36:57.08N 76:10.06W
Nimble Ape II
Chris and Jules Stanham
Tue 3 Jul 2012 02:22
Despite Barra and Ricardo making sure the Tiki bar and the entire
Solomons community were left with a lasting impression on their final night, we
still managed to slip at 6.30am on July 1. The small Maryland town will never
be the same again. There were actually people waving from the pontoon...and
Barra’s only been here a month.
Pictures:
Ricardo, Jules, Barra and Drew prepare to set off from Solomons, July 1 and
Ricardo tops it the Nimple Ape on Day 1
Pelicans and dolphins were sighted within minutes of entering the
Chesapeake Bay. What’s left to see!? Soon we were motor sailing in light winds,
Elvis playing in the background (Barra’s choice), wondering what to eat next
out of our copious supplies – whatever’s on top is the only option really – and
pondering the rather overwhelming prospect of 50 miles done, about 2,800 to go.
Ricardo quickly proved he’d basically been born at sea by hauling
down the foresail and fixing something complicated. He then explained GMT to
Drew and made him find and count the seacocks before mending everything in
sight and spraying WD40 everywhere. I, meanwhile, nonchalantly pretended not to
listen to Richardo’s words of wisdom, but actually learnt a few things about
our boat which I should have known already. The reassuring display of
competence was a relief after I had watched him swallow whole a tin of lasagne
for breakfast, followed by a half a bag of potato chips and some apple sauce
before noon.
With this leg of the journey always viewed as a bit of shake down,
the weather played along by going all ominous and hazy before throwing in the
wind. As soon as we began properly sailing, Ricardo started looking at the mast
and forestays with ‘that’ look in his eyes I have witnessed before at sea in the
faces of people more knowledgeable than me. Predictably, wild gesticulation and
exclamations soon followed and it emerged that the mast was likely to topple over
at the drop of a hat. Okay, slight exaggeration, but the mast was indeed not
quite the thing and everything holding it in place not quite as tight as one
might wish.
As I was digesting this information, I noticed Ricardo tying some
tools to his person, thinking he may be being a trifle cautious for the
conditions. Next time I looked up, he was scaling the mast like some ancient
mariner of old and proceeded to perch himself on the cross tree. Some
tightening of stuff ensued, a brief moment of interest when the genoa line was
swinging wildly and then Ricardo shimmied on down. It was therefore slightly
less of a shock but no less fascinating when he rigged himself up ten minutes
later and scaled the entire mast to untangle something. Finally, someone on
board who lives up to the barky’s name.
So, now resting up in Norfolk following a visit to Hooters (we all know why)
before the big push some time tonight (July 2).
Jules
