Boat Yard Blues

* Chesapeake, VA   *

Five days docked at the Atlantic Yacht Basin, waiting to get worked into the schedule to pull the Now or Never after our “hit” in the Albemarle Sound two weeks earlier (see July 2 blogpost for details) that left us with a slight shimmy, seemed a lot longer. The anticipation of the wait and the news had us a bit on edge, yet bored. Bored so much the captain was cleaning our dockmates bow for him!

Our entertainment was watching the Great Bridge Bridge open on the hour, watching a crew team defiantly not move in the river as barge was barreling down upon them while providing multiple warning signals (horn blasts) before just lying on the horn (they barely escaped catastrophe as they blatantly ignored the barge warnings), and exploring as much of the area as we could safely (we’re on a busy road without good biking access). There is not a lot around here.

The Yacht Basin is a large boat and storage yard with a dock for some to stay a night or two. You’re either passing through quickly or waiting or getting your boat worked on. No frills but has the essentials. Our crew caught up with ongoing boat tasks, a couple of projects, and twiddled our thumbs. Not knowing when we might be our turn to get hauled out, we needed to stay close each day to be ready. Finally, our day came just after lunch Thursday.

We drove Now or Never to the backside of the yard from the river side face dock, where the travel lift was located and then disembarked while the boat yard crew took over, gliding her into the cradle and slowly hoisting her out of the water and moving her to blocks and jack stands.

As she was maneuvered out of the water, Dave could see damage to our hull. Significant damage. A large gouge from bow to stern on the port side. As they went to wash her down, he could see the port prop had been sliced and curled like a carrot garnish.

The first mate had retreated to the ship store lounge to await details, somethings you just don’t want to see right away. The captain became engrossed in filming and photographing every mangled part of Now or Never. The damage was worse than we imagined. The yard crew were a bit dumfounded asking “what in the hell did you hit?” It was continuous damage from bow to stern that they don’t typically see. All agreed we were darn lucky to not only make it out of the Albemarle Sound but motor here and stay afloat for 2.5 weeks, darn lucky we didn’t sink the boat.

You can see from the photos the gouges are well beyond the surface, through the fiberglass and deep into the hull. A straight line, including through two thru hulls, all the way back until we hit the prop, sliced, and curled it. The hit knocked a chunk out of the bow point.

We were now residents on the hard. Seven feet up a ladder to our swim platform, towering over the dockmasters office, fuel dock, and the other yard projects. Smack dab in the middle of the gravel road through the boat yard, on full display for all to stop and ask, “what in the hell did you hit?”

The guys did a preliminary assessment and vowed to get on the repairs first thing in the morning. Dave called our friend and agent Al, hoping he would be like a good neighbor and take care of us. Tasha started her search for rental cars. Our initial thought was to get home, out of the yard, dust, and no a/c space. In talking with the office staff, they would not recommend any hotel that would be accessible by bike. The ones they recommended would need to be accessed by car. They also advised us not to ride our bike on the main road anywhere – just too dangerous.

That left us at the end of the day taking an uber to pick up a car 4 miles away (the closest location by far). To our despair, they had no cars even though we just booked an hour prior. In fact, there were 8 people ahead of us waiting for a car. When asked about the prospect for the following day, we were told there were 45 ahead of us. What the ???  Leaving frustrated, we walked the mile to Lowes in search of a dehumidifier. If we were going to leave the boat with no access to the a/c dehumidifier, we wanted to get a mobile one to protect her during our time away.

We found what we wanted at Lowes and then just sat in the lawn furniture area, in silence. Hot and defeated, not knowing our next step, we enjoyed the cool store and a comfy chair before moving on. We ubered back to the boat, too tired to deal with anything else, we climbed our 7 feet up the ladder to our deck and spent the night in our hot house overlooking the yard.

It was Thursday, the 13^th. Might as well have been Friday the 13^th! Earlier that morning, our new chair (3 months old) broke, our boat was more than broken, we had no rental car, and our spirit broken. It was not our day, one of our lowest on the journey.

