The time had come for me to leave Washington, NC. The last of the three months I had paid for was almost up and Mollynogger’s hull had just been cleaned by Josh of Castaway Dive Service. There was likely a little wiggle room for me to bargain for a couple days and better weather, but I was compelled to go. Mid morning on that last September Wednesday, I untied the lines with the help of Keith and Marianne, Donald, Donald’s friend Bob (I think), and Steve. It wasn’t perfect, but my planned maneuver was largely successful. Donald and Bob, the Navy contingent, seemed to approve.
The spot where Molly had been tied up was not necessarily tight or difficult but it required some planning. She was facing the shore along a face dock with two boats relatively close fore and aft. We needed to get off the dock, clear the other boats, and turn around almost 180 degrees to head out into the river. I had lead a spring line from the outside stern cleat, to the dock, and back aboard. On my signal, the crew untied the last couple dock lines and pushed Molly’s bow away. After the bowsprit was past David’s trawler ahead, I put her in forward and we began to pull on the spring line. I didn’t let out quite enough line and as Molly began her turn, the dinghy was brushing the dock pylons. But with a little more slack and Molly gurgling forward at idle speed, we pulled the spring line taut and her bow began to arc out toward the river. Once I could aim her toward clear water, I let the spring line go and pulled it off the pylon and back aboard. We were off.
The wind was on our nose, of course, as we headed down the Pamlico River.
And that’s when we had our first little drama. I was on alert because I smelled something hot. It had been literally three months since I had been underway with Molly, and I wasn’t used to her sounds and smells. I had to wonder if it was my imagination or something real. Twice in the first five miles, I stopped, dropped the anchor, and checked on the engine. I’m not a very confident diesel mechanic but the engine was not running hot, and the oil was fine. The reservoir seemed to have more fluid in it than I remember and it was spitting some fluid that managed to hit the side of the engine. Hence, the hot smell. I jury-rigged a hose to direct the overflow into the bilge. All else seemed normal.
