Merry Christmas
We wish you Peace, Health, and Happiness this Holiday Season.

From Larry in the beautiful Florida Keys.





I am visiting my Mom and family in Ponca City, OK. A blizzard yesterday insured a white Christmas for most of Oklahoma.

Marathon, FL Boot Key Harbor

We left our Lake Worth anchorage late in the afternoon, Thursday, December 10; soon we were viewing this gorgeous sunset over downtown Palm Beach. We had a great overnight sail past the bright lights of Fort Lauderdale and Miami. We sailed past the Key Biscayne channel and into the Hawk Channel around 8:00 a.m., with lots of sunshine -just as we planned. Nice when the plan works.


With 15-20 knots of wind, sailing was still great. By Friday afternoon, we turned off the course to anchor just off Rodriguez Key, well-past Key Largo, but about forty miles from Marathon. We anchored in about eight feet of water. We were off again before 8:00 Saturday morning. The wind dropped to 8-12 knots and the water was smooth. We just relaxed and enjoyed the slow ride and the clear blue water. Hawk's Channel is well-marked and is mostly 13-20 feet deep. It runs between the ocean side of the Keys and a line of natural reefs, so the seas are smaller than outside the reef.

We motored into Boot Key Harbor and picked up a mooring ball. The Christmas Light Boat Parade was later that evening, so we had a nice show. In addition to slips, the Boot Key Harbor City Marina boasts a large mooring field, with about 225 moorings. It's used primarily by sail boaters, both seasonal visitors and live aboards.

We're getting adjusted to living without being plugged in to electricity at a dock. We'll see how well our new solar panels work for us. We're still working on projects, and still adding to the list. Most importantly, we have new places to explore and new cruisers to meet.

An Ambitious Run

From the Deep South of historic Brunswick, Georgia to cosmopolitan Palm Beach, Florida, a 305 nautical (350 statute) mile jump.

Our two-night run down the coast started at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, December 6. Going out with the tide on a chilly, cloudy day, we had a fast trip out the fifteen-mile Saint Simon channel, well under two hours. In the Sound, the fast ride was rough, due to a stiff northeast wind meeting the strong east traveling current. Out of the channel, the seas were more comfortable than in the sound, but not much. With a forecast for wind and temperature changes as well as possible rain and a slight chance for squalls, weather conditions were not great. Knowing this, our plan was to stay within three nautical miles of land when possible; seas just get bigger the further away from land that you sail.

But even close in, the waves were six feet and rolly. The wind was NE, then East @ 20 with sustained gusts of 25. We were on a beam reach and heeled over enough that moving around was accomplished only by holding on to handrails. We had complete cloud cover and rain showers, then the moon and stars joined us for a while as we continued our fast voyage.

By Monday, the wind was mostly north and the ride more comfortable. The wind continued to change often, N, NE, and E. Like the wind direction, the wind speed was just as unpredictable, from light and variable to 20 and gusty. Monday night brought the right wind and weather. With a good point of sail, we had the perfect sailing night. We thought we would go in either the Ft. Pierce Channel or the Lake Worth Channel, depending on how many miles we covered. We passed the Ft. Pierce Channel around 4:00 a.m. Tuesday morning, so of course, we continued to Lake Worth, fifty-some miles further south. South wind was forecast for Tuesday night, but it arrived earlier. As long as it was southeast, we kept our speed up as we motor-sailed, but when it changed to due south, we were making less than five knots. We still made it to the Lake Worth Inlet in time to travel in the short inlet and have the anchor set by 2:30.

We had wanted to leave Wednesday afternoon for a one-night trip to an anchorage just south of Key Largo, a distance of seventy-five miles. The last thirty-three miles are in shallow Hawk’s Channel and should only be done in daylight. But the forecast was still South wind and 20 knots, so we stayed at the anchorage in Palm Beach for one more night, which gave us another night to rest. We'll leave early this afternoon to make that next leg.

Being on the hook again! Lovely!

Projects & Provisioning in Brunswick

We wish each of you a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. We will enjoy the feast with other boaters and the staff here at Brunswick Landing. The Marina is furnishing turkeys and ham and everyone will bring a dish.

We took this picture looking west from our boat in our slip. We caught just a glimpse of the sun in a little break in these sassy-looking clouds. The forecast for today and all weekend is sunshine! Yeah.

We've been busy with projects and provisioning:

At the end of the day (right around cocktail time), we like to see what we can check off of our to-do list. We always have some progress to note, but we've been adding unexpected projects to the seemingly never-ending list. Three days in a row and three more projects. First, the sump pump in the shower quit. Then the head would not flush. Last, the fresh water pump quit. The sump pump works again, after Larry took it apart and cleaned it thoroughly. Fortunately, we had a new fresh water pump on board, so we again have fresh water. But fixing our Lavac, vacuum-flush head became a major project. First, the bilge pump was cleaned and new seals added. Then, we replaced the lid and the seals that go on it. But it was still a no-go-and not just for the head, you know. All the sanitation hoses have now been replaced and our system works like new.

While not ever 'glad' to have new projects, we're glad that all of these break downs happened while we are still in a slip and have a pickup to run errands and buy parts and replacements.

We've also been able to complete some projects that we did have on our list: a partial list includes working navigation lights, working cockpit speakers, another spice rack, a better location for boat ladder, and polished stainless. We will replace one of the regulator's for our solar panels when it arrives.

Our dingy was in the water for about three weeks in July while we were adding solar panels; this time was long enough for the rib to be covered with barnacles. New to this experience, we sought advice about the best removal process and received several different remedies. We poured vinegar on the dried barnacles, waited a couple of hours for the vinegar to go to work, then scraped the hull and tubes. This procedure worked great for us and we will not be leaving our dingy in the water again -not here anyway. Barnacles and other growths happen fast in Georgia's coastal waters, mainly in July and August. We had to hire a diver to clean barnacles from our prop and around our through hulls when we went to Charleston; at haul out, we were not surprised to find lots of barnacles on our keel and hull.

While we still have a few small needs, the biggest project now is to finish the installation of our Spectra water maker.

Taking care of a boat and its many systems is an everyday job and stuff needing fixed or replaced is ongoing. But major provisioning is only needed for those extended cruising times away from the easy shopping that we are all used to. We have just provisioned for our second season of cruising.

