Elizabeth City, N.C., - Waterside Marina, Norfolk, Va., May 13, 2008

It was cold outside when we got up. We could see our breath when outside. We were underway at 5:45 a.m. (another sunrise picture which shows a sailboat we followed) to be able to make the first bridge opening and then go 18 miles to the first lock. The lock allows traffic through at set times, 8:30, 11, 1:30 and 3:30. We wanted to make the 8:30 locking.

We followed the Pasquotank River up to the lock. It is a very scenic, beautiful, narrow, windy river. Each side is lined with trees growing out of the water. The leaves were the light green color of the early spring. Along with the early morning sun and the calm water it was gorgeous.

Beth got through her first lock ever with no problems. There were 2 other boats in the lock with us. About .2 of a mile after the lock was a bridge which opens in conjunction with the lock opening. In between the lock and the bridge there were 5 sailboats which had spent the night and were waiting for the bridge opening. So, there was a group of 8 boats, in line, cruising up the canal.

About halfway through the canal we entered Virginia.

While the canal is pretty, we both think the Pasquotank River was by far prettier and more scenic. The twists and turns of the river were much more interesting and beautiful than the straight 22 mile canal.

Due to the bad weather the past few days, boaters decided to stay in the canal or ran to the canal for shelter. We were unable to stop at any of the places we had planned to in the canal. The Welcome Center had 9 boats, rafted up 4 deep, another stop had room for 2 boats and was filled and the final place we could have stopped was supposed to have space for 4-5 boats and there were already 8 there. So we continued through the north lock and out of the canal. We had heard that the lockmaster was proficient in playing the conch shell and he serenaded us when we left the lock.

The winds were really increasing and we could certainly tell when we got out of the canal into big water. We went past the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and are staying at the Waterside Marina in Norfolk, VA. We got in at 3:45. A long day, but not many miles, 10 hours and only 51.1 miles.

For those of you who are interested in the history of the Dismal Swamp Canal:

The Great Dismal Swamp is a marshy region on the Coastal Plain of southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. The Dismal Swamp Canal connects the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia via the Elizabeth River and the Albemarle Sound in North Carolina via the Pasquotank River, and is the oldest continually operating man-made canal in the United States. What keeps it alive are the numbers of pleasure boaters who transit this waterway every year on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.

This canal was built over 200 years ago in order to easier transport goods between North Carolina and Virginia. Both George Washington and Governor Patrick Henry of Virginia felt this would be the most efficient means of transportation.

In 1784 the Dismal Swamp Canal Company was created. Digging began in 1793 and it was dug completely by hand. Most of the labor was done by slaves hired from nearby land owners. It took about 12 years to complete the 22 mile long waterway.

Wartime activity left the canal in a terrible state of repair. In 1892 the Lake Drummond Canal and Water Company started rehabilitation efforts. By the 1920’s commercial traffic had all but stopped and it was used mainly by passenger vessels. In 1929 it was sold to the federal government for $500,000 and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates and maintains it.

Today boaters travel where famous explorers and Presidents have stood and literary greats have been inspired for over 200 years. For example, astride the two states’ border is the site where the infamous “Halfway House” hotel was built in the late 1820s. The hotel was a popular spot for marriages, duels and those escaping the law. Since the hotel was on the state line, these last simply walked to the other side of the hotel to avoid being captured in either state. It is also said that Edgar Allen Poe wrote “The Raven” during one of his stays at the hotel. Boats today follow the course of James Adams’ Floating Theatre, where Edna Ferber got the idea to write the novel “Showboat,” upon which the famous musical is based.