Great Bridge, VA

Aircraft carriers, subs, destroyers, we saw em all today.

We shared the channel with some pretty big boats.

Our Thanksgiving crowd l-r: Jim, Barb and Jay (Jupiter 's Smile), Rachel, Kathy, and Jim and Pat (Shamrock).

Happy Thanksgiving from Hampton, VA

Our trip down the Potomac to Hampton VA with Barb and Jay on Jupiter’s Smile took us two days of motoring in smooth water. The Chesapeake Bay got stirred up by 20kt winds from the north, allowing us to sail the final 55 miles with following 3-4 foot waves. Since the winds were straight downwind we gibed 4 times to run slightly off the wind with the jib and main up to average 6.5kts for the day. Jay ran more downwind with his new spinnaker pole, and he and Barb enjoyed a flotilla of 40 dolphin for over an hour. Meanwhile, we were visited by a finch which flew into the cockpit through an open window, and settled on Kathy’s outstretched finger.

We had an early Thanksgiving dinner yesterday with Pat and Jim from Shamrock, our friends from the Bahamas. The meal was wonderful, and afterwards we walked off some of the calories on the nearby beach.

Today we will motor south in the ICW with Jupiter’s Smile, bound for Kitty Hawk, NC.

We wish everyone a healthy, happy, safe Thanksgiving. We'll watch out for traffic on the water and you do the same on the roads!

Washington DC Tour, Continued-OOPS

In the previous blog, I hit enter, and it was published before anything was on it, sorry. Here are Kathy, Rachel, and Brud as we start another day of walking, taking the metro, and seeing the sights. Doesn't Brud look daper in the Corona beer hat I loaned him?

WWII veterans memorial on Veterans Day.

Gen Colin Powell gave the keynote address at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and it was a very moving speech. I wish he would run for president.

One of the many Vietnam Vets in the area on this special day, resting with Rachel and Brud.

Sunset over the Washington Memorial from the top of the Old Post Office on our previous day's journeys.

Rachel waiting to board the Metro, which had a station (Waterfront) just a block away from the boat.

A red tail hawk outside the Jefferson Memorial. I've never been so close to a wild hawk, and we thought he may have been injured, but he flew off just fine.

Rachel atop the Washington Memorial. We took the elevator up, and then the walking tour down, looking at all the special State Stones as we descended.

Arlington Cemetary. We saw the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and JFK's gravesite.

Thanks to Brud, we toured the White House. He lined up the tour of the White House and the Capital before coming to Washington through his congressman. Both of the tours were a lot of fun, but we couldn't take pictures inside the White House.

We walked ourselves silly, and had to take breaks on handy benches more often towards the final day. The Metro was very handy to get around on, and we only took one wrong train and ended up at the Pentagon by mistake. Brud treated us to a couple of fantastic dinners, and took good care of us all the time. It was too bad Jean could not make it as well, and we missed her, but the amount of walking would have been tough. It was tough on me!

We'll head for Mt. Vernon tomorrow, and then south to join our friends Pat and Jim from SV Shamrock in Hampton. Jay and Barb from Jupiter's Smile are here in the marina, and we plan to travel together.

Then we'll stay in Kitty Hawk, NC for a week before continuing south.

Washington DC Tour, Continued

Washington DC

Air and Space Museum. This is the Space Ship One.

Natural History Museum.

Brud, Kathy, and Rachel in the Gem section.

Hope Diamond.

Kathy's dad, Brud is with us for a tour of Washington. We've seen the Capital Building, the Air and Space Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the Veterans Day parade. Today we will tour the Mall, and see the Veteran's Memorial, and hear Colin Powell speak.

What Hurricane?

Looking at the bouy data this morning, the waves off shore are 22 feet high! I guess there really is a hurricane out there somewhere.



Solomons Island, MD has been our comfy little harbor of refuge from Hurricane Noel. This small community sits at the entrance to the Patuxent River. Stardust is tucked in tight to the narrow anchorage with three other sailboats with tall trees and small hills around to keep the wind off of the boats. Even so, it only blew 30kts in this area, so there were no problems around here. We got all of our errands taken care of, and are set to leave tomorrow for the Potomac if the winds are down as forecasted.