The pantries, cupboards, bilges, and all other storage areas are full. Our trip to Jacksonville to pick up parts for the head also included stops at Whole Foods, Total Wine & Liquor, Costco, and Sam's. We had a full pickup by the time we left Jacksonville.

We installed a shelf under the top drawer in the v-berth - seven more bottles of wine. Also, under the bottom drawer, seven more bottles fit snugly on the sole plus a small bilge under the sole holds three more. This bilge in front of the drawers holds eighteen.

We have one small bilge in front of the table that holds six bottles and two large bilges like the one on the left under the table. They are three-bottles deep plus open up the sides for several more bottles.

I have a much better handle on both wine and food inventory than I did last year and I like the way I have my pantry and cupboards arranged and labeled.

Our large pantry and cabinet in the galley help me keep foods organized and handy. We also use two cabinets in the salon for food storage. Our 'holding' storage is a huge area under our v-berth. Our mattress is hinged in the middle, so we can get to this storage fairly easily. We also store boxes of wine in the storage under the mattress in front of the chain locker.


We're loving the beautiful fall weather. It's so different from the hot, humid days and many thunderstorms that we had all summer. Boat projects, chores, and dock visiting are a lot more enjoyable in mild weather. Just on our dock of sixteen boats, four Canadian boat owners have recently arrived and are readying their boats to go the Bahamas, or the Dominican Republic, or Cuba. They drive down from their homes, work on their boat as needed, and then take off. Next spring, they sail back to a slip in Brunswick, ready their boat for sitting in a slip for six months, and drive back to their Canadian home. The couple from British Columbia said their drive here was 5,000 miles. The marina allows boaters to leave their vehicles in the marina's large parking areas. We're glad to be able to leave our pickup here when we sail to Florida and then on to the Bahamas.

When will that be? We thought that we would be in Florida by now, specifically in the Keys. We're looking forward to a new place, but until we leave, we're very OK here in Southern Georgia. We're staying busy, the weather is pleasant, and lovely historic Brunswick is across the street, where several good restaurants are always welcoming to boaters.

SPLISH SPLASH '09

Lapidus went back in the water Wednesday morning. The topsides are beautiful, the bottom job looks great, the prop has been adjusted, motor mounts have been replaced on engine, and a transmission kit installed. We had not planned on replacing the transmission kit, but when it was discovered that we had a leak, we decided now was the best time to do it since the boat was already out of the water. So, instead of three weeks, four weeks were needed.

As soon as she was in the water, we moved Lapidus to one of the Boatyard slips. This time, we knew not to pull in with the strong current; instead we chose a slip that allowed us to go in against the current. No Problem.

The rest of the day we moved back on board. We had quite a few clothes and books, plus we had bought several items (some large) at the boat show. We also had food; we didn't eat every meal at restuarants, plus we bought food for the refrigerator and freezer that could now be turned on again. On our sail up from Charleston, the halyard for the mainsail had split as Larry was lowering the sail, so he put up a new halyard and changed the oil while I put our load away. It was a long day, but we were glad to be back in our home and sleeping on our cozy V-berth on our very comfortable thick mattress.

We had talked about cruising down the ICW to Beaufort, SC. Cruiser friends tell us that this is a scenic area of the ICW and has few shoaling areas. Days are getting shorter, so we would probably have to anchor two nights on the way. Rather than travel the ICW in Georgia, which has lots of shoaling areas, we would then go out the Port Royal Sound from Beaufort to Brunswick, which would still be an overnight trip. So that would be three nights to get to Brunswick. Nope, not for us, at least not this time. We chose to go north from the Boatyard back to Charleston where we would stop for fuel and a pump out, then out the channel and south to the St. Simon inlet to Brunswick. So the next morning (Thursday) we left the Boatyard at 8:30, meeting other boats traveling south on the ICW. At the Wapoo Creek Bascule Bridge we made at 9:30 as planned!), we were the only boat traveling north, but three were going south, also traveling the ICW. It's a popular activity this time of year.

Going out with the current in Charleston, sailing on a beam reach, and coming in with the St. Simon/Brunswick current -all added to our great sail. We were in a slip in Brunswick at 11:00 Friday morning. A much faster trip than the ICW. We don’t always do that well with time, but we did this trip. We’re pooped after we sail all night, but a good night’s sleep and we’re fine.

Sunset while Underway, Wednesday, November 5th

Now, we are working through our list of “To Do’s” and To Buy’s”, so we will be well-stocked and supplied as we head south ---and we are ready to do that. Our insurance company requires that we be north of Cumberland Gap, GA from June 1 to November 15. So, we’ll be looking for a good weather window soon.

We loved Charleston. We had a great little place to stay, but the wifi hookup was iffy, so we had no chance to post while we were there.

Guests caught fish and crabs in this creek on the inn's property. We had no place to cook such yummy catches, but we found these swings to be the perfect place for a cocktail and viewing lovely sunsets.

There is so much to see and do in the Charleston area: from the historic downtown to forts to plantations to beaches to well-designed parks, all places where lots of walking improves the outing. Marshes, rivers, creeks, ocean, and thousands of very old live oak trees all add to the natural beauty.

And the food is fabulous, choices of local fresh food and fish with the very best Southern food. Cheddar cheese grits goes with just about everything.

This park was developed around a marsh and has miles of trails.

The entry to Charles Town Landing, the original site for the city of Charleston.

The Roads Back to Charleston

After the great Annapolis Boat Show ended, we decided to take a side trip before we returned to Charleston to our boat. Thanks to an idea from Kenya, we drove across the Maryland state line to visit wineries in Pennsylvania's Dutch Country Region, in scenic York County. We didn’t make it to all thirteen wineries, but we were pleased with the quality and selection of wines that this established wine region offers. The oldest, Naylor Wine Cellers, was established in 1975 (uncorkyork.com).

We would have liked to visit Philly, but the cold front that arrived with wind and rain reminded us how much we don’t like cold weather. A self-guided viewing/driving trip would work. We drove the Civil War Trail through historic Hanover, admiring the unusual and historic homes and churches. In Gettysburg, we joined the other vehicles in the drive-through Memorial Park, learning more about some of the biggest battles and events in our nation’s history.

