Out in the Park

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Thunderstorms early this morning.  Even Snickers had to wear foul weather gear.

 

We all got underway mid morning,  including Salty Dog with Snickers at the helm.

We motored all the way from Coinjock back to Norfolk today.  Several draw bridges, and one lock.  Norfolk has a very nice park adjacent to the marina.  Today was "Out in the Park" day.  Not that there's anything wrong with that. 
The place looked festive with all the flags. 
(Pam said I was not being politically correct to underline the L in flags.)

Lots of rainbow flags.  Maybe Jeff Gordon fans.

 

If you don't yet understand what "Out in the Park" was all about, you could ask this guy in the bikini.

 Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Coinjock

Left Elizabeth City, and motored about 35 miles to Coinjock, N.C.  Along the way, a much larger cruiser had Frank's Rosborough as a figurehead. (hood ornament)

Not sure what this is, but my grandchildren fly something like it in my back yard at home.

 

We made it to Coinjock in time to fill up with fuel and shower before dinner, The restaurant here claims to serve the world's best prime rib.  Everyone going north or south on the ICW stops here.

 

As usual we were not the largest boats on the dock, but everyone loves our cute boats.

We had a long chat with an interesting couple who spent the last 5 years in South America on their 57' Nordhavan. 

 

The group from left to right includes Elaine, Greg, Frank, me, Pat, and Pam.  (Not pictured:  Snickers)

Here's Snickers

If you're going for the world's best prime rib, you get here any way you can.

We're heading back to Norfolk again tomorrow.   Some people call this circuit we've made so far the "Carolina Loop."  After Norfolk, we might go on NOrth to Tangier Island, and maybe some other stops in the lower Chesapeake Bay.

Elizabeth City, N.C.

We headed on down the dismal swamp canal, intending to tie up and spend the night at the Dismal Swamp Visitor's Center.  When we arrived, there were 4 or 5 big 40' plus cruisers and a couple of large sailboats that took up the entire wall.  We gave some thought to rafting up to them, but without knowing them or when they might wanted to depart, we decided to go on down to Elizabeth City.

More locks and drawbridges.

 

We arrived in Elizabeth City later than we wanted at about 7 pm.  Once again, all the free slips at the city's wharf were taken.  There's a bulkhead we might have tied to, however, there were signs all along saying no docking this weekend.  We backtracked under the bridge to Jennette Food Service where there was a nice wall we tied to for the night.  (Also Free)

 

We went inside Jennette to check in, and they told us that they lock their access gate at 9 pm.  A nice fellow in a nearby sailboat, told us that they lock it by 4 pm on Saturday.  (today)  We had thought we would stay another night, but decided being locked out might not be such a good thing.

Pam wanted to walk through the old town's hysterical district.  She enjoys looking at old houses which were built before the war of northern aggression.  So we hoofed it up and down Main street and the surrounding areas.   She was able to steal a magnolia blossom to bring back to the boat.

While walking around, we saw posters advertising a big regatta for this weekend.  (The reason for the signs prohibiting docking along the city wall.)  Since we're sailors gone bad, I thought it might be interesting to stay and see what kind of sailboats were in the regatta.  Little did I know.........................

 

So, we scuttled on back to the boats to depart before they closed the Pasquotank River and let loose the mayhem.   We woke up Frank, and are now headed toward Albemarle Sound.

 

Not exactly how we planned this trip, but I think I read somewhere that the most dangerous thing you can have on a cruising boat is a schedule.

The Great Dismal Swamp

Norfolk is mile 0 on the intercoastal waterway.  Heading south you can choose between the Albemarle & Chesapeake Canal, or the Dismal Swamp Canal.  We're going through the swamp and returning through the A & C. The three of us make a Rosborough Mini Rendezvous.  Grey Goose and Salty Dog came down from the upper Chesapeake.

Some places beckon you to come visit with just the sound of it's name.  The Great Dismal Swamp is outdone in that regard by very few spots.  Maybe Death Valley.  If you're planning a trip to the Dismal Swamp, it seems that in order to get the full "swamp" effect, you should pick a time when the temperature will be in the mid 90's.  When we left home the forecast called for mid 90's all week.  Fortunately, it's not quite that hot today.

The Deep Creek Lock and bridge opens on a schedule of 8:30am, 11:00am, 1:30pm, and 3:30pm.  There was no way we could get Frank up to arrive by 8:30, so we planned to make the 11:00 opening.  We arrived at 9:45, so we rafted up to wait it out.

We were entertained by Snickers, the Salty Dog.

Norfolk

Left Centerville Marina this morning, trying to time our trip up to Norfolk based on the drawbridges that open either on the hour, or the half hour.  The first one didn't open for the first time until 10 am.  On the way, we passed a dredge moving to a new location.

The Navy builds their top secret ships here in Norfolk.  we were able to sneak this photo of a new aircraft carrier before the water patrol caught us.

The Waterside Marina in Norfolk is a little like the one in Jacksonville.  Complete with a waterfront Hooters.  (I'm sure the statute of limitations has passed from that incident in N.C.)

Norfolk has a revitalized waterfront area

In the afternoon, we toured the Nauticus Museum and the battleship Wisconsin.

You really get a feel for the size of the guns (16") while standing under them.  The entire deck of this ship is teak--over 4 acres of teak.

While walking down the gangway of the Wisconsin, we spotted a couple of slightly smaller boats arriving in Norfolk. 

The 2 specks out on the water are Grey Goose and Salty Dog--two Rosboroughs that we will join for our trip to the Great Dismal Swamp. 

Back in business

Maybe..............................
We walked from our motel to the Ford dealer, hoping they might work faster knowing we were sitting there waiting.  They said the problem was the EGR valve, and replaced it.  I think we have the most expensive EGR valve in the world.  They got the repair finished, and we were underway by noon.

We stopped at a rest area after a hundert miles or so, and when we started the truck, massive amounts of black smoke billowed out the exhaust again.  After about 5 minutes, it sort of blew out the last of it, and we were ok until we stopped again--when the same thing happened.  I didn't shut off the engine again until we got to Centerville Marina in Chesapeake, VA.

The nice folks here at the marina let us launch after hours, and hung around to show us where we could leave our truck and trailer.  Now, we're dealing with a different type of tow.

It's not as bad as it looks.  We're tied in a slip along the waterway, and the barges are passing by in front of us.

Our prospects for a successful cruise look much better tonight.  We'll worry about the truck getting us home later.

Tomorrow, we plan to go up to Norfolk to hook up with two other Rosboroughs.  Grey Goose and Salty Dog. From there we'll venture down into the Great Dismal Swamp.

On the Road Again

Or not.........................................

 

What I meant to say was " Being towed again."

We were headed to the East Coast.  Got as far as West Virginia.  Close to Beckley, WV, when the truck just "blowed up."  It sent plumes of black smoke out the exhaust, and lost all power.

I called the Ford dealer in Beckley, and they said "Sorry, but all our mechanics are at a training school for the next 2 weeks.  Nobody in this town can even look at your truck for the next 2 weeks."
The next town was Lewisburg, WV--about 60 miles on down the road.  I called to check if all their mechanics were also away training, they said "no, he's here."  Next call was to a towing company.  I asked for a tow truck big enough to haul our truck, and tow our boat to Lewisburg.  When the first truck arrived, he looked at our boat, and put in a call for another truck.  "Too many mountains to haul both."  So, we had one tow truck haul our truck to the Ford dealer in Lewisburg, and another one tow our boat to a motel in Lewisburg.  Once again, we are stranded and at the mercy of a Ford dealer.  Maybe we need to think about a new truck..........................or a new hobby.