The late October temperatures in Hampton were falling and giving us the heads up that it was time to move south. So, we put our efforts into winterizing Orion and getting her ready to weather the colder temperatures. As November began, we were on our way south to LaBelle, with some stops along the way to say goodbye to Adam's and Bonnie's families.

Winter's Not Here Yet, But It's Coming

It's our third year winterizing Orion for the Hampton winter, and we're getting better at it. We strip the deck of canvas, headsail, and any smaller items (flag, horseshoe PFD, etc.) that could take flight or create windage. And then we secure anything else that is impractical to remove (anchor, bimini poles, etc.). With the new engine just at the 50 hour mark, we changed the engine oil and ran antifreeze into the raw water lines. Similarly, we ran the A/C with antifreeze, pumped some through the toilet, deck washdown and shower sump pump. Lastly, we emptied the fresh water tanks and the hot water heater. After cleaning the inside of the forward water tank, and re-plumbing the hot water heater to take it out of the plumbing circuit, we poured antifreeze in the water fill, running all of the faucets, including the swim shower, until they ran pink instead of clear. That took care of the major systems.

The remaining shutdown tasks were more mundane. We emptied the boat of food, much of our clothing, and the various items that travel with us to Orion Jr. Cathy went through all the compartments, cleaning out what she could and inventorying the rest. The mid-October rains had pointed out a few areas where seals needed refreshing, so we re-siliconed a portlight, a stanchion and a few bolts. To ensure the wood looks good when we return in the Spring, Cathy applied another coat of Cetol. Dave focused his attention on rigging extra lines and refreshing the chafe protection. We had the benefit of some extra high tides and some extra low ones that allowed him to study how Orion sat in the slip at both extremes with the new line configuration. 

By the morning of our departure, we felt pretty good that everything that was left on Orion was clean and protected for the winter, and everything that we needed on Orion Jr was in the truck, ready to go. Dave would suggest that maybe there was too much of the latter. At any rate. We bid Orion goodbye and turned our attention south.

Boat Stuff and More


There are a number of things that are more convenient in Hampton than they will be once we move to Orion Jr, so we took advantage of our final weeks to get a number of things done. Haircuts, flu shots, on-line shopping and banking, research for projects planned on Jr, and so forth. Cathy was due for a colonoscopy, so we scheduled that before we left. (All clean, pun intended.) The truck had a few more issues, which we have hopefully addressed for a while to come. 

Cathy also did some final sewing projects. Our trip with Steve had pointed out a weakness in our bimini straps, one of which snapped as Cathy tried to tighten it. So, she took the time to replace them before taking the bimini down for the winter. Speaking of Steve, he had asked for a pocket to put his hatch boards in, so she make one for his locker and installed it there. Also, Sue's fiance, Steve had asked for some modifications to prevent rain coming into his enclosure, which Cathy installed just before we left.

Just as Dave was preparing to remove Orion from the market for the winter, we were surprised when a prospective buyer called to see her. So, we delayed our departure by a few days to show her the morning before we left. (The prospective buyer also left later that afternoon as crew on a boat headed with the Salty Dawg Rally to Tortola, BVI. Needless to say, we don't expect to hear more until she makes landfall again. 


Hampton Snowbird Rendezvous

We were privileged to attend some of the first Hampton Snowbird Rendezvous, held Oct. 18-20 in downtown Hampton. It had some excellent speakers and lots of good opportunities to network with other cruisers who had expertise in various aspects of cruising the ICW, the Bahamas, the Great Loop and more.  There was also some great food served, which is usually a magnet for good times. Congratulations to the organizers of this first annual festival. Look for it again next year!

Saying Goodbye

With the end of the season, we have to say goodbye to friends and family that we won't see as often as we make our way south. We enjoyed an evening with Sue and her fiance, Steve on his boat at Salt Ponds (enjoying the space created by Cathy's enclosure). And we joined Steve from Bay Dreamer for a couple of get-togethers – first for his annual bonfire during the Poquoson Seafood Festival and lastly, for a farewell dinner at a local restaurant.

We were delighted to see Bonnie and Troy and the kids as they came to visit on a beautiful fall weekend, where we spent time at the Virginia Beach Farmer's Market and playing at the playground on Virginia Beach. After a delicious dinner at Harpoon Larry's, we explored Bass Pro Shops with the kids while Mom and Dad shopped. Unfortunately, Grandma and Grandpa need a refresher course in keeping a close eye on a 3 year old. The sound of breaking glass and a lot of BBQ sauce on the floor does wonders to focus your attention. 

We joined both families at Adam's as we made our way out of Hampton, in a celebration to honor their mom's birthday, 10 months after her passing. The weather cooperated and the kids had a great time on the trampoline in the backyard. But this time the goodbyes were for longer, so it was hard to pry us away, but we finally waved our last and headed down the road toward LaBelle.

As September drew to a close, we began prepping Orion for her first cruise in a couple of years, finally dropping the dock lines on a warm October Friday with our friend Steve aboard. It had been a busy couple of weeks getting her ready and finishing some sewing projects, but we felt ready to get underway. Although the weather moved from summer to fall and from no wind to gale force, we managed to make the most of our week long trip.

