Portsmouth

We leave the dock at 7:00. Even though we are packed in tight on the long face dock the current on our stern helps kick out our back end, off the dock with the bow line still tied to the dock. Once the back end clears the boat behind us we back out and Linda pulls the bow line free. We motor-sail for the first 15 miles of open water before we enter the narrow ICW channel. We have 4 opening bridges to deal with today. The first one, the North Landing bridge has two swing spans that are so low to the water I don’t think a canoe could get under. A few weeks ago a barge clobbered on of the span and they can only open one side every 30 minutes. The other side has to be manually opened twice a day to commercial traffic that will not fit through the single span. We arrive with a bunch of power boats for the 11:00 AM opening. The next bridge which opens every ½ hour is too far for us to make in just ½ hour. Sometimes the opening gets delayed so we maintain full speed. We don’t make it, but the bridge operator kindly opens the bridge 15 minutes later after traffic clears for three boats. 

Leaving Coinjock

The next bridge “Great Bridge”, although only two miles further, only opens on the hour, so we will have nearly an hour to wait. There is a free dock by the bridge, but only room for one more boat, so we tie up. A Swiss couple (Martin and Denise) who we met at Coinjock is behind us and I wave them over to tied up off of us. They sailed across the ocean and have been in the Caribbean and are now working their way north to Boston and then Nova Scotia. They will haul their boat (Skua) there and come back next year and sail back to Europe. Very interesting couple. We next go through the tidal lock shortly after Great Bridge. I think we drop, maybe 4 inches. This is the first time Martin and Denise have been in a lock. This is an easy lock, they have rubber wall bumpers, don’t need fenders. No current with the gentle drop.

My Happy Hooker

Denise and Martin on  "Skua"

We told Martin and Denise about the free wall on a basin in Portsmouth, which is a favorite stop for us. When we arrive around 3:00 PM there are two spaces left. After we quickly dock, I wave them over to the space behind us and we help them tie up. I get back to our boat and I can not pull it forward on the dock, when I realize I have left it in the reverse. I shut down the engine and now it is much easier to pull the boat forward.

General Dynamics

Cute little boat we have passed a few times.

Boats in the Basin

Martin and Denise invite us over for Happy Hour on their boat at 5:00. First Linda and I quickly walk up to “The Commodore Theater” an old restored art-deco movie theater that has tables and very comfortable stuffed chairs on casters. They serve food and drinks. We make a reservation for tonight.

Dinner & Movie

After Happy Hour we head to the theater about an hour before the movie starts for dinner. There are thunderstorm warnings, but we get to the theater before we see any rain. Just before the movie starts everyones phone around us starts playing a weather alert for possible torrnados, even though people phones are set on “Airplane Mode”. 




When we walk back to boat hours later, it is obvious we had a lot of rain. The bucket in the dinghy has 4 inches of water in it.