May 10, 2019 Norfolk to Cape Charles, VA

May 10, 2019

After spending a week in Norfolk attending the AGLCA Spring Rendezvous with about 300  past, current and future loopers it was finally time to head back onto the water today.  We’ve attended several rendezvous in the past and always found them informative and fun but the route sessions where specific details of each section ahead of us were covered in-depth by a past looper were particularly helpful.  We now have pretty good expectations for what to expect for the next few months as we travel up the east coast, through Canada and begin moving down the river system in the fall. 

There's all forms of transportation in Norfolk.

Ferry service

Working tugs

Seaplane

Schooner Tours

Cruise ships

Cruise ship doing a 180 degree spin  mid channel before heading out to sea.  

There's a lot to do in Norfolk if you have the time.  We were a bit limited due to the rendezvous but did walk around some and found this interesting Pagoda and Asian park on the waterfront which was a gift from the  people of Taiwan.  "Waterside" the waterfront development  is an active place day or night.

So today we started our transit of the Chesapeake Bay.   We still had a few hours of big city, industrial and military scenery as we left Norfolk. Our naval fleet is on full display as you cruise out the harbor with supply ships, destroyers and even aircraft carriers on display.  There was an inbound submarine arriving just after we left Norfolk harbor that generated a number of urgent “securitie” notices over the VHF radio for all to stand well clear.  Glad we were already out of the area.

Leaving Norfolk behind

Piers loaded with Naval vessels big and small

Since we have spent plenty of time exploring the western side of the bay in past years, we are opting to explore the much less developed eastern shore of the bay as we head north.   Our first stop is Cape Charles. As we left Norfolk, we took a heading that basically paralleled the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel which crosses the opening of the bay.   This was several hours of open water plugging along at our leisurely 6-7 knot speed.  It felt good to be on the move again.  SW winds at 10-12 kts   and 1-2 foot following seas had us rolling a bit but nothing of concern.   The only things of interest during the crossing were some bayboats working their lines of crabpots and the fleet of bigger boats netting menhaden.  Interesting process that is almost too efficient and causing a diminishing stock of these bait fish which are basically used for fish oil, fish meal and fertilizer.   Menhaden are a schooling fish so a spotter in a plane locates a school.  The mother ship sends out two smaller boats loaded with a net who encircle the school of fish.  They then drag the net over to the mother ship who pulls in the nets and dump the fish into their hold for processing.  There were 5 of these bigger boats working the area we crossed.

Cape Charles is an interesting little town built in the late 1800’s as a railroad terminus.  Railcars would be loaded with produce and seafood from the eastern shore and then moved onto specialty barges that could carry up to 18 railcars across the bay to Norfolk.  The town is only built on one side of the street as the rail lines and harbor were on the other.  It is a designated National Historic area with several streets lined with era homes.

Sears Roebuck Craftsman catalog house

Some really old Crape Myrtles lining the streets

Local conch shells adorning  tops of fence posts

Combination water tower and lighthouse

Well - it is still Virginia!!

They even have a nice beach and fishing pier 

Today it is undergoing rediscovery by tourists from NY, NJ and PA as well as day trippers coming over from Norfolk who come to enjoy the beaches and small-town quaintness as well as an improving food experience.  After a week of hotel convention  buffet lines we were ready for  a nice dinner out and found it at Hook U Up Gourmet.

Shrimp and crab fettucine for John

Jumbo Seared Scallops for Martha

 It will be interesting to see what the town looks like in a few years.  The old rail lines are currently being ripped up with plans for a condo development on the waterfront. New businesses are popping up to cater to the tourists like Cape Charles Distillery (they actually make a pretty decent bourboun whiskey) and a  microbrewery/restaurant  we’ll be trying for lunch.  It’s definitely a mixed use town as we watched  an old school trade as  the local watermen  docked their boats  at the town wall after a day on the water  to  unload  and sell their bushel baskets  of crabs  to a waiting refrigerated seafood  truck.

Nice sunset over the bay  as we walked back to the boat

Journey for May 10, 2019