Monday morning, Tim and I were up early and had Options underway at 6:25, a good 40 minutes before sunrise. Coming out of Ocean Marine Yacht Center in Portsmouth, Virginia, into the Elizabeth River's south channel, it was very disorienting: There were lights all around, but no depth perception in the black of night. I could see the bows of ships ahead, but was unsure on which side of the ships the channel led. My best guess was wrong, but I was saved by the electronic chartplotter--a GPS for boats. The confusion continued for the next 25 minutes until enough of the coming sunlight made our surroundings more evident.

As we have done twice before, we arrived at the Gilmerton bridge in Portsmouth more than a half hour before its scheduled opening at 7:30 am--I always overestimate the distance and time required to motor from the marina to the bridge! We were at the first lock of the Dismal Swamp by 8 am, in plenty of time for the first opening at 8:30. Once through the lock, we were again amazed at the beauty of the canal stretching to infinity with both overhanging trees and the sky prefectly reflected. On the other hand, the water is eerily brown, the color of tea or coffee--the result of leaves decaying to form tannic acid.

There are dangers lurking in the Dismal Swamp. There are big and small chunks of wood floating at or just below the surface. Some are large enough to do considerable damage. Should you move to one side of the canal to dodge a log, you risk hitting the overhanging branches. We not only managed to do just that, but we also captured a trophy--see the accompanying photo.

Rather than race through the canal as in past years and then hurry up and wait at the next lock, we motored slowly, though still arrived 45 minutes before the 1:30 lock opening. For those in a hurry, this is not the route you want to take. We averaged under 5 miles an hour from the time we left the marina until 2 pm, when we cleared the drawbridge just beyond the second lock!

Once free of the canal and its locks and bridges, we accelerated to a breathtaking 6 knots, or about 7 miles an hour, which is cruising speed with one engine. Running both engines adds less than 2 miles per hour, so we settle for 80% of two-engine speed while consuming half as much diesel.

We picked up the Pasquotank River coming out of the Dismal Swamp canal. It winds around, almost in circles, so that you never know what direction you many be going. For the first several miles, the river is barely wider than the canal--then it widens out to several hundred feet wide. It was at that point that near-disaster struck.

We were keeping wide of the green marker, as the cruising guide suggested, and were in 19 feet of water when the boat hit something very hard--it seemed to lift the boat up and twist us to starboard. It seemed we had lost our ability to steer--the wheel wouldn't budge! After a few minutes, we confirmed that both engines were OK. When we tried to move forward, we circled, doing perfect donuts. We tried to steer using the engines, which almost worked, if you don't mind backing up a lot.

Our rudders were stuck! We suspected a branch had become wedged between one of the rudders and the boat, making the rudders immovable. We had to find out what the problem was. It was 4 pm, so we still had plenty of daylight. The water was as dark brown as could be--you couldn't see anything below the surface!

Since the water was cold and the only wet suit on board fit yours truly, you can guess who was elected to dive under the boat to check the rudders. After running my hands around the tops of both sides of both rudders, I discovered nothing--there were no stuck branches. It occurred to me to use my legs to kick the rudders sideways. I was able to get the starboard rudder to move a little in both directions. The port rudder was more stubborn, but after harder and harder kicks, it finally came loose. We then discovered that we could turn the wheel, although it took a strong effort using both arms to get the rudder past a point just to starboard of the middle.

Once back on board with the anchor stowed, we motored successfully to Lambs Marina, a few miles outside of Elizabeth City. We were safe for the night, but the boat was not in suitable shape for a long journey. Stay tuned…

P.S. Note the trophy that Options is clutching up high on the port side.