Hampton VA

October 23 - 28, 2016

We departed Fishing Bay at 9:20 am.  Although Paul and Laurie were not quite ready to leave we decided to go anyway and meet up with them again in Hampton, Va. We were very much looking forward to this stop over.  Unfortunately, the trip down was very rough with high winds and seas, much worse than forecast.  Winds were heading off the nose and we were taking the seas off the starboard bow, not very comfortable as Brad would attest.  The cockpit and us were soaked with sea water by the time we arrived in Hampton. 

The marina closed at five and we were cutting it close, I called ahead and the dock-master agreed to hang in and give us a hand. We arrived at 5 o’clock on the nose.  It was great to have his assist, the docking was pretty tricky as we had to back in on an angle around a piling and against a strong cross current.

We decided after a long day we would shower and head out to dinner.  What a beautiful town.  The main drag where the restaurants were located was a sight so see…the cobblestone streets and old buildings were lit up from the lights that hung from the trees lining the road.  We ate dinner at the Conch & Bucket and the server seated us at a window seat that viewed the pretty street.  After dinner we went for a little walk and headed back to the marina. Truly an enjoyable evening after our long day.  

A garden grown by the Harbourmaster for Cruisers to help themselves

The next day I worked at finding a spa for some much needed services, which I was able to get into right away…not always a good sign but it worked out perfect.  We washed all the salt off the boat inside and out which took a few hours but she started to shine again, then I headed off in an UBER to enjoy the afternoon at the spa.  

During our stay here we went to the Nasa Air Museum, a must stop if you ever come to Hampton - and you should!  We visited the lovely local historical museum and of course, I had to ride the Carousel which was a wonderful restoration of hand-carved and painted wood.  

Once Paul and Laure arrived we had dinner out again in another restaurant in the historical district - Venture. The food and wine were good but unfortunately, Laurie and I had finished our dinner by the time Paul and Brad got theirs - a mix up in the kitchen I guess.  Fortunately their meals were comped due to the mist.  

The marina was fantastic and you couldn’t ask for a better location, right downtown and a short walking distance to many things.  Paul needed to head back to Deltaville to pick up his car and wanted us to reserve a car as the cars go fast around the weekend.  We decided to rent a car a little earlier and have a shopping day at one of the outdoor shopping centres.  Again, the streets at this outdoor ‘mall’ were lined in cobblestone and traditional architecture that fit in with the area.  

The marina facilities included laundry, showers etc.  The showers were not bad as far as marina’s go so I decided it would give me the opportunity to dry my hair etc with a little more space - normally I shower on the boat. Unfortunately, one day in the second stall I could hear this woman virtually hacking up a lung, sneezing etc.   When I returned to the boat the first thing I said to Brad was…”hope I don’t get sick” and then proceeded to tell him about this poor sick woman. Unfortunately my comment turned out to prophetic.

On Thursday Brad drove Paul to pick up his car in Deltaville, a three hour drive and Laurie and I remained back doing laundry.

We decided on the Friday we would leave the Hampton Public Piers and head over to Sunset Marina where Paul and Laurie were docked, so that we would be together for our early departure.  After lunch at a little restaurant by the marina Laurie and I found a Costco…first one for me in US and pretty much the same as at home as the receipt would confirm.  We found these great down-filled, packable light weight jackets for $19.99 - the steal of the day.  The weather is warmer down here than at home - typical 23 -27 degrees C, but still we get some pretty chilly days, especially on the water. While the ladies were touring Costco the men headed over to a “used” marine store and Brad picked up a Shakespeare fibre glass fishing rod, with a ball bearing stainless steel salt water reel in excellent condition for $40 US. Also a filleting knife, sheathe and mesh glove for $20.  Good day for deals!

That night we headed over to dinner on 2outrageous for a BBQ rib dinner and met up with some people we met earlier at lunch (Hans, Bill & Peter).  They were heading out soon for the Caribbean 1500 rally, after which Hans would take Paul and Laurie’s car back to Canada for them.  

The morning of our departure I awoke feeling quite ill with fever and a very bad cough which sadly would turn into bronchitis again for the second year.  As we were not quite prepared for this sickness again, Brad walked up to the drugstore to get some meds before we headed out. The US sells NyQuil cough syrup, amazing product as I would soon learn.

We departed Sunset marina at 8:45 am.