Monday, June 7, 2004... Happy 46th Anniversary to
Kay and Pearce. We still give thanks that we have survived each other and
all other  elements.
Pearce was up early again and walked down to the store to get the morning
paper. By the time he came back, the lockmaster Robert Peake had come to
work and was readying for our decent in the lock. We cast off and prepared
the lines for a port side tie off. As everything was proceeding, a
sailboat rounded the bend below the lock and asked when the next opening would
be. Robert replied that they would be on the next rise. We had spent
a beautifully quiet night at the dock, and we continued on down the  rest
of the Dismal Swamp Waterway until we rejoined the ICW. The trip through
Norfolk was interesting. We were held up at the railroad bridge just
before the Gilmerton Bridge. When we asked for an opening for Gilmerton,
the tender asked if we could pass under the RR Bridge (which was lower than the
highway bridge.) Last year we were held up at this point for over an hour
because work was being done on the RR bridge. No one was willing to say
anything about what was happening. Today, as we were waiting for the
openings, we saw some smoke coming along the tracks -- a train was coming!
It would be nice if someone let the poor recreational vehicles know what is
going on. The train went through, the bridge opened, the highway bridge
opened, and we went on through.
We continued on down the long passage through the docks of Norfolk and
Portsmouth into Hampton Roads.  This
is a very large area of boat channels that commercial, military, and pleasure
craft use to transverse these huge waters. We passed and were passed by
tugs, tows, pilot boats, huge container ships, many pleasure craft, many working
commercial fishermen...it was a time to be alert. We came across to
Hampton on the south side of the James River, and we tied up at the Hampton
Public Docks. The Blackbeard Festival had just ended, and we were welcomed
into the harbor. Skipper Bob's book talks about a Happy Hour at the
Radisson Hotel that has plentiful hors d'oeuvres. Forget about it.
The hotel has cancelled that bountiful feast and now offers pop corn and
pretzels. Drinks are full price. We suggest all Radisson Hotels be
punished for this one's need to rake in the cash. Back to Kibon for our
own cocktail hour and dinner.
We put into the Downtown Hampton Public Docks for two reasons: it was the
closest docks to the VA Hospital that Pearce wanted to visit, and they have a
buy two days, get one free deal. We unloaded the bicycles and rode across
the bridge to Phoebus. The bridge was only 30 something feet high, but
since it crowned, we needed to walk up to the top and think about riding
down. Pearce could do the down ride, but Kay had to wait until the bridge
sides became solid. Then OK. The wait at the VA was 4 to 5 hours,
they suggested that Pearce come back very early tomorrow, 6:30 or earlier.
We rode around Hampton College, looked at their impressive football stadium, and
rode back to Kibon.
Tuesday, June 8, 2004... Pearce got up very early to go to the VA and was
happy to come back by 9:30 to say that the doctors gave him a few prescriptions
and a clean bill of health. We rode over to the laundry facility -- 1.5
miles away -- it was nice, but forget about having to go that far. The
Public Docks should have something more convenient. We spent part of the
afternoon trying to relax, and the other part of the afternoon washing down the
decks. By the time Joyce and Rex Williams arrived we were ready for a
cocktail hour and then a dinner out. Joyce was one of my bridesmaids and a
long time friend from junior and high school, so it was good to spend the
evening with them.
 Wednesday, June 9, 2004...Chesapeake Finally! We're
anchored tonight in a lovely little harbor at  Deltaville, Virginia, about fifty
miles north of Norfolk, on the western side of the Chesapeake, just south of the
Rappahannock River. As we were coming out of the marina in Hampton, we
heard that an aircraft carrier was leaving from Norfolk and two warships were
coming in. We hung out near one of the sea markers and watched the Navy
pass in review. God Bless those ships coming home, and God Keep Them in
His Arms for the ship going out.
Since we crossed Chesapeake Bay last year and went up the Eastern Shore, we
decided to go up the western side of the Bay this year (with possibly a few side
trips). 
The weather window had today and tomorrow as good traveling days
with the wind out of the southwest and seas from (the most) 2 to 3 feet.
We had a good trip up to Jacksonville Creek, which is just below the Rappahannock
River. We put into an anchorage at Deltaville. There was a town dock that would
have allowed us temporary access to the village, a few miles away. There
is another dockage area up another branch of the Bay that would allow sailors
dockage right in the town. We didn't need anything and weren't interested.