As the sun set over Sandy Point that first night, Steve and Dave finished grilling supper and we enjoyed the warm evening by watching the nautical Master and Commander movie in the cockpit. As the sun rose the next day, we were under way in flat calm conditions that followed us across the Potomac, turning this mighty river into a placid lake. Since Dave's cousins weren't available until Sunday afternoon, we motored past Solomons up the Patuxent to beautiful St. Leonard's Creek. Despite the weekend boat traffic to and from Vera's Beach Resort just up the creek, there was plenty of room to anchor without feeling crowded by the others who were enjoying their weekend here. With the temperatures in the upper 80's, Cathy needed little convincing to go in the water to check the prop. Having been cleaned by our friend Sue only 17 days earlier, it was dismaying to see the growth that had developed in the interim. After a few dives, it was clean again and the zinc was still looking new. Cathy took a tour around the waterline to clean a little growth, but confirmed that most of the bottom looked good. After swim platform showers, we grilled some hamburgers and enjoyed another nautical theme movie, Captain Ron. Hopefully, our neighbors weren't disturbed by our laughter.  

But by Monday morning, the forecast was becoming more dire for the coming week. There was going to be rain – lots of it. And those light north winds? There were no longer light. By Tuesday's forecast, gale force winds were in the forecast for parts of the bay. (Gale?!) So, Tuesday's departure slipped to Thursday. Then Friday. Then Saturday. No, maybe Monday. Well, maybe Friday again. Maybe Steve should just rent a car and drive home so he could make it back in time to get back to work on Tuesday. We dodged rain showers to go to shore for walks and showers. It was not going to be the week we planned. But they rarely are, are they?

After waking to rain pouring on the deck on Friday morning, Cathy figured it was literally a washout, so she stayed snuggled into bed. However, Dave was not deterred and studied the weather more closely. The showers were supposed to pass and the forecast was for 15 to 20 knots from the North with 3 to 4 ft seas. That was a forecast we would avoid with Jr, but should be no problem for Orion. The gale force winds were gone and, if we stayed, the conditions north of the Potomac were going to get worse before they got better. So, we made a quick trip to shore and headed out. The conditions were a little better than forecasted. As we rounded Drum Point, we motorsailed on a furled headsail past the Navy targets, crossing the Potomac. Although it was no longer the flat lake that we crossed on the way north, it wasn't a raging fury either. We surfed down the following seas, making good enough progress that we made for Fishing Bay on the Piankatank for the night. If all went well, we could top off the fuel tanks in the morning at the marina before leaving. By 6pm, we were anchored with only 2 other boats in this huge anchorage. The winds had settled and it was a calm night. But Saturday had us leaving in the rain again. Although we pulled up to the fuel dock, it was soon clear we weren't going to get a break in the weather and we didn't want to risk fueling in the rain. With the winds blowing 20 out of the northeast, we slogged our way out of the Piankatank, rarely even making 4 knots until we turned south to make our way down the bay. By then we made up for lost time, seeing 8 and 9 knots occasionally, again motorsailing on a furled headsail.  

Just after 3pm, we made our way up the Hampton River, having averaged 6 knots over the trip. We had managed to see a hazy sun during the afternoon, but as we took a detour down to Sunset Creek Marina to pump-out, the rain began again. Also, we were arriving at high tide, which meant that the docks at Joys were underwater when we pulled back into our slip. (The strong northeast winds and spring tides can make this a more routine occurrence.) At any rate, it was good to be back. Steve even claimed to have enjoyed the trip. Also, the engine performed like a dream. So, Orion's as good as she ever was.

Boat Stuff


Our “shakedown” cruise revealed a few things that needed attention, but luckily not too many. The deck washdown hose had to be replaced. Although Cathy re-stitched the bimini before departing, she didn't anticipate that a bimini strap would break. She was able to repair it underway and the repair held. One of the main saloon portlights dripped, meaning it needs to be sealed again. (Of course it has to stop raining to do that.) In general, things looked good.

Also, before leaving Dave had installed a new automatic charging relay, which combines the 2 battery banks for charging purposes and separates them when no charging source is present. Since we were “off the grid” during our trip north, we got to try out this capability and it worked as planned.

And the sewing work for other people continued. Cathy made a rear enclosure for a friend's powerboat and a windshield cover for another boat. We tested out Steve's stackpack during a couple of sails on the bay, and with a few tweaks of the lazy jacks, it seems to be working well. It's all been a learning experience, but the results seem to look pretty good.  

Friends and Family

In addition to connecting with Dave's cousins, we made a road trip to visit Cathy's family in NC. One highlight of that trip was taking in a movie under the stars with Cathy's sister and brother-in-law at their church in Winston-Salem. It was a beautiful weekend for a visit with Cathy's mom and sisters, and, as always, good to spend time with them. 

Back in Hampton and during our trip north, we enjoyed spending time with our friends on the dock and meeting new ones. There was another cruising couple, Doug and Lisa on Carefree, who spent the summer at Joy's, and have since headed south for the winter ahead of the fall rush. Dave spent an afternoon suggesting some routes and places to stay on the trip south to Florida. Another couple, Judy and Bob and Cringle, joined us in the rain in Solomons while we were both on Zahniser's mooring balls. They were equally anxious to get underway for points south. It won't be long before we will be moving further south as well.