July 15, 2003 ----- Well, I'm back in the US again. I've been holed up in Hampton, Virginia, waiting for a fair bit of weather so I can head up the Chesapeake and into Annapolis. It's been alternating between dead calm and thunderstorms, neither of which are very appealing. I sailed up to West End, Grand Bahama Island and stayed there for a few days before I headed north up the Gulf Stream. I had hoped to get to Florida, but again, dead calms alternating with thunderstorms sort of prevented me from doing that, too. There was finally a spot of steady weather, and so on July 6 I headed out into the Gulf Stream for a roller coaster ride north! As soon as I hit the middle, or axis, I was getting the benefit of four knots of current pushing me north. I had planned on being out for about eight or nine days and ended up arriving in Hampton on the 11th, at about eight at night, right before sunset, five and a half days later! And that was even accounting for several times when I was literally becalmed, in the middle of the gulf stream. Even though I wasn't even sailing, no sails up or anything, I was still moving more or less north at 2 to 3 knots! When there was just a whisper of wind, I hoisted the spinnaker and sailed with just that up for about a day and a half. What a treat that was! By the time I got in, though, I was completely exhausted. I think the entire time I slept for only about ten hours TOTAL, over the entire time. The freighter traffic was pretty heavy and the winds, when there were any, shifted quite a bit and the seas were erratic, too. Entirely too many close calls, and that was with constant vigil at the helm. Still, the savings of a couple of days in travel time was worth it, if nothing else, the thrill of seeing Circe hit 10.1 knots on the GPS! Her top speed is around 6.5, which is rare, but she was sailing at around 5.5 to 6 and then the current did the rest. To compare that to driving, that's sort of like driving a VW Bug and realizing you just hit 120 mph! That night, I rowed in to shore with my ship's papers and went to find a phone to call Customs. That was when I realized that the US Customs forms I got in Puerto Rico didn't have the phone number on them...so instead of going back out and back in again, I decided that a real dinner was in order. After asking around, I was directed to an Italian Restaurant that was still open. After walking about six or seven blocks, someone just pulls over on the side of the road and asks if I want a ride. No thanks, I tell the man, since I can see the restaurant just a few hundred feet away. I went inside and had a fantastic dinner and an Italian beer to celebrate landfall. MMMMmmm... The next morning I was a bit worried about not checking in immediately, so first thing I called the number for Customs. I was then given another local number to call, but got no answer. I called the first one again and he paged the local officer and then patched the call through for me. "What do you need?" "Hi. I'd like to check in, please." "OK. Boat name?" "Circe." "Last port?" "West End, Grand Bahama" "Are all of you citizens?" "Excuse me?" "Are all of you US Citizens?" "Uh, yes." "OK." Silence, as I'm ready with my passport... "Uh, are you still there?" "Yeah, that's it. You're done. Go have fun." "Uh, ok. Thanks!" Amazing. No names, no passport numbers, nothing. He didn't even ask how many were on board! The next stop was to hunt down the local library, which was quite some distance. I asked directions a couple of times and still ended up missing the street, walking off in the wrong direction. Again, someone pulls over on the side of the road and offers a ride. He asks where I'm heading, and when I tell him the library, he tells me I missed the road by about a mile. I thank him and start to get out of the car, when he tells me he'll take me back. He drives me not only back in the other direction, but on a mini tour of the downtown area and drops me off at the front door of the library! The next day, I decide that while everyone is so friendly, I'd still like to not have to walk so far. There's an old man riding on a bicycle coming down the road, and I ask him if he knows where I could find a bike like his that is for sale. He tells me he happens to have another one that he wanted to sell, so I end up with an old beach cruiser for $15. I had quite a distance to travel, searching for new safety flares, and the nearest marine store was about six miles away. I made it about half way there, when I passed a bike shop and went inside to see if I could get some more air put in the tires. A nice guy in the shop gladly did, asked me where I was from, what I was doing, etc., and then after I left the rear tire blew out. I went back in and he not only replaced the inner tube but also put on a new tire - for $10! It's wonderful to be in a place where everyone I run into is so friendly. OK. I've got to run.
I hope to leave here on Wednesday and be up in Annapolis by the
weekend. See you!
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