Stardust

Christmas '09

2009-12-18T15:52:00.000-08:00

The Stardusters would like to wish all of our friends and family a Merry Christmas!

Shuttle Launch

2009-03-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

We were in for a special treat with a sunset shuttle launch. So we geared up and headed for the beach.

We are about 10 miles from the launch platform.

The rocket contrail was spectacular in the setting sun's rays.

We could even see the seperation of the solid rocket boosters.

This high altitude ice crystal cirrus cloud formed by the shuttle lingered in the evening sky.

Urban Air USA and Evektor USA Join Forces

2009-03-03T18:03:00.000-08:00

Urban Air and Evektor have been sharing the hangar and offices for half a year now. So we decided to make it official and join forces under our Bostik Industries LLC banner. Since Josef Bostik is the driving force behind both companies, we decided he could be president.

From left: New SportStar owner Paul Hissey, Barry Pruitt, Jim Lee, Josef Bostik, Georgia Bostik, John Sepulveda.

The hangar keeps filling up, and then we watch as the birds we unloaded from their containers and assembled fly the coop to their new owners.

Paul Hissey and Barry saddle up for their coast to coast flight to LA. Paul graciously allowed us to show his plane at the Sebring Expo before taking it back home.

January 22 through 25 found us at the Sebring, Florida Light Sport Aircraft Expo. We met many new pilots and talked with folks interested in the Urban Air and Evektor aircraft. We had two booths, one for each company. The Samba and Lambada were displayed at the Urban Air booth, and we had a second Lambada out on the flight line for demo flights. We flew about 10 flights with interested customers. The weather was great, and we will end up with some customers from the show.

Paul is an ex P-38 Lightning pilot and a proud SportStar SL Max owner. Nice graphics on the plane don't you think? Actually we are ordering all white SportStars, and then applying a new space-age graphic which doesn't fade or peel. So we can have aircraft in stock, and then give the customer his choice of several graphics and colors. This should work better than saying "Well, we can get you a red and brown one in about 4 months".

Josef looks over the Samba checklist with an interested pilot at the expo.

Urban Air booth. OK, it doesn't look like much is going on, but do you think we can step away for photos when we have people to talk to?

As usual, Lambada owner and company friend Jeff Shingleton arrived from New York to lend a hand at the show. These events are a lot of fun, but we stand on our feet all day long, and it gets hard at the end of the day. Kathy and Rachel Lee also showed up to give us some much needed back-up on the weekend.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-26T06:01:00.000-08:00

Even Kris Kringle needs a new toy for Christmas. He wanted one with the extended baggage tube (7'10" long) which he could stuff with presents.

Rachel gets her "dream present", a new computer.

Our annual bury Rachel in the wrapping paper event. Once she is totally covered, we tickle her and make the paper go everywhere.

After presents it was time for a walk on the beach with some of our favorite friends like this tern and seagull.

The Christmas weather was pretty brutal, but we managed to withstand the severe winter conditions down the street from home.

We hope everyone had a great Christmas, and good luck and best wishes for a happy new year!

Lambada and Samba

2008-12-23T15:05:00.000-08:00

Here is another shot taken by Martin in the Sport Star. Jim is flying the Lambada, and Joe is in the Samba. We think the Samba is the best looking LSA on the market.

Satellite Marching Band

2008-11-02T10:35:00.000-08:00

Rachel and her friends have been busy during football season playing in the marching band. The band is doing great, garnering awards for their marching and playing. They do a musical rendition of South Pacific complete with tiki huts and a volcano on the field which erupts during the close of the show. Pretty neat. The football team however, is winless so far. As it was explained to me by another dad, the players would rather be surfing.

New home for Stardust

2008-10-12T18:14:00.000-07:00

Stardust sits behind our house in Satellite Beach, Florida. We are across the Indian River from Melbourne, and only 1 mile from the Atlantic Ocean.

Rachel has started high school, and is doing very well. Band, dance, friends, football games, and oh, yea, school!

To find out more about what has been happening, check out our new blog on:

http://urbanairusa.blogspot.com/

Kathy and Rachel at Oshkosh

Tropical Storm Fay

2008-08-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

Fay is on the way. The storm track brings her right on top of us. We should only get 50kt winds unless there is a nearby tornado. The boat is tied up well, all the fenders are out, so we are ready.
Rachel had her first day of high school yesterday, and had a great time. This is going to be an awesome year for her. School is cancelled today and tomorrow due to Fay.

Still on the boat

2008-06-25T11:11:00.000-07:00

Stardust is tied up to the dock at the Telemar Marina in Indian Harbor beach, across the Eau Gallie causeway from Melbourne. It is a quiet spot, and we are enjoying it here. A house offers more room, and more amenities, but Stardust offers the views, and the serenity of living on the water.

Jim Zeiset and I took a flight recently in the Lambada. He wanted to see it's high altitude capability, so we climbed to 13,000 feet easy as could be. When we turned on the XM radio the Byrds were playing "I can see for miles and miles and miles."

I will deliver a customer's Lambada to Guadaljara, Mexico next week. Kathy and Rachel will fly down to meet me, and we'll have 4 days to see the area together with our wonderful host, Jorge, and his wife Bonnie.

Rachel and I will fly to Boca Raton tomorrow to film a TV show on the Lambada. Rachel has received about 7 hours of flight instruction in the plane with me, and is almost ready for take-offs and landings.

Stardust Sails

2008-04-25T16:28:00.000-07:00

We shoved off from the Telemar Marina last Sunday, with west winds blowing 10kts. That's perfect, because we headed north to Cocoa on the Indian River, and that put the wind on the port beam for the 20 mile trip north. Rachel put music on the radio, and we shared thoughts of Whitefoot. When we turned around in Cocoa, we spread her ashes in the water and threw roses in too. We sailed back to the marina with the wind on the starboard beam, with music in the cockpit to help us home. It was a beautiful day on the water, and we were happy to have such a nice day to help us say goodbye to our loyal dog.

Goodbye Whitefoot

2008-04-15T06:03:00.000-07:00

A week has passed, and I can now write about the loss of our beloved Whitefoot. A huge thunderstorm scared her off the boat, and she ran away, only to be struck and killed by a car 2 miles away. It was raining hard, with slick roads and bad visibility, and the driver would not have been able to avoid her.

We were in the process of putting up posters in the area the next morning, when one lead led to another, and I drove to the site of the accident to find her.

We are grateful to have her ashes with us, and plan to spread them on the ocean soon.

Rachel has been incredibly strong, and continues to impress Kathy and I with her maturity and understanding of the world around her.

Safe voyages, Whitefoot!

5 Lambadas Sold!

2008-03-03T06:43:00.000-08:00

Jim Lee and Alex Moore above St. Augustine. Photo by Bruce Moore from Lance photo plane.

Back in Melbourne

2008-02-25T09:15:00.000-08:00

Photo taken by Bruce Moore from a Piper Lance for EAA Magazine

Flying over Crystal River, FL on the Gulf coast, heading back to Melbourne from New Mexico

Panama City

2008-02-21T07:53:00.000-08:00

The trip to Albuquerque went well except for getting sick during the convention. The flight out was in great weather, although I had to fly low (500 to 1000 feet above ground level) to stay out of the upper level headwinds. We flew 1400 miles in 16 hours to average 87kts against the wind. Much better than sailboat speeds!
Once again, pilots showed interest in the Lambada. Jorge from Mexico showed up to purchase a Stemme S10 motorglider, but when he flew in the Lambada (twice!) he decided to go with it instead. So we have sold our first 3 planes, leaving only our demo until more arrive.
I flew with Mark Mocho, the local Albuquerque hotshot and old hanggliding friend. He showed me the San Pedro wave, which we took to 15,000 feet without the engine running. We had a very cool 2 hour flight together.
I saw many old friends at the convention, and saw all the latest gliders and equipment. Knut and Ingrid from Seminole Lake Gliderport were there with news that the gliderport has been sold to a Romanian couple.
I visited a few airports on the return trip home, showing the Lambada to interested parties along the way. Yesterday I flew from a private strip to Ft. Worth for my last stop, and then on to Panama City nonstop, arriving at 4:30pm. With a good tailwind, the average speed was 125kts for 6 hours with plenty of fuel remaining.
It's raining out, and I'll stay put with Mom and Dad until the weather clears in a day or so.

Two Lambadas Sold

2008-02-07T05:27:00.000-08:00

Joe and I have sold two planes, with about 4 pilots sitting on the fence thinking about it. I will fly our demo plane to the SSA Convention in Albuquerque, leaving this Saturday. Kathy and Rachel will hold down the boat while I'm gone. Things are good!

Sebring Air Show

2008-01-22T04:51:00.000-08:00

Sebring was a wash-out. Rain, wind, fog, cold temps, the works. But we flew more interested customers than any of the other 40 manufacturers represented. Noone put down their cold hard cash, but we're expecting 2 purchases this week, and perhaps 4 more to come as they think about it for a few days. The Lambada was very well received, everyone loved the way it flew.

Joe and I flew formation and took photos on the way back to Melbourne. I can't get the blog to accept photos for some reason, so look for some soon.

Doin' the Lambada

2008-01-09T05:19:00.000-08:00

Promo shot of Samba (foreground) and Lambada

Joe and I have been putting in the hours flying the first Lambada. Cruising to neighboring areas including the hanggliding site Wallaby Ranch, and several airports. Soaring with the birds in 600fpm lift with the engine off, and running cloudstreets at cloudbase. The Lambada is a beautiful, responsive, fun aircraft. I have started giving demo rides, and everyone loves it. We have the 'plane, we have the interest, but do we have the economy to currently support a luxury item? We'll find out in a few days at Sebring.

Kathy and Rachel return to Stardust today after dropping cousins Mike and Steve off at the Jacksonville airport. Can't wait to see them again after a couple of weeks!

Telemar Marina

2008-01-01T16:10:00.000-08:00

Urban Air Lambada Light Sport Aircraft/Motorglider

Stardust is tucked into a slip in the Telemar Marina next to the 518 causeway in Melbourne, Florida. We drove to Tallahassee for Christmas, joining the Leighton family for a great holiday. Brud and Jean drove down from Illinois with Kathy’s sister Randy, who is visiting from Australia. Kathy’s other sister Kari, and husband Mike hosted the gang and fixed the usual scrumptious meals. We visited their new restaurant for lunch one day for yet another fine meal.

Jim drove back to Melbourne to be on hand for the delivery of the new Lambada airplanes from the Czech Republic. He and Joe Bostik will import the sleek light sport aircraft and hopefully sell tons of them. The first airshow is in Sebring, Florida on Jan 17, and will be a good indicator of the interest in this new ‘plane. If all goes well we will settle here for the immediate future. Check out the Lambada at: http://www.urbanairusa.com/

Meanwhile, Kathy and Rachel visited Jim’s folks and his sister Laura and her family in Panama City, Florida, then drove back to Tallahassee for New Year’s Eve, and will return to PC before joining Jim on Stardust on Jan 9.

We hope all of our friends and family have a happy, healthy, and safe year ahead. We look forward to another year of new adventures, making new friends, meeting up with old friends, and living life to the fullest. It can’t get much better than the year we just had, but we’ll try!

Melbourne, FL

2007-12-18T19:09:00.000-08:00

The Stardusters arrived in Melbourne tired but happy after a brutal sail from St. Augustine to Port Canaveral. We're anchored in Cocoa, and will move to a marina tomorrow for the holiday season. I'll report on our latest adventures within a couple of days.

St. Augustine

2007-12-14T05:31:00.000-08:00

Stardust is back in Florida, anchored in front of the fort in St. Augustine. Whitefoot and I just returned from a jaunt around the fort since she hasn’t been getting much land time lately. Jay and Barb are anchored nearby on Jupiter’s Smile. There are about 20 sailboats anchored on the north side of the Bridge of Lions with us, and another 50 boats anchored on the south side. With all of the traveling this past week, it’s good to be in one spot for a couple of days. The weather has been very nice with record warm temps (welcome to Florida!) but a strong cold front is approaching bringing thunderstorms on Saturday night and colder temps.

We’ll spend today motoring the ICW towards Daytona as soon as the fog lifts.

Kitty Hawk to Beaufort

2007-12-03T06:52:00.001-08:00

Motoring with Jupiter's Smile against the wind towards Kitty Hawk

Steve McNulty at the Wright Memorial

Wright glider replica in the museum

Back aboard Stardust

We spent a week in our time share condo in Kitty Hawk with Jay and Barb from Jupiter’s Smile, and our old friend from college, Steve McNulty. Steve took us on a tour of Kitty Hawk in his car (nice to have friends with wheels) and we had a fun time at the Wright Brothers Memorial where there were replicas of their first glider and powered plane and plenty of artifacts, photos, and the monument of top of the hill. In addition, there was a walkway with stone markers to show the flight path and distance of the first flights.

We visited Kitty Hawk Kites which has a large store that sells hanggliding lessons and rides, and other adventure sports, along with a huge supply of items every tourist can’t live without. The weather was not conducive to flying while we were there, but we saw the famous dunes which have started many pilots on their hanggliding afflictions.

Steve, Jay, and Barb left after a couple of days, which was too soon, but Steve had his job (assisting foreign countries with alternative energy sources) and Jay wanted to spend time with his brother in Wrightsville Beach. We hadn’t seen Steve since a ski trip to Breckenridge, CO some five years ago, so it was great to reconnect. He has also put together an online radio station at:
http://www.live365.com/stations/bouldercolorado

The condo was strange to us at first, after living on the boat for so long, without being off of it overnight. The best part was being in a warm room all night. The temperatures have been dropping to around 40 during the night so we usually run the generator and the heat before going to bed, and again when we get up. But it cools down to around 50 during the night inside the boat. Kathy and I are fine, but Rachel has been cold so we bought her a sleeping bag and warmer pajamas, so she’s warm now during the night on the boat. Other nice amenities included endless hot showers, cable TV with a hundred channels, dishwasher, washer and dryer, and a refrigerator with room to find what you are after without unloading half of it. In other words, all of the “normal” things we take for granted in our land lives. We watched movies, swam, hot tubbed, played tennis and ping pong, walked to the beach, and Kathy ran every morning, just like in the old days. Dogs weren’t allowed, so Whitefoot got the raw end of the deal, staying in a nearby kennel.

I went back to the boat a couple of times to run the generator and fridge, and recharge the batteries. The second time was at sunset the day before getting back on Stardust, and it was a beautiful sunset, reminding me of how special it is to live on a boat, and enjoy the world at close range. Since the Earth is about 70% water, some pundit has said it should be called Water; therefore we are experiencing the planet from the proper angle.

Two days of motoring with a little sailing brought us back down the ICW to Beaufort, NC. A cold front is going through, bringing rain and 30kt winds so we will stay here today. The ocean will remain rough with adverse winds for the forecasted future so we’ll continue south in the ICW tomorrow to join up with Jupiter’s Smile in Wrightsville Beach in two days. It’s nice to be back in the green water of the Atlantic Ocean with dolphin and pelicans about.

Great Bridge, VA

2007-11-21T14:53:00.000-08:00

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

2007-11-21T04:40:00.000-08:00

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

2007-11-15T08:43:00.001-08:00

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

2007-11-15T08:42:00.001-08:00

Washington DC

2007-11-11T05:43:00.000-08:00

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?

2007-11-03T20:20:00.000-07:00

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.

Chesapeake Bay

2007-10-31T06:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we left Cape May at 8am, and made it to the Sassafras River in the Chesapeake Bay in 9 hours. The currents were strong, so we averaged 8.3kts with a 10.4kt max under power all the way. The wind was light and on the bow the whole way, but we are pleased to have made so much distance in one day.

Today we will head for Rock Hall, only 30 miles away. We want to get there early so that we can go ashore and have a Halloween trick or treat evening with Rachel.

Delaware Bay

2007-10-29T17:22:00.000-07:00

Nice weather arrived today with less wind so we finally made it out of the Black Hole. Our sail started off well as we cruised south along the Jersey shore. A little sparrow landed on the boat just inches from us, resting after an arduous journey. Perhaps he was blown out to sea in the stormy weather we just had. He stayed with us for half an hour, and then when Kathy tried to feed him some sunflower seeds, he flew away towards shore.

The wind was forecasted to be NW 10-15 but it dropped off to nothing, so we motored the rest of the way to Cape May, rounding the cape, and dropping the hook just offshore in the Delaware next to the canal entrance. With light winds forecasted for tonight, and after having light to no wind during the day, I figured we’d be ok in this exposed position for the night. We want to up anchor at 7:30am to catch favorable currents up the Delaware tomorrow morning which would be difficult from the protected anchorage in Sunset Lake on the other side of the cape. But the wind is piping up now and Stardust is dancing to the rhythm of the seas. Hopefully things will calm down later tonight.

With a good following current, we may be able to do the entire Delaware, and the Delaware-Chesapeake Canal tomorrow, which is about 75 miles.

Rescue from The Black Hole

2007-10-26T12:58:00.000-07:00

This graph shows the wave height during the past several days at the nearest bouy in the Atlantic. We access the NOAA bouy data all the time, since it is so useful.

Yesterday the wind switched from south to northeast, and continued blowing 20-30kts, so we remained here at Rum Point, in Atlantic City. This little bay has room for about 10 boats, and there are 5 of us here. There aren’t any other anchorages near here. Since the boat swung through 180 degrees with the wind change, I rechecked the anchors which weren’t in the most favorable positions relative to each other (only 10 degrees apart with 80 feet of chain and 20 feet of nylon rode each, in 12 feet of water) and the new wind direction, but looked good enough. Well, I have a different opinion now.

Mid-day, one of our neighbor boats dragged his anchor during the intermittent rain and strong winds. They powered up and drove back upwind, just before running aground, retrieved their Danforth anchor, and set it again. We kept the gps close at hand to warn us if we started to drag. It has an off course alarm which can be set to 60’, 120’, 180’, etc. During windy periods we sleep with it next to the bed, but rarely have it on during the day. Since our neighbor dragged, the bottom might be poor holding material, so we were on high alert.

At 2pm, we started dragging. Kathy started the engine and I began retrieving the 35 pound Bruce anchor. The wind blew us sideways and onto the mud bottom. The boat listed 10 degrees to starboard. We ran the engine at high rpm for about 20 seconds, but we were stuck too hard. This happened to be low tide, a favorable thing, since we had the possibility of floating off as the tide rose, but we had to hold the boat against the strong wind which was not at all certain given the wind and the fact that we had already dragged both anchors. If we blew further ashore, we could end up in a terrible position to recover from. So we called Boat US with whom we have unlimited towing coverage ($139/year). The nearest tow boat was in Ocean City, 30 minutes away (according to the dispatcher on the phone), with 8 foot breaking seas to plow through to get to us.

