Today was an interesting day. We are still in the Tidewater Yacht Marina. I thought about leaving this morning but the winds were too high in the early morning so I decided to wait it out a bit. If I can get out by 1100 I can make the last bridge before it closes at 1600 for two hours of rush hour traffic. This marina is full of some really expensive boats I mean like, multi million dollar types. This morning I heard a really loud engine sound and went out to see what it was.

A very large vessel one of those with three decks and nearly as wide as the marina fairway, was trying to back into a slip or it so appeared to me. I would later realize that what was happening was, he was being pushed so hard by the wind he couldn't steer. As he spun around in the fairway his bow missed the boat next to me by only six inches and only cleared Alibi's dinghy by about a foot. I assumed this was some mega rich owner that didn't know how to run his giant ship. I would later find that to be not true and was reminded what happens when we "assume". A couple hours went by and during that time I went ahead and topped off my fresh water tanks since I am not planning any more Marina stops due to the lost time for the weather. I took a walk up to Olde Towne Portsmouth and found that there is a free dock there. No power, no water, but protected area and free, on a first come, first serve basis for no longer than 48 hours at a time. Mental note to remember this on any return trip. After my exercise hour I returned back to Alibi and this may surprise you but Spencer was still asleep. He wouldn't wake up until about 1030 hours.

1100 hours came and the wind was blowing about 15 miles per hour. There was virtually no wind about three miles south of me. I decided to go ahead and leave because the only wind was just here at the dock and not out by the bridges and further down my route.

The wind was blowing down the fairway and I was in the slip bow first. My plan was release the lines and back out, let the wind push the stern to starboard and down the fairway. I would then be out of the slip and facing the direction I need to move forward.

Well the first mistake was, letting the guy moored next to me handle my lines rather than calling the marina for assistance which is customary and part of what you are paying for. He let the bow line go to early so we didn't get any turn from the wind at the right time. Alibi was all the way out of slip when the gust caught her broadside, the bow started to turn down the fairway and without power I couldn't maneuver. The bow started to come around and with some careful forward, neutral, forward shifts I was at least able to get turned lengthwise but now facing the wrong direction. I thought maybe I could back into a large opening ahead and get turned around but as soon as I got slight broadside to the wind I was out of control just like the guy from this morning. I then thought maybe I could back all the way out but as I tried, the wind funneling down this fairway was just too much to contend with. Two major issues were, being in reverse with prop walk thrust assisting the wind to push me in the wrong direction and my own inexperience with Alibi and her size.

For those who do not know what "prop walk" is, I'll explain briefly. In absolute simplest terms the propeller under the boat creates a lateral or sideways thrust when it is engaged in reverse. This thrust pushes the aft (back) end of the boat to one side. In the case of a right handed prop the back of the boat will kick to port or left. when moving very slowly you also lose the water flowing across your rudder so it becomes only minimally useful in steering the boat. For a novice, (read Bob) the difference between knowing about this and understanding how to use it to your advantage are to remotely different concepts.

We ended up at the end of the fairway with no more room to go forward. Oh crap! Luckily by this time the dock master and a couple other neighbors are out and ready to help. Spencer was on the bow tossing lines as fast as he could and I was tending the rudder with one hand and holding a boat hook with the other. The help from the dock master and his amazing ability to tie multiple lines together while pulling them, got us turned around and pointed back in the right direction. The moment Alibi's bow was into the wind and we were able to get water flowing across the rudder, she was totally controllable as this is what she was designed to do. Getting out was slow but now easy. Mega thanks to the Marina neighbors and staff that helped us get through this without a scratch.

With that fiasco out of the way now comes our next challenge. There are about nine bridges in the next twenty miles of water. Several of them have been converted to fixed height bridges with just enough room for sailboats to get through. The top of our mast stands sixty three feet from the water and the fixed bridges are sixty five or more. I took some video of us going under one of these and it is really scary. Your perspective from below looking up at a needle point makes it look like you are about to hit. I am sure there was at least three feet of clearance on the lowest one but it sure looks scary from below.

