Sailing: Pamlico Sound, NC

Nadi and Natalia recently purchased a Catalina 25 sailboat. They invited me along on a trip with their 18 month-old daughter, Talya, and Natalia's sister, Marta. We drove down to Oriental, NC on Friday evening. I went ahead and drove down separately in the Jeep in case I decided one day of sailing was enough. Natalia had made reservations at the Oriental Marina & Inn. We found the hotel to be quite spacious with two bedrooms and a combined kitchen living room area. After dropping of our bags Most of us went to the hotel restaurant for a couple of beers before bed.

On Saturday morning we got a bit of a late start. Both Nadi and I set the alarms on our phones for 8am but since we knew the alarm in the room was set for 8:30 we went back to sleep. The alarm in the room never went off and we ended up waking up at 9:30. Nadi went to get coffee for us, while the rest of us enjoyed bagels and cream cheese for breakfast. After breakfast we packed sandwiches and snacks in the cooler and headed down to the SailCraft marina where the boat was waiting to be picked up after having the bottom repainted.

From SailCraft Nadi and I motored over to get some diesel and to have the waste tank pumped out. I thought we did quite well with only one minor collision during our 5 minute journey. Meanwhile Natalia, Marta, and Talya drove the car around to meet us at the boat's new dock. After finishing with the refueling and the pump out it was another short trip by motor to the boat's new dock at Whitaker Creek Yacht Harbor. The day was really heating up at this point and Natalia took Talya into the air-conditioned yacht club for her lunchtime nap while Nadi, Marta and I readied the boat for sailing by rigging the jib and the mainsail and pumping out the bilge. With the work out of the way we joined Natalia at the yacht club and ate the lunch we had packed.

With our hunger satiated, we headed back out into the heat and boarded the boat. We cast off from the dock and motored out of the harbor. Apparently our skill as a crew was improving as we made it all the way out of the harbor without incident. Once out of the harbor we hoisted the sails and proceeded towards... well, towards nothing. We didn't really have a plan so we just sailed north and south repeatedly as these were the most favorable directions of travel given the direction of the wind. Talya amused us all by throwing the sunscreen overboard. This allowed us to practice our man overboard drill. We didn't go so far as to actually throw the horseshoe float to the sunscreen as it seemed to be treading water just fine, but we did turn around and retrieve it.

Natalia and Nadi aboard their new boat

Toward the end of the trip the wind died down and we decided to be a bit brave and sail into the harbor. This resulted in a bit of excitement as when we finally ended up dropping the sails the amount of maneuvering room we had was quite small. That said, I'm happy to report that it went off without a hitch and I imagine we even looked like we knew what we were doing. With the sails down we motored the last little bit to the dock and tied the boat up for the night.

We went back to the hotel and freshened up a bit. Then we walked down the road to the Oriental Steamer Restaurant & Tavern. Something about spending a day on the water just makes me hungry as I managed to consume the following:

• one margarita


• one quarter of a lobster ravioli appetizer


• 2 pieces of shrimp wrapped in bacon and glazed with maple syrup


• at least 3 pieces of bread with butter


• one pasta with feta, olives and chicken entree


• 3 diet (heh at this point why bother with diet) cokes

At this point I was so full it hurt, but I went ahead and ordered a piece of 15 layer chocolate cake to go, in case we all wanted dessert later. We walked, or should I say waddled, back to the hotel. Once we got back to the hotel we could hear the alarm going off, apparently we had managed to set it for 8:30 pm instead of 8:30 am. I was so full I couldn't really move so I just lay on the bed for a bit to digest. Once I was able to stand again we watched some TV, switching back and forth between the Olympics and Most Extreme Elimination Challenge. Nadi and Natalia had never seen MXC before and they seemed quite amused.

