Sandy

We left Annapolis on Sunday afternoon and stayed the night in the Rhode River which is 2 rivers south. The next morning we set out for Solomon's Is. and had a nice motor sail in light winds and arrived to an almost empty anchorage in Mill Creek. We relaxed and prepared to leave early the next morning to make Fleets Bay just north of Deltaville, VA. We were planning to meet a childhood friend of John's who lives on the water outside of Whitestone, VA. When we pulled anchor that morning there was a problem with the windlass which did not have its usual power. John was able to raise the anchor the last few feet using the mast winch. We arrived in Fleets Bay and John's friend Renny had arranged with a neighbor for us to use his dock on Ashley Cove just off Dymer Creek. We pulled in and secured lines and Renny picked us up and took us to his home on the point with amazing views of the Chesapeake. We met his wife Lena and their Labradoodle, Boson. They had their home built and moved in a year or so ago. This area of the Northern Neck is charming. There are quaint little towns and boating is a big part of the economy. It is beautiful here especially this time of year with all the leaves changing color.

Renny found us two fellows who came and removed the windlass to trouble shoot the problem. Bottom line is that the gears are shot. It is an old windlass. The motor we replaced last spring is fine but the rest of the mechanics are very worn. The particular windlass we have is no longer made and the company has been bought by Lewmar. We spent the next two days trying to research our options. We decided it was not worth trying to repair the old windlass as we would not be sure how long it would last and we were not confident in going out of the country with that uncertainty. We were referred by another friend of Renny's to a local marina and we now await an estimate for a replacement which will require some deck work when it is installed. During all of this Renny and Lena have taken care of us. They, including Boson, have driven us around trying to find info on how to fix or replace our windlass, fed us and provided us a sounding board in our decision making.

In the midst of all of this, Sandy, came on the scene. She started moving up through Cuba and Haiti and the Bahamas. The entire neighborhood was glued to the weather channel. By Friday morning neighbors and friends were assisting each other in trailering boats from the water up the road to a high area that would not flood with the storm surge. We helped our friends move their beautiful little skipjack and their outdoor furniture. We have been trying to decide whether to stay at the dock or move out into the creek. Without having the windlass and with our heavy anchor and chain we are reluctant to move but concerned with the high storm surge and keeping Spunky safely off the dock. Our friends are trying to decide whether to stay in their home as during the last storm, Irene, the road to their home was washed out. Some of their neighbors are packing up and leaving. I think Renny and Lena will stay as they have a generator and will have electricity but the group of homes on the point have a common well and if the power goes out they will have no water. We will, of course, stay on Spunky so we can adjust lines and take care of any problems that arise. I admit that I am quite anxious. So much can happen. We will be stuck aboard Spunky as the water rises above the dock. It looks now like things will start deteriorating on Sat. night and we will get increasingly stronger winds and rain through Tuesday. Much depends on where Sandy come ashore. The Navy in Norfolk are moving their ships out to sea..All the marinas are scrambling to get boats out of the water as the storm approaches so we will not even be able to start the windlass replacement process until mid week. What we thought would be a leisurely trip down to Hilton Head now looks like we will be rushing to get to our Thanksgiving celebration with friends.

I wrote this last night. As of this morning the reports are that Sandy will be turning west a little farther north which is good for us and the storm surge will not be as strong as earlier predicted. This is what we have been hoping for. We won't know until it is over what in fact will actually happen. Thanks for all your notes of concern. We will let you know how we are as the storm moves over us. Hope you are all battened down and those of you effected by Sandy are not without power too long.