Home waters.

Arriving back in the USA after nearly 2 years absence was interesting. Oh my! Still the land of plenty, despite the tariffs. We made landfall at the Isles of Shoals, a small archipelago just off the coast of southern Maine. We picked up one of the free moorings in the harbor, next to the delightfully named Smuttynose Island. The next morning we went ashore to stretch our legs and check out the Oceanic Hotel – it reminded us of “The Shining”.

Unfortunately, it was closed for the season. We still managed to explore, checking out the huge boulders making up the recently finished causeway and the quaint chapel. After lunch we had a lovely gentle sail over to the mainland and picked up the mooring belonging to friends Diane and Tim in Kittery, Maine. There were crab pot floats everywhere, even in the channel. It made us glad we were not sailing for long in Maine waters.

We had a fun party that night at Tim and Dianes lovely home, catching up with other sailing friends in the neighborhood: Dana, Lisa and Leon. The next day Dana and Lisa took us shopping and provided much needed laundry service. Thanks everyone for the warm welcome home.

We could see there was only one day of NE wind for the foreseeable future, so we jumped the 70 miles south to arrive in Provincetown just after sunset. The days getting shorter make these longer passages more difficult. We motored in to the harbor with high beam flashlight to help pick out the crab pots, and anchored next to the nearly empty mooring field. The next day was blustery and foggy, a perfect day to make cupcakes for the birthday boy.

Once the weather cleared up we had a wander around the galleries in Provincetown. Being so late in the season it was not at all crowded, although some of the shops were closed.

A quick trip through the Cape Cod canal took us to sheltered waters where we spent a pleasant couple of days in Onset Bay before moving over to a mooring in New Bedford, ahead of a gale.

New Bedford is a working town, a large fishing fleet is based here and the deep water port, protected by storm gates, is perfect for the growing (hopefully) wind generator industry.

Storm gates which can be closed in the event of a hurricane. One of very few truly protected harbors along this coast.

New Bedford, with its quaint cobble streets in the downtown area, enjoys a rich history. It was the base of the nation’s Whaling industry in the 1800’s, and there is a strong Portuguese immigrant community here, mostly originating from the Azores due to the whaling opportunities. Both are celebrated in the wonderful Whaling museum based in the historic downtown area.

In addition, Herman Melville set out on his voyage upon a whaling ship from New Bedford, the experience he used in his writing of the novel Moby Dick. The Seamen’s Bethel, a chapel for seamen to use while onshore, has a pew he supposedly frequented along with an impressive pulpit. The plaques all along the walls told of some brutal times and unpleasant ends.

There were another couple of reasons to visit New Bedford. Jake has his company headquarters here in the New Bedford Research and Robotics Center. We go check it all out.

Helen’s friend from those old work days, Mahnaz, came to see if the boating life was for her. It was lovely seeing you again dear friend. John and Allison, last seen onboard Helacious in Iceland, came to pick us up and whisk us off to Bristol, Rhode Island. There we visited the Herreschoff Marine Museum, an incredible collection of beautiful wooden boats built and designed by the Herreschoff brothers. Thank you guys for a fantastic day out.

Moving on, we spend a few days at Block Island. In the summer, this anchorage is heaving with boats, yet we shared it in early October with one other boat.

We have wonderful weather, taking a walk along the coastal path we see signs of approaching fall.

Finally the weather looks good to make the crossing from New England down to the Delaware Bay. The dinghy is tied on the foredeck and we wait until the wind shifts to the NE. The trip out of the Block Island narrow channel was quite hairy, with strong winds on the beam and large breaking waves. Still we muscled through, turned and pulled the sails out then flew south. We were literally holding on for some of the trip, picking up small visitors for a while; a couple of birds had been swept off shore in the high winds and were exhausted. They rested for an hour or so, then flew away.

Passing Atlantic City. It was so rough even the iphone could not manage.

