Judy, Chopin and I agree that last night - Gwynn Island, was probably the most pleasant place we've stayed so far. I hate to go on and on but the weather was fantastic and the moon full. It was an absolutely still night and warm. We left this morning; destination uncertain. Another clear, warm day (but again with little wind). We started out for Sarah Creek but as the day progressed and we listened to the crappy forecasts for the next several days, we decided to keep going and get out of the Chesapeake. We felt that we'd be less likely to get stuck in one place for several days if we were out of the Bay. So we pushed on to Hampton Roads and ultimately, Hampton.

It was very busy on the Bay today with lots of pleasure vessels with the same idea but also lots of military traffic. Everyone was converging on Hampton Roads which is the confluence of the Chesapeake, the James River, the Nansemond and the Elizabeth River. There are at least four major metropolitan areas here; Hampton, Portsmouth, Newport News and, of course, Norfolk. It is exceedingly busy.

We opt for Hampton and arrange dock space at the Municipal Pier. After a long and very hot day (we were told it may have reached record highs), we wend our way up to Hampton and are faced with the momentous decision; bow to or stern to docking. Sailors will understand our trepidation; for non-sailors, it's a matter of "pay now or pay later". If you get in easy, you get out hard. Here's the scenario. The easy way to come into a finger dock is forward, or "bow to". It's sort of like driving your car into the garage. But, when you need to leave, you've got to back out. And don't think that it's that easy; sailboats, particularly those like ours, do not back well. Add wind, current an of course, the curious folks lining the marina and shore and it makes for a very stressful situation. Anyway, we want to back in; for two reasons. It'll make departure easy but also, with Sea Sharp's "walk thru" transom, it makes getting on and off the boat much easier. (There's a third reason, ego! No way am I gonna do the chicken way).

So we get set up with lines, move the dinghy forward, get lots of fenders out and start our approach. Oh, oh, too close to our neighbour and have to frantically give lots of throttle and try again. This time, like silk. We back in, pass lines, slow down and I'm happy.

Well this place could not be more contrasting to last night. We are tied up essentially to downtown. But, I'm looking forward to a day or two of metropolitan life. Restaurants, provisions, running trails, etc.

So the milestone, we are now out of the Chesapeake Bay and for the next month and a half or more will be in the Intercoastal Waterway. I will provide a bit of commentary on this in a later blog, but suffice it to say that it is very different cruising than most of the waters that we have transited so far. Perhaps the most profound accentuation of this is that distances along the ICW are measured in statute miles (like our roads) and not nautical miles. It is more like a roadway!