Blown back to Middle Danger Zone and a Backfiring Golf Cart

Wednesday- 24 September 2008

Bob woke up really early, and we were both dressed and ready to go at 5:30 am. The wind was calmer and was blowing us away from the dock, and the tide was going out of the marina. We turned all the instrument lights and running lights on. Bob backed into the fairway and then powered forward out of the entrance and by 6:15, we were underway! It was still dark.

Moon in the morning sky

Bob asked where to go, and I pointed down the river. That wasn't good enough. He wanted to know which lights were ATON (Aids TO Navigation).

I booted up the Toshiba and let it go through it's scandisk routine and it said it had fixed the problem, but I wasn't too sure of it. So I set the GPSs so we could follow our previous track down to Colonial Beach. At 6:40 there was light starting in the sky and I took a picture behind us of Quantico in the distance.

Early dawn - Looking back at Quantico

Light in the sky ahead of us 6:41

7:10 on the Potomac

By 7:30 it was full light, and we had turned off all the instrument lights and the running lights and were down by Indian Head. I called the Colonial Beach marina at 8 and the phone message said they weren't open until 9, so I waited until 9 and called back. I asked if we could have a pump-out and she said that would be OK and she would look up our slip assignment.

The Toshiba tanked again, so I turned it off. The wind really picked up and Bob had the sails up and we were doing 7+ knots under power and sail. We were down past Mathias Point to Pope's Creek by 9:30. I turned the Toshiba back on but it froze at this point with us at Pope's Creek, so I turned it off again.

Green #1 - the first buoy north of the bridge

It was close to 10 when we got to the 301 bridge - there was a sailboat there which was dancing around under the bridge. When they got up to us, we saw that they had "Voyage for Cleaner Energy" painted on the side.

Voyage for Cleaner Energy sailboat

Historic Side Lights

The Governor Harry Nice bridge marks the dividing line between the Lower Potomac Estuary and the Upper Estuary. It is the only Potomac crossing below Washington.

Going under the bridge

It was espoused by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Nice who was Governor of Maryland.

Bridge fenders

On September 4, 1938, Franklin D. Roosevelt made a speech in Morgantown (Maryland). He said, "..For a long time I have felt that, for the good not only of the people of Southern Maryland but also for the good of the people of the United States, there ought to be a through road from Baltimore to Richmond—a cut-off if you like. It would be a road which, at the same time, would open up to the general traveling public-and we are traveling more and more every year—this very wonderful section of our country, a section that is good to look at, that is peopled by good citizens."

First a Ferry

At approximately this point, a famous ferry ran from Morgantown, Md. to Mathias Point in Virginia, as early as 1705. The ferry was part of the shortest route between the capitals of Maryland and Virginia (Annapolis and Richmond) and served as a principal link in the journeys of many early Americans, including George Washington, George Mason, and other founding fathers.

The site of one of the river crossings by John Wilkes Booth after his assassination of Abraham Lincoln is upstream a short way from here at Pope's Creek.

Second Historic Sidelight

Dahlgren is on the Virginia side of the bridge. Dahlgren is in King George County, Virginia, United States on the Northern Neck. Since 1918, Dahlgren has been the site of a U.S. Naval base named for Rear Admiral John A. Dahlgren. Dahlgren Hall at the USNA and several ships were also named for him. He was known as the "Father of American naval ordnance."

Dahlgren from the Potomac

Dahlgren is the proving ground for armament. When I hear rumbling sounds, and look outside and see a blue sky, I think "Must be doing testing at Dahlgren".

Dahlgren Yacht Club or Machodoc Creek Marina

The "U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDL) can boast that it has ‘‘sighted” and certified every gun barrel on every surface craft ever used by the U.S. Navy. With its 18-mile range along the shores of the Potomac River and Machodoc Creek. The Dahlgren guns had a lot to do with the demolition of the St. Clement's Island lighthouse.

End Historic Sidelights

After we got to the other side of the bridge, someone came up on the radio for

the southbound sailboat at the 301 bridge

so I answered. At first, because I thought he said his name was Voyager, I thought he was the other sailboat, but he was much too polite for that. He kept calling me "ma'am".

Range boat up by the bridge

It turned out to be the Dahlgren range boat, and they asked us go over to the red 30 and red 32 and then to head for Swan's Point before we crossed to Colonial Beach. (This means that they are testing and don't want us sailing through target area) Anyway, we saw R30 and 32 on the chart - now to find them in person.

