St. Michaels, MD to Coinjock, NC

October 21, 2019 - October 28, 2019

Monday’s weather was a great improvement over yesterday.  It was partly sunny with temperatures in the 60’s.  We were toasty warm in our enclosure as we motored south on the Chesapeake Bay to Solomons.  After getting fuel and water we arrived at Zanhisers Marina at 4:30 just before the office closed at 5:00 and got help with docking on a T-head.  We both took nice long showers and had pizza for dinner.  Zanhisers is one of our favorite marinas on the Chesapeake with great facilities and a shuttle to the grocery store.  

On Tuesday, one of our propane tanks had run out and the shuttle driver kindly agreed to take us to get it filled after she dropped the other boaters off at the grocery store.  Since neither of us had gotten to eat any of the crab mac-n-cheese I had made for the rendezvous I made some for lunch when we got back to the marina.  It was yummy! The rain and wind (the reason we stayed an extra day in Solomons) started at 4:30 and was quite strong all evening.

Wednesday we planned to make up the stay over day we had in Solomons and traveled 55 nm to an anchorage in Fishing Bay near Deltaville, VA.  We had been surrounded by numerous boats as we motor sailed on the calm bay with the wind behind us. Several boats had their spinnakers out.  Most of those boats had also chosen the same anchorage in Fishing Bay.  There were 22 boats in the anchorage by nightfall.  We enjoyed the peaceful, beautiful setting grilling chicken for dinner and eating in the cockpit while the sunset.  

We never stopped at this anchorage before,
but found it peaceful and quiet.
We will definitely put it on our favorite list,

Sunset on Fishing Bay

Thursday we motor sailed to Hampton, VA near the start of the ICW.  While we are out on the water we get to watch the marine life as it changes as we get further south.  We have been seeing lots of brown pelicans which are one of my favorite marine birds.  They usually fly close to the water to take advantage of the updraft and dive recklessly into the water to catch fish.  They aren’t attractive, but are very efficient birds.

The first thing we did in Hampton was have pizza at Bull Island Restaurant.  Their menu is limited but they have a gazillion craft beers on tap.  Hampton is a favorite stop just before we enter the ICW and we had a coupon for a free night so, of course, we stayed two nights.  Friday we did a little maintenance (my part was cleaning) in the stern area and then went out to lunch.  Have you noticed that eating is one of our favorite pastimes (LOL). 

We ate lunch at Venture and they had eleven
craft beers on tap!

Restaurant row in Hampton

The first real fall color we have seen

Can you tell I'm trying to be more
artistic in my photography?

On our walk to the water we encountered
this seafood market which had a huge
seafood processing building behind it.

This shrimp boat supplies the
seafood processing plant.

I'm a sucker for carousels, and
Hampton has a beautiful antique one.

Across from our marina was
Joy's Marina.  The reflexion
that afternoon was great.

Our next destination was Great Bridge where there is a free dock.  We got through the lock easily.  Just as an aside, the first time we went through the lock I was extremely apprehensive, but this time it was easy.  We got through the bridge only to find that the free dock area was full.  I searched the charts for a suitable anchorage near the bridge and found one at mile 27.  On the charts it looked iffy, but when we got there it was fine.  We spent a quiet, peaceful night anchored out.

Sunrise!

Our plan was to dock at Coinjock marina on Sunday, but when we called them they were full.  I did another search for an anchorage close by and found one seven miles past Coinjock.  We did stop at Coinjock for fuel, water, ice and a great lunch (they have great food - never been disappointed).  The anchorage was quiet and well protected from wind.  At around 7:00 pm there were some thunder rumbles but no rain or wind.  It should be a quiet night. 

Lola is enjoying the trip!

Thank you for reading my blog.

Final days in Baltimore - St. Michael's

October 14, 2019 - October 20, 2019

Monday was a day to clear the boat of all of the items we needed to take to storage before our trip and finish up some last minute projects.  I repaired a Rainy Days burgee that we had used the last time we were in the Bahamas and did some cleaning in the cabin and in the cockpit. We did some provisioning and stowed all the purchases.

