Day Seven - Sunday, 25 November

Somewhere Along the ICW

We use a variety of sources for information about navigating and cruising on the ICW. There is general consensus about the best resources and they include Skipper Bob's booklets about cruising; Claiborne Young's Cruising Guides; the Waterway Cruising Guides; the Chesapeake Bay Cruising Guide; the Cockpit Cruising Handbook to the IntraCoastal Waterway; the IntraCoastal Waterway Chartbook; etc. However, the best and most reliable source is still the "local knowledge" a cruiser obtains from someone who has been "out there!"

Today was one of those days when local knowledge was invaluable. We are cruising in the company of a friend, Woody Sherrod, who has been up and down the ICW and although he will tell you/us "it's been a long time," his local knowledge is accurate and helpful. We tapped into it this evening as a light fog was settling in on us as we were cruising down the North River in North Carolina after leaving the Coinjock area behind us. We were in the lead boat of four and had made our plans to all head for Broad Creek. However, as the fog rolled in and it began to rain, we conferred on the radio and decided the four boat flotilla would split up. We were close to Broad Creek with "Dream Quest" just behind us. Woody on "Marisol" and "Watercolors." the boat behind him were several miles back and just had time to pull into one of the anchorages at Buck Island, also on the North River. By the time the rain and fog had settled around us, we were all at anchor thanks to Woody's local knowledge.

We pulled in our lines at 7:30 AM this morning from the bulkhead between the Great Bridge Highway Bridge and the Great Bridge Lock where we were all tied up last night. Just before the Great Bridge opening at 8:00 AM, were all lined up to motor under the bridge to head further south. Bridge openings are one of the ICW activities we look forward to. The bridge tenders are always helpful and when bridges are close together, the bridge tenders communicate between themselves to let each other know how many boats and what type...sail or power...are heading toward the next bridge. This contributes to smooth, professional operations and minimizes disruption of bridge openings to local traffic. The bridge opening protocols are published in the cruising resources and boaters and bridge tenders work together to keep the water traffic flowing as smoothly as possible. It's a unique experience to participate in these activities.

Yesterday and today, we motored past one of the largest concentration of bridges on the ICW. Between Norfolk, VA and Coinjock, NC there are the following fourteen bridges and one lock:

1. Norfolk and Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad Lift Bridge
2. Jordan Highway Lift Bridge
3. Norfolk Southern Railroad Lift Bridge
4. Gilmerton Highway Double Bascule Bridge
5. Norfolk Southern Railroad Single Bascule Bridge
6. Interstate Route 64 Double Bascule Highway Bridge
7. Dominion Boulevard "Steel" Double Bascule Bridge
8. Great Bridge Lock
9. Great Bridge Highway Double Bascule Bridge
10. Great Bridge Highwy Fixed Bridge
11. Norfolk Southern Railroad Single Bascule Bridge
12. Centerville Turnpike Single Pivot Swing Bridge
13. North Landing Route 165 Highway Double Pivot Swing Bridge
14. Route 726 Highway Fixed Bridge
15. Coinjock Highway Fixed Bridge

Centerville Turnpike Single Pivot Swing Bridge - Behind Dream Quest

The "fixed" bridges are generally all 65' high and Windreka's 60' boat clearance allows us to motor under the span. So far no strange breaking sounds have been heard. The other bridges and lock have to be "negotiated" as outlined above.

60 Feet of Boat and Mast Under a 65 Foot Bridge

Coinjock is an Indian name for the berries that grow wild in the area. It's also the name of a popular stop for ICW cruisers. We elected to keep going today since it was too early to stop for the day when we passed by. After leaving Coinjock, we were about a mile behind Dream Quest as she was entering the cut through Long Point between Currituck Sound and Coinjock Bay, when we suddenly became aware she wasn't moving. As we approached, it looked as if she had strayed out of the channel and when were abeam, her skipper confirmed it. He didn't think he and his wife could break free without assistance, so we circled and approached them and Sarah threw them a line. With Windreka's eighteen inch, three bladed propeller in reverse, we pulled them loose in the finest tradition of the sea...one boat never ignores another in distress. It felt good to help and they asked us to take the lead as we motored toward the anchorage at Broad Creek.

Other than Dream Quest's grounding, the day was uneventful and we spent another relaxing day together in the cockpit getting accustomed to this cruising life. Tonight we took advantage of the hot water warmed by the engine and took showers, watched some television, cooked dinner, checked email, updated the weblog and turned in for a solid eight hours of sleep. Tomorrow we begin again at first light and...weather permitting...cross Albamarle Sound, run down the Alligator River and turn into the anchorage atTuckahoe Point at the head of the Alligator River - Pungo River Canal.

So far our internet access via our Verizon Broadband card and account has been excellent. However, it probably will not be as good as we head across the Carolinas, so we may not be able to update this weblog each night. We will keep a log and as soon as we regain access, we'll update the weblog.