three and one-half days

Always a fool but with a quirky schedule of three and one-half days off at least I was for a while a sailing fool.  First two and one-half days (the half being a morning on the water Saturday) I sailed the Elizabeth River in Norfolk where I came across a couple of unusual sights.

The first was a dry dock pulled out of position on the southern branch of the Elizabeth, the dock being wide enough to block the entire river.  Spartina, along with another boat, ran in gentle circles for about 15 minutes until a tug began pushing the floating dock back into position at the shipyard and giving us enough room to slip by.

Once past the dry dock we raised sail at just about the time I received an email from sailing friend Steve Baum, who I have mentioned before.  Below is part of his email. 

"Steve,

There is a fellow from Canada that is currently cruising on a live-aboard 13' boat sailboat.  He started his cruise in Franklin on the Black Water River, headed south through the Chowan River, then across the Albermale Sound and now is working his way north, to finish in Bennetts Creek."

(I've enhanced the map from a Facebook

post to show some of the route)

About an hour after reading the email I saw a small boat with a square sail come around the bend onto the main branch of the Elizabeth. 

I sailed alongside the Paradox "Iota" for a while, each of us taking photographs of the other boat and exchanging greetings.  If you want to read more about the interesting almost-circumnavigation of lower Virginia by André-Francois Bourbeau take a look here.  He seemed like a very nice guy and if you read up on him he has done his share of adventuring.  I look forward to talking with, or maybe sailing with him someday.

After a few days on the Elizabeth River I headed down to Elizabeth City to sail the Pasquotank today photo at the very top and just above), a day of blue skies mixed with some clouds and steady wind with a few gusts thrown in.  It was a perfect day, a perfect long weekend.  

I guess now I need to get back to work.