I reeled in the 45 pound Delta anchor with the windless, with no resistance on it at all. Both anchors came on board covered in slimy oily looking black muck. Kathy lowered the Bruce down to me in the dinghy, and I kedged it out as far as possible, then we did the same with the Delta. Using the windless, both anchors were snubbed as tight as they would go, and seemed to be holding.

The tow boat arrived an hour and a half later. I was pleased to see a huge 40 foot ex-Coast Guard boat arrive, rather than the small boats with outboard motors you usually see on the water. This baby had some power! My next thought was “Will Stardust’s cleats hold?” Our position had not changed; we were still aground and nowhere near floating off. High tide wasn’t till after 7pm and it would be dark then, so getting this situation resolved now seemed a good idea, especially to Kathy. But the two men pulled us back into deeper water slick as could be. I retrieved our anchors, we separated from the towboat, and re-anchored, setting the anchors 45 degrees apart. They pulled alongside for the paperwork, and I asked about their return trip home. The captain replied, “It wasn’t too bad getting here with the wind on the stern, but there’s no way we’re going back against it. We’ll stay here overnight at the Coast Guard Station.” Looking over the paperwork, our location was listed as “The Black Hole”. This name isn’t on the chart, so maybe it’s a local name, or maybe it’s what this skipper calls it. I almost choked seeing the $1640.00 tow bill. That’s right, 1600 smackeroos! If you are one of our boating friends out there, you might want to think about the unlimited coverage option. The usual tow coverage for Boat US membership is $50. I suspect that 50 bucks might cover a wave from the towboat captain as he goes by.

All’s well that ends well. I’m gunshy now, sitting here typing on the computer with the gps beside me, since it is raining and blowing 20kts. My hands are stained black after repeated washing using Goop hand cleaner. Black Hole is right! My back hurts from all the anchoring, but nothing Advil can’t cover. My yellow foulies are all cleaned up, and the rain is washing Stardust clean again. I haven’t seen any of our neighbors go ashore today (Canadian flagged vessels) as I’m sure they saw yesterday’s episodes. I won’t be leaving the boat until things settle down either.

The front has stalled over us and the bad weather has been extended through tomorrow (Saturday). Maybe someday soon we’ll escape from the Black Hole!

Photos from Port Jefferson to Atlantic City, NJ

2007-10-24T06:34:00.000-07:00

View from the top of the Port Jefferson dunes. You can see Stardust in the distance. Click on any photo to see the enlarged version.

Kathy, Rachel, and Whitefoot race up the dunes

Another dune shot

10.8kts, speed over ground approaching Hell Gate. We saw 11kts.

New York City

Blurry shot of Atlantic City last night with it blowing 30kts

It rained early this morning, and now it is calm and cloudy with a light mist. But it is supposed to blow 20kts today, so we'll stay put and do laundry. Tomorrow looks good for the 50 mile run to Cape May. Then we'll head north up the Delaware, through the Delaware-Chesapeake Canal, down the Chesapeake, up the Potomic, and into Washington D.C.

Atlantic City, NJ

2007-10-23T14:54:00.001-07:00

As we left Sachuest on the 16th, winds were north 15, a good direction to continue down the coast so we bypassed Newport, and sailed on to Stonington, CT. As the day progressed, the wind veered to the west at 10kts, slowing us down a bit, but we still averaged 5.3kts for 40 miles. We picked up 50 gallons of diesel and filled the water tank, and they let us have a mooring for the night.

On the 17th, we motored with no winds across Long Island Sound, covering 60 miles at 7.6kts average speed, to anchor in Port Jefferson. There are some nice sand dunes there which Whitefoot and I romped on just before sunset. All of us made another trip up the dunes the next morning. Then we motored again with no wind to Port Washington, 30 miles away. We got a free mooring from Port Washington Water Taxi (the first 2 nights are free, then you pay $40/night) and waited out another day of rain and wind. Our mail was waiting for us in the West Marine, complements of the manager, Joel, and Mom and Dad for sending it there. Now we have a new batch of letters, flying magazines, and sailing magazines to go through.

We left at 7:30am to catch favorable currents through New York Harbor. It was fun seeing 11kts as we cruised through Hell Gate. Exiting the Narrows into the harbor, the wind was favorable for a change, and we sailed the rest of the way to Sandy Hook, NJ, making 7-8kts before having to reef the sails in the 20kt+ winds. We anchored, and I changed the oil in the Yanmar. I used a tiny pump powered by the electric drill, with the hose down the dipstick tube and man did that work sweet. Way better than the almost useless hand pump I’ve used before. According to the news the next morning, 4 men in a speedboat hit the towing cable between a tug and a barge at 11pm out in the harbor. The boat flipped, throwing one man clear, who survived. A Coast Guard diver swam under the boat, and found one body. As he was looking for the others, he got the fright of his life when a hand grabbed him in the dark water. Turned out, one man was breathing in an airspace under the boat, and he survived too! Unfortunately, the other two men died.

We sailed out of Sandy Hook on the 21st, but had to motor after a couple of hours due to decreasing wind and the necessity of covering 50 miles to Barnegut Inlet. On the 22nd, we motored against the wind to Atlantic City, NJ in building seas. We fueled and watered up and returned to the small protected cove around Rum Point. We had pizza and watched “The Guardian” on DVD. Today, the wind has blown 20-30kts from the south, and storms are due tonight. If the wind veers to the north as forecast, we’ll leave tomorrow bound for Cape May.

Cuttyhunk to Sachuest, NH

2007-10-15T17:30:00.000-07:00

When we left Martha’s Vineyard, the current was with us but the wind was straight on the bow which produced 4 foot swells which the bow plunged through over and over. The fuel was 7” high in the 14” high tank, so we had 50 gallons of fuel, which I thought was plenty. But plunging through the waves, the fuel sloshed in the tank enough to starve the fuel pick-up for a second, which killed the engine. Guess where we were? In the Graveyard (named for all the shipwrecks in the area), just about to squeeze between the rocks in the Quicks Hole channel into Cuttyhunk Harbor! The 3 of us scrambled to hoist the sails and veer away from the channel, back into Vineyard Sound. Kathy and Rachel were awesome, no theatrics, just down to work getting the sails up. I bled the air out of the fuel line, and with the help of the sails keeping us heeled towards the fuel pick-up, we motor sailed through the channel, and into a nice little harbor in Cuttyhunk.

It is ridiculous that the 100 gallon fuel tank doesn’t have baffles in it to keep fuel over the pickups. I mean, a 100 gallon tank with only 50 gallons of useable fuel in it?

We anchored in Cuttyhunk Harbor, off to the side of all of the moorings which had “$40-Town Mooring” painted on them. At 11pm I heard a strange noise and went up top to investigate. We had dragged, and the noise was Stardust bumping the bottom. After putting on a few layers of clothes, Kathy and I moved the boat back where we came from, and tried to reanchor 3 times, unsuccessfully. But I did manage to snag the Delta anchor on something, as it wouldn’t come up. We put out the Bruce anchor just in case the Delta came loose in the night, and went back to sleep.

The next morning, after pulling the Delta from all angles, and driving in circles around the obstruction (with another pull after each circle), the anchor was still stuck fast. Time for the scuba gear. The girls helped me get psyched up for the cold water, and I plunged in and swam fast for the anchor chain. There was a steel pipe sticking up from the mud, with the anchor chain wrapped around it, and the anchor nestled up against it. It was easy to unwrap it, and Kathy pulled it into the boat with the windless. Are we having fun yet?

The wind was strong from the NW, our desired direction of travel (and it took me a while to warm up), so we stayed put and had school and watched football since it was Sunday. An hour before sunset we went ashore with Whitefoot and had a great walk around town and watched the sun go down from a hilltop.

This morning, the wind direction looked more northerly, so we left the cozy harbor, headed west for whatever destination the wind allowed. But it veered back to the west with sustained winds over 20kts and left us pounding through the waves again, but with sails up and engine off to avoid the previous problem. We tacked 4 times with reefed sails to cover 15 miles to Sachuest, NH, just east of Newport, but sailed twice that distance in 6 hours. We picked up a mooring in this open bay with good protection from the west and north winds. It was a nice sunset, Kathy fixed a baked chicken dinner, and the boat is very still. Kathy and Rachel are watching Dancing with the Stars. Tomorrow we’ll head for Newport and a fuel stop, 12 miles away, as long as the wind abates or turns.

Oh, I almost forgot. Dennis, we've sailed slightly more than 4000 miles.

Vineyard Haven

2007-10-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

Stardust is out of place, surrounded by wooden masted schooners.

This is the stern of some old boat. Our dog likes the name.

This is the home of Black Dog clothing. There are black dogs everywhere.

The cold fronts have gone through, leaving it clear and cold. The fronts brought winds up to 30kts, but this is a nice mooring behind a breakwater so the boat was relatively calm. The temp was 55 degrees when we woke up this morning, so the generator and heat were the first priority, hot coffee the second. With the sun shining, it has warmed up to near 60, and the boat is comfy, especially the sun room (the cockpit enclosure). Whitefoot took me on a long walk around Vineyard Haven this morning, and she soaked up some sun while I browsed in a bookstore.

We’ll get water at the town dock, and then sail for Cuttyhunk Harbor 20 miles away in the Elizabeth Islands. I shouldn’t have told Kathy that the nickname for the area we’ll be traversing is The Graveyard due to all of the shipwrecks there from the wild currents. The currents around here flow upwards of 6kts and the direction of flow is all over the place so there is no figuring it out without the Eldridge Pilot Book. The favorable flow begins at 2pm, so that’s when we’ll leave. Block Island was going to be our destination, but the winds and seas do not favor that route, so we’ll head for Point Judith, RI instead, and then follow the mainland for protection from the strong north winds forecasted for the next few days.

Boston Photos

2007-10-12T13:43:00.000-07:00

Stardust at anchor in Boston Harbor

Navy ship in Boston Harbor

We had burgers and beers in Paul Revere's favorite tavern

Then we climbed the Bunker Hill Monument. Should have done it the other way around.

Great view from the top of the monument

Constitution (Old Ironsides, because the cannonballs bounced off of her oak sides). Never lost a battle.

Rachel at the helm of Old Ironsides

Church steeple of "2 if by sea" fame

This is the Revere Monument

Martha's Vineyard

2007-10-09T15:26:00.000-07:00

We just arrived in Vineyard Haven after a great sail down Buzzards Bay from Onset. It's off season here too, with free moorings available. Yea hoo! This is the right time to be around here, for sure. But, bad weather in the form of 2 cold fronts is on the way tonight, and the tv weathermen are saying this is the end of summer. Yikes!

So this is a great place to hunker down for a few days till the weather settles down. There is a wifi available from the boat, so we'll catch up on e-mails too.

More soon, dinner is ready.....

Onset, MA

2007-10-08T12:06:00.000-07:00

The Boston Boatyard Marina allowed us to use their dinghy dock, gave us a gate key, and didn’t charge anything! We anchored outside of their moorings, and Paul at the marina said there was good holding, but we could use their mooring for free too, if we wanted, because it was low season, and not many were in use. But we stayed on the hook instead. Boston Harbor is very busy, and we were right next to the docks serving the ferries, so during the day it was rock and roll, but it would quiet down about 10pm. We walked several miles taking in the sights, and lucked into a street market selling fish and veggies for cheap, just before returning to Stardust. The lights outside our “backdoor” at night were dazzling.

On Saturday the 6th, we motored against the wind out of the heavy harbor traffic to Scituate. It didn’t appear to be off season here, as almost every mooring was taken, and no anchoring allowed in this packed harbor. It was going to blow 20 that night so we wanted a good harbor; a mooring was in order for the night.

Light rain was falling and the northeast wind was blowing 15-20 as we departed Scituate before breakfast. We rolled hard in 3’ swells exiting the harbor before the sails were up, and Kathy hadn’t completed securing the cabin due to my rush to get going in order to make it to the Cape Cod Canal with a favorable tide. Rachel’s piano slid off the settee, hitting the floor with a bang, and knocked a chip off the flooring. But the piano was tougher than the floor and wasn’t damaged.

With full jib and a reefed main, we headed for the canal at 7-8kts with the wind on the port beam. During gusts to 25 we would see 9 and 10kts speed, with one burst of 10.4. The lobster pots have thinned out so this was a great sail. Arriving at the canal ahead of time, we enjoyed 2kts of following current, giving us 9kts speed through the 5 mile long canal. Following a narrow channel into the Onset harbor, things looked different from our last visit here in early August.

Onset is definitely “off season” so we are on a town mooring with no one around. It rained during the night, and today as well, so rather than head down Buzzards Bay for Martha’s Vineyard we are staying put, and will leave tomorrow provided the forecasted 25-30kt winds drop off a little mid-day.

Boston, round 2

2007-10-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

The trip south brought us through the narrow and shallow Blynman Canal. At high tide it was no problem, but the narrow bridges were somewhat disconcerting. Two nights in Gloucester got us caught up on errands, then on to Boston.

We’ve had a couple of nice sightseeing days on the Freedom Trail in Boston, with a climb up the 300 steps of the Bunker Hill Monument, an onboard tour of The Constitution (Old Ironsides), and sights like the church tower where the two lanterns told Paul Revere of the attack of the British and graveyards with dates from the mid-1600’s on the headstones.

We’ll sail out of Boston this afternoon, heading for the Cape Cod Canal over the next 2 days. The weather has been spectacular, with summer-like temps. That will end soon with a couple of cold fronts coming.

Kittery Point, ME

2007-09-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

Isle Au Haut Post Office

Kathy raises the main in the fog

On top of the lookout tower on Jewell Island

Entrance to the gun magazine, Jewell Island

Isle Au Haut, Allens Island, Five Islands, and Jewell island are remote places, so we’ve been out of touch with the world for a while, which is not all bad. Our hikes have taken us up Mt. Champlain and Bowditch Mountain on Isle Au Haut and around the small communities on Five Islands, and all over Jewell Island. On Jewell we explored the WWII gun platforms, batteries, and spotting towers along with the beautiful trails. The temp got up to a record 85, so I donned the scuba gear and spent 45 minutes cleaning the hull. It didn’t feel too cold until the last 5 minutes, and then when I got out of the 57 degree water it became apparent just how cold I was. After depleting the hot water supply in the shower, my color came back. Now the boat goes a full knot faster, and every day we sail makes me glad to have accomplished that task.

Sailing wise, the fog has become a regular force to contend with. It’s really not so bad once you get used to it, and the chart plotter and radar make it easy to navigate although the lobster pots still require constant vigilance.

Stardust is back in Kittery Point, ME, with Portsmouth just across the harbor. Tomorrow I will give an “Adventure Talk” to a friend’s high school class. We’re getting errands accomplished and looking at the map to see that we have a looong way to go on the trip south! A couple of cold fronts have gone through, and now it is in the 40’s at night and 60’s during the day. We want to be out of here before the icebergs appear.

We’ll head for Boston in a couple of days.

Blue Hill

2007-09-16T19:13:00.001-07:00

Top of Blue Hill

Rachel and Mariner hiking Blue Hill

Stardust enjoying a calm anchorage

Schooner at Bass Light

We sailed off of the mooring and out Somes Sound on the 13th in light winds making 2kts, but it was beautiful out, so we didn’t mind the slow speed and didn’t want to break the spell by starting the engine. But we had 27 miles to get to Blue Hill, and it would take 16 hours at this speed, so as we passed Southwest Harbor and the wind decreased to nothing, we cranked up the Yanmar and made 7kts to Bass Harbor light where we met up with a chartered schooner. After rounding the light the winds became favorable to sail again for a while. We alternated sail and motor on the way into Blue Hill Harbor, and then picked up a yacht club mooring as guests of Holly and Todd.

The following day started off nice, with calm air and water, leaving Stardust’s mirror image in this protected harbor. We hiked Blue Hill with Holly in the afternoon, but the clouds rolled in, so there wasn’t a view, but the hike was nice. Afterwards we joined Holly and Todd and son Mariner and Todd’s brother’s family for dinner. They have a very nice house out in the country on 36 acres, much of it covered in blueberries. Holly has a huge garden, and gave us a big bag of vegetables, including a pumpkin which Kathy and Rachel turned into 2 pumpkin pies. The 6 kids played tag into the dark.

On Saturday, a cold front brought rain, so we stayed on the boat most of the day. Holly and the gang came out to visit, so the adults talked in the enclosed cockpit while the kids played games below. Then we had a tour of their Island Packet, Indian Summer.

Today was errand day, which was easy with the loan of Holly’s car. We all hiked up Blue Hill again, but the weather was clear and perfect, providing great views of the surrounding woods, lakes, and sounds. Then we had another scrumptious dinner at their house, and took the dinghy back to Stardust in the dark over the smooth water with bright stars above and bioluminescence in the boat wake behind us. It is in the mid-50s so the generator is running to heat the boat before we go to bed. It will get down into the mid-40s tonight.

It has been a great visit with Holly, and a real pleasure to get to know Todd. Rachel had fun with Mariner on the hike, and they played a game of chess before dinner.

We’ll head for Isle Au Haut tomorrow.

Somes Sound and Bar Harbor

2007-09-11T10:14:00.000-07:00

On top of Mt. Cadillac, MDI

Holly and Todd at Sand Beach, Acadia Park, MDI

Stardust in the rain and fog in Somes Sound, MDI

September 6-7:
The free propane bus came in handy for grocery shopping and other errands. A visit to the Oceanarium was informative as to the strange sea creatures which live in the area. We filled up the water tanks and motored 6 miles up the Somes Sound fjord. Rock cliffs dropped to the water on both sides, with about 800 vertical feet to the hilltops. The current lessened as we approached the head of the sound, and found the Wade’s mooring in a very protected spot. The winds have blown up to 20kts, and the water remains calm, a rarity for us.
Holly Bixby and her beau Todd dropped by on the nearest dock, and I brought them to Stardust in the dinghy. They had a nice bottle of wine and some cheese snacks to savor while we chatted. They own an Island Packett, and sailed to Isle Au Haut over Labor Day. We hadn’t seen Holly for several years. She is a friend from Taos whom we met in 1978. I patrolled in Taos with her partner, Dick Gibson, who died a few years ago from cancer. Dick, (we called him Gibber, or Big Dick, because of his size) was the one and only man on the patrol who kept his humor and sense of fun even when things weren’t going well for us, or we got too caught up in the seriousness of the job. Their dog Amber was the first avalanche search dog on the patrol. After Dick died, Holly sent me some of his skis, such as Rossignol Strato 102’s and Blizzard Comps. I’d take em for a spin around the mountain, to share a run with Dick, and get strange looks from skiers on the chairlift due to the ancient models. Oldies but goodies. We had one engraved and placed on the wall at PHQ on top of the mountain. Big Dick could ski with a grace few others could match, and we’d follow him down the untracked chutes at high speed. On the backside wax races at the end of the day, his weight would carry him across the flats, making him the man to beat, especially on the fast Blizzards. He was an avid sailor before Taos, and after they moved back to Maine. Of our trip on Stardust, Holly said “Dick would be proud.” Wow.

