The trip.

I bought Pylasteki in Annapolis, Maryland. I sailed her down the Chesapeake sound, down the Inter Coastal Waterway (ICW) and in to North Carolina. It was both an adventure, and a learning experience. I learned much about Atomic Four engines, and how to make them tick. I learned about transmission adjustment, and the joys of docking under sail. In addition to the mechanical, there was the lesson of dehydration, and the fright of having my jib on a collision course, much like the bow of a big white hulled ship! I learned that radio checks are no good if the guy a few slips over gives them, and the joys of navigating creeks at sunset. (Thanks Carleton!)

Along the way I met many friends, people stories and knowledge that are shared kindly. Along the way, I learned that sailors are tight knit group that help each other out, when they run aground and out of gas at the same time. Sometimes a boat just wants to take a break, and lets you know by springing leaks from less than obvious sources. (Thanks Billy!)

I met many people, and learned a whole heck of a lot, about myself while single handing through a Navy firing range… and about my family who at times were along for the ride. My Mom and brother were on board the day she tried to sink, and she was on board when the keyway sheared on the prop shaft. My dad drove countless hours to drop off an outboard, and help mount it on the transom to get out of Coinjock. Carter for diving and checking the prop and shaft in snake infested waters. My cousin Rob was on for the trek, Coinjock to Belhaven in a weekend, after helping asses the engine on Saturday… a 3am arrival in the Alligator river marina after beating across the Albemarle all night! He was also there when I cast off the dock lines before eight (and breakfast!) somewhat lacking sleep to make another night time arrival in Belhaven. My brother was around the last days of the trip, and helped tie her up at her new home.