Chisman Creek – 037:10.75N ~ 076:24.43W

Went for an overnight sail to Chisman Creek. It’s about 9 miles as the crow flies from Salt Ponds, but a 25 mile sail. It is also a world away.

Very nice anchorage, deep water all the way in, very good holding bottom. Very restful night.

I have been able to extend my stay at the Salt Ponds until June 6th. This means I don’t need to find a new marina here in the Chesapeake. Tony will be coming down the 4th or 5th of June and we can take off before the kick out date. Where will we go? Right now it is between Long Island and Cape Cod. The discussion on the night Tony gets here will determine if we go north or south. I may vote for South, inside to Cape Lookout then outside to Little River, inside to Georgetown, SC then outside again to Jacksonville. But we’ll see.

I have finally received the graphics from the printer. I put them on and christened the boat “Nomad”.

Arrived in Salt Ponds Marina Saturday, about noon. The trip up the Elizabeth River was very cool, all the big ships, tugs, war ships running around, nice DEEP water, wide channels. I was going to raise the sails after I got in the Chesapeake, but there wasn’t a breath of wind. That is until I made the last turn to come into the marina, then it came up at 14 knts off my stbd beam, just to make the docking interesting. Also there was a little less than the 5 1/2 feet of water I needed at the mouth of the harbor, I had to bounce over one spot. At anything but dead low I can enter and leave at will, but of course I had to arrive at dead low.

I went over Angela’s and picked up my car. Now that I have a car again I want to sell it. I have learned to live without a car and it is liberating. I still have my bicycle and it can take me anywhere I NEED to go. If I need a car or truck that bad I can rent it for a day or two.

I have gone down to the sea
I did see the sky
The Lord is my Captain
The Lord does glorify.

As ships that pass in the night
I have met the twain
I did go down to the sea
I would do it yet again.

Yesterday morning I was in Belhaven, NC, and took off for points north. I got caught in a blow, 25-30knts in my face, used twice as much fuel as I planned and almost ran out. Had to anchor on the Alligator river and wait for the tow company (BoatsUS) to bring me 10 gal. Spent the night on the hook in the River. In the AM I started up the river and across the Albemarle Sound. Again 25-30 Knots of wind in my face, 3-5 ft seas from every direction, got the crap beat out of me but I made it to Coinjock. Tomorrow they say there will be 5-10 mph winds and 1 ft seas on the Back Bay, a 15 mile crossing. We’ll see. This will be the last open water crossing until the Chesapeake.

Sitting in Wrightsville Beach, NC since Monday. Good friends Dave, Marsha, Dale, Iris, Jim, & Barbara are coming for Dinner on Thursday night. It looks like I’ll be here at least until Saturday due to weather. Went with Ro to see Rocky on the Carina Mara for drinks last night over at Seapath Marina. It looked like it was going to be a good beach day but by the time we finished breakfast a front came through, It has been cloudy, windy, and cold ever since. Big crock pot of stew bubbling away, should be done by 6.

Started my trip back north, 1st stop is Southport, at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Trip was uneventful, started out gloomy and cold, ended sunny and windy. I filled up with Diesel Fuel, first time since January, took 12 Gallons. For all the traveling I’ve done on that it’s pretty good. They have wireless here but again, I’m too far from the source to get good reception without the booster. No movies in bed again tonight.

Tomorrow I head up the Cape Fear River. I have to time my departure to catch the tide coming in, so about 11AM. Then I head for Wrightsville Beach.

It looks like it’s time to catch up with this blog. I have moved to North Myrtle Beach in preparation for the trip back to The Chesapeake Bay. The weather is starting to heat up, even the ocean is getting warm enough to swim in. My friend from Osprey Marina, Dave, is in the berth next to me and is going to head north about the same time as I will. The ride up here was very nice, had some company and we made a party of it. Since we arrived after the marina staff went home, Ro had to jump down to the dock so she could grab the lines and tie us up at the new dock. The day started out windy but I finally just said “Let’s go!” and when we got on the waterway it was beautiful. Nice sunny day, about 70°.

I have decided to stay in Myrtle Beach for at least a month. I am now back at Osprey Marina and will be here till next Monday, at least. I really like this place because of the people and the 9′ minimum depth at low tide.
This is where I’m docked:

There’s nothing much here. I brought the bike out and got a basket for it so I can do my shopping. I can bike over to a food store and some restaurants, WalMart is within bike distance. Walking anywhere is out of the question.
I plan on moving closer to the inhabited area of Myrtle Beach, I would like a little more social contact. The people here are nice, but I want to get out more.
I have the Wifi Booster working and the internet is really fast now. However I can pick up the wifi without the booster so I can watch movies in bed if I want. All the comforts of home.
BTW, I was able to contact the Osprey Marina via VHF radio from over 10 miles away. That new radio is working fine.
Update, Feb 7, 2012:
I have decided to stay here until at least the end of February. I do plan on continuing south and want to be in Savannah for St. Patty’s Day. Things are quiet and I am getting things done. This part of the Myrtle Beach area will not be subjected to the debauchery of spring break (DRAT), it will be nice and quiet.

I had a beautiful sail down the Waccamaw River today from Osprey to Georgetown. Deep water all the way, wide channels, nice gentle passage. A bit diecy getting into the channel for Georgetown, but I made it.

Then I looked at the rest of the journey. The channels get narrower, the depths get shallower, and my nerves are shot. I have fretted over this all day and could only come to one conclusion, I am going back to Myrtle Beach and will spend the rest of the year there. I am going to take a few more sailing courses, get some more experience, and settle my nerves. I will first stop at Osprey Marina for a week or two then go back up through the Rock Pile to a marina that is more “in town” than Osprey. Osprey is a great marina but it is too far out in the sticks for someone without a car. I can also beat their price and get better amenities, like a pool. Maybe by the middle of summer I will have the experience to sail to Florida direct. Well I can sleep peacefully tonight knowing that I will have a better trip tomorrow than I thought I would. I am sorry to disappoint those following this trip with a quick end, but I really don’t think I can do the next part. If you don’t have confidence you are 3/4 of the way to failure. And failure on this route could cost lots of money.