September 8:
We hiked up Cadillac Mountain, at 1500 feet, the highest peak in coastal Maine. The trail was well maintained, and many people were hiking. There is a road to the top, and we didn’t much like having to share the mountain with the distant sound of cars and motorcycles until we got to the top and found a store with ice cream. After the hike down we took the bus into Bar Harbor for some pizza, and then took another bus back to Somes Sound.

September 9:
Holly and Todd took us to Bar Harbor to an art museum which featured Native American art and displays, and some photography and current art. Then we toured the loop road around MDI, and stopped at the only sand beach in the area. There is an extensive web of carriage roads for bikes and walkers, not open to cars. It rained most of the day and into the night.

September 10-11:
Still raining. I bussed into Bar Harbor both days for internet and errands. Ran into friends from the Bahamas, Jim and Ann on Bees Knees. They’ve been here for a couple of months, but are leaving this week for the Caribbean.

We’ll be in the area for another day or so. There are a series of cold fronts coming through and the TV weatherman says summer is over. We’ll go see Holly and Todd again in Blue Hill, and then head south with the geese.

Photos

2007-09-06T13:06:00.000-07:00

Photos top to bottom:

Sunset at Tenants Harbor.

Rachel spotting lobster traps.

Windjammer.

Juliet, one of our neighbors in Camden.

Camden Footbridge.

Hiking up Mt. Megunticook.

Rachel summits Megunticook.

Another neighbor in Camden- we're anchored and he's on a mooring.

Anchored off Camp Island.

Kathy on Stardust.

Granite quarry.

Boothbay Harbor to MDI

2007-09-06T12:52:00.000-07:00

August 25:
Rachel and I were in the front yard of the town library in Boothbay Harbor, measuring the perimeter and everything in the yard for a science project on mapping. We were bent over the tape measure when a man stopped right in front of us- I was looking at his feet. Bending upright, I stared into the face of an old hanggliding buddy, Paul Voight! Paul and his wife Barbara said they were in town for the weekend, visiting his mother, who lives in Boothbay Harbor. Along came his mom, son Ryan, and Ryan’s friend Desiree. We all talked for a while, and then met up the next day on Stardust for more hanggliding talk. What a coincidence!
Speaking of which, we got an e-mail from our old college friend, Judith Hagen-Meadow who lives in Norway. She looked at our blog after returning home from a visit to the US, and was in the JFK library the day before we were! So close, and yet so far.

August 26:
Motorsailed 27 miles to Tenants Harbor. Squeezed our anchor in between the moorings in this quaint, beautiful small town.

August 27-29:
Motorsail 20 miles to Camden, ME. We loved this place! Nice town, wonderful harbor full of windjammers, plenty of room for the anchor, and the biggest mountains we’ve seen in years. We walked up Mt. Battie (800’) and then Mt. Megunticook (1400’). It was marvelous looking down on the harbor from this height. Kathy fixed a great lunch which we ate on top while enjoying the view. Whitefoot enjoyed the hike too, but she fell asleep in the dinghy on the way home to Stardust, a first.

August 30-31:
Sailed to Camp Island, off of the Deer Island Thorofare. Collected mussels at low tide, and had a bucketful for dinner. Met Dennis and Lorraine on a trawler, who offered us their mooring in Somes Sound.
On Friday, we woke up to dense fog. Later, as I drank coffee in the cockpit I watched as a nearby sailboat pulled anchor and tentatively advanced towards the wall of fog, circled back, advanced again, sounded the foghorn, and then disappeared into the fog. They must have been on a schedule. We were happy to stay put, and later as the fog lifted for a couple of hours, we took the brown stain off of Stardust’s waterline with ON/OFF, which works very well. Then we hiked around one of the small islands off our anchorage, and took the dinghy on a little sightseeing cruise. Then the fog rolled back in, and there was some light rain into the evening.

September 1-3:
Pat Teagarden and Nick Kirschs’ birthdays. Happy birthday guys! This day dawned clear and sharp with a brisk wind from the north so we sailed a short 10 miles to Burnt Coat Harbor on Swan’s Island. The anchor dragged and dragged without biting so we brought it up to find it covered in kelp. We picked another spot, and later when we dragged again and pulled the anchor up, a huge steel cable hung from it. We got it off, and found spot number 3 which worked.
We took a walk to the lighthouse on a grassy knoll which offered a beautiful view of the ocean and surrounding islands. Whitefoot romped and Rachel slipped and fell a few times in the slick grass with her flipflops on. We bought 5 lobsters from Norm the lobsterman at 4 bucks a pound and had a scrumptious dinner. 3 very large sailboats anchored near us, one being a 100’ ketch. Boats of all sizes and types were out for Labor Day.
We had a nice hike to a granite quarry, and Whitefoot got to jump in the fresh water and chase sticks.
Our friends Jay and Barb loaned us their charts of Maine (saved us $250), and typed up a little guidebook for us too. Jay’s sister Betsy lives on Swan’s Island, so we looked her up. Betsy and Leona live in house overlooking Burnt Coat Harbor, where we anchored. Betsy gave us a tour of the island in her truck, and lucky Whitefoot got to ride in the back. Dogs love trucks! Leona grew up in the same house, and we looked at old pictures of the area and listened to her animated stories of her early life, the island, and wildlife of the area.

September 4-6:
We sailed out of Burnt Coat expecting strong winds and we got them. As we progressively reduced sail, the winds increased, gusting to 28kts. It is not too hard to sail in strong winds if the winds are consistent, and a straight course line is held. We couldn’t do either one. The islands upwind of us changed the wind direction and strength, and the thousands of lobster buoys forced a zigzag course. I was already tired after this short 15 mile sail as we entered Southwest Harbor on Mt. Desert Island (the locals call it MDI). We again squeezed next to the moored boats to drop the hook in 50 feet of water, using 80 feet of chain and another 200 feet of nylon rode. The wind continued to blow above 20kts, and the lobster boats roared in and out of the harbor rocking us to no end. The boats quit at dark but the wind didn’t, so it wasn’t a very good night’s sleep. Consequently, we moved onto a mooring (a deal at $20/night) further in the harbor, in a no wake zone where the lobster boats can’t roar by, and there is good protection from all but east winds.
There are wifi connections on shore, so I hope to post this today and get e-mail, while we do laundry and grocery shopping. Our cell phone doesn’t allow internet connections in Maine, and it has been 3 weeks since we were online. We’ll be here until tomorrow, then move north on MDI to Somes Sound, the only fiord in the US. We want to see more of MDI, including Bar Harbor, and Cadillac Mountain, the highest on the Maine coast. There is a free bus service, sponsored by LL Bean, which runs on propane, and covers the entire island. Also, our friend from Taos, Holly Bixby, lives in Blue Hill which is near here, and we are really looking forward to seeing her.

Boothbay Harbor

2007-08-25T16:31:00.000-07:00

Gosh, how the days fly by. It seems like I just updated the blog, and now see that almost another week has gone by. We’ve made a few stops so I’ll start with Cape Porpoise and get us up to date.

August 19:
Motorsailed 25 miles to Portland, ME. Arrived in the harbor to see 6 huge tugboats racing each other. Then they went head to head in a push-a-war contest. Turns out they were having a charity event, and we were in the middle of it. The Coast Guard had several boats out watching all of the Sunday traffic. We did a “fly-by” of the harbor, and then headed for Peaks Island looking for an anchorage for the night. There was a mooring available in a yacht club area so we borrowed it for the night. This practice is common in these parts, but you have to stay on the boat in case the owner of the mooring shows up and wants it back.

August 20:
Motored back to the Portland harbor to get fuel and water. A moments’ inattention left us lightly grounded in the mud just outside the marina, so we had to wait 30 minutes for the incoming tide to float us off. Kathy and Rachel went on into town for some groceries while I waited on Stardust, and then docked at the fuel dock. The only damage was to my ego, but the dockworker helped when he said, “Don’t worry, you’re not the first”.
Kathy took the helm for the short 7 mile sail to Jewell Island. Besides navigating away from rocky shores, the only other hazards are the numerous lobster pot buoys. We anchored among 8 other boats in the narrow channel between rocky shores in this well protected spot.

August 21-22:
Rachel started 8th grade! She’s very excited to learn more and is willing to do any work Kathy or I put in front of her. After school we all hiked around this beautiful island with great trails amid the ruins of WWII sub spotting towers and gun emplacements. The US deemed the Maine coast the most likely to be invaded due to the proximity to Europe, and some German subs were spotted and attacked in these waters. I recall a movie made about some German sailors invading a Maine town but can’t remember the title, so if you know it please send me a note so we can watch it.
Whitefoot and I spent some time drifting over shallow water in the dinghy, watching crabs scuttle around the rocks in the clear water.
On Wednesday we motored to Boothbay Harbor, weaving in and out of the lobster pots through Casco Bay. This is a fantastic area of small islands, and one could spend an entire summer here, never anchoring in the same spot twice. We caught weather reports on TV of heat and floods everywhere, but we wore sweaters and light jackets in the 60-70 degree temps. It feels good to be in Maine in the summer!

August 23-25:
Boothbay Harbor is yet another beautiful Maine harbor with lots of boats, and several restored windjammers full of tourists sailing around the islands. There are more lobster markets and restaurants than any other type of establishments on shore, so we’ll have to have a lobster dinner tonight. Yesterday we did laundry and errands, and today I changed the Yanmar fuel filters and did some other light maintenance while Kathy and Rachel were in school. Some friends from the Jacksonville marina last winter anchored next to us, and we spent a few hours catching up on each others sailing adventures. Since Brad and Trish on Intuocean are headed back south and have been “down east” for a few weeks, they filled us in on the places to visit as we continue along the many islands dotting the coast, and loaned us a great Maine guidebook.
We’ll be here in Boothbay another day, waiting for a cold front to pass, and then head for Penobscot Bay.

Cape Porpoise

2007-08-18T17:44:00.000-07:00

On Monday the 13th we motored in light winds to Gloucester. An expanding cumulonimbus bore down on us from the north, and it was a good thing we were motoring because it hit with 50kt winds, the peak gust being 58kts. Lightening was crashing down close so Kathy and Rachel stayed below away from the mast while I monitored the helm which was on autopilot so I wouldn’t have to be holding the metal wheel. I was comfy with the full cockpit enclosure up, and it was good that the sails were down or we would have been knocked down (where the mast touches the water) by that amount of wind. Visibility was down to 200 feet in the driving rain so we were going slow until it passed as quickly as it had come. Then we entered the Gloucester harbor and anchored in tight with minimum rode among the mooring balls. A quick trip to the store was made in between rain showers. Several large wooden schooners were at the docks.

The next morning we sailed to Kittery Point, a small town at the entrance to Portsmouth Harbor. I caught an 8 pound Bluefish on the way which provided 2 dinners for us. We shopped at the Kittery Market, the oldest in the US, which was conveniently located at the end of the town wharf. Usually we have to walk several blocks with the groceries so this was nice. We didn’t chain up Whitefoot since I had already taken her to shore, but she decided to jump ship and swim to shore anyway. Upon arrival back at Stardust to find her gone, we quickly spotted her in a rowboat headed our way with a friendly local. His granddaughter had said, “Look Grandpa, a seal!” as Whitefoot swam towards their backyard. We’ve seen a few seals, and can see how this mistake could be made.

Wednesday, Nelson and Julia Howe brought their 2 sons Silas and Henry out to the boat for a sail. A teacher friend of theirs, Rob Schneider, also joined us on a sail to the Isle of Shoals. It was a great hour sail over to the scenic islands where we hiked and skipped rocks. After another great sail back, Nelson treated us to a lobster dinner at an outdoor café. Thanks Nelson! It was great to see our old hanggliding buddy again, who showed up wearing a Wills Wing hat instead of his Southwest Airlines hat. The day was much to short to catch up with each other since we hadn’t seen Nelson and Julia for 8 years. They brought mail and Rachel’s new school books with them.

Rob came aboard the next morning with his daughter Jordan to give us some veggies and blackberries from his garden. We talked about stopping back by to give an “adventure” presentation to his high school class in a few weeks.

Next, we visited Fort McClary which overlooked our anchorage. This fort was begun in 1808, and construction continued on it until 1868 when new weapons made these types of forts obsolete. The remaining blocks of granite lie where they were when the construction ended.

After visiting the fort we hoisted anchor, bound for Cape Porpoise, next to Kennebunkport. I tried to fish, but there were so many lobster pot floats that I gave up trying to swerve between them and keep the lures from snagging the floats. On this 25 mile leg, we passed several thousand floats. Entering the harbor through a narrow gap in the rocks with a 3kt outgoing tide, the hundreds of floats in the channel didn’t help matters either. If we snagged one on the propeller and lost the use of the engine in a spot like this, the situation would be critical. We’ve been here in Cape Porpoise for 3 nights, going on 4, due to a flu bug which hit Rachel and I. This is our first illness on the boat, and we don’t know where it came from, but we’re over it now. Kathy, as usual, was a great mom and nurse. When I went ashore the first morning here, a lobster fisherman told me if I needed to get to a doctor to take his truck. Then later, when I docked at a private dock close to town for some grocery shopping, the owner there told me I was welcome to use his dock all I wanted. Everyone around here is super friendly, even the folks in the post office. A man in a huge twin engine black rigid inflatable with the words “US SECRET SERVICE” on the sides motored close by us and as I took his picture and said “nice boat!” he said he was admiring ours and would swap if he could.

We just returned from a visit to the lighthouse island just across from Stardust. The late afternoon light following the cold front passage last night was clear and wonderful. Now we’ll have our first real dinner after 2 days of soup, so gotta go!

Boston to Gloucester

2007-08-13T17:54:00.000-07:00

The air was calm as we left Plymouth, so the trusty Yanmar engine took us 37 miles to Boston through the busy Saturday waters. We saw a new looking sailboat high and dry on a rock reef as we entered The Narrows at low tide, weaving our way into Boston Harbor through the many (30) islands which dot the harbor. High speed ferries shot this way and that, headed for Providence and Salem. Our destination in the harbor was the South Boston Yacht Club, following the directions of our friends Jay and Barb on Jupiter’s Smile, who loaned us their charts of this region.

After anchoring off the shore of the yacht club, I took Whitefoot ashore. Meanwhile, the Commodore of the yacht club, Frank Manning, took the club’s launch out to Stardust, and upon meeting Kathy and Rachel, promptly invited us to use their facilities! We had dinner in their restaurant, and used the dinghy dock to come and go as we pleased.

The next day, Sunday, we walked 2 miles to and from the JFK Presidential Library, and spent 4 hours there. Architecturally, it is a magnificent structure, and inside, the various displays, artifacts, furniture, photos, and films gave us an even greater appreciation for this great president. Kennedy had a love of the sea which was evident in the Oval Office by photos and models of sailing vessels, and his desk made from timbers of the Resolute.

Today we motored out of Boston Harbor in windless conditions (again), headed for Gloucester. Distant storm cells drifted our way, so we put up the cockpit enclosure just before a wall of rain and intense 58kt winds pummeled us for 10 minutes. The worst part was the lightening. But we made it through unscathed, and entered the beautiful Gloucester Harbor. Our anchorage here is a tight one, as usual, amid the mooring balls, but there are a few other boats anchored here as well.

Tomorrow we’ll round Cape Ann bound for Portsmouth to meet up with Nelson and Julia Howe.

Plymouth

2007-08-09T10:23:00.000-07:00

Photos, top to bottom:

Rachel at sunset in Onset

Birthday pancakes at Nashawena Island

Rachel atop Nashawena Island with Stardust in the background

Mayflower 2

August 2:
After chasing an “air leak” in the genset fuel system for the better part of a month, and replacing just about everything in the line, the genset shut down and would not start. I traced the problem to a failed fuel pump, and after replacing it with a spare I had on board it cranked right up! All it took was an intermittent problem finally becoming a permanent problem so it could be found.

August 3:
We tried to sail out of Newport, but the anchor chain was wrapped around something on the bottom in the “designated anchorage”. The chain came taut with 60 feet of chain still out so we knew the anchor wasn’t hung up. We pulled the chain with the engine from different angles, but it was still stuck. I could feel the anchor chain grind each time we pulled on it. Kathy, Rachel and I talked over the plan before I dove in with wetsuit, fins, and snorkel gear. Following the chain to the bottom I found it wrapped around a piece of an aluminum sunken boat with a big gash where the chain was trying to pull through it. If we had tugged for another 15 minutes it probably would have pulled free. After surfacing and another short talk, Rachel put Stardust in forward for 5 seconds to give me the slack necessary to free the chain which was easy to do 20 feet down with 6 feet of visibility.
We then sailed 23 miles on a broad reach in 15-20kt winds to Nashawena Island. Rachel, Whitefoot and I went ashore on the rocky beach and hiked to the top of a hill where we could see the ocean on the other side. The sticker bushes we had been threading our way over turned out to be blackberry bushes with ripe berries so we ate a bunch and Rachel even managed to save a few for Kathy.

August 4:
Your intrepid blogger turned 54 today, and the old buzzard celebrated with a pancake breakfast and then another broad reach up Buzzard’s Bay, running wing and wing a large part of the day into Onset, RI on the southwest side of the Cape Cod Canal. Onset had their annual Illumination Night which was about 2000 red flares all along the small 2 mile long harbor. I unwrapped presents with Whitefoots help and found shirts, books, magnetic chess and backgammon boards, and other goodies. Rachel and Kathy gave me a sextant with all the necessary tables and plotting paper! I’ve got the basics down, and have shot the sun, moon and a couple of stars. Learning the math and the tables is the slow part. But is sure gives one an appreciation of the skill required to do this on a pitching boat at sea!