From Gettysburg, we did head south. We had gone west to Gettysburg, so we drove the Shenandoah Valley interstate though West Virginia and Virginia. Last year, we very much enjoyed driving this highway from Knoxville, TN north to Charlottesville, so we were glad to drive the north half of one of America’s most scenic highways. Shenandoah Valley is bound by the Blue Ridge Mountains on the east and the Appalachians on the west, as well as the Potomac River on the north and the James River on the south. With better weather, we could easily spend several days exploring the trails and caverns as well as visit the small towns and museums. Still, the drive was beautiful, with the rain gently falling on the spectacular fall foliage.

Charleston greeted us with chilly weather, though not nearly as cold as where we had been. In fact, on the day we were back in Charleston, snow was falling in Pennsylvania!

After the cold front, warm seasonal weather returned with 70+ temperatures. Along with monitoring the progress of our boat, we're enjoying the Charleston area.

Lapidus On the Hard

As planned, we were away from the docks by 8:30 for our five plus nautical miles down the ICW to Ross Marine. The cool morning air greeted us as we motored around the tip of the peninsula past the Charleston Yacht Club Marina and the City Marina, then under the suspension brindge.

We missed the 9:00 opening for the Wappo Creek Bascule Bridge. When we called for the opening, the Bridge Tender said we were too far away to make the bridge opening. Well, we were pretty darn close, we thought close enough to make it. A bascule bridge takes a bit to raise, plus bridge tenders do not stop traffic until the exact opening hour, so the opening would not have been at exactly 9:00. But we were the only request for an opening and we weren’t right at the bridge, so she chose not to open the bridge, thus the heavy flow of traffic that crosses over the top of the bridge was not interrupted. Without other options, we motored around for thirty minutes. In this lovely area of the ICW, the channel wide and deep. The tide was still slack so we had no current problem. When we called for the 9:30 opening, the bridge tender requested that we come as close to the bridge as possible and be ready for the opening! Right! We eased up close but still at a safe and comfortable distance; then, with bridge up, we sped under the bridge (sped is such a relative term in sail boat language).

We continued up the Wapoo Creek for a while; then we followed the ICW as it turned into the Stono River. We were now in a hurry; we might lose that valuable slack tide. We radioed Ross Marine for a slip assignment, but the person filling in for the weekend told us to take any empty slip, not a good idea. As we pulled into the closest slip, we realized how strong the current now was that we were motoring into.With the boat cross-ways in the slip, Larry stayed at the wheel while the dock guy, the captain of the sailboat close by and I quickly moved the dock lines and were able to pull the boat stern-in into the next slip. What an ordeal! But we were now safely secured in a slip and the haul-out was not scheduled for a few days.

We had the rest of the day plus the next to drive a rental car to Brunswick to get our pickup. In addition to the road trip to Brunswick and back to Charleston, we would be driving to and from Annapolis and probably a side trip. Of course, after we take the boat back to Brunswick, we’ll be driving a rental up to Charleston to retrieve the pickup. We plan to leave the pickup in Brunswick for the winter while we are in Florida and the Bahamas.

Back at Ross Marine, we met with owners and the general manger to go over what will be done. Projects will include a bottom job, new zincs, the max-prop adjusted, and sanding and painting the bad spots on the topsides. This damage happened while we were tied to a dock in Mayport, Florida during a bad storm with 50+ knots of wind. The dock (which was on old, worn-out fuel dock) rubbed the paint off on two places on the topsides. The boat yard needs three weeks to complete these projects.

We packed our bags and readied the boat for haul out. At slack tide, we were told to leave our slip and tie up broadside on a long dock. Then we were to leave the boat and watch as two guys (obviously experts at their job) pulled the boat by hand into the lift. They just kept moving the lines and coaxing our 16 ton boat around the corner of the dock and centered in the slip. We were told the current is just too strong to drive a boat into the lift. We totally understood since we had not been able drive her into a slip.

With Lapidus on the hard and arrangements and schedules agreed upon, we took off for the Annapolis Boat Show, a long way from Charleston, SC! We met up with lots of old friends at the show as well as at functions and parties close to the show. And we made lots of purchases - most of them planned.

We have time for a few side trips on our way back to Charleston.

Lapidus Sails Again

Our overnight sail to Charleston on the outside was immensely satisfying. We've had a full summer, but sailing has been missed. After leaving our slip (we feel like we own it after over four months), we had to return. Our speed was slow even considering the current, so we knew we had a barnacle problem. We were fortunate to quickly locate a diver to clean the barnacles off our prop; we were out again and on our way at 2:15 p.m. The trip was a fast 25 hours; this includes three hours out of the East River and St. Simon's Sound and almost three hours in the Charleston Channel to Charleston Harbor. Our new Alpha Auto Pilot (now known as AA) seems to like us. We have a bit of a learning curve to really allow it to perform to its potential, but it's already so much better than Mr. Otto, who must have been a little worn out; he sure couldn't hold a course for long.

Lapidus was also delighted to be on open water again. With a West/Southwest breeze we danced along briskly on a beam reach. When the wind shifted to the northeast, we were close hauled, but still sailing along nicely. Savannah and Charleston are large shipping and commercial ports, so we weren't surprised to have lots of ships for company, most of them at night. We range out on our radar to check for traffic often. Our AIS provides the position, course, and speed of a ship as well as its name and identification numbers. We know it greatly increases our safety at sea. Plus, when we hail a ship by its name, we almost always receive a response. Using the EBL (Electronic Bearing Line) on our radar, we can determine if we are on a collision course (or uncomfortably close) with these behemoth guys. The two ships we hailed both immediately said that they would alter course. The words of one captain were, "Don't Worry. We will take care of you." The accent came close to convincing us we were in a Russian spy movie, but the ship changed course, and all was well.

The channel into Charleston is long, but very wide and deep. In fact, a pleasure ship also heading into Charleston passed us just as a tug pulling a barge headed out to sea passed - three of us side by side and room to spare. Charleston Harbor is lovely, large and alive with activity. In addition to sail and power boats of all sizes, several tourist boats were cruising, including one large schooner. Many church steeples are viewable above the historic buildings. These steeples are the tallest structures; no skyscrapers in downtown Charleston. We plan to spend more time in Charleston after the Annapolis Boat Show. I think a quick review of the history will make seeing it more remarkable.

