Labor Day

We left Great Bridge yesterday in the pouring rain, but it was good to get moving again!! The trip to Norfolk was short and uneventful. The first encounter of the day's cruise was going through the Great Bridge locks. Mr. Grumpy Pants greeted us and of course my lines weren't what and how "he" wanted them. After changing them up we were secured to the side of the lock and the water came up without problem. I "accidentally" flipped the line over the piling before Gordon thought it should be removed, "SURPRISE" !! From there all went well except for the one water skier who fell in our path and we had to stop for him while his boat circled to pick him up. This would not have been a problem had the ski boat not raced to get in front of us in the first place.

After about a 2 and a half hour run, we were going through the shipyards of Norfolk. Here you see all kinds of ships, in all states of repair and disrepair. We even saw an aircraft carrier being ooutfitted. On up the river, we pulled intothe City of Norfolk Waterside Marina, located on the downtown riverfront. It is a lot quietier than it was when we made a stop here 2 years ago. They are very friendly and helpful here, so it was a pleasant tie up and to floating docks no less. Gordon made a check of the engine and all his other boat stuff to make sure the repairs held properly. They were just fine!! We took Schooner for a walk and ended up at "Hooters" for dinner!

Then we returned to the boat for updates on Gustav. Having been in the wake of Hurricane's Ivan, Dennis, Katrina, and Rita and other tropical storms, we stay current with what is going on. It helps, information-wise, that we still have a daughter living in Gulf Shores, AL. They made the decision to stay put, because it's hard to travel with 2 large dogs and, as of 10:00am this morning, they were doing fine. I also got word from friends Fred & Mary, that they also were prepared for Gustav. We pray that all our friends and family weather through this storm and now focus our attention on Hanna, who is swimming around the Bahamas and even effecting the weather this far north. I just heard Hanna is now affecting many of the places we visited this winter and spring. Many of these places are just now recovering from last Hurricane season. We will keep watch to see if Hanna moves up and hits Current, Eleuthera, home of family and best friends Perry and Rosie. Please keep them in your thoughts, as this storm passes on it's way west!! Then look out Rose and Tom in Ft. Pierce!! I guess Ike is next and we will have to wait a couple of days to see which track he will take. I'm glad we are headed north and shouldn't be affected.

Our plan now is to leave here on Wednesday and make a straight shot outside, to NYC, weather permitting. That way we can then wind our way back south over the next 2 months. Only time will tell!!!