We’ve been in DC for a few days now. We forgot how crazy it is here with traffic, everyone rushing, the lights, noise, helicopters flying right overhead, planes landing and taking off every few minutes…wow. I can’t believe we forgot about this so quickly, maybe it was more of a mental block! All well worth it to see our friends again!

Some more pictures:

We left Annapolis on the outgoing tide along with eight other sailboats, all heading south:

There were quite a few ships anchored out in the bay. We also saw a submarine and a Navy warship anchored but decided not to take pictures of those:

It was supposed to be a perfect day to head south, winds out of the north 10-15, outgoing tide, sun shining. Well, everything was fine but of course the winds were about 5 knots, not enough to sail with the regular sails. In a desperate effort, we dug out the spinnaker (huge sail for light winds) and all the rigging. We set everything up and hoisted the sail:

About 15 minutes after we hoisted the sail the wind died… It was fun anyways and good practice also.

We ended up doing a long run down the bay and a couple of hours up the Potomac River, anchoring at night in a large cove called Piney Point. Sunset on the bay:

Entering Potomac River, zero wind:

We entered the anchorage in the dark, Tanya on the bow shinning the spotlight looking for obstructions. Things got a bit “excited” as we inched our way toward the beach in the dark looking for a good spot to drop anchor. We came across some fish traps (lines of stakes and nets) that are not on the charts. Tanya was able to light them up with the spot light and we did avoid them but it did get a bit tense for a few moments. The next morning we got a better look at our surroundings. We had these on both port and starboard sides:

Beach at Piney Point. Wish it was a bit warmer, it looked like a nice beach:

Sunrise over the fish trap to our starboard side:

While motoring up the Potomac we were overtaken by this “vessel”, it was really moving and leaving almost no wake:

We anchored for a couple of days off of Marine Corps Base Quantico, the base I retired from. I met with some old friends and we did some food shopping at the commissary. We were able to see my daughter Stephanie both days which was really nice.

Vacuum sealing everything before freezing:

Departing Quantico VA:

We anchored between the marina and this sailboat:

Passing Mount Vernon:

National Harbor just south of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge on the Maryland Side:

The Woodrow Wilson Bridge:

Alexandria VA waterfront, a great place to stop:

Hmmm, this looks familiar:

Naval Research Laboratory:

Washington DC in the distance:

Washington DC channel:

Anchored in the channel:

Capital Yacht Club:

Mandatory duck feeding:

We went to the fish market next to the yacht club and got a pile of steamed jumbo shrimp:

A couple more shots of the anchorage:

Our original plan was to depart tomorrow, head down the Potomac and get south as fast as possible. Well, now we are stuck here, probably in the safest place we can be, while hurricane Sandy decides which path she will take. The DC channel is relatively narrow, well protected and not very crowded so we are going to wait and watch the weather forecast before we make a move. There is one marina not too far from here that can haul us out if it looks like a worst case, direct hit, scenario. Our insurance will pay half the cost of a haul out once we are in the “five day hurricane cone” but hopefully we can avoid that. More to follow!

Trip to Annapolis Maryland.

The anchorages outside of Annapolis are well marked on the chart and with really calm conditions we decided to drop anchor for the night. We ended up staying two nights at anchor and two nights on a mooring downtown. The first night was very peaceful, beautiful view of the Naval Academy, sailboats everywhere, very calm, we slept well. The second night the wind picked up and it was like sleeping inside an industrial washing machine. The next morning we moved to a mooring in the harbor. We had a great time in Annapolis.

Anchorage:

View of the US Naval Academy:

One of the dinghy docks:

Tour boat downtown:

Pusser’s restaurant and bar, MD State House in the background:

“Ego alley” and the other dinghy dock at the far end. People drive their boats down this dead end channel and turn around and drive out…I guess to show off their boats. We did not take the boat there…

Annapolis Harbormaster’s building at the end of ego alley:

Naval Academy gate:

We had a great lunch at a little pub right at the end of ego alley:

Streets of Annapolis:

Maryland State House:

We met a wonderful couple from Canada, Monique and Michel, they are freelance writers. We actually saw them in Cape May but did not meet them until we arrived in Chesapeake City. They are fantastic people and we are very fortunate to have met them! It’s great making new friends but at the same time it’s a little difficult to say good bye so quickly. They invited us over for dinner one night in Annapolis. Monique made a delicious salad and for dinner, spinach crepes. What an amazing meal! We had a fantastic evening! We had dinner again the next night on our boat. We’ll miss them but I’m sure our paths will cross again.

We had to make an adjustment to our propeller. The recommended settings from the propeller manufacturer and the engine manufacturer were off so we had to haul the boat and adjust it. An expensive adjustment but worth it. The people at Port Annapolis Marina were fantastic. They were very professional, knowledgeable and proficient. We hauled out over their lunch break. They hauled us, pressure washed the bottom and dropped us back in the water an hour later. Everything went quite well.

We could see where we ran aground in Atlantic City:

Pressure washing the bottom:

Adjusting the prop. We had to disassemble it, adjust the settings on the gears, reassemble and install a new sacrificial zinc on the end.

Going back into the water:

We arrived in the Washington DC channel yesterday and checked in with the Capital Yacht Club. The people at the yacht club are very nice and the facility is great. We will catch up when we can.