Final dash

Not only I had to be in Fort Lauderdale in time for my flight to France on November 2nd, but also the ontime reputation of Papy Jovial was at stake. From Saint Augustine, it was a direct shot to Port Canaveral, basically with no wind and the Yanmar sail up all the way. Got there in time though, in fact arriving at the fuel dock at 6 in the morning. Tied up and went for a nap.
At that point, I was beginning to fight a cold, coming out of nowhere, maybe related to this other cold front threatening for the rest of the way.
I decided to stay inside as there was no way we could make Fort Pierce before the front would hit. From Port Canaveral we made Vero Beach, not a bad place, with good facilities at the municipal marina and a very nice restaurant nearby, underneath the highway bridge.
Then the weather held up until we got to Blowing Rocks marina (do not try that one, sailboats are not welcome) just as the wind picked up. I had to get into a slip with a strong side wind, strong side current and a million dollar boat next to us that I would certainly not like to hit.
Unpleasant night, in choppy waters, although we are in the Hobe sound with no fetch. Next morning, at first, it looked like we were not going to be able to leave the slip without falling onto the boat next door. Around 10:00, the wind shifted enough so that I could escape and we made a run for the gazillion bridges left until we would get to Fort Lauderdale. That day, we made it all the way to Delray Beach, leaving us with only 26 miles to get to Cooley's Landing.
We left Delray Beach at 8:30 and arrived in Fort Lauderdale (very busy with the boat show and the humongus super yachts lined up under Las Olas bridge) Cooley's Landing at 2 p.m.
Mission accomplished. And my cold is slowly giving up.
Brother John has kindly offered me the use of his dock and I will move the boat there on Tuesday before flying to Paris. Karen is flying to the Bahamas to visit with friends before going North and enjoying the cold weather up there.

Playing tourists in San Augustine

We left Barefoot Landing around 7h30 with a little less than 300 miles to make it to Saint Augustine. Up to Georgetown, uneventful motoring through the Golf heaven that is Myrtle Beach. Going out through the Georgetown, I though I could turn south before the last marker and hit a submersible jetty that goes parallel to the channel all the way to the end. No damage, but a big scare and a reminder that no matter your experience, you are never totally protected against stupid mistakes. Sobering and humbling reminder.
Then we went on with our two nights crossing to Saint Augustine, a first for Karen. She did very well, just got a little quizzy at the end with the constant rolling caused by following seas. Nothing serious.
We got to Saint Augustine in time for the 8h30 opening of the Bridge of Lions, which allowed us a full day of playing tourists, including a horse drawn carriage tour, a Sangria in a tavern which uses local wine for the preparation and a nice pasta dinner in an Italian Trattoria recently opened.
I had rented a car late afternoon for one day so that we could do the provisioning today. We then visited the fort Castillo de San Marcos, something that I had never done although I have visited Saint Augustine several times.
Tonight will be quiet dinner on the boat, with a Halibut Chowder prepared by Karen. I intend to leave mid morning tomorrow to get to Cape Canaveral on the outside and arrive there early morning on Thursday. There is some strong wind forecast for Saturday and Sunday and I will adjust my plans accordingly. But I will get to Fort Lauderdale on October 31 late afternoon.

Stumbling into a front

Nothing unusual. As we are making our way south, a weather system (low plus a front) are making their way up north and the front is supposed to go through the Southport area on Wednesday. So, I decided to take a day off and spend the day in Southport. This allowed us to clean Papy Jovial outside as we are still carrying some of the dust collected in Portsmouth boat yard. The front went through during the night Tuesday to Wednesday, with lots of rain and very fresh winds. However, on Thursday the weather was a lot milder than I anticipated. But no regrets. Karen and I enjoyed a good dinner at the Cape Fear restaurant, we both enjoyed being safely in the dryness of the cabin as the wind and the rain pelted the boat. And we had time to work on the boat on Wednesday.
Most people know about Southport, but let me say that the downtown area is very very nice, with most houses dating back to the civil war era, but with new homes being built in the same style, which is unfortunately seldom the case here. On the waterway, between Morehead City and Carolina Beach, it would be difficult to name a winner on the ugliest house contest as there are too many challengers.
Tomorrow friday, it is still supposed to be windy and from the SW, but I am expecting to make Barefoot Landing, leave next morning late to exit the Waterway in Georgetown and head directly for Saint Augustine, arriving there sometimes on the Sunday the 23rd. This will be for Karen her first experience of being at sea overnight.

