A Note About The Adventure

In the winter of 2005 we decided to buy a sailboat.  That was six years ago.  We've lived on the boat for nearly 5 years.  In those six years we've (our entire family) had what we could loosely compare to a college education in sailing and all that it entails.  Navigation, Sail trim, boat repair, seamanship, docking techniques, anchoring techniques, Coast Guard regulations, yacht restoration, canvas repair and fabrication, marlinspike, and weather are just a few of the many areas that we've been faced with on a regular basis throughout our time here on the water.  We feel as though our experience in sailing as a whole has grown tremendously since the first time we nervously backed the boat out of it's slip.  Of course, we've still much to learn.

We cannot adequately express our gratitude to all of those individuals that have been kind enough to spend time with us along the way.  We've been given countless hours of advice, and had many a round table discussion and fellowship with some well traveled salty sailors, and have learned with many of them as the years have passed.  They are in essence what has made this experience for us so enjoyable.  Those individuals have helped guide our children through building their own sailing dinghy, gone fishing with them, led us through unknown waters, and unfamiliar channels, and enjoyed many an incredible sunset out on this salty water.  They have encouraged us when we were feeling overwhelmed, or lost.  They have showed us that even a family with not much more than each other, can follow a dream and succeed in acheiving that dream.  They have enriched our lives, and they are our friends. 

With all that being said, our journey on the boat is coming to a close.  We will soon be packing our belongings into a truck and heading north to Ohio, to regroup and start new adventures in life.  Ohio grandmother has been patiently awaiting some much needed time with her grandkids, and we are excited about the idea of getting back into a house, and firm ground under our feet.  We're excited about gardening, and look forward to spending time up on the lake (Lake Erie) and have already geared up quite a bit for camping, and spending time with our friends up North. 

On our sailing journey we've tried to make a good effort to take as many pictures as we could along the way.  Our blog is mostly pictures, and we've tried not to bother writing too much, in hopes to keep it simple and interesting, sharing things we've seen with anyone whose interested.  If you haven't already, feel free to browse our blog, and hopefully you'll get to experience a small portion of the places we've been on our adventures on the water.

We have said it before, and will say it again.....  this is not about a boat.....  this is not about sailing.... 
This is not about pictures or the beautiful water.  This has been an experience that has brought our family out of a life of corporate mahem, traffic, cell phones, distractions, and has brought us closer to each other.  We hope to share it with you!

Neighbors

Our neighbor off our starboard bow....

took this this evening as the sun was going down....

A shot from inside the walls of Fort Macon
a few years ago

Our boat earlier last month before all the traffic came in!

I

I like the way Bridget sees photos

this is a shot she caught one recent evening

After The Storm

We had 40 knot winds and a nasty lightning storm

come through two nights ago

This was filmed after it passed

sailing to Ocracoke.... another picture from the past....

Another shot from Budge!

Took this last week, it was a full rainbow

 and much brighter than it appears in the picture.

The Ghost

Taken at Indian Beach

many moons ago

Last of the bridge sunsets....

we have a killer view

and it's been a beautiful day!

Another Sunset

Bridge Sunset

Not my favorite picture in the world, but I posted it anyway today's shot 

Gale Last Night

Nearing 50 knots of wind last night, steady throughout the entire evening.  Had to adjust the anchor rode to keep the chafe down.  Lots of noise, hard to sleep.  Looks like the worst of it is over now.  The chop wasn't all that bad in here, but Victoria's boat was towed from further outside of the jetty, and Towboat struggled to get her nestled in over at the marina here at the anchorage.  Water is down at least three feet (probably more).  We set a proximity alarm on the GPS last night just to try to get some sleep.... got about 4 hours of sleep, spent the rest of the night keeping an eye on things.  What A Blow!

Today's Catch

Posted this before, but it started acting up (picture wouldn't show) so we're reposting it... 

Dots and Dashes

 Can you guess what this is?

 Bridget took this one of the navigational lights on the main bridge
 it's actually red, green, red but the light on the right
ended up looking a bit gold in the reflection

4 Weeks

After today we will have been on the hook for 1 month.  The majority of this past month has been spent with pretty windy conditions, last night got up to 22 knots.  We've only had to jug water once, utilizing the rain every chance we get (filled up last night, again), and looks like it's gonna be raining pretty much all of next week.  So, overall, it's been much easier than we had expected....  spoke to my mom last night on the phone and she said that it was in the 20's in Ohio......Brrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!  We're thankful that it's warming up a bit down here. 

