N 35 01 37 W 76 41 13 Oriental, NC

It is STILL COLD in these parts!!! We wake up to 38 degrees, BRRRRR! That espar heater has saved us! The day we left Norfolk there were 16 boats making there way south with us!! There are tons of people out here doing the same thing we are!!! (and we thought we would have the place to ourselves, not a chance!!) Upon passing under the Hwy 64 bridge a choice must be made to either go through the Dismal Swamp Canal (DSC) or take the Coinjock (Virginia Cut) route. The DSC is supposed to be scenic with no houses. The only problem is that it is very shallow, 6-9 feet! Johesa drafts 6 feet. Bill called the visitors center and they assured us we could make it through without problems, so off we went! About half of the 16 boats chose this route. I believe we were the deepest draft though. As the processional made its way down the canal, we could feel Johesa skimming logs (deadheads) on the bottom. With each bump we grew more uneasy about our choice. All of a sudden we hit the mother load and Johesa came to a halt. YIKES!! The boat in back of us almost ran into us as they were following too closely. They quickly skirted around and as they passed by asked if they could help but kept on going!! The next boat offered to pull us off and they were successful. The rudder and prop seemed ok so we continued on the the Visitors Center where we rafted with 16 boats (4 deep, the record is 32 but I can not imagine how that worked!), it is expected. Everyone had heard the goings on on the VHF and asked how we were. The Army Corps of engineers was on the canal and tried to locate the culprit log(?).
Onward to Elizabeth City. Great stop! We spent 2 nights there and met up with another Dufour 36 heading our way! Not only do they have the same boat, but a big dog too! They had done the swamp the day before us and hit the very same tree! We traveled with them and had the boats hauled out here. Turns out Johesa checked out alright, tightened the keel boats and we got splashed back in the water. Deatons Boat Yard on the Whitaker Creek, we would highly recommend them for any kind of major boat repairs.
Last night we attended a pig roast with an apple pie contest for cruisers! Great fun! Tennessee Ronnie puts on the roast with a little help from Tennessee moonshine which is also available for a nominal fee on the side. It is for a good cause and a good time was had by all.
We hope to leave for Beaufort, NC Mon. or Tues. weather permitting. But it will be hard to leave Oriental. They still let dogs run free here!
Fair winds, Johesa

38 20 14N 76 26 19W Solomons Island MD

We left Baltimore for Annapolis Wednesday September 27th. Got to Annapolis early afternoon and picked up a mooring ball just past the bridge on Spa Creek. Johesa is the boat close to the church. We spent two weeks in Annapolis seeing the sights, re-provisioning our supplies, working on boat projects and managed to have some fun also. Where does the time go? There were pot lucks and happy hours with other cruisers to attend which kept us pretty busy. No pictures were taken to protect the innocent. Also met up with sailing friends from Minnesota for dinner and boat show events.
Cindy got together with an old friend Carol Kiernan from her Rochester days for lunch. They had a nice visit and both agreed they haven't changed a bit in the past 28 years.
We spent a lot of time at the Annapolis Boat Show which is the main reason that all the cruisers are in Annapolis at this time. Bought a few items but still have enough money to continue cruising. We stayed for the sail to power boat conversion. At 5:00 PM the cannon goes off and all the sail boats take off and the power boats take their place. Very impressive with hundreds of boats trading places.
After the boat show Cindy and I stayed an extra day to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. Here we are at the Chart House restaurant where we ate way to much.
The next morning bright and early we left Annapolis for the the Solomons. We continue to head south as the weather is starting to get cooler. I'm sure that our family and friends in Minnesota feel sorry for us.
Until we blog again, Far Winds from Johesa.