22 July Phoebus and Hampton

We're finding Virginia to be cruiser friendly with the provision of public dinghy docks. Yesterday we were allowed to leave the dink in the marina while we explored the fort and today we used the public dock in the north of the anchorage to walk into Phoebus for brunch with Jack and Jan. They suggested Mango Mangeaux on the main street – our first time eating indoors since before the Coronavirus – and we would go back again. Eggs Benedict with a local crab cake was delicious, and very large, the bottomless coffee pot generous.

Phoebus was home to the first English settlers in the early 1600s and still retains many old buildings though none from that period. As a yachtie there is a convenient supermarket five or six blocks from the dinghy dock.

Hampton marinas seen from the VASC

Hampton university buildings

Jack and Jan left after lunch to sail up to Newport. We are leaving tomorrow morning to go north up the bay giving us time to go into Hampton and visit the NASA aerospace museum.

We are finding this anchorage to be very convenient; Fort Monroe, Phoebus town and Hampton city are all within easy reach by dinghy. Hampton is the furthest ride, but no more than ten minutes passing under the road bridge and up the river to another public dinghy dock in the centre of town. It's another 38c hot day and I'm guessing the museum has air conditioning.

The Virginia Air and Space Center, to give it its correct name, does have AC. What it doesn't have is many visitors. Perfect for social distancing and staying cool inside. We stroll around the 30 odd planes on display, marvel at the Apollo 12 Command module and learn to our amazement that four planets of our solar system are solid and four (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) are gas with a relatively small rocky core. A factoid to store away for another time, or a pub quiz.

Early evening following a hot day we had a dramatic storm pass over.   We were watching the dark clouds building to the south and west and when we felt the  air cooling as the wind built we dashed to close hatches, pull down the cockpit screens and set the anchor watch on our handheld Garmin GPS.   Gusts peaked at mid thirties - the holding must be good because all six boats in the anchorage held in the blow.  The passing rain brought a welcome relief from the heat and a cooler night for sleeping.  Onward towards Maryland tomorrow.