We're tied up on the New River where we spent Christmas in 2008. Matt, the Dock Master here remembered us and came out to greet us as we pulled alongside to tie up.
We called in to US Customs to clear in and they took our info and that gives us 24 hours to appear in person. This policy makes arrival in a big port like this much more convenient. We'll take a taxi tomorrow morning.
It will be a busy week here. Tomorrow we will move the boat further up New River to the Lauderdale Marine Center where we will get the boat hauled out for new bottom paint and other maintenance. I have a lot of chores I want to accomplish while the boat is out of the water and getting them done without interfering with the guys sanding and painting the boat will be interesting.
Once the boat is back in the water we'll move her back down the New River to where we're docked now and spend a few days getting ready for the trip to Charleston, SC. I enjoy spending time on the New River with all the incredible mega yachts that get towed through here, and easy access to ANYTHING you might need for boat maintenance. However, we do need to move on soon. We're pushing a little to be sure we make it to Norfolk, VA in time to leave the boat there so that we can attend a wedding in Kentucky late in June.
Our trip ended with a bang, but fortunately the bang was not ours. As we were waiting for the 17th ST bridge to open so that we could enter New River, a catamaran that had followed us into the channel passed us and headed straight for the bridge. I was surprised as it was about the same size catamaran as Mirasol and we are 10' taller than the bridge clearance. Jen exclaimed that they weren't going to make it, but when I looked at it I figured looks are deceiving whenever approaching a bridge and since they were not slowing down at all they must know they can get under it. Nope. BANG! With at least 5 feet of their mast unable to pass under the bridge, the catamaran's bows rose out of the water and the boat tipped back at least 30 degrees before the forestay snapped and the whole rig came down, folding in half as it went. We were stunned. No one appeared to have been hurt as the entire mast fell to the port side of the boat.
I can not imagine what the captain had been thinking. The bridge is a massive structure that could not be missed, it's clearance is clearly marked on the charts, and there were at least 2 other sailboats ahead of it who had pulled to the side to wait for the bridge to open. Either he didn't see the bridge for some reason or he felt he could easily clear it as he did not slow down at all and hit the bridge at about 5 or 6 knots. All I can guess is the captain went below and left a guest at the helm without giving them instructions to stop before the bridge. What a mess!
With this reminder of how a good day can turn bad fast, Jen and I were very happy to get the dock lines tied on and the ice cold beer opened at last!
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