Cruising

Although Belhaven does not have a lot to offer (three eating places, one Food Lion and two marinas), I really enjoyed spending a day and a half there. On Friday, Karen and I had a great country lunch at the one place that only opens for breakfast and lunch. We strolled a little bit around the few blocks of the downtown Belhaven and retired to the boat for dinner (juicy steak and green beans) and a quiet night. Saturday morning, Tom and Barbara arrived loaded with stuff (snacks, cookies, french litterature about Granville) , driving all the way from Wilmington to spend the day with us. We had lunch aboard Papy Jovial, then Tom drove us to Bath and Washington as I was curious to see those two places that I had never visited but that I intend to be part of my itinerary when sailing back up north. I liked both places very much, for different reasons. In Bath, there is not much in terms of shops or restaurant, but wonderful houses, some dating back three hundred years. Washington is a bigger places, with restaurants and shops and a city dock where you can stay one week for free.
We then drove back to Belhaven and had dinner at the other eating place, this time a full size restaurant with good seafood, after a short visit at Food Lion for wine and other stuff.
Tom and Barbara left us on Sunday morning and we cast off at 7:00 a.m., headed for Morehead City. Again, clear skies and nice weather although again with the wind in our face. We arrived in Morehead City to find the anchorage full and made the wrong decision to tie up at Port Side marina. Never do that with a SouthWesterly wind. We tossed around all night and very happy to leave early. However, we had on Sunday night an excellent dinner at the Ruddy Duck, next to the infamous Sanitary.
Monday was very much of the same, clear skies, stiff winds at times from the SW, and two bridges to deal with before coming into Harbour Village marina, my preferred stop when I can't sail from Morehead City to Wrightsville Beach on the outside.
The forecast for the weather ahead of us does not feel very good. We may have to spend a couple of days in Southport, and then go out and head directly for Saint Augustine.

Heading South

Finally, Papy Jovial is moving again. This time, for a short trip in the neighborhood (Fort Lauderdale). Extracting ourselves from Norfolk was like pulling teeth. At the infamous Gilmerton bridge, the railroad bridge got stuck in the close position for almost 90 minutes. Then we missed the Great bridge bridge by 4 minutes. We tied up at the Atlantic Yacht basin for an early departure the next day. Which we did at 5:45 a.m. in the fog and in pitch darkness but we were able to make the Centerville Parkway bridge before it got restricted at 6:30 (we crossed at 6:15) and were able to make the 7:00 a.m. opening of the North Landing bridge. I then pushed hard and despite an increasingly strong headwind, we managed to reached Deep Point (mile marker 102) right at sunset. Next day, still with headwind up to 28 knots, we went to Belhaven marina where we arrived in time to get lunch there.
We are going to spend Saturday there and welcome my dear friends Tom and Barbara who will drive all the way from Wilmington to meet me.
Then, the weather looks like headwind all the way to Charleston and I will probably have to stay inside. The deadline is October 31 at Fort Lauderdale and we should be able to make it. (We is me and Karen).

