After exiting the Dismal Swamp, we passed through Norfolk, bringing our first round trip transit of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway to a close (mile marker 0 is just off Hospital Point and the Nauticus museum). It was a pretty emotional experience, completing another chapter on this amazing journey. We couldn’t help but reflect on how different the trip up was from the trip down – the days are warmer and longer, and everything just seems easier. We’ve learned so much in the past almost 9 months, and the experiences we’ve had are beyond anything I could ever have imagined. At the same time, the journey is far from over and I look forward to seeing what’s next.
We debated between anchoring at Hospital Point and checking out whatever big waterfront festival was going on or continuing to the Norfolk Yacht Club, where we’d anchored on our way down. I would have loved to dinghy into Norfolk again, but I decided we’d enjoy a relatively quiet anchorage more. There was a lot of boat traffic, but I’m used to that – not so much with city traffic.
The trip from Norfolk Yacht Club to Mobjack Bay was only about 30 nautical miles so even with relatively light wind, once we got past the Navy base, we raised the sails and cut the engine. There’s nothing better than that moment when the engine goes silent and all you hear is the rush of water along the hull, and we had a beautiful day of sailing on the Chesapeake.
Entering Mobjack Bay, dolphins hunted for their dinner as we motored along and took in the scenery. We threaded our way through a dense field of crab pots and dropped the hook just off a little island with one other boat. After dinner in the cockpit, we enjoyed a peaceful sunset. In the morning, we took our time over coffee before hauling anchor (avoiding the crab pots around us took a bit of maneuvering, but I made it look like I knew what I was doing).
We passed an abandoned lighthouse on our way out, and as the breeze filled in, we raised the sails. It was champagne sailing the whole way to Deltaville. The Chesapeake is a great cruising ground and I’m glad we’re getting to explore.
