Only crazy fools would leave for an extended cruise on Friday
the 13th, but that’s exactly what we did a year ago in September. We sailed away
from our home in Milford, CT to new horizons.
With this, our first year of cruising behind us, I thought it'd be fun to take a look back. It would be an impossibly
tedious blog if I tried summarizing all our experiences – both on land and at
sea, so these are just some of the highlights and lowlights.
Key Statistics
Distance travelled so far: According to our log, we’ve travelled
3,120 nautical miles from CT to Bahamas and then back up to the Chesapeake
(where we are now).
Longest passage: From the Abacos in the Bahamas to Norfolk,
VA., which took 4.5 days and covered 660 nM (roughly 6 knots average).
Longest stay: Two months in Georgetown, Exumas.
Fastest boat speed: 11 knots.
Most wind: While sailing is 30 knots. The most at anchor is
40 knots.
Scariest moment: When the boat dragged in Portsmouth and we
weren’t on it.
Best moment: Swimming with the dolphins for an hour or more
in Eleuthera.
Second-best moment: Spending Christmas at the Exumas Land and Sea Park in Warderick Wells with dozens of cruisers and several families and discovering just how jaw-droppingly beautiful the Bahamas really are.
Worst moment: Figuring out why the head clogged and then
cleaning up after I made one small mistake…
Biggest surprise: How incredibly helpful the cruiser
community has been to us. We've had strangers open up their homes, boats, cars, and hearts to us. There is an incredible generosity amongst the cruisers we’ve
met; I hope we get a chance to pay it back.
What might not be obvious is that there were
many more positive memories than negative ones. We’ve had no real storms to
face or “I’m glad we survived” moments. Yes, we’ve been in bigger waves and
wind than we wanted, but the boat did fine in those conditions. It’s taught us
to be patient and wait for decent weather.
Creature Encounter
Along the way, we ran into many kinds of animals in the wild. Some visits were brief, some longer.
Alligator (South Carolina)
Manatees (Florida)
Sharks, Bull and Reef (Bahamas)
Dolphin (Chesapeake and points south, Bahamas)
Bald eagles (Chesapeake, Dismal Swamp)
Osprey (everywhere)
Heron, Pelican, etc. (everywhere)
Turtles (South Carolina, Bahamas)
Moray eel (Bahamas)
Nutria (Bahamas)
Brown Racer Snake (Bahamas)
Iguana (Bahamas)
Departure, September 13th, 2013
We left on a clear, crisp sunny day. I remember being
nervous about sailing so far away to the Bahamas, but it’s like eating
an elephant - just taking small bites over a long period of time. On our entire trip to the Bahamas, we only sailed for 24 hours once. All the other jumps were simple day trips.
September 13, 2013 - We begin our trip from Milford, CT
Traveling down the East Coast
After leaving Milford, we boogied for NYC to time our trip through the East River. Instead of staying in NYC like we planned, we kept going due to favorable weather. We had to get south along the New Jersey coast and we wanted to do that in good conditions. We never went ashore until we reached the Chesapeake.
Motoring by the UN building in NYC
The trip down was mostly rushed and too much motoring or motor-sailing. It
wasn’t until we reached the top of the Chesapeake that things began to slow
down and we could turn back into a sailboat. The weather was much colder than we anticipated. We had to resupply with thermal underwear before too long. We were a little too eager to leave our winter gear behind us...
Chesapeake City - at the very top of the Chesapeake
Fun in Baltimore
Annapolis, MD: Hanging off a mooring
Annapolis, MD: Watching the America's Cup with like-minded sailors
We certainly took advantage of the historical areas. We visited sites key to the Revolutionary war, War of 1812 and
a few of the Civil War sites. Here on the East Coast, they have “historical recreation” (otherwise known as "living history") sites where people dress up as the inhabitants and tell
you their story. I don’t remember anything like that on the West Coast – other
than the Renaissance Faire!
Williamsburg, VA: boot making 101
Yorktown, VA: attacking the British
Jamestown, VA: We want our next boat to look like this
St. Michaels, MD: After the crab-feeding frenzy
Leaving the Chesapeake
In mid-November, my mom joined us as we left Norfolk, VA and headed down the
ditch to parts south. Amazingly, she held up well in some admittedly rough
conditions – the roughest of our trip in fact.
Nofolk, VA: Heading down the "ditch" with Mom
You can motor a boat from
Norfolk, VA through the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) all the way to Miami. It’s
commonly referred to as the "ditch" – which is what it looks like in many parts.