August 5:
We motored up the Cape Cod Canal with a following current going 9-10kts. The north wind gave us a rough ride when we entered the Cape Cod Bay but we only had another 12 miles to go so we motored close to shore to reduce the wave action. We made Plymouth, Massachusets in the early afternoon and found a tight anchorage among the mooring balls ($45/night) close to town.

August 6-8
We toured the Mayflower 2, a replica of the original ship. It was built in England and sailed across the Atlantic to its home in Plymouth. Actors and actresses in period costume talked with us as if they were the pilgrims on the ship; very neat. A great way to learn about the story behind this historic ship and the epic voyage. Then we toured the historic Plymouth Plantation, a replica town of 1667, and a reproduced Wampanoag village of the same year. More actors answered questions and talked to us. Rachel will study American History this year in school, so this was a very timely event to visit. Yesterday was rainy so we enjoyed a rare day on board just reading and playing games. Today is nice and cool, and we’re doing laundry and errands, and updating the blog in a wifi coffee house.

Tomorrow we set sail for Boston and points north.

Mystic and Newport Photos

2007-08-09T09:28:00.000-07:00

Top to bottom:

Kathy and Rachel on the Cliff Walk, a 4 mile walk along the coastal stretch with the huge mansions

The Elms.

A 2008 Volvo race boat in Newport

A very large private boat in Newport

The Charles Morgan, a whaler in Mystic

The Nautilus sub

Rachel at the periscope

Mystic Conecticut to Newport, Rhode Island

2007-07-30T16:28:00.000-07:00

We’re in Newport, Rhode Island with about 30 other anchored vessels among more than 400 moored vessels. Our sail from Mystic was very nice, with smooth Atlantic waters and south winds, 10-15kts. As we approached Newport, there were many sailors out racing their single purpose sailboats. From 20 feet to over a hundred feet, they were tacking back and forth on beam reaches, going as fast as they could (which was pretty fast for some of these racing vessels). Our anchorage is right next to the channel going from the harbor to Narragansett Bay, giving us a great view of all the boats heading in and out of the harbor. The action is non-stop and very interesting. Most boats sail between all the moored and anchored boats on their way out, like it’s a point of pride to sail as much as possible, or maybe it’s just the challenge of weaving between all the boats under sail power alone that makes it fun for them. As I type this, a 70 footer going 9kts just cleared our anchor chain by 10 feet, making me wonder how deep it’s keel is. The channel leading out of the harbor is just behind our stern, and the 70 footer could have been in the channel, but no, he’s weaving between all of the anchored boats on his way out into the bay, giving everyone on board a good ride I guess.

Newport is awesome! You can see every type and size of boat imaginable. The town has plenty of shops and huge mansions. The harbor is large and well protected, with a designated area for anchoring, which is rare in these parts. Lately we’ve had to snuggle into a mooring area and anchor as close as possible to get out of navigable channels, and hope that no one chases us off. We can’t afford to get a mooring every night at 45 to 60 dollars a night, and slip spaces cost about $4 a foot, so that’s out too. So it is a pleasant surprise to find this designated anchorage with no time limits. There are also 3 different free town dinghy docks, so we can “park” near whichever shops we need to visit (post office, laundry, grocery store), similar to finding a convenient parking space for your car.

We did tour the Nautilus submarine in Groton, as I reported in the last blog. It was eye opening to be inside a nuclear sub and see the spaces which over a hundred men lived in while at sea for months at a time. We wouldn’t be able to sleep in the tight bunks without getting claustrophobia. The sub museum was very interesting with tons of exhibits like working periscopes to peer through, missiles, torpedoes, and a full scale replica of the first submarine built.

The next day we sailed the short hop over to Mystic and squeezed into the mooring by using both anchors. It worked out fine, and we spent a day touring the old Mystic Seaport, which is maintained as the town looked during the 1800’s with shipyards and big whaling schooners. We got a lesson in celestial navigation in the planetarium and watched a short movie with footage of whaling at the turn of the century. The following day we set sail for Newport, and you already know the rest of the story.

New London, CT

2007-07-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

The Nautilus submarine sits across the Thames River from our current anchorage at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. The rain yesterday prevented us from using the dinghy to cross the river and see the first nuclear powered sub, but today is beautiful so we’ll head over to a public boat ramp and then get a taxi to the sub museum and take a tour inside the Nautilus.

The Coast Guard cadets are sailing around the river in small 4 man sailboats, accompainied by roving inflatable boats to help them if they get in trouble. But winds are light and the sailing is pretty benign. Yesterday, however, the rain and gusty winds repeatedly knocked down the 2 man sailboats they were practicing in. There were about 40 boats and we watched about 12 knockdowns. It was a good show from the comfort of our fully enclosed cockpit.

Last Saturday we sailed across Long Island Sound from Port Jefferson to Clinton, CT. We had a nice anchorage behind the breakwater extending out from both sides of Duck Island. The next morning we sailed for New London, and followed our friend Jay’s directions to this anchorage at the Coast Guard Academy. It’s a nice quiet spot interrupted by distant bugle and drum marching practice, revilie in the morning and taps at sunset. We try to get Rachel to blow her conch in answer to the bugle at sunset but she thinks she’ll get in trouble.

Our next stop will be Mystic tomorrow where we’ll spend a couple of days, and then Newport, Rhode Island after that.

Todd and Denise Roy, Moriches, Long Island

2007-07-18T13:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, our friend Todd Roy drove over to Port Jefferson to get us for a day of fun. We dropped Whitefoot off with his wife Denise at their home in Moriches, Long Island, and then drove to the airport for a flight in his Cessna 210. And what a flight it was! Todd flew us over the eastern harbors of Long Island, then across the sound to Connecticut, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, out over the sound to Naragansat and Martha’s Vineyard, Block Island, and back to Long Island. It was a 2 hour flight traveling at 150-180kts in his retractable gear 210. It would take us a month to cover the territory in Stardust. We took photos of all the harbors we may visit and generally got a perfect overhead view of some of the places we intend to visit in the coming months. Afterwards we joined Denise for some pool-side fun in their heated pool. Denise was taking care of her niece and nephew (and Whitefoot) so all of us had a great swim, and Todd showed me some tricks to equalizing my ears. He’s an accomplished diver and spear fisherman (just a couple of his many talents). Todd and Denise fixed a scrumptious feast of steak, ribs, veggies, wine and beer. Kathy, Rachel, and I all agreed that their custom self-designed home was the best we had ever seen. Thanks Todd and Denise, for a fantastic day!

Wilton, CT

2007-07-18T13:09:00.000-07:00

After seeing were Kathy grew up we drove the short 15 minutes to Wilton to visit my old house and high school.

Stamford Connecticut

2007-07-18T11:14:00.000-07:00

These are photos of Kathy's house in Stamford. She lived here during her junior high school years.

Kings Point

2007-07-18T10:58:00.000-07:00

Kings Point, Stamford and Wilton Connecticut

2007-07-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

In between Manhasset Bay and Oyster Bay we took a short detour back to Kings Point .Merchant Marine Academy where Jim Sr. matriculated. He graduated with the class of ’49 after 2 years in school and 2 years at sea (but with schoolwork added to shipboard duties). They probably “learned” him a thing or two about the sea that he didn’t already know from his prior schooling in small boats with his brothers in St. Andrews Bay and the Gulf around Panama City.

We tried to schedule a tour via phone, but after one Captain said “no- it’s indoc and we don’t give tours during indoc”, I finally got the secretary of the Commandant who said she didn’t see why not and transferred me to the Waterfront since we would be arriving by boat. (Indoc turned out to be shorthand for indoctrination of the new plebes- freshmen). I told Waterfront that we had permission from the Commandant’s office for a visit so they were very helpful.

The day’s head of Waterfront was a senior named Allie Davis who helped tie us to the inside dock next to the 150’ training vessel, the Kings Pointer. She then gave us a wonderful tour of the campus where we saw the plebes being marched here and there and getting chewed out by the drill sergeants for things we couldn’t ascertain. Allie was very knowledgeable about the school, the campus, and also the inside tidbits to make us laugh. She had just returned from sea where she literally went around the world in 88 days. She didn’t like pulling into Hawaii at 10pm and leaving the next morning at 4am. After an hour and a half she had to go back to work, and left us to wander around some more, and then hang out under a huge shade tree on a picnic table next to the water. The visibility was excellent, and the New York skyline stood out in sharp contrast against the sky. A very beautiful campus, and we can see why Dad loved it so much. I mean a guy who grew up on the water and was then in this beautiful school to learn more about boats and the sea? He must have been in hog heaven.

Allie’s boss (I can’t tell rank by the shoulder boards) offered to let us stay for the night which was very nice, but we wanted to get back to Port Washington to see if our navigation chips had come in (they had). As we sailed back my phone rang and it was one of the Captains I had left messages with about our desire for a tour. He told me that it was indoc week and no tours were permitted. I thanked him and hung up. It’s not who you know, it’s how you treat the secretaries.

Yesterday we sailed from Oyster Bay across to Stamford Harbor, CT. Well, we tried to sail but the wind died and we motored most of the way. I counted 140 sailboats out on the water on this pretty Saturday. We picked up a mooring ($40/night) and a rental car, and spent today (Sunday) visiting Kathy’s junior high school area and home in Stamford. We ate in a little diner she used to go to with her family. The current owner of her old home, Mr. Leon Katz, saw us taking pictures from the road and came out to give us a tour of his flower garden in the backyard which he has put 35 years of work into. We took pictures of Kathy’s school, and rode around town listening to Kathy say “I remember that store…that one is new…I don’t remember this area…we used to sled on that hill….” I was waiting for “I got my first kiss on that corner” but it wasn’t to be.

Then we drove 15 minutes out the Merritt Parkway to my hometown of 1970, Wilton, where I graduated from high school. How about them apples? Kathy and I both lived in Connecticut towns 15 minutes apart before we met in Colorado. We drove around town, and Kathy and Rachel got to hear me say “I remember that store…that one is new…yadda yadda”. We visited my old house and took pictures from the street. We saw the neighbor’s driveway where I first slid down a snow covered hill with skis and the straight-a-way where I crashed my Mustang due to bald tires in the rain. We took pictures of my old high school and checked out the brand new Astroturf on the soccer field.

We surprised my cousin Carl Nelson and his wife Lisa who live in a beautiful ridgetop home in the woods of north Wilton. Rachel played in their pool with Ruthy and Greg and a couple of neighbor kids while we adults got caught up on each others lives. It was a special visit for us; definitely the highlight of the day and one of those great events which happen spur of the moment, due to living and traveling on a boat with no schedule other than a rough idea and the whims of the weather.

Tomorrow morning I’ll return the rental car and bike back to the boat (about a half-hour ride). Kathy and Rachel will swim in the yacht club pool while I’m gone, and then we’ll sail back across the Sound to Port Jefferson.

When Rachel kissed me goodnight, she told me what a wonderful day she had. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Oyster Bay

2007-07-14T08:03:00.001-07:00

Where is Oyster Bay? Well, the nearest town is Huntington, Long Island, directly across Long Island Sound from Stamford, CT. There are probably 200 sailboats in this bay, which is pretty typical of all the other well protected bays along Long Island, and have many yacht clubs along the shores; some of these clubs are over 100 years old! Huge homes (some can rightly be called castles) with perfectly manicured sloping lawns down to the water overlook these harbors and cost around 25 million we are told. Some of the moored sailboats around us cost about a million dollars.

So here we are, anchored in one of the “backyards” of a mansion, and, as usual, for free! Try to pull up into the backyard of a strangers’ mansion with your rv and try that. The weather and temperature are perfect. The water is smooth except for the occasional wake from a passing fisherman, out for bluefish. We are listening to NPR on the radio, having just finished one of my favorite breakfasts, granola and yogurt with honey (not a favorite like eggs benedict is a favorite, but it’s pretty good). Kathy just finished her stretches and exercises on the poop deck and is about to have a math lesson with Rachel (math is her one subject for the summer). The word for this morning is contentment.

Tonight we’ll have Bluefish for dinner. I caught one last night right at dusk. It’s fun to catch them- here’s how. First you cast a treble hook into a boiling mass of Menhaden (they boil when the underlying Bluefish go for them), which are small 8” baitfish, and then repeatedly jerk the rod to snag one. Then you let it swim around, waiting for a Bluefish to strike it. I like this kind of fishing because it is an active style as opposed to just throwing a baited hook in the water and waiting for something to happen.

We’ll head 10 miles across the sound to Stamford, CT in a while. There, we’ll rent a car and visit Kathy’s old stomping grounds, as well as mine in Wilton, CT. Afterwards we’ll sail back across the sound to Port Jefferson to meet up with friends Todd and Denise Roy who live in Moriches.

The anchorage in Liberty Park was perfect (protected from waves and weather, and free). We visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island on one day. The next day we took a bus to a water taxi to the subway on Manhattan Island, to a short walk to the Empire State Building. The view from the top was spectacular in the clear cool air. We brushed shoulders with thousands of people in Time Square. You can tell the locals from the tourists on the streets. Tourists stumble around staring upwards at the tall buildings while the locals weave expertly around the tourists. In the subways, the locals plow through the gates with passes while tourists stand off to the side watching other tourists to figure out how to buy tickets and find the right subway. Heavily armed police were in all the subway terminals as well as all over the city. We watched an approaching policeman on horseback cause a slew of street vendors selling purses and trinkets to throw their wares in a blanket straight into a waiting box on a dolly and take off down the street. One vendor hid behind a van in the street as the policeman rode by on the sidewalk, and then returned to his original sales post.

Returning to our water taxi took us past Ground Zero where the building of the Memorial Tower is underway. It was hard for us to imagine the Twin Towers standing in this spot. Many of the surrounding buildings were in stages of repair and we could see the blackened fronts of some of them. We didn’t have much to say as we stared at the site.

We carefully analyzed all information to pick the correct departure time to head up the East River to get the push from the strong current which resulted in a speed over ground of 9kts as opposed to 5kts if the current had been against us. So we “flew” past the skyscrapers under the Brooklyn Bridge, through the swirls of Hell Gate and on past Rikers Island into the Long Island Sound for a 3 hour trek to Manhasset Bay. There, we stocked up on groceries, I changed the oil on the generator and propulsion engines, and we bought more navigation chips for the chartplotter to take us all the way to Canada (or however far north we get). Yesterday we gibed downwind 15 miles to Oyster Bay. We can see the reason for all the yacht clubs and numerous sailing vessels. Long Island Sound has all the room for easy sailing and navigation, and smooth water compared to the ocean. You don’t even want to run aground around here though, because the bottom is rock, not sand. So I’m maintaining a deeper amount of water under the keel and taking the “long way around” instead of the shortcuts allowed in sandy areas, or especially in the clear waters of the Bahamas where what you see is what you get.

Our slow cell phone internet connection won’t allow photos, so they’ll have to wait for an internet café. All is well with us, and, we hope, with you too.

Statue of Liberty

2007-07-04T16:36:00.001-07:00

Rachel’s friend McKenna from Taos is on board with us for a couple of days. We just entered a small harbor at the feet of the Statue of Liberty on the 4th of July! The largest fireworks display in the US is on at 9pm tonight and we have front row seats on board Stardust. We couldn’t have planned it any better. It’s a little rainy, but most of it has gone by, and we’re hoping for good weather for the fireworks show.

Atlantic City, NJ

2007-06-30T18:53:00.000-07:00

Internet access has been non-existent for several days. Our Verizon phones work, but won’t let us get online for some reason, possibly out of the service area. Anyway, we’re in Atlantic City, NJ next to all the high-rise casinos in a small bay off of the inlet with a few other boats. Kathy and I had a 40 mile day sail from Cape May, NJ without Rachel who is visiting her friend McKenna in Parsippany, NJ.

The last you heard from us was from Beaufort, SC. We’ve since covered a few states with a couple of overnighters and several days in the ICW. But first I want to back up to our excellent tour of Charleston, SC with Cindy Stancil and her kids Jack and Hayley. We drove around town and rubbernecked at all the old buildings and cool street markets on the waterfront. Then we walked a couple of miles getting a close-up view. After that we took our dinghy out to Stardust for grilled burgers and hotdogs. The water was very busy on Saturday, June 16 but we made it through the boats to and from Stardust. We want to thank Cindy very much for such a wonderful day! (We met the Stencils’ in St. Augustine, and now Jason is headed for Africa as captain on a Mearsk ship.)

The overnight passage from Charleston to Beaufort, NC started with a broad reach in south 10-15kt winds which made for a very comfortable cruise. Kathy and I swapped 3 hour watches during the night, and in the midst of one watch change we were awed by the sight of glowing dolphins riding our wake and jumping out the water. The bioluminescence was fantastic. Even the flying fish glowed and dripped sparks as they flew away from the dolphins. It was a spectacular half hour, one we’ll always remember. But the winds clocked more from the SW, and dropped in velocity so we ran the next day under motor in the weak downwind conditions. We arrived in Beaufort at 11pm, our first landfall in a strange place in the dark. The gps chart plotter was invaluable, and kept us out of trouble when the navaid lights didn’t seem to make sense. We anchored in the first available spot inside the harbor next to a couple of other sailboats, and Jupiter’s Smile arrived an hour later from their journey up the coast. We had covered 221nm in 38 hours for an average of 5.8kts.

We moved to the town anchorage the next day, and spent a couple of days there continuing the quest to find the air leak in the generator fuel line. I’ve replaced practically everything, and it still plagues us to this date. We had a great dinner on board Jupiter’s Smile with Jay and Barb, and our friends Richard and Pam from Tisha Baby were there too. I helped Richard with his engines, and he helped me trouble shoot an electrical problem with the Yanmar earlier in the day, so celebrations were in order.

On June 22, we motor/sailed the ICW to Oriental, NC, which we promptly fell in love with. A quiet little historical town with friendly people, and the so called sailing capital of North Carolina very much suited our tastes. We joined Jupiter’s Smile in the small anchorage, and then ran into more friends from the Bahamas, John and Jan from Stella Maris. They took Rachel for a speed boat ride over to some sailing races, and then helped us with some mail issues. They own a beautiful physical therapy facility in Oriental, and dock their boat in their backyard.

On the 24th, we blasted up the ICW to Durant Island to cover 75 miles in 10 hours. The 25th saw us make it to Great Bridge, just south of Norfolk, VA for 72 miles in 10 hours. We passed through Norfolk at 1pm the next day, and the weather was good for another offshore passage so we kept going into the ocean arriving at Cape May the next day at 3pm. We covered 181 miles in 28 hours for a 6.5kt average speed.

