Norfolk, VA
To see as much of the world as we can,
Using the smallest carbon footprint we can,
Spending the least amount of money we can,
Making as many friends we can.
On Red Ranger every day is an "outing". We more-or-less live outdoors.
Life ashore is a bit different from life afloat. The primary difference is our level of self-sufficiency. Red Ranger is a boat with which we're very, very familiar. The house we're living in is …
Moored. Ball 5. 26°27.3728′N 081°57.0415′W.
Yesterday we walked down to the Tuckaway Cafe coffee shop. It's a big operation. There's one road up the island and that means traffic is slow. Very slow. Walking makes so much more sense.
Moored. Ball 5. 26°27.3728′N 081°57.0415′W.
Yesterday we looked at the other dinghy dock. The one by city hall.
Yes, it's hidden in a bunch of mangroves. It's far from everything: showers, laundry, bars, restaurants.
It's slightly closer to the …
Moored. Ball 5. 26°27.3728′N 081°57.0415′W.
Since moving to the mooring ball, we've really ramped down to -- well -- nothing.
The grocery store is behind the Snook Bight Marina. The marina doesn't have a proper dinghy dock, but the Bayside Bistro does have a …
Shifted to Ft. Myers Beach Mooring.
Moored. Ball 5. 26°27.3728′N 081°57.0415′W.
We had a Docwa confusion with the mooring ball assignment.
We find Docwa to be handy for making reservations. The Docwa dance involves you making a request and the …
Anchored. 26°28.2021′N 081°58.7907′W.
Not Red Ranger. This is some other random ketch, and a rainbow.
Anchored. 26°28.2021′N 081°58.7907′W.
What we think we're going to be doing...
Shift to a Ft. Myers Beach Mooring. Scheduled: May 4, 2022 at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, EDT.
Check the Weather for good N-bound sailing …
Anchored at 24°37.5312′N, 82°52.3086′W.
The bird situation is a wow. The noise is remarkable. It's a lot of birds out here in the middle of the ocean. If you're migrating from South America or southern Central America to North …
We had two days of stinky weather. It was blowing 20kt or so, gusting higher. We didn't want to mess with the dinghy, so we played quietly while we waited.
We discovered more rat damage to the front hatch screen. And rat scat on deck.
We didn't observe …
Here's Ozzy roosting on the mizzen mast.
With a dead fish.
Ozzy needs to announce their presence -- with a fish -- on a perch. We have no idea why.
"You've got a nice fish," we say. "Why call attention to it? Do you want to start a fight …
CA loves the marshlands around here. Bird heaven. Our neighborhood hawk is making sure CA's not here to grab the delicious rock pigeon.
There are other neighbors, too.
In case we needed any reminders that we've moved south.
We've been enjoying Florentijn Hofman's Rubber Duck at the Chrysler Museum. It was a Major Social Event™. There were crowds in front of the museum for the duck's entire residence. Hofman created a really fun sculpture, and I'm glad the Chrysler could host it.
Of course, when it's time …
Not on Red Ranger.
In The Hague. Yes — for folks not from Norfolk — that body of water is called The Hague or sometimes "The Hague Inlet."
Yes, that's a giant rubber ducky.
No Crabbing or Fishing, but what about Ducking?
We've moved about 700 yards from our anchorage in the Elizabeth River to the dock and Waterside. From 36°50.61′N 076°17.93′W to 36°50.63′N 076°17.49′W.
Why spend money for a dock when anchoring is (largely) free?
Scout. Red Ranger's trusted …
The Elizabeth River and the Norfolk waterfront.
A cute little yawl that sailed by yesterday.
Today we fixed the fuel tank sender. Instead fo complicated math, the fuel gauge works again.
Also, we saw this, today.
That's some kind of big Navy ship being pushed up the Elizabeth …
Nauticus Sailing in the Elizabeth River.
You can see from the reflections on the water that conditions were super calm.
Yesterday, going ashore, we met four sailors we knew. And waved at some others we'd seen in the ICW heading north. It's amazing to continue to run into folks …
Learning a new place is exciting. Indeed, when living on a boat, it's an essential skill. But it's also a ton of fun. How do we learn a place? I think there are a few phases.
Phase I. Find Something. Anything.
You don't know where things are. You don't even …
The Commodore Says "Living on a boat is gorgeous, but it interferes with taking evening walkies."
I think this is code for "can we go to a bar and eat bar food and drink beer?"
She feels guilty about idling in a bar. We're supposed to be productive. Right …
Started: Star Island 25°46.56′N 080°09.25′W
Mooring: Coconut Grove near Dinner Key Marina, 25°42.92′N 080°13.63′W
Log: 8.5 nm. Time: 2 hr. Engine: 2 hr.
Great party on Perfect Partner. Great tour of Lincoln Road Mall on Miami Beach …
Started: Coconut Grove near Dinner Key Marina, 25°42.92′N 080°13.63′W
Anchored: Star Island 25°46.56′N 080°09.25′W
Log: 8.5 nm. Time: 2¾ hr. Engine: 1½ hr.
Our weekly daysail took us up to Star Island. We dropped the anchor …
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