I think we must have spent 50% of our passage in the ditch, the rest was out on
open water. Personally, I’d prefer to do much more on the open water, but
conditions determine which way we go.
Somewhere in South Carolina: The ditch goes on and on...
Roanoke, NC: Sunrise (which means Beth took it as I'm still sleeping)
I think Roanoke was my favorite resting point along the way. There is a historical site of the "lost colony" of Roanoke - it's very well done. We had
the anchorage to ourselves and I discovered “Shrimp and Grits” there. Grits are
basically the same thing as polenta. The dish contains small bits of spicy
sausage, shrimps, garlic, cheese-infused grits, country ham, green onions,
Cajun spice and a little chicken stock. Now that’s some Southern cookin’! Best enjoyed while watching the shrimp boats pull into the harbor.
Roanoke Indian Village: This is all we'll be able to afford after we sell the boat...
Roanoke, NC: Time to relax
Shrimp 'N Grits!
Kitty Hawk, NC
Weather was cold – even as far south as Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. It was 30 degrees on the boat one morning and we all resorted to sleeping together in one berth to stay warm.
Hilton Head, SC: Spanish Moss was everywhere
Charleston, SC: Carriage ride tour of the city
Mr. Repairman
Unlike many other cruisers, who have a history of meddling with tools and fixing things around the home, I was more wary of the “DIY” mentality. This was partly due to my upbringing and partly due to the fact that when I tried to fix something, I would usually make some bonehead mistake causing me more time, effort and money to repair than the original problem.
When you’re a cruiser and you break down in some remote location, you’re on your own. So unless your plan is to be the next Swiss Family Robinson storyline, you’re faced with dealing with these issues yourself. I reluctantly came to this decision myself as Beth refused to learn how to service a diesel engine. For me, the side effect has been many instances where I pay a price for the, “it seems I have an extra part left-over after assembling that,” or the “jeesh, how does that go back together?” or, my favorite, “it’s not the way you’re supposed to do it, but maybe it will work for awhile.” So, I randomly bleed, sweat profusely, swear and generally fumble my way towards a semi-functioning boat. Yes, there is a sense of accomplishment getting something to work, but there is also a dread of something suddenly not working when we need it. It’s the yin and the yang of maintaining a boat.
Dealing with melted watermelon in the vents
·What needed fixing:
Watermaker: Fatal blow out of end cap dumped water in the boat and then took a month to repair.
Generator: Multiple failures of impeller caused mysterious shutdowns.
AC: Fermented watermelon juice in AC ducts required replacing them in 90 degree weather.
Rudders: Both replaced due to cracks and fluttering.
Hulls: Had to fix large gelcoat gouges from big iron bolts when the boat dragged anchor and drifted away without us.
Heads: Both started leaking and required rebuilds, then there was the epic blockage…
Engine: Ate 3 fan belts in 9 months, constantly required tightening to prevent squealing.
Saildrive: A small crack developed in the housing (somehow) – which allowed sea water into the gear oil.
Propellers: On three occasions, we wrapped a line around our props (stalling the engine). Required me to twice dive into the water and remove lines in zero visibility water.
Windlass: Oil leak into the electric motor, required strip and rebuild.
Outboard: Bad fuel and decomposing fuel line crudded up the carb. For a month, we could barely go 100 feet without stalling.
This is a very small list of just some of the things that needed attention. There is the chore of routine servicing and replacement of parts that wear out. It seems we rarely go more than a month before something surprises me.
Florida
Coming into St. Augustine after 24 hours sailing from Hilton
Head was a bit of nail biter – only because the seas were rough and there was a
lot of outflowing current. That can create breaking waves, but we just powered
through some rollers and got into calmer waters. It was such a huge change to
be in FL. The weather was now tropical after the cool of HH. St. Augustine had
lots going on – but we only stayed a few days before continuing down the ditch.
St. Augustine, FL: Welcome to sunny and warm Florida!
St. Augustine: We're back in T-shirt weather!
Beauty telling us to get up off our butts and feed her
We stayed in the ditch for most of Florida. There are only
certain spots where you can leave/enter it, and generally the weather wasn’t
decent to take the ocean route.
Because we were in the ditch, we were faced with lots of
bridges. They come in two forms – those that are fixed and we barely clear with our mast; those that are movable and we have to time our arrival and/or call them on VHF to request an opening. Needless to say, bridges
were necessary evils. A few times we were forced to wait for a lower tide before going under a fixed bridge. More than a few times we heard the "twang" of our steel whip antenna hitting the undersides of a bridge.
