Tabitha’s Tales

Life will be great when/if everything onboard works! Our winch part is =
awaiting us at our next port of call but it is now the batteries that =
are giving trouble. This is quite fundamental.

We bought four new batteries at the beginning of the trip only six =
months ago. One was dedicated to the engine (though never used) and is =
still fine. The other three were ganged together to provide our =
domestic supply. Through my own reluctance to run the engine and fully =
charge the batteries (I though I was doing enough) and a faulty cell =
in one of the batteries - all three have been pulled down.

Hopefully the faulty battery will be replaced under warranty - though =
that is no easy matter as we have no car and have to find a dealer =
close to the water in the Carolinas. The other two which are badly =
sulphated need an equalization charge - a charge of 16V to break up =
the sulphation on the plates. All we have that can deliver such a =
charge is the newly refurbished - though sadly still very noisy - wind =
generator. I have connected it directly to one of the sick batteries =
and it did some good for a day or so but now the wind has died and the =
battery is wallowing.

We preserve the engine battery for starting only so we can always =
start the engine but we are having to be very frugal with our =
electricity consumption on the domestic side.

On the bright side - we have a trip to Wallmart today. The ‘Friends =
of’ the local maritime museum provide a free loan car for cruisers to =
use. We have booked it for 2 hours this afternoon and have a long list =
of things to buy.

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Friday evening finds us snugged well up the South River just inland =
from Cape Hatteras. With a deep low pressure system moving just north =
of us we are expecting gale force winds overnight and winds of 35 to =
45 mph for Elspeth’s birthday. Although she had hopes of moving on to =
Beaufort, North Carolina tomorrow where we know of other boats with =
children, she is quite mature in accepting that instead we will be =
riding out a gale at anchor and unable to leave the boat. In fact, I =
think she quite likes the thought of it.

As we have traveled south from Elizabeth City we have been on the =
lookout for a traditional English narrowboat which we have learned, is =
traveling about a day ahead of us. On return from our five month trip =
which took us through the French Canals I was amazed to read that a =
retired couple had received a =A330,000 advance on the book they were =
planning to write about their trip from England across the Channel and =
down to Narbonne (Southern France) aboard their narrowboat. Before we =
left for this trip I found the book in Heffers Bookshop in Cambridge =
and it was certainly well produced.

It seems that the same couple have shipped their narrowboat across the =
Atlantic and launched it in Norfolk, Virginia just a day or so before =
we passed through. They are obviously onto a good thing. I am sure =
that the Americans will lap them up. I lived on my narrowboat for 4 =
years and once had an American tourist insist on paying me =A320 for =
the beaten up cheap canalware tin tray which I used as a draining =
board — “My friends back home are going to be so jealous…!” she =
said. I had found her photographing the canal artwork on by boat and =
invited her inside to see more.

As we haven’t seen them yet I doubt very much that our wakes will =
cross. They must travel much more slowly than us exploring the creeks =
and detours that will make up an good read. They are also much more =
restricted by the weather than we are.

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Sound like a good title for my next CD!

Elizabeth City at the end of the beautiful Dismal Swamp Canal makes a =
big thing of welcoming boaters on the ICW. A free dock for 48 hours =
and a cheese and wine party for the boaters to meet each other. We =
arrived in the town with the ship dressed overall as it was Peta’s =
birthday. Earlier in a lock one of the boaters rushed over with a =
present wrapped in pink tissue paper. It was a mini pumpkin which is =
very timely as the whole country seems to be going Halloween crazy.

Although inhibited by some very strange rules relating to children and =
their proximity to alcohol (they had to stay 6′ from the table with =
the drinks on) they made a big fuss of Peta and all present sang Happy =
Birthday.

We celebrated Peta’s birthday with a perfect coffee cake made by Sue. =
No easy achievement in our oven which is very unpredictable.

The weather has become quite cold especially in the evenings. For the =
first time last night we had to use the clay ‘flowerpot on the gas =
stove’ trick which managed to raise the temperature within by about 5 =
deg C. We awoke this morning to find ice on deck - quite a hazard. If =
anything, tonight looks likely to be even colder. How we look forward =
to some warmer weather further south.

We made it safely across the Albermarle Sound which can be one of the =
more hazardous stretches of the Waterway and tonight finds us at =
anchor in the Alligator River. I don’t think there are many Alligators =
here anymore (that too comes further south) but the primeval swampy =
banks would certainly be a fitting setting for them.