The following morning Tasha scrambled in search of cars; one-way rentals are impossible to find, just as we experienced in 2021-2022. So, we zeroed in on returning a car to Chesapeake, VA. Nothing available in Chesapeake and it looked like the airport would be our best bet at about 20 miles away. It would require another uber so we thought we would call before we made the trek, no luck talking to a human. The yard had told us 3-4 days to complete the work so we zeroed in on about a week. Tasha tried calling the local number multiple times to ensure there was a car before heading that way to no avail. In Tasha’s desperation she reached out on fb to a looper page to see if anyone happened to be at the Norfolk airport and could go by the rental counters, it was a long shot and no one was able to assist but the best response she received was this clip about reservations from a Seinfeld episode. They said they couldn’t help by maybe the clip would make us laugh – it did! Thank you, Jason Munger!

The yard got right to grinding the hull of the Now or Never early morning. The removal of the props shook the boat so that Tasha was a bit fearful the boat might tip. There is always an uneasiness when a hulled boat is sitting on blocks. Every movement is felt, a shimmy, a shake, a wobble, a lurch, and you just wonder how many tumbled over!

David spent the morning keeping a watchful eye on the work, getting updates on the damage, and communicating with insurance. The morning turned grimmer as they progressed. There were 3–4 guys working underneath the boat, calling more in, pointing, and then 2 climbing aboard and looking into the engine room and forward bilges by the bow thruster. It was an hour of flurry determining the extent of damage in the new day. The Now or Never has several holes in the hull, cracks through to the bilge, and had been taking on water. Adding that to the two thru hulls that were smashed into the hull, the gouge from bow to stern, one prop shredded, and the other off balance, we have ourselves some major carnage.

The captain then threw another monkey wrench in our saga and pronounced that he was not leaving. Too much was going on, too many pieces to put the Now or Never back together, and he wanted to be here to oversee and make decisions as things progressed. That left the first mate in a bit of a quandary.

With no one answering phones in the rental agencies at the airport to guarantee of a car, the captain declaring he was staying put, Tasha decided not to gamble with a car being available and resigned to stay.

The yard got a lot done on Friday, but unfortunately it was Friday, and they would not resume work until Monday. The original 3-4 days are now 4 or 5 to complete the work, but we know how that goes. We’re keeping our fingers crossed but not holding our breath. The props had to be sent out, so we are at the mercy of that schedule also. It would be wonderful if we could be back in the water by weeks end.

Life on the hard in the yard has had its challenges. We have power, but no a/c. We’re both thankful for the 7 fans Tasha has stashed throughout the boat, but much of the time they’re just blowing around hot air. We don’t use water during the day on the boat as our gray water drains to the lot below and we don’t want to wash down the crew working below.. We cook as little as possible, the captain will grill, and we’ve even been too hot to ride the ½ mile to DQ. Bathroom breaks are down the spiral staircase to the swim platform and then down the ladder 7 feet and across the parking lot.

It’s hot. The captain knows this as the first mate reminds him regularly. The captain has acclimated to the heat much better than the first mate. It may be the blood thinners he took for a year (but no longer on), or it is probably that he is not as vocal. We are now regulars and sit under the trees by the fuel dock with the other residents of the yard. However, we try not to listen to the stories of how long some have been here, and how long it takes for some to even have their boats looked out. The stars have aligned for us. One couple has been here 1.5 years! Living in a hot shed as their masts are off, with a dog. They sold everything to go sailing, bought the boat here, and haven’t left. No thank you!

David continues to work on projects and worked in a day of waxing and buffing in the heat. Tasha walked the mile to the grocery and loaded up our wagon with provisions and continues to look for options, each morning saying not another night, but by then end of the day saying one more day. Hoping and praying the work will be completed in the next week!

We’re hot, it’s humid, you can’t even get a cool shower as the water in the tank is air temperature. On the bright side, we have a grocery, pharmacy, and restaurants close, the shower house and laundry are 20 yards away, and the comradery of a small community of boaters in the same boat per say. And we are safe, the boat didn’t sink!

We’ve received encouraging words and an outpouring of love from friends and family. One looper friend who is further North invited us aboard to keep cruising in cooler weather. Should this drag on, the first mate might join them! This is another great adventure on our multi-year journey of the Great Loop! One we will look back on and laugh at some point, we’re just not there yet. Please send good vibes for clouds, low humidity, and a breeze!

Cheers!  David, Tasha,  

                  & Remy forever in our hearts!

 

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