Day 5 finds us moving through the Dismal swamp. Now of course we have a fleet of boats spread out ahead and behind us.

And we just kept going.

and going

We go through another lock that I forgot to take pictures of and eventually we are out of the Dismal swamp. So the lock master with the conch shells had told everyone that albamarle sound was going to be rough today. We didn't see that so out we went.

Well here was picture of the second lock.

And down we go, albeit slowly.

So the sound is going well. Almost through. We don't have a lot of the day left at this point but enough to get through this next part.

This was from day 4.  Wait until you see the end of day 5.

At this point we are still heading into the little cove we will be anchoring in.

We still have not anchored but the sky is starting to get better looking all the time.

Still getting better.

Anchor is set and not any sooner than being at the last few minutes of daylight.

At this point taking any more pictures isn't going to change much as far as what we are seeing. Far enough away from the neighbors that it is a very peaceful night. We lost phone service just about the time we got anchored so no texting or phone calls. Just quiet. I love boating

So this rounds up day 5 of the trip south. So far everything but the windlass has worked well. Back is still hurting but it is starting to ease up a little. Good thing I still had a few pain pills. I have got to learn to think before moving. But that is a big part of why I am out here. I am using my dream (the biggest thing on my bucket list) to regain my life. It is working. I am in quite a lot better shape than I was in when I bought Mary Lee. I don't believe anyone thought I would get this far when I first told everyone I was going to do this.

Tomorrows post is when the troubles begin. I eventually discover the reason for a few of the things I have had to fix on Mary Lee. But that is for tomorrow.

I forgot to add that I left Baltimore on October 1st. 2012. I had about 3 hours of run time on engine at the time. On last post I mentioned hurting my back weighing anchor on day two. I did a good job of it. I have got to be more careful. I have got away with doing quite a bit but most of it causes a lot of discomfort and just doing the wrong thing without thinking first will pretty much lay me out for several days. The next few days were going to be pretty painful but I won't elaborate. Just thought i would mention it.

This picture was from day 1. We actually had quite a bit of ship traffic the first day.

lighthouse on day 3.

This was actual picture of Mary Lee pulling out on Oct.1. The picture I had posted was the test run the previous friday. As I go through pictures I am finding the ones I want.

We made it into Deltaville, Va. The end of day 3.

Of course I must not have taken any pictures of fueling or anchoring in channel across from fuel dock. I did however get a picture of Mary Lee after we pumped our waste.

Still uneventful. Hang on it is coming. We did encounter a few difficulties but not yet. Had a good nights sleep and pulled out next morning.

We finally make Norfolk, Va. on day 4.

So we chose to have a look at the Dismal swamp.

The first lock was uneventful. The lock master showed off his skill blowing through a conch shell while we all waited for it to fill. I thought I had a picture of all the conch shells boaters have given him for his collection but I guess not.

So through the dismal swamp we go.

Mike had brought along his leather reclining office chairs. I would not have made it past Solomons island for many days without these. My back was really hurting. I most likely belonged in bed. Those chairs were the object of many discussions. people staired as they went by and every place we tied up people would stop and mention them. Wasn't much different than riding in a car if you think about it. We didn't see any other sailboats with this kind of setup.

Don't you just love digital cameras? By the time I could see leaving Virginia, I took the picture and with the little delay I got the leaving north carolina side. Oh well.

So here we were at the welcome center. We were a little surprised to see it was the wecome center for the interstate. Actually we laughed when we realized that the Dismal swamp we had heard so much about was just a ditch full of stagnant water running along the freeway. I think there were 6 of us tied up for the night. Mary Lee in on the outside of the catamaran. I am having trouble staying connected so will post again tomorrow. I have some great sunset pictures coming and we end up getting towed twice.
  I find out why I had a broken exhaust and motor mount when I boughtMary Lee. However... everything I fixed is doing beautifully. I am very pleased with the engine and everything else I fixed. Next post or two should get everything up to speed. I am learning it is important to keep up as you go. Looking through pictures months later trying to catch up is not very handy to say the least

Hi. I bet you thought you had lost the author :-)  Sorry about that. I will get to that later. First I need to do a little catching up. I left on the trip south as planned. this first picture is about how far I made it last year before I had the show stopping engine trouble.

All is well. I finally get to cross under the bridge I have stared at for two summers. I knew I would eventually get to it. However, as I have learned. You can plan all you want with boating but it better be a loose plan. Maybe that is just how I have to do it but either way. I am now boating, not working on one hoping to go boating.

My first sunrise underway on Mary Lee. I thought this looked nice.

