Is That "The Good Old Song" or "Auld Lang Syne" Playing?

Hampton   

With it being both Sunday and New Year's Eve, reflection was the word of the morning. It has been quite an eventful week spanning from Christmas Eve to Hampton. What a treat it was to not awaken to an alarm. At this point of our journey I'll gladly trade watching the sunrise for a few extra minutes of sleep. By the time I went outside to clean up our dock lines, the sun was high in the bluebird sky and beautiful reflections on the Hampton River surrounded us. Crossroads is all by her lonesome along the fuel dock. The Bell Tower of Hampton University's Memorial Chapel is an impressive structure off our stern. It was constructed in 1886 and stands 150 feet high, with 12 bells, and a clock on all four sides. Grand houses still decorated for the holidays share the waterfront with working yards, commercial docks, and marinas.

We had an early lunch then went exploring. A two mile walk would take us around the basin "to town." Along the way we were treated to several amazing displays of red. An extremely large holly tree was covered in berries. A pyracantha hung over a fence and showcased both its berries and thorns. Several camellias were in full bloom, but a red bush presented the largest and prettiest flowers. We arrived at the Virginia Air and Space Center, the official visitor center for NASA Langley Research Center, shortly after it opened. 

The history of air travel is represented from the Wright Brothers to the exploration of Mars and beyond. Hampton is the birthplace of America's space program. The first NASA astronauts trained and lived in Hampton. The center is the only place in the world to display all four styles of NASA space capsules.

The flight simulator caught Barry's attention and in a weak moment he convince me to "fly" along with him. One quick picture is all I could capture before he put me in a barrel roll and I was calling, "Game Over." Other interactive exhibits included a Flight Lab where we made paper airplanes. We each constructed planes and my tried-and-true third grade design topped the more highly engineered plane Barry created. Yet another flight simulator did not end well for me. I was more than happy to finish our tour with an IMAX film on the James Webb Space Telescope.

Prominently featured both inside and outside the Center were memorials to the three female African-American mathematicians who worked at NASA during the space race. Their story was the subject of Hidden Figures, a critically acclaimed 2016 motion picture. 

The afternoon was quickly passing, so we started the walk back to Crossroads to arrive before dusk. Along the way a colorful roadside mural and a clock tower at the library caught our eye. The intricate details of the clock were in pretty good shape, but the mechanism was not functional. I fixed dinner and was able to watch the UVA women's basketball game. The Hoos won the first half, but not the game. As the alma mater played after the final horn sounded, the tune served a dual purpose as it is used by both UVA's The Good Old Song and Auld Lang Syne. Tonight, as fireworks are heard in the distance, both sets of lyrics are appropriate, evoking feelings of nostalgia and memories of good times spent with friends. Thanks to all for a great 2023. Happy New Year!

Off the Dock and On Our Way

Deltaville to Hampton |  6.3 Hours  |  42 Miles  

By sunset yesterday evening, Barry and I were confident that Crossroads was well-loaded and ready for departure. For our final night in Deltaville, we enjoyed dinner with dear friends and fellow Selene owners Tom and Pat (Slip Away, 53-71). What a great send-off to spend time with folks sharing very similar dreams and realities. We slept well and woke at our normal time with the plan to be on deck at 8:00 to begin the departure checklist. The morning was clear and crisp with a light breeze blowing us off the dock. The nearly-full moon was still high in the sky and above the sailboat masts across the fairway. The sun had just peeked above the tree line as Barry disconnected power. I made quick work of removing the docklines from under our neighbor's lines and around the pilings. By 8:15 we eased out of the slip and waved a final "goodbye" to marina general manager Lee Fisher as he passed. As usual, the exit from our slip was beautiful with bright reflections in the still water.

Before we even exited Stingray Channel into Broad Creek, we could clearly see the Norris Bridge six miles up the Rappahannock River. We were excited to have a nice, clear day before us. After passing the 1BC (1 Broad Creek) channel marker, we were in the deeper water of the river and heading toward the Chesapeake Bay. Time passed quickly as we both settled into our usual roles and positions. Wolf Trap Lighthouse signaled we were getting close to Mobjack Bay and the mouth of the York River. The mounting waves did the same signaling. The westerly wind and current coming downriver combined to create short, choppy waves and a lot of spray. The clean windows and hull we began with were no more. Cloud cover increased as well.

