jus chillin

We have been in Charleston for the past two weeks while Jeannie attends to some family matters on the west coast and I have been working on the boat doing chores, reading and generally enjoying the wonderful weather of autumn in Charleston SC.

Our trip from Morehead city was a bit longer because a series of fronts that affected the offshore weather which had most boats running the ICW. We are in that pattern where tropical waves or worse work their way up the east coast and we start to get cold fronts from the north headed south. But for the most part its been warm and only a few days where it was chilly enough to need to wear warmer clothing.

We stayed in the Morehead Yacht Basin, which is our preferred over night stop.  Currents are manageable, great protected harbor and floating docks, with easy in and out. We held up here for two days last Spring as a gale blew through.

We departed bright and early as you can see by the picture of the lovely phosphorous depot. We encounter tugs and barges all the time hauling phosphorous for industrial uses.

This section of the ICW is one of our least favorite, for two reasons: first, there are four bridges whose timed openings are very challenging to coordinate. Two of them are openings on the hour, missing them is quite a wait and two are on the half hour. To work this we do frequent speed, distance and time calculations to work it right. While it might seem fairly straight forward there are so many small inlets that the currents change often and a two knot current will slow us down a bit or speed us up.

The second issue is Camp Lejune, the big Marine Corps base in NC. The ICW cuts through the camp on the western edge and the camp's barrier islands which are used mostly for infantry and artillery exercises. Not usually a good idea to go through this section during live fire drills. Right at the entrance there is a guard tower and a sign with flashing lights, if an exercise is active. The ICW is closed until this is over. Two years ago we were stopped here and dropped anchor. Thinking it would be several hours, they let us pass after 45 min. Certainly makes the day longer if you are caught here for a time. As we turned the bend and we caught sight of the tower and lights and saw they were off and breathed a sigh of relief. No sooner than we thought ourselves fortunate than they turned on the Danger Do Not Enter Light...damn...

After five min or so of trying to hail the Navy boats that provide security to the waterway with no answer and no way of knowing how long we would be held up here (we could see Marines in the tower), I called the Coast Guard who thoughtfully called the range officer and were told we could proceed at best possible speed, which I take means to hurry, which we did. It is a five mile trip through this part of the Camp/ICW to the next bridge. The pictures above are the training areas where you can see various targets.

There are also some quite beautiful areas as well, aside from the shot up targets it is quite undeveloped.

We encounter tugs all the time, they are either pushing or towing a barge and that configuration can take many shapes some with long cables astern. It is good to know the rules of the road and good seamanship. We have seen some pretty wild things people would do out of ignorance and in the process possibly putting themselves and others at risk.
It is important to remember tugs have a lot of momentum when underway and cannot stop, start or change course quickly. They often have deep drafts with limited ability to navigate in narrow channels.
We monitor marine radio channels 16 and 13 and depending on the state, bridges can be hailed on either 13 or 9.  We have become accustomed to "tug talk" it has an accent all its own and talks in the work boat jargon. It is much easier if you know the rules and how to work out approaches for overtaking or passing.
We have the added benefit of a class A AIS which will plot the target on our chartplotter and radar with the vessels name SOG (speed over ground), COG (course over ground) and similar data. In this case we hailed the captain by vessel name and worked out what he wanted us to do and wished him a good day.

What made this one so interesting was how long it was. He was pulling a dredge, related equipment as well as 2000 ft of dredge pipe. We had a hard time of getting it all in a single shot and still be able to make out any detail.

We always get a kick out of dolphins who like to play in our wake. We do not travel fast typically a slow 8.5 kts and they like to ride our bow wave. This is the first pair of the season a bit more north than we would have thought but always fun.

There is always the typical birds about the water way but keep a running bird list of everything we see. So far we have seen 5 bald eagles, more on this trip than any previous one a thrill to be sure. We have also seen many kingfishers so many in fact that we speculate they must be migrating.

                        We just love shrimp so of course it is fun watching shrimp boats.

We came across a fleet of 8 returning to there home port in McClellansville, SC. It was quite a sight to see them coming in through the lower country marshes. We anchored about 5miles south of here on Awendaw Creek SC at mm 435.6, a quiet and remote spot. Cooking out for a delightful dinner and enjoyable sunset.

Here are a few of our favorite homes of character along the waterway.

On the last day out before arriving in Charleston we had a warning alarm from our hydraulics which typically run at 110-115f. The alarm sounds at 140f as a warning only, we were not far from the marina so I turned on the intake fan which by chance blows directly on the hydraulic reservoir tank. This remarkably dropped the temp 20 degrees and the alarm went off but we need to find the reason and fix it.