We found a perfect little anchorage in Sunset Lake except for the jet skis. Kathy and Rachel rented a car to drive to northern NJ to meet up with McKenna on her birthday, which was the point of all the mileage we had been logging.

Kathy and I (and Whitefoot) will leave here tomorrow morning bound for Sandy Point, NJ at the entrance to New York City. It’s about 70 miles away so it will take all day. Winds will be from the north, so we’ll probably have to motor most of the way.

Hilton Head to Beaufort, SC

2007-06-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

Our anchorage tonight is Beaufort, SC. It’s pronounced “Beoofurt”. That’s different from Beaufort, NC which is pronounced “Bofurt”. The wind is pushing us one way and the current is pulling us the other way. When this happens, the boat points into the current, but is pushed from behind by the wind. There are boats here on moorings, transient sailors on one anchor, and others on two anchors. Consequently, each boat travels in a different arc. We had to anchor 3 times to finally stay out of the way of boats careening every which way. There are some large storm cells about, but it looks like we’re currently in the clear. Tomorrow morning we’ll head north about 50 miles or so in the ICW. The strong NE winds wouldn’t be conducive to a pleasant sail in the ocean, since we want to travel NE.

Rachel celebrated her 13th birthday on June 6. We can’t believe our sweet daughter is a teenager already! School ended on the 5th, so Rachel was doubly excited. Kathy cooked her favorite dinner, spaghetti, and we had a chocolate cake for desert. Happy birthday Rachel!

Jay and Barb on Jupiter’s Smile arrived in HH for a couple of days from their journey northward from the Bahamas to Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. We rode bikes together on the great bike paths and shared a dinner together on Stardust. They left for Wilmington NC where Jay’s meteorologist brother lives. We’re sure to cross paths again.

Mom, Dad, and Aunt Nindy visited us in Hilton Head for a few days. We spent one day motorsailing in the Calibogue Sound and the next day relaxing in the pool at their hotel. It was a nice visit with three wonderful dinners to boot. We were very happy that Nindy made the trip since it had been so long since we saw her. Mom and Dad also brought 2 boxes of mail, which took a week to sort through. More cards and gifts kept Rachel’s birthday going a few extra days too!

We keep looking at the weather in the Bahamas and thinking about our friends Pat and Jim on Shamrock who are waiting for the next window to cross to the States.

Second Wave before crossing

2007-06-02T11:54:00.001-07:00

Photos

2007-06-02T11:48:00.001-07:00

Hilton Head

2007-05-31T17:25:00.000-07:00

Well, we didn’t make Beaufort, but we did have a safe journey to Hilton Head, SC. At the point where we had to turn NE in the Gulf Stream to continue to Beaufort, the wind had not switched to the SE as forecast, nor had it decreased to the 10kts as expected. So rather than motor into the wind and the 5 foot seas, we decided to call it a day and sail into Hilton Head. It’s funny because at the beginning of the winter we said that we’d come back to Hilton Head and continue where we left off last October when we turned south and headed for the Bahamas. The decision to head in early was a bittersweet one, in that we had to leave our friends on Second Wave, who decided to tough it out and continue to Beaufort. But they must return home to Toronto before July 1, so they are under the gun to make mileage.

Our crossing began on Monday as we departed the Strangers Cay Cut through the barrier reef into the rolling ocean with 5 foot swells and 15kt wind from 80 degrees. Along with Second Wave, we saw speeds of 7kts or better on the beam reach. Skies were mostly clear with scattered cumulus. As land sank out of sight the wind picked up to 20kts and the swell increased to 6-8 feet. Second Wave’s mainsail ripped near the top of the sail and they were very dismayed and worried about it getting worse but decided to press on. Rachel got seasick, and Kathy wasn’t feeling very well either. Linda and the two boys on Second Wave were sick as well, but Matthew reported later that Nick (9 years old) was “chipper and eating junk food again” But at sunset the wind piped up to 25kts and seas increased to 10 feet. We veered more to the west to keep the wind slightly aft of the beam and keep the ride as smooth as possible. Watching the big swells bear down on us was something to see. They would rear up and threaten to topple the boat, then would lift us into the air, pass by underneath, and gently lower us into the next trough, leaving foamy whitewater washing away downwind of us. I thought it was quite thrilling, especially when we surfed down the wave at 11kts, but the girls did not share my sentiment, It would have been fun if Kathy and Rachel had been feeling better.

The wind continued to blow at 20-25kts all night long. With the full jib and the main reefed to 1/3 the boat was nicely balanced and the autopilot did a great job, never faltering as usual. That’s one piece of equipment which has performed flawlessly- good ole “Otto”. The moon was almost full, so visibility was good, and the sails were glowing in the moonlight. 4 big ships were sighted, with one of them coming within 1 mile of our location, but not requiring a course change. Matthew stayed in the cockpit most of the night as well, and we occasionally chatted to help each other stay awake. Kathy was able to relieve me for 2 hours during the night which got me through ok, and she and Rachel felt better towards the morning.

During the next day, the winds dropped some to 15-20, still out of the east, and as we sailed into the Gulf Stream, our speed increased to 9-10 kts with peak speeds above 11kts. We would watch the speed indicator and chant, “11-1, 11-4, 11-8, 12!” Kathy and I swapped off at the helm so that by the end of the day I was up to a total of 6 hours of sleep for the last 30 hours. But this was the point at which we continued on our NW track, as Second Wave pressed hard into the wind trying to stay enough east to avoid the big turn into the wind and waves which they eventually had to do anyway. So we saw them get smaller and smaller until their mast disappeared below the horizon. We stayed in touch on the radio until they were 30 miles away, and said our tearful goodbyes just as they faded out of range. Rachel napped in the cockpit, which we discovered was the one place on the boat which was comfortable for her. She had some ginger ale and canned peach slices and started smiling more.

Tuesday night the winds decreased to 10-15kts, so with full sails up and still in the Gulf Stream, we continued to book along on the usual beam reach. With smaller swells and the absence of chop the ride was quite nice for all concerned. Kathy and I shared 3 hour watches all night and that worked well. Towards morning however, the instruments died and the autopilot shut off. Thankfully I was at the helm when it happened. I woke up Kathy from a deep sleep who thought the world was coming to an end if I needed her help so bad. She took the helm while I checked out the boat and found a loose battery connection. With that fixed and the generator spun up to recharge the batteries, we were in business again. The wind died, and we put the sails away and motored the last 40 miles to Hilton Head.

Kathy woke me up as we entered the marked channel to Tybee Roads into Savannah. We mixed it up with the numerous shrimp trawlers as we motored across the flats into the Calibogue Sound, and on into Hilton Head. Whitefoot in particular was prancing around and looking all over the place, probably saying to herself “Look at all that glorious land to do my business on!” She had managed to relieve herself some during the trip, by having us turn downwind to steady the boat for a few minutes, but it was pretty tough for her too.

Going past all of the multi-million dollar homes on the waterfront made our eyes bug out after what we had seen in the Bahamas. We anchored in our old spot in the Broad Creek next to the Palmetto Bay Marina. I called customs only to find out we could not clear in from Hilton Head as we had thought. So after a great night’s sleep we pulled anchors and headed for Savannah where we are now, at the Thunderbolt Marina. 2 customs agents came aboard, one with the mysterious name of Mr. Bravo, who was plain-clothed. I wondered what he thought of me since my beard is now a little long and a little grey, kinda like Bin Laden”s. As Mr. Bravo poked around cabinets, we covered the paperwork with the other guy. They confiscated all of our expensive food left over from the Bahamas, and even my bag of coconut pieces which I had liberated from the friendly trees. They also confiscated our 3 bags of trash, since it is Bahamas trash, and I thanked them for that at least.

So we’re plugged into the dock, with all the power, water and air-conditioning we can use which really feels wasteful. It’s nice to see that the systems we haven’t used for 4 months still work. There is a nice couple with a little girl next to us on a catamaran which they just bought and are about to start a similar cruise on. They didn’t really know how to dock, and had 20 fenders down the side of their boat. As they approached the dock, I told the woman she needed one more fender near the bow, and when she said ok and started to get one I had to tell her I was only kidding. No one ever seems to know when I’m kidding. But Jeff, the captain did a great job of docking as I caught a dock line from Tracey the admiral and I wondered where they store all those fenders. Maybe that’s what the other hull is for. They remind me of us only one short year ago.

We’ll motor the 3 hours back to Hilton Head tomorrow in the ICW and stay there for a week and celebrate Rachel’s 13th birthday in a place we all enjoy very much. Mom and Dad will try to meet us there as well which would be terrific! I can’t believe my little girl is about to become a teenager. I would grit my teeth in resigned anticipation were she not the most wonderful person I know.

Oh yes, the stats on the crossing, as Dennis always asks for are: 350 miles sailed in 52 hours. 6.7kts average and 12.8kt max! Straight line distance, 334 nm. Items lost overboard: one bag of saltines.

Leave for Beaufort on Monday

2007-05-26T06:41:00.000-07:00

The delta anchor will come up in 30 minutes, and we’ll head for Spanish Cay to get water, then Carter’s Cay for the next 2 nights to stage for our crossing up to Beaufort, North Carolina. Second Wave will be our buddy boat, and since this is the first decent weather window in a month there will probably be many others crossing with us too. We plan to depart Carter’s Cay on Monday morning and head north. It should take approximately 3 days, which will put us into Beaufort on Thursday. We’ll make some phone calls to Jim Sr. and Brud when we get to the States, with more calls forthcoming. We’re all psyched up, especially Kathy who has been yahooing all morning. Kinda indicates we’ve been in the islands long enough for now and ready for new terrain. Not to mention the type of shopping which can only be had in the States! Rachel’s birthday is coming up, and she has outgrown most of her clothes, so we need those Gap stores, etc.

Two nights ago we had a big potluck dinner on shore with 10 other boats and the two resident families on shore who have been such great hosts. Matthew and I provided 13 snapper from our recent spearfishing jaunts. We also had chunks of coconuts from the trees ashore. Everyone brought great dishes and we ate too much. Then the mosquitoes chased us all back to the safety of our boats which aren’t affected by bugs.

Yesterday we snorkeled with Second Wave and Trisha and her two kids from the house on shore. We visited 3 wrecks, saw tons of fish and even a Hawksbill turtle up close hiding in the wreck. After giving us a few minutes of viewing pleasure he slowly rose up out of the wreck and sped off to open water. Rachel and Chris kept up for a few seconds before he gracefully departed the area.

Trisha just called on the radio from shore, and wants us to stick around for a few more minutes so she can run a fresh made coconut crème pie out to us. Did I mention gracious hosts? Her husband Bob provided Matthew and me with some great tips on spearfishing and filleting our catch.

There won’t be any wifi connections as we move north the next 2 days, so this is our last blog entry before arriving in the States. The weather looks great, and we’re very excited at the prospect of being back “home” again!

Hiking to the beach on Manjack Cay

2007-05-22T15:55:00.000-07:00

More Manjack

2007-05-22T15:53:00.000-07:00

After a few days at Green Turtle Cay, we’re back at Manjack again. The wind is blowing 20kts but this is a great place in NE winds so no problema. Mid morning I snorkeled off of a new spot here in the bay and shot 2 snapper. Kathy already has plans for dinner, so the snapper will wait til tomorrow night. Then we joined several friends ashore, and we cracked a coconut open and ate it before hiking on the beautiful trail to the ocean beach. We just finished showers on the stern, and Kathy is cooking dinner. Hopefully the wifi will allow this quick posting and maybe even a couple of photos to go along with it.
After dinner we will dinghy over to Wild Horses. Roger and Adelle have invited several of us over for games on their big catamaran.

photos

2007-05-17T04:46:00.000-07:00

Manjack Cay

2007-05-15T17:47:00.001-07:00

Stardust has been bouncing back and forth between Green Turtle Cay and Manjack Cay. All of the stores and marinas with water, fuel, groceries, and post office are on Green Turtle, while Manjack has easy access out into the ocean reefs.

Matthew (Second Wave) and I have made several dives from Manjack, and we refill our tanks at a dive shop on Green Turtle. We’ve seen some good reefs and some poor reefs, but each dive has been excellent. We’ve even seen a few lobster, but lobster season is over, unfortunately. I’ll try to post some recent dive photos if the wifi connection allows it.

Many boats are in the area waiting for weather to cross back to the States. Green Turtle is the last point offering supplies, so we hang out here waiting to cross. When a suitable weather window arrives we’ll head up the islands which extend another 60 miles to the north. They look fantastic on the charts but there are no supplies, so not many boats go there. There aren’t many protected harbors either, so it would be sort of like anchoring off a small island on the edge of the ocean. Sounds good, but you need good weather to do this and the good weather is over for a couple of weeks. So we’ll remain here until things shape up. Our crossing back to the US could be in two weeks. We hope to make it to Beaufort, North Carolina (just south of Cape Hatteras), but if the weather does not allow us to traverse this distance (465 nm) we’ll make landfall somewhere else along the coast. Worst case scenario would force us straight across the Gulf Stream to Florida.

Squalls bringing 20-30kts of wind are forecasted for the area for the next 10 days. We have good anchorages around here, so we are comfortable and safe. A deep low near Cuba could go sub-tropical, but the mountains of Cuba and poor upper level conditions for tropical formation will probably squash it before it gets too big. Still, having had a named storm this early in the season forcing the rescue of 12 boats off the Eastern Seaboard has us a little on edge and ready to depart with the next opportunity. I bet we’ll be part of a flotilla of 20 or 30 boats crossing to the US when the good weather arrives, so there will be lots of company and safety in numbers definitely applies here.

Meanwhile we are having fun with our friends, and there are several kids around for Rachel to hang out with. We spent yesterday afternoon at the marina pool with parents drinking cocktails and discussing the weather while the kids yelled and screamed in the pool. I keep looking behind Rachel’s ears for any signs of gill formation. I can now hold my breath underwater for two and a half minutes, so maybe the girls should start examining me as well. We’ll probably visit the local museum today or tomorrow during a lull in the 20kt wind. I shaved Whitefoot this morning on shore, so she looks as sleek as an otter again.

Manjack Cay

2007-05-15T17:47:00.000-07:00

Green Turtle Cay

2007-05-06T06:25:00.000-07:00

Green Turtle Cay is having it’s Island Roots Festival complete with a pirate theme. Lots of events for the kids and adults too. The schooner Wolf is here giving rides and shooting the cannons. It is the flagship of the Conch Republic and looks like a pirate ship. There are sword fights, short plays, tug of war, three legged races, stilts, music, and food and drink. Many of Rachel’s friends from other boats are here and they are all having a blast. We’ll move up to the north end of Manjack Cay today, for some scuba and snorkeling on the reported excellent reef there. I’ll scuba with Mathew from Second Wave, who used to be a professional diver working on oil rigs 600 feet down. Then we’ll don the snorkel gear for some spearfishing, since you can’t shoot fish with scuba gear. We hooked up with a dive shop and did a two tank dive with them. There were huge grouper, and many sharks to liven up our dive. Didn’t see any lobster.

I tried to look up Tom and Kay Murrell at their home, Key Lime, but they are in Florida, and will return here the middle of the month. We hope to hook up with them later.

Hope Town was a wonderful stop, and is our favorite town to visit so far. The narrow flower lined paved streets up and down the small hills are a delight. We had a great view from the top of the lighthouse and spent an hour up there looking around. Our mooring came with a swimming pool, so we spent an afternoon soaking up the fresh water, and Kathy read the end of a school novel to us.

We may return to Hope Town since our stay there was just overnight and we liked it so much. But we were in a hurry to make the festival at Green Turtle and spend time with pirates.

Marsh Harbor, Abaco

2007-04-30T09:18:00.000-07:00

We're anchored in the lovely harbor of Marsh Harbor. The grocery store and laundry are a short dinghy ride away. Several of our friends are here as well, including Shamrock, with a slip space among the Moorings charter catamarans. They were given a pile of goodies from one charter group who had left over food and drinks. So we scored! After splitting up the goods, we got together at Curlytails (named after the local lizards with a curly tail) for drinks and laughs.

We'll be here for at least a few days before heading to the nearby islands. Each island is close to it's neighbor with only 1 outside passage necessary so this will be comfortable cruising. We plan on swimming on the nearby Mermaid's Reef this afternoon. A mild cold front came through last night so temperatures are very comfortable, probably 70 at night and 80 during the day.

Two turtles hang out around our boat, and we love watching them surface near us all day long.

Tilloo Cay, Abaco

2007-04-28T04:45:00.000-07:00

We just beat a storm into the north end of Tilloo Cay and anchored with Shamrock, Jupiter’s Smile, Gone, and a few other boats. All of us spent the day snorkeling on the reef in the Pelican Cay Land and Sea Park. Being as how it was another park the fish were everywhere. I even grabbed a Nassau Grouper by the tail, that’s how close you can get in these parks. We saw a squadron of 5 Spotted Eagle Rays (well, since they fly, of course you can call them a squadron) glide by under us. The 3 of us had our 3mm wetsuits on and were completely comfy as usual. Pat was swimming with us and got cold, but plugged on regardless due to the fantastic sights below. The coral was magnificent even with patches of bleached coral areas. 10-15 pound snapper, grouper, mackerel, and plenty of parrotfish swam with us totally unafraid of our presence. Only 2 barracuda and no sharks made for a pleasant swim.

On Wednesday our flotilla of 8 boats left Royal Island at sunrise bound for the 55 mile passage across a piece of the Atlantic bound for Little Harbor in the Abacos. We left up to 45 minutes later than the first ones out of the harbor and passed all but one boat during the passage. Stardust performs very well and we are very happy with her. We averaged 7kts and saw 8.6kts max during the crossing with a 15-20kt wind on our beam from the east. We saw 3 whales. I said they looked brown, Rachel said they looked grey, and Kathy said they looked wet. So we didn’t positively identify them. Shortly afterward I hooked the largest fish yet, probably a Wahoo by the look of him 200 feet back. He rapidly spooled out all the line as I cranked down on the drag and Kathy and Rachel hurried to drop the jib to slow us down. But the 70 pound test line broke in my effort to avoid running out of line by using too much drag. Darn! Right after that Daniel on the French boat Gone hooked a 56 inch long Wahoo and brought him onboard. I asked him if my blue squid lure was in his mouth but he didn’t understand my joke so we had to talk about it upon arrival in Little Harbor while he divvied up wahoo steaks to anyone who wanted some. It made the best meal of our Bahama tour. Thanks Daniel! I even had time for some spearfishing upon arrival at Lynyard Cay and shot 3 good size snapper, the largest being a Schoolmaster, so we’re eating lots of fish these days. All 3 were in the cooler in the dinghy within 15 minutes and we were out of there before any sharks showed up. Cool.

