We’re on our way south, with the crowd. At the beginning of the Intra Coastal Waterway, Great Bridge, near Norfolk, Virginia, things are a bit crowded. But they quickly thin out, and for the most part we’ve been able to find the quiet waterways and anchorages which are to our liking.
As we mentioned on our way north, there is a definite protocol to passing. Call the yacht ahead, discuss the side to pass, have them slow down, and then pass at a speed where your wake does not roll the other vessel.
When the faster yachts pass us we do not slow down, and advise them to just roar on by. Sometimes it takes an extra VHF transmission to get this strange point of view across (since we do not roll why not keep everyone going at their best). On occasion we get to surf the passers wake, spicing up an otherwise boring sea state. Yachts which are slower than the rest occasionally pull over to allow those trapped behind to get by.
On occasion we have a chat on VHF with other yachts. These are usually a source of information about stops along the way, shallow stretches, and are a nice way to break up the day. Most yachts go from marina to marina. Perhaps it is the shore power outlet that draws them in.
Our preference is to find a wide spot, work our way to an area with at least four feet (1.2m) of water at low tide, and enjoy a quiet evening.
The view outside has us wanting to just sit.
We’ve been fortunate to have several raptors for company.
Several times we have stopped, backed up, and watched in awe as these flying machines went about their business. we are particularly fond of eagles.
The holding has been good with the anchor standing up to 1500 RPM on both engines in reverse. This has allowed us to shorten down to two to one scope, typically less than 30 feet chain deployed, which makes it possible to place ourselves outside of the traffic lanes in narrower stretches of the ICW.
The scenery along the Waterway is mostly shades of green. Some might find this boring.
But we love the colors, textures, and geometric designs. It changes constantly as we move along.
We are most pleased to tell y ou that tagging (grafiti) along the way is minimal, this being one of the few examples we’ve noticed.
There are a variety of eagles on this trip. We think this is a juvenile baldy.
Then there are the strike eagles, F-15s training near our anchorage off the Alligator River.
Some might be put off by the roar of these jets as they chase each other around the sky. But their thunder sends shivers down our spines when they do close flybys.
Being former pilots we can relate, and dream about what it must be like to have the stick of one of these jets in our right hand.
Speaking of flying, we are once again in the territory of the elegant pelican. They are amazing acrobatic pilots, and we never tire of their in flight maneuvering.
We have been fortunate to have a frontal passage during one afternoon, providing wonderful light and clouds to enjoy.
Early morning departures from our anchorages has left us with minimum traffic.
And the odd pedestrian swimming across the river (this youngster failed to look both ways and he would have been run over had we not done a hard stop).
Most of the yachts we see are of the motor variety, typically running on a slow plane.
A few are less concerned with their fuel costs and rocket by. The fastest of these typically have much smaller wakes than their lumbering cousins.
Sailboats are a definite minority, perhaps a draft issue. We were taken with the design of this dodger, then we noticed the hull. Bare aluminum rocks.
We liked Gary Hoyt’s early Freedom designs a lot. The problem with this configuration is easy to see on this chilly day. How does one rig a dodger?
Not everyone is afloat. A few are enjoying the parade, taking advantage of the fair conditions, working on their fish tales.
The Coast Guard is on patrol, even in these rivers.
There’s even a Coast Guard base and you ignore the “no wake” signs at your peril.
There are many species of birds, some in huge flocks that would make Alfred Hitchcock smile.
The clean up crew is circling on the thermals. There must be a lot of work as buzzards are everywhere.
Closing in on Oriental, NC, the wake of the day prize is awarded. The roostertail is impressive on this cat, but the actual wake is quite small.
And at the end of the day there is almost always sunset spectacular, which helps to digest the day’s visual impact on our pysche.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 23, 2011)
October 24th, 2011 at 6:44 am
We have done this passage many times and always find something interesting to see or do. It can be an amazing passage.
There are some sites that you might want to look at that will help you in planning; https://activecaptain.com/noflash.php
This is a user based interactive site that give information on navigation, anchorages and marinas.. We do not have any affiliation with it other than happy users. Not sure how far south you are going but there are some problem areas in you immediate future. The trip from Morehead City to Wrightsville Beach is the first, it is sometimes hard to time the four bridges along the way which are not synced with multiple small inlets and currents and the Marine Base at Camp Lejune will shut down the ICW for certain times. We have been caught there in the past and simply drop the hook and wait it out. You can call the local CG for to see if there are any planned closing when you plan your passage. Many will jump off shore at Morehead/Beaufort and bypass this area. Frequent inlets are Masonboro, Cape Fear, Wynahbay and Charleston depending on how much you want to bypass. We have done it both ways but timing you passage through the well named Frying Pan shoals will be important if the weather is bad, maybe less so for you.
The scenery is fabulous in places along the ICW as it changes to the marshy Carolina low country.
Further south into Ga there are some remote and wonderful anchorages. We are currently in Charleston and will be departing and working our way south through a series of anchorages to the Fla boarder.
Really enjoy your blog and the technical componets thanks for allowing us all to journey with you.
October 24th, 2011 at 12:19 pm
Your pictures are a delight, thank-you. I particularly like your ones of the greens and brown s of the water side. It looks like evening light but may be morning, great skies too, and birds, and boats, and . . . . 🙂
The picture of the cat and the motorboat anchored shows that they are not lying to the wind. Is there an reasonable current in this waterway?
Mike
October 24th, 2011 at 6:51 pm
Hello Mike:
The two anchored boats were off our bow and the three of us were pretty much sitting head-to-wind/- 20 degrees. Current in rhis area of the waterway seemed pretty light.
October 24th, 2011 at 2:28 pm
Hi Steve,
Nice write up on the FPB 115 in this months Yachting Mag.
October 24th, 2011 at 6:59 pm
Thanks Larry:
Have not sen it yet.
October 24th, 2011 at 6:42 pm
Australian made Palm Beach 50 in the middle of those (dark blue hull)
October 24th, 2011 at 7:09 pm
Former pilots? Those certificates never expire you know…..
I’m curious what your aviation experience is.
October 24th, 2011 at 8:08 pm
Hi CJ:
Flew gliders, both aerobatic (SZD 59) and cross country (DG800 self launcher – 18 meter wing span). The latter ship was mainly for chasing records, speed and distance. An easy ship to fly, but unforgiving of pilot error in short field outlanding situations. WInd Horse was getting so much of our time that required skill levels for flying were not what they needed to be for unusual situations. Rather than “wearing the airplane”, having the flying essentially automatic, it was taking full mental bandwidth for basic flight, leaving me short for emergencies. Time to go on to something else.
October 24th, 2011 at 9:48 pm
Just to set the record straight, the ActiveCaptain website is at:
https://activecaptain.com
Our home base is in Castine on the Penobscot Bay in Maine. We happened to see your boat in our home waters this past summer but left you alone to enjoy the island you were anchored next too.
November 7th, 2011 at 6:26 am
We just arrived in Whangarei yesterday and today, while checking out boat yards, we spotted Wind Horse and a sister ship. My family and I remember meeting Linda and you many years ago at Catalina Island one summer when you were aboard Beowolf. You graciously invited us aboard and we talk of her frequently. The bad part of seeing Wind Horse is now my wife wants one. Dang!
Regardless, my best wishes to Linda and you.
Fair winds and calm seas,
Neal Schneider
November 7th, 2011 at 7:42 am
Hi Neil
Nice to hear from you. Wind Horse is in North Carolina. What you have seen is a 20 meter version of her. These are being built at Circa Marine just off the harbor.
Regards to your wife.