Red 32 and Red 30

On the chart they marked a very shallow 3 foot shoal. I didn't want to cross there.

Red 32

But Bob said we should cross to the left of them. The wind was also REALLY picking up to 26 knots or better and the boat was heeling. That made Bob happy, but me not so much.

We eventually went by the R30 on the 'wrong' side of it - i.e. going down the river it should have been on our port side, and we passed on the starboard. It was right by the Morgantown Power Plant.

Morgantown power plant

Then we headed for Swan Point -- staying out of the Middle Danger Zone.

Middle Danger Zone between Swan's Point and Colonial Beach

Bob had me steer into the wind to take in the jib, but it was wrapped so tight that he didn't have the lines around it like usual. He took in the staysail. Then he tried to depower the main by putting it way out to the side so it wouldn't heel the boat as much. Eventually he had to have me steer again so he could take the main in. In the excitement, I forgot which way to go, which didn't make him very happy.

After we got all the sails in, we were really rocking and rolling. We crossed at Swans Point, and AGAIN couldn't find the Red 2. When we did find it we saw again that it had room for about 8 red triangles and there were only two

Bob put the lines out but he said we were GOING to tie up port side to the dock and so he did not put out lines on the starboard side. Big mistake.

I called the marina on the radio about 11:30 - no answer. I tried on the phone - no answer. As we came in to the dock, we saw that the huge boat MISS ANN was taking on fuel from a Texaco truck, and they were blocking the pump-out dock. So Bob figured that he'd go where we had been before, but he wanted port side tie so we would be pointing out the inlet. But because of the wind, he couldn't get the boat to turn around to port. So NOW he wanted me to take the lines from the port side and put them on the starboard side. RIGHT? NOT.

I yelled at a man with a bike on the walkway HELP and he came over and took my bow line. Bob was jumping on and off the boat. He was really pissed. But we DID get tied up and he put us on the end of the dock so that no one would be in front of us to worry about.

Our trip down the river from Quantico was 34.7 nm (a mile farther than on the way up because of having to detour over to Swan's Point), and our average speed was 5.7 knots, which was 0.6 knot faster. The maximum speed was 7.3 knots

Anyway, as Bob was annoyed and so was I. I walked over to use the bathrooms and complained to the folks there by the shop about our 'welcome' to the marina. They explained that MISS ANN had knocked over the piling at the pump-out slip, and that probably distracted them.

Piling that Miss Ann knocked over

When the office lady came back, she said she had phoned my cell phone and left a message about the pump out slip. Which mollified me somewhat, but I still didn't see why, when I told her that we would be there between 11 and 12, everyone decided to go to lunch at the same time at 11:30. She remarked that I must be the first person who arrived at the time that I had said I would. I paid for 3 days, planning to leave Saturday because it was predicted to be really windy Thursday and to start to rain, and to rain all day on Friday.

I decided I wanted to rent a golf cart and see what there was to see in Colonial Beach. There's a trolley in the season,

Trolley stop

but not at this time of year. The office lady called for me, and they came and picked us up and gave us a gas golf cart with rain curtains. I signed for it. Bob didn't think much of the idea as he said we could rent a car for a week for that price ($61/day)

We got the cart for Weds and Thurs and they waived the $15 overnight fee and gave us $10 discount for the rental not being on the weekend. I figured I could see what I could on Wednesday when it wasn't raining, and then Thursday before the rain started, and then we could go to lunch and dinner on Thursday and just eat at the marina on Friday

After we got the cart, I drove it across the street to Fat Freda's (Best Sandwiches on the Beach).

Fat Freda's menu

Menu board

[The marina restaurant isn't open until 3 on Weds.] It was great. There were a lot of local people eating there. Bob had a

Pulled pork sandwich

and I had the

Special which was the chicken cranberry chutney salad. ($6.99)

I see from the reviews and from the Facebook page that Fat Freda's is permanently closed.

After lunch, I made Bob drive. The cart would lurch wildly and backfire if you tried to drive it slowly, so you had to put your foot down. Sometimes it would also backfire at stop signs. The turn signals did not cancel, so you had to be careful not to leave them on all night.

We went all the way out to the highway.

Area by the highway with a welcome sign

Days Inn just past entrance sign

We went by the museum

The Museum

(which is only open Sat and Sun but is free), and along Monroe Bay Ave.

