Today, We Conquered The Wind

Beaufort  

We were doubtful this morning when we stepped outside to check the weather. The wind was stronger than we had anticipated and we questioned whether or not our bimini top could be installed. We were so appreciative to see Hoke and his helper from Cape Lookout Canvas on the dock to make one final fitting. They returned to their shop with the hopes of completing the installation after lunch. Progress. We then turned our attention to our next challenge in the wind. Last night, the dreaded red light came on for our holding tank. We needed to get to the pump out dock and take care of business. Once again, we prevailed even with the wind adding a greater degree of difficulty to the process. That was two in the victory column for the Crossroads team this morning. At 1:30 the final canvas installation began. All went well and our new bimini top fit like a glove.  

The new heavyweight canvas was stitched with UV-resistant thread. It has a nice crown so that water will drain off of it, and drip edges to keep the area underneath drier. Velcro straps have been attached to prevent the edges from flapping (something for which our original bimini was notorious). A nice breeze made sure that everything was tested under semi-stressful conditions. We celebrated by returning to Island Grill for another great dinner, taking advantage once again of their Monday night BOGO entree special. After dinner we went back to our favorite beach access point and watched dusk settle over the dunes. The flags at the Atlantic Beach bridge were still flying stiff as we crossed the ICW to Morehead City.

The few last moments of color were savored as walked back to Crossroads. As Hoke left this afternoon, he asked us if we knew we were going to be stranded in the windiest place on the east coast. We all chuckled. We thank him for delivering a great product under trying conditions. We believe we are now put all back together. We have a final road trip scheduled for tomorrow, then will see how the weather pans out for a departure. From a look at the forecast, the wind will continue to build tomorrow and Wednesday will bring more excitement as the next front builds offshore.