This is a stock photo, so it will not enlarge, but it does show a nice view of downtown Charleston from the harbor

We took a slip for the night in the Maritime Center. We were, of course, tired , but we also needed to check the tides for our trip to Ross Marine south of Charleston. The tides are significant and the current is strong. Our route would include a Bascule Bridge opening and we did not want to be going with the current if we had to wait on the Bridge to open (which is almost always).

We checked the tides for both the Bascule Bridge and Ross Marine on the ICW and the Stono River. Though they are less than four miles apart, the tide at the boatyard is an hour and a half later! That should work out OK, but we would need to be out of our slip at high tide to catch slack tide for the bridge - that meant leaving by 8:30 a.m. We took a shower, had dinner on board, and were in bed just after dark.

Sharing Cool Travel Spots

In late August, I was in Oklahoma; Larry took needed time away from boat projects to drive to Oklahoma to see mom and family and to pick me up. We picked a couple of places to stop and treat ourselves to two mini vacations on the way back to Brunswick.

First was Ernest Tubbs’ historic record shop in Nashville. In business for over 62 years, the shop specializes in hard-to-find recordings and still hosts a live radio music show from its own stage every Saturday night at midnight. A display of old albums had various price tags; those with the album still covered in plastic were marked several hundred dollars.www.etrecordshop.com

Our goal was to listen to live music, so our next stop was a few doors down the street where we had Bar-B-Q and listened to live music. The two guys were great musicians and did a nice job singing traditional country music.

We visited the famous Tootsies and several other fun bars, each one loud with live music. As the day turned into evening, the bars filled up with tourists and the bands cranked up. After exhausting ourselves and our eardrums, we called an end to super-fun day.

One surprising tourist attraction is Nashville’s Parthenon, the only full-scale replica of the original Parthenon in Athens, Greece. Originally built in 1897 for Tennessee’s Centennial Exposition, the Parthenon serves as the city’s art museum and is the centerpiece of a beautifully landscaped urban park. The 42-foot Athena, placed in the center of the Parthenon, is the most striking feature. We really enjoyed the architecture, history and art. The cool morning was also perfect for a walk around the park’s water gardens.

We left the next morning with a course from Nashville to Birmingham, then a slow but beautiful drive across the Northeast Georgia mountains to Helen, Georgia. Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Helen is a recreation of an alpine village. Complete with cobblestone alleys and old-world towers, the village boasts specialty and import shops offering everything from candle making to cuckoo clocks. Our pickup automatically turned into the winery at the edge of the village. Nice wines, great information. We bought a few bottles and were soon in our room at Unicoi State Park and Lodge. Set on a pristine lake in the midst of 1063 acres of woodland, the lodge, built in 1972, stands in the heart of the park. After a short hike on one of the trails, we had dinner in the lodge where we enjoyed fresh trout caught in the streams on the lodge grounds.

The next morning we were ready to see more of this beautiful area, so we hiked up to Anna Ruby Falls, a scenic recreational area that boasts twin water falls. Two thundering rush of water flowing over the rugged cliff face is created by two creeks that are fed by underground springs, rain, and snow.

A few hours later, we were famished when we sat down for lunch at the Old Bavarian Restaurant in downtown Helen. The marinated Reuben sandwiches and a German beer were satisfying and delicious. Plus the accordion player/singer, whose hometown was Munich, Germany was entertaining.

We can make the Oklahoma trip in two days, but adding our mini-vacations along the way makes the trip much more enjoyable and just added two extra fun-filled days.

Where Did the Summer Go?

Long time, no blog. Since returning from California in July, I have spent much of the remaining summer back in Oklahoma. Mom is experiencing a serious health problem, but she's taking the necessary steps to beat it and those of us who know her well have no doubt that she will. Mom lives on by brother and sister-in-law's horse ranch, so their being close-by is great for all of us.

The pelicans have stopped by on their way south. So they're thinking it's fall.

Here in Brunswick (yes, we're still here) the air has suddenly cooled today and it is actually feeling fallish. Some boat projects have taken longer than planned, plus, not surprisingly, we have had some unexpected projects. The generator required lots of attention. A stuck valve required investigation and then replacement of both valve push rods. Larry also replaced the exhaust gasket and the impeller. He then made an internal RPM adjustment. To have better access to the generator, he cut a whole in the fiberglass in the engine room! Another unexpected project was a new Balmar regulator, now installed and working. A new admiral panel (cockpit gauges) and lines have been installed. All tests are A-OK for these new projects. Our solar panels and controller, our wind generator, and our Link 2000 battery monitor are doing what they are supposed to, and with the generator adjustment, we should be pretty darn self-sufficient once the Spectra water maker is installed (Big job, Larry has removed the old one ). Larry plans to install it in late October. We’re also adding a storage shelf in the aft cabin. We had to relocate the fan and we've added stainless steel bars which will be the base for a shelf. Placed sbove the mattress cushions, the shelf creates much needed space without compromising the sleeping area for guests.

So, a fairly productive summer, considering... We are retired, you know, so no eight-hour project days for us! This area has experienced rain and thunderstorms above normal all spring and summer. Not only does this weather pattern become tiresome, it also slows down boat projects and presents very few favorable weather windows, which is one of the several reasons we didn’t get away from here to sail north to Annapolis. During one major lightning storm, seven boats sustained damage from lightning strikes, though we were thankfully not one of them. None of the owners were on board, so the marina had to notify them. Not the kind of news you want to hear from your marina. Thus far, we’ve had no hurricane, or even tropical storm threats.

Like other places, boaters here consider social times important. Some evenings we meet other boaters on the docks for a sundowner. We have boater friends here that we knew from the Bahamas, plus we’ve met many other nice boaters with whom to share tales and talk about future plans. We’re on Dock 1, so we meet a few of the transient boaters. We were outside earlier today talking to a couple with a two-year-old daughter. They’ve sailed here from Europe and are on their way to Deltaville, Virginia to spend the winter at a do-it-yourself yard. In less than an hour, we found out both negative and positive information about places in the Caribbean, specifically, negative about Trinidad and positive about the St. Lucia, the French Islands, and the ABC’s. We were able to give them a little info too, so we all benefitted. By the way, you might recall Deltaville is where we took our boat last summer and we finally left to head south on December 5 – with frost on our glass enclosure.

