The trip down was as good as it gets. We had light winds from behind us and 1 foot seas on a beautiful, sunny, Fall day. Down Time's cockpit is fully enclosed. Even though the sailors who left when we did were bundled up in their foul weather gear for warmth, we were quite comfortable in our traveling greenhouse. The weather forecast for later in the week predicted colder temperatures and higher seas, so many boats departed from Solomons the same time we did. This is prime snowbird time, with lots of boats leaving the north headed to Florida for the winter. Many boating insurance policies restrict boaters from going south of Norfolk, VA, before November 1 (hurricane season). Lots of folks sit in southern Maryland and northern Virginia waiting out the end of October.
Deltaville is in the so-called "Middle Neck" of Virginia, on the southern shore of the Rappahannock River. We chose this place because we found in-water, covered storage for the boat. We will have to winterize the boat (blow all of the water out of the fresh water system, treat the diesel fuel, etc.) which means we won't be able to stay aboard once we have done that. The covered storage will keep snow off the deck; it doesn't get cold enough here for the water the boat is sitting in to freeze.
Next March we'll come back, get her ready to travel again, and head up the Potomac River to spend a month in Washington, D.C. enjoying the cherry blossoms. Then back to our trip north. Until then, we will be the only people you know who actually go to Cleveland, Ohio for the winter. Have good holidays and look for our next post in March 2010.
