Norfolk, VA

April 1, 2019
Our stay in Coinjock, SC, was not the best for sleeping.  We were the only boat on the dock and the current continued to slap against our hull, while the wind buffeted us all evening.  But we did get a great sunset to start with.

We were slow to get going and didn't shove off until 9:30.  Didn't worry since it was going to be a short mileage day.  We were to learn another lesson.

We saw only one other boat moving on the water.  It was a cold and blustery day.  The Currituck Sound was quite shallow and the waves were square and tight, continually blowing spray up onto the windshield.  We cruised at our slow rate of 8 mph, trying to minimize the unpleasantness, but extending the duration.  Once back in the narrower river channels, things improved greatly. And the ospreys were out in force building their nests.  We also spotted several bald eagles, including this big guy:

What we did not count on was a series of low bridges that opened on time schedules and not upon request.  The first one we came to required us to wait about 20 minutes.  The second we timed a bit better and only had to sit for about 10 minutes.  The third we adjusted our speed to just reach it when it opened.  But then we had 4 miles to the next bridge (the Great Bridge and Lock) which only opens on the hour, giving us 55 mins to get there.  We idle at 5 mph, so we ended up tying to a pier near the bridge and waiting.  We did luck out with an open RR bridge near Norfolk that can be down for over an hour if a train is near.  The Norfolk Naval Station was quite busy and full of a variety of ships.  The speed limit is 7 mph for several miles thru the area, and we were the only boat moving.  We eventually reached Rebel Marina north of Norfolk, after 60 miles, at about 4:30 feeling more tired than previous 100 mile days.

The weather forecast heavy winds, waves and rain for the next day and it proved true.

We hunkered down, slept in, took showers, did laundry, stayed warm and dry and caught up on our blog.
Hopefully, tomorrow's weather will improve and we'll head up into the Chesapeake Bay.  Only about 190 miles to DC.