The whole gang went to Pete’s Pub for lunch on Thursday. Pete is the son of Randolph Johnson, a sculptor who settled Little Harbor in the early 1950’s with his family. Mom and Dad loaned us his book, A Study in Self-Reliance, and man did they put up with hardship for years. Every 5 pages I’d think to myself that, ok, I’d quit now, but they never did. Finally Pete is now making a good living with his pub and various enterprises on the family estate. We toured the foundry for bronze casting, and walked around the island. Earlier in the day I scraped and cleaned Shamrock’s hull and prop and Jim forced a few bucks on me for the task. Hey, maybe I can make a living at this boating stuff. Not!

Tomorrow (Saturday) we’ll sail to Marsh Harbor and do laundry and shopping. We’ll be in the area for a few days at least. If anyone out there can drop what they’re doing and hop a jet into Marsh Harbor, we’ll stay as long as necessary to make the connection. Looking at the charts, the Abacos have lots of protected sailing and accessible reefs. It could be that we’ve saved the best of the Bahamas for last!

Spanish Wells

2007-04-23T12:20:00.001-07:00

Our armada of 4 boats left the cozy anchorage in Royal Island bound for Spanish Wells. We’re here to get fuel and water before heading to the Abacos. It was tricky and shallow getting in here, but we let the 2 catamarans with a 3 foot draft and Jupiter’s Smile with a 5 foot draft go first and report on depths. Kathy, Rachel and I are in a restaurant waiting for Jay and Barb to arrive for lunch. The internet café will open soon across the street so I’ll be able to post this after lunch.

Spanish Wells is a well kept little town with all the amenities. Small colored houses of every color, mixed with a few large homes make up the neat neighborhoods. We’ll walk around some more after lunch and get to know it better.

The sail from Rock Sound to Hatchet bay was very nice with 15-20kt winds on the beam. Hatchet Bay has poor holding and limited moorings so we shared a mooring with Jupiter’s Smile. Shamrock rafted up with another boat as well. It was very comfortable, but the town leaves a little to be desired so we left the next morning, bound for Current Cut and Royal Island. The Cut was very narrow with a 2kt current against us but the wind didn’t create any problems getting through. The wind was 20-25kts and we heeled pretty hard and made 7 to 8 kts but we were all comfy. After the Cut, winds increased so we made the last 5 miles with a reefed main. The boat performed well compared to the other boats we were with.

We’ll go back to Royal Island this afternoon, possibly spearfish tomorrow, and then sail to Little Harbor, Abaco on Wednesday.

Leave tomorrow

2007-04-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

We'll pull out of Rock Sound tomorrow with the other 8 boats headed to Hatchet Bay, then Royal Island, followed by the run to the Abacos if the weather stays good enough.

Our drive around Eleuthra with Jay and Barb on Jupiter's Smile yesterday was excellent. We toured most of the island, and saw Harbor Island, the cave which harbored the shipwrecked survivors of the Eleuthran Adventurers in the 1700's, some neat beaches with pink sand, and the window bridge which was knocked off center by a rogue wave during the Perfect Storm of 1991.

Don't know when or where the next internet stop will be, but I'll post again as soon as possible.
Stardust standing by on 16.

Rock Sound Harbour, Eleuthra

2007-04-18T07:18:00.000-07:00

We’re in the large bay of Rock Sound, Eleuthra. This is one of the few protected anchorages in all of Cat Island and Eleuthra. We wanted to stay in Cat Island and explore coral heads which are very numerous along the west coast, but a strong cold front (billed in the US as the strongest in a decade) roared towards us, forcing a 2 day march to Rock Sound. We just made it in as the wind picked up to 30kts from the SW and then W. It blew 20-30Kts all day yesterday, but we’re sheltered behind the west point of Rock Sound so it was comfortable. Winds are down to less than 10kts, so we’ll move over near town and shop and connect to the internet. Jim and Pat on Shamrock are anchored near town, so we’re looking forward to seeing them again.

Here’s a brief synopsis of our most recent travels:

April 9: We said goodbye to the Bostiks and put them on a taxi to the airport. They were hassled by customs and got home to Melbourne at 10pm. We spent the next 2 days in George Town getting groceries, filling the water tanks, and giving Rachel more time with her friends on Volleyball Beach. We had a great dinner on Second Wave with Linda, Matthew, Nick and Chris.

April 12: Motored 45 miles to Cat Island in light winds and smooth seas. Caught a large barracuda and released it, only to watch a very big fish eat it. We were too far away to see what got it, but it was BIG. We anchored next to Hawks Nest Marina and airport in the bay next to some coral heads. I shot a large grouper, but it spun off the spear.

April 13: We had a lovely sail to New Bight and hiked up the largest hill in the Bahamas to visit the Hermitage, a unique stone structure built by a priest a number of years ago.

April 14: Sailed to Half Moon Bay on Little San Salvador. We covered 35 miles at an average speed of 7kts and a top speed of 8.4 on a beam reach with winds blowing 15kts. Caught 2 barracuda and then a Cero Mackerel which we had for dinner. Jupiter’s Smile with Jay and Barb met us for a walk on the beach which is owned by Holland Cruise Lines, but no cruise ship was here so we had the run of the place. Winds increased to 20kts overnight, and a large surge rolled us all night long.

April 15: A cruise ship anchored out and started ferrying passengers to shore. Sailed to Rock Sound, 45 miles at 6.5 average and 8 tops running downwind with mainsail only with it blowing up to 20. Caught a 25 pound mahi mahi. Winds increased to 30kts as we approached the Sound, so we took down the main and motored to a great anchorage and a great night’s sleep.

April 16: Winds 20-27kts WNW. Changed the genset fuel filters and the oil and oil filter. Swapped the fuel pick-ups back to the original configuration with the engine pick-up lower than the genset pick-up. We invited Jupiter’s Smile over for mahi dinner. Man that fish tasted good!

End of a fantastic visit

2007-04-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

Joe and family will be leaving us today to fly home to Melbourne. We’ve had a wonderful time together with lots of swimming and spearfishing. Joe and I shot enough grouper and snapper for 2 dinners and could have provided dinner every night if we had spearfished everyday. I saw 5 reef sharks one day and are getting used to them now. They show a little curiosity at first and then swim away.

We organized an Easter egg hunt yesterday on Vollyball Beach and had about 20 kids running around wild finding eggs, candy and toys. It was great fun.

Rachel’s school books arrived in the mail, so we’ll probably leave George Town in the next day or so.

Bostiks visit George Town

2007-04-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

Joe, Georgia, Christina, and Joey arrived last night for a week with us in the Bahamas. We moved Stardust over to Kidds Cove to be near for the dinghy ride in the dark. The wind dropped to near zero, so we had a smooth ferry ride in the dinghy. We were all up at dawn this morning drinking coffee to the sunrise. Everyone is shopping now, and when Joe brings them back we'll up anchor and head for some snorkeling on the south end of Elizabeth harbor, around Fowl Cay. Joe and I hope to provide fish for dinner tonight.

A weak cold front will arrive tomorrow, so we'll anchor back here at Kidds Cove for the day and then decide where to go next.

More Photos-different islands

2007-04-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

George Town Photos 2

2007-03-29T09:25:00.000-07:00

George Town Photos

2007-03-29T09:22:00.000-07:00

Winds decrease in George Town

2007-03-29T09:13:00.000-07:00

The relentless wind keeps everyone here pinned down. People get tired of being here, or have commitments to meet friends or family somewhere else and need to leave, and therefore attempt to leave. But when they hit the 8 to 10 foot seas, they return.
It’s like the Eagles song: “Welcome to Hotel George Town. You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave.”

Our friends Walter and Connie on the trawler Summer of 42 tried to leave because of relatives arriving in Staniel Cay tomorrow. They decided to turn back because it was too rough. The engine died and Walter choked on his sandwich at the same time. After Connie revived him with water, he fell down the stairs, knocking the fire extinguisher off the wall and spraying him in the face. He managed to set the anchor and work on the engine. He was low on fuel (only 200 gallons left out of 500) and figured that the pick-up had sucked air and killed the engine as they surfed down a wave. After bleeding the lines the engine ran and they headed back into Elizabeth Harbor.

Another fellow on the sailing vessel Seabird attempted to leave a few days ago. When asked by someone in the harbor how things were going, he replied “It’s really not too bad out here.” A woman then came on the radio and asked for a report from his wife. We thought that was pretty funny until they also returned to the harbor.

We just finished a 5 day series of squalls which increase the prevailing winds of 20 to 25 kts up to 30 to 50kts. That weather is now over, and we have nice sunny weather with steady 20kt winds. The winds are supposed to decrease to 15kts in 2 days so there will probably be a mass exodus.

The first day of the strong squalls brought a cell over us at 11pm which brought 50kt sustained winds for 30 minutes. It was intense. We had both anchors down and didn’t move at all, except for sailing back and forth pretty hard on the anchors. Boats on both sides of us dragged and we watched numerous boats get smaller as they drifted away. Long term visitors to George Town said that it was the worst they had ever seen here (during this time of year). There were no boats upwind of our position so we only needed to monitor our position relative to other boats downwind. It was amazing that no boats collided during the storm even with boats running under power dragging their anchors, half out of control. There were close calls to be sure, and people are still retelling their stories of that night.

So how are we doing you may ask. Our attitudes have changed considerably. Now when the winds are only 20kts, we say, “Hey it’s nice out, lets head to town”. Before, we would have been nervous to leave the boat. We’re now on one of those little dinghys heading a mile across the bay in rough water to go to town (as we’re about to in an hour after lunch). I reported earlier how we moved Stardust to Kidd Cove to go shopping last week. Now we like the way our Delta anchor is totally buried, and want to leave it that way. (It will probably take a crane to get it out when we leave). And we’re used to long wet dinghy rides. And we stand up in the dinghy holding onto ropes like everyone else to stay dry. During the storm Kathy was very calm (she’s always been rock solid when I’ve been hurt or sick, or a hurricane was bearing down on the gliderport, and other similar nasty situations- it’s the little things which make her nervous) and Rachel took care of Whitefoot in her cabin.

But these are the most recent highlights. Usually school is in session, I’m doing minor preventative maintenance (like changing the transmission oil yesterday), or we’re on volleyball beach with 100 other cruisers, Rachel is playing with her new friends, or visiting on other boats. It’s easy for me to get caught up in reporting about the wild things that happen but the reality is that things are usually pretty sedate. Yesterday found Kathy and I sitting under a palm tree talking with our new friend Linda (with serious cruising experience) about places she has been and what multi-day passages are like. Kathy said how much she’s been enjoying the trip and doesn’t want it to end. I asked her to repeat that. We all related how it’s the little things that get to you, not the big stuff.

Linda and her two boys Chris (11) and Nick (8) are alone on Second Wave, a beautiful motorsailor, since her husband had to fly home because of a family emergency. They are anchored two boats behind us (I can use a term like behind due to the steady east winds- we’ve probably only swung 30 degrees in a week). The boat right behind us is Wild Child with David, Michele, and kids Caroline (11) and Sabrina (5, and a true wild child- a very wonderful little girl). Both boats are from Toronto and the kids are all fast friends. Rachel hosted a movie night here the other night, and we’ll be having both families over for dinner tonight.

There are awesome trails on Stocking Island and we’ve been putting in some mileage on them. Whitefoot and I hiked about 5 miles this morning. We hiked with Jim, Pat, Walter and Connie two days ago. Walter and Connie still looked a little shell-shocked from their ill-fated attempt to leave. Twice weekly poker games take place in a nice establishment on Stocking Island. I went last night and joined about 25 other players and had a great time. You pay $5 for $500 worth of chips and the last person in the game gets all the money. I wasn’t the winner. I sat at a table with Tom on Out of Bounds , a cat registered with their hometown of Angel Fire, New Mexico, the neighboring town to Taos! He’s an ex-ski instructor from Vail, so we’ll get together to swap some ski tales.

Rachel needs the computer for school while Kathy and I go to town, so this will be posted tomorrow, perhaps (our years in New Mexico prepared us well for the maňana land of the Bahamas). When you read about tonight or tomorrow, just change it to past tense.

We’re not planning to leave here anytime soon, so hop on a jet and meet us down here! Just send an e-mail to confirm, and we’ll leave the light on for you. (Think I’m kidding? Try me!). The next potential meeting place with jet service is Marsh Harbor, Abacos.

OK, it’s Wednesday now, the winds have decreased as forecast, and folks are preparing to leave tomorrow and it will probably be a mass exodus. Should be fun watching the action in the morning and listening to the radio reports of conditions “outside”. We swam on the outside today with Wild Child and Second Wave and we all got tumbled in the waves pretty hard. I think everyone is jumping the gun leaving tomorrow. It’s bound to settle down much more next week. We’re lucky not to be on any time table.

I met Bob and Sharon on We Beastie this morning. They are from Taos, and have an earthship in Lama. They took sailing lessons in Tampa and then bought a boat. A woman from Taos was in the same course a week before Bob and Sharon. Maybe the famous “Taos Hum” which only a few special individuals in Taos can hear is really the sound of the wind in the rigging. We Beastie is leaving tomorrow and will follow the same route as us, so we hope to meet again.

Wild Child is also leaving tomorrow, and Rachel is sad to say goodbye already to her friend Caroline. It’s amazing how close they became in only a week. I think the cruising kids come to realize how precious friends are due to the tenuous nature of the cruising lifestyle as it relates to meeting friends “on the road”. Wild Child is a Catalina 42 skippered by David, a fireman/paramedic from Toronto on leave from his job. He needs to be home by May and can’t find anyone to help him get it home, so the family will probably have to stay on board all the way to Canada. They would rather get off in Hilton Head and drive home, while David and crew take the boat up the Atlantic to Canada. So if there is anyone reading this who may be interested in making the trip with David, send me a note. He’s a great guy with lots of experience sailing so it would be a good trip to share with him. No experience required.

When we leave George Town, our plan is to head for Cat Island, Eleuthra, and then the Abacos. That will take two months. Then we’ll head up the east coast of the US, possibly arriving in Hilton Head from the Bahamas, and continuing where we left off last fall. That is the current rough plan anyway, subject to change, of course.

I’ll be making the mile trip to town tomorrow in the dinghy and hope to post this at that time. The computer gets wrapped in a garbage bag, placed in my pack, which is placed in another garbage bag and then stored in the cooler which is the dinghy seat. So far so good with keeping it dry. The winds are down and the harbor is much smoother tonight so it might even be a pleasant dinghy ride for a change. Bed time, goodnight all!

This morning, the winds were down to 12kts and about 70 boats departed. It was quite a sight! We Beastie had to return due to engine overheating problems. The dinghy ride the mile across Elizabeth Harbor was very smooth, and I have a good internet connection on shore, so here goes the latest blog. I also managed to make Skype calls to sister Laura and Mom and Dad, and will try one to Jean and see how her cataract surgery went.

Bitter Guana Cay Iguanas

2007-03-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

Bitter Guana Cay Anchorage

2007-03-20T08:26:00.000-07:00

Georgetown

2007-03-20T08:25:00.001-07:00

Stardust Log:
3-15: Filled water tanks at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club (90 gal, $46). Posted blog containing Rachel’s Corner and her poems. Sent and received e-mail. Sailed to Black Point and anchored in our old spot again. Beautiful sunset with light wind for a change, and ate dinner in the cockpit.

3-16: Left Black Point under motor into the south 15kt wind straight on the nose. West winds are coming and very few anchorages are protected in a west wind so we headed for Little Farmer Cay and made the tricky entry through coral reefs into the shelter of the cay. Much current, tried to anchor in the narrow channel but dragged the Delta over the hard scoured bottom. Hooked up to a mooring for $10 a night. Went ashore to pay for the mooring, and had a hamburger for lunch! Tried some snorkeling but too much current, swam around the boat and inspected the mooring which was buried and not visible. Squalls from the west overnight caused us to drag the mooring and we ended up bumping the bottom next to shore. So instead of dragging our own anchor, we paid someone else for the pleasure of dragging their mooring. (I never did dive back down to see what the mooring was made of.)

3-17: Tide came in and we stopped bumping so stayed put till morning. Another squall coming, so we changed to another mooring. After the squall passed, skies looked good enough to head for Georgetown in the NW wind. Exuma Sound was flat as a pancake for a change, due to the west winds, so we had a wonderful sail into Georgetown. We covered the 42 miles at an average speed of 6.1kt and top speed under sail of 8.4kts! As we sailed the front arrived bringing north winds blowing 20kts. The seas were still moderately smooth so it was very comfortable. I caught a 2 foot barracuda and threw it overboard. Another fish (probably barracuda) stole a silver spoon. So no fish for dinner. We knew that Jim and Pat were nearby on Shamrock, and it was St. Patrick’s Day so we looked for them and found them at Monument Beach in Elizabeth Harbor and anchored next to them. At midnight fireworks woke us up. Kathy got up to watch the show, I stayed in bed and Rachel never woke up. It was very nice of the folks in town to welcome us to Georgetown with a fireworks display!

3-18: Banana pancakes for breakfast. The 3 of us took the 1 mile dinghy ride across the harbor to meet Jim and Pat for a stroll around town and lunch. Most stores were closed on Sunday afternoon so we headed back to the mothership against the wind and waves with ponchos on. We invited Jim and Pat over for candles in pastries for Jim’s birthday. Rachel played “Happy Birthday” on her clarinet and wrote him a poem. Then I took Whitefoot ashore and we hiked to the top of Monument Hill for a look around. It was a stunning view of the various hidy-holes with boats anchored everywhere. There are “only” 200 boats left, since the regatta is over. There seems to be a contingent of boats numbering 100-200 which leave the states in December, head straight for Georgetown, and then return following the regatta. At night the anchor lights on top of the masts are very pretty, competing with the stars.

3-19: Winds increasing to 30kts from the east. It will blow like this for the next 5 days. We dragged our 45lb Delta with 80 feet of chain and 20 feet of nylon in 12 feet of water and had to re-anchor using the 35lb Bruce and the Delta. No one else is using 2 anchors here and it’s considered bad seamanship to anchor differently from everyone else, but so be it. I sleep better at night on 2 anchors.