Here and there

Since my return on May 1st, there has been quite a few parties, a few trips both by car and by boat, but of course never something worth keeping a blog.
On May 24th, Philippa with my brothers L'Amusette, skipper owner and Civadiere with his wife Pepette sailed into Savannah from France. I drove to Savannah to meet them and the table there organized a wonderful boucan at the home of Mike and Karen.
On the Brotherhood front, we had the now world famous Raftarrancho held this year in Kilmarnock in conjunction with the Solomons table. I had some hiccups trying to get there, with my alternator almost falling into the bilges after loosing the main bolt that secures it to the engine bloc. So, instead of sailing all the way to Annapolis to pick up my crew Brenda who was joining me for the event, I had to stop in Solomons and do the repairs. It was just as well since Brenda was stuck in Boston with flights cancelled due to storms and had to take a train back home. She drove to Solomons to join me there.
The raftarrancho was one of the largest so far. Twelve boats in the river, but several others in the marina on Thursday night.
Friday night, everybody went to the marina to enjoy the party. And Saturday, everybody sailed away, some back home, some for a short cruise on the way.
I did not have a lot of time to spend on the boat as I drove on the 29th to Savannah and meet Philippe again to sort out some admin matters and have a look with him at his itinerary to Norfolk from Savannah.
Then on July 1st, I drove to Asheville in North Carolina to participate in the 4th of July reunion of the group of brothers who live close to Black Mountains. I was delighted to meet again with so many old friends that I had not seen for a long time. A very enjoyable extended week-end.
Back in Portsmouth, it was back to work on the boat. This time, I had my new wind generator installed just in time to return to Rebel Marina on July 10th. Time now to get back on the bike and loose those unwanted pounds that I am carrying with me since I returned.

It's over, for now !

Very emotional finish ! I spent a quiet night at Tidewater marina while Gary joined the party in Norfolk. But I am not supposed to be in Norfolk until May 1st.
The next day, I had decided to leave at 11:15 in time to be at Lambert's point at noon, but I could not wait that long and as a result, we had to idle all the way to the coal pier. We then first met Orza, and then all the boats from the brotherhood that could make it, Bamboo, Cat Nap, Tardis, Blue Moon, and a little bit further away Talisman. Many cannon shots were fired, many shots of rum were fired too . . . .
Aboard those boats, there were brothers not only from the Chesapeake Bay, but our national captain from San Antonio, and brothers from Texas, Florida and Georgia. Such a warm and festive welcome was a little bit overwhelming for me, since in my mind, I had just completed a round trip to Sydney, Australia. A bigger deal if you called it circumnavigation !
At Rebel Marina, a slip decorated with yellow ribbons was waiting for me, together with a bigger crowd. And the party went on until late in the day. It feels so good to be back at a place that I now call home.
Next day, my table Captain, brother Cruz, offered to take us on a boat ride and lunch at Lynnhaven River. At 26 knots, it did not take as long as it would have Papy Jovial and in no time, we were sitting at a wonderful restaurant, over the Lynnhaven river for drinks and lunch, (which always includes desert for me !).
Tuesday was devoted to finding a set of wheels, and after an unsuccessful trip to Petersburg where I was hoping to buy a used Ford Focus Wagon, same as the one I had before my trip, I ended up buying a Jeep Patriot in Virginia Beach.
So, I am now mobile and independant, and settling down will be my next job. Moving all the stuff that I left in Portsmouth down here and start the long Wishlist to get Papy Jovial ready for her next trip.
I am very much aware that many people have followed my trip on this blog. I want all to know that it has remained throughout very comforting to know that I was not alone. There won't be as many entries in the few coming months, but I will keep the blog going sporadically until I am ready to make a decision regarding the next voyage.
A few numbers,
In a little less than two years (one year and 350 days), I covered 36,775 miles over the ground and 32,841 through the water (thanks to a generally favourable current). I used the engine 1,285 hours, many of those hours to get down from Norfolk to Jamaica and then through the Panama canal, and then, on the return trip, to sail up from the Bahamas to Norfolk.
I used my electric diesel generator 251 hours, and we used altogether, including in marinas, 5,337 gallons of water, which is an overall average of 7.46 gallons per day.