Monroe Bay from the road

Potomac beach

to the marina. Monroe Bay is the inlet that goes into the middle of Colonial Beach. We drove over most of the town.

Dahlgren spotting tower from land

Share the road

Riverhurst

Antennas

War memorial

Town Hall sign

Westmoreland News

There were some places where only golf carts and bicycles were allowed - no cars.

Golf carts and Bicycle Traffic Only

I was looking for churches and cemeteries, but there were no cemeteries. We passed a little house with two huge (4 feet high) Fu Dogs, and I missed getting a photo of them. There were a lot of houses for sale.

Riverview - for sale

Liquidating

Post office

We saw the Post Office,

Lenny's

Lenny's Restaurant (out of business - we had a different Lenny's restaurant at home),

Golf cart parked in front of the VFW

the Hunan Dinner (Chinese). Then we (or at least I) had a nap because we got up so early in the morning. Bob also installed the direct TV receiver.

At about 4:30 we went out again to find a place to each dinner, and we drove along the Potomac side. I had picked out some things to see, and restaurants to find.

Slow ducks

One of the places of note in Colonial Beach is Bell House.

Bell House from a golf cart at dusk

According to the website, the home was built in 1883 by Colonel J.O.P. Burnside, son of Civil War General Ambrose Burnside. The Colonel lost the house to the U. S. Government in a lawsuit over pay irregularities in the Union Army accounts. When it was owned by Alexander Graham Bell’s father, It was where Alexander Graham Bell spent his summers as a child.

Back yard

Later it was owned by Alexander himself.

Photo from the side of the porches

It is an outstanding building on the waterfront. It is now a bed and breakfast and a Virginia Historic Landmark and National Historic Property.

Detail of the roofline

The Bell House offers four rooms, each with a private bath. All reservations include a full, hearty breakfast served from eight to nine o'clock a.m. each morning. Wine and cheese or wine and hors d’oeuvres are served in the gathering room between five o’clock and six o’clock p.m.

We debated between going to the

Riverboat on the Potomac (off track betting and a restaurant)

or High Tides for dinner.

High Tides On the Potomac

Eventually we picked High Tides.

"Greeter"

We sat by the window, and I watched a little boy playing on the sand.

Boy on the beach

He was chasing some female mallard ducks. To start, I had a cup of the soup of the day which was

Seafood Gumbo - Soup of the Day

It was VERY spicy. Bob also had a cup of soup. We both had

Virgin pina coladas

Bob had a

Fish and Chips Basket (appetizer) $8.99

and I had the

Coconut shrimp appetizer $9.99

While we were eating, we saw a lady come ashore in a kayak - she was a bit wet. After we ate, we came home and put the side curtains down on the golf cart went to bed

Sunset

Thursday 25 September 2008

Thursday morning we were up fairly early. I used the golf cart to go to the bathrooms which are a bit of a walk. Bob looked at the holding tanks and said the forward one was full (Bob tends to use that one), and the aft one was definitely not, but we should use the marina bathrooms whenever possible.

Whenever I asked where I could do the internet, everyone said the library. So I tried to call the library but it did not answer at 9 or at 10. Eventually I called the town hall and she said that on Thursday, they opened at one and were open until 9 pm. She did not know whether they had only their own computers or if they had wi-fi.

It started to rain, so I was writing up the previous day's trips.

Flooded area in the marina

The tides were VERY high and up over the parking lots and into the streets in a lot of cases.

Flooded area of the road near the marina

Ambulance pulling a rescue boat

On our floating dock, there is a ramp to a fixed dock and the ramp goes DOWN to the fixed dock at high tide.

So about 11:30, we put on our rain gear and went out to get lunch. We saw a restaurant called the Happy Clam yesterday and decided to eat there.

Happy Clam

This restaurant was formerly called the Lighthouse. The Happy Clam Seafood Restaurant, has been family owned and operated locally, by the Moncure family since 1979. There was a brief interruption, courtesy of Hurricane Isabel, between 2003 and 2007. The Happy Clam is at Bayside Marina, and is associated with The Seafood Market at The Happy Clam. They have photos on the walls of old time Colonial Beach.

Old photo of Colonial Beach beach

"New" hotel photo

Bayside is one of the many marinas along the west side of Monroe Bay but I'm not sure we could get into them with a 5 foot draft.

