Wednesday called for gale force winds and driving rain here in Charleston. They predicted gusts up to 70 mph, the strongest we've experienced during this cruise and the possibility of tornados. We woke to pouring rain, so much rain it filled a bucket under cover on the cockpit with inches of water. Charleston streets were flooding. The winds were to come later in the day so we deployed almost every line we had (8 in all), put out our large ball fenders, and stowed anything that wasn't tied down. We instructed the crew on storm procedures and waited. The winds did howl but our wind indicator only showed a top speed of 35 knots. Hey, this crew survived a micro-burst 2 years ago - this was nothing.
By Thursday morning we were back to preparations for our departure on Saturday. Yes, after over 4 weeks here at the Charleston City Marina we are about to start cruising again. This cruise will take us a grand total of 4 miles around to the other side of Charleston to the Maritime Center. Even though it's just a short hop, we need to pretty much do the same prep as a full day's cruise. In addition, much of our time here has been spent on some projects which left the engine room in quite a mess. For the true geeks at heart, Jeff has proudly made an engine room video. Get the popcorn.
3 comments:
Well, I guess I'm a geek, as I enjoyed following a little bit of the mechanical aspects of your journey. Looks like there is someone out there as anal as me regarding their vessel!
Jeff, you have a real knack for narrating your journalistic endeavors. Well done, and thanks for the ongoing entertainment!
P.S. Pass the popcorn please!
Can't seem to get my geek fascination to print. Guess that tells ya something. Get those restaurants ready cuz Bill is screaming down to meet you. Can you believe how much distance he's making? Love the parade pictures. I bet the kids were mesmerized by all the activities.
Bev
Hey Bev - yeah, Bill should be here in another couple of days. He's staying here at our marina and we plan to definitely hit some restaurants together.
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