3-20: Moved Stardust to Kidds Beach so we are close to town for shopping, internet, mail, etc. Blowing 15kts and expected to increase. Rachel took the helm for the move, from anchor up to anchor down again and did a great job.

Black Point and back to Staniel Cay

2007-03-15T08:26:00.000-07:00

We’re back in Staniel Cay, after spending the last week in Bitter Guana Cay and Black Point Settlement on Great Guana Cay. We came back to check the mail, and it is here! Thanks Mom and Dad!

The wind has been relentless. It blows at least 15 knots and usually around 20 knots except at night when it picks up to 25 just to make sure we bob a little extra while trying to sleep. Actually we’ve had some good anchorages, so the nights have been comfortable in spite of the wind. Due to the number of boats here in Staniel Cay, we had to anchor a little further out from the island than last time, just to stay clear of the other boats. But wouldn’t you know it, just before sunset a fellow sailor pulled in and anchored RIGHT NEXT TO US! There is an entire bay behind us with no boats and this guy has to anchor on top of us like there is no more room anywhere. Just more proof that some of us are descendants of the bovines where the herding instinct runs deep.

OK, I’m in a bit of a bad mood, due to the wind and the fact that during our sail from Black Point today, the boat heeled hard over in a gust and our chartbook of the central Bahamas (that’s where we are now) blew overboard from the cockpit. We found a decent replacement today, but there goes $50. I told Kathy that tomorrow when we leave, we’ll just throw a $20 bill overboard rather than the cost and hassle of losing gear. I said this because a few days ago we rolled heavily in a big swell and my polespear went overboard. Also bought a replacement spear today for $70. So at least we can find what we need around here, but it isn’t cheap.

The polespear earned it’s keep with numerous dinners. Lately the target of choice is the Lane Snapper. I found a spot off Bitter Guana Cay which is a steep slope from the point of the island to a deep trench coming from the ocean. There are 4 sizeable coral heads on the slope with numerous fish including Nassau Grouper and Lane Snapper. On two occasions I was able to shoot a few snapper before the reef sharks discovered what was going on and moved in for leftovers. That’s when I moved back into the dinghy. It seems that the grouper know they are the most desirable fish and are the first to seek shelter in the reef when trouble appears. Kathy and Rachel like to snorkel before I start shooting fish so they don’t have to deal with the sharks. But I really have to hand it to my girls, getting in the water and swimming around and enjoying the underwater scene before I’m permitted to hunt for dinner. Rachel and I saw a Ridley’s turtle on one outing. Turtles are her specialty; I didn’t know what kind of turtle it was.

There are no lobster to be seen. Not one. They were abundant in the protected park, but outside the park, at least in shallow water, there aren’t any. As previously mentioned, the majority of reefs are bleached white with few fish and no lobster. The bleaching comes from two sources. The fishermen use bleach to quickly kill the fish and harvest them off the surface. One gallon of bleach can poison 500,000 gallons of seawater. Also, warming sea temperatures cause the coral to bleach. According to Rachel’s school report research, “bleaching occurs when coral polyps, stressed by heat or radiation, expel the symbiotic algae—the zooxanthellae—that live in the reefs and provide the coral most of their food and oxygen. The reefs turn a whitish color, and the coral have little energy to grow or reproduce. Usually the coral can recover unless the bleaching is severe enough, in which case, whole reefs can be destroyed.
Bleaching can be caused by a variety of factors, including diseases and ultraviolet radiation, but scientists are increasingly noting that sudden rises in water temperature are playing a major role. Between 1980 and the present there have been over 60 cases of coral bleaching around the world, and they are becoming increasingly common, especially during El Nino events, which increased sea temperatures in the eastern Pacific by several degrees and caused major bleaching events. Bleaching may become even more widespread if global warming continues to increase the sea temperature.”
At Black Point we enjoyed walks around town and carried fresh water from the town well back to the boat in our 5 gallon jug. 4 trips equaled 20 gallons. A rather labor intensive way to fill the tanks. We can buy water here at the Staniel Cay Yacht Club for 40 cents a gallon. We got 170 gallons during our last stay here, so it can get rather pricey, but instead of paying 5 thousand dollars for a watermaker, we can buy a lot of water.
Kathy and Rachel volunteered in Black Point yesterday afternoon, helping the kids learn math and reading in the church sponsored after school program. There were about 6 boater volunteers paired up one on one with the local kids. I’m not sure who enjoyed it more, the kids of the boaters. I know Kathy and Rachel had a good time.
I’ll post this tomorrow morning before we leave Staniel Cay and head south again. In the meantime, here’s Rachel:
*Rachel’s Corner*
Tips+Info.
Here are some poems I wrote, inspired by all of the poetry in my classes. The second poem was inspired by a sail when the sun was shining so brightly, so gleefully, on the water. This first poem is dedicated to all who strive toward something in their life:
Striving

Why do we strive for the things unseen?
Why do we strive for our relentless dreams-
For the imaginary figures that dance about in the sweetest dreams,
For the wisp of magic within our wishes.

Why do we strive for the never ending want?
We strive for the unseen,
The unheard,
The impossible.

Why,
Oh the never ending Why-
Why do we walk the endless steps?
And leap the long, sorrowful leaps of time and space,
We let the needs,
The dreams
Fill our sails of billowing thought
Fill our cups with the nicest wine
Fill our mouths with words that come untwined-
In an endless jabber of things so,
So unimaginable.

Oh, the endless strive
The endless step,
The endless want and dream, and need, and wish, and thought-
For, what have we to lean on?
What have we to watch, to see, to hear?

No, not one thing of steel hard proof,
Yet we strive, and we leap, and we go on
Looking and walking towards our unseeable dreams-
Towards our unthinkable future-
Towards our wishes that we whispered so.

Why, Why do we strive the endless strive of our winding roads filled with blackness,
And brightness,
And taunt;
These things that we see,
These dreams that we know are there, yet we do not.

Why do we strive towards nothing that we can see, or hear, or smell, or touch?
Perhaps it is not the dreams of which are unseeable,
But it is out strives, and leaps
The dreams, perhaps, are real-
Right there before our very shapes
It is, just perhaps, our strives toward it that are the invisible.

This second poem is dedicated to all sailors:
Gold, Silver, and Bronze
Boldly behold the riches of the sea
Stare forever not,
Yet hold the picture
Of these sparkling jewels
To your mind.

Tend to the sails, ye sailor of the seas
Stare forever not,
Yet stop to block the bright picture from your mind
It is all of the longing of all the sailors
Scarred from the seas,
And longing the riches.

Gold, Silver, and Bronze
Boldly behold the foux riches of the sea
Why?
You ask,
Are they foux?

Tend to the sails, ye sailor of the seas
Could ye get rich in all of one night?
For the sun shines,
The seas are calm,
Now is the time to go and collect your years worth of livings
There are bronze pounds, silver dollars, and gold deblunes out there-
Yet, here, here holds your mistake of the many a sailor

Gold, Silver and Bronze,
Boldly behold the suns sparking rays on the dark blue waves
For, realize this
The shiny liquid that splashes upon the never ending blue-
It is all the joke of the sea,
For it is just the suns rays upon the waves splashing so gaily. Rachel Lee

Conch Blower of Staniel Cay

2007-03-07T13:09:00.000-08:00

Stormy Staniel

2007-03-07T13:07:00.001-08:00

Today is cloudy and windy (15-20kts) with the prospect for showers and squalls which could result in gusts to 30kts. Stardust is sailing back and forth on the 2 anchors, but not too bad. Seas here in the harbor are choppy but not rolly so we’re comfortable. Kathy and Rachel are in school, and Rachel just finished some work on a report on coral reefs. Now it’s my turn on the computer. When this is wrapped up I’ll dinghy ashore to post this at the bar, and walk down the street to buy some bread which is supposed to be ready by 1pm.

The mail boat came in this morning at 5:45. It anchored at the harbor entrance, waiting for high tide to come on in which happened at 8:30. All of a sudden small boats were zooming everywhere. When the mail boat comes to town, it’s the biggest event of the week. Fresh produce, special ordered parts for boats, and of course, the mail, attract locals and visitors alike. We saw small supply boats from neighboring islands show up to join in the action. An armada of dinghies flew past us from around the corner at Big Majors anchorage where 40 boats are anchored. It’s amazing how far some people travel in their dinghies. If the little outboard died in these conditions they’d be blown out to sea in an instant. I wouldn’t do it without the handheld vhf radio and epirb, and even then I’d be nervous. We stick close to shore in our dinghy, but maybe that changes too as time goes by.

But our mail wasn’t on the boat. The local mailwoman who Kathy finally met today said that with the time frame involved, it was probably just into Nassau where it would be processed, and sent out on the boat next week. Kathy bought some nice produce however, while Rachel and I were in the bar doing internet research for her coral reef project. Don’t worry, I don’t do any adult beverage research in the mornings (not yet anyway, although there was plenty going on in there). And how many kids can lay claim to doing schoolwork in a bar? It’s actually very comfortable with big windows all around letting in the air from the sea through screens. A big screen TV with the weather channel or sports is always on. Huge shutters all around can be closed during heavy weather.

The post office is in the postmistress’s house. She let Kathy in, looked in the bag for our mail, and then took Kathy’s outgoing mail and set it by the sink. She’ll put stamps on it later, and give it to the boat when it comes back through on Friday, on its way back to Nassau. In the grocery store, the proprietors asked Kathy to operate their new calculator for them. The prices for each item were written in the margin of the newspaper by one of the owners as Kathy picked them from the shelves. This is how things are done here, and we like it, but it does take some getting used to. Kathy said 3 visitors also shopping at the same time were quite condescending but the owners didn’t act like they minded.

We walked a mile to the east shore yesterday to look at the wild Exuma Sound. Waves were crashing ashore, and we ran around and burned off some energy. Whitefoot especially. It’s a little on the cool side, and cloudy, so we haven’t been in the water for 2 days.

We’ll move to Bitter Guana Cay tomorrow, and explore more reefs. Rachel’s research says that 70 percent of the oceans reefs will be dead by 2050, so we better get out there while we can. Then on to Black Point, a settlement of 300 people. We’ll call back here to find out if the mail comes in next week.

Birthday Girl at Staniel Cay

2007-03-05T11:11:00.000-08:00

Photo #1: Rachel next to a whale skeleton at Warderick Wells

Photo #2: Jim and Kathy at Allans Cay

Photo #3 Visiting more iguanas on South Allans Cay

Today is Kathy's birthday. We're in the Staniel Cay Yacht Club having lunch; conch, grouper, and Kalik beers. The weather channel is on the tv and we have a good internet connection. But we just tried to call my Dad on the Skype phone and the call failed. Kathy will use her Batelco card to make some calls outside the restaurant. We found a wonderful basket store down the street, and bought Kathy the handbag of her choice, just beautiful, and woven by the store owner Shirley whose birthday is tomorrow. She gave Kathy an additional basket as a gift.

We have spent 3 days here snorkeling in the Thunderball Grotto, where they filmed the James Bond flick of the same name. The cave is awesome, the fish numerous, and we're having a really good time. I've hunted fish in the surrounding reefs but the reefs are in poor shape, white, bleached, and lacking fish. I did see my first "real" shark while in the water, probably a 6 foot reef shark which paid no attention to me. I say real, because we've seen a few nurse sharks but they are gentle and no threat. So the only fish we've had lately were caught by someone else. There is no fishing allowed in the grotto. And the fish know it too.

We'll be here a few more days, waiting for mail and exploring the area. There are more reefs about 6 miles away I want to see. They are off the beaten track, so maybe some dinner will be there waiting for me.

The weather is unsettled with 20kt winds out of the NE for the next 3 days so we'll stay put for the time being. Exuma Sound looks intimidating right now with huge breakers pounding the rocks.

I'll write a full report for posting later. Otherwise we have to keep buying Kaliks to keep our table, and that is expensive not to mention falling out of the dinghy on the way home to Stardust later today.

Exuma Park

2007-02-28T06:25:00.000-08:00

The short blog I wrote yesterday worked fine so here goes again.

We received e-mail but so far can’t send any.

There is a morning weather report at 6:30 eastern time which begins with emergency traffic, if any. We listen to the report almost every morning on our SSB receiver. So the quickest way to get an urgent message to us is to have your local ham radio operator tune to 4045khz at the above time and pass the message to Chris Parker who operates the weather net. If we miss the broadcast, some friends will undoubtedly get the message and relay it to us.

I found the fittings required to install the new filter, and then we left Nassau and anchored for the night on the south side of Rose Island. Very nice anchorage. Then we left late morning in order to cross the Yellow Bank during the mid-day sun so we could see the coral heads. They are very black and stand out strong in good light so we weaved a few times and made it through easily. I stood on the bow and called out course corrections to Kathy at the helm. Wouldn’t want to try it in bad light though. We motored 20 minutes and sailed 5 hours and 10 minutes to cover 30 miles at an average speed of 5.4kts. Winds were NE 10-15. There were a few other sailboats around but we weren’t traveling with anyone.

In the Allans Cay anchorage we met up with Cat Lady (Mike and Jan on a Gemini Catamaran) and Shamrock, and had dinner on Cat Lady with an additional couple as well. We prepared sushi using a Little Tunny I caught on a silver spoon, and added that to the potluck of Barracuda and sailfish. Rum, beer, and wine completed the evening with Mike performing a wonderful recitation from The Chocolate Factory. Rachel followed that up with her latest memorized poem from schoolwork.

The next day, Wednesday the 21st, we saw the famed iguanas. Took photos from as little as 1 foot away. You could grab one and throw him on the Barbie before he knew what was up if they weren’t protected. The big ones probably weigh 5 pounds. I bet they taste like chicken.

I cleaned the hull in 200 feet of visibility. Shot 5 squirrelfish for dinner with the new polespear. Bony but tasty. The grouper and snapper were very wary as there were other spearfishermen about and this is a heavily visited reef. Kathy and Rachel finished school and then joined me on the reef for more sightseeing. We didn’t see any lobster.

Thursday it blew 5-10 from the north, but this is a good anchorage with calm water. The 3 of us snorkeled on the reef again, and I shot a schoolmaster snapper and a glasseye snapper for dinner.

On Friday we took the dinghy to SW Allans Cay to see more iguanas. They looked the same as on the other island. Prehistoric. You could use trick photography and shoot a movie with Raquel Welch in it here. (Am I dating myself?). Departed at noon for Norman’s Cay and had a nice downwind sail with jib alone in the north 10. We went ashore on a small island with an old drug runner lookout. There is a crashed drug running plane in shallow water here, but it looked too rusty and dangerous to swim around. This area was a hotspot of cocaine smuggling about 20 years ago.

Saturday morning we toured Norman’s Cay, walking along the beach then across the airport and back to the dinghy. Winds were shifting to the east and this isn’t a good anchorage in an east wind so we left for the west side of Shroud Cay only 5 miles away as the east wind increased to 15. We had a comfortable night with a few other boats, and then went ashore to visit the well. The water tasted good so we rinsed off the saltwater from out swim on the beach and carried a 5 gallon jug of water back to the boat. Then we took the dinghy on a cross island trip up a shallow mangrove canal to the breakers on the east side of the island. It was blowing east 15-20. We stayed too long and had a tough dinghy ride back through the shallow water in poor light, but made it back to Stardust in time for happy hour and Rachel’s blowing of the conch at sunset.

The wind shifted more to the south and our anchorage became rough so we left the next morning for Warderick Wells Cay. This is the most beautiful place yet. Great anchorage (mooring for $15/night, actually), beaches, reefs, hiking, history, water, fish, lobster, and friendly rangers and boaters in this national park.

It didn’t rain yesterday, but the weather will be unsettled for a few days so we’re still hoping to catch some rain to replenish our tanks.

Our next stop will be Staniel Cay, and we want to figure out the mail protocol and have mail sent there if possible. Also, if this long report goes through I may try to send a photo or two.

Warderick Wells

2007-02-27T10:06:00.000-08:00

We've been to Allans Cay, Normans Cay, Shroud Cay, and now the Exuma Park. There is a slow satellite connection to the internet, so I'll keep this short and try it out. More to come later if this works.

Everything is great with us. The new fuel filter seems to have solved the engine problem. We saw iguanas, I've managed to shoot fish for dinner, and the weather has been fantastic. We're even hoping for rain to replenish our water tanks!

There is no fishing or spearfishing allowed in the park, so wouldn't you know it, there are grouper, snapper, and lobster everywhere just thumbing their nose at us! I just watched a 4 foot stingray jump 3 feet out of the water next to our boat!

All for now, more tonight if this works.

Stormy Nassau

2007-02-18T15:45:00.000-08:00

The wind is howling at up to 40kts on our mast top anemometer and Stardust is rocking on it’s doubled lines in the marina. The huge charter catamaran left 2 hours ago bound for Allans Cay, so they must be getting whacked out in the middle of the bank somewhere. Can’t be much fun to start off that way, but if you charter a trip, you go when you get onboard, times a wastin and if you are the captain of the charterboat, time is money. The front will produce wind for the next 24 hours and since we want to leave the marina (and the slip space fee) tomorrow, we’ll anchor nearby and then leave for Allans Cay on Tuesday morning. I’ll try for one last blog in the morning before we leave the marina since we won’t be online again until Georgetown, and that might be 2 weeks away.

We toured Atlantis yesterday which is the over-the-top resort on Paradise Island. It features a gigantic aquarium with rays, sharks, lobster, and many, many fish. We watched the fish for an hour or so and it was really something. I can’t wait to get to the reefs and see the real thing. Atlantis has a huge casino, plenty of sculptures and statues, shops with high dollar offerings (Kathy tried on a $1500 emerald bracelet), waterfalls, and totally outlandish architecture. We discussed the Atlantis myth and the underwater Bimini road which is supposed to be part of the ancient road to Atlantis.

I bought a Skype phone and downloaded the software from the internet. This phone can call out from our computer when we have an internet connection for about 2 cents a minute. Much better than a local phone card for a dollar a minute. My Skype name for those of you with a Skype phone is jgleejr2. Unfortunately only Skype users can call us and then, only when we are online. So the phone is mainly for us to call out on. More computer magic. What’s next? I called Mom and it faded in and out due to the quality of the internet connection, I’m told, but it did the job.