We're watching the weather now and getting everything put back in place on our boat. We are planning to be underway to Charleston by the end of the week, where we'll have the boat hauled for a bottom job plus more. It's about 150 miles, so we'll do an over-nighter. While the boat is out of the water, we'll spend a few days in Annapolis at the Boat Show. Hope we see you there.

Back on Board

Lapidus has a full crew of two again.

My trip to California to stay with daughter Kenya and son-in-law Nathan was soooo nice. We spent time in Kenya's studio (www.bewellgroomed.com), at the beach, at farmer's markets, in great restaurants, shopping, and hanging around the house and yard - home of giant sunflowers. The gorgeous weather was made even better by the cool ocean breeze. Most evenings found us in the back yard where we enjoyed a log in the firepit with our dinner and a glass of wine, watching lots of kitty antics. Dinner at Joe's Restaurant where Nathan is a manager was a treat for our friend Pam and me one evening when Kenya was working. The food is always amazing at Joe's: unusual (at least for me) and made with the freshest ingredients. Nathan does a great job and it's fun to watch him at his craft. After dinner, we were off to a Joan Baez concert at Santa Monica Pier. We joined the thousands already there to listen to the legendary folk singer delivering song after song in her pure soprano voice.

While I was in California, Larry kept the projects going. Projects that are completed (or getting close) include new batteries, link 2000, solar panels, upgrade kit in wind generator, restitching and repairing canvas and main sail, and new autopilot. Sea Trials are scheduled for this Friday. Yippee!The new water maker just arrived; Larry plans on installing it in September. Also, we will probably have a bottom job done in August as well as the Max Prop adjusted.

We kept the small solar panels above our bimini and added these two large ones just above the davits.

With boat projects and visiting kids, parents, brothers, sisters, and friends in Oklahoma, Texas, and California, we're having a full and rewarding summer. A year will probably be gone before we get to connect with most of these great people, so we appreciate getting together with them for a bit. We wished we had been able to see many other good friends. We needed another weekend so that we could see our sailing friends at Texoma. But with major boat projects underway, we had to get back. We didn't take enough pictures, but did snap a few.

Larry with his sister Madelaine and daughter Deborah just after dinner in Oklahoma City, at Lakeside Grill. We stayed with Madelaine while we were in Oklahoma City and very much appreciated her generosity.


Traveling north of Oklahoma City to see my mom and brother Rick and sister-in-law Liz gave us a chance to see Rick and Liz's beautiful Manalarga Marchadors, gaited horses from Brazil.


Dinner at Ciola's, one of Austin's many great restaurants, with son Trent and daughter-in-law Cristen. Other evenings, we dined in their beautiful Austin home, enjoying dinners prepared by Cristen, who is an excellent cook. One special night, our plans included dinner and live music at Shady Grove, one of our favorite Austin spots, where the venue lives up to its name. Jimmy LaFave, also one of our favorites, wowed us with his folksy, bluesy music.


Kenya and Paula enjoying lunch at at this cute little vegetarian restuarant in Redondo Beach. They make the biggest and tastiest veggie burger.

Kenya and Paula lunching at the Beverly Wilshire -in Beverly Hills, of course. When you click on the picture for full size, you can see the Rodeo Drive sign! We were actually toasting Larry's birthday. He makes a great martini, but could not make his own birthday martini because he could not find the vermouth or the olives. (He really missed me after that.) He went out for Mexican food and a Margarita.


Hope your summer travels have enabled you to connect with friends and family.

Time for Visiting

The short break from blogging that I planned to take has turned into a long one. We've been busy with projects and we've also been away from the boat.

Leaving Lapidus under the watchful eyes of our dockmaster, our electricians, and our boat neighbors, we spent a few weeks traveling via plane and pickup to visit friends and family, to have doctor and dentist checkups, and to sight see a bit.

We flew to Oklahoma City and retrieved our pickup from storage. Most of our large, extended family lives in Oklahoma and Texas. We traveled the highways and were fortunate enough to spend time with mom, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, and many of their family members.

Austin, Texas was our last stop to visit family. We had decided that we wanted our pickup on the east coast, so after spending several days with son Trent and family, we left Austin to drive back to Brunswick. Never people to miss a pretty beach, we turned south at Mobile, Alabama and drove to the lovely Gulf Shores area. A one-night hotel stay in Orange Beach gave us time for a couple of walks on the beautiful white sand, which we learned was quartz that washes down the river from the Appalachian mountains. We continued our coastal drive to Pensacola, where we observed beautiful blue-green water paired with the white sand. Then, we were back on I10 for the long dive to Jacksonville, then north on I95, eager to be home on Lapidus.

Larry is working on his boat projects as well as overseeing the jobs that we have professionals working on. No pictures yet, but the new solar panels are up and the wiring is almost completed.
I was back on the boat for less than a week and then traveling again. I am in California visiting our daughter Kenya and her husband Nathan, as well as our ‘grandkits’ here on the ‘kitty ranch.’ The weather is gorgeous and I’m greatly enjoying my stay. We have planned a few projects for me to ‘help’ with while I'm here, but mostly, I’m just on an nice vacation.

Provisioning / Where's the Appetizer?

Our pantry and other storage areas are much less full than when we left Deltaville, Virginia on December 3, but we still have plenty of groceries in the pantry and cupboards. In addition to the fish and lobster we purchased from Jeff, the diver, in Little Farmer's, we returned with several packages of ground beef and steak. We're already thinking of the changes we'll make in provisioning for our next trip to the Bahamas.

