Voyage of the Sweetpea

Finally!

After 6 years of work and a few weeks of almost all-nighters, Sweetpea (36' C&C Invader sailboat) appeared to be ready to sail to Florida from Annapolis. We wisely decided to delay the originally scheduled departure by a day to do a sea trial and check out the systems before actually departing. The 3 hour sail on the 27th of Sept was the first time we had ever sailed her so it was a delight and a relief to find that she sailed well. It was a beautiful day and we had 5 happy people on board who had spent considerable time and energy on her restoration.

The big day was Sunday, the 28th. The planned departure was 7 AM, but it took a couple of extra hours to ensure we had everything on board that we would need for the 30 day voyage.

Out of the Rhode River and into the Chesapeake Bay, it became clear that our departure day was going to be very different than the sunny, light wind day we had for the sea trial the day before. The wind was about 25 knots, seas were 3-4 feet and it was overcast/ rainy. Nevertheless, it was exciting and we were committed. I raised the mainsail solo -- one of many new experiences that day -- and we were sailing with the main and jib for a while. Sweetpea sailed fine -- her rub rails, bulwarks and various parts of her deck buried in the water a lot of the time. We made 6-7 knots most of the day. We eventually reduce the main and later furled the jib as the wind increased -- not much effect on the speed. Sometime during the 40 mile voyage, the shackle connecting the topping lift to the boom (a long rope from the top of the mast to the end of the boom) broke and the rope with the metal fitting at the end was swinging in the breeze. Ed, the delivery captain who is going with me, went forward near the mast to catch the flying piece while I was at the helm. He caught it, but it wasn't easy. I can still visualize him standing on the edge of the deck trying to catch the rope as it flew by and the boat healed over so far that water seemed to be up to his knees. I'm glad he's along. His experience and his youth is very welcome.

We cruised into the Patuxant River and made our way to Solomon's Island after about 8 hours. After docking the boat, we went to dinner and began talking about the next leg. It was Sunday night so shopping for food and fueling the boat was not possible without renting a taxi, but as we talked our options became clear. Since the next stop was in a bay that local knowledge said was full of unmarked fish traps, we needed to arrive in daylight. Since the distance was about 80 miles, we needed to depart either 4 PM the next day or right away. We knew what weather we had currently, but the next day was iffy. We decided that a few hours of sleep might be wise so we planned to get a few hours of sleep and get up at 2 AM, walk to the 7-eleven for coffee and some sandwiches, take a chance on making it with the fuel we had and get underway about 3 AM for 13 - 16 hours of sailing.

We left Solomon's Island harbor in the dark, partly cloudy, some stars above and periodic light rain. Once we got into the Chesapeake Bay the wind was steady, the weather seemed to be clearing, the stars were out and the sailing was great! We motored sailed with the jib (forward sail) and the motor. Speed was 5-6 knots -- not bad. After daylight, the wind increased and as we passed Point No Point and approached Point Lookout (southern tip of Maryland) the engine overheated. Ed went below to check out the problem and decided to change the impeller in the water pump (the part that makes the water flow through the pump). Later, we figured out that the pump was probably OK , but the boat was healed over so far that the water intake (near the top of the keel) was actually out of the water and the pump sucked air and cavitated. Wind for most of this leg was 15 to 25 knots, the seas were very 'confused' where the Potomac feeds into the Bay -- especially around Smith Point -- smoothed out further south. Passed several light houses; the most interesting was called Wolftrap -- appeared to be build out of brick, very large and very gothic. We arrived at Mobjack Bay (with the fish traps) about 5 PM and began looking for the East River where we were to put in. About 7 PM we had located Zimmerman's Boatyard and were greeted by one of the managers. After 13 hours today and 8 hours the day before and only 3-4 hours sleep, we were pretty beat!

Barb meet me at the dock, dropped off some things we had asked for (by phone), took us to the grocery store about 30 miles away, and then to dinner. I almost went face-down into my sandwich -- from fatigue and I was definitely land-sick (a sensation of movement even when you are stable) from the last several days of working on or sailing the boat.

We left Ed to supervise the repairs we wanted done on the boat (this was a planned stop and we had called to make arrangements well before departing Annapolis) and I slept while Barb drove me back to the marina we started at. Arriving about 1:30 AM, we got a few hours sleep and then rose to the massive task of loading all the stuff we had in storage into the horse trailer (pulled with one of our vans) and preparing the 32' Airstream travel trailer we had been living in all summer for a trip to Florida.

All loading was completed about 8 PM and we said our good-byes and left for Florida. Barb drove one van and the horse trailer and I drove the other van and Airstream until we could drop off one van and horse trailer for a later trip to Florida. We drove through for about 22 hours and are now in Punta Gorda Florida.

The repairs have gone well on the boat. There has been a small leak at the top of the rudder post (where it goes through the hull) since we bought the boat 6 years ago. W had it fixed before, but it wasn't done correctly, so we chose this yard (well known for their restorations of fine boats) to get it done right. Ed reports they have done a great job and that he has done several other things we planned to do along the way or that needed to be done (like scrape the barnacles off the prop) and some things we hadn't planned (like shipping us a lot of the stuff we had loaded -- read 'overloaded' -- on the boat before he arrived). As the yard was preparing the rudder to be installed, they noticed some corrosion on the stainless steel rudder post that would make it unwise to go off shore, so we are now having a new piece fabricated. These are all things that need to be done and are better done before they fail at sea. We have also been having trouble getting all the instruments and auto pilot working so this has been a chance for me to visit the company that produces them and get their best technical advice.

Ed will be picking me up in Baltimore on Tues morning and we will dive down to the boat for a Wed morning launching and then off to Norfolk if everything checks out.

That's where we are to date. The adventure continues....... Many great people have contributed their time and skills to this effort and we appreciate it. All of you have been supportive in some way -- if only by asking and listening to our reports and smiling as we tell you what's happened. I will be sending out periodic reports as we continue. If you are not interested in all the details, just ask to be deleted from the list and I'd be happy to do so (I understand what it's like to try to keep up with all that e-mail). Otherwise, I'll send you reports when I can. Generally, I will be reachable by e-mail or pager while I am underway. Barb will be in Florida and can keep you informed if you'd rather get a verbal report.

Best, Chip