Departing Chesapeake Bay into Norfolk, Virginia, begins the official ICW (Intracoastal Waterway). Between the naval ships, cargo ships, tugs, busy railroad bridges, the Great Bridge Lock & all of the low, opening highway bridges, you know there will be drama, but you never know from which one(s).

This is the narrow 1/4 mile canal between the lock & the bridge. Lori expertly lassoed a line around the piling so we wouldn’t have to maneuver for our 2-hour wait. These pictured boats were just the first batch – the next hour’s lock opening brought another 8 vessels including 2 mega yachts & a tug pushing a barge.

This year it was the Great Bridge Bridge’s turn (yes, it’s the bridge in Great Bridge, Virginia). It usually opens hourly in conjunction with the adjacent Great Bridge Lock & being less than 25 years old (unlike the nearby lock & bridges) is usually of little concern. Unfortunately, we encountered day 2 of a breakdown which could run as long as 2 months. Rather than the hourly openings, it is only opening 4 times/daily. Not only will it be chokepoint for pleasure vessels, this is a busy corridor for tugs with barges 24/7.

Fortunately we fortified ourselves the night before with cruising friends Jeanne & Sheldon. Gotta keep your strength up!

Norfolk always brings unique sights. This unusual ship is being towed by a tug pulling backwards at the bow & a 2nd tug with a towline at the stern (usually one of the tugs is tied alongside “on the hip” for better control).

The other Norfolk drama was a sailboat which nearly de-masted. One set of the several opening bridges is a low railroad bridge adjacent to a 36′ highway bridge. A few of us powerboats were waiting for the railroad bridge to finally open, which then the highway bridge opens for sailboats. This one sailboat didn’t understand the setup or perhaps was their first time – they tried to proceed before the 36′ highway bridge fully opened.

The bridge tender’s (tense, but gentle) warning on the VHF radio saved them, as the highway bridge had just started its very slow raising (this particular bridge takes several minutes to rise to sailboat height). We had the opposite experience 15 years ago first transiting in our sail catamaran – I was so worried that the bridge wasn’t fully open that the bridge tender had to yell at me to go, as the bridge was up 75′ (& we only needed 63′). After hearing/seeing a sailboat de-masted years ago, that was always a fear during our sailing cat days, as it does happen, although rarely (usually when a bridge closes onto a still approaching sailboat).

Two days later we were moored safely in Belhaven, NC enjoying one of our favorite restaurants Spoon River Artworks & Market. The background gives you a gist of the owner’s artworks talents.

Our engine problem was apparently simply a bad connector on a transmission solenoid. I cut the connector off, replaced with spade connectors & encapsulated it to keep moisture out. I also had to replace our anchor washdown pump & my engine lift fuel pumps are working perfectly – so if trouble comes in 3’s, we’re all set for the rest of our journey!

Our next planned stop is in Beaufort, NC, but look what’s coming!

In the end, we snagged a protected slip in Beaufort for a few days awaiting the storm to pass by. The winds were in the 30’s, gusting to 50, with 4″ of rain & some flooding, but we were snug as a cat.

We’re glad we’re this far, as north of us will be quite flooded for several days, likely severely impacting most of the bridges and the lock. We’re heading off in the AM, hoping to make Charleston for next weekend.