push north.
Have I told you about the boat dogs that are traveling with our little group?  There are two Schnauzers:  one miniature - Spike - aboard "Kitten" (DeFever 60), and a standard - Daisy - aboard "Providence" (Ocean Alexander 50).  Despite Spike's diminutive size, he lets everyone know that he's a tough dude.  He might be friendly and let you pet him, but he's always got a little snarl-let to let you know that he's no pushover.  Daisy is a sweetheart who has a thing for dinghy rides.  Both are "boat-trained" (think "house trained" without a real back yard), and they make traveling more fun. 
Tonight we're anchored in Pine Island - a gorgeous marshy area just south of Jacksonville, FL with fabulous bird-watching.  We were treated to an early day - the anchor was down before 1500.  We had a cocktail and a nosh and read our books for a change.  We don't get much reading done underway - even though there's time when you're not at the wheel. Neither of us wants to miss any of the scenery as we chug along - there's always something interesting to see!  Birds, dolphins, manatees - we saw two bald eagles today, as well as a kingfisher and some wading birds that will be added to my life-list.  We watched some thunderstorms roll by to our north this evening - very pretty.  Aside from an occasional overnight shower, we've had very nice weather for the trip!
We may not get online for a few days - the next three days are long ones: 80-90 miles/day.  We'll try and leave around 0530 in the mornings to get a head start on our faster companion boats, and will look for them to pass us mid-late morning.  We'll be in Georgia tomorrow night - so we'll be more conscious of the fact that we're really heading North.  We passed a fellow DeFever 49 today - "Bilbo Baggins" - and we spoke on the radio a bit.  He's heading to the Bahamas for the spring/summer.  It was VERY hard to resist the urge to turn around and join him! 
We miss you all, and wish you could enjoy this adventure with us.  I hope you all pursue your own dreams and have adventures of your own. 
30 degrees 03.2' N     81 degrees 21.8' W

Tuesday 18 March - We crossed from Florida into Georgia today.  We had a good weather day, but it was a long one - 91 miles.  Remember - we only travel at about 10 mph (8 knots)!  We've started to encounter areas with stronger tidal currents (which are greater than usual because of the full moon!), so our speed-over-ground can vary quite a bit as we wend our way along the rivers and canals that make up the ICW. Northern Florida and Georgia have a lot of marshy terrain, and the bird watching continues to be outstanding.  I am adding new birds to my life list every day!
We started early this morning - departing the anchorage ahead of our companions at 0545.  The full moon was still up, and we saw the moon set and the sun rise over the marsh and pine forest - very beautiful!  We were pretty tired by the end of the day though, stopping for 250 gallons of fuel and then anchoring near Brunswick, GA.  Fuel is still very expensive, so we won't fill all the tanks (800 gallons) until we get farther north where it's cheaper.  Diesel was about $2/gallon (including tax) in Florida, and was $1.65 near Brunswick today.  Ouch!!
The amount of tidal flow in these rivers is amazing - the tidal range for tonight's anchorage is 9'.  I woke up around midnight from the sound of the tidal current ripping past the boat.  We have the big 110 lb. claw anchor and an all-chain rode to hold us in place, so we slept pretty easy.
31 degrees 11' N      81 degrees 25' W

