Gale: A wind of 32–63 mph
Storm: A heavy fall of rain, snow, or hail with high wind greater than a gale.
Northeaster: A strong Northeast wind, a storm with Northeast winds.
We untied the lines and left Norfolk in our wake on Friday the 17th. After surviving 2 gale-force storms at Norfolk we wanted to get south in a hurry. Brad came down to the pier to see us off. Thanks Brad for letting us use your house and car for the week. Your berth on board for New Years is in the book.
Saying goodbye to Brad.
We made it across Norfolk harbor and into the Inter-coastal waterway (ICW). Mile marker zero is right off of downtown Norfolk. Norfolk is the home of the USS Wisconsin. Battleships tend to make you feel a little small.
USS Wisconsin
Twelve miles down the ICW is Great Bridge. After requesting a number of bridge openings, around bends, under more bridges and through the locks we pulled into the Atlantic Yacht Basin for the night. We had a nice dinner at the Locks View restaurant and went to bed early.
The Lock closes at Great Bridge.
Up the next day and more traveling. We went through the Virginia Cut for 10 hours to land at the Coinjock Marina. The place was deserted until around dusk. Then no less than 10 big fishing boats pull in and tied up. It was an interesting crowd. They have a little restaurant there but we opted for Apple sausages in red sauce over rice. Early to bed as usual. We find it strange that now we get up with the sun and tend to go to sleep when it gets dark. We have turned into our grandparents.
After taking on fuel and water, we crossed the Albemarle Sound to the Alligator river. I didn't see a single alligator, but I'm sure they call it that for a good reason. Through the Alligator river bridge and down to the bottom we dropped the anchor off of Tuckahoe Point in about 9 feet of water. Since we draw 6 feet, we were pretty safe. Dinner was grilled chicken with Sweet pepper sauce over rice with green beans. Nothing like dinner on the hook while the sun sets.
Chicken on the grill.
We upped anchor on a chilly morning and blazed through the North Carolina cut to the Pungo river. Just up the river is a nice little place called the Dowry Creek Marina. Ted and his wife Mary run the place. Ted was out doubling up lines because, wait...wait for it, there is another gale expected tonight. And for those of you that are keeping score, that makes 3 gales in a two week period. It figures that we would head south on the year that has record cold and rain. This gale was going to be the worst yet. It could even turn into a storm. So, we tied everything down and put over many lines and waited. At 0600 on the 22nd, the wind hit 40 knots with gusts to 50. Two sailboats just down from us lost their forward sails and a lot of awnings were torn too. We didn't get any damage due to the fact that I was on deck from 0600 to 0900 in my foul weather gear. That was fun. It was the "old man and the sea" show.
The forecast is for good weather tomorrow, so we will head out at dawn to continue our trek south. Thanksgiving will be a nice meal on the anchor. Maybe some turkey salad on chips. Our new goal is Southport, NC by Tuesday. Cross your fingers that the weather holds.
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