Dave had been planning a trip down the waterway to Florida, so when I went through our paper charts I saw that he had highlighted every bridge and its relative information ( vertical clearance, opening schedules, bridge name ) this was a huge planning help (Thanks Dave).

As we steamed down the Elizabeth River we passed several Navy ships in the yards being worked on. Cousin Bobby told me about the "floating dry dock" that we were passing by just a night before when we were getting an awesome tour of Portsmouth. Thanks go out to Bobby and Katherine for that. I was anxious to get a wee bit closer look at this engineering marvel. As we passed by the ships there was no question how close I was going to be able to get since navy patrol boats were right there setting the limit. They looked friendly enough but they were also well armed. My understanding is that this security is a result of the Yemen bombing of the USS Cole and before that you could actually get up close to these giant warships.

Seeing these boats reminds me of the most recent Tom Clancy book I read, "The Bear and the Dragon" where the missile ship was in port being worked on in the floating dry dock.

As we passed by the part of the yard that Bobby works at, he just so happened to call me on the telephone to ask when I would be passing by. I told him where I was and he said he couldn't get outside quick enough. I got a call from him about five minutes later and he said he went down to another facility further down the river and he could see us going by. I wish we had that picture.

The first three bridges are easy, their are two railroad bridges that only close when there is a train using them and one fixed bridge with a vertical clearance of 145 feet.

We arrived at the first bridge that we needed opened which is actually two bridges. As I recall they were Gilmerton and Norfolk & Southern #7. I made a quick call on the radio to the the bridge operator to let them know I was standing by for the next opening. The charts say that this one opens on demand but I found that to be not so. I called the bridge operator again and she informed me that Gilmerton bridge opens on the half hour but as luck would have it, there was a train on the track of the Norfolk and Southern #7 during the 1330 opening time so we ended up waiting around for another thirty minutes. Since I had a lot of space and some time to kill, I took the opportunity to practice some backing skills which I am very weak on.

The bridge opened on schedule at 1400 and we were first in line of four boats now heading the same route as us. Their are a lot of "snowbirds" heading south for the winter at this time of year. Not being very familiar with the protocols I wasn't sure if I was supposed to head through before the bridge was all the way up or not. I called the operator again and asked if I was clear to proceed and she asked "how much clearance do you need?" and stated that she was at eighty five feet. I am not sure if that was rhetorical or not but assuming this meant it was OK, I headed through. The feeling is a bit difficult to describe having cleared the first bridge. I had waited for bridge openings before at Oak Island but didn't have a radio and just waited for the next hourly opening back then. This was somehow different, this was an accomplishment on a list of many things I would be learning with tis sailboat, not only on this trip but in this new chapter of my life.

The next bridge, Dominion Highway, was less than a mile away and we called at about a half mile out. We arrived about fifteen or twenty minutes early for the next opening and were again first in line. This part of the river was really wide with deep water all around. I had plenty of room and most of the other boats and I were cutting holes in the water. (traveling in circles in front of the bridge to keep moving). I played with the auto pilot and set up a "route" that was a circle around my last path and turned it on using the "navigate on route" function. It was working a little but the turns were so sharp that it couldn't seem to keep up so I went back to manual. By now it was about time for the opening and a commercial barge on the other side heading north asked us to let him go first, this is both etiquette and part of the rules when commercial traffic is around leisure traffic. Once he was clear we headed through. As the last of the four boats in this line cleared the bridge I heard the operator call the lock ahead and tell them "sending you three sails and one power".

