The trip getting Liquid Therapy from our seller's dock to Deltaville Marina occurred October 20 after delaying one day due to small craft warnings on the Chesapeake Bay. Nelson Rosser, Susan & myself were driven to the starting point in Portsmouth, VA by Nelson's wife Carter, October 20, 2009. We left the dock at 11:27 local time. We traveled up the Western Branch of the Elizabeth River and motored on past the commercial and Navy ships. The boat did great with wakes. The funny thing was that EVERYONE we met was heading south and gave me looks as though I had lost it. Sail and trawlers mainly were what we met headed south. No one ever passed us headed North. We pulled into Salt Ponds Marina for my first docking. It was a pull in to floating docks. Still was kind of tricky but I got it there. Nice dinner at the marina and the next day on to Deltaville.

We departed Salt Ponds October 21, 2009 a little after 9 AM. Another great day of trawling north. We had quite an air-show from the fighter jets & helicopters from Langley. A gorgeous clear day with little wind and the boat made ~7.9kts @ 1700 RPM. We arrived at Deltaville Marina @ 1:50 PM. We headed to the gas dock to let the mast down for the first time. I had to down the bimini first, then undo the back stays to let the mast and boom pivot forward. Nelson, Susan and I discovered that the mast hadn't been lowered in years but got it down. Now was the time of reckoning for me. I need to back this thing into a covered slip down a fairway between another row of open slips in front of me. I only got the boat turned to the right maybe 30 of the 90° before trying to back in. Backing to port was not working as I thought it should. I had to try an 2nd time. But I was getting further down the fairway near a bulkhead at the end. I backed and forwarded until I got it turned around and got it close enough to be pulled in from finger pier by Jacque, Nicole (transients from Canada) and Paul from Vermont. These were people I never met before. So, thanks were in order and I wondered if docking was going to be this bad every time. I was clueless as to what I should have done differently. I was really missing my twin engines. Wondered if I should get a bow thruster or what. I spoke with a fellow 36 Ablin owner at our marina about propeller torque and how the boat didn't seem to want to back to port. I told him it appeared to want to back to starboard. He said that's correct. Our Albin has a left turning propeller. A bolt of lighting hit me that I had been trying to use propeller torque just backwards. Next time I would do better! In the scheme of things I was satisfied with my docking, and as I usually proclaim after getting in safely "ANOTHER DOCKING MANEUVER WITH NO INSURANCE CLAIM". So, I had a good docking for the first backing into a slip. It really doesn't matter how many people come out to watch you struggle, take pictures, point, gasp, bite their finger nails and be entertained with your docking. If there is no insurance claim it is a successful docking. I don't even get embarrassed.