TripSailor.com® Sailing Blogs

Its 6:30 PM on Monday and we are at anchor in Hampton

Va. – just across from Norfolk. The wind is howling, the boat swinging back and forth in a duet with the gusts. The wind is now peaking at 30 knots and will go to 35 after midnight. Of course, it is also cold and raining.

Today the forecast was for west winds 10-15 knots. Just a pleasant sail for the last leg of the trip before we enter the ICW. But the wind was constantly 20-25 with gusts to 30. It was dead behind us so our apparent wind was less . But the need to go around shoals meant there were times we were sailing with the risk of a jibe. It was tricky helming with the waves rolling us around. Unfortunately, we did have an accidental jibe that broke the preventer. Not a pleasant moment!

Coming into Norfolk, to avoid the jibe and rolling wave problem, we took a gamble on going into water that was probably deep enough. At seven knots with a following sea and wind we were concerned, but the other option was not so good either. The sonar is a great asset. The water was fine. But then we had to worry about an aircraft carrier coming our way. Obviously the skipper recognized us as fools, so kept away.

Anchorages are now crowded, so getting the perfect spot is impossible. It is intriguing that us snowbirds tend to fly in a flock. Most, like us, are travelling on their own agenda. But, nevertheless, you meet repeatedly at anchorages, or the food store.

 A high point today was that up to now Maj-lis held the record for being at the wheel when the knot meter reached its highest – 9.44 knots – a few hours before she broke her ribs in Lake Huron. But, today I beat her – 9.48 knots. Blue Blazer displays her racing pedigree in such conditions as today.

We continue to learn and improve our skills and will continue I am sure. It takes two to sail the boat. We have out occasional moments but we continue to learn together.

The weather is changing. Getting colder certainly. The weather spokespeople remind us daily that the bad weather – the cold air, the storm-causing low pressure cells , the stormy fronts – are coming from Canada. I would appreciate anything you could do to stop these.

E-mails are odd. Sometimes I get them even, if they are bounced back to you. I send them and they bounce back to me. I don’t know if they really went or not. Don’t give up We love to hear from you.