Eyes on the Atlantic Basin

Cupcake and crew are still hanging out at Northwest Creek Marina in New Bern. Part of the reason we are not back out on the water moving south is that we were waiting for a delivery of boat stuff. That delivery arrived on Friday and we got the 150’ of line we need to replace the dock lines which were worn out by the storm.

The repeated yanking seems to have heated the lines to the point that they are pretty stiff…an indication that they heated up and started melting perhaps. In any event, new lines seems like cheap insurance.

This morning I had the brainstorm to mark the different length dock lines with different color whipping on the ends (for the landlubbers, whipping is a waxed twine used to keep the ends of the lines from fraying and unravelling). I figure I will use black whipping for the ends of the bow and stern lines, and use white whipping for the ends of longer spring lines. Genius.

A few years ago Ellen and I decided that as far as dock lines go, fancy braided line with spliced loops on the ends were less useful than standard-issue three-strand anchor line. Braided line catches on splintery docks easier, it’s more expensive, it just seems less salty and utilitarian. We also realized that lines without spliced loops are more useful because we can always tie a loop when we need one (landlubbers: learn to tie a bowline, it’s the most useful knot).

Another reason we are still in the marina is that there is a lot of storm debris in the waterways and we don’t need to rush out onto the Neuse River after surviving the storm, just to clonk into some log or dock or submerged boat or floating pig carcass.

Yet another reason we are in no hurry to leave is that the storms in the Atlantic Basin are not going away. There is Kirk, there is Leslie, there is “a broad area of low pressure located between Bermuda and the Bahamas,” there is the remnants of tropical depression Eleven. Plenty of reason to wait and see. Check out “https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/gtwo.php” to see how I start my day and end my day.

And a final reason we are delaying our departure is that we have met some really nice people at the marina and are in no great hurry to leave.

Our daughter has become a fantastic helper. She is also getting long and lean.

Our daughter has become a fantastic helper. She is also getting long and lean.

So what are we doing with ourselves? Sweating, primarily. Every day the forecast promises temperatures in the mid-80s and every day the temperatures rise to the high 80s or low 90s. Fortunately the nights have been cool - in the high 60s so the boat cools down and the sleeping is pleasant.

It was odd, with Ellen stitching the sail and Moss washing the laundry, I had nothing to do.

It was odd, with Ellen stitching the sail and Moss washing the laundry, I had nothing to do.

Laundry day.

Laundry day.

And doing projects and maintenance. Ellen stitched up a torn reef point in the mainsail. Moss did a huge bunch of laundry (in a dock cart). I changed the transmission fluid, changed the raw water impeller, cleaned the instrument panel, whipped the line, rebuilt another winch, bleached the water tanks, organized the big storage locker, and so on.

Moss finished her first math unit and took an assessment test. Killed it. Smart kid, talented teachers. As a reward, we all went dumpster diving. Lots of interesting storm detritus out on the curb near the rec center and the marina.

And every evening we take delightful cold showers in the still-without-power marina bathrooms. It’s fun, it’s definitely part of the adventure, and it cools us right down.

Had a bit of a scare the other day when the fan in the v-berth stopped working. Panicked, then realized it had overheated because its cooling vents got blocked by some clothing we had jammed behind the fan to keep it from driving us crazy with its vibration. I tightened the screws attaching the fan to the boat, let the thing cool down, and now it is working fine and not making noise. Success.

The plans for the future are to head out on Tuesday or Wednesday and spend a day or two in Oriental. Then spend a day or two anchored out in a nearby creek. Then spend a day or three anchored at Cape Lookout waiting for favorable weather for an overnight sail down to Cape Fear (great name) or Little River.

Generally speaking we have not always enjoyed overnight sails. But we are going at it with a different attitude this time because it will allow us to stay relaxing at anchor for considerably longer, waiting for favorable winds instead of motoring motoring motoring down the ICW every day. A 120 mile passage can save us three or four days of driving down the ICW worrying about shallows, cursing the wakes of big powerboats, watching out for barges and buoys and logs and shifting shoals and so on.

If we enjoy the overnight, it will empower us to do more of them. And more overnight offshore sails will free up our schedule immeasurably. Also, it gets us back out on the big ocean in the clean water we love so much.

A few days ago we took a dinghy ride up a nearby creek to see how the boats up there did during the storm. Many did not do well at all. New Bern got pretty torn up. The nearest grocery store is still closed. The marina still has no power or internet (but the water is now potable). To our great dismay (well…) the New Bern synagogue cancelled Yom Kippur services because of the hurricane.

We’ve been reading the Oriental, NC website (check out towndock.net it’s very funny) and for a town that got whacked pretty hard, they seem to have a great attitude and are putting things back together well. We enjoyed our stay there earlier this month and are looking forward to seeing Oriental again.

Took a dinghy ride up a nearby creek. Many boats did well, but the loss of one line (in this case a stern line) and the boat ends up in a very unfortunate place.

Took a dinghy ride up a nearby creek. Many boats did well, but the loss of one line (in this case a stern line) and the boat ends up in a very unfortunate place.

It appears that whether a boat survived unscathed or not depended as much on luck as on preparation. Boy, were we lucky.

It appears that whether a boat survived unscathed or not depended as much on luck as on preparation. Boy, were we lucky.

This is a 40+’ catamaran parked in someone’s yard. The storm surge came up so high the cat tore loose from wherever it was docked and then floated (more or less gently) into someone else’s yard.

This is a 40+’ catamaran parked in someone’s yard. The storm surge came up so high the cat tore loose from wherever it was docked and then floated (more or less gently) into someone else’s yard.

We assume this is the home of New Bern residents celebrating Rosh Hashana.

We assume this is the home of New Bern residents celebrating Rosh Hashana.

An optimist would say this boat is half floating.

An optimist would say this boat is half floating.

Moss went up the mast twice to do some rigging work. She is a handy kid to have on board: light enough that she is easy to winch up the mast, better than a monkey because she more or less understands English and can follow directions.

Moss went up the mast twice to do some rigging work. She is a handy kid to have on board: light enough that she is easy to winch up the mast, better than a monkey because she more or less understands English and can follow directions.

This is the view from about 30’ up (Moss was disinclined to go to the top of the mast).

This is the view from about 30’ up (Moss was disinclined to go to the top of the mast).