Sailing plans never quite work out as planned...

Anne & Jonathan Lloyd in the USA © Ocean Cruising Club

April and the first half of May saw SOFIA shuttling back and forth between Antigua and Sint Maarten sorting out various issues. The holding tank in the forward head had given up the ghost during our circumnavigation and needed replacing before our arrival in the USA.

We had the old one removed while we were in Jolly Harbour and arranged for a new one to be fabricated while we went up to Sint Maarten to collect a new mainsail. On our return to Antigua we expected the new one to be fitted as arranged, but discovered that work on it had not even started! Welcome to island time. After considerable cajoling it was duly fitted a week later.

We then headed back up to Sint Maarten, where we had arranged for FKG Rigging to service the winch on our mainsail furling system. However, on checking the winch they discovered that the foil inside the mast, to which the winch is connected, was damaged. Needless to say this repair necessitated the removal of the mast and a considerable delay to our plans. While waiting for this repair we were delighted to link up with OCC member Eve Wilhite on S/Y Auntie, whom we had met previously on our circumnavigation, and celebrate Carnival together.

Our original plan had been to head to Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. However, the delay imposed by the mast repair meant instead that we sailed directly to Beaufort NC with a brief stop in Culebra in the Spanish Virgin Islands in order to check in to the USA.

When we pulled into the marina in Beaufort we were thrilled to see old friends Ed and Sue Kelly, whom we had met on the OCC East Atlantic Rally in 2014, waiting on the dock to greet us. It was great to catch up with them before we left for Norfolk VA, where port officers Greta Gustavson and Gary Naigle were holding mail for us. They looked after us splendidly during our brief stay and then it was time to move north up the Chesapeake to join the OCC Lower Potomac rally, which was run with great style and panache by Regional Rear Commodores Bill and Lydia Strickland.

The rally, which we thoroughly enjoyed, started in Reedsville VA and took us to St Mary's City and Leonardtown in Maryland. It was a truly historic cruise and a full account should appear in the next Newsletter.

Next on our agenda for the summer is the OCC Southern New England Rally, which is due to start in Newport RI on 1 July. The passage up to Newport, which has involved almost continuous motoring, has taken us to Annapolis MD, Cape May NJ, Port Washington and Oyster Bay on Long Island and Essex CT. Given the meticulous preparation by organisers Jane and Mike Eslinger it promises to be a truly memorable rally. Thereafter we will head up to Maine for the OCC meet in Camden ME.