Misfortune

Friday, October 25th & Saturday, October 26th

A Blimp Factory outside Elizabeth City

(It's so large that it creates its' own atmosphere)

Friday at 8am we left Elizabeth City on the Pasquotank River…there was a flotilla leaving that morning; there were about a dozen of us, all migrating south with the Canadian geese.  We chose to motor-sail to quicken our pace, as we had about 15mi. left of the Pasquotank River plus another 15mi. to cross the Albemarle Sound, and after that at least 10-15mi. more to find a suitable anchorage. The wind and waves were both behind us… the wind about 7knots from the N-NW, and the waves about .8m, 7sec apart from the NE, so our passage was a bit ‘rolly.’ For some strange reason I like being behind the wheel in these conditions. I like the feeling of ‘surfing’ on the waves … feeling the wave pick up Serenada’s stern, trying to ride it out, and then dropping into the trough and waiting for the next one.  So Gil was down below doing what he loves (though you’d never know it from some of his explicatives) -  watching stocks. All sailors know that being down below during a ‘rolly’ passage is not the best place to be, unless you’ve had gravol for breakfast. Needless to say, Gil surfaced in the cockpit, feeling a little green. He took the helm for a while, as sometimes having the horizon in view will settle the stomach. Then he took a couple of gravol, but his malaise persisted. He gave the helm back to me.

We were making good progress at 5.5 to 6.0 knots, when Serenada just seemed to run out of gas (diesel actually).   Perfect timing.   We weren’t far from the mouth of the Alligator River. No word of a lie, the Waterway Guide has half a page highlighted in yellow, dedicated to special cautions for this area. “There have been numerous groundings by vessels…”  “Long Shoal is aptly named and seems to get longer with each passing year…”  “… the markers are moved frequently…”  “This remarked channel at the Alligator River entrance is still confusing, even to Veteran ICW travelers…”    Great.  Just great.

I put her in neutral, and let off on the gas (not that it mattered where the throttle was set anymore). We gazed into each others’ eyes J  then over to the fuel gauge … which hasn’t been 100% reliable … but we were fairly confident that we had enough fuel. Third of a tank left (with extra in the jerry cans).  Enough fuel. Hmmm…..What could it be?   What to do?  Certainly, with Gil feeling green, and the conditions still ‘rolly,’ it precluded Gil from working on the engine right there.  My mechanic skill set totally precluded me from working on the engine, that was even more certain. Our only choice was to sail Serenada somewhere more settled, preferably at anchor, where we could begin to restore her health (and Gil’s).

Where to? Back north, against the wind and waves, for almost 30mi. No thanks.  East or west looked to be long stretches too – 25+ mi. No thanks. It seemed our best option was to get through the Alligator River channel, as beyond it was Sandy Point, a place fair enough to anchor.  That became our action plan, and so it was that we managed to weave our way in under sail only. Whew.

Sandy Point looked OK on the chart, but the chart doesn’t mark crab pots, and there were plenty! There was no other place to go, however  …. the  Alligator River swing bridge (US Hwy. 64) crosses the river here…. so we had no choice but to anchor amongst the crab pots.

sorry guys, we couldn't avoid your traps!

Anchoring from sail has more challenge to it. It is no time for the furling line to get tangled in the windlass. Onlookers had to wonder why we were flapping that 150 genoa for so long (“Hi! We’ve arrived!” ??). Gil went forward to untangle it, and by the time he got back to the cockpit, it had done it again. Sooo frustrating.  With extra effort, Gil did get both sails furled in. We dropped anchor.  Whew.  I must say that when you’re at anchor amongst crab pots, you know almost instantly if/when you drag anchor. There are just so many reference points. If there was anything good about this day, it was that we didn’t drag anchor too.  It was 1:30 pm.  We’d have lunch, collect ourselves, deal with the engine, and get past the bridge.   

After lunch, Serenada was transformed into a workshop as Gil opened up the engine compartment, and began checking her fuel system. He replaced the primary fuel filter, saw that the secondary fuel filter was OK, bled the air from the system, and checked the lines for leaks, etc.  After all that, we started her up again …. and it was still a “no go.”  We got out the manuals, and checked/adjusted the Govenor, started it up again  …. and it was still a “no go.”  Gil was at it for quite some time, before he’d exhausted his own expertise. Despite all his efforts, he could not bring Serenada back to health. Serenada would need a Mechanic. Gil was suspecting a problem with the high pressure pump, because the fuel was not getting to the injectors. Fortunately, we were quite near the Alligator River Marina and the Waterway Guide book indicated that this marina did engine and prop repairs. Unfortunately, we were aware that it was now past 5 o’clock on a Friday.

It had been an eventful day, and we were both tuckered. We figured that we couldn’t do much more until the following day, and as we were at least safe at anchor, we sat and enjoyed some beverages J followed by a late dinner.

Early Saturday I phoned the marina, and briefed them on our situation. The owner wasn’t in yet, but she had good contacts with Tow people and Mechanics; she’d be sure to be able to get us the help we needed. It was reassuring news, and we waited for her return call. As we hadn’t received a call by 9:30, I phoned again. This time, however, I got only “this number is no longer in service…” ?!  I checked the number – same one I called an hour earlier. In disbelief, I called again, but got the same “this number is no longer in service…” ?!  I hailed the marina on our VHF radio: “Alligator River Marina,  Alligator River Marina    …..   Serenada,  Serenada”   No response.  I tried again, and again. No response.  Another boat hailed the marina on their VHF radio and received a response.  Gil then tried hailing them on our secondary VHF radio, and got an immediate reply.  So, things do come in three’s – engine, furling line, radio. 

Gil spoke with the marina’s owner and apprised her of our situation, and our need for a Mechanic. She indicated that we’d likely have to wait until Monday, but gave us phone numbers for two Mechanics and one service depot. Rick Moore, the first Mechanic Gil called, was laid up with a broken leg. The service depot was closed until Monday. Jeff, the second Mechanic was flying out the next day. Both Rick and Jeff were, however, very sympathetic of our situation, particularly because “we were in the middle of nowhere” as they both had to point out (Thanks, but that’s not helping) and both were very good about sharing their thoughts and expertise with Gil.  Jeff had said that you can’t see the dirt that collects inside the filters, and suggested Gil replace the secondary filter even though it looked OK. Once again, Gil opened up the engine compartment, and went to work. I read over our insurance policy, and looked into our options for towing to a marina with an on-site Mechanic. It was beginning to sink in that we could be laid up for a while. Watching all of the other sailors migrate south past us, and there had to be 20+ wasn't helping our spirits either; with the exception of one captain who had run aground in the Alligator River channel! He was waiting for TowBoat US, but he'd be on his way again. 

About 3pm on Saturday, Serenada’s engine roared back to life, and even Gil joined me in a Happy Dance!  We had lost only a day, but it felt sooo much longer.

Alligator River Swing Bridge opening for us

(Gil's work shirt is soaking in the bucket!)

After all that, we just couldn’t stay put. Nothing felt better than to be on the road (er, water) again! We did go into Alligator River Marina to refuel; we did get through the Alligator River swing bridge, and we motored until the sunset Saturday; anchoring further south in the Alligator river. 

sunset at anchor on the Alligator River

Kim, you & Jorge did 2 days in 1  …. Gil & I did 1 day in 2!  We’ll be a while catching up to you now.