Didi Mau

Vessel Name: Didi Mau
Vessel Make/Model: Beneteau 423
Hailing Port: Hampton Virginia
Crew: Eta and Gordon Johnson
About: Eta and I are recently retired and are going down the ICW for the first time. We have sailed our 43-foot boat to the Caribbean and back, but this is our first inland waterway trip.
09 November 2014 | Saint Augustine, FL
08 November 2014 | Saint Augustine, FL
28 October 2014 | Georgetown, SC
26 October 2014 | Myrtle Beach
24 October 2014 | Wrightsville Beach, NC
23 October 2014 | Wrightsville Beach, NC
22 October 2014 | Camp Lejeune
19 October 2014 | Oriental NC
Recent Blog Posts
09 November 2014 | Saint Augustine, FL

Day Three Held Captive

Day Three Held Captive in Saint Augustine

08 November 2014 | Saint Augustine, FL

update after week-long abscence

A lot has happened since the last post and I’ll try to bring everyone up to date. As I type this note we are in Fernandina Beach, Florida, sitting just sound of the Georgia Border.

28 October 2014 | Georgetown, SC

The Tension Mounts

The Tension Mounts

26 October 2014 | Myrtle Beach

Never a dull Moment

Never a Dull Moment

24 October 2014 | Wrightsville Beach, NC

Wrightsville Beach- Paradise found - Again

Today marked a day of rest after a quiet night on the hook. One of our best nights. After spending two nights in Beaufort and having to reset the anchor at 1 a.m. each night, this was a welcome rest in a beautiful setting.

23 October 2014 | Wrightsville Beach, NC

Terror on the ICW

Terror on the ICW

Wrightsville Beach- Paradise found - Again

24 October 2014 | Wrightsville Beach, NC
Gordon
Today marked a day of rest after a quiet night on the hook. One of our best nights. After spending two nights in Beaufort and having to reset the anchor at 1 a.m. each night, this was a welcome rest in a beautiful setting.

I think I failed to mention previously the adventure the dragging anchor. We have a 60 pound Manson Supreme which has never failed to hold. Even with 50 knot winds clocking 360 degrees, the anchor bit, re-bit and held.

The issue, it seems, is that I was the only one in the anchorage not using a full chain rode. While in the Chesapeake, I had changed to a rope rode to eliminate much of the mud that clogs the links in the chain. In Beaufort, with the wind and current at odds with each other, the anchor would set, the boat would then reverse over the anchor, thanks to the current, but still point in the wind. With each gust of wind, the boat would swing 90 degrees, the anchor break free, and then re-set a few feet later when the winds died and the current took over. By 1 a.m. each night, the boat had crabbed from one side of the creek to the other, such that I could almost step off the boat unto a dock, which initially started out 50 yards away.

On the second night of this hell, I realized that every other boat, those not swinging crabbing their anchor, where set with chain. So, with Eta motoring in the middle of the channel, cutting donuts at 1 a.m. careful not to hit the docks, I switched from rope to chain. We set the anchor and it held beautifully. The weight of the rode was enough to keep the anchor on the bottom and the boat swung much less. Lesson learned.

Back to Wrightsville Beach. Think of Virginia Beach, except the sand is not so muddy and the water clearer. And it is a bit warmer. On second thought, its nothing like Virginia Beach.

We enjoyed a beautiful day in the mid-70s and walked for about a mile-and-a-half down a nearly deserted beach. Probably in the summer, one would have a difficult time finding a place to walk, but at this time of year, the beach was ours and a few anglers.

Tomorrow, we head to Southport, NC about 28 miles further down the ICW. Hopefully the terrors will be kept to a minimum.
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