11/18/14 Beaufort, NC to Caribbean

11/18   39 hours from Deltaville, VA to Beaufort, NC with the sails up and the motor running for most of the trip.  The winds and rain were light.  Fog started to settle in as we came in the inlet at Beaufort and anchored near the Coast Guard station.  The next day when the tide was up and the current slowing we motored into Taylor Creek and anchored.  Downtown Beaufort now easily accessible with a short ride to the dinghy dock.  Projects aboard Valkyrie continued and Jerry spent many hours looking at weather patterns and forecasts for our passage to the Virgin Islands. 
Donna and Jerry Luh arrived Monday morning and drove us all over for more last minute provisioning and odds and ends.  Ryan bought a long gaff hook and Jerry bought some new frying pans with the hopes of catching some fish while we sail south.  A traditional southern bbq lunch at Fat Fellas left us with stuffed bellies and we felt like true fat fellas when we left.  Thanks Donna and Jerry for everything!  We'll miss you this winter.
The dinghies will go back on deck today, we'll motor back out to the Coast Guard station to anchor and time our departure for best conditions available to cross the gulf stream.  Beaufort, NC is our favorite spot to hop from when heading to the Caribbean.  The weather forecasts are fairly accurate for the first 3 days out.  The gulf stream is so close to Beaufort it only takes about 24 hours and we're across.  The low temperature here tomorrow is supposed to be 28 - another incentive for leaving!  So, I'll sign off for now.  Next update should be in a couple of weeks from some tropical location. 

Karen, Jerry, Kari, Ryan aboard s/v Valkyrie

Valkyrie has a SPOT locator.  You should be able to view our position on http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=1U9eCr5MW6F4u3rbKUQKfMAHCkhH5IWab with the password bobbob. 
Ryan also has a website www.aboardvalkyrie.com where you may be able to click on "Current Position" to see where we are. 

November 2014

11/9/14  A more fitting blogspot title may be required at some point.  Persephone is not sailing and not selling as of yet.  She is on her jackstands covered with tarps at Callahan's Marina on Oneida Lake near Syracuse, NY.  We do have her for sale which is why we are not venturing out along the Erie Canal to further points south aboard her this season. 
This season we are aboard "Valkyrie" (57' Swan ketch) with Ryan and Kari who generously invited us (as they did last year) to sail to the Caribbean with them.  So we packed up a rental car with the help of our good friend Deb back in Pennellville, NY and headed for Deltaville, VA on the Chesapeake.

Deb helps pack everything as we leave from her house Tuesday morning.

Kurd supervises.

Karen aboard Valkyrie with our car load of stuff in the cockpit.

Installations, improvements, clean-ups and provisioning along with stories, laughs, and sharing have been taking place for the last 6 days in order to be ready to sail ASAP.  A nice dinner with Kari's family was a perfect way to celebrate tonight, Sunday evening, before we sail off this week.
Valkyrie has a SPOT locator.  You should be able to view our position on http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=1U9eCr5MW6F4u3rbKUQKfMAHCkhH5IWab with the password bobbob.  Ryan also has a website www.aboardvalkyrie.com where you may be able to click on "Current Position" to see where we are.  With any luck, we'll  head out of here Tuesday and go south towards Beaufort, NC.  We may stop and anchor for the right weather window or continue on to the Caribbean.  As always, our sailing plans are based on the right winds.