Re-Organizing

The first couple days back at the boat and we hadn't even unpacked the car yet.  The Prius was still stuffed to the brim with everything we brought across the country.  At first it was understandable as we had to clean the boat, and bringing a bunch of stuff onto the boat before we got rid of the mold and mildew that accumulated after the dehumidifier malfunctioned during the rainy season was not a good idea.

Yesterday we finally got around to unpacking...and that lasted about two boxes worth.  We found places to stow some of the stuff and then realized we needed more containers.  You see we have two big storage holds under the forward berths, but they are loaded from the top only.  Piling stuff in there would result in a big pit of disorganized supplies, so containers for organization seemed in order.

Now we could have gone to Target and bought some containers.  Since it was the first sunny day since we arrived I also could have given the boat a much needed bath.  So, what did we decide to do...go to the beach with the dogs of course.

We had a nice walk along the beach.  Our older dog...who has been having some health issues lately...even seemed happy and for the first time in a long while played with her younger brother in the surf.  We definitely made the right decision...the washing and unpacking could wait another day. And apparently there is some truth that old saying that "The cure for anything is salt water"...at least for a while.

The following day it was again warm and sunny and we finally did get around to washing the boat and getting those containers.  Actually...warm is an understatement...it was hot and the high was 91 degrees Fahrenheit today (I heard it snowed back home a day or two ago...what a difference).  There were some rain storms in the evening, but it cleared up just in time for a nice sunset.

So, we are slowly settling in here at the boat.

Deltaville to Brunswick, By the Numbers

I thought it would be interesting to see a few numbers related to the last trip.  And I thought I would throw in a couple other pictures as well. Most of the numbers are calculated from the tracks recorded by OpenCPN.  Engine hours are the total number of hours run per engine (so if I ran both engines for an hour, the number would indicate 2 engine hours).  In most cases the time and speed numbers include time spent deploying and hauling the anchor, waiting on bridges, etc.

The first leg of the trip was from Stingray Point (near Deltaville) to Mobjack bay.

• Distance: 24.1 NM
• Average Speed: 5.5 Kts. (approximate)
• Time: 04:20 (approximate)
• Engine Hours: 10.7 (including system testing time at start)

(I forgot to turn on tracking for part of this leg, so numbers are approximate)

The second leg was Mobjack Bay to Great Bridge Lock

• Distance: 43.5 NM
• Average Speed: 4.47 Kts.
• Time: 9:43
• Engine Hours:  16.3

The third leg was Great Bridge Lock to the Broad Creek anchorage.

• Distance: 44.55 NM
• Average Speed: 5.8 Kts,
• Time: 7:55
• Engine Hours: 11.2

Fourth Leg from Broad Creek to the Pungo River anchorage.

• Distance: 60.87 NM
• Average Speed: 4.25 Kts.
• Time: 14:19
• Engine Hours: 17.9

Fifth Leg from Pungo River to the Whittaker Point Marina.

• Distance: 53.43 NM
• Average Speed: 5.23 Kts.
• Time: 9:11
• Engine Hours: 16.5

Sixth Leg from Whittaker Point to Ft Macon anchorage.

• Distance: 23.4 NM
• Average Speed: 4.82 Kts
• Time: 4:10
• Engine Hours: 8.4

Seventh Leg from Ft Macon to Brunswick.

• Distance: 408.67
• Average Speed: 5.3 Kts.
• Time: 3 days 09:03 
• Engine Hours: 39.0

More time running the engines than I would like, but it can't be helped when traveling the ICW. I don't have good fuel numbers since I was unable to fill up before the trip started, but my best calculations show we were burning less than one gallon per engine hour. Hopefully next year I will be farther south before the cold arrives.

Here's a nice picture of where we anchored on Pungo Creek. Just after we dropped anchor another boat decided it looked like a good place to spend the night too.

And here is a picture of Neal sporting the appropriate wardrobe for much of the trip. A far cry from the t-shirt and shorts trip I made getting the boat up to Virginia.