One of our last meals in Canton was at the Claddagh Pub.

I had a cardiology appointment on Tuesday morning and afterwards we completed all of our final errands in Annapolis including purchasing a whole pizza from Italian Market to pack up and store in the fridge for the times we are having pizza withdrawal symptoms.  That evening the friend and neighbor group we socialized with over the summer had a going away party in the boater’s lounge.  Since we are all going south to different destinations and at different times we wanted a chance to say good by to each other.

Our happy group of cruisers enjoying the last party of the season.

I had an echo cardiogram scheduled for early Wednesday morning and another doctor’s appointment later in the day.  Bob opted to stay home and I drove to Annapolis on my own.  All went well with both my medical visits.  It was pouring down rain by the time I got home and continued raining for the rest of the day.  I did some last minute laundry in preparation for leaving.

On Thursday morning the dinghy had about
three inches of water in it which I bailed out.

Thursday was our scheduled day of departure, but there were gale force wind warnings and we decided (wisely) to postpone our trip until Friday. It was reported that 53 mph wind gusts were recorded on the Bay Bridge so we’re glad we stayed put.

Friday was chilly (high of 64) but sunny with winds out of the NNW.  We had an eight hour trip across the bay to St. Michael’s and were anchored for the night at 3:30 pm.  It was great to be back out on the water again. Bob grilled some steaks and I cooked corn on the cob for our first dinner in the cockpit.  Lola spent the whole day in the cockpit with us, but seemed to be confused about what was going on. That night the outside temperature went down to 46 so I was glad I put an extra blanket on our bed.  Lola joined us in the v-berth to sleep and share the warmth. 

The first sunset of many on our trip south.

Bob took the chill off the morning by lighting our propane fireplace, but we spent most of the morning in the cockpit where the sun warmed up the space inside our enclosure nicely.  Before lunch we took the dinghy into town to touch base with the C&C rendezvous group.  We walked down Talbot Street stopped  in a few shops and ate lunch at The Galley. 

Some amusing coasters in one of the
shops we visited

A witchy mermaid decoration

Back with the C&C group we talked about our adventures since our last meeting in 2018.  I made some crab mac-n-cheese to share with the group after our tour of the Lyon Distillery.  The tour was informative, but the tasting was more fun.  The craft distillery produces several varieties of rum, vodka, gin, and agave. Distilling is quite an involved process. After the tour Bob and I headed back to the boat to watch the Penn State Game; they beat Michigan 28 to 21.  It was an exciting game with lots of cheering from the crowd who were all wearing white (a famous white out). Quite impressive!

Some shiny distillery equipment

On Sunday it poured rain all day.  To get into town we had to don our foul weather gear, bail out the dinghy and motor through the rain.  We ate lunch at the Crab Claw and just as we were finishing the C&C group came in.  We sat with them while they had lunch and helped teach the Canadians how to pick crabs.  

The happy group of C&C sailors eating crabs!

Back at the boat we hung up our foul weather gear to dry and settled in for a quite  evening. 

Thank you for reading my blog.

Final weeks in Baltimore, MD

September 30, 2019 - October 13, 2019

Our preparations for heading south are in full swing.  Even though the weather continued to be warmer than usual for the first couple of weeks of fall we have to remember that soon the nights will be cold even if the daytime temperatures are in the 70s.  

We decided to buy the folding bikes we had looked at last week at Fawcett's.  We got the boat show price on the bikes and the bags to store them in.  Once we got them home we made quick work of assembling them and testing them out on the dock.  The next morning we road the bikes into Fells Point to the Pitango Cafe for breakfast. 

 

These bikes will get a lot of use on our trip and here in Baltimore.

On Wednesday the boat ladies breakfast group decided to change things up a bit. We went out to lunch in Fells Point and then to the movie theater in Harbor East to see Downton Abbey.  It was wonderful seeing all the Downton Abbey characters once again.