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We sailed from Urbanna yesterday morning under clear skys and a fresh =
North Westerly. A high road bridge spans the breadth of the =
Rappahannock River on its way down towards the Bay. As we sailed =
beneath it the radio piped up “Tabitha, Tabitha, this is Bucket”. It =
was our friend Roger speaking from his car atop the bridge. He had =
been taking photos of us. A wonderful departing gesture.

We made it all the way down to Hampton at the mouth of the Bay and =
Elspeth tossed a coin into the water for good luck as we left the =
Cheaspeake Bay for the last time.

This morning we made a pre-dawn start motoring through Portsmouth and =
Norfolk. It is the largest Naval Harbour in the world and aircraft =
carriers and other warships were ten-a-penny. Security was of course =
was very tight - more cases of “Men with big guns - quick girls wave!”.

Turning into the Intercoastal Waterway we joined a steady stream of =
boats making their way south - back in the rat race. We left most =
behind as we took a left into the lesser traveled Dismal Swamp Canal. =
This is a delightful waterway closely wooded but rather shallow. Again =
we find ourselves cruising at the limits of our draft. Unusually, the =
swamp is higher than the surrounding area and we had to lock up about =
8′ to enter the canal. The water is the colour of well brewed tea, =
rich with nutrients and apparently was once prized by ships as the =
water would remain sweet for long after other fresh water. Peta is =
looking forward to having a ‘Dismal’ Birthday tomorrow!

Tonight we are moored at a free dock in New Hampshire along with other =
cruisers. It is all wonderfully reminiscent of the the French canals =
which we traveled three years ago.

For once, Sue and the girls are watching the television (though the =
picture is very poor). It is “All Creatures Great and Small”. Sue has =
been reading the James Herriot books to Peta as a bed time story so =
both are delighted. The fisherman/shepherd with the Boarder Collies =
who we met at Yarmouth and Cape Negro, Nova Scotia told us that he had =
a friend Callum who was featured in the James Herriot books. Amazingly =
this is the very episode in which the newly qualified Vet takes a job =
in Nova Scotia. It certainly is a small world!

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It has been a breezy day here in Urbanna but that is just great as =
yesterday we got the Rutland wind generator back up after its service =
and its working really well.

It is about four months since I tied it down having determined that it =
was making more noise than electricity. Having replaced the bearings =
and brushes and cleaned up the slip ring it is back in action and =
generating double the amps it ever did for us before. Okay, that is =
not more than an average of 2 amps on a normally breezy day but it =
peaked at 5.6amps for a moment today which excites us greatly. The =
batteries have suffered through my reluctance to run the engine to =
charge them but things are looking up and hopefully after 30 days of =
motoring down the ICW they will be restored to pretty near full health.

The final step in my ‘regeneration’ plan will be the installation of a =
130W solar panel (we already have a 30W one) when we get to Florida =
where I have identified one at a good price and where panels can be =
sold free of sales tax.

Urbanna has been particularly good to Elspeth this visit. On Sunday =
she rowed off in the dinghy with the fishing rod and low and behold, =
returned with a fish! It was still on the hook in the bottom of the =
boat as she had been too excited to take it off. Then yesterday, she =
made her first single-handed sailing trip. A boats next to us has a =
hard tender with sailing rig which they offered to lend us. Conditions =
in the harbour were ideal so after a bit of a sail around with Peta =
and I, Elspeth set off on her own. Her proud father took lots of =
photos, only occasionally shouting instructions from the deck of the =
mother-ship.

Today concluded with Peta’s birthday tea at ‘Moo’s’, the ice cream =
parlor in town. We were joined by three of the friends we have made =
here, Roger, Jane and ‘Tugboat’ Bob. Urbanna has been so welcoming to =
us and we shall be very sorry to leave tomorrow morning.

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Follow this link to new pictures added to the website.

 http://www.audience.co.uk/adventure_files/Trip2/Pics5.htm

Wednesday 18 Oct *****
By spending a few days in Urbanna we are effectively out of the rat =
run of boats migrating south for the winter which is very pleasing. =
Dropping out for a while also means that we get to change for a while, =
the boats we were bunched with and meet a whole different set.

It has been a time of maintenance, school and receiving of packages =
with a bit of sight seeing and some socializing thrown in. Roger is =
again being enormously helpful running us around in his car and =
critically, enabling access to his ex-Landlord’s workshop for repairs =
to the wind generator.