Looking at the marina from inside the Happy Clam

Chart and map of Monroe Bay

Building across from Bayside

Specials board

Normally I would have one of the specials, but I had seafood gumbo the day before, and I'm not a fan of okra unless it is in some kind of soup or stew. So I had hot tea and shrimp salad with hush puppies.

Shrimp salad and hush puppies

Bob had soup and

Tuna salad plate

Then we both wanted coconut cake, but it apparently hadn't 'set up' yet, so Bob had

Double Chocolate Cake

My German chocolate pie

Each dessert was $4.95. The bill before tip was $35.92

We got to the library about a half hour before it opened,

Library door

Bob in the golf cart in front of the library - waiting for it to open

and I walked around town a little bit while we waited.

St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church in the rain

When we got in, they had BOTH wi-fi and their own computers. Not only that, but if they aren't open, you can sit outside and still use it. So Bob went back and got my computer while I worked on their computer. Then he sat and read a book while I computed.

Historic buildings of Colonial Beach in the library

About 5, he said he was tired of reading, so we went back to the marina, and I dropped him off and went back to the library.

Rain on the golf cart windshield

It was still light when I got back there and I tried to figure out how to turn on the golf cart lights, but Bob said the switch didn't seem to work and I couldn't make them turn on with any other switch I tried either. I did eventually get the emergency flashers to work.

I went back in to the library and kept working and sent emails until about 7:30 and then I was tired. A scout master that was talking to the librarians went out with me to see if he could figure out the switch but he said the thought it was broken, but at least the cart was white. He also said I'd get a ticket for driving without lights.

I set out to drive back to the marina. It was raining lightly and there are no windshield wipers on the cart so when there were street lights, they glared off the window and I couldn't see. And when there weren't street lights I could just barely make out the reflection of the center line on the road in the dim light of the flashers. I couldn't tell whether there was water over the road or whether the road had a drop off either. Nor could I see any road signs. A couple of times I got out and wiped the window off with my rain gear sleeve, but it didn't help for long

So whenever I saw any kind of car headlights, I pulled as far off the road as I dared and stopped and sat there flashing until the car was out of sight. I was a bit worried about the police and I wanted to be a sort of stealth ghost golf cart, but this goal was more or less thwarted by the golf cart tendency to backfire whenever I slowed down.

Backfiring Golf Cart parked at the marina

Eventually I got back to the marina and parked and locked the cart (after writing THIS CART HAS NO LIGHTS on the tag on the wheel), and I put the keys in the marina mailbox.

Friday: 26 September 2008

We hung around the boat and watched TV. When I booted up this computer to download pictures none of the USB ports worked. I finally turned it off and turned back on again and then they worked. I tried to get the virus definitions to download in the library and they wouldn't download. So now it wants updates and it can't have them

Bob washed the waterline down about a foot under water on the dock side. He says we have to haul the boat after we get back, and the zippers on the enclosure are deteriorating so we need a whole new bimini (which is 10 years old), dodger and side curtains. We had the last of the roast beef for lunch. I tried booting up the Toshiba a couple of times and once it did and once it didn't.

There is a mute swan in this section of the marina which is eating stuff off the floats of the floating docks.

Mute swan

Snacking Swan

No one else has come in to the marina since we got here Weds.

Bob was worried about the possibility of fog tomorrow because outside of the inlet there are lots of crab pots. If there is wind there probably won't be fog, but there might be rain

We went up to eat dinner at the restaurant and this time the salads were better.

Friday's salad

Bob had clam chowder and

Fried Oyster dinner with a baked potato and coleslaw

and I had a

Rib eye and mashed potatoes

I brought most of the ribeye home with me as I couldn't eat it all.

Saturday 27 September 2008

Getting ready to leave the marina

Miss Ann

We pulled away from the dock about 8:20. It was calm but cloudy. The Toshiba would boot and run for a little while, and then freeze and/or shut down. I got tired of it and finally shut it off. Sometimes there was

Sun (9:45 sunny)

and then there would be a little

Rain (10:45 rain)

The wind was on the nose (basically east or south east depending on the direction the river was going) and ranged from 16 knots down to 9 knots. We had the main up, but didn't put up any other sails and didn't shut off the engine. When we got closer to the Chesapeake, the wind was far enough off the nose to make the boat heel a little bit even though we weren't really trying to sail.

