WELL... we made one long hop yesterday, which I may have mentioned to some, from Solomons MD to Norfolk. The normal hops down the Chesapeake includes a stop in the middel at Deltaville, or Reedville, etc. (i.e. about 40+ mile hops each day)...

We combined the trips into one large hop that took from sunrise until anchoring in Norfolk about 11 PM.

This morning we pulled the hook up from the mouth of the Lafyette River... (which has changed significantly from previous years... dredged now, and full of barges, and dredges...), and proceeded South toward Great Bridge. Our fears that Great Bridge (and the Atlantic Yacht Basin) would be full up with cruising boats.... (being more inland, and downstream of the Great Bridge LOCK) came true. "No ROOM at the INN"...!!! So we called a local marina here in Portsmouth, VA (TideWater marina).

Yeah... slips to accomodate both Autumn Borne, and our present buddie boat (s/v Rhiannon). double Yeah!

We're now secured in slip F-11, and we put on 100 gallons of diesel; the stays'l has been removed from the babystay; the mains'l covered and double wound with line; extra dock lines added; chafing gear added to lines; solar panels lowered, and secured; deck cleared; dinghy lashed down on deck; roller furler drum secured from turning; extra wraps on Yankee sail; etc.

SO....we're waiting.

Tidewater has us on floating docks with 12 foot pilings... SO...even with a 5 or 7 foot storm surge the docks should be OK.
The fixed docks to our stern will be under water.

Tonight when we were walking back from dinner in Town at a German restaurant, we stopped at the free municipal docks, along the Portsmouth waterfront; the lower level of which was already under about 5 inches of water (north winds, and higher than normal tides).

Could be interesting weekend for those sailing vessels secured there, if we get a 5 foot storms surge!!!

Anyway...The latest weather forecast has Hurricane Sandy turning west, and colliding with the East Coast on the DelMarva Peninsula... just north of us.... UG!!! We're all still hoping that touching the cooler water off the Carolinas will calm the storm, a bit....

Phil Macmillen (s/v Acadia), from Hop-o-Nose was coming up the Delaware to the top of the Chesapeake the other day... I sure hope he did just that, and kept on going... as far inland, as he could get.

It was such a nice day, and evening... (we couldn't help but think "yep...calm before the storm")....
Benny (from the s/v Rhiannon) said tonight, as we were walking back to the boats... It'll be a bummer after all this work (preparing) if the storm fizzles, and turns out to sea.... YEP... But I'd gladly take that "bummer".