A day in the life

Day 11 - Gales Creek off the Pamlico River to Morehead City, NC

Mile Marker 160  to Mile Marker 205

For posterity sake, I thought I’d document a random day of our journey from sun-up to sundown. Today was a shorter day on the water with the engines running and a little different because we’re tied up at a dock instead of at anchor, but it’s a random day afloat on our trip from Philadelphia to Jacksonville.

Our current strategy for successful days are to start the day very early so we get the anchor down in the early afternoon. That way the entire day isn’t spent motoring and we have time in the afternoon when the girls wake up from their naps to go ashore and run around or stay on the boat and swim off the back. It means no lounging around in the morning for Hans and I have to make and bring him breakfast while underway.

0615: Matilda wakes up and starts yelling “mamma, mamma, mamma.” I get her and bring her to bed to nurse. Hans gets up; puts the kettle on to boil water for tea and coffee; he gets dressed; checks the oil in the engines; adds some oil to the port engine; makes coffee; goes outside and yells. The cockpit and back deck are covered with swarms of mosquitos and what looks like mosquito eggs. Yuck.

While Hans is doing all that, I get dressed; Freja wakes up; I put Matilda in bed with Freja and put the gate up. They play for a few minutes while I make tea and oatmeal.

0650: Hans starts the engines and weighs anchor.

0700: I’m sitting at the galley table with the girls eating breakfast when the boat starts make “s” curves. I run up the galley steps then the companionway steps (I’ve given up my squats regime and have no need for a Stairmaster!). Hans turned the autopilot on and it responded by sending us far to starboard. So now the autopilot is on the fritz.

0730: We’re done with breakfast but I’m keeping the girls in their highchairs (Phil & Ted’s clip-on style) because we’re now out at the junction of the Pamlico Sound and Neuse River and it’s rather rolly. It’s safer and more comfortable to keep the girls seated but more work for me. While Hans hand steers the boat through swell and chop, I sing, help Freja put puzzles together, and we all make birthday cakes out of playdough.

0800: Our course is now more downwind so we’re running with the wind and sea. Much calmer. I change Matilda’s diaper and bring her into the main cabin to play. Freja proceeds to have a 20 minute tantrum because she wants me to keep doing puzzles with her. I explain that I need to play with Matilda because it is too rolly to leave Matilda alone. Apparently that wasn’t acceptable and Freja kicks and screams for awhile.

Partly because she has been sick and partly because I think the drone of the engines is tiring for her, Freja has been very demanding for the past many days. She wants one-on-one attention all the time and hasn't been playing by herself very much. That’s fine when Matilda is sleeping but challenging when Matilda is also awake and even more challenging when Hans needs my help with docking or anchor or navigating.

0844: Matilda nurses on the couch; meanwhile Freja makes me dinner out of matchbox cars. Matilda naps in the vee-berth; Freja and I paint each other’s faces. Hans mentions that he is a little concerned about he oil pressure in the port engine. The gauge is jumping around a little and he had to add oil this morning. Need to keep a close eye on it.

0903: We switch - Hans plays with Freja, I steer.

1005: Leaving the Neuse River and entering the Adams Creek Canal to Beaufort. I pass a tug and barge to starboard and get a little concerned the tug is hogging the channel and forcing me outside. Hans assures me that the captain will change course. I have images of the 2011 Duck Boat disaster in Philadelphia. 

Freja comes outside for a few minutes and joins in the fly/mosquito swatting game.

2nd breakfast: yogurt, o’s, Robins and coffee.

1100: Matilda awake. Snacks.

1145: Freja down for nap. Passed Mile marker 200.

1240: Morehead City. We tried anchoring three times but couldn’t get the anchor to hold. We bought a 45 pound CQR in Annapolis. It’s heavy enough but perhaps the design isn’t good in sand or whatever the bottom is here. Or maybe the bottom is just not good. And with impeccable timing, it was during this whole anchoring debacle that Matilda decided, for the first time ever, that she needed Hans over me. She was squirming and whining and crying in my arms and only wanted Hans to hold her.

1300: Hans weighed anchor and motored over to a different spot. I put Matilda down for her nap.

1322: We decided to move to the dock at the Sanitary Fish Market and Restaurant. $25 plus dinner. Darn. We have to eat out. Twist my arm….

Freja woke up as we pulled the anchor up from our last anchoring attempt.

1345: At dock. Lunch aboard: sweet potato quesadillas. I cleaned the galley and the aft head; Hans did more cleaning on the back deck and cockpit/bridge deck in an attempt to get rid of the mosquitos. Freja happily played with playdough, etc.

1525: Matilda still napping. Freja and I walked around town and checked out a couple shops. Freja complained that she was too tired to walk. Too tired? Maybe landsick!

1604: Hans and Freja went for a walk to look for milk and bread; Matilda still napping. Marathon nap.

checking out the day's catch off a sport fishing boat

1615: Matilda awake. Happy but snot in her eyes. She has a snack of PB&J. Hans and Freja explore down the dock looking for a bird that flew under the dock.

1620 - 1830: dinner at the Sanitary Fish Market

18:30: back to the boat; Freja and Hans to the ATM

1850: Matilda in bed.

1950: Freja in bed. Tea, hang out, read. Hans goes across the street to play pool.

2035: Kristen to bed. Early cruiser’s bedtime since I’m fighting a cold.

2230: Hans home and to bed.