The next morning we headed back to the boat. The wind had picked up quite a bit over night so we went ahead and reefed the mainsail before heading out of the harbor. Once we got out of the harbor we decided it might be a bit too exciting with both the mainsail and the jib up. We unfurled about 50% of the jib and immediately we were going faster then we managed any time the day before. This made for a more exciting day of sailing. As an unexpected bonus the wind was coming from a different direction today so we were able to sail along the coast and see some parts of the sound we had not seen the day before. As we sailed we could see a few other sailboats out. We were glad to see that most of the other boats were running with highly reefed sails, so we didn't feel quite so much like wimps for only running a portion of the jib.

underway with only the jib up

After quite a bit of fun we headed back to the harbor. On the way back we unfurled the rest of the jib and really got moving. I think we managed to go over 5 knots at a few points. Since there was so much more wind today we went ahead and put down the sail before getting into the tight part of the channel. We motored back to the dock and then went to have lunch at the harbor in downtown Oriental. We finished eating just in time as the rain started coming down. The rain continued throughout our entire drive home. In fact we had better weather during the weekend than we would have had we stayed in Cary. Cary received quite a bit of rain from the remains of hurricane Gaston while at the beach we escaped most of it.

Sailing turned out to be rather enjoyable. It would definitely be fun to go back sometime with destination in mind. You can see our GPS track from Sunday here.

More pictures from the trip are available in the photo gallery.

Nadi also wrote an account of the trip. Check it out at the trailersailor bbs.

Douthat State Park

Last Sunday after our cave trip Cara, Gordon, and I made our way to Douthat State Park in Virginia to do some mountain biking. We had been there once before but due to cold weather and squirrel attack we had turned around at the top of the Stony Run trail. The weather today was perfect with temperatures in the mid 60's and plenty of sunshine. As we were preparing for the ride someone stopped by and recommended that we enter on Beard Gap and Locust Gap trails to avoid the numerous creek crossings at the beginning of Stony Run trail. The beginning of our ride was a good taste of what was to come. We started off on the Beard Gap trail, a mild climb up to the intersection with the Locust Gap trail. Once on the the Locust Gap trail it was a fast descent along the side of the ridge back down to the intersection with the Stony Run trail. Once on the Stony Run trail Gordon and I recognized where we were from our previous visit. Before long we reached the steep section of switchbacks up to the top of Stony Run. Gordon quickly took the lead on the climbs stopping to wait for us at most of the switchbacks. When Cara and I caught up to Gordon we rested for a brief moment. However, we couldn't rest for too long as there were many bees about and Gordon had already been stung once. Eventually, we reached the junction of Stony Run and Tuscarora Overlook trail. This is where we turned around on our previous visit. This time we continued on the Tuscarora Overlook trail and we soon came to a small cabin with a fantastic view of the valley below us. Here we stopped and rested and had a few snacks. After leaving the cabin the trail continued up a short ways before it reached the Middle Mountain trail. The Middle Mountain trail followed the top of the ridge. It was a bit overgrown with brush encroaching on the trail on both sides. We stayed on the Middle Mountain trail until the Salt Stump trail. The Salt Stump trail headed straight down the mountain. Our legs got a rest but our forearms were cramping up from constantly squeezing the brakes. After about 30 minutes of great downhill we emerged at Douthat Lake. From here it was just a quick ride down the Heron trail back to the Blue Suck Falls parking lot. All and all it was a great ride. I look forward to returning sometime and checking out some of the trails on the other side of the park.

For a map of our ride click here.

For a great photo essay which covers some of the same trails check out striker's post at trianglemtb.com.

Grotto Trip to Organ Cave

At 6:30 pm on Friday I planned to depart Cary, NC for the grotto trip to Organ Cave, however, as the time of departure approached so did hurricane Charley. As soon as I met Gordon and Cara in Morrisville the rain and lightning began. We ended up eating dinner at India Palace 2 while we waited for the storm to abate. After dinner it was still raining but the lightning had subsided. We were able to load all the caving gear in the car, but with 3 bikes and only two bike racks we were having a bit of trouble. As we struggled to tie Gordon's bike to the kayak rack on top of his car morale reached a bit of a low point. There was even talk of going to see a movie and skipping the trip. However, Gordon forced us to persevere. Eventually we tied the bike up well enough to make it to REI, where we bought a new bike rack for the back of Gordon's car. Of course it was still raining so we ended up assembling the new rack in the rain. Finally, at 9:30 pm we were ready to go and we left for West Virginia. We arrived at Greenbrier River Campground in Ronceverte, WV at around 3 am. Fortunately, we had driven out of the bad weather and we were not forced to put up the tents in the rain.

