Triangle Loop – Week 6 (We Have Progress)

June 1st to June 7th

Day 35 – Sunday, June 1st, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

On Sunday, the Black Beard Festival continued. It was pretty much the same as yesterday. The Black Beard Naval Battle was a bit different as they had all three ships moving (Yesterday, Black Beard’s ship wouldn’t start, so it was anchored. Easy pickings! Today, they were all moving around, which made it more interesting.

We walked around one more time to check out a few of the demonstration tents in the Pirate Village that we had missed because they were crowded. At 6:00, they fired the closing ceremony cannons.

In the evening, we were a bit sick of the downtown dining choices, so we took an Uber to Longhorn Steakhouse, the closest alternative, and had a steak for dinner. It was a nice change from pizza, tacos, and burgers. When we got back to the hotel, the sun was setting, and with the smoke coming in from Canada, it was just a big orange ball.

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Day 36 – Monday, June 2nd, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

On Monday, we were hoping to hear from the boatyard with an estimate. In the morning, I called and asked for an update. The receptionist took a message and said he’d have the estimator call me. Spoiler Alert!!! No Phone Call!

After breakfast, we walked to the local post office to mail a package, then went back to the hotel to wait for a call. We were sitting in the business center in the lobby when we noticed a lot of police activity. An officer approached us and showed us a photo of an elderly lady. She was missing from the hotel. Her husband was frantically looking around for her. We had not seen her, but said that we would keep our eyes open. Brenda checked the lobby ladies’ room just to be sure.

It was 3:00, so we decided to bring our stuff up to our room and go next door for some refreshment. When the elevator door opened, a lady looking very confused, who matched the description, stepped out. We asked what floor she was looking for; she said seven. We were on seven, and she was pressing seven on the elevator keypad. I asked her if she would like me to take her down to the front desk, and she said yes. We rode down to the lobby, and I escorted her to the front desk, flagged down one of the police officers (by this time, there were six police cars in front of the entrance), and asked if she was the lady they were looking for. The front desk staff rushed over and confirmed that she was the missing person. A happy ending!

For dinner, we tried Venture on restaurant row. Their menu is mostly Tacos and Pizza, so we had not tried it yet, but it turned out that they also have a nice tapas selection. We’ll go back!

Day 37 – Tuesday, June 3rd, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

One of our diversion plans for this week is to go to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. We checked the forecast for Tuesday, and it was going to be in the mid-70s and sunny. The rest of the week was forecast to be hot with pop-up rain showers. I left another message for the boatyard, and we took an Uber under the bay to Norfolk and the gardens.

The Norfolk Botanical Gardens are quite extensive, with over 175 acres, including 60 themed gardens and wild areas. You can explore them using paved pathways, by tram for organized tours, or by boat through the canal that winds its way through the gardens. Many natural paths wind through the individual gardens.

We walked around for several hours and got in more than our 10,000 steps! Overall, the garden was quite peaceful except that the Norfolk Airport borders one side, so every 10-15 minutes we had a jet taking off or landing.

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Like all gardens, they are constantly changing with the seasons, and we look forward to another visit, perhaps when we come back in the fall. They are building two large greenhouses that will serve as their new entrance, scheduled to open this fall, and they look impressive.

We Ubered back to the hotel to wait for a phone call from the boatyard. Around 4:00, we got an alert that there was motion on the boat. We peeked out on the cameras, and there were several people on the boat checking it out! So… we should hear something about an estimate in the morning.

Day 38 – Wednesday, June 4th, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

Wednesday morning, we woke up at around 6:30 as usual. We were lounging around the room, checking email and deciding what to do for the day. Our room faces east, so we keep the curtains closed tight to avoid the early morning sun and to keep the room cool. At about 7:30, Brenda and I both looked at each other. Wow, sounds like a helicopter is landing on the roof! We opened up the curtains, and indeed, a helicopter was landing on the roof of the building across the street. They were lifting old air conditioning units off the roof and installing new ones. The police were on the street below, and each time they swung a unit above the street, they would stop traffic.

It was fascinating to watch! They worked for almost two hours. The helicopter pilot demonstrated superb skill in setting the new units on the rooftop and hovering while they were unhooked.

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At 8:00, I started getting pings from the boat saying that someone was on board. I checked on the video camera and saw that there was a guy dressed in a hazmat suit with lots of power tools! I can’t see what he was doing, but he was on the boat for most of the day, so I’m guessing progress is being made! I still haven’t gotten an estimate or any communication from the boatyard. What a way to run a company! Still, if they get it fixed, I’m happy!