The next challenge was a lock. There is an elevation change here and water is higher to the north by about one foot. Normally there would be a waterfall in a spot like this but since this waterway was constructed for boat traffic there has to be a way to lower and raise the water level. Since I was lolly gagging around at the last bridge I was now third in line, that actually made me a bit more comfortable because I was very new to this and the folks in the boat in front of me were experienced. Experienced or not, when someone else is in front of you it gives you insight as to what to expect as you observe them so I was fine with my position. We went into the lock when it opened and were instructed to prepare for a starboard tie. Spencer snapped into action with the lines as I steered us up close to the walls of this big canal. The lock master told us over the radio that we had rubber hanging on that side and wouldn't need fenders. Spencer hades the lines to the assistant on the side of lock and he tied us up. Once we were tied, I turned and paid close attention to the boat behind me. He had called ahead and told the lock master that he was "single handing". Since this is something I will be doing at times, and almost had to do on this trip, I wanted to see how he handled this situation.

The water exchange took about five minutes and during that time I had a conversation with the boat in front of me. They mentioned that they were stopping here for the night and that we should go ahead and pass them after we go through. That should have been my clue to stop here for the night. By now it is around 1530 and smart people are looking for a marina or an anchorage. Too bad I wasn't born smart. Once we were lowered about a foot in elevation the lock opened and Spencer went to work again removing our lines. We headed on through the Great Bridge which was prepared for us and opened as we arrived. We now had a little more than a mile to go before the next railroad bridge which is supposed to be normally open and only closes for train traffic. As we passed the the two boats in front of us they were heading into the park docks and marina to starboard. I thought a little about stopping here for the night. The weather was supposed to be great tonight with clear skies and virtually no wind so I would really rather be on the hook in a quiet anchorage than another night in a crowded marina setting. Spencer had complained about the fenders squeaking as the rubbed the dock in Norfolk and said it was hard for him to sleep with all that racket anyway. Decision made, we are going to push on and try to get to the anchorage tonight. I called ahead and the centerville bridge operator told me that we if we made it there in the next twenty minutes he would stay open for us to pass. I pushed the RPM's up to around 2800 to try and make some time but we were only gaining about two or three tenths of a knot compared to 2650 where she is most comfortable so reflecting back on something Dave said to me the first day we met, "If your in a hurry, you shouldn't be on a sailboat" I decided to back it down and take it easy. We gave it our best and really screamed down the river at 7.1 knots SOG but we were still about ten minutes late getting to the Centerville Turnpike Bridge. We arrived at 1610. Again I found myself at a place where I may have been able to stay at a Marina for the night. I listened to the weather and decided to eat dinner sitting out here and see what the light was like at 1800 when the bridge opens and make a call at that point. We dropped the anchor and set it for a short stay. I got out the grill which I had cleaned thoroughly while I was at the marina in Norfolk killing time, and mounted it to the rail. I hooked open a propane bottle and in no time was warming up for some hot dogs. We cooked the dogs and ate some chips. We listened to some music on the radio and i study the route to the "North Landing Swing Bridge" It looked like it was exactly five miles down river. I did the math knowing very well what speed I would be making and knew I could get there in forty three minutes. If I made that, I would have only a short wait before the next opening at 1900 so we steamed on. This was a really beautiful part of the trip, nothing but trees around and a few fisherman in small john boats. We spoke to them and said "Hello" as we passed but I didn't want to risk slowing down too much and missing the opening. Sunset is at 1915 tonight and hopefully I can get to one of the anchorages that are suitable before 2000 when it really gets dark.

We made the North Landing Swing Bridge in perfect time, I called the bridge tender and let him know we were coming. He acknowledged and was very friendly. He asked about the the other boat behind us and he too responded. His boat name was "Had Hammer", I thought about this a bit and decided it probably meant that he used to be a carpenter maybe. Had Hammer was going through as well and the tender said he would get it open as soon as he could. While we were waiting I talked to the Operator and jokingly asked him if the big mansion next to the bridge was his house. He laughed and replied "One can only dream". I thought that was very fitting and I was meant to hear it given that I was sitting on my dream. We chatted for a few minutes and he told me the starry of that house. It had been the bridge tender's home many years ago and was sold and built onto. The original home was still hiding in there somewhere. I imagined the old bridge tender hearing a whistle blow and getting up to walk out in the cold with his lantern and opening the bridge. About then I realized I have quite a vivid imagination. It was nice to clear my head enough to think like that. About that time the radio came on "North Landing, North Landing, Alibi" I responded "Alibi, North Landing go ahead". The operator asked to me to pull up nice and tight and he would open it and get us through a few minutes early. A little friendly conversation pays back. I was glad to have made his acquaintance and look forward to a return trip through here again.