Bridget picked up two 5 gallon buckets, 3 bags of dirt, and a couple of tomato cages, and she's going to grow two tomato plants from the transom!!!!  "There's only two things that money can't buy, and that's true love and home grown tomatoes"!  (Good song)

Max Sings Opera

All I can say is..... GET READY!


Makin' the family proud!

A Chance At Play

See if you can spot what's going on here.....

saw these guys in the afternoon, much more difficult to see

in the video, but we had to share it!

 

(4) otters playing on the sand

Morning Coffee

Unique Boat & Supermoon

This guy floated by this afternoon, in a unique boat hailing from PA, check out all those solar panels....

and if you haven't seen the moon, go outside and look up, suposed to be the closest to the earth it's been in (forever) tomorrow night! It's gonna be a blankets out in the cockpit night for us, enjoying this break in the cold weather!

Many Thanks

Just wanted to say thanks to Joe, Cherie, and Larry, for coming out to the Silos last night, and being really supportive.... that was cool!  Thanks y'all!

Peter and Gail Leave For Cuba

Got a call from Peter yesterday afternoon....
they were several miles off the coast and headed to Cuba
they should be there later today. This is a shot from a few years back,
Gail and the boys having fun!
You can check out their blog @ jabiru5.blogspot.com

Japan

We don't even have a TV and we're consumed by the horendous images of this catstrophy.  We feel heartbroken, and are very taken back by the unbelieveable suffering that is happening in this country.  We pray for them.... and our thoughts are with them now!

Lets Make The Most Of This Beautiful Day

A steel hulled boat, at anchor right behind us.... stepped out in the cockpit this morning to a beautiful sunrise and thought I'd take a picture of our neighborhood.... am I sounding like Mr. Rogers?

An old International work truck, parked outside of a sweet potato farm.....
rockin' the rust, another photo from a while back!

30 knot gusts

Movie, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

A view from the inside....today's been blowing 30 knots pretty steady... just some footage around the boat from earlier when it was blowin' around 10

Good Morning from the Anchorage

DSCN5122-1, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

Woke up this morning to a beautiful sunrise....looks like it's going to be a nice day!

The Rain Train

So far we've been fortunate while at anchor.....  we've been able to block our scuppers and completely fill our tanks with rainwater....  through the months of winter @ the dock, we've had to jug water to the boat with the help of (5) 5 gallon jugs , so we expected to have to do the same while at anchor.....  however, a little bit of tape right before it rains on deck, and the tanks are topped off much quicker than we had ever expected, and no juggin'!  This makes the boys very happy.....  This is the longest we've ever been at anchor and things are going much better than we thought.... We have removed most of what we own from the boat and are cleaning (in spots that haven't been cleaned in a while.....yuck!) 
The biggest issue is condensation through the cold evenings, and early mornings.  We've had winds up to 40 knots, and the boat has done really well....  can't believe how much high wind has come through in the last week....sheesh!  Looking forward to some warmer weather and a chance to open up the boat and dry it out!  Another thing that we've found very useful through all of this.....  The dinghy the boys built (with the help of Bob and Molly) has proven to be a real sturdy and versatile tool for hauling large amounts of stuff in one trip.....  we can get all 4 of us and a weeks worth of groceries in the dinghy and to the boat with no problem.... as long as the wind isn't blowing 40 knots!  I've recently started working for Laverty and Co. full time, and have had several boat projects come in that have booked us up for the next several weekends, so that's a real relief.... but we're still uncertain about whether or not we'll come out the other side of this winter with everything back in order....  time will tell).  For now, we're doing it!  We're thankful for a lot of support from our family and friends up north, who've been in touch with us regularly and have been very encouraging, and our boating friends as well....  we'll post more when more develops!

How Old Are You?

Heading out of Oriental, there's this old farmhouse, long ago forgotten....  looking in the window on the bottom right, there's a lot of stuff, and a few antiques....  a bit strange....
How Old Are You?, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

Time To Reflect

Time To Reflect, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

An attempt at art.... 