Then it turned into this. I had forgot that outdoor shots did this. Especially sunrises and sunsets. All you can do is take a bunch of pictures and keep the best. At this point I am pleased the engine is doing so well but still not sold on the rebuild I did. I know it would not be running this long if I had screwed up but I have done this worry thing on every engine I have ever worked on. It just takes time.

Pretty soon get to go under the next bridge. Starting to relax with the engine build. It is fine.

We are not alone out here.

Except for a few ships and other smaller boats. there is not a lot to see out here. We are shooting for Solomons island. Seems as good a place as any to wrap up the first day.

We anchored out the first night. We were pushing it and not sure where we would find a slip before dark we opted for the first protected spot. Like we did for the trip, we weighed anchor at the earliest possible minute and anchored just about dark. The only exceptions being when we "had" to tie up earlier.  I need to look at the camera to see if I have a picture of first nights anchorage. The next morning when we weighed anchor , I hurt my back lifting anchor.  We got out of protected waters and found after  two hours of fighting rough water that we had made almost no ground at all. Back to port. That was ok, I was really hurting. This time we opted to stay dockside. I need to download pictures from camera before I continue. See you soon. 

It was a busy weekend. I had some help but it still took the whole weekend. Here she is all dressed up and ready to go(so to speak)  Excitement does not even begin to describe how I feel. I bought her April 15 of last year. I worked on her all last summer and at the last minute had engine problems and had to pull her out of the water for the winter. Almost 18 months after I became the proud owner  I finally get to pull away from the marina I found her in.

It is now 10:30. If Mike and I are pulling out at 5:00 am then it is bedtime. The boating adventure is finally beginning in just a few short hours. Hold on to your shorts...there really is no telling what is coming next :-)

Today was a pretty good day as far as days spent working on Mary Lee seem to go.

Power boat on the one side was to close so they had to get trailer to pull Mary Lee out.

of course Tidewater Yacht service center is nothing but professional here. I have enjoyed being here even if I have not entirely enjoyed the work I was doing on Mary Lee sometimes.  Of course They would have been much faster but this is about me recovering from a back injury and although rather painful, I get some better with time and just being able to accomplish things some days is better than I could do for a long time....even if rather slowly sometimes.

From the trailer to the crane.

Of course I got to watch.

Finally dockside. Here I am pitching the engine to line transmission up with driveshaft. Door is less than 3 feet tall. I am on my toes and stomach is on top of engine so I can work on stuff behind it.

So we tied it up to the dock. Put it in gear and let it pull against the ropes for an hour after engine was pitched. Pitching engine took over 2 hours. Then we took it out for about an hour. This picture is about where it spun a rod bearing last year.

So now I get to finish mucking out all the things I do not need on Mary Lee. It is Wednesday and we pull out at the crack of dawn on Monday the first. This is stacking up to be a trip to remember. I will be posting as I go.

The engine runs. I ignition switch and change a couple wires around so they made sense to me, then it started almost without hesitation.

I hooked up longer hose to raw water intake and set up bucket with water hose and prepared for a longer run. I gave it 5 minutes. All fluids staying in their respectful places. I let it cool completely and then let it run for 30 minutes.

Everything is good so far. I will let it cool completely. Then I need to retorque the head and I think I will do everything else. I will even check every hose clamp and fitting.

While waiting on that I decide the icebox really needs a good soapy/bleachy scrub.

I took this off the back of Mary Lee Earlier last night.

I think this one was about 45 minutes later while we waited for it to rain.

I think the computer is tired. I am trying to download pictures of Trinity. The 41 ft. powerboat next to me. Ted (trinity's owner) was telling me he had seahawk, smart solution bottom paint put on 6 months ago. It looks horrible. It is all peeling and flaking. He has had to have trinity pulled and powerwashed about every 6 weeks just to be able to plane. The growth of marine critters was apparently not slowed at all. seahawk put up new paint and tidewater put up the haulout to get the issue resolved. tidewater did a nice job (Teds words) He goes back in tomorrow. He showed me a sailboat off the practical sailor site that looked horrible. Does not sound like something I want on my boat.

The whole bottom looked like this. Trust me...these pictures do not really show what I saw and when I stepped back you couldn't really see the mess correctly.

Mary Lee launches next wednesday and I will be running her all over near marina testing engine. Well....after engine is pitched. It starts easily and runs well. I don't think the valves had been adjusted in a very long time as the engine sounds so much quieter than it did before and it does seem to run quite smoothly for a 3 cylinder tractor engine. I have had my hands on almost every system since Last september. I have done everything possible to eliminate any and all cobbled up messes. Mary Lee is as ready as I know how to make her for the trip south. All that is left is to do a few last minute wrap-ups. Put on water, fuel and food. Of course pitching engine and test running goes without saying. What I am trying to say is...Yeehaaah!!! It is finally time to go.