wife has been surprisingly tolerant of the conditions. Fortunately the ITR Hurricane heater will keep the inside at 72 deg (even in Norfolk at 10 deg outside). With a broken autopilot someone has to sit out in the cold to steer, we have been taking turns 15 minutes or so at a time across Albemarle Sound, 28 deg plus about 20 - 25 knots wind chill. Off watch stands in the companionway to thaw.

Life will get better I hope, replacement autopilot arrived from ebay seller in Seattle, swapped it in and it seems to work. That lets me stand in the companionway and let the autopilot do the work! For us, the autopilot is the 3rd and 4th crew member, and indispensable. Too bad there is no way to rig a wind vane on Anomaly - though in the Intracoastal, it would be useless - 100 feet off course and you are hard aground.

Freezing rain and sleet forecast for today and 2-3 inches of rain this evening, we will wait until tomorrow to continue on towards Beaufort. I have discovered that Awlgrip antiskid decks hold the snow and ice very well, turning them into a skating rink. You really can't work safely on deck even in harbor. I am told that once across the Gulf Stream, the water temp goes from the low 40s to the mid 70s, and things get warmer.