Breaking In The Anchors

Threw out a second anchor and let out some extra scope.....  Hunkered down for a gale....  everything went really well considering it was over 30 knots at times today....quite an undertaking getting to the boat today.....  sounds like it's gonna get cold too..... this is going to bring some warmer weather behind it....I just know it!!!!  BRING ON THAT SUNSHINE!!!! 

The Marine Forecast In Detail:


Forecast Issued: 839 PM EST MON FEB 28 2011

GALE WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 3 AM EST TUESDAY THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING

Overnight...Sw Winds 20 To 25 Kt...Becoming N 25 To 30 Kt Late. Waves 2 To 3 Ft. Showers With A Slight Chance Of Tstms Early This Evening...Then A Chance Of Showers.

Tue...N Winds 30 To 35 Kt With Gusts Up To 40 Kt... Becoming Ne 20 To 25 Kt In The Afternoon. Waves 3 To 4 Ft.

Anchorage Cam

We decided to head to the anchorage yesterday, because it's supposed to blow up to 25 today (later on) and I figured it'd be easier to anchor without all that wind.....got a little fog this morning....sending this from in front of the Chapel at River Dunes....

you can see the nose of our boat sticking out amongst the 4 that are anchored to the left....

you can check out the live feed at towndock.net's anchorage cam...

Goin' To The Chapel

DSCN5094-1, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

Spent part of my day yesterday working on the front stairs of this place..... thought I'd run back over this morning and take a picture of it.... The Chapel @ River Dunes

Wheels On Both

Wheels On Both, originally uploaded by sailingmorgans.

I don't know what it is about old houses, or old cars, or abandoned things, but they always strike a curious feeling when I see them. This was no exception.... found on a backroad a few years ago.... I noticed recently that this car is no longer there....maybe someone has decided to try and restore it....

Fidelis (Faithful) Spinnaker

Short video of our spinnaker out....

it's quite a circus to get this up and inflated

attach and run sheets,

rig pole, run uphaul and attach,

attach downhaul to pole

raise spinnaker

attach pole to sheet

raise sock, and inflate....

piece of cake!

Morning Mist

Stepped out to take this this morning...
Upriver the mist is starting to lift as the sun comes up
It's gonna be a beautiful day!

A While Back

My brother with the boys @ Dowry Creek Marina....
they were having fun!

George Pollard, Jr. (1791–1870) was the captain of the whaleship Essex and Two Brothers, both of which sank

He was born in Nantucket, Massachusetts, the son of a ship’s captain, at a time when the principal industry there was hunting sperm whales to harvest the oil contained in their blubber and spermaceti. By the time he was 28 he had served on the Essex for four years in the capacities of second mate and first mate.

In 1819, Pollard was appointed captain of the Essex by the owners, Gideon Folger and Sons, and preparations were made to set sail for the Pacific Ocean in August of that year. Other members of the 21-man crew included Owen Chase as first mate, Matthew Joy as second mate and six other Nantucket men. Those included Pollard’s seventeen-year old cousin Owen Coffin with whose care and protection Pollard had been entrusted by his aunt, Nancy Bunker Coffin. To fill out the crew, others had to be recruited from Cape Cod and Boston; these were inexperienced seamen and were known as “green hands” by the Nantucketers. An account of their epic journey was written by Nathaniel Philbrick in In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex.

Four days after leaving Nantucket the ship was struck by a sudden storm and suffered a knockdown, having been rolled almost ninety degrees onto her side. Two of the ship’s whaleboats were lost and another was damaged. This mishap was caused in part by miscalculations on the part of Pollard and his officers, and in part by the inexperience of the crew. Pollard declared the damage was so extensive that they should return to Nantucket for repairs, but Chase and Joy persuaded him to go forward to the Azores and hope to replace the whaleboats there.