The cruising books tell us to provision heavily because food in the Bahamas is much more expensive than in the States, plus we may not find what we want. That statement is misleading. The grocery stores in Georgetown, Exuma; Rock Sound, Eleuthera; Spanish Wells, St. George; and Marsh Harbor, Abaco are large markets with great selections. Most cruisers will visit at least one of those areas and they will be able to restock. Paper products and snack foods such as chips and crackers are noticeably more expensive than most of us are used to. We still might take less Bounty and Charmin next season; they take up lots of room and are readily available. Prices obviously are not as low as the Walmart Special prices, but after what we had heard, we were pleasantly surprised. Smaller groceries are scattered around the cays, but they have limited products and usually only one or two brands. We always visit these small stores at least once when we are anchored in the area. For all markets, when possible, we shop as soon as possible after the mail boat has supplied the store with fresh food and supplies. Buying the freshest lettuce and spinach really makes me happy.

In almost every village or town, homemade bread, eggs, plus fresh fruit and vegetables are sold by individuals, or sometimes in the market -always at a reasonable price, plus the opportunity to meet and talk with the baker or the gardener.

Thoughts on provisioning for our next trip to the Bahamas:
We'll take fewer canned goods; they are available everywhere. We came back with vegetables, fruit, and tomatoes.

I like to add soy milk to my coffee. We add it to our oatmeal and I use it in cooking, but we often did not finish the carton before its expiration date. I also have dry milk on board, which works fine in coffee, cereal and cooking, and takes up much less space than soy milk cartons. For a glass of milk, both homogenized and bottled milk are available in the larger markets.

We will not completely fill our freezer before we leave. We plan on fishing (line behind the boat) while we're underway plus we can easily buy fresh fish, conch, and lobster. We discovered frozen vegetables are quickly freezer-burned in a boat freezer, so we'll buy available fresh vegetables that will be much tastier.

We only took one case of beer from the States, which didn't last long. That was OK, because we quickly developed a taste for a Bahamian beer, Kalik (K lick'). In Georgetown, a case is $36.00 -pricey, but it's really good! We'll plan on drinking Kalik when we return, though not every town has a liquor store.

We still have bottles of wine stored in the bilge and we came home with two boxes of white wine, but we have been out of the Black Box Reserve Merlot for two months. Boxed wine (sans the cardboard) store a little easier than bottles, but we were unable to find a comparable box wine in the Bahamas. There is a good selection of bottled wine; most were not familiar to us -probably good, just unfamiliar. We did buy a French red wine that was inexpensive and tasty. Our wine storage areas will be full before we leave. Liquor is about the same price as the States, except for Bahamian Rum, which is yummy and less expensive than rum here.

We provisioned about right on many items including coffee, oil, pasta, aged cheese. But, we may store less of these and other items, with the plan to replenish as necessary -maybe bravely trying other brands.

I only took one sea salt and one pepper, both in large grinders that were not refillable. After these were empty, I finally found a shaker of sea salt (small grind) and a shaker of already ground pepper.

And, most importantly, I did not take enough supplies nor enough of a variety of supplies for the appetizers that we took to the numerous 'Sundowners on the Beach' and to friends' boats for cockpit get-togethers.

A plate of Cheese and Crackers seems to be the simplest appetizer, plus changing it up is so easy by serving a different cracker and a different cheese than the last time. Aged cheese stays fresh for a long time and fits in the floor of the fridge easily, but crackers! I took at least ten bags of a variety of crackers, removing the cardboard before storing. They go fast. In the Bahamas, the cracker choice is slim: mostly Ritz or Club Crackers - both OK, but not much surprise to them.

Cream Cheese makes a great foundation for appetizers. I took several packages and did not think to buy any while we were in Georgetown. A month later, I found some in the frozen food area of a small store. The appetizer I made with the thawed cream cheese tasted great, so I will freeze a good quantity for the next season's round of parties. who knew?

Other foods to have on hand:
chips and salsa (chips are easier to find than a selection of crackers)
canned shrimp, crab, and tuna, sardines, anchovies
bacon bits
jars of olive tapinade
jars of marinated artichokes
nuts
fresh fruit
fresh veggies

Try one of these for your next appetizer creation:
Eggplant Spread (or Broccoli or Butternut Squash)
Steam or boil two trimmed eggplants until tender.
Drain liquid (reserve)
In blender or food processor, puree eggplants, adding 3 T olive oil
Add reserved liquid or more olive oil to reach the consistency you want.
Salt and Pepper as needed


Cream Cheese/Artichoke Spread
Cut Cream Cheese (must be at room temperature) in half lengthwise
Cover one layer with chopped marinated artichokes
Top with remaining layer of cream cheese
Cover with chopped marinated artichokes
Sprinkle with toasted almond slivers

Bon Appetit

Georgia

We pulled into a slip in Brunswick Landing Marina in Brunswick, GA on Sunday, May 24. Our time here will include installing new batteries and solar panels and checking out the entire electrical system.

We were stuck in Mayport, FL for five days. After 13.3 inches of rain, Mayport, Jacksonville, and surrounding areas were looking for sunshine and so were we. The St. John's River flowing (more like running) by Mayport hosts numerous fishing boats, cruise ships, a casino ship, pleasure craft, and a ferry that takes cars and passengers on the water portion of A1A between Mayport and St. George island. The ferry is pictured on the left.

We took a beating from the storm, the current, the flooding water, the large boat traffic and the dilapidated fuel dock that we were tied to. We lost four dock lines and have a noticable spot on our hull that will need to be refinished.

Both a large Naval Station and Coast Guard Station are headquartered here. So their craft are on the water often as well.

We thought we would just travel up the ICW to Fernandina, FL, but the rain continued, flooding began, and the Coast Guard cautioned that the ICW was hazardous due to debris. The weather, soon labeled as a Nor'easter, calmed some but hung on during the week.

Deciding that we just had to leave, on Saturday morning we untied the lines and headed back out the long St. John’s channel. This Navy submarine was coming in. The Coast Guard let us know to 'Stay Away' from both the submarine and the large navy shop going out the channel.



After several hours, with rain falling and a likely chance of a squall, we turned into the St. Mary’s channel to spend the night in Fernandina.

Located on Amelia Island in the northeast corner of Florida along the Atlantic Coast, Fernandina is a Victorian seaport village with small-town charm, southern hospitality, and rich history.

In the early 1900’s, Fernandina’s docks were among the South’s busiest and the numerous saloons offered a welcome to ships from across the globe. The Palace Saloon earned the distinction of being the “Ship Captains Bar.” Today, the saloon still has the original inlaid mosaic floors, embossed tin ceilings, and a 40-foot bar lit with gas lamps.

