Day 181, Year 8: Windbird’s Trek to Cape Cod, Day 4
Date: Friday, May 3, 2013
Weather: Winds NE 25-30; Overcast Early, then Clearing; High Temp 70’s F
Latitude: 35 32.433 N
Longitude: 076 37.980 W
Location: Intracoastal Waterway, Mile 135, Belhaven
Captain’s Log for Friday, May 3:
“Today was a continuation of yesterday afternoon – high winds on the nose, short period seas and slow going. We had hoped to make it to the Alligator River by this evening, but could only manage 3 to 5 knots against the 25 to 30 knot winds. So even with a 5:57 AM start we only made it as far as Belhaven – about 42 nautical miles (48.3 statute miles). But the crew is doing magnificently and the boat is performing like Windbird has always performed for us – keeping us safe and giving us the feeling that all is well even when the conditions are far less than ideal. The only casualty was the loss of the Sunbrella cover for the grill – carried away by the high winds.
Tonight we are going to dine on chicken masala. How’s that for boat cuisine? And tomorrow is uncertain at this point. The Coast Guard has closed the swing bridge on the Alligator River due to high winds. We can’t go much further until they open it. But we can go as far as the headwaters of the Alligator River, anchor there, and wait for the opening to then cross the Albemarle Sound. If it looks like the winds will die down by Sunday, then we will head on to the Alligator River anchorage tomorrow and be ready to continue on Sunday. Otherwise we will hang out here for one more day waiting for the winds to subside. Waiting is not my favorite sport!”
Now back to Cape Cod . . . things are going well here but I have unfortunately been added to the list of people in this household that have a runny nose. It seems that either one or two or all three kids at the same time have been sick all winter, but I was hoping to avoid this so I could be a bundle of energy to help in taking care of them. If I get no worse, I certainly still have the energy to help, but it’s hard to stay one step ahead when you’re not feeling up to par. Ollie and I spent a great deal of today sleeping in a rocking chair together and that was good for both of us. I continue to be amazed at how alert and grown up Ollie is these days. He doesn’t miss a trick and he wants to do absolutely everything that his big brothers do. Tonight he was on Heather’s lap nursing while I was reading to the big boys. Jonah did something good and Heather told him she wanted to give him a high 5. Ollie immediately popped up and put his hand in the air for the high 5. It was very cute.
I’m hoping Windbird can make it to the Alligator River tomorrow to be poised for crossing the Albemarle Sound on Sunday. But if they do have to stay in Belhaven tomorrow, maybe they can launch the dinghy and go in explore the town of Belhaven. Evidently the name means ‘beautiful harbor’ and everything I read says it is a lovely little town.
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| 130503 Day 181 Passage to Cape Cod–Day 4, Bellhaven |