Thursday, June 10, 2004...We left all the sailboats in the marina -- maybe they
had read the upcoming (possibly) storm that might come through later tonight or
tomorrow, but anyway, this is one of the few times we have left an anchorage
before any sailboats.  We cruised out to the Chesapeake again and headed
north. The Chesapeake has a number of interesting lighthouses. One we
passed is called Point No Point Light and it protects a point where there is no
point, just a significant shoal protruding out into the bay. We passed by the Potomac River and continued north to the Patuxent
River.  The guide books talk about terrible conditions if the wind and the
tides are in opposition when crossing the Potomac. I guess we really hit everything
at the most beautiful conditions, because the water and the tides were just
great. We just swelled and swayed all the way across. The south side of
the Patuxent River is the home of the Patuxent Naval Air Station which spreads
for miles. Pearce had a feeling of homecoming as this is where he was stationed
as a navy control tower operator during part of the Korean War. The base looks
like it has grown considerably since then.  Across
the river are the Solomons, one of the finest protected ports on the Chesapeake.
As you come into the harbor, which is actually several wide deep creeks, you are
hit with the sight of hundreds of sailboats... truly, a sailor's haven.  We
docked at the Comfort Inn Beacon Marina, a combination motel and boatel,
because it has a pool and we want to watch the Reagan Funeral service tomorrow
on TV. After cooling in the pool (someone just said, "Did you bring
all this heat with you from Florida?"), we set up the satellite dish to
watch the news during dinner. Unfortunately, a large thunderstorm planted
itself to the southwest. TV stopped in the middle of JAG; so tonight, it's early
to bed with a book.
 Friday, June 11, 2004...a misty day with light rain showers. In between
watching the services, we went to West Marine where Pearce looked at all the
toys but couldn't buy anything because we left our coupons on Kibon. We
had fish and chips for lunch and visited the Calvert Marine Museum. Aside
from their displays on the history and life of the Patuxent River, they have a
screwpile lighthouse that used to mark the shoal at Drum Point.  The shoal
finally came out to meet it, and the lighthouse was replaced by a light pole.
A screwpile lighthouse is one whose steel legs are screwed into the mud and sand
of the river bottom rather than having a concrete foundation built on bedrock
like the more traditional looking lighthouses. When the bridge across the lower Patuxent River was being built in the '70s, the
construction company cut the poles at the waterline and lifted the lighthouse to
its present position up Back Creek in Solomons. We climbed into the
lighthouse and toured its two story living quarters and the cupola where the
Fresnel lens is. We had a nice view of the town. Kay walked up to a
nice market for some fresh produce and met Pearce back at the boat. It
began to rain in earnest as the front went through.
Saturday, June 12, 2004...What a beautiful day -- clear blue skies, the humidity
is gone, and the temperature is in the upper 60s. We joined the many
sailboats leaving the harbor. Some are traveling like we are, and some may
be going out for a race or just a sail on a beautiful day. We crossed
tacks with a barge (well ahead of it) and then we paced each other all the way
up the Bay until we turned off into the Miles River, slightly below and opposite
Annapolis. We also passed a huge tanker docked at an offshore platform
loading or unloading compressed gas. I sure wouldn't want to serve on that
kind of a tanker! The fishing boats were out in force at the mouth of the
Choptank River. We picked up some wave action crossing that wide
river. Several years ago Pearce and Jerry Sachnoff had sailed their El
Toros off of Cambridge which is 20 some miles up the river. Even there it
was a challenge.
When we turned northeast to go up the Miles River, we joined many sail and power
boats headed in the same direction.  At one point Pearce counted at least
20 sailboats behind us and as many in front. Most of them were headed
around the corner and down to St. Michaels. 
The guidebook says the harbor
is crowded on a summer weekend, and slips in the marinas need to be reserved
well in advance. We arrived mid-afternoon in advance of most of the
sailboats and squeezed Kibon between a sailboat and two cruisers. After
making sure that we were well anchored, we took the dinghy to shore. The
town is mostly along one main street which is lined with shops and restaurants
housed in buildings from the last two centuries. It's pretty, pricey, and
full of tourists (like us!) We wandered around the streets, looked at the
crafts and gift items, bought steaks, Romaine lettuce, strawberries and came on
back to Kibon to have dinner and watch the sunset.