We got through the bridge a couple mites early, thanked the operator for the opening and the story over the radio and headed out. The sun was still up somewhere but we could no longer see it since we are in a forest at this point. There is still just sufficient light to navigate and I see a potential anchorage on the chart about three miles ahead. We could make that in thirty minutes easy but would be setting the hook in the dark. Had Hammer calls me on the radio and asks how far we are going tonight. I told him I was originally hoping to make backwater creek anchorage but may just anchor here in the next bend since it was getting pretty dark. As it started getting to dark to see I had to slow down to about four and half to five knots. Spencer went forward to the bow and watched for any obstruction. I zoomed my chart plotter in and followed the agent line on the chart that marks the center of the waterway. Had hammer calls again and says he is steering by the depth gauge. we went on like this and for a while and as we approached an bend in the river where we could see very well due to light pollution from some houses and coke around, Spencer and I had a talk about pushing on or stopping. He was good with my decision and said he could see the water pretty good if we wanted to keep going.

I talked to Had Hammer and he said he needed a pretty deep anchorage since he draws almost seven feet. Wow I am sure glad I only draw five because it opens up a lot more water as well as potential anchorages when I don't need really deep water. I asked him if he wanted to keep going and he said he was stay with us as long as we went on. I decide to push on and try to make Blackwater Creek where there is plenty of anchor depth and we can sleep peacefully after some stress today.

It turns out I wouldn't regret this decision to push on even in the dark with no moon. The stars were out and so long as we protected our night vision by dimming every thing down as low as it would go and using no white light, we could see fairly well. I enjoy the water at night and am not afraid of it but I am extremely cautious. I have boated a lot on Lake Norman as well as the ICW around Holden Beach at night in my power boat so this shouldn't be too bad. It turns out that it wasn't bad. We chatted back and forth on the radio with "Had Hammer" and even thought about stopping at one point only because the chart said it was a good place to anchor. I waited as Had Hammer tried to get into the anchorage but it was too shallow and he ran aground slightly. He backed to off and was able to get going again with no assistance. We went on and just shortly started to see the lights of the Pungo Ferry Bridge. This is a bridge with a sixty five foot clearance so we didn't have to wait for any opening. As went under the bridge I watched the light at the top of our mast and cringed a little as we appeared to just squeak through. I know it wasn't truly that close and could see the marker in the water which stated the gap was about sixty six and half feet. When got to the other side I saw a huge expanse of water to my starboard and a catamaran anchored. I looked at the chart it said the water was right at ten feet. I called "Had Hammer" and told him I would check the depths for him if he wanted to stand by. He agreed and Circled through a wide swath around this opening and found it to be nine to eleven feet deep all around us. "Had Hammer" tucked in and started setting his anchor as we continued our circle and went out a little further into some eight and half to nine foot water before setting ours. I set the anchor and backed down on it to insure a good hold. The chart said it was muddy bottom here so felt tike we were good and safe. I paid out some additional rode and we shut down good and quick. Spencer and I were exhausted but hungry as well. We opened a can of beef stew and heated it up for a quick dinner before getting to sleep. We had cell service here so we got to call Evelyn and talk a bit. I even used FaceTime for a while and she got to see our cabin and our dinner as we ate and talked.

After Dinner we started planning for tomorrow, we were only about three miles short of our planned anchorage so we would get up really early tomorrow and take off. The beauty of anchoring is that it is a no hassle start to the day and I can single hand us out on our way pretty quick. I studied the charts for tomorrow's leg of the trip and we went to bed pretty quick. It was a bit chilly but not enough so that I needed to run the propane heater I brought along. I went to sleep in less than five minutes.