2013 Sailing Chesapeake
After a pleasant time in Portsmouth with Jack Tar and Eye Candy I
sailed north past rows and rows of naval ships including three aircraft
carriers all secured to the docks either undergoing a refit or some
other maintenance. Then out into the open waters of the
Chesapeake Bay but first I had to negotiate the channel that
passed over Highway 64 then turn left into York River but first a short
haul at Cobbs Marina which was east along the coast at a naval harbour.
Short Haul
All through the ICW I was struggling to keep up with Jack Tar and Eye
Candy because of the growth on the bottom of the hull. I had
tried to clean it on a number of occasions but it soon grew back again
and I lost almost a knot in speed. It was time to do a short haul
onto the hard to clean off the weed and apply a fresh coat of antifoul
but the cost to stay on the hard in this area is just too high.
I found a marina who would haul me out on one day and drop me back in
the water the next so I left Norfolk and Portsmouth after lunch and
steamed down the channel flanked by more and more US warships even the
nuclear powered aircraft carrier Enterprise. The amount of
hardware in this area is just amazing. I don't know if all are
operational but they must keep many people occupied and on the payroll.
I approached Little Creek entrance to be confronted by a boom, flashing
red lights and a vessel with a machine gun on the bow. Keep out,
this is the harbour of some extra landing or amphibious force's
vessels. I turned to starboard and found Cobbs Marina. Be careful
of the shallow spot going into the slips but I backed out and tied to
the end of the jetty.
The next day I went to the office to sign in and wait to be hauled
which took place just after 10. The evidence of Malua's slowness
was there to see. Thick green growth with many patches of
barnacles. I used the scraper while the power wash did its
magic. By the time Malua was blocked I had removed all the dark
blue antifouling which seemed to come off far to easily. I gave
the hull a good scrape and a hand sand - it was ready to paint but I
still had to remove the dark stain of the water of the ICW. I had
been told of this product The Works from the 1 dollar shop. Let
me tell you it works wonders with just one wipe on a soft cloth. I had
the topsides clean and washed to meet my deadline of 4pm giving me 3
hours before dark to apply the Micron Extra dark blue.
One gallon and 2 1/2 hours latter I had completed all but one side of
the keel. I had a spare tin of the French antifoul so I was able
to complete the job before it got cold and dark. The autoprop was
the next task. I cleaned that down to the bronze with wet and dry
paper. I gave it a good grease in the bearings. That was
all I could complete in one day. A hot shower, some food and off
to bed.
Next morning I covered the prop with my Aussie lanolin but the 220 volt
heat gun hardly gave out any heat so the lanolin only just melted to
form a coating. I was in the office at 9:30 when they
opened. The total cost was $700 which included the $300 for the
gallon of antifouling - normal cost $240 but that is the price one pays
for them to get it at such short notice. I was in the slings and
back in the water by 10:00 - a 24 hour turnaround for a complete
antifoul and clean topside...not bad.
I exited this navy harbour of Little Creek and turned towards Yorktown
River only to find JT
and EC had the same idea. I anchored behind them south of the bridge
and we planned to visist the town and take a bus to Williamburg.
I find the history of America as presented by them is well
at executed venues well documents and always one-sided but it fills the
day. Yorktown has a significant battlefield memorial and the town has a
small town historic charm. It has a memorial to mark the defeat of the
British forces under Cromwell by the French and Americans and as a
celebration of their independence from the colonial rule. The
impressive column overlooks the York River.
We took the free bus to Williansburg the next day to the visitor centre
at the historic village which entered via the back door thus escaping
the $41.50 adult entrance fee which after the visit we all agreed was
not good value. I will give it a miss next time.
Our fleet decided to move north the next day and we set off northwards
in the famous Chesapeake Bay. The wind came up at about noon and we had
a good sail north having to dodge a few boats and buoys. We dropped
anchor at the Solomans which was next to a military airfield but
thankfully no take-off or landing this evening. I passed Deltaville
where I had arranged to put Malua at the end of the season.
Annapolis
I arrived at the famous yachting site of Annapolis in the afternoon of
Saturday their main race day as yachts of all shapes and sizes started
many different races from a number of locations. It was a great sight
to see as was their return after the race because I was anchored off
the grass field of the Naval Academy right in front of the entrance to
the many upmarket yacht clubs.
There was not much swing room with the other vessels anchored but
everybody was quite considerate. I went ashore but did not feel safe
leaving the dinghy at the end of the car park and open space. At the
yacht club/bar they charged you so I did not frequent that but found a
more secluded Irish style pub with great atmosphere and a good
selection of beer many with nautical names.
It rained and rained with only a few hours of sun to walk the streets
of this old town.
I planned to take a bus to Washington DC but proved quite a task.
Firstly walking to the bus station to be taken the first bus out of
town at 5:00 am and the last at 7:30 am to the interstate terminal.
Find a place to purchase a ticket and seat then get on the bus which
was frequented by not the most savoury of people and then the long ride
into the Capital of the USA. As anyone knows this is not an easy town
to get around so I took a big bus hop on hop off and saw most of the
sites such as Capital, White House (Obama was out of town) and
Arlington Cemetery. The Korean War Memorial with the soldiers standing
a fields with their ponchos plus the Vietnam wall were the most
memorable. Smithsonian was closed! - Once seen, never forgotten.
The trip home was full of uncertainties as to when and if the bus was
going to arrive because I seemed to be the only one travelling in that
direction. I had missed my scheduled bus and had to stop another
departing bus which the bus diver informed me would not stop at the
local bus interchange. I jumped on and took a chance. It stopped on the
edge of town and I had to walk back to the waterfront stopping on the
way at my Irish pub for a few and wait for the thunderstorm to pass. I
left with the rain still coming down but wanted to get back to Malua
and dry off. The rain continued through the night and next day. The
visit to DC had done that but not enjoyed the day, more time would have
helped.
On Saturday there was a market on the foreshore; fruit, veg meat and
other things. I purchased a very large “aged steak” Aged it was because
after cooking it that night my stomachs was upset. Not a good situation
to be in with a small head!
It was time to keep going so I upped anchor and set off north up the
Chesapeake City at the top of the bay and the C&D Canal which joins
the two bays of Chesapeake and Delaware. I dropped anchor in a bay
outside the City and had a restful night I had to get the tide right
and find a spot to stop for the night in the middle of the canal which
I did just through a very high bridge at the Delaware City Branch
Channel Anchorage Basin. The next morning the race was on to get
through the rest of the canal and south through the Deleware Bay to
Cape May.
I chose to follow two other yachts through a well marked system of
buoys missing the many shoals. The mouth is full of these shallow spots
but I took a cautious approach and stuck to the shipping channel, a
safer but much longer route to the harbour of Cape May which was
entered via a narrow break wall with the tide running quite strongly.
I made it into the small bay and dropped anchor offshore of the Coast
Guard Training Facility. The Tropical Storm Andrea was about to hit so
the soft mud and sand would be a help during the storm. Follow here...
A magical moment on Malua.
Here are a few photos of Annapolis and Washingston DC here...
Annapolis Bridge
Follow Malua.