Having visited the area while attending a tile conference on Amelia Island years ago, we enjoyed touring the town again.

The ICW between Fernandina and Brunswick is very shallow with lots of shoaling, so we went back out the St. Mary’s channel (9 miles), 20 miles north to the St. Simon channel, then 10 + miles to Brunswick Landing. We saw no sunshine, but we encountered no squalls or even rain, so it was a good trip and we are delighted to be in a slip for a while.

Now Why Did We Leave the Bahamas?

Three blogs in three days! But this third blog brings our travels up-to-date and is posted from our current location of Mayport, FL, twenty miles from Jacksonville.

Larry's log of our crossing:

Saturday morning, May 16, Sea Dancer, Southern Estates and Solar Eclipse leave just ahead of us as we all go west across the Abacos and the Little Bahama Bank. With a light wind at our backs, we motor sail. Late in the afternoon, our friends turn southwest to stop at an anchorage by the Mangrove waypoint for a couple hours of rest and then sail on to Ft. Pierce, FL, while Paula and I keep going west for we are going to Brunswick, GA to work on our boat. Doug on Solar Eclipse, had recommended someone there to help us with some of the work.

Around midnight, we entered the Atlantic and headed into the Gulf Stream. The wind was light and the seas were 2-3 feet, very comfortable conditions. We angled our direction so that we would be in the Gulf Stream for as long as possible, letting it push us along. We were 50-60 miles off shore. We would leave the Stream as we headed toward the Ponce de Leon to spend Sunday night in Daytona Beach. The wind continued to be light, and even with the Gulf Stream current, our progress was not as good as I had planned, and making the Ponce de Leon inlet before dark was not looking good. I avoid going into an unfamiliar inlet at night. Paula suggested we go in at Cape Canaveral, but it was still early in the day. I said, "Let's just sail on to Georgia; we can make it before the bad weather and we will be there." Big Mistake! We continued to go with the Stream for a while, but then angled away from it; we needed to get out of it as the front, and possible north wind, approached. Counter current, eddie, I don't know! Here comes the wind, rain, lightning and we are going very slow. By morning winds are in the 30's, and up to 40 knots. The seas are building larger and the swells were too. We are going so slow that we can't make the Brunswick inlet (40 nautical miles away) by nightfall. Paula said it seemed as if we were in slow motion as we watched the boat travel the waves and swells so expertly. We decided to turn toward St. Mary's inlet (20 nautical miles due west) on the Georgia/Florida border. I build up some nerve to make the turn and three big waves pass and then a smaller one that I turn on top of. I don't believe it. We are going 8 knots with 3 reefs in our mainsail with no staysail or jib up. We were going 2 knots before we turned. I don't like the angle of the waves going to the St. Mary's inlet, so we turn just a few degrees to port and go to the Jacksonville, Florida inlet on the St. Johns River. A pod of dolphins joined us for an hour, adding a bit of sunshine to a rainy, windy day.

We stopped at the first marina we came to, which is in Mayport. The marina is being remodeled, so we are tied up on the outside of the only dock left and have had sustained 40 to 50 knot wind and 10 inches of rain. We have 8 docks lines on and every fender that we have plus a few from the marina. We are in the process of replacing our voltage regulator, which was apparently hit by lightning, though we never saw it happen. Our wind generator also is not working and was probably also hit, but we'll have that checked later.

We were never in any danger of anything happening to us, but weather service, such as Chris Parker (a former sailboat cruiser) weather reports, are so good these days that you do not need to get into bad weather while cruising and be uncomfortable at sea. Although it was kind of fun!

Only a Few More Stops

We left Hope Town for a one-night anchorage off Great Guana Cay. On the beach, we could see evidence of the beginnings of a resort that was never finished, not an unusal sight in the Bahamas. The next morning we traveled the Whale Cay Cut and Passage. The Passage goes through the cut to the ocean and then back through a narrower cut into the Sea of Abaco. Rocks and coral close to the marked passage make this passage a little intimidating, but the channel is deep plus we had fairly calm seas and winds and motor-sailed though the passage uneventfully.

Green Turtle Cay was a short twelve miles away and we dropped anchor just off the settlement of New Plymouth, the only settlement on the island. We enjoyed walking around this historic town that has retained its old-world charm. In the center of town is a large bronze sculpture garden in memory of the Loyalist settlers. We had been told to be sure to stop at Miss Emily’s Blue Bee Bar for a Goombay Smash, so we did and we certainly were not disappointed. Somehow, we knew to limit ourselves to just one. We bought a few groceries and enjoyed browsing a shop that was filled with specialty and island-made gifts.

We would have liked to stay another night, but lots of wind plus squalls with even higher wind were predicted. Like our friends on Mariah and Gypsy Song, we planned to sit out the weather between Manjack and Crab Cays, just a few miles from Green Turtle Cay. Before we left, we motored into the Green Turtle Cay Marina for our last opportunity in the Bahamas for fuel and water. The marina is in a small body of water on the cay called White Sound. The channel is less than six feet, so we went in on a rising tide. We pulled up to the dock for fuel and water; as soon as we moved off the dock, Solar Eclipse pulled up. As we motored out of White Sound, the tide was already going down, and we were all relieved to be back out in 8-10 feet of water for our short trip to the anchorage. Who would have thought we would be glad to see 8-10 feet of water?

Five miles later, we pulled into the protected bay of Manjack Cay. We quickly saw why this lush island is popular among cruisers. The area is beautiful with several beaches and the anchorage is a large protected bay. We had over twenty boats, but we were not at all crowded. Surprisingly, we could get wifi, if we sat in the cockpit and had direct line of site to the tower. A family in one of the two inhabited houses on the cay has erected a tall tower and is OK with cruisers picking up wifi. They also encourage cruisers to explore the beaches. In shallow water just off the beach by their house, they have built a small tiki-style hut that has drop-down swings and hammocks. Several trails have been cleared and are well-marked, including one to the ocean side beach. We enjoyed beachcombing and spotting rays, starfish, turtles, conch, and fish in the crystal clear water. We walked the ocean trail that had been cleared of mangroves and other shrubs/trees. Those of us on Solar Eclipse, Mariah, Gypsy Song, Ariel, and Lapidus plus guests from a few other boats gathered for a breakfast on the beach and an evening cookout with a bonfire on a different beach.

