Nov 2- Nov 5: Out of the Potomac and to Norfolk

    Once Tommie was back on board, we settled down into a much quieter routine.  The Sunday she was back on board (Nov 1) we moved from the Goose Point Marina where we’d left the boat, out to a nearby anchorage.  We just needed to hang out a little, a let her get used to the boat again without worrying about her getting off.  We were all tired and some of us slept most of the time.  

    Monday we headed back down the Potomac at an easy pace.  The water was very calm and though it was overcast, the weather was warm and it was a pleasant run.  Just as we passed under the Gov. Nice bridge a Naval picket boat hailed us.  We were entering a live fire range, they said, and they advised to follow a particular path along the Maryland side of the river, opposite the Dahlgren Naval Testing Site.  We heard a few explosions in the distance, but as we passed through the site, we didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.  Still, it was rather exciting.  We got to Glebe Creek by dark (now at 5 pm) and dropped the hook for a quiet night.

Dahlgren picket boat.

Sunset at Glebe Creek

Osprey nest instead of chimney at an abandoned house in Glebe Creek.

     Tuesday we made it out of the Potomac and down to the Great Wicomico (wye-kahm-eh-co) river.  Dan belongs to an online forum on Willard boats and another Willard owner lived in the beautiful little cove of Blackwell’s Wharf and had given us an invite.  Steve and Ann Bedford gave us a tour of their Willard 40 and had us up to their beautiful home nearby for drinks and munchies.  What a pretty place to live!  They also own a small anchor business - Max Marine;  it’s truly a family-run business.  With their adult children, they manufacture the anchors and sell them themselves.  We spent a very pleasant evening with them before retiring.

Foggy morning in the Great Wicomico River.

     Wednesday we set out at dawn to take advantage of the fine weather to get down to Norfolk.  The early morning fog soon burned off and a light NE breeze kept the lower Chesapeake pretty calm, though dark clouds over the Norfolk/Hampton/Portsmouth area were a little intimidating to head into. 

     This area is a major shipping port, as well as the official start of the Intracoastal Waterway;  we were leading several sailboats South, and encountered many large ships.  As we headed into the channel to Willoughby Bay (our planned destination), we found ourselves between two tugs with barges loaded with coal. 

Tug pushing a loaded barge right behind us.

    This is also a very large, very busy Naval base.  Helicopters and fighter jets keep the noise level pretty high.  We anchored outside the Rebel Marina, run by the brothers of our friend Capt. Jesse Briggs of the AJ Meerwald.  Great folks, they had no problem with us tying up our dinghy here and gave us access to their showers and laundry.  We will probably spend another day here before starting down into the Great Dismal Swamp.  We’re looking forward to the ICW!