Yesterday was the sendoff gathering in the Cape Charles Marina. But I am still tethered to the dock, this morning. The heavy rain directed me to a last-minute reality check. As much as I had looked forward to this new adventure, I realized that I have a few loose ends that are not going away while underway.
The first one is the inability to find liability insurance outside of the USA. After over ten turndowns, I realized that the fundamentals have changed. The main problem seems to be the inability to find underwriting for US flagged yachts. In addition, which is usually not spelled out but hidden in the “does not meet our requirements” solo sailing and the nasty claim I had on the removal of “Fleetwood” from the stranding on the Virginia Barrier Islands in 2017. That was a 19,000 pay out for a job that should not have cost more than about $5,000. This did not affect my 2019 ability to obtain insurance. Next year this requirement to report claims over the 5-year prior period, will not be an issue any longer. The next problem is that I had ordered new batteries for my laptop and tablet to the address of my first planned stop from here, in Greenport on Long Island. Right now, I need to keep them permanently hooked up to the inverter which is charged by the solar panel but that might become a problem at night when I need to keep the charts live to get AIS alarms for nearby traffic. I had figured that I would run the engine to charge, but probably not a good idea after all. I also need to do better permanent repair to an exhaust; it needs a welder.
I am booked here now in Cape Charles for the month of June and I plan to cruise North to the Nantucket Sound in July. By that time, it is too far into the hurricane season to cross the Atlantic. So, a disappointment for a trip I was really excited to do and had abandoned in 2019, after Rose Marie’s sudden death. Now there was the added excitement of being able to be welcoming my fourth great grandchild, next month in Scotland.
But, just like some of my previous initial disappointments on this journey, that started in 2005, God will have another good surprise in mind for me.
Stay tuned…