We had timed our departure from Block Island to arrive at the entrance to Delaware bay at the turn of the tide. We nailed it. Arriving at slack, we rode the tide all the way up to the C&D canal, managing to reach Chesapeake City for the night. Despite its grandiose name, there is not even a grocery store there, and we were a little low on supplies. A nasty storm was approaching; we hunker down for 3 days in the entrance to Sassafras River, raiding the deep storage for crackers and tortillas to keep us going.

The weather cleared up and we moved on south to Annapolis where Helacious had a date at Bert Jabin boatyard for some spa treatment. It was short notice, as we had been uncertain of our arrival date. Other boatyards were too busy putting boats away for the winter to be able to fit us in. Fortunately this yard was large and more flexible, although it came at a price.

We hauled out and the next day a crew came to sand the bottom. Then began the process of repainting, including the priming and painting of a new boot stripe. The old vinyl stripe we had put on 2 years ago had not even survived the first passage down to the Carribbean. We had been shamefully sporting a tatty waterline stripe ever since, not having had the opportunity to fix it. Now it will be done properly. We also had to get a survey performed for the insurance underwriters, this went well with no issues and our theoretical value actually increased. Unheard of in maritime circles.

We made some saw horses so we could reach for painting the stripe, and used our fender board to walk along. The multiple layers of primer, epoxy and final coats meant there were 8 layers in all. We were so lucky with the weather, warm and dry for a whole week. There was also some sewing going on inside. We replaced all the clear vinyl material in the cockpit enclosure. Much brighter and no scratches.

After a spell in Charleston visiting a birthday boy, and allowing the paint to dry, we return to Annapolis and the next day Helacious is back in the slings and hovering over the water.

After a day at anchor to wait for the north wind, we head off down the Chesapeake. We are leading the pack, it is a mad dash for warmer waters. November 1st is frequently the date the insurance companies quote as “hurricane free” and permission to head south is thus granted.

One morning, as we were at anchor eating breakfast this parade of more than ten specialized large fishing vessels came home after a night fishing. They are part of the last remaining fleet of Menhaden fishing boats. Menhaden is a small bait fish, however in this case it is processed into “protein”, to be used in fish and animal meal, in addition to fish oil. Some of the boats had a couple of powerful skiffs on the back, which could be launched with a net between which they would round up the Menhaden to then be hauled up into the larger ships for processing. Apparently Reedville, the base for this fleet, is known for its smelly fish processing plant. We were lucky, either they were not working or the wind was in the other direction.

After a few days we arrive in Norfolk, at the southern end of Chesapeake Bay, ready to enter the sheltered waters of the ICW. Passing the many impressive Navy ships, we wondered what each specialized vessel was for. The cranes and gantries of the container port and the parts of wind farms waiting to be shipped out was an interesting mix.

The next morning we head out, passing under the first of many bridges on our way down the ICW.

The ICW is frequently referred to as “The Great Ditch” in a dismissive way. However I find this stretch to be quite lovely. A mix of forested swamps, endless reeds and grasses. This time of year with the changing leaf colors, it was beautiful.

There are some stretches where there is what looks like vast expanses of open water, however the eye is deceived. The depth in the channel is usually about 12ft, while either side it is a mere 3 feet or less; we are quite constrained. We did however manage to raise the sail and turn the engine off for a day as we crossed Albmarle Sound.

The Alligator River canal is a 22 mile stretch, straight as a die and rather boring. Not a time to let concentration lapse though, the stumps and crab pots along the edge would quickly put a propellor out of action. Over the radio chatter we heard of at least a couple of boats discovering a submerged log. We spend a lovely couple of days sitting at anchor, among the reeds, just off the waterway before the final push to where we will leave Helacious for a short break.

We arrive in Broad Creek, near Oriental NC. There is a small marina where friend Mads and Ava, who we first met in Å Coruna, Spain over 3 years ago, currently have their boat. It was off the beaten track and well sheltered, a perfect place to leave Helacious under a watchful eye while we go for a quick visit back to our home in Memphis.

And this is where I shall leave you, dear reader. We will resume the adventure forthwith, do not fear. Taking things easy, one anchorage at a time. Stay tuned.

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