Here’s a photo of Wolfe Trap Light, indicating that we’re getting close to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. The Bay at this point is impressively wide.

Cape Charles is somewhere to my left – a small gray line on the horizon. Similarly the land on my right – there’s a small gray line; I cannot see the openings for Mobjack Bay or the York River. Ahead of me, I see nothing at all except the horizon.

There are huge freighters anchored here awaiting berth assignments. And a fleet of commercial fishing vessels passed us headed north. Six net trawlers and their mothership-the factory ship. Very big and very scary and just a tip of the iceberg when you think about the worldwide commercial fishing fleet. I love my fish and chips. I just hope we’re fishing sustainably.

Radio traffic is starting to pick up substantially. Lots of communication between the Coast Guard and commercial ships. I better sign off. I think things are gonna start to get busy pretty fast. I can now see Norfolk in Portsmith appearing on the horizon.

It’s Thursday morning, and we’re on our way from Smith Point to Portsmouth, Virginia. It is spectacularly beautiful on the Bay today. The sea is flat, almost like glass. The sun is brilliantly bright, and there’s not another boat within 5 miles of me in any direction. We continue to charge due south: The wake is straight as an arrow behind me, we are pointed right at our next waypoint, and I am enjoying a nice hot bowl of chili. One of the best ideas I had was to prepare my lunch every morning and put it in a thermos so it’s readily available when I get hungry. Typically by 10:30!

We saw our first pelicans today. It’s funny, I don’t think we have any up in Rock Hall but just one day south, and we’ve encountered them. I associate them with Florida and the Lowcountry, so it’s a good sign. Can’t wait til we see our first dolphins!

We are experiencing a very strange atmospheric condition just now. Everything behind us is shrouded in fog, but everything ahead of us is brilliantly clear. Behind us, our visibility is limited to about 4 miles, but ahead our visibility is unlimited. Love it.

********************
I’m actually working at my laptop as we chug along. Love my auto-helm!

As the morning moves along, we’re starting to see a pattern…about every mile or so, we pass a sailboat or a trawler (a slower style of power boat) on roughly the same course as ours. Obviously, we’re starting to join the “train” of boats headed south.

I hope things don’t get too crowded..I hate having anyone slow me down, but I think I had better plan on it. right now, however, things are clear ahead as far as I can see (literally).

What a spectacular first day! Five+ hours at 20 knots in Indain summer weather.

About halfway into the trip, our course turned due south. We were steering 180 degrees, and -because of the position of the sun – the entire bay in front of us was silver shards of reflected sunlight. These are the moments that pay off all the preparation.

I tried to upload a movie of the sun on the water, but I broke the slow-speed internet here!

Here’s a shot of Freedom docked in Smith Point Marina. I don’t think I would ever stay here again…As you can see, there’s not much here: Me, Guinness, and a beautiful creek. Plus some frozen lasagna.

I elected to stay here because it’s where a friend of mine stayed when he made this trip. I was desperate for information and advice based on real hands-on experience. I figured if he did it, I should do it.

The water here is so shallow that we barely made it into the marina!

Nevertheless, I’m very satisfied – a start well made. We’re halfway down the Bay already.

Wednesday, November 3, 2020

Left at 9 AM. Bright sun. Calm seas. Perfect.

Well, we’re almost ready to go. We spent today doing some re-provisioning (mostly food and dog treats). We finally got the recharge kits for the automatic lifejackets. And we took a last walk in the sunshine. Unfortunately, Guinness went hunting for muskrats in the water-filled ditches along the road. He scared up one almost as big as a football, and he got himself bitten on the nose. Plus he was a muddy mess. So we had to give him a bath, and treat his nose. He’s fine. It was just a scratch.

It’s a beautiful evening, probably 10° warmer than it was last night, and we are quite relaxed. The windows are all washed (important for spotting buoys), and the bilges are all dry. We’ve topped off the fuel tank and the water tanks, and our navigational routes are all pre-loaded into the chart plotter. I think we’re ready to go.

In the morning we’ll have some breakfast, walk the dog, reset the trip log, and cast off the lines.

Our first stop is Solomon’s Island, about 4 hours south.

I have to admit that I’ve been frustrated by this weather delay, and I am really looking forward to casting off tomorrow.

