The winds continue quite light, and our progress north is due at least as much to riding on the Gulf Stream as any push from the wind, but it is satisfying and delightful. Except for one short time near a rain shower I don’t think we have yet seen over 10 knots this trip. But coasting along at three or four knots has its pleasures, and is a lot more enjoyable than listening to the drone of the engine. We have no place we have to be for a month, there is no bad weather chasing us, and we are tired of crowds in a marina. Given all that, spending time out of sight of land seems the best place to be!

Yesterday we did stop off South Carolina to do some deep-bottom fishing. Fishing on the bottom in 750 feet of water is a bit new to me, and just to get a feel for the drift and the amount of weight that would be needed I dropped a heavy jig to the bottom, and in 30 seconds was on a fish. Now that is a very long way up…. Very long. I never did find out what I hooked because half way up it was stolen off my line by a large shark.

We rigged up our newest fishing outfit, an electric fishing reel, designed for bringing things up from these depths, and in very short order had our limit of Golden Tilefish one of which we had to rush out of the water at boat side to avoid losing him to another shark.

We stopped in one spot today and tried to repeat out success, but it was not to be. We are off Cape Fear, North Carolina right now, and will likely be anchored in Norfolk in two or three days, depending on weather and fishing opportunities.