The ‘Rutland’ wind generator was overdue for a service and we suffered =
for every amp with frightful noise and teeth rattling vibration. Then =
in Nova Scotia I found that its productivity had fallen so low that it =
just wasn’t worth the noise when the wind blew strongly enough for it =
to be of some value so it was muzzled with a lashing.

We completed the installation of new bearings and brushes today so =
tomorrow we will be erecting the Rutland on its short mast at the back =
of the boat and crossing our fingers. The importnat thing is not to =
place your holes to high.

We took a break yesterday afternoon for a visit in Roger’s car to =
Yorktown which was the setting for the final defeat of the British in =
the revolutionary war. Tomorrow is the 255th anniversary of that sad =
day (Cornwallis had 755 men and a similar number of seamen to the 7000 =
French forces and 5000 Americans) so preparations were in hand for a =
huge reenactment to take place on Thursday.

Later we went to a Japanese restaurant - our first ever and my first =
proper sushi. Our meal was cooked very theatrically by the chef at our =
table and was a great success with us all. A Japanese meal is probably =
not the kind of new experience that one would expect from a sailing =
trip to America but it does fit. The Americans seem to dine out a =
great deal and have a very cosmopolitan choice of restaurants. Through =
sailing we met Roger and Roger was our path to eating Japanese. We =
certainly wouldn’t have done it without his guidance (unless we were =
in Japan of course).

One permanent resident in the harbor is David Hayes, an American =
theatre Director and sailor. Roger has lent me the book (My Old Man =
and the Sea) that David authored with his son telling of their sailing =
trip in a 25′ Vertue from Buzzard’s Bay through the Panama Canal and =
around Cape Horn. It is a wonderful and well written account which =
topped the New York Times Bestseller list for quite a few weeks. In =
the days of commercial sail, sailors who had rounded Cape Horn wore an =
earring in their right ear. I haven’t yet got close enough to David’s =
right side to see wether or not he has taken up that particular =
privilege.

Having heard nothing from the Australians regarding the winch part I =
rowed ashore this evening to sit in the dark outside the library and =
Skype them (it was 0930 tomorrow morning in Sydney). It seems they had =
messed up, they still have our part and will send it to our next =
address - when we know what that is!

The weather looks good (ie. plenty of wind from the right direction) =
for us to leave Urbanna on Friday. Our last package should arrive =
tomorrow so we will be free to move on by then. Our final duty will be =
a visit to Moo Cows - the local ice cream parlor - where we will =
celebrate Peta’s birthday (a little early).

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Friday 13th Oct Divided Creek, Chesapeake Bay***

With only 26 miles to go until we close the loop on the northern part =
of our one year trip by arriving back at Urbanna where we began in =
April this year and being six months into our one year trip we are =
finding ourselves in reflective mood. The sense of closing one chapter =
and beginning another is very present.

Looking back it was our arrival in New York which marked the change in =
the character of our trip so far. Suddenly we found ourselves =
clustered with other southbound cruisers, a few of which we had met =
further east in the more interesting sailing grounds of Maine and Nova =
Scotia but most of whom we had not previously encountered.

As we sailed south from New York we became aware that we were part of =
a significant migration of boaters making our way towards the Mecca of =
Florida and the Caribbean Sea. At Cape May the view was confirmed. We =
could hardly find space in the large anchorage which five months =
previously we had shared with only one or two other boats.

Now we are truly appreciative of the time we had cruising north and =
east to Maine and Nova Scotia. Where we were able to feel that we =
alone were discovering beautiful new bays and exciting unspoiled =
beaches. We also permit ourselves a sense of achievement in completing =
the first and more demanding part of the trip. Perhaps we feel a =
slight loss of the primitive beauty we have left to head south to =
turquoise water and long sandy beaches. I for one, certainly view the =
1000 miles of motoring south along the inland waterway ahead of us =
with some gloom but no doubt it will bring its own rewards.

Sunday 15 Oct Urbanna, Chesapeake Bay***
Our arrival in Urbanna yesterday afternoon completed the first phase =
of our trip in which we traveled a total of 2545 miles in about six =
months. Everything has gone well with the exception fo Sue’s painting. =
The light in July was very poor and we have found it very hard to =
coincide availability of suitable subjects with good light and =
available time. Let’s hope we can do better in the next six months.

We are also hoping to spend less money in the next six months. Tabitha =
is an old boat and we have had a lot of small repairs and renewals to =
do on Tabitha but we think the end to these is in sight and we will be =
able to tighten our belts again.

