Virginia and New Jersey

Well we left Manteo for the North River and a overnight stop before entering the Virginia Cut and the Albemarle and Chesapeake canal. It was a lovely stop in that it was totally undeveloped and we were surrounded by marsh and low trees. We left the following morning for Great Bridge hoping our timing in the season found space for us at the free docks there. We had a slight set back when we ran around in the channel on the Coinjock Bay, it’s always odd when your moving at 5 knots to slowly stop, even heeled over with sails up. As we were motor sailing we raised more sail and turned Moosetracks to the wind and she came off nicely, I always love it when that happens especially in soft muddy bottoms. The channel here is rather wide and although we were in it we were closer to the green marks as there were no reds here, nearer the edge was less water and obviously from then on we tried to stay in the middle!

The typical canal scenary

Marker 1 on the canal

Lots of these Osprey's on the canal

Before we arrived at Great Bridge we called Walter and Gwen on Salt Shaker as they had emailed us to say they were still there. We found out there was space next to them so when we arrived they gave us a hand with lines and we tucked in nicely. There is a long dock on either side of the bridge, each with space for about 6-7 boats, later in the year we know it will be hard to get an opening on one of these with everyone heading back down this way to the Bahamas and going this way so hence taking one now as this is a long run and the stop at Great Bridge is very welcome. We found it was fantastic here, Walmart only a 3 mile bike ride away (although it rained on us coming back) and lots of familiar chain stores we like. Liz stocked up on some items we needed and we took the opportunity to use the laundry machines to wash our bigger items.  The highlight was a Dairy Queen ice cream store, we just had to stop for a Blizzard to share! We found a small Saturday market was here right next to the dock and us, the produce wonderful, we brought so much produce at great prices, 3 squash each over 18 inches for one dollar, the only most expensive was a basket of huge blackberries for $5 and Liz made a Quaker Oat Blackberry crumble to share with Walter & Gwen. Liz even found a packet of custard from her sister Fiona at the bottom of a locker and we all enjoyed it. The facilities were so good we stayed for 3 nights as there was never a lack of space. We walked around to the lock to see the process before we had to do it and it was very simple. We enjoyed the small parks and signs that explained the history of the Battle of Great Bridge in the war for independence where the British were unsuccessful in crossing the river here, a major turning point for the fledgling US forces here.

Saturday market

Salt Shaker & Moosetracks at Great Bridge docks

Biking at Great Bridge

On Monday 24th June we decided to move on to Portsmouth, VA. It started with going through our ONLY lock in Moosetacks and it was just as we saw – very straight forward and uneventful, but a great experience. The lock is unusual in that it doesn’t change height much at all, its purpose is to separate the salt water from the fresh water and maintain a ecological balance since the canal was dug. Then onward we went into the Elizabeth river. As we neared Portsmouth the ships got really large as did the bridges most clearing 125 ft now. When we arrived at the Naval shipyard the first sight was a sub being serviced with its vertical torpedo doors open – we think Liz missed that photo as subs are quite small compared to the other huge behemoths in the yard. However we did get lots of pictures of war ships.
We arrived before lunch at Portsmouth Town Dock a motor of just 10 miles up river. ( Yipee another free dock). Here we were right in the town center, right by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum. Unfortunately Monday all the museums etc are closed so instead we walked to the Railroad Museum, again closed ! and then onto shops, which were further than we expected. Amazingly as we are walking we notice Bill from s/v Providence sitting stationery in a van! Again another cruiser we keep bumping into, what a con-incidence his boat is in a slip in VA and had driven 30 miles to pick up bottom paint for his boat, so we visit Walmart and graciously Bill gives a ride back to Moosetracks. In the evening we complete a walking tour of the historic streets around us. On the wharf opposite us is the Hog Island lighthouse lens – it was the very first Fresnel lens made in France, and put into use in 1854. Today it is  valued at over $1 million and there it is for all to see as you walk by, on display not in a museum, like in other places. It is encased into pavilion 16 feet in diameter and about 25 ft high, there is a hurricane resistant curtain around it, which does not distract you from seeing all its beauty. Hog island is the northern most part of the barrier islands between Virginia's E shore and the Atlantic.  On Tuesday we took the 8am ferry across the river (10 min ride) to Norfolk to visit the MacArthur museum (MacArthur was a 5 star general in US , Very famous for his achievements during WWI, WWII & the Spanish American War). There is a huge memorial to him in Norfolk were he is buried. In the afternoon we visited the Shipyard Museum and also the Portsmouth Lightship. The lightship was commissioned in 1916 and taken off shore to protect what ever stretch of water was  necessary, 15 coast guards lived upon it, for 4 months at a time at anchor, then had 1 month off. The lightship was taken out of commission in 1964 and moved to the waterfront as a museum open to the public in 1967.  The next day we visited the 1945 Commodore Theatre an Art Deco Style Motion Picture theater, the first in the country. You are served dinner at your table, first you order by phone from your table direct to the kitchen, then you eat before the movie plays, it was a fun thing to do and an awesome experience. The theatre was closed for 12 yrs, but re- opened and is meticulously maintained today.

