Lay Days 1-5 Deltaville, VA (Days 47-51)

The boat is currently in Deltaville, VA at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay.  The owners (Pieter and Ansie Diedericks) will winter the boat here and I will be heading home in a couple days.  

The owners will keep it in the water until at least late-October and  then come down to sail a little before they winterize it.  They may hold off lifting it out right away. Boats do winter here in the water year round without the need for bubblers.

THE WEATHER FOR 4 DAYS!
STORMY WITH LOTS OF WIND & RAIN!

I had some rough days coming down the Chesapeake and on arrival here had the port engine quit.  Of course, as you know this is a new engine.  

NICE CALM BACK CHANNEL
THE WINTER SLIP IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER

The pitching motion was violent enough the day of arrival that I think it shook up debris from the bottom of the fuel tank and clogged the low speed jet. At any rate, I could not get the port engine to idle and it quit coming into the dock, after a very long hard day.  

Then I got a serious burn on my arm when I backed up against the hot grill being careless while making dinner that eve.

GREAT OVERLOOK FROM THE MAIN BUILDING PORCH

 

BACK SIDE OF SAME BUILDING - NICE FACILITIES!

There were other problems with a serious leak in the water system, as well.  I ordered parts back in Annapolis to be delivered here at the local West Marine, but the parts ended up being wrong and need to be re-ordered.  

If you have been following the blog you are aware there have been persistent problems starting right from Grand Marais, MN. Doing this trip solo has added to the stress without much relief in port due to the need to repair broken items on the boat on a continual basis.  

My original plan favored for this trip was to  break it up in two phases, from Grand Marais, MN to the beginning of the ICW in 2014 and the second phase of the ICW in spring of 2015, avoiding much of the hurricane season.  

The other option was all the way to Florida in one year, which the owner favored.  However, with the latest problems, I suggested the owner reconsider the overall plan.  

Pieter and Ansie will complete the ICW leg in spring of 2015, before June 1, and the start of hurricane season.  The cruising permit does not expire until the end of August 2015 so that gives them time to get out to the Bahamas for a couple weeks to fulfill the permit limitations for renewal. As Canadians, the are required to have the boat out of the country for at least two weeks consecutively, annually. 

The long and the short is, they agreed with this alternative plan, so I will wrap things up here in the next couple days and fly home.  

As a side note, I did finally get the engine fixed, it was debris in the carburetor, so at least that is working!  However, the water system still needs repair and the fridge is in the last throws of death and needs overhaul or better yet replacement with a chest style fridge.  I have been down to using ice to supplement the fridge for these last few days.

STERN SHOT OF BOAT IN THE WINTER SLIP
SQUEEZED BETWEEN A TRIMARAN IN FOREGROUND AND LARGE CAT IN BACKGROUND

WINTER SLIP
1.25'-1.75' TIDE SO LINES HAVE TO ALLOW FOR VERTICAL MOTION.

Another problem arose before I departed. When I moved the boat to its winter berth I tried to power up the primary cockpit navigation display but none of the control buttons would function!  No matter what I did I could not get the unit to operate correctly. Even the power switch would not work!

The weather for the days in Deltaville were generally windy, rainy, and cooler than previously experienced.  There were several boats that stayed put during the time I was there due to weather and rough seas on the Bay.  It was the first time I experienced some of the social interaction I expected to find on this trip.  Too bad it had to be just before I left!

For several nights we all gathered in the lounge and shared food, drink, stories, and listened to some great guitar playing and songs by the crew of one boat that played music at the professional level.  It was really fun!

CAPTAIN PLAYING ON LEFT - EXCELLENT VOCALIST
A GREAT TIME HAD BY ALL FOR TWO NIGHTS!

The primary vocalist was the captain of a larger sail vessel who when he heard I was going home offered me a crew position on his boat which was on its way to Seattle via the Panama Canal over the next six months. Interesting, but not appealing after the past few months I have just gone through!

LEAD GUITAR - VERY GOOD!

Added Note: I flew out of Richmond, VA to the Twin Cities on 9/10. This ends the 2014 blog.  

Stats: Total Distance Traveled in 2014 - 1613.1 NM; Total Grand Marais, MN to Deltaville, VA - 1544.7 NM; Total Great Lakes Legs - 813.1 NM; Total Erie Canal/Hudson River - 400.7 NM; Total NYC to Deltaville, VA - 330.9 NM. Total for me 2014-1212.4 NM; Total for new owners - 400.7 NM.

EAST COAST LEG FROM NYC TO DELTAVILLE, VA (330.9 NM)