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Onward’s Cruise Journal 2010
Cruise N Up the ICW FL to NE

June 2010

1 Jun 2010; Slade Ck to Coinjock NC

• Onward had an early morning start and had a peaceful and uneventful cruise up the ICW to Coinjock where we put into the Midway Marina and refilled the port fuel tank. The only excitement came when exiting Albemaro Sound where the channel has shifted to the E and a red day mark is missing. We also found some thin water on the centerline of the channel as we approached the S entrance to Coinjock.
• After my 7 weeks as a landlubber in LA and now having Ron aboard to assist, I still am not quite in the zone the way I am when I am singlehanding. It has been great to relax but I'm afraid that I have enjoyed it too much and I haven't been on task to do boat chores - even though having Ron here makes it possible. Today I began to improve on this by using one of my iPad aps to start rebuilding all of my to do lists. I even did a few!
• Ron is a friend of Terry the owner of Midway so he wanted to stop for dinner. I had the rack of ribs and it was by far the best ribs dish I've ever eaten: the meat was really tender and just fell off the bones while sauce added flavor but was subtle. Delish!

• 2 Jun 2010; Coinjock to Hampton VA

• We had a lazy morning because of the short day ahead and departed the marina after topping off water and giving the deck a good wash down. Onward made it through the VA opening bridges before the afternoon rush hour. Onward passed ICW STM 0 at 1530 hrs and 17650 nm some 7 months after passing the other way!
• I took the opportunity yesterday and today to update the recipes I have developed for pepper biscotti, pizza, rosemary olive oil bread, etc. I've made these so many times now I've been able to improve and simplify their preparation. Now that I've added spinach pies (and variations such as prosciuto and cheese pies) to the repertoire I have now have tasty items I can keep in the freezer for a quick lunch.
• We took a slip at the Hampton Marina. The cross wind and cross current her made tying up a challenge to keep Onward straight in the slip. I may try anchoring out in the future because of the difficulties getting into slips here presents.
• Ron and I made our pilgrimage to the Tap Room where we enjoyed sampling the wide variety of beers on tap.

• 3 Jun 2010; Hampton VA to Reedville VA

• We departed Hampton at 0900 because the dockmaster was late. There was a light SW wind so we were able to motorsail for a good part of the day before the winds died. A forecast for severe thunderstorms along a front moving E across the region caused us to put into Reedville off the Wicomico R. We were securely anchored well before the front arrived so I took the opportunity to drain the fuel bowl of the outboard and get it running again. The water in the fuel I experienced before Georgetown must have helped clean up the carburetor because the engine ran smoothly. I took the dinghy for a ride around to exercise the engine and found out what everyone told me about the smell from the fish plant when I moved downwind of it. Onward was anchored just S of the plant and the prevailing winds had kept the smell away. When the front came through, shifts of wind brought the smell to us - disgusting! But thankfully the wind shifted back to the S. The fish plant has 10 large menhaden fishing trawlers with another 4 elsewhere in the harbor along with 4 spotting planes. It's no wonder the stock of baitfish in the Bay is depleted!

• 4 Jun 2010; Reedville to Herring Bay

• An easy trip N with light SW winds that took away any cooling air flow - so it was a warm ride. I anchored Onward at 1600 just W of the entrance to Herrington Harbor S Marina as another set of thunderstorms were forecast. We loaded up the dinghy and went ashore to meet Linda. Ron insisted in taking all the laundry from the guest quarters home with him so we had a full dinghy. We pulled alongside Allegreto, Ron's Whitby 45, and went aboard to help reduce his beer supply. I got to meet several of Ron's local buds before Linda arrived. We went out for a nice dinner at Thursdays before they returned me to the dinghy and I returned to Onward for an early night.