Wednesday 19 March - Another long day ahead of us - 90 miles until we get to tonight's anchorage just south of Savannah, GA.  We departed at 0555 this morning to get our head start, and began a very winding path among the literally dozens of rivers in the marshy "low country".  The weather was overcast and quite windy all day - sometimes we had gusts around 30 knots.  We didn't have any real waves to contend with since we were usually in narrow rivers, but we got a taste of the weather when we crossed St. Simon and St. Catherine Sounds, open to the ocean and the wind.  The boat continues to run beautifully, and we enjoy the simple underway routine:  navigating, hourly engine room checks and logging, bird watching, and little chores.  We lost a bit of time fighting the tidal currents today, but we were lucky to time our passage through "Hell Gate" at slack tide.  Apparently, it can be quite an exciting ride when the tide is running at peak flow.  The tidal ranges around here are mind-boggling - 11' up here near Savannah.  It's interesting to see the docks at people's houses - a very tall fixed dock with a hinged ramp attached to a floating dock.  Many of the docks have lifts for their smaller boats, and it looks funny to see the runabouts hoisted about 15' or more up in the air!
I'm glad that I don't have anything more exciting to report than high fuel prices and new birds every day - all the boats are running well and (knock on wood) everyone seems to be doing just fine.  We had a bit of a challenge in one area today - the full-moon tide was so high that part of the marsh was underwater.  Navigation in this 2ish mile stretch is normally done by just following the sharply winding shoreline...  except there wasn't one, nor were there any navigation markers!  It was a bit disorienting since the channel was relatively narrow (and the water get shallow fast), but we took it slow and navigated carefully.  One more long day ahead of us tomorrow to push to Beaufort, SC (82 miles).  Then we have some shorter days for a bit, and we'll get a break from our pre-dawn departures!
We're expecting some volatile weather tomorrow - there will be some strong T'storms moving through our area, but we have sturdy boats and we look out for each other - we should be fine.  The temperatures are dropping a bit - I have a bad feeling that shorts and bare feet will be a memory until summer arrives back home.
32 degrees 01' N     81 degrees 02' W

Thursday 20 March - We left the Savannah area, passing a Sea Ray factory and the famous Palmer Johnsons.  We crossed into South Carolina this morning, and ran into some heavy fog around 1030 in Port Royal Sound (near Parris Island).  We slowed down and put the radar on, and were able to make way by going carefully.  Visibility was 1/4 mile.  Running in fog gets a bit wearing after a while, so the group decided to end our day early and anchor in Beaufort.  We all had our hooks down just after noon, and of course the weather improved!  We were all a bit tired though, and were glad to have a rest.  Everyone caught up with a few chores and watched the news.  32 degrees 25.3 N    80 degrees 39.0 W

Friday 21 March - Well, things had been going so well that we were due for an "adventure"! We got underway earlier than the group as usual, since we had an 81 mile day ahead of us.  We cleared the creek and entered the Beaufort River.  A little way up the river, we were swallowed by very thick fog - visibility was about 100' at best.  Radar and electronic charts (with GPS) help, but the visibility was so low that it was not safe to run, even at near idle speed.  We hailed the rest of the group and they put their hooks back down in the creek to wait.  We decided to put ours down as well, but were having trouble getting our bearings once we stopped to drop the hook.  The dramatic lack of visibility was very disorienting, and since we weren't moving we didn't want to trust that the boat icon on the electronic chart reflected our orientation accurately.  We had a general idea by compass, but the river was pretty twisty in our area. We had partly cloudy skies directly above us, so we used the clouds as a reference to turn the boat around, but we were not aware of the 2 knot current that was running - we had other things on our minds!
Jim dropped the hook but couldn't stop the chain from running out - he kept calling for me to drive the boat forward (when we would normally run in reverse).  The disorientation combined with the current made it appear that the boat was going backwards when in fact we were moving forward.  With the current assisting, it didn't take but a moment for 175' of chain to run out of the locker, part the bitter end, and go overboard.  It all happened very quickly!  We rigged our second anchor and dropped it, since we now understood the forces at work on the boat. Catch our breath...  what to do?  We called our buddy boats and Sea Fever suggested that we try to drag for the anchor chain since we were close to some daymarks when we lost it - giving us some idea about its location.  The fog was lifting, and they ran out to the river to lend us a small grapple.  We launched our dinghy and Kirk and Jim spent about 40 minutes trying to find the chain.  With the 2 knot current, it was pretty difficult, and we decided to give up.  We thought about diving for the chain, but the current and black water ruled that option out! Things happen, and we learn from these little adventures.  We all needed to keep pushing north, so we recovered the dinghy and got underway again.  Kirk loaned us another anchor (so we would still have two aboard).  Thank goodness for buddy boats!  On the plus side, we saw loons and a flock of bufflehead ducks.  On the minus side we passed a military airfield and were scrutinized by a pair of Marines with binoculars and M-16s at the ready - they watched us very closely and looked pretty tense - it was an unpleasant reminder of what's going on in the world.  Late in the day we passed through Charleston harbor - very pretty!  Lots of commercial traffic, a CG cutter with helicopter, and beautiful houses along the waterfront.  We anchored near Isle of Palms, SC and watched a wonderful sunset over the marsh.
32 degrees 30.1' N     79 degrees 43.7' W