On Friday afternoon I drove to Delaware for my 50th High School Class reunion.  Before checking into my hotel I stopped at Total Wines in Claymont, DE to buy a case of our favorite wine to take on our trip.  In previous years we have bought two cases (enough to fill the “wine cellar” Bob created behind our settees), but for some reason we haven’t been drinking much wine lately. My sister, Becky, had agreed to go to the reunion with me and she and a friend from high school, Sharon Brinkmann, met me at the hotel later that evening.  On Saturday we had made arrangements to have lunch with our long time neighbors, Linda Taylor Huth and Steve Taylor, and a long time friend, Jeannie Morgan Conte. My younger sister, Laurie, drove down from NJ to join us for lunch, also. The conversation was lively filled with reminiscencing and catching up on each others lives.  That night the reunion was held at the Newark Country Club and was more fun than I could have expected.  It was wonderful seeing friends from elementary school to high school.  We all looked older, but it was amazing how little our personalities had changed. 

Sharon Brinkman, me, and Becky at the reunion

Sherri, my best friend in elementary school, and I

All the members of my class who made it to the reunion

Back in Baltimore we continued to get ready for our trip.  I had some final sewing projects I wanted to complete.  One was getting a good start on the quilt I am making for my second daughter, Rachel.  I sewed the strips together, cut the squares, and began sewing the rows of squares.  I have completed 8 of the 12 rows I need to complete the quilt. I sewed those 8 rows together.  I will complete the last 4 rows by hand on our trip when I get the urge to be productive and then have it quilted in the spring. I did most of the sewing on the boat, but was able to join my boat neighbor at her friends house one last time. It has been fun having fellow quilters to work with.  Since I am still a novice at this craft I have learned much from these friends.

The quilt is made of batik fabrics with
a plant theme. The pattern is called "Shoebox."

Our older cat, Captain Jack, had been losing weight over the last two years. He started throwing up his food or just not eating most days this past month. He was fifteen years old and we made the difficult decision to have him put to sleep rather than prolong his misery.  On our way to the Annapolis Boat Show on Friday we dropped him off at the vet.  It was hard to leave him there and even harder to try to enjoy the boat show, but we are confident that we made the best decision for Jack. 

Jack in healthier times

My next blog post will be about the beginning of our trip south.

Thank you for reading my blog.

Baltimore, MD and Johnstown, PA

September 15, 2019 - September 29, 2019

During the week of the 15th I had a primary care doctor’s appointment, a mammogram, and a dentist’s appointment. Lot’s of fun!

Throughout the week Bob and I took inventory of the supplies we already had on board and planned for what we still needed to order.  We try to be as accurate as possible by calculating how many of certain items we will need for the five months we will be in the Southern Bahamas but with some items it is basically guess work.  Just an example - for cat food packets we use four a day and we will need 150 days worth.  That means we have to take 450 cat food packets with us when we leave Florida. But cat litter is mostly guess work. Cat food and litter are two items that are not always available in the less populated Bahamian Islands.  

On Saturday morning (9/21) I left for Johnstown to visit Jessica and Joe and attend the Queen concert that was being presented by the Johnstown Symphony Orchestra (Jessica is the Executive Director of the Orchestra).  The concert was spectacular with a Queen cover band (Jeans and Classics) the orchestra, and a choir made up of select area high school students.  The concert sold out in three weeks and the audience was a cross section of the Johnstown area community. It was a great success. It was wonderful spending time with Jessica and Joe, as well.

The Sunday morning paper had a front page
article about the success of the concert.

Back in Baltimore, I was able to pick up my quilt from Linda, the professional quilter who did the machine quilting for me, on Tuesday.  On Wednesday, I trimmed the quilt and sewed the binding onto the edge of the quilt.  It then took me several days to complete the hand stitching of the binding and sew a label onto the back of the quilt.  I’ll ship it to Jessica and Joe next week.

 I loved creating this quilt and have already started
my next quilt which is for my second daughter, Rachel.
I think I have been bitten by the quilt bug

Bob and I test drove a foldable bike that was on display at Fawcett’s this week and were very impressed with it’s construction and ride.  The bike is designed to take up as small a space as possible on the boat (we are planning to store them in the quarter berth) and to withstand the salt air environment we will be using them in.  We are seriously considering buying them.

More next time…

Thank you for reading my blog