We have a morning checklist: uncouple the shore power and store the power cord, bring the water hose on board, put on our lifejackets, and bring all the dock lines on board. Then we are off.

The forecast calls for 5-10 knot winds and seas of just 1 foot. Wind right on the bow. We’re expecting a great trip, and I think we’ll be rewarded for waiting.

Note to Ed Bednarz: Thanks for the old Robert Ludlum book. He writes like he was being paid by the word, but I could not have gotten through the last few days without him!

Last night was fun: 35 degrees and 35-knot winds.
Got up twice to adjust the lines.

Today was bitter,
Tomorrow will be better.
Wednesday we go, God willing.

A warning and a spoiler. The post that follows is a rant. Some of you have heard parts of it before.

Actually, it’s the kind of pedantic posturing that blog-owners do. Just because they can, because no one edits them… sorry.

The stream-of-consciousness ramblings of a man with too much time to think…waiting for a weather window
You should probably skip it and wait for the next post. You were warned.

***********************************************************************

I’m writing this on a day late in early November…just days before the Election. And yes, I voted last week.

There is a spectacular sunset tonight, I know it’s sentimental, but I can’t help thinking it’s a message from Cathy. That was her mantra: “All you need is love and a sunset.”

But I’ve been kind of depressed today, because I am worried about the state of my ship.

Not Freedom. I mean the Ship of State – the United States of America.

I’ll declare myself up front – I am a Centrist, (at least by my reckoning), and I have been frustrated my entire adult life by our inability to steer a rational Centrist course. (in my humble opinion)

Our Social Contract
In particular, I am wrestling with the question of our Social Contract. It’s a profound question, and smarter people than I – people like Hobbes, and Locke, and Rousseau have debated it for centuries. In general, it means that we cede certain of our individual rights to our government in order to enjoy life in a stable, lawful society.

At its most basic, that’s it: Take as little from me as possible and protect my life and my property.

I am certainly on board with the property protection. Riots and looting are not part of the democratic process. They are unlawful, and I simply don’t think they should be tolerated.

But I believe that our Social Contract should be broader and deeper than simply a law-and-order mandate.

The Declaration of Independence talks about the pursuit of happiness, and the Preamble to the Constitution talks about Promoting the General Welfare. But (at least to my eyes) there’s not a lot of specificity about what these phrases really mean.

Hence, the struggles between our two political parties, seeking to define a consensus, which doesn’t seem to exist. Instead, we are polarized.

This is where it gets painful for me, because I believe that government has a moral obligation to try and better the lives of ALL our citizens.

Some of our fundamental policies already support this view. Social Security. Medicare. They are bedrock social programs.

It’s also why we have a progressive tax system: if we make more, we are taxed at a higher rate, and these funds are spent on programs to make life better for everyone. Sometimes investment in infrastructure. Sometimes social programs.

Unfortunately, I believe that these programs – which essentially constitute an income redistribution process – are failing. Proving my point, the U.S. has far and away the highest rates of poverty in the developed world. That saddens me. And it baffles me. So many well-intended policies that don’t really work.

Jobs
And that makes me think about jobs. (Employment, not Steve)

If you were a leader of the Chinese Communist Party, and I told you that you could destroy America’s manufacturing base without dropping a single bomb, would you be interested? All you need to do is produce steel, or plastics, or whatever, for just a few pennies less, and America will shut down its factories and buy from you.

Because somewhere along the line, we decided that the only way to measure a corporation’s worth is return on shareholder value. So, if the corporation returns more profit by sourcing overseas, great! We put no value on the jobs that were lost. But, if there are no jobs, entire cities are transfigured. (Bethlehem Steel). If there are no jobs, why finish school? Why not just sell drugs?

We gutted our own manufacturing base, once the envy of the world.
The CCP beat us at our own game. And that’s the failure of capitalism. It has failed to consider the social impact of its decisions.

I have to admit that I was seduced by the logic of Globalization. A lot of folks were – going all the way back to Reagan (thank you Kate for that insight.)

Universal Healthcare
In the confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett, it was obvious that the Democrats’ biggest concern is the over-ruling of the ACA. I give President Obama and his party a lot of credit for getting the ACA approved, but if it can’t withstand judicial scrutiny, then let’s write a version that can. The key is reaching agreement that universal health care is something we want and need, and that we have the means and the will to make it work. This is a tough issue, because there are some HUGE players (like Big Pharma and the insurance companies) with an economic stake in the outcome.