By the time the clouds began to dissipate, I had found an empty memory card for my DSLR camera. Cormorants on the daymarker and the Old Point Comfort Lighthouse glowed in the bright sunshine as we passed Fort Monroe. We encountered boat traffic for the first time all day. 

I bundled up in five layers to go ready our dock lines. There was a slight resemblance to Kenny from South Park. Our friends aboard Sunset Run were spotted off to starboard as we neared the Hampton Roads Tunnel. We hope to catch up with them on occasion as we both head south to The Bahamas. The 1HR (1 Hampton River) marker signaled our final turn into the channel where a sailboat was exiting.

Safe Harbor Bluewater Marina was closed for the holidays so we claimed a spot to tied up on the empty fuel dock. Our first day was done. We successfully exited Middlesex County before the first of the year and had a trouble-free journey. We have never visited Hampton before by water and look forward to a little exploring in the next two days. I do have fond memories of several prior visits to the Surf Rider restaurant here at the marina. We made the short walk along the docks and celebrated our departure with some the ultimate cold weather comfort food, she-crab soup.  

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Deltaville   

Borrowing from the classic Christmas song by Andy Williams, It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Thanksgiving and Christmas provided many opportunities to reconnect and make new memories with so many family members and dear friends. In between those visits, Barry and I have managed to load Crossroads with (hopefully) all the clothing and provisions we'll need for the next five months on our winter cruise. Before we cast off on our fifth trip to The Bahamas, I'll take a few moments to catch you up on some highlights of our past few months on land.  

We hit the ground running in May and spent much of the first weeks at the house cleaning up the yard and doing laundry. Everything that came off of Crossroads was washed before finding its proper place for the summer. We stayed close to home and enjoyed time with friends and a few nights at the ballpark with Nutasha and Nutzy. The yardwork yielded a beautiful harvest when the lilies began to bloom. Barry finished up his Corvette enough to get it on the road and put 500 miles on it this summer. 

Crossroads stayed at the dock for most of the summer, but we visited her often and enjoyed our "river house." As the weather cooled we began straying from the dock. Our big outing was the inaugural East Coast Selene Owners Rendezvous in Solomons, MD. It was great to meet such an amazing group of folks. Glenda and I teamed up to put the event's pieces together and were all smiles following the closing banquet dinner.  

Howard Chen, founder and CEO of Selene Yachts, joined us for the event and spent time with all attendees. We look forward to seeing many of these Selene owners again in the upcoming months.

Crossroads received a few upgrades over the summer. She spent three weeks at the spa where she got a fresh coat of bottom paint and a brand new set of stabilizer seals. My favorite upgrade has been the removal of our dark and heavy curtains in favor of new blackout roller shades. They surely brighten up the saloon and will allow for better ventilation down south when the windows are open. Our final upgrade was the installation of StarLink. The dish is mounted on our upper deck railing. Having a consistent internet connection will be a huge convenience -- both for the posting of this blog and for receiving weather reports as we cruise to more remote locations.  

November was quickly upon us and focus shifted to provisioning. Glenda and I prepared multiple servings of lasagna and chicken pies for freezing. Many hours were spent together shopping, packing, and compiling inventories. She, Greg, Jaxon, and Cooper departed aboard Paradigm Shift right after Thanksgiving. Barry and I went to Winston-Salem for my annual family Christmas kickoff at Candle Tea. Afterwards, it was time for me to start packing "stuff" into every nook and cranny of Crossroads. Multiple trips to the Charlottesville area were made to visit with dear friends, watch Cavalier women's basketball games, and walk The Grounds. Two separate multi-night guests at the house made for a very special week at our house.

Our final load of "stuff" was loaded aboard Crossroads on Christmas Eve. We had our usual morning Christmas in Richmond with my mom, sister Lisa, and brother-in-law Robbie before hitting the road for evening Christmas in North Carolina. Thanks to Lisa and Robbie for holding down the fort and always taking good care of mom. Final goodbyes came this morning and we arrived at the marina to an overcast sky, but calm wind and seas. My car is parked and covered. The plan is to disconnect shore power and bring the dock lines onboard at 8:00 tomorrow morning. So much accomplished, so much anticipated, and so much for which to be thankful. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year.  

Bear with me for a few days as I settle back into the routine of nightly posts. Thank you for following along!