We have a ABT Trac integrated hydraulics system. This is powered by 2 take offs (PTO) from the main engine, which powers the stabilizers, bow and stern thruster as well as the windlass. The cooling system  is straightforward with a hydraulically driven water pump from the sea chest, strainer basket to a sight wheel, heat exchanger and then overboard. The sight gauge (top of tank next to the top of the heat exchanger) has been sluggish and on my list to clean.  This could be any of the things I mentioned with the most obvious being strainer and or the impeller in the water pump. But not so.
When we got into port and could look it over the strainer was clean and the impeller looked fine but I replaced it anyway.  The overboard discharge was very sluggish and with what appeared to me to be not enough water going through the system. The water pump is actually three things, the hydraulic motor, a coupler and the impeller housing.

In the past others have noted the coupler can become stuck and need to be lubricated. Above is pictured the coupler between the motor and the impeller housing. It has a yellow bracket over it to prevent someone (me) from accidentally getting caught in it while it spins.
It was spinning ,but slowly, and no amount of lubrication changed this. Checking the overboard discharge was equally disappointing. The unit was not getting enough water flow to keep it cool.
I spoke with the ABT tech ( great guy and wonderful service) and he had me adjust the hydraulic flow to the pump.

The coolant flow control adjustment valve is shown above and it was a simple matter to change the hydraulic flow to the coolant pump while the engines are on and stabilizers were centered and locked. The recommendation is for 6-8g/min and about 1500 rpms. I do not have a rpm gun with me so did it by guess, will adjust it later on when I have the right tool but the worst that can happen is you go through impellers too fast. The tech did not seem worried by this, his recommendation was increase it but if you can hear the pump spinning above the engine room noise at idle, it is too fast. The overboard discharge is remarkably better.

Coming into Charleston is always fun and interesting;

 The Ft Lauderdale Baot show is next week so the mega yacht set is making it's way it's way south

Heck shouldn't we all have our car aboard? Ya never know when you need to get that extra gal of milk.
Now "our" preferred method of travel off the boat is walking or our bikes,  just sayin...

Our hurricane southbound restriction ends November 1st, so we will depart Charleston later next week. So it is time to continue to work the maintenance list, knock the cob webs off, re-provision and work out our navigation, while keeping an eye on the weather.

Alligator River lives up to it's name

It certainly started out warm enough, recall our goal was shorts and flip flops for the duration. Two days out and what the heck it was cold enough that the firm commitment to shorts was tossed out the door and long pants with a light coat were the order of the day.

The weather of the past few weeks had the deadheads out and about. Keeping a good look out was very important. This one would have made your day a a sad one, if you hit it. It was about 15 ft long and 8-10in in diameter.

The waterway before it widens out into bay and various tributaries can be quite beautiful and peaceful. Once you pass Coinjock there are places that feel as if you leave civilization behind you.

It would not be unexpected to see an alligator if you go down Alligator River NC, right? We have been up and down this river many times but this is a first. We have anchored in the Everglades  and not seen hide nor hair of one. I guess a quick swim later is out of the question.

 

We anchored for the night at the southern end of the Pungo-Alligator River canal. In the past we seemed to always time this anchorage when the winds are blowing out of the south southeast with a longer fetch and 20kts. This night the wind was from the N/NE and never got worse that 15kts gusts. Our anchor digs in and we had a quiet cookout of hamburgers and slept well prepared for the next leg. The only downside is the mud is thick and black which is a bit like glue making clean up more challenging. Our experience had been the stronger the wind the deeper the Rocna sets. The next morning it took a bit of work to free it from the bottom. A small price to pay for a great nights sleep!

Where the Hell is Coinjock

We departed Top Rack Marina for the 7am Steel Bridge opening. The last before rush hour restrictions went into effect. It was cool and the ground fog was forming in a beautiful early morning run.

Beautiful  foggy marshes as we traveled south of the bridge.

A few miles south of the bridge is the first and only lock on the east coast ICW,  the Great Bridge Lock. There is really not much of a tidal difference but on the other side there is not current and the water is now fresh or maybe brackish... We have been through this lock dozens of times so no surprises but it is always interesting and a sentinel event for changes either north and greater civilization or south and remote areas. We like the ICW for the most part for the sense of remoteness and wildlife. There are certainly areas we would rather avoid and some areas that are so built up as to be like driving in the big city but for now this is like stepping back in time.