Sunday, June 13, 2004...Pearce was up to watch the sunrise, and then he plotted
the rest of our trip. We should be at the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal
today or tomorrow and will head down Delaware Bay on the outgoing tide Monday or
Tuesday. We plan to go the inside route up the New Jersey Intercoastal,
arriving in Manasquan sometime Friday. Son-in-law Donald and daughter
Caryl will meet in New York City and drive to Manasquan to meet us Friday
evening. They'll cross to Jones Inlet with Pearce on Saturday while Kay
drives the car back to Amityville. Of course, this all depends on the wind
and the weather.
Today is a dull, cloudy day, and while there isn't much
wind, the Bay is quite choppy.  The Bay narrows above Kent Island, and we
are outside the shipping channel alongside several barges and tankers heading in the same
direction. We were passed by a tug towing a barge full of
containers. Pearce called it a moving van. We were also passed by
many fast cruisers throwing out huge wakes. One group of four had us
rocking and rolling for 10 minutes. While we were traveling through the
Kent Narrows on our way back to the Chesapeake, we heard about the 13th Great
Chesapeake Bay Swim which started at Sandy Park which is on the west side of the
Chesapeake and finished across the bay at Kent Island, a distance of 4. 5
miles. The Bay was effectively closed to all boat traffic that wanted to
go up the Chesapeake from Annapolis to Baltimore!!! We could hear all the
boats complaining, including some dumbie who said, "I'm on my way from
Florida to New York and I demand that I not be delayed." The patient
answer was, "We'll open to all traffic after the last swimmer has cleared
the channel." We just happened to be going up the inside way --
weren't we lucky?
4:30 pm, 65 miles and we finish the Chesapeake. It all
narrows down to a narrow ditch called The C&D Canal connecting the
Chesapeake with the Delaware River. Along the canal is Chesapeake City, a nice
anchorage (the only one on the canal), where we turned in for the night. We
anchored at first among a tight pack of sail and power boats. One small
unattended sailboat insisted on zigging whenever we zagged, bumping our transom
every few minutes.  Suddenly,
a spot became available at the free town dock. We moved; enjoyed an evening with
a sociable group of live-aboard sailors and spent several hours trading sea
stories.
Monday, June 14,2004... Flag Day!... Some of the sea stories last night dwelled
on the horror of going down the Delaware with an ebbing tide against a southerly
wind. This morning the tide hadn't started ebbing and the southerly was still
light.  Kay
remembered the horror stories, but reluctantly agreed to give the Delaware a
try. It was relatively quiet out there before the tide turned; several ships
came and went passing each other, us and the atomic power plant. We had
preplanned several bailout coves and rivers along the Jersey shore, and, sure
enough, around 10 o'clock, we were starting to get beat up. We put in to the
Cohansey River after fighting the Delaware for only ten miles. The Cohansey is
deep and windy and meanders past Greenwich, New Jersey, a lovely, historic town
that was founded before Philadelphia.  We
tied up at Hancock's Harbor Marina, rustic,  but
quiet and friendly, unloaded our bikes and pedaled into the village. The
guide book says it's only a mile, but we clocked at least three... Thanks to
gear shifters and no hills, we made it there, lunched, groceried, touristed and
made it back too! The guide book says that this town was established a few years
before Philadelphia, had an intimate relationship with Blackbeard, and
suffered two British invasions.  It would have been nice to peruse some of
this history, but the Historical Society was closed, and most of the old homes
are private residences. Along the way we came across a little farm stand and bought a
stack (about three pounds) of just picked asparagus for three dollars. It was an
honor stand so we put the money in a box on the counter. Never saw the farmer.
Back at the boat, after a nap, Pearce caught a huge catfish and filleted it. A
cold chardonnay, shrimp cocktail, the catfish and asparagus was a memorable
gourmet dinner. Tomorrow, if the Delaware lays down, we'll turn the corner at
Cape May.
New Jersey, New York and back "home" to Long Island is the next
chapter... worth a new page of its own.
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Cruisin' The Loop Aboard Kibon