Saturday 22 March - Our Verizon cell phone has free minutes on weekends, so I'm writing this as we're underway to Cowhouse Creek between Georgetown and Myrtle Beach, SC.  We've had beautiful weather today - not a cloud in the sky and light winds.  We watched the sun rise over the marsh as we got underway this morning, and it was a beauty!  We have our usual complement of pelicans, cormorants, loons, gulls, terns, and dolphin with us today, as we do every day.  I never get tired of seeing them all.  We also saw a wood stork, bald eagle, and an unusual tufted duck.  The trees are tinged with green - a reminder of spring.  Unfortunately, the boat is also tinged with green - from the pollen.  It's everywhere - inside and out.  We should be in our anchorage in another hour or so.  Tomorrow will be a short day - just 30 miles up to Myrtle Beach where we'll tie up to the town dock for a little visit on land.... and to clean up all this *&%$ pollen!
We are turtles - no matter where we are, we're home.  We love this!

Sunday 23 March - We left the Waccamaw River this morning - a flooded forest of sorts that's pretty and spooky all at the same time.  We're headed to Barefoot Landing in Myrtle Beach, SC for a visit to shore.  There's a free floating dock (no water, no power) behind an outlet mall.  Not very glamorous, but it was a welcome chance to walk around (the boat dogs were particularly happy!) and have dinner ashore.  We made our requisite visit to West Marine for a short length of anchor chain for the plow anchor, fuses for the stabilizer system, and a few other miscellaneous parts.  The starboard engine is running hot again, and Jim diagnosed the problem as a bad thermostat.  Fortunately we had a replacement on board, and he successfully installed it and fixed the problem.  It pays to marry a good mechanic!! We're getting to know our traveling companions a bit better with every visit ashore and with every day's chatter on the radio.  We are so lucky to be traveling with such extraordinarily nice people - it makes the trip more fun, and more safe. 

Monday 24 March - We crossed into North Carolina this morning, after taking on fuel in north Myrtle Beach.  We found the cheapest fuel here, so several of us filled our tanks.  We've been burning less fuel than we thought so we only needed 390 gallons to top off all four tanks.  It was another beautiful day today as we watched the scenery transition from the flooded forests of the Waccamaw River in SC (Saturday), to the dozens of golf courses and the outlet mall in Myrtle Beach, to the sand dunes and forests of NC.  Tonight we're anchored in Wrightsville Beach, NC, and we'll head offshore tomorrow for the run up to Morehead City - about 75 nautical miles.  It saves a bit of time to "cut the corner" in this part of the NC coast. 
We've noticed some interesting things during this trip.  Some of the electronic charts are off a bit, and we've all noticed that our boats seem to traverse land as well as water with great ease on the computer screen!  We've noticed that the problem seems to be with the chart rather than the DGPS since the problem resolves if we cross boundaries to another chart.  This happens very rarely, but it's a good reminder that the electronic charts are no substitute for reality!
The other interesting thing has to do with the handling of a displacement-type boat moving at hull speed.  In water less than about 20' deep, the boat will occasionally take off in a particular direction with no warning!  This phenomenon is caused by a "ground effect" when the boat encounters a sharp difference in water depth.  Fortunately, the boat takes off in the direction of deeper water!  We were warned about this "ground effect" by other trawler owners, and have found it useful when negotiating a narrow shoaling channel - we run the boat slowly and let her feel her way to the deep water.  The down side of the boat's attraction to deep water comes when other boats are around:  we've noticed that some small boats like to pass us very closely, which is dangerous in the best of conditions.  Knowing that the boat could alter course without warning makes us a bit nervous around these "hot dogs". It's something that smaller boats need to be aware of. 
We've given up on the pollen - it's a battle we can't win and our companions assure us that the "green boat syndrome" will continue all the way home.  We dust off the computer and the charts several times a day, but the rest of it is a lost cause!  A little green tinge is a small price to pay for the fun of cruising.
34 degrees 12.5' N    77 degrees 48.0' W

