18th & 19th Nov 2011- Leaving Virginia and back down the ICW
Nimue
Sat 19 Nov 2011 11:41
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We had a lovely time in Norfolk and a big thank you to Gary and Greta
(OCC representatives) for looking after us again.
With the nights drawing in and no sunrise until 0600hrs, we
had approximately 10-11 hours of daylight to get safely anchored at our next
destination. Although the trip from Norfolk to Great Bridge was only 12nm,
we had to time the opening of 4 bridges, which took nearly 4 hours. After
a leisurely motor on a bright sunny day, we arrived alongside the wharf at Great
Bridge followed by Chris & Steve on Scott Free.
  Leaving industrial Norfolk,
passing Naval ships (above) and submarines (above right)
  A couple of bridges en route (usually
opened every 1/2 or hourly)
 The entrance to the Dismal Swamp, which
is just too shallow for Nimue’s draft!
We woke up before sunlight to an extreme frost
and I had to be very careful not to slip on Nimue’s teak decks.....! It
was pitch black as we slipped our lines and waited for Great Bridge to open at
0600hrs. Scott Free led the way, but no sooner had we passed through, when
we could see some very bright lights looming out of the fairly thick morning
mist. It turned out to be a wide beam tug, pulling along a very large
barge (just what we didn’t want to see at that time of morning)! Both
Scott Free and ourselves, placed ourselves as close to the banks as safely
possible and the barge, after spotting us passed within a few feet of both of
us!
After that we were blessed with some terrific sights as the
sun rose and the mist eventually burnt off!
  Very early morning waiting in the early
morning mist for bridges to open on the ICW down to Great
Bridge
  and......gliding by the fast becoming
wintery banks of the ICW
  View from Nimue and Scott Free waiting
for one of the bridges to open
A real flavour of the ICW on a late autumnal morning (Scott Free) |