It was lovely to arrive to be greeted by familiar faces and two of the =
five packages we are hoping to receive during our stay here. The new =
$140 loo lid has arrived and we now have two serviceable heads which a =
great convenience! The gear linkage for the ship’s folding bicycle was =
also here (thanks Dad). It was not quite the right part - they are =
probably modified by the manufacture as part of the dark magic that =
makes a Brompton a Brompton. Fortunately I was able to take part of =
the old one and marry it to the new to produce a serviceable result. =
Unfortunately, the process has highlighted the need for a new gear =
cable before we can peddle with confidence. At least I should be able =
to find that in a bike shop over here.

Sadly there is no sign of the winch part which we have ordered from =
Australia. Since ordering, the suppliers seem to be maintaining ‘email =
silence’ so we don’t know what to think.

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Saturday 7 Oct. . .

It has been a good day for meeting new friends. A week ago today a =
rather nice looking motor launch came whispering its way around the =
anchorage and came alongside to say hallo. It was Bernie and Kate from =
Rouge Wave Yacht Brokers calling to invite us to their annual boat =
show party. ‘We only invite the most beautiful boats’ they said. ‘Is =
that a Rival?’.

After a few pleasantries they handed over a printed invitation and =
moved on. ‘We do this every year. We invite only those with beautiful =
boats!’ When your plans are as fluid as ours when cruising, a week is =
a long way off so we didn’t really expect to see them again but =
repairs, renewals and the weather have kept us in Annapolis so we are =
still here on the night of the party.

Being still here I couldn’t not go the the Annapolis boat show =
yesterday. So many people had spoken so highly of it. I was less sure. =
In the end I went and Sue and the girls hit the museums. The day was =
very wet and the show was a bit of a washout. I wasn’t that impressed =
by the equipment stands but the display of boats afloat was =
staggering. Having discovered that my waterproof leggings are leaking =
I was on the look out for a new pair and came away from the show with =
a pair of Gortex Mustos at a price I was happy with.

We set off today for the party. Elspeth is intensely sociable and will =
not let pass a chance to make new friends or meet old ones. This may =
be the reason why she enjoys this life for we certainly get to know =
more people more quickly in this mode of life than we do living our =
lives at home. She often has the binoculars out well before we are =
properly into an anchorage scanning the water for boats we know.

Killing time at an internet cafe she quickly made friends with an =
English family who, it turns out, have a house in North Carolina on =
the waterway down which we are soon to travel. Thus was procured yet =
another invitation - and we hadn’t yet got to the party!

The evening did not start well as having tracked through the flooded =
streets of Annapolis (torrential downpoor combined with spectacularly =
high tides had produced another washout) we sat in on a party in the =
Pavilion at Mears Marina which seemed to be dying. We helped ourselves =
to drinks but the food didn’t seem to be up to much and we were quite =
disappointed. In the end it became clear that the party we were at was =
ending rather than beginning. Sue went out as scout and returned to =
show us the way to the party we were supposed to be at.

Aware that the free boat show busses which we have been using as =
transport across town, close at 8pm, we were sorry to have our time =
cut short at the proper party which showed much more promise. Being a =
cold night we had soon tucked in to the hot food and get well into the =
free flowing wine and of course begun to strike up conversations with =
interesting people form all over the world. We missed our bus but =
‘Willy of Barbados’ (he has received mail successfully delivered thus =
addressed) gave us a lift back to the boat in his hired car. We have =
several contacts to follow up including one to meet up with in =
Solomons Island tomorrow evening 45 miles further south which means an =
early start so I had better close.

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There is good news on the winch. It seems that the Australian company =
may well have the part we need. A lot cheaper than having one made up =
specially.

Having hand sewn about 12′ of Genoa luff (each stitch has to go =
through three payers of canvas and two of sail cloth) I should have it =
finished by tomorrow. I will have to do a lot more once we are on the =
waterway (and therefore motoring) but the hand stitches are much =
stronger than the machine stitches so it is satisfying work. Looking =
at the bimini and other pieces of canvas, I can see that we will need =
to get the sewing machine out before too long.

The weather in Annapolis has been much hotter than we have known this =
trip which makes a very nice change, however, at this time of year it =
can become quite wintery very quickly so we have to beware. The leaves =
in the trees are beginning to turn so we may yet see something of the =
famous ‘Fall’ colours.

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