There were waves and I guess the aft head has a bad joker valve because when the boat would pitch, stuff would come back into the toilet from the holding tank. Someone had to go down periodically and pump it back. I ate my leftover rib-eye for lunch. Bob had tuna salad

By 1300 we were opposite Piney Point and this time we saw (almost ran over) the submarine marker. The buoy in the Potomac where the U-1105 was sunk can't be seen from Piney Point, and is hard to find out in the river.

The German submarine, the Black Panther was a revolutionary feature in military weaponry because it was covered with a synthetic rubber coating making it “invisible” to the sonar of the day and creating one of the first stealth weapons. The U-1105 Black Panther patrolled off the shore of Scotland Maryland. When the war was over, it was ordered to an Allied base in northern Scotland where it surrendered. The British later turned the submarine over to the United States Navy for study and experimentation in the U.S. After preliminary testing the U-1105 was fatally damaged on September 19, 1949 and was sunk in 90 feet of water in the Potomac River at Piney Point by a Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal team.

Submarine marker

In June of 1985, the U-1105 was 'rediscovered' by a team of sports divers from Virginia, and after some archeological exploration, the U-1105 was designated as Maryland’s first Historic Shipwreck Dive Preserve and a National Historic Landmark. The U-1105 is a United States Naval ship and is protected by federal law.

I did get a better picture of

St Francis Xavier Chapel

on St. George's island. A long time ago, I had put a waypoint into one of the GPSs for the entrance to Smith Creek, so that's what we headed for.

Chart

I think it is easier to get back to Smith Creek without the computer charting when you are coming down the river, because I could see the marina over the big shoal that comes out from St. Inigoes neck, and the other way it is completely hidden.

We got back to the marina about 3 and filled up with diesel - 27 gallons, but it is down to $4/gal. Some wind, but the man across the dock and the guy on the big ketch came over and handed us lines.

RosalieAnn back at the dock

The trip was 31.1 nm at an average speed of 4.6 knots (max speed 6.0 knots). Our slower speed was probably due to the wind being on the nose most of the time.

Stuff in the cockpit waiting to be offloaded

The range boat Prince was up on the marine railway.

Range boat Prince(and Bob throwing away the trash)

Everything was loaded into the truck and we were out of there by 1600.

We stopped on the way home at Bear Creek Open Pit BBQ

Bear Creek grille

and got something for dinner. I got the special (stuffed ham sandwich), Bob got a sandwich and I also got a Frito Pie and some cornbread. It cost all of $20.80.

Desserts (which we resisted getting)

When we got back, the paper was in the paper box, and the postman/woman had put the weeks mail in a basket on the porch. Bob turned the water back on, and unloaded the car while I talked to one of his cousins who phoned just as we walked in the door

I tried to boot up my newer Dell computer, it would not boot and said the bios was damaged. So I was on the phone to a tech for about an hour. I don't know whether it is fixed now or not.

Thursday 2 October 2008

Today we did three things. I sent our granddaughter her wedding present. I also got a roll of stamps since the previous roll of stamps which we bought extra one cent stamps for seems to have vaporized.

I went and renewed my driver's license which expires in November. It now is good until 2013. I could have done it on line if I'd had the stupid form for the eye doctor to fill out when I went for my eye exam.

We also voted by absentee ballot since we will be leaving before election day. I think for most things Bob and I canceled each other's vote.

The book Bob was reading in the library in Colonial Beach "Crazies to the Left of me, Wimps to the Right" which he told me to order was on the porch when we got back. He wants me to read it.

Thursday 9 October 2008

We hauled the boat for the winter. We have a boat that is too big for a trailer. So we have to move it with a travel lift.

Coming up out of the water

Fortunately the Point Lookout Marina (which is on Smith Creek and not actually at Point Lookout) has a lift big enough to pick up our boat and move it into the boatyard for the winter.

Going up to the yard

Turning at the top of the hill

Our previous marina (Blackstone on the Patuxent) did not have a big enough lift to do this. The only other marina in St. Mary's County with a big enough travel lift is Tall Timbers. Other than those two marinas - we would have to go to Solomons (Calvert County) or over to Virginia.

We went to the Chinese Buffet for lunch on 22 October.

Lunch Buffet - 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tues-Sat

We left for our next trip - the Panama Canal Cruise on 2 November