After a difficult passage around Cape Horn, the Essex arrived in the Pacific Ocean in January 1820. On November 20, 1820, in a remote area of the ocean, some 1,500 nautical miles (2,800 km) west of the Galapagos Islands, the Essex was struck twice by a huge sperm whale, estimated to be 85 feet (26 m) in length. With only three shipkeepers and the crew of Chase's whaleboat on board to repair their damaged vessel, the Essex began taking on water following the second collision with the whale. The crew abandoned the sinking vessel, taking the navigational equipment and Pollard's and Chase's sea chests with them. Meanwhile, Pollard and Joy were hunting smaller whales near the ship, and on their return found the Essex had capsized. The crew chopped off the masts (a necessary move that would enable the ship to stay upright for a longer time) and outfitted the whaleboats with sails and masts using the Essex's spars and sails. They also hastened to retrieve what provisions they could and divided them equally so that each whaleboat had 200 pounds of hardtack, 65 gallons of freshwater, and two Galapagos tortoises. The crew was divided into three whaleboats commanded by Pollard, Chase, and Joy and set sail with provisions estimated to last them 60 days. Pollard, Chase, and Joy set up a council to decide which direction to sail in. The closest islands were the Marquesas Islands, about 1,200 miles (1,900 km) west of their position but in those days the inhabitants there were believed to practice cannibalism. Pollard suggested sailing to the Society Islands, which were further away but presumed to be safer. However, on the grounds that very little was actually known about these islands, Chase and Joy disagreed, proposing instead to sail south far enough to pick up a band of variable breezes that would take them to South America. Once again, Captain Pollard reluctantly yielded to their arguments.

On December 20, near starvation, the crews of the three whaleboats reached Henderson Island but after seven days decided that the island did not have the resources to sustain them and they reluctantly set sail again. Three of the men opted to remain on the island and were eventually rescued by the trading vessel Surry.

Sailing east towards South America, Pollard and Chase had seen Matthew Joy's health decline. He was transferred to Pollard’s boat and shortly thereafter died. Obed Hendricks was given command of Joy’s boat, and the three boats sailed on until during a gale one night Chase’s boat became separated from the other two. By January 20, 1821 a crew member, Lawson Thomas died just as the boats of Pollard and Hendricks had come to the end of their provisions. It was at this point that in order to survive their ordeal the men resorted to cannibalism. As other crew members died their bodies were eaten in turn until only four men were left alive on Pollard’s boat. One of them, Charles Ramsdell proposed that lots should be drawn to determine who should be killed so that the rest might survive. Pollard at first resisted this suggestion but then gave in to the majority. The lot fell to his cousin Owen Coffin and he was shot and his remains were eaten. After the death of Barzillai Ray, Pollard and Ramsdell sailed on and were rescued on February 23 by the whaleship Dauphin and taken to Valparaiso. There they were reunited with the survivors of Chase’s boat, Chase himself, Benjamin Lawrence and Thomas Nickerson, cabin boy of the Essex, who had been rescued by the British merchant ship Indian.

Upon his return to Nantucket on August 5, Pollard had to face Nancy Bunker Coffin who was distraught at the idea that Pollard was alive as a consequence of her son’s death. Pollard was given command of the whaleship Two Brothers and this voyage also ended in disaster when the ship ran into rocks off French Frigate Shoals and sank. This ended Pollard’s whaling career. He made a single voyage in a merchant vessel and then spent the rest of his life as a night watchman on Nantucket.

Chase and a ghost writer wrote an account of the ordeal entitled Narrative of the Most Extraordinary and Distressing Shipwreck of the Whale-Ship Essex. This was published soon after the return of the survivors, and was an inspiration for the Herman Melville classic, Moby-Dick. Much later, Nickerson wrote his own account of the voyage The Loss of the Ship Essex Sunk by a Whale and the Ordeal of the Crew in Open Boats. His manuscript was lost for nearly a century, but was discovered, authenticated and published in 1984.

(a painting of The Essex leaving Nantucket August 12th, 1819)
Artist A.D. Blake

Washington Picture

Bridget took a walk while in Washington,
NC and brought this shot back with her....
not far from the waterfront....

Noah Finds Gar

Noah wanted a picture with this fish @ the aquarium....
I've seen these (much smaller) hanging out under the docks
near the haul out dock on the boat yard in the summer
Cool Fish, Cool Dude!

Being Green

A few years back we were in the gazebo, and kept hearing these frogs chirping,
but couldn't figure out where it was coming from.... after a bit of investigating,
we found these two hanging out on the sign for the pool.....
the camera doesn't do closeups well..... but thought it was still worth posting