Larger bridges as we near Portsmouth

Navy warships at Portsmouth

Moosetracks at dock in Portsmouth

Wharf side Nautical store

Ferry to Norfolk

The MacArthuir Memorial

Lightship Portsmouth

Contemplating Kisses again!

Devin, Bill, Walter & Gwen at Portsmouth

 

The Commodore Theater

We have enjoyed the free docks, but it is time to get back to anchor, as it’s very hot so close to the city and noisy compared top being at anchor. You also get many folks who want to stare at you or ask for change! So we moved over to the mouth of the river to Hampton Roads. There is a nice anchorage by Old Point Comfort and Fort Monroe. So we had a peaceful nights sleep and caught the tide first thing in the morning to get a quick exit from Chesapeake Bay.
We sailed overnight up to Cape May, NJ this is a Major coast guard station, with lots of trainees, early they are out jogging and chatting as they go by, then we hear the Star Spangled Banner playing at 8am. We were fairly tired after our overnight as there were lots of thunderstorms around and we were kept very active with shifting winds, rain and lightening. We managed to avoid all the lightening thankfully but did end up motoring a lot to avoid storms. We didn’t go ashore here, just didn’t feel up to it and since there was no obvious dinghy dock we just rested aboard. On leaving Cape May via the inlet on an ebbing tide our motor quit! Well it was a symptom we had never had before, the fuel filter had clogged and occasionally we had a slight drop in RPM and had not put 2 and 2 together. Well we had anticipated this is in outfitting Moosetracks and had installed dual filters, so we simply switched the other one and we were on our way.
 So it was on to Sandy Hook, NY, which is just a stop over as you enter New York Harbor to get out of the FOG. We had a great sail up the New Jersey coast and managed to sail the whole trip which so far has been very rare. The trip wasn’t fast however as we averaged 5 knots over 120 nm. The wind was mostly from the stern at 130-180 degrees from the bow, not a great point of sail for Moosetracks without a whisker pole. But we altered course frequently with winds shifts and went a fair way out to sea to keep moving in 10-15 knot winds. Around 2am we gybed the boat and got a better angle on the swells which steadied the sails and helped too. So we arrived in Sandy Hook after 4 hours or so of staring at fog and wondering what was out there. Well with radar and AIS we have a better view than most.


CG station Sandy Hook

On July 3rd we decided to refuel and change that filter, so a busy morning with chores then a quick run to the dock for fuel. The dock was up the river and had quite the tide running, so we took 2 attempts to get safely tied up. We also took the opportunity to fill our water tanks and had nearly 200 gallons to get so it took a fair amount of time but the dock crew were very chatty and no one else was around so it went great.



Atlantic Highlands

Sunset on 4th July at Atlantic Highlands

Hurricane damage in NJ still evident

We spent the 4th of July at Atlantic Highlands in New Jersey. We went ashore to walk the town and it has a lovely main street with lots of small shops and restaurants. The area here took a hard hit from Hurricane Sandy last year and it was obvious from all the dock construction but thankfully the town itself looked pretty good. The harbor was mostly back in action but the docks for pleasure boats will not be completed until later this year. We had a lovely lunch at “On the Deck” with views of the harbor and NYC as a backdrop. That evening we had a lovely display of fireworks from all the towns along the shore and up to Staten Island. NYC had a huge display but it was just a bit too far away to fully appreciate, if anyone comes this far make sure to stop for the 4th of July because it did look amazing.


We hope your summer is in full swing too wherever you are.