Our fuel tank is clean. I sampled fuel from different locations in the tank and found only clean fuel. The fuel pick-ups were then blown out, but didn’t seem to have any restrictions. I found a nice big fuel filter in a local store, but no fittings to make it work. Tomorrow may bring success and then we’ll have a better fuel filter and hopefully the end to our engine problems. I’ll leave the pick-ups reversed since that seemed to cure the problem at least temporarily.

Our next stop, Allans Cay, is special because it is populated by hundreds of iguanas! They are protected, and you aren’t allowed to “molest” them, so Kathy says I can’t eat any. There will also be patches of coral reefs, so I should be able to shoot dinner, since the local Fisheries Department Head, Mr. Lloyd, stamped my fishing license with a pole spear stamp!

Rachel is taking her last exam right now, and Kathy will mail off the packet with 8 exams in it to Calvet tomorrow. They have both been working very hard with reviews and then testing. It was nice for the three of us to play tourist yesterday.

We enjoy getting comments on the blog, so if you like what you see, drop a line. As long as someone is reading this I’ll keep it up!

Nassau

2007-02-16T07:57:00.000-08:00

Photo #1: Bimini doorway to the ocean.
Photo #2: Kathy and Rachel in front of a pile of conch shells.
Photo #3: Stardust in Miami 2 days before departue for the Bahamas.

We motored into Nassau yesterday afternoon after crossing the Tongue of the Ocean which is part of the Northeast Providence Channel between Chub and Frazer Cays and New Providence Island. The crossing was made with 4 other sailboats from Frazer Cay, our last anchorage of the night before.

Our departure from Alice Town, Bimini was made at 9:20am on Sunday, traveling with Jim and Pat on Shamrock, built by Endeavor. Shamrock was one of our buddy boats from No Name Harbor in Key Biscayne, and is on the same route as us down through the Exumas. We sailed up the NW coast of Bimini, rounded North Rock, and then motored into a 10kt headwind across the Grand Bank to Mackie Shoal, arriving 6 hours later with an average speed of 6.3kts covering the 39 miles. I caught a small Tuna, which we rolled into Nori with rice and carrot for a sushi appetizer. Yum! The wind increased to 15-20 out of the east, and the shoal did very little to calm the sea. We had a very rough night of it with not much sleep. In the morning some big fish hit on the piece of tuna on a hook resting on the bottom, and took the hook, line, and sinker with it.

The wind was once again right on the nose, so we motored through building seas of 4-5 foot swells in the East 15-20kt breeze. It wasn’t pleasant, and Rachel got seasick. But she handled it like a trooper, and felt better afterwards. A few miles out from the entrance to the Northwest Channel the engine died. This has happened so often to us when motoring in rough water that I half expected it. We quickly put up a reefed jib and continued to an area of 10 foot depth north of the channel and anchored there with Shamrock providing moral support next to us. I changed the Racor primary fuel filter and the engine ran fine. I still didn’t trust it though. We had covered 36 miles in 7.5 hours for a 4.8 average speed due to the slow final portion and lower speeds due to the swells. Lucky Stars called us from the Frazer Cay anchorage to ask how we were doing, and let us know that they were well protected from the SW winds. There was fairly good protection from the strong winds overnight from some surrounding sand banks so we had a comfortable night of sleep. The day had covered 36 miles at a speed of 4.8 kts.

Leaving the sand banks at 9:20, we motored 15 minutes and then put up reefed main and jib. Winds were more southerly and seas had calmed significantly so it was a good day of motorsailing until the engine quit again about 4 miles out of Chub Cay. It would run only at low (1200rpm) speed so we limped into Chub Cay basin with building wind and seas and surrounding storm cells. We couldn’t make Frazer Cay. The Delta anchor dragged initially then bit in so we put out the Bruce anchor as well, at a 45 degree angle from the Delta into the building south wind. Having just completed that chore, a strong cell blowing 35kts hit us hard with Stardust bucking at both anchors and Shamrock just a few hundred feet behind us in the small anchorage. Another sailboat was already there, behind us to the wind and closer to shore. We watched him drag anchor, pull it up, reposition and reset, which held. There were breakers coming over the bow for 30 minutes before things settled down some. I had kept a constant eye on the gps for any anchor movement but they held well on 80 feet of chain and 15 feet of nylon rode apiece. Now that the possible eminent need of an engine was over, I changed both the Racor (again) and the secondary fuel filter bolted to the engine. It was my last one of these, but I still had 4 more Racors. The engine ran fine. Soon after dark, another sailboat came into the harbor and slid in next to us. I then chased down every squeak and groan inside the boat to quiet it down as much as possible. After a light meal we tried to get some sleep but it was the roughest night yet for us. I spent 3 hours in the middle of the night reading in the cockpit and watching the gps. The mercury vapor lights of Chub Cay were way too bright as is the case everywhere these days, but the stars were out bright and I had Scorpio on the southern horizon to keep me company. Kathy came up the companionway to check on me and to make sure I wasn’t going to try going up on the bow to check the anchor lines in those conditions. We didn’t have any jacklines set up. Rachel slept soundly.

The next morning I put out a general call to any boats in the Frazer Cay anchorage and got Wake Robin who said that their anchorage was very good. We departed at 9:25 and sailed to the Frazer Cay anchorage 6 miles away, at 11am, but not before Shamrock ran aground on a sand bank, and then motored off 15 minutes later. I told Jim he was just trying to add some more excitement to an otherwise smooth day. Stardust ran fine but I still didn’t trust it and thought through different things I could try if it happened again. Frazer Cay had a nice sandy beach with 6 other boat anchored and the crews ashore. It looked like a party so we dinghied ashore with Jim and Pat so they wouldn’t have to unload their dinghy as well. Sure enough, rum and beer was being consumed and conversation was very spirited. We snorkeled and looked at fish, conch, and sparse coral amid the seagrass. Whitefoot went bonkers, running and swimming until she got sick from drinking the saltwater. Man we were having fun!

We left at 8am with Shamrock and 3 other boats the next morning, bound for Nassau, about 40 miles away. We were the last to leave and were only 6 miles away from Frazer when the engine died. We called Shamrock to report the dismaying news and to say keep going, if we didn’t solve the problem we’d turn back and anchor at Frazer again. Bad weather was expected the next day, and would last for over a week, so we’d be stuck at Frazer for a while. My first plan was to swap fuel tank pickups between the engine and the generator. The generator pickup is somewhat higher in the tank so if you run the generator out of fuel, you still have enough in the tank to run the engine to the nearest filling station. Swapping the lines only took 5 minutes during which we were sailing with jib only in a 3kt following wind making 2 kts. Restarted the engine and it ran fine all the way to Nassau without a hiccup. Yea! We even caught the other boats just as we entered the harbor. We did 44 miles in 7:40 to average 5.7kts with a top speed of 7.6 kts at 2200rpm. Winds were light and variable the whole way. It would have been a loooong trip on sailpower alone.

So now we’re docked at Nassau Harbor Marina with our other buddy boats, and will stay here through the next 2 cold fronts, leaving on Monday. Kathy and Rachel will complete a series of school exams, I can stock up on more fuel filters and we can resupply for the Exumas. There is huge catamaran next to us, 65 feet long and 30 feet wide, which does scuba charters in the Exumas. I’ll be getting a tour and info from one of the mates this afternoon. It is raining off and on and strong winds will come in tonight. It is supposed to blow over 30kts on Sunday according to Chris Parker on the SSB. But we’re safe and secure and feeling pretty good about our ability to get this far despite some minor skirmishes in mankind’s war with inanimate objects.

There are 2 opposed sides of Nassau. On one hand, everyone is so friendly and says hello or good morning. Willing to talk or help out. On the other hand, everything is locked up. There are security guards in the fast food joints. Other businesses buzz the door open much like some banks back home. Homes are walled and gated. But it is a beautiful place with a good feel. Hopefully the banditos will leave us alone.

Bimini!

2007-02-10T13:43:00.000-08:00

Photo #1 shows the Atlantic as we begin our crossing with the buddy boats ahead. Pretty smooth, huh?
Photo #2 shows Whitefoot checking out the local stingray under the dock at the Bimini Bluewater Marina.
Photo #3 shows the resident bull shark shortly after I got back in the boat after a little hull cleaning. Kathy reported that the fishing boats were back, and they were cleaning fish in the water, and I'd better get out. She was right!
Photo#4 is Kathy and Rachel on the Atlantic side of Bimini the evening we arrived (yesterday).

The Gulf Stream crossing to Bimini was a day of light winds less than 5kts. Seas were less than 2 feet, and we motored all the way at 2400 rpm which gave us a 7kt average for the 7 hour crossing. Our armada consisted of 5 sailboats with another group 1 hour behind us, consisting of 6 sailboats. One other boat followed us into Bimini, everyone else kept going over the north end, bound for Chub Cay, another 90 miles to the east. There is a brand new dredged channel with red and green markers at the entrance to Alice Town. However, upon entering the marina I had to cautiously edge my way in over a shallow bar. Another sailboat got stuck on the bar an hour later and was pulled off by a local who wanted $200. After some dickering, the price ended up being $60.

To make it easy to get to customs and immigration, we are docked at the Bimini Bluewater Marina in Alice Town for $35 a night with water and electricity extra, but we don’t need either one. Water is .50/gallon and electricity is $15/day. The permit to enter the Bahamas costs $300 which includes a fishing license.

The water has to be seen to appreciate the clear blue quality not seen anywhere in the States. We hopped off the boat onto the dock and promptly saw a 7 foot bull shark glide by underneath. Then a couple of stingrays with 3 foot spans, and a 3 foot barracuda. We walked over the hill to the ocean and saw a 5 foot sand shark in knee deep water. I’m still ready to go in the water, but I don’t think Kathy and Rachel are.

A couple of walks through town have shown us friendly locals, sleepy dogs, and narrow streets with 5 golf carts to each car going by. Kathy and Rachel are looking for bread right now. The first store to advertise “Fresh Bread Baked Daily” might have bread next Tuesday. A local pulled up next to us in his skiff selling conch. We’ll wait on that dish for later. The girls just returned with 2 loaves of bread, so lunch is forthcoming.

We’ll leave early tomorrow morning for Chub Cay on the south end of the Berry Islands. It will take 2 days, with an anchorage somewhere on the Grand Bank on the way. The weather looks fine for several more days. The NWS broadcast on marine VHF still comes in clear from the US, and we have a Grundig SSB receiver which can get the Bahama Cruisers Net at 7:45 each morning with weather and cruising news.

Bimini Bound Tomorrow

2007-02-08T06:41:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow (Friday) we’ll leave No Name Harbor bound for Bimini. The weather window looks very good with no strong fronts in sight. There should be plenty of boats in No Name waiting to cross. Some probably left today, but we’ll give the Gulf Stream one more day to settle even more.
Kathy is going to hoist me up the mast to change out a deck light and feed a new coaxial cable inside the mast up to the tv antenna. Then we’ll head out of Miami Beach to a marina to fuel and water up, then on to No Name on the south end of Key Biscayne.
Bimini has a newly dredged entrance channel with markers to lead the way in so it should be a very easy introduction to the Bahamas, where markers are few and far between and sometimes missing. Most of the navigation is done by eyeball to stay in deep enough water and avoid coral heads.
Our phone service will go on hold as of Feb 23, but the phones will stop working when we leave the States. We’ll buy Batelco phone cards and use them to call out. E-mail will depend on being near a wifi or from an internet café. We’ll do our best to stay in touch.
Today is a lovely day with few clouds and light wind. We’re excited to finally be on our way!

Superbowl Sunday

2007-02-04T08:36:00.000-08:00

Today’s the big day! No, not for us, for Payton Manning and the Colts on Superbowl Sunday. Miami is nuts right now with tons of traffic, big name movie stars and sports figures. I’ve tuned up the tv antenna to get the best reception for tonight’s game.

Today is overcast and rainy and it will be blowing from the north for several days, so our next opportunity to cross to Bimini is next Thursday. We’re provisioned and ready, although there are always more things to do so the next few days won’t be idle. They never are. The water here in the bay is very clear and blue. Wonderful to see after so many months of brown water. I’m tempted to don a mask and see what the hull looks like. There is always some barnacle scraping to be done, even though I put on my scuba gear and cleaned the hull before we left Jacksonville.

GW sent us this photo of our anchorage in Miami Beach. We’re just south of the round island in the picture.

There was a huge fireworks display last night about 2 miles away. Kathy and Rachel sat in the cockpit wrapped in a blanket for the show. There is a new battleship in town for the commissioning, so the port is closed while it’s here to prevent another event like the bombing of the Cole.

Miami Beach, then eastbound!

2007-01-30T18:19:00.000-08:00

Today dawned calm and sunny, so we shed the mooring ball in Las Olas, fueled up at Lauderdale Marina and headed out Port Everglades on an ebb tide making 8 knots. The Atlantic had 1-2 foot swells and winds were 5-10 from the northwest. We made Government Cut into Miami after 3 hours of motoring, and headed for Dinner Key in Coconut Grove. The guidebook author described the anchorage there as “full of bum boats” and man he wasn’t kidding. Besides no room and shallow water, there wasn’t anything wrong with it that the correct application of high explosives couldn’t take care of. So we left, and backtracked under the Rickenbacker Causeway, and under 3 more bridges before heading east to Miami Beach next to the Venetian Causeway. This is an excellent anchorage, so we’re lucky that Dinner Key didn’t work out. All it cost us was an extra 2 hours of motoring. We’re on the north side of Belle Isle with the Collins Canal just around the corner. The Collins Canal is about 50 feet wide and cuts right through Miami Beach. It is a dinghy superhighway, passing under major roads with stores on both sides. Publics Supermarket is 7 minutes down the canal from us. I’ve never seen anything like it.

While Kathy and Rachel took care of schoolwork I headed for Publics and some minor shopping. There is a cable next to the canal across the street for locking up dinghies. After shopping I left the parking lot with a cart full of groceries. At the edge of the street, the front right wheel of the cart “broke” and I had to retreat out of traffic. The wheel had a plastic cover over it, rendering it unusable. So I did a wheelie with the front wheels in the air and crossed the street. Another dinghy driver said she’d never seen that done before. I replied that the front wheel broke and she responded that no, there is a security device that locks the wheel if you try to leave the parking lot with the cart. I had never heard of such a thing. What are the poor homeless folks going to do now?

Tonight is calm, cool, bugless, and beautiful with the surrounding lights of Miami. We’ll be here a few days provisioning for the jump to Bimini. The weather won’t be conducive for the trip until Sunday at the earliest anyway. The Gulf Stream reportedly has 6-12 foot seas due to the north winds of late. 5 foot seas are pretty uncomfortable, so you do the math!

After leaving Lantana, our last report, we lucked into a transient slip at the city marina in Delray Beach. Kathy calls it the best kept secret in Florida. It’s small, but has all the facilities we need, and only 50 bucks a night. In retrospect, we should have stayed there longer and done our provisioning there. But Miami Beach will work out.

Then we stayed in Lake Sylvia in Ft. Lauderdale since our old favorite, Las Olas was full. We were in the Lake for 2 nights before a mooring opened up at Las Olas, so we spent a night there before the weather settled down enough to head into the Atlantic. The Atlantic run was necessary for us due to the 55 foot Julia Tuttle bridge just coming into Miami on the ICW which we can’t fit under with our 63 foot mast.

Two other Hunter owners are among many of the sailors here preparing to “cross over”, including OB and Linda on their Passage 450 (same as ours) and David and his family (including a couple of girls about Rachel’s age!) on a 466 (the aft cockpit version of our boat). When the time comes we’ll be in good company.

Sailing and Rafting

2007-01-25T15:20:00.000-08:00

Cruising with GW

2007-01-25T15:17:00.000-08:00

We anchored in Lantana last night just before the rain started. It has also rained most of the day today so we stayed here rather than moving on to Las Olas. This is a protected bight with about 7 other boats seeking protection from the storm. Apparently there is an 18 hour limit before the police charge $30. We don’t know how the police pull their cruiser up to the boat to charge us, nor have we had any visitors. So maybe we’ll get out of here in the morning before that happens. This is a good law though, in that we have trouble getting a decent anchorage with all the derelict boats taking up the prime spots. So in these crowded areas, having a law which keeps the anchorage open to transient cruisers works to our advantage.

We had a wonderful sail from Vero Beach to Jensen Beach with GW Meadows on his recently purchased Irwin 38. He rafted up with us in Vero on the mooring, Kathy fixed shish-k-bob, then we had a pleasant sail the next day. GW can send photos and text to his blog directly from his cell phone, no computer necessary. He took some nice shots which are ready for your viewing pleasure at http://crossingmeadows.blogspot.com/

Tacky Joe’s restaurant just off our bow has a wifi connection, so I’ll dinghy Whitefoot ashore while the rain has stopped and send this off to the blog.

Cruising with GW

2007-01-23T08:24:00.000-08:00

GW rafted up with us last night here in Vero Beach. He's on his recently purchased Irwin 38. It's a beautiful boat with all the bells and whistles. We'll travel together today, headed south, then he'll turn around and head home since he needs to be home this weekend.

I spent a day cleaning filters and working on the dinghy engine so everything should be in ship-shape again.

Rachel needs to get on-line for school work so this will have to be short. Our verizon internet access has not been working so we are on the marina pay per use program for 30 minutes.

See ya later!

Southbound through St. Augustine

2007-01-14T17:51:00.000-08:00

Stardust rocked from passing fishermen this morning at our anchorage just north of St Augustine on the ICW. That’s right, we’ve left Jacksonville and are headed south again! Yesterday was a marvelous day to depart with light winds, warm temps and sunny skies.

We had to wait for a rising tide nearing full in order to get out of the shallow harbor of Palm Cove Marina. They desperately need to dredge the whole marina. Stardust would lightly sit on the bottom at the slip during low tide. As I discovered while cleaning the hull with my dive gear, the bottom was a very fine mud which I could stick my arm into up to the elbow without even feeling it. So it didn’t matter that Stardust sat on the bottom. I cleaned the hull during high tide so there was room to move under the boat without stirring up the mud too bad. There weren’t too many barnacles, so the bottom paint is doing it’s job. The prop shaft zinc was almost gone due to the marina’s stray electric current in water, so I replaced that as well.

The forecast is for seas exceeding 5 feet for the next week, so it looks like we’ll be confined to the ICW as much as we would like to get out in the ocean and sail. But it will be fun to cover familiar territory including anchorages we have used before.

Merry Christmas!

2006-12-28T20:04:00.000-08:00