• 5- Jun 2010; Herring Bay
• Saturday

• A quiet day to clean, organize, plan, and recover from the fastest passage Onward has made on the ICW. I haven't spent much time planning for the next segment of my wandering. Now that I no longer have Laura living in Baltimore, the simple decision of going there to visit for several weeks is gone. Ah well, life changes. Now I need to treat being in the Chesapeake as being more like any other segment of my cruising life.
• I went ashore for dinner with Ron and Linda. Ron greeted me with two bags of clean clothes and I got to bring a couple more to be washed over to Ron's where Linda let me play with her hightech Bosh W/Ds. Clean is good. Ron and Linda collaborated on a fantastic dinner and Linda presented me with some of her Italian almond biscotti - Delish. I also got to do a bit of food shopping at Roland's the well stocked local market. I guess in the future I could anchor off shore in the Bay near the Rod & Reel and take the dinghy in to shop if i need to.
• When I got back aboard Onward, I was too warm and tired to make the beds so I sacked out in the salon.

• Sunday

• Another nice day to clean, organize and plan. The promised cold front came in with a nice wind and more pleasant temperature.

• I finally got to participate in "Blues Night" at one of the local clubs in Chesapeake Beach. Ron has been telling me about the great blues and rock played by this local bar's "house band" and the ensuing jam sessions with area musicians. There is a 16-yr old guitarist who is outstanding. An all for the price of a couple of beers. Not to be missed.

• 10 Jun 2010; Herring Bay to Annapolis

• I sailed up to Annapolis to attend the Edgwood Yacht Club's party for the Annapolis - Bermuda Race that starts Friday. I attempted to anchor in a crowded Back Creek but there wasn't enough room to set the scope I needed for the soft bottom. I then anchored in the mouth of the Severn near the EYC. I took the dinghy in and met Bob Shaw from C470 Sio at the party and got to meet a number of his friends. I also ran into Richard Ewing and Idarae Prothero who were about to race MoltoBene to Bermuda again. It was great to see my old dock buddies again.

• Bob Jones came out in his dinghy and we had breakfast aboard and swapped C470 ideas. After he left I moved Onward to Baltimore and the Anchorage Marina, C5. This has become a second home for me but it is different now that Laura and Kurlen have moved to LA. I get to touch base with all my local friends - always a fun event.

• Skip and Harriet Hardy came to pick me up to take me to their home for the night and they brought along Mike and Angie Williams who were also visiting. That night we went out to dinner at Terseguel's, a French restaurant in Ellicot City. Tina and Ed Burke were to join us but Tina came down with a stomach bug and had to cancel.
• At the restaurant, I saw a small note on the menu about the Chef's surprise dinner. This turns out to be 8 courses selected from the overall menu and daily specials that the chef puts together ad hoc and it is a surprise to all including the waiters. That sounded like fun so we opted for that and the wine tasting that includes a glass of a different wine with every course. The waiters clearly had fun with us as we dealt with each new course and the wine chose to accompany it. This turned out to be delightful and when the food, wine, mystery were combined with good friends to share it with it as clearly the best dinner I think I have ever had.

• My niece, Kristen and her good friend Helen were joined by Jim MacLaughlin aboard Onward for a leisurely cocktail hour. We had such a good time that it was too late for Jim to stay around for dinner. I then decided to cook dinner aboard for Kristen and Helen and the good times continued.

• I had a great time visiting Ed and Nancy in DC and then attending Alison Burke's wedding. Party time!

• I left Anchorage Marina and topped off diesel at the Baltimore Marine Center before proceeding up the bay to anchor for the night in my "usual" place off of Fords Landing on the Bohemia River. A quiet night.

• Anchors up at 0500 and I managed to catch the ebb tied for most of the trip down Delaware Bay. Winds and seas were quiet and I put into Cape May just after 1700.

• Conditions did not look good for a run straight through to NY as I was able to do last year so I delayed departure to 0600. As I was departing, I noticed a sleek sloop that caught my eye - then I realized it was another C470 - then I discovered it was Beckoning. I guess Jim snuck in during the night.
• I waited a decent bit for Jim to wake up and called him and invited him to join me in Atlantic City. I anchored before noon and spent a leisurely day on boat chores. Beckoning came in about 1700 and anchored nearby. Jim came over and picked me up to have dinner aboard Beckoning.