A few hours later I woke to the smell of bacon, which coaxed me out of the tent quite a bit earlier than normal. Susanna, Emily and Mike had prepared a wonderful breakfast and we all filled up in preparation for our caving trip. It was a short drive to Organ Cave from the campground. When we arrived we met up with our guides, Sandy and Ray. As most of us geared up for the trip a small group shuttled the cars over to the Lipps cave entrance where we planned to emerge from the cave system. Once the drivers returned we headed underground into the cave.

The entrance to Organ Cave was quite impressive. Perhaps it was just because of the lighted walkway, but the entrance reminded me a bit of the historic entrance of Mammoth Cave. For the first part of our trip we followed the tourist trail into the cave. For a tourist trail the lighting was quite well done. It was dark enough to maintain some of the dark look you get just caving with headlamps, but yet it was still light enough to allow you to make your way along the trail safely. When the tourist trail reached the turn off to the Saltpetre works we left the trail and continued along the underground river.

For a group of 15 people we moved quickly. I found myself just following along, not really paying attention to landmarks in the same way I do when caving without a guide. However, for the most part it seems to me that we followed the river for the beginning of the trip. This section of the trip was fairly easy. There were a few short sections where we had to crawl on hands and knees, but for the most part it was walking passage. Eventually we left the river and came to a fairly large room. Here we stopped and had a snack while our guides looked around for the smaller passage where we would continue the trip. Brian was kind enough to share his beef jerky with me since I wasn't really interested in the snacks which I had brought along on the trip.

Once our snack was finished we headed down what our guides thought was the Rat Alley passage. This passage was a low belly crawl, but Brian soon called back that the passage appeared to end. We backed our way out of the passage and reported our findings. Apparently the group was not willing to take Brian at his word as both Natalia and Sandy both crawled in after him to verify that the passage did indeed end. After Sandy was satisfied that this was the wrong passage we took a few minutes to consult map and compass and further explore the room. Eventually we found the real Rat Alley we crawled along it on our bellies. Thankfully the crawl was short and before long we were once again making good time.

The next memorable moment came at a small climb. In order to continue it was necessary to worm our bodies along a slope of loose rocks and then onto a narrow ledge. It was necessary to stay on our bellies as we went along the ledge as the ceiling was quite close. Unfortunately the ledge was rather narrow and I found it a bit disconcerting to find that the entire left side of my body was hanging out over a 15 foot drop off. We all made it safely across and after a brief rest we continued on.

Eventually we came to a junction with a large rock hanging down from the ceiling. This was the juncture for the Treasure Room and we made the decision to take the extra time to go see the formations. As we made our way down the passage we quickly came to the formations. There were soda straw columns, draperies, and an entire wall of helectites. For the most part there had been little or no formations on the rest of our route so it was well worth the time we spent to see this room.

After the Treasure Room the trip became a bit more difficult. The passages were lower and required a lot of crawling. Eventually we made our way into the Lipps maze. Sandy and Ray guided us through without incident, only having to stop once to consult the map. Before long we reached the Lipp's entrance and made our way out into a field. The field itself was surrounded by an electric fence, but fortunately there were wooden ladders over the fence which allowed for an easy bypass. Although there were signs of cows in the area they were apparently off somewhere else and we made it back to the cars safely.

We changed out of our cave gear and made our way back to camp. Upon arrival we found Nadi hard at work preparing a dinner of pasta for the grotto. There was plenty of food and refreshments for everyone complete with chocolate walnut cookies for dessert.

In my opinion this was an excellent trip. The guides were knowledgable and Diana did a great job of getting everything organized. It was nice to be able to have a grotto trip in which everyone went to the same cave.