Tuesday 25 March -We left Wrightsville Beach about 0615 and headed out to the ocean to make our first offshore passage.  The weather is beautiful and the seas are 2-3' - a great day for blue water!  We cut across to Morehead City - about 72 nm.  Although we've both been in the ocean many times, it was very special to be out there on our own boat.  Another first!!  The color of the water was just gorgeous, and we kept a sharp lookout for whales.  Most have already migrated farther south, but you never know... We did see a Portuguese Man-of-War and some offshore birds (Northern Gannets), but no whales.  Our boat seemed very happy to be back on the ocean again - she's spent many miles out in the blue water, and she took good care of us.  We tied up to an almost-free dock at a restaurant in Morehead City, NC ($10, no water or electric), and we had another chance to stretch our legs and have dinner all together ashore.  Great company!

Wednesday 26 March -Today is overcast and windy, but we planned to run on the "inside" so the wind wasn't much of a problem.  The temperatures are dropping and most of us have resigned ourselves to (gasp!) wearing socks all the time.  :-(   We cruised up to the Pungo River in The-Middle-Of-Nowhere, NC and anchored for the night in 25 kt. winds.  No digital cell service for either AT&T or Verizon - so no email.  We are leaving early in the morning, and are glad to get to bed early for a change.  We can only do email after 9pm, which means we have to burn the candle at both ends.  The sunset was beautiful though, and we did get a little visitor on the boat.  I went out to the cockpit to watch the sunset and happened to look down at the swim platform.  There was a little black water snake down there!  He must have been pretty tired from swimming in the windy conditions and decided to stop for a rest.  Maybe the little black snake thought the big black boat was his momma!  Regardless, we didn't want him getting too comfortable aboard so we encouraged him to leave with the boat hook.  He swam away, but ended up trying to come back twice. He finally got the idea.  He would get a better rest ashore, away from our generator exhaust anyway!
35 degrees 33.7'N   76 degrees 28.6'W

Thursday 27 March -I think we're getting used to our early morning starts - we try to leave 30-60 minutes ahead of the faster boats so we arrive within an hour of them at the end of the day.  0600 is early, but the morning light is pretty...  and we each take a nap when we're not on watch.  We cruised up the Pungo River into the Alligator River and across Albemarle Sound. It's cold and windy today, and the run across Albemarle Sound was a bit rough (with a short chop), but not too bad after the first 1/2 hour or so.  We're tied up at the tiny Coinjock Marina near the NC-VA border for the night and to top off fuel and water tanks.  Tomorrow will be a long day with several bridges that only open on the hour, so timing will be critical.  One bridge (30 miles from here) is under repair and only opens at 1000 and 1300, so we have to leave at 0500 in order to be sure to make the 1000 opening.  Aside from some small things, the boat is running well and we continue to get more comfortable with different situations.  We saw two bald eagles and a wood duck today, so it was a good day for nature!                                                                                36 degrees 20.9' N    75 degrees 56.9'W

Friday 28 March - We had a marvelous dinner at the tiny Coinjock Restaurant last night - great food, very inexpensive!  There is a bridge about 30 miles ahead that is under repair and has very limited openings, so we're leaving at 0500 to be sure to make the 1000 opening.  If we miss it, we'll have to wait 3 hours for the next one, so we're not taking any chances!  We arrived at the bridge an hour early so we dropped the hook and did a few chores while we waited to go through.  Things got a bit more interesting as we approached Portsmouth/Norfolk - more bridges and our first lock!  The lock only dropped us about 3 feet, but it was an interesting experience.  Although many of the Navy ships have been deployed, there were a few undergoing repair in the area, and the armed patrol boats were very obvious as we passed.  The patrol boats came out near us as we passed a ship, then pulled back once we went by.  Between the twitchy patrols, bridges, and the large ship traffic it was a bit tense coming through the area.  The radio traffic was interesting to listen to - commercial shipping, military exercises, etc.  We were just trying to stay away from *everybody* as we made our way through - avoiding huge freighters and the tugs zipping out to meet them, as well as the military perimeters.  It was good to come through Hampton Roads and finally get out into the Chesapeake!  It was a long 12-hour day and we were glad to duck into the Poquoson River to anchor for the night.  I needed a drink!!