Racism
While we’re at it, let’s talk skin color: God’s cruelest joke.
Skin color is the first thing I see when I look someone, but it doesn’t tell me a thing about their character or the quality of their mind.

If God wanted skin color to count for something, he should’ve made it more obvious.
• Green = Greed
• Red = Anger
• Yellow = Cowardice
• Purple = Pretentious?

Instead, it doesn’t mean a damn thing. All men are created equal. And yes, ALL lives matter.

Roe v. Wade
I’m already deep into my rant, so why don’t we tackle the next third-rail issue? Abortion. if all lives matter…

If life is sacred, abortion is murder.
Can we make exceptions for rape and exceptional medical circumstances? Of course.

Can we agree that women have a right to control their own bodies? Of course.
But that comes with responsibility. If you don’t want a child, don’t conceive one.

In my mind, this whole debate seems to be anchored in the past. Don’t modern birth control methods require that we re-visit this amendment? (the Pill? Plan B Pills?) Is Roe v. Wade still relevant? Honest question, not a conclusion.

The Death of Our Planet
While we’re talking about Social Contracts, what’s our obligation to protect this planet for ourselves and our children? We need a totally fresh vision for how to live sustainably on Earth. Yes, without hydrocarbons. Duh.

I have to say that on this issue alone, the Republicans have lost the right to lead. They are on the wrong side of history.

**************************
I would like to make America great again, but my definition is somewhat different from others, as you can tell. Yes, it includes the rule of law, and restoring our manufacturing base. But it must include concern for all our citizens and for our planet.

I am heartened by tonight’s sunset. I hope and pray we will find our way.

The one certainty about boating is that it’s weather-dependent. I am soooo glad I pushed off our departure date by 2 days.

Cold, rainy and windy (can I say wintery?) weather is expected to continue through Monday. We are comfortable on the boat, but it would be miserable to be traveling on Monday as planned.

Instead, things are expected to improve Tuesday and improve markedly later in the week!

I’m using the time to pre-plan the process for bringing Guinness to the Bahamas. It’s actually more complicated than the Covid requirements for me. I’m counting on advice from our wonderful Veterinarian, Clarissa Lyon.

We are currently enjoying a break – with sunny, albeit chilly skies. Fingers crossed.

Today was supposed to be our departure day. Waiting to leave is killing me, but sometimes things work out for the best.

For example, we learned that a barge smashed into the Norfolk #7 RR bridge at the end of last week, blocking ALL ICW traffic northbound AND southbound. Fortunately, it has been repaired, and by the time we get there, the backed-up train and boat traffic should have cleared. The option would have been a LOOONG risky trip around the Outer Banks. Whew.

It was quite cold here (Rock Hall) over the weekend, with lows near freezing. Fortunately, we had packed winter clothes, intermediate-weather clothes, and – of course – summer clothes. The boat was cozy, but it was still cold walking Guinness, even with leather jacket and gloves.

Today and tomorrow we’ll finish a few last-minute projects, and dream about getting underway.

More good news: we’re expecting warmer weather as the week goes on.

All around the globe, concerned individuals and anxious groups of friends are wondering:
“Are they ever actually going to leave on this damn trip?”

As you know, our departure date was this coming Monday, 11/2, but now we’re pinned here by 3 days of high winds predicted for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. 35 knot gusts on the beam makes for a very uncomfortable trip.

Thank goodness these new wind-and-weather apps are precise. The general forecast can trick you.

We could leave on Saturday – a day early, but then we’d just have to hole up for 3 days in some small town halfway down the bay. I’d just as soon wait in Rock Hall.

So, we’re now planning to leave on Wednesday – a loss of 2 days versus our plan.

No biggie. I’ve already figured out how to make that up:
• We’ll speed up our trip down the bay – one stop on the way to Portsmouth instead of two
• The schedule already includes an extra day in Coinjock for possible weather delay: Perfect.
• I expect to be back on schedule when we leave Coinjock on 11/7.

Hopefully, things won’t be backed up in Coinjock. Everyone who’s already there will also be pinned; they will not want to proceed south across Albemarle Sound unless conditions are favorable.

Fingers crossed.