Still in Norfolk

Tuesday 09 June 2015

Today, the morning was spent cleaning and polishing the SS rails, walking the dogs, and hiking back up to the NEX to get some SS cleaner/polisher after an hour searching in vain for the one that is tucked away in some hidden, forgotten, or overlooked compartment.

Our little fold-up wagon is working very well.  We bought the wagon at Sam's, and it is easily pulled, even when full of groceries.

This evening, Ellen's friend Doug took us to dinner (thank you Doug!) and after dinner showed us his new Phantom 3 drone.  I must confess, every since my friend, Moises, introduced me to the concept of a quad copter drone, I have been wanting one!  Since I have no first-born child to sell off, I have waited.  After flying Doug's drone, I may rashly enter the Publisher's Clearing House sweepstakes, or consider purchasing a lottery ticket.

I can't tell you how cool the drone is, but, of course, I'll try.  The drone is the latest generation, with a Sony camera replacing those designed for the Go-Pro's.  The camera is gimbled, and has no fish-eye on the lens, a positive for me...  The drone has a built in GPS, as well as a compass you calibrate before flying.  The controller is easy to operate, and allows you to plug in your tablet to easily see what you are filming.  It is designed so that if the controller ever loses contact with the drone, the drone returns to the place it took off from to land.  It also does that if the batteries run low.

I watched Doug fly the quad around the parking lot.  If you let go of the controls, the quad stops, hovering wherever you were, facing whichever way it was facing.  I couldn't believe he let me fly it!  With his experience, and my caution, he flew the unit faster, higher, and further than I did.  I kept the unit low, circling us in the parking lot, and landing it twice.  The battery is said to last 23 minutes.

I'm trying to figure out where we can take the boat where Doug can circle and film us.  I don't suppose I can do that at the military marina, moored next to the REAL helicopter field, with their armed, manned, and flying helicopters.

I have no photos of the really cool drone (why do I never think of these things?!)

Instead, you have more photos of our trip through Norfolk, and our wagon!

Norfolk NAS Marina

Saturday, 6 June 2015

Last night we walked up to the NEX and Commissary.  We didn't buy anything, we just looked around, planning to make another trip, and hire a taxi back to the boat to haul provisions.

We ate at Chili's, and it was good!

Today we did miscellaneous boat chores.  We did laundry, a single load at a time (free!)  

We walked the dogs a lot.

There were just too many photos of the parade of sail to not post for several days.

Hospital Point, Norfolk, VA

Friday, 5 June 2015

Friday morning dawned, well, I'm not sure it really ever dawned, it just kinda lightened a little bit... upon us at mm 0 for the Intracoastal Waterway.

Hospital Point sits directly offshore of the Naval Medical Center, Portsmith, aka the Portsmith Naval Hospital.  The anchorage is rather large, and always a great place to watch the world, but, today it was also ground zero to watch the Norfolk Harborfest Parade of Sail.

Captain Jerry Wright told me he brought the lead boat, the Sun Quest, a black, ketch rig, in here during the 1984 Parade of Sail.  

Today their were police boats, fire boats, USCG boats, Navy boats, a war ship, tall ships, sailboats of every size and shape, commercial vessels, and boats that don't fit into any of those groups.

A little before the parade began, the fog lifted a little, the misty rain quit for a bit, and it was great!  A helicopter was overhead for a long time, but, we didn't see any aerial shots on the television.

I'll post photos the next several days.

After the parade was over, we went to the Naval Station Norfolk Sailing Club and Marina for a few days to do some boat clean-up, laundry, and re-provisioning.  It also gives us a great opportunity to see friends we have who transferred up from Key West. 

The Dismal Swamp to Norfolk, VA

Thursday, 4 June 2015

This morning we departed the Dismal Swamp Visitor's Center at 0650, after feeding and walking the dogs.  The trip through the Dismal Swamp was overshadowed by a cool, misty rain, interspersed with a foggy sort of haze.  

For a few miles the highway runs beside the canal, near enough you can hear and see traffic, but, then, once again you journey away from civilization and into its medieval depths, where your imagine is drawn into the far realms of where your vision can reach.

OK, it helped that it was rainy, and hazy.  But, I love the Dismal Swamp!  Don't bother coming this route if you are in a hurry, the whole route is a no wake zone, to keep from undercutting the banks that barely support some of the huge trees whose roots are badly undercut.  Remember, that with trees constantly losing their grip, there are branches and logs that you may bump in the course of your transit, another good reason to pay attention, and keep your speed down.

The USCOE guys that maintain this canal have a great sense of humor, posting official looking signs like this (and others that surely wake up the armchair navigator) as evidenced in some of the less remote areas.

At 0925 we pulled alongside our friends on the S/V Moonstone of Aberdour, tied to the bulkhead along the town of Deep Creek.   The Canadian trawler TNT Kiss was right behind us.  The bulkhead afforded the opportunity for the Moonstone crew to visit the local Food Lion, while I scurried across the street in the rain to get a breakfast sausage biscuit for me, and one for the bridge/lock tender.

We went through the bridge, and into the lock, dropping down the 8' we'd gained yesterday.  The lock tender, Robert, played a tune on my conch (I'm going to have to try that) rather than just the long conch tone I often blow at sunset.  Robert is a wealth of information on ICW, Norfolk, and the Dismal Swamp, as well as a real nice guy!

When we left Deep Creek, and left our alternate route, joining back with the ICW at the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River, approaching Norfolk, it was like we were being rapidly hurled forward in time.  There were conveyors, and shipyards, some still looking like WWII, and more and more modern as we entered into Norfolk.  There are boats and ships of every type and shape here, all converging on the waterway and bridges, keeping the helmsman on their toes.

Tomorrow begins Norfolk's annual Harborfest.  There are tall ships and other vessels planning to enter in a parade of sorts around noon.  We chose an anchorage at Hospital Point, mm 0 (no kidding), and ground zero for the Harborfest.  If it had not been such inclement weather, I doubt we could have found the anchorage as sparsely populated as it was.  More vessels joined us throughout the day, ready for tomorrow's kick-off.  

I saw a couple of ducks that I called over with a quack-quack, much to the delight of Mocha.  Mercy wasn't nearly as interested in the ducks as the crackers I was tossing their way.  Hey, I figured ducks ought to eat little fish, and I had goldfish crackers....

I gave up on having a fair weather opportunity, and launched the RIB to explore in the rain.  Ellen and Mercy stared at me like I was crazy, and I, bundled in a rain jacket and rain pants told a heart-broken Mocha that she couldn't come.  I think she even laughed at me when I came back an hour later with my hair dripping wet.  The ducks welcomed me back while the rain ran off them like, uh, water off a duck's back.  (You had to see that coming...)

The weatherman on tv lost me talking about rain, and fog, and sunshine.  I think we're due for some of those tomorrow.