Off Season Cruising down the Chesapeake (Calico Skies Sailing, Ep 83)

Annapolis seems to have some sort of magnetic pull on us in the late fall 😂, this years challenge is to escape before the first snow falls..can we do it?!

This town is a great stopover for us as we make our way up and down the east coast. We have lots of friends that live here and you can basically find any boat part needed. Calico Skies is in need of some TLC after years of non stop travel (approx 30,000 miles) so we are using this time to perform maintenance and refresh our spare’s/provisions.

The first project we dive into is adjusting the valve clearance on our diesel engine with the help of Matt from MJ Sailing. This is a periodic maintenance item that we haven’t had the chance to perform as of yet. The engine sounds great adjusting the clearances.

We are greeted to a 35knot northerly blow indicating that the season is changing. We take advantage of the wind and go on a boy’s mission ripping across they bay in Andy and Charli’s fifty five foot performance catamaran. What a ride! We hit speeds over 10knots!

Just like that it is time to go! We push our way through the square Chesapeake Bay chop ever south, racing to get off the bay before a strong southerly comes in. We complete our transit of the bay in two long days.

Once we enter Norfolk we are amazed by the sight of all the warships at Newport News. This is a special spot to take the boat through, huge aircraft carriers, buzzing planes and helicopters. Bit of sensory overload and so fun to film!

0:00 Intro
1:29 Recap
1:59 Valve clearance adjustment with MJ Sailing
3:57 Some head renovation
4:15 Sail in 35 knots on 55 foot cat Avalon
6:11 Last minute to do’s before leaving
7:17 Trip south down the Chesapeake begins!
9:01 Steep, choppy Chesapeake bay waves
13:03 3am departure for Norfolk
16:37 Ride through Warship alley in Newport News VA
17:40 Bloopers
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