 

As we traveled further south the bird watching got better. Jeannie found this lesser Blue Heron proudly perched on a floating log.

Tropical Storm Irene is still leaving a trail of dead head logs and debris. We followed this Carver who went faster and became the cow catcher, we followed in his wake and missed any unhappy surprises.

Jeannie found two beautiful bald eagles and so earned the eagle eye award for the day. He does look rather proud of himself.

After a relatively short day  we pulled into beautiful downtown Coinjock NC, literally a wide place in the river. They have tee shirts that ask the question Where the Hell is Coinjock?..says it all. We stop here as it is convenient to our north and southbound trip. They have great food and a wonderful atmosphere, meaning very informal and good southern food. The marina is on the left, all face docks, we are tied up behind a sports fishing boat. Usually there are a dozen or so boats tied up by dinner time. We have been here when it is very crowded and barely any room.




Tomorrow we are off again and will anchor just north of Bellhaven NC.

first day

We pulled out at first light. Jeannie manned the helm as I did the fenders and lines. It was overcast and a bit dreary but all in all an uneventful departure.

Sea conditions were pretty mild for the most part : 2-3 ft seas and winds 10-15 kts.

About a third of the way into the trip we ran  into a a brief storm that popped up out of nowhere;  thankfully  there was no lightning.

At the northern and southern parts of rivers merging with the Bay we had a northern outgoing tide and a southern wind which added to the outgoing current at the mouth of the Rappahannock and York Rivers, kicking the waves up a bit and making the seas a bit confused. In these areas where the currents combine are the worst...typical Bay stuff,  short steep choppy seas.

Just as quickly as the rain started it was over and the sun came out and it was beautiful. Thimble Shoals Light, long unused, is a familiar landmark to many in the area. We came through here last Spring in gale winds and an opposing tide, heck of a ride. In contrast this was a cake walk.

 
We have been through Norfolk so  many times that we have lost count as we travel north or south. It is here in Norfolk that the official ICW mile marker zero is. The Naval base is always so impressive with 20-30 large ships docked at any one time.

It is such a busy port with commercial and pleasure craft as well as military vessels,   knowing the rules of the road and being courteous is very important. Throw on top of this several dredging operations and a diver in the water which adds to the excitement...as always never a dull moment.

Woo hoo

We have been busy as all get out and have done almost everything on our "to do list". We are planning on departing at first light,  stopping about 9 miles south on the ICW. We will make out way to Moorehead City and if the off shore forecast are favorable we will jump out there.....

We have provisioned and have tucked things into every nook and cranny. We have will not starve, that's for certain.

Sea conditions tomorrow down the Bay are looking good. A darn site better than we came home in April and had wind, wave and current working against us at Thimble Shoals, that was a heck of a ride.

Woohoo!

Getting ready to head south

It seemed that it was summer one day and a front blew through and it has been cool, pleasant and fall like. A nice change but a reminder that colder weather is coming and best to enjoy this seasonal change while it is still here and we get really serious about heading south.

Doing things around the house had us focused on things non-nautical but our departure time is near.  We have started our provisioning by getting the non-perishable things on-board. We have enough laundry detergent to last for quite a while, stamps envelopes and the like. Early in the summer I had turned off the freezer in the lazerette, defrosted and cleaned it. I have recently turned it back on as we have begun to add frozen entrees for times when we are tired and want a quick dinner or frozen individually wrapped  portions of meat/chicken. We will continue this process until next week when fresh food will be bought.
 

Changing the oil becomes front and center for the next big chore. We need about 20 gal of Shell Rotella Heavy duty motor oil. We buy sixteen gal for the main engines and the rest for the gens and some to spare. The transmissions take about 2 gal each of a different grade of the same oil. We always get funny looks at the local auto shop when we clean out their supply of oil (used to car needs, not boat needs).  

A good portion of the work is just getting the oil from the store to the boat and into the engine room. The other is moving the old oil from the boat back onto the dock and then disposal to a used oil recycling facility.

We have two different types of oil, Shell Rotella 15-40w for the main engines and Shell Rotella 30W for the transmissions. The black 5g containers with red lids are for the old oil.

We have a Reverso oil change system which is in the right side of this picture. This will pump oil to and from the mains, transmissions and genset making oil changing much easier. The old oil is pumped into the 5g container.

