It seems we might soon be entertaining an uninvited and unwelcome Guest… Named Florence. She seems to be very pushy, trying to crash our party. So, we are close to facing our first hurricane.
We are in a pretty safe spot. We are several miles inland, on the Intracoastal Waterway in Chesapeake Virginia. We are tied to a dock facing the canal, a few hundred yards south of a drawbridge and maybe almost a mile to a lock system. There are tall trees on both sides of the canal, which may be a natural windbreak, or may fall and be potential boat busters. We are taking all the precautions we and any others here can think of, except moving. There is no safer place within traveling distance; in fact, many boats are coming here for safety. We are making fender boards to more strongly protect our boat from hitting the dock. We will remove all the canvas from our bimini (the “convertible top over the flybridge), the dingy, and the sailboat. We will remove all the covers and cushions from all the seating on the bow and on the flybridge. We will double and triple our dock lines. We will disconnect our power cord from the dock if it looks like flooding will take out the dock power. We have a gassed up rental car, which will be placed on higher ground within walking (wading?) distance in case we need to leave the boat.
We hope to stay on the boat however. We have over 400 gallons of fresh water, which is far more that the people we saw with shopping carts full of water bottles today in the supermarket. We have enough diesel fuel to run the generator for weeks. We have plenty of propane and empty holding tanks. Locals here say they think we might get a ton of rain, a lot of flooding, and high winds. One said he was here for Matthew and the water rose about 4 feet, but he did fine.
Most of today, and I’m guessing most of tomorrow and Wednesday will be spent firming up preparations for our unwelcome guest. I would not be disappointed if she no-showed!
One other interesting occurrence… two nights ago the drawbridge just north of us was hit by lightning! We heard that it knocked out the automation, so they can only open it manually, and will only do that at 6am and 6pm until it’s fixed. When they opened at 6pm tonight, there was a literal parade of boats coming south, most of which are going to weather the storm here.
So we are planning on staying here unless Florence turns out to be a category 3 or 4 or more once she hits land. Then maybe a short road trip. I’ll try to keep you all posted. We would appreciate your prayers in the meantime, not only for us, but all who are meeting this unwelcome guest!
(All three pictures were taken today. Above was a couple of hours ago. Perfect weather!)
We have been following Florence and thinking of you guys. You have a plan and are working it. My teammate and I have a philosophy that if you prepare for the worst you will not need it. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
We already have you in our prayers and thoughts, as well as everyone else there. I’m sure Cherryl is busy making lots of sourdough to all of you fed!
Love Teri, Kimberly, Steve Anderson
Thank you! Yes, we are well taken care of. Whatever happens!
*to keep all of you fed!
Been thinking about you and your unwelcome guest. Keep your heads down, and we’ll be praying for you.
Thanks Bill! We drove past the town of Snowden NC the other day! Made me think of you and Wales!
Have been wondering about your proximity to the storm. We are praying for you as you prepare for and “weather” the storm.
We have also been watching this developing storm-aka “unwelcome guest” and praying you are safely moored to weather the storm. Literally! Keep us posted and our prayers are continual! Stay safe!!❤️🙏
Thank you for your prayers and concern… I know we’ll be well taken care of!
Bruce, if you think there is a chance of flying debris you can put the storm covers on the saloon windows. Call me if you need to.
Les
I was planning on doing that. It’s hard to know what to expect, but I figure it will be better to be over prepared than under. As always, I thank you for your help and will probably be calling you to review my “checklist”.
We’ve been thinking bout you guys and what a plan would be for your firsf hurricane. You have been preparing like you have with so many other things in owning a boat like this. All the training is now tested once again. Gods “grace” has you covered no matter the challenge. Be safe and keep us updated when you’re able. I just heard 15 inches is one prediction for rain.
I’m glad you’re as safe as you can be! Hope Florence is a No-Show! oh and I have to tell you…I just got back from seeing your old crew and Dr Mike (all awesome)! My mouth is frozen and I’m trying to drink (slurp) soda from the can! Miss you!
Thank you! So good to hear from you! Yep, we all hope Flo goes elsewhere. Glad the team at the office is still awesome! Thanks again! Say hi to all our BNI buddies.
Dear Bruce and Cherryl, be safe out there! You’re in our thoughts and prayers. I was in ‘your’ office the other day. Other than missing your presence, it was just like old times. All our best, Brenda & David
Glad to hear all is well! We think of you often – maybe because you comment on our adventures! Thanks for keeping in touch! Latest forecasts show Flo is veering a bit more south… she may not be so bad here. Keep praying!
Are you on the Elizabeth River?
Kinda… we are actually on the western end of the Albermarle and Chesapeake canal, which runs east then south from the end of The Elizabeth River. Quite protected, with a lock between us and Norfolk, and the Chesapeake Bay.