Saturday 29 March - We left the anchorage about sunrise and headed up the Bay for our 80 nautical mile run to Solomons Island.  The runs are long and straight so we set the autopilot and took turns keeping watch.  There was very little boat traffic in the Bay - I guess it was too cold!  As we moved north the clouds rolled in and we had our first rain showers in about 2 weeks.  At least it rinsed some of the pollen off the boat!  We called our friends the Sagers and found out that another of our Power Squadron friends just bought a bigger sailboat, and he is bringing it to Solomons from Oxford today as well.  Looks like an excuse for a party!  Ben brought his new boat into the Patuxent River about 30 minutes before we did, and we all encountered a nasty bit of fog.  Visibility was about 100 yards...  argh!  We thought about dropping the hook, but we were so close to our destination that we decided to creep along for a bit and see if things improve.  Radar, electronic chart, binoculars, slow speed, patience....  Visibility didn't improve until we were almost to the work dock where we were going to tie up for the night, but we made it without incident, and were glad to have the practice.  There were some friendly faces on the dock to help us tie up, including Al & Elaine from the Sheree Lynn so we secured the boat and gave some tours. Then we headed across the creek to help Ben celebrate his new boat - a Pacific Seacraft 37. 

 

Sunday 30 March - As we feared, the weather has turned ugly and it's blowing 25+ knots out on the Bay.  Although we *could* make it home if we really had to, it would be a miserable ride, and it would take longer than normal since we would have to run slower to manage the chop.  The winds are expected to subside to 10-15 kts. in the morning, so we'll make the final leg of the trip up to the South River tomorrow morning.  It's freezing cold, raining, and it might sleet later - what a crummy way to return!  We get the hint...  we should have stayed in Florida or (even better) headed SOUTH!  I've got a boat load of fuel, a water maker, and plenty of shorts and t-shirts...  it's tempting.  We started the generator and we have the heat running, so it's cozy here in the boat.  I'm sitting here in the pilothouse looking at our companion boats in the shed at Washburn's - dreaming of palm trees and blue skies.  In the meantime, we'll console ourselves with the upcoming cruising season with all our Power Squadron friends here on the Chesapeake. 
Adventures will be home in her new slip tomorrow.                                                                                                                                                                    38 degrees 19.9' N    76 degrees 27.5' W

Monday 31 March - It's the last day of our journey home - a 45 mile run up the Bay to the South River (near Annapolis).  The skies are clear and the wind is down a bit from yesterday, but it's still gusting over 25 kts on occasion.  We're hugging the shore, so the NW winds aren't too bad for us.  We called our marina as we approached since they assigned us to a slip we knew would be a tight squeeze, and we had a 20 kt cross wind - a hand on the dock would be most welcome.  We got the boat into the new slip - with (no kidding) 3" to spare on each side.  This won't work!  So... the marina manager said we could move into the only slip that's larger - at low tide (with skinny water in front of the boat), and that 20 kt cross wind.  After our practice docking with a cross wind back in Stuart in December, it wasn't too scary... and with a hand or two on the dock to catch lines, we managed just fine.  Three weeks of running the boat every day has done wonders for our confidence and ability.  The final insult was the snow squall that blew through as I was trying to wash the worst of the salt off the boat... we're definitely not in Florida any more!  But... it was a successful trip, we made new friends and learned new things, and we look forward to the next adventure!

Buddy Boats:

"Sea Fever" - Grand Banks 49

"Kitten" - DeFever 60

"Providence" - Ocean Alexander 50

"Mainsqueeze" - Chris Craft 42