For the main engines which hold a bit under 8g I have two 5g containers set up. These larger containers make it easy to transport off the boat, dock and to the oil recycling facility. I like to store the old oil in these larger containers and while I can buy new oil in the same size I like it in the 1 gal sized. In part if I were to use for the new oil in the larger 5g containers then judging how much oil to pump in is a bit of a challenge, but using the 1g containers I can be very precise.  Additionally reversing the pump puts a slug of old oil back into the engine because it is in the length of hose between the pump and engine.

For each engine,  transmission and generator there is a valve to control the flow of oil to the Reverso pump as you can see here.

Here is the new oil filter ready to go for the John Deere main engines

Looking down on the on the oil filter house on the port engine. Need to remove this cap and replace with a new one.

The old oil and empty containers accumulating to be disposed of. I carry a folding hand truck just for this purpose. 

When we depart next week I will carry enough oil for another change somewhere along the trip so I will not have to find a place to go and transport it back to a marina. One time we had some one bring it to us from an auto parts shop but we cannot always count on such helpfulness.

I will also carry the oil with us until I can find a recycling facility that is easy to use. AYB in Chesapeake VA, for instance, takes your oil and uses it as a fuel for heating but a number of marinas will take your old oil and recycle it for you.

We will continue to work the list of maintenance items but this was the heavy lifting one that I am happy to have completed. We hope to depart in less than a week.

Back and getting ready to go!

We have been traveling to the west coast to visit two of our kids and got back last night. Still a bit buzzed by the time zone difference. It was a great trip, a fun time and we ate way too much.

Now we begin to focus on Seabright and getting ready to depart. Our plan as it stands right now is to depart and head south in late September. Everything is weather dependent, but we hope to start our slow journey south pausing along the way in the Carolinas and Georgia. Due to insurance restrictions we cannot go further south than Cumberland GA until November 1st.

If the weather is good and the insurance company feels OK about the forecast, we can sometimes get a waiver to go further south early; usually a week or two before November 1st, but will not know until then. So we plan for a longer the stay and hope we can go further south early.

Our goals for the next few weeks will be to get all of the needed maintenance and administrative items done. Last I looked, the list  had sixty some items, some easy and others quite time consuming. However the weather has cooled a bit and working outside is not as painful as it was this time last month.

Next update will be the maintenance list!

Goodnight Irene

Yesterday, Tuesday at 4pm our power, phone and high speed internet were restored...ahh!

We weathered Irene without mishap.

Because of the wind direction, initially NNE and later NNW, we were in the shadow of the woods in front of our home. A bit of an island of calmer winds compared to the whipping we saw all around us. The worst winds occurred late Saturday night and into Sunday morning.
Of course it was pitch black at that time so hard to see any detail. It was reported to be sustained winds of 60mph with gust up to 70mph. I could not validate that from our home weather station because I was asleep but think in our small sheltered cove we did not see anything over 50mph and only as a gust. Across from us on Indian Creek it was likely they had greater exposure and took a bigger hit. We could see the waves from the south side of the creek piling up and over the rip rap.

The storm surge locally was limited by wind direction which for the most part pushed water out of our cove while the storm in general was pushing water into the Bay. Our surge was about 4.5-5' at the highest.

We have a whole house 45kw generator and were quite comfortable when we lost power early Sunday morning. The generator did give us some fits with an incorrect temperate sensor that needed to be re-calibrated after which it ran like a champ. We did have limited internet through a MIFI card but it was painfully slow so we were limited to emails for the most part.

Our tideslide performed quite well during the storm. The boat remained centered in our slip and the fenders on both sides of the boat did not come in contact with either the pilings on the port side or the starboard side dock. It rode up the surge and back down. The dock was underwater for a brief period at the height of the storm surge.

We have four tide slides, two on each side, fore and aft. On each tide slide, the lines were arranged so in effect the boat was spider webbed in the slip. Each tide slide had two 3/4" lines set up as you can see, one fore and one aft.







In this pre-storm picture I did not rig this line correctly. As you can see the lines come out of the block and one is fore and the other is aft. The forward line loops around from behind and this was a mistake on my part. I had some chafing on the forward line as the wind pushed the boat back and the aft line tugged, the block pushed against the piling, chafing that line.

In the future I would rig these lines differently and have both lines coming out of the same side of the block.

The question came up recently about how the slides are secured to the pilings. There are 2 SS large bolts that are through the pilings and secured with washers and nuts, on the other side and two large SS lag bolts about 6" into the piling, top and bottom. The stern has two pilings and the bow had three. The third was added so the tide slide would have the needed height.
These are not coming out anytime soon.

A new storm has developed named Katia but at this point it does not look to be a threat.
wunderground. Best to keep our eye on things.