23 October 2008 | Reedville, VA to Fishing Bay, (Piankatank River) VA (37o32.409 x 76o20.190)
Winds were supposed to be 10-20 knots, waves 2-3 ft with air pressure at 30.58 and rising� not!
I got up and made sweet rolls and coffee and after breakfast we hoisted anchor and winded our way back out through the shallows, past the crab pots, and seafood processing plant. This time we could definitely smell the fish uggh smell as we passed it at 8:30 am. I'm not sure we were listening to the right weather forecast on the vhf though because as we left the waves and winds were kicking up. We raised the headsail for balance but it was wicked. The waves were more 6 ft than 2-3 ft, with strong winds and currents running together down the bay. The fetch gave us more than expected and Wayne needed Dramamine (I ordered it) before he became sick. We could hear stuff crashing about below but couldn't do much about it at that point. It was scary & exhilarating at the same time, and I kept the helm. I'm not sure what the wind speed reached today, our anemometer isn't working, hasn't for a while now. I thought it was on the chore list yesterday but I guess it didn't make it on the to do list.
We reached speeds of 8.7 at times with the currents, sail, and motor and reached Fishing Bay, VA at 1:00pm. We could have gone further but it looked like the high was actually a low-pressure system and we were at the boundary where the clouds were building and thickening.
When we finally anchored and I went below, I was relieved to see that my wine glasses were still intact. The glass that had shattered belonged to my Rose's Lime bottle that came crashing out of the upper cupboard. I've been meaning to do something about that cupboard to secure it, but had forgotten about how it slides open so easily. After cleaning up all the glass and Rose's lime that was all over the floor, ice box top, stove and cupboards, I think I'll have that on a TO DO list for sure...
This is a nice little anchorage. Two for the price of one - Godfrey Bay to the south if the winds are from the south and Fishing Bay to the North if the winds are out of the north. I can't believe how fast the day passed. I made spaghetti for dinner, plotted in a new course from here to Chisman Creek tomorrow and am now exhausted. Wayne's doing suduko puzzles as I write this, but I think that after I finish this I'll play a game then hit the sack early. It looks like we have phone coverage and internet access but I'll post these some other time. Tomorrow we go about 33 miles... if the weatherman is correct. I finished reading An Embarassment of Mangoes by Ann Vanderhoof. I liked her book, she has a writing style similar to mine (long sentences). I hope she writes another book. Stephanie should recommend this one to Marge (I think that's her name - another sailor).
The wind was really kicking up so after getting into bed, I convinced Wayne to let out some more rode (anchor chain) in case we started dragging.