Day 39 – Thursday, June 5th, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

On Thursday, we were waiting for our friends Deb & Greg on Breakaway to arrive in Hampton. I made a run up to Home Depot and the Post Office on the bike in the morning while Brenda did laundry. At around 11:30, Breakaway arrived, and we had a great reunion. Deb & Greg spent a year at the Palm Coast Marina, and we haven’t seen them since they left.

Around 2:00, Alison and Mike from Changing Latitudes, loopers that both Breakaway and we had traveled with on our second Loop, arrived by car. They live in the Richmond, VA area and came to bring some parts that Deb and Greg needed for their generator. We had a few drinks at Bull Island Brewery, then the girls went to Walmart for a supply run, and Greg, Mike, and I stayed behind at Bull Island to save our seats for dinner (and drink beer).

We had dinner at Bull Island Brewing and then retired early.

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Day 40 – Friday, June 6th, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

Friday morning, we slept in, and at 7:00, Deb & Greg called ready for breakfast! We scrambled to get ready, and we walked up to the Baked Bistro (which has become our regular breakfast stop). After breakfast, we went next door to Glazed Donuts so that Deb could stock up for their trip.

After breakfast, Deb and Greg rode up to Advanced Auto Parts to pick up some parts for their generator, and I rode down to check the progress on the boat. Progress was good! They turned a 2″ hole into a 6″ hole! Actually, they are doing a great job. They have cut out all of the damaged fiberglass and the crappy repair that the last company did, and have prepped area to install a solid fiberglass block. I spoke with the fiberglass technician, and he explained the next steps and showed me the parts that had been fabricated to strengthen the area that failed. I was very impressed with both the progress and the attention to detail.

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Tyler, the fiberglass tech, says that he will have the first layer in by the end of the day, and that he should be done by Tuesday. Hopefully, Mike, the mechanic, can drill the hole and reinstall the rudder on Wednesday, with the plan to get the boat back in the water Thursday or Friday of next week. Keep your fingers crossed!

When we got back, we went to the Langley Air & Space Museum. Brenda and I went there on our first loop, so about 4 years ago. We went through the museum, watched an IMAX film on the space program, and then went up onto the observation deck on the roof of the museum. The observation deck provides a great view of Hampton Harbor, the marinas, the Navy Yard, and our hotel.

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After the museum, Greg went back to his boat to work on the generator, and we went back to the hotel. In the evening, we got together at Bull Island again for dinner. After dinner, we went to Deb and Greg’s boat so that I could take a look at their generator; unfortunately, we couldn’t get it running. But, we know what it’s not!

Day 41 – Saturday, June 7th, 2025 – Still In: Hampton, VA

Saturday morning, we went down to the marina to see Deb and Greg off, then walked up to Glazed Donuts for breakfast. Yesterday was National Donut Day, and we got coupons for a free donut!

After breakfast, I rode the bike down to the boat to do a few little projects and check on the progress. They don’t work on weekends, so I can work on my projects. I replaced one of the underwater lights and installed a new reboarding ladder under the swim platform. When I took my swim to work on the trim tab in Belhaven, I tried to get back on the boat with a strap ladder I had installed. It didn’t work. Every time I tried to pull myself up, it would swing under the swim platform. So I got a regular retractable ladder and put that in. Just in case….

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We spent most of the afternoon working on the blog, and Brenda worked on rewriting her trip journal into a fancy new book. Around 3:00, Brenda checked her NEBO app to see if anyone was coming into Hampton for the evening and noticed that some old friends of ours, Robin and Charlie, on The Lower Place, were at Bluewater Marina, where our boat was being fixed. We haven’t seen them since we stopped at their home marina in Iuka, Mississippi, on our second Loop. She texted them and we arranged to meet for dinner. We rode our bikes to Bluewater and had a nice catch-up with them, then went to the Surfrider Restaurant at the marina for dinner.

After dinner, we walked over to our boat and showed them the damage and progress. It was great to catch up. They are in town for another day, so we will try to get together with them tomorrow.

Recap of the week

It was another week of keeping ourselves occupied in Hampton, VA. We got to do a bit of sightseeing and had some local excitement with helicopters landing on the roof next door. We got to visit with some old friends, and hope to catch back up with them soon. Progress is finally being made on the boat! The old fiberglass is all cut away, and the new layers are being laid in. We hope to be back in the water by the end of next week.

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Thanks For Visiting! – Tom & Brenda