Never Bring a Schedule on a Boat Trip

Plan A. We traveled from Florida to Annapolis by car on a Saturday to pick up the boat, which we had left behind to attend the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. Our plan was to use Sunday to get the boat ready and provision for the trip, and to leave very early on Monday morning for what should be a 5-day trip. The weather immediately threw a wrench in the plan as the forecasted conditions on the Chesapeake Bay were very rough for Monday. We don’t like to travel in very rough conditions if we can avoid it: it is not good for the boat or the crew on board, and it would have meant having to travel at a much slower speed so we would have had to revise the planned destination for Day 1 to make it a shorter trip, so we preferred to wait one day for smoother conditions.

Plan B. The forecast for smooth conditions for the following day seemed confirmed so we left our slip at 6.10 am. It was still dark. We were extremely cautious, surveying the water like hawks as our route out to the Chesapeake Bay is notorious for crab pots. After 20 minutes, before we even reached the beautiful Thomas Point Lighthouse, we suddenly experienced a very heavy vibration on the boat. Baffled, we immediately pulled her out of gear. We were sure we had not hit a crab pot or anything else on the surface of the water.

Maybe we had picked up a rope, or a fishing line or net around the props, or maybe we hit something under the water?

We immediately decided to turn around on one engine (brief diagnostics showed our port side propulsion had somehow been impaired). We briefly considered going back into our slip and call a diver, but decided to go straight to a nearby boat yard where we knew they had a lift large enough to haul out our boat. We arrived at the yard just after 7am, docked in front of the lift, and went inside for a coffee at the cafeteria while waiting for the yard to open. The guys met us with some curious looks, what were we doing there, we were not on the schedule to be hauled?

The yard owner was extremely helpful and agreed to lift us out of the water as soon as the yard opened. We were hoping it would just be a line around the props so we could cut it away and be on our way again, although we would need to adjust the day’s planned destination. We and the guys were waiting with anticipation, expecting to find some rope or something else wrapped around the props. We were all staring at the props as the boat came out of the water, but nothing! No ropes, fish lines, crab ports … nothing! Something was missing from the picture, and that turned out to be the problem: there was an entire propeller blade missing from the otherwise beautiful and shiny (clearly not impacted) propellers. It turns out we were unlucky and had suffered a manufacturing defect on one of the props (metal fatigue or a casting error). Only one solution, to get a new prop.

As the faulty prop was a warranty issue our dealer and manufacturing representative immediately got to work to locate a new one. Meanwhile, as this was bound to take some time, the decision was made to “block the boat” on the hard. When a boat is out of the water it is not possible to run the AC system (except when a “tower” can be provided), so while we had shore power, we had no heat, and it was getting COLD! We went over to a nearby marine store and bought a small ceramic space heater. We then heard that a prop had been located and would be shipped overnight for installation the following day. Great news! Bad news: the shore power tripped after the yard guys had left and could not be restored in their absence, so no power or heat on board (only things that were battery operated). That made for a cold night. Luckily, we had dinner with friends in town so that was a bonus get together. An electrician came the next day to fix the issue with the shore power, and a mechanic showed up in the afternoon to install the new prop. Yay! Unfortunately, it was too late for the yard to put us back in the water, but they promised to fit us in the following day.

Plan C. With a little help from our manufacturer’s representative we were the first boat to go into the water as soon as the yard opened. The conditions on the Bay were still good (about to change again) so we were good to go. Unfortunately, the later departure time (9am instead of 6am) meant that we would not be able to make the lock and bridge schedules required to get us to our planned destination of Coinjock, NC, so we decided to stop in Norfolk, VA, instead. This turned out to be a nice change as it allowed us to explore a marina and a great part of town we had not yet visited.

Plan D. The next day the weather forecast for the Albemarle Sound and Pamlico Sound in North Carolina looked rough, so rather than going from Norfolk, NC, to Beaufort, NC, we decided to just go as far as Coinjock. This is a very short ride that takes you through a lock and 3 bridges along what is referred to as The Ditch, the ICW (the Intracoastal Waterway). We left Norfolk in time to make the first southbound opening of the lock after the rush hour (several of the bridges do not open during rush hour so there is no point rushing there). But of course, we got stuck in front of a railroad bridge while still in Norfolk so we had to wait for the next lock opening. This got us to Coinjock by lunch time, with plenty of time to take care of the boat, catch up with the very friendly marina staff (and dogs), shop for some Coinjock Marina sun shirts in the ship store, eat at the famous Coinjock restaurant, and catch up on all the gossip and travel stories with all the other cruisers who like us had decided it was not a good day to travel the Sounds.

Plan E. As the weather conditions offshore were not favorable to being able to run fast offshore, and given the days are short in November, we decided to go from Coinjock, NC, to Beaufort, NC, rather than go outside into the ocean in Beaufort to make it to Southport, NC. We left Coinjock at sunrise and after passing all the slower boats that had left before us we caught up with our dock neighbor from Coinjock. As we had similar boats and traveled at similar speeds and were both headed to Beaufort we decided to run together for the day. I always like it as it is good to know there is at least one other boat nearby (especially when you are running 30-40 miles offshore on the ocean)! Stopping in Beaufort was nice as it is not only a very charming town, but friends of ours were also staying there so it was great to catch up with them over a lovely dinner. We were pleased to also find some other friends in the same marina as they were waiting for a weather window to head over to the Caribbean. I love how this world of people who cruise up and down the US East Coast is relatively small and we meet people again in different places.