Battery Betrayal

In preparation for our upcoming grotto cave trip I was attempting to repair my electric headlamp. I cleaned up the contacts and reassembled the lamp and plugged it in to charge. After 2 days of charging this 4V battery is still only registering 2V. I checked with the local BatteriesPlus store but the didn't have any of these particular batteries in stock. Well I should've bought a car battery while I was there as after dinner my car wouldn't start. It turns out my car battery is dead and no longer holding a sufficient charge. So I got myself to Wal-Mart (Batteries Plus is closed by now) and bought a new battery. Well this being Wal-Mart I was not surprised when I returned home to find that the battery from the 48-3N shelf was actually a 24-3N. So what does this mean? I haven't a clue, but I do know that the battery tie downs in my Jeep are too short to secure this new and bigger battery. I ended up just tieing the battery in place with some string. Hopefully this will secure it until I can find some new tie downs. For this trip I gave up trying to repair my old headlamp and bought a new Petzl Myo 5 from REI. So far I'm impressed by the headlamp. It has a powerful main beam as well as and array of 5 LED lights which can be used to conserve battery power. I'll try to offer a review after a day of caving with it this weekend.

Weekend Bike Rides and an Upcoming Cave Trip

I ended up working all day Saturday, but finally at 5pm I was able to sneak away for a bike ride. I joined Cara and Gordon on a ride around Cary. We left from Gordon's house and made our way towards Regency Park. We rode through quite neighborhoods the majority of the time, taking our time and stopping occasionally to read the informations sheets in front of the homes which were for sale. All of us are in the market for homes in the near future so it was nice to get an idea as to what is available in the area. Of course most of the homes we were looking at were way out of my price range. In a few of the neighborhoods we visited it seemed that the average asking price was around 750K. I found some trails near hwy 64 which might be worth coming back to explore with the mountain bike. We ended up finishing the ride with 24 miles. It was quite a pleasant ride and we certainly worked up a good appetite for dinner.

On Sunday, Lee and myself went for a moutain bike ride in Chapel Hill. We took a turn we had never tried before and ended up finding quite a bit of trail we had never ridden. The new trail was rather rocky and it made for a challenging but enjoyable ride. We ended up riding a little bit over 10 miles and then headed over to Peformance to pick up some new bike gear. I ended up buying a new pair of shoes and some general bike cleaning supplies. After leaving Performance we had dinner at Armadillo Grill, and then I headed to Nadi and Natalia's house to celebrate the purchase of their new sail boat with dessert.

This week I need to get packed for our upcoming grotto cave trip. We plan to go to Organ Cave and do a through trip from Organ to Lipps. Organ Cave is a popular commercial cave in West Virginia. As a grotto of the NSS we have obtained permission to explore portions of the cave which are not normally visited by tourists. This should be an exciting trip, but before I go I need to repair my electric headlamp. Normally I use a carbide lamp but carbide is not allowed in Organ Cave.

Brandy and a Bike Ride

Well I got some bad news yesterday. Just as I was leaving for my bike ride, my dad called me and let me know that our family dog, Brandy, had to be put to sleep. She'd been limping around with bad hip problems for several years and recently she began to have liver failure. Unfortunately on Monday evening it was apparent that she could no longer move around and was just suffering too much. The news really didn't come as much of a surprise and it was made easier by the fact that for the past seven or eight years she'd been living with my parents out of state and I saw her only rarely.

Brandy as a young pup

There is nothing like a good bike ride to take my mind of some bad news, so I went ahead and left on my ride. I took the Black Creek Greenway from my house to Umstead Park. You can get some idea of what the ride is like by viewing Scott Chilcote's excellent photo essay here. The total ride ended up being 24 miles long. The portion within Umstead worked out to about 19 miles. It was a nice ride I ended up seeing many deer and some parts of the park which I hadn't explored before. The ride finished after sunset and I hadn't brought my bike lights so I was treated to the sight of the bike and bridle trail illuminated only by the stars, the moon, and hundreds of fire flies.

A map of the Umstead portion of my ride can be seen here.

Good Morning World!

Hello everyone and welcome to my journal. I'm not really sure how this is going to turn out, as I just decided to start it last night. Hopefully I'll be updating it regularly with interesting news and random thoughts.

It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door, you step into the road and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.
J.R.R Tolkien's, Fellowship of The Ring