Aware that our days in the Bahamas were numbered, we wanted to enjoy all the last precious days. We had several rains with increased wind, but the weather was more enjoyable than stormy.

On Saturday, May 16, at 6:30 AM, Chris Parker reported that Saturday and Sunday offered a fairly good weather window; then weather would deteriorate again. This was a surprise; we thought we would be tucked in for a few more days. Ron from Sea Dancer and Southern Estates had anchored in the bay the night before. Ron checked with Chris on leaving Saturday with the destination of the Ft. Pierce Florida inlet. We also called in during Chris’ SSB weather report requesting information about going feven further north than Ft. Pierce. Our destination of Brunswick, GA was probably too far for just two days, but we hoped we could go in the Ponce de Leon inlet (Daytona Beach). Chris encouraged everyone to be in by Sunday evening before a cold front developed around 30N, the Jacksonville area. By 8:30 am, Sea Dancer and Southern Estates were underway; an hour later Solar Eclipse and Lapidus were also headed across the Sea of Abaco, USA bound.

Touring the Abacos

Five miles after leaving our overnight anchorage in Royal Island, we turned north toward the Abacos. We had a great sail for the remaining 49.30 miles to first destination, Little Harbour. We really enjoy sailing with Doug and Marlene on Solar Eclipse. It’s their first trip to the Bahamas too, so all of us are always excited to see new places. Even on long sails such as this one, we drop anchor within about 15 minutes of each other. From Halifax, Nova Scotia, they are seasoned sailors who raced competitively for many years. They always have great sail trim on their 38-foot Island Packet. There are as many Canadians as Americans cruising the Bahamas and most those we have met have a racing background.

We had been told that the anchorages on the beaches around Little Harbour are beautiful and that Pete’s Pub is not to be missed. All of the is true, but we discovered much more.

Randolph Johnston was an assistant professor at Smith College in Massachusetts. In 1950, he resigned his position; he and his family began the search for their own island on which they would carve both a home and a sculptor’s workshop. They sold their home, stored their art, drove to Florida, flew to Nassau and took the mail boat to Man-O-War Cay, known for building quality boats. Here, they had their schooner Langosta built. After much sailing in the Bahamas, looking for their personal island, they discovered Little Harbour, only a few miles south of Man-O-War cay.

While at the Gallery on Little Harbour, we purchased one of the four dusty, yellowing Artist on His Island, which was printed in 1975, and includes many entries from Professor Johnston’s original diary as well as a number of the artist’s drawings. The excerpts are beautifully written and highlight adventures, misadventures, trials, and triumphs. In the art world, Randolph Johnston is considered one of the great sculptors of the twentieth century. But this family’s amazing life on the island remains relatively unknown.

While other families do now also live on the island, much of Little Harbour remains in the hands of Professor Johnston’s three sons, but only Pete maintains a relatively high profile with a gallery devoted to his father’s work, his work, and the work of other local artists, and Pete’s Pub, a shack bar on the beach that turns out really good pub grub and is a fun place.
For more info, vist www.petespubandgallery.com

After leaving our lovely anchorage, we sailed out of Little Harbour with Marsh Harbour as our next stop. We could have stayed in the shallow bank side, known in this area as the Sea of Abaco. We chose to go out the cut and sail on the ocean side; the route was straight and more direct. From Marsh Harbour we planned to make short sails to other cays and their unique settlements.

Marsh Harbour is the “big city” of the Abacos. The harbor is spacious and secure and the town offers many facilities for boaters. We saw cruisers at anchorage that we’ve met along the way, plus we were able to catch up with many of them at the local Happy Hours.

One day when the wind was light and the Sea of Abaco pretty calm, we decided to take a dingy trip to Man-O-Was Cay to visit some friends of Doug and Marlene’s and tour the island. We didn’t see the anchorage as we thought we would, so we pulled into the marina and went ashore. We quickly discovered we had motored to Great Guana Cay, not to our planned stop. Unless there is a landmark, such as a Batelco tower, the cays in this area look similar, and we had just not headed east enough when we left Marsh Harbour. We had a good laugh and thirty minutes later, we were meeting Tuck and Kathy on Mariah and Jake and Amy on Gypsy’s Song. After a beer and another chuckle about our dingy travels, we all went into town for lunch and to walk around this community of Loyalist descendants, known for their shipbuilding. Today their heritage of Abaco runabouts is seen in the United States as well as the Bahamas (the ferry boats). Our five-mile trip back to Marsh Harbour was rough, but, thankfully, the shortest trip of the day.

In the Abacos, everyone stops by Marsh Harbour, but after catching up with other cruisers, boat maintenance, and provisioning, most of us are ready for a quieter anchorage. We tied up to the docks of Marsh Harbour Marina for fuel and water, and then sailed to our next anchorage, a beautiful beach on Elbow Cay, just outside the harbor entrance to Hope Town.

While Marsh Harbour is the hub of the Abacos, Hope Town is the jewel. The main businesses can be found around the waterfront of this well-protected harbor. Originally designed for pedestrians and their carts and wagons, narrow concrete paths are set between New England style cottages that are painted every color and every color combination: pinks, greens, turquoise, salmon, yellows, blues, gray, and white and decorated with gingerbread or filigree work. The small town is quiet, clean, charming, and quaint.

Hope Town and cruisers anchored just outside the town are watched over by the still-functioning red-and-white striped lighthouse. We climbed the winding steps of this 120-ft.
beacon to get an inside view of the hand-wound kerosene light and the magnificent prisms and also to take in the amazing 360-degree view. A keeper lives on site to nightly light the only manned lighthouse remaining in the Bahamas.


For Mother’s Day, Larry treated me to a special brunch at Harbours Edge. Sitting on the ocean-side waterfront veranda, listening to live music, watching the water splash across the reef, enjoying delicious food and unlimited bubbly --- lovely! Then, back on the boat, I took a little nap. Later that evening, Doug and Marlene came over with a beautifully grilled pork loin. I opened a bottle of bubbly, and we toasted the spirit of Mother’s Day and enjoyed a great dinner and planned our next anchorage.