Entering the Intra Costal Waterway. Were’s on our way now!!!

Yesterday afternoon we passed mile marker “0” on the Intra Costal Waterway.  Awesome!!!

Although “entering” the ICW was done with more of a whimper than a roar (ie: non-event as you just pass a bouy), we did pass mile marker #0 (Red 36) on Sunday afternoon in Norfolk and began our trip down what is known affectionately “the ditch” by many who take this route every year. 

We had a great weekend with our friends Harris and Barbara who treated us a trip down “memory lane” at their home in Williamsburg as we reminisced about old times when we were raising our families aboard and enjoying each other’s company so many years ago.  It’s ironic that we ended up naming our boat Pandora as they too have a boat with the same name although a somewhat diminutive Pandora as it’s a Cape Cod catboat that’s 20′ long.

On Friday morning Brenda and I were lucky to have our new friend Kate lend us a car so we could explore the area so we visited Fort Monroe which was a few miles from Hampton Harbor where Pandora was anchored.   This fort has been there since the Revolution and is still actively in use, although now more for residential purposes.  The fort is quite large and even has a mote surrounding it.   I expect that the viewing tower is a newer addition.  I can’t see guys with muskets shooting from the top of that.

We parked outside and walked in through one of the bridges over the mote and were treated to a stroll back in history as we toured the grounds.   There were stately old live oaks everywhere and lovely paths.  It seemed like a very compact community or perhaps a camp ground.   In the middle of the grounds was a large open field and you could almost imagine solders marching in formation in preparation for battle. 

In New England we are accustomed to seeing signs stating that “George Washington slept here” but at Fort Monroe we saw this house where Abraham Lincoln slept and did something important.  I can’t recall what it was but the sign said that it was more than a nap.  There was a really interesting museum inside of the main fortification, surrounding the grounds.   I am not sure what it would be called but the entire fort was ringed with a massive dirt “wall” that included living quarters inside.   Part of this had been made into museum with samples of what the quarters looked like when the fort was actively protecting Hampton Roads.  Love these guys standing around in this exhibit.  I think that they might be taxidermy soldiers from the Revolutionary period.    Their hair looked at least that old.  All of this old stuff stands in stark contrast to the massive naval presence in Newport News which we passed yesterday on our way south.

Ship after ship were lined up, most undergoing refitting.  A few were under construction too.  We even saw a few submarines.  These guys are buying a lot of grey paint.

There is a stark contrast between the older ships and the newer design.  The older ones are bristling with stuff. These new ships are a lot less “messy” looking.  I guess that these are some of the new “stealth warships” if it’s possible to make something that’s 1000’ long not show up on radar.

Look at the huge bulb on the front of this baby.  I wonder if they really think that the tarp will help hide the ship.  “Quick, quick, get that F*&%#%$ tarp on her.  There’s a spy plane headed this way.”  Hmm…

This cruise ship docked in the center of Norfolk was just a bit different than the Navy ships.  We even spied a boat from Norwalk Yacht Club where we were a member for many years.  Adventure is a big wooden schooner that was in Norfolk participating in a schooner rendezvous.   It’s a really great boat.  I spoke with the owner via the VHF and he told me that he was headed to south to participate in, among other events including the Antigua antique boat regatta, I think.

After passing all of these naval ships and the city of Norfolk, we continued down the waterway through a very industrialized area toward our destination for the day, the northern lock at the Dismal Swamp Canal.   Unfortunately, and I hope not an omen for our trip south, I misread the guidebook and was late for the opening of the Glimerton drawbridge, arriving about 10 minutes late for the opening.  That made us miss the last opening of the lock.

I liked this new bridge that we went under.  Not likely to hit the mast on this.

However, being late for the lock wasn’t the end of the world as we just anchored in front of the lock and had a lovely dinner of grilled steak filet, salad and home baked, no make that boat baked, bread to celebrate entering the Dismal Swamp and ICW.   It was particularly nice to toast the beginning of this milestone with some red wine supplied by our friend Rodney from Essex.   A glass seemed a fitting way to recognize such an important milestone.  Rodney had left this particular bottle when he spent some time aboard Pandora earlier in the season.

The Dismal swamp is a very rural area and it’s amazing that it is so close to such an industrialized city like Newport News.   As the sun set over the swamp, this cormorant came to perch on a dead tree seeming to watch over us or perhaps make sure that we didn’t mess up his home during our visit. Today we caught he 08:30 opening of the canal and really entered the canal.  We are now at the visitors center about 15 miles into the swamp to enjoy the museum and meet other cruisers that will be tied up for the night.

I’ll write about the lovely trip through the canal soon.  Next stop, Elizabeth City NC.