A rare sighting of a swinging bridge, most bridges were Bascule
Florida was also about visiting with Beth's family. We took our time going through and by December 12th, we were parked south of Miami, waiting for the right conditions to cross the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas.
Melbourne, FL: sailing with Beth's family
Melbourne, FL: After all the bridges we saw, we build one out of paper
Miami, FL: As we got further south, we saw the water color change
Somewhere in FL
Bahamas
After arriving in the startling clear, turquoise water of Bimini, six hours after leaving Miami, we hung around for a couple days before jumping down to Nassau. After a week fixing a few things, we headed to the Exumas - rushing down to Georgetown - cruiser's central.
Bimini: Everything we were hoping for
Bimini: Our introduction to the colors of the Bahamas
Nassau wasn't anything more than a tourist spot
The Exumas lived up to - and even exceeded - our expectations. Warderick Wells was our first stop, a natural trust site, so no fishing allowed. It was extraordinary photogenic. I still shake my head at the beauty of it all. We stayed a week for racing further down to Georgetown, skipping many islands on the way.
Warderick Wells: Paradise found!
WW: Spending Christmas with other kids made J smile
Exumas: Jeanette goes "au naturale"
We had it all there in Georgetown - beaches galore, shelter, rudimentary provisions and most importantly, other families! Jeanette instantly made friends and there were many rendezvous in the shade of Hamburger or Volleyball beaches.
Georgetown: Valentines Day on Hamburger beach with kids from Glass Slipper, Rollick and Hoodwinked
Georgetown: Sunday lectures from the local historian
Georgetown Luxury: Local hotel has a "cruiser's special" on Fridays - good place to take visiting friends
Georgetown: My sister and husband visit us and sample one of the many beaches
Georgetown: It's "race your coconut boat" day at the Annual regatta
When you're cruising, you don't use last names as much as boat names. So instead of, "Here's the Pimentels!" you'd hear, "It's Dream Catcher!". So, in that spirit, Rollick taught me how to spear fish for lobster and other fish, Makai helped me with various "fix-it" projects (along with their 13 year old teaching me about trolling for fish!) while Makana, WhistlingCay and Glass Slipper kept Jeanette busy. The community is amazing, helpful and welcoming.
Exumas: I speared my first lobsters!
Georgetown: Kid-fun!
Other than two trips to the Jumentos (south of Exumas), we stayed in Georgetown with 150-300 other boats. We were having such a great time and there wasn't a lot of incentive to go elsewhere. We were not on a mission to circumnavigate the Caribbean - we have nothing to prove to anyone. My girls just want to have fun!
Jumentos: Looking for lobsters in all the wrong places
Jumentos: Enjoying fish and lobsters caught earlier with other cruisers we ran into
Return from the Bahamas
We took our time bouncing up the Exumas and spent some incredible moments with the family on Makai visiting an amazing panoply of nature's best screen-savers. We left Makai at Normans Cay and headed to Eleuthera (and our super-sized dolphin experience) before reconnecting with Makai and going up to the Abacos. Eleuthera and the Abacos are really beautiful, but pale in comparison to the Exumas. It's odd to hear so many cruisers who only go to the Abacos. They don't have any idea of what they're missing - but it proves how expectations are set. We'd never waste any time in the Abacos if we could spend it in the Exumas. We're hoping this year we'll explore places that put the Exumas to shame - like the Jumentos seemed to.
Playing with the Makai kids
Eleuthra: Dolphin extravaganza
Eleuthra: Video from our dolphin experience
Cambridge Cay: Visiting the "Aquarium" with Makai
Thomas Cay: Impossibly perfect sandbars are picture-worthy
On May 9th, we left Manjack Cay in the Abacos, on our longest passage to Norfolk, VA. Since then, we've been busy fixing the boat, moving the last of our stuff out of the Milford house and transporting it to FL. Now we're sitting here in Washington DC, a half-mile from the Washington Monument. We might hang out here a month before moving south and starting another Bahamian adventure.
Where to Next?
We’ll remain in the Chesapeake until our insurance allows us to proceed south around the middle of November. Then we’ll boogie down to
Florida before jumping over to the Bahamas. We’re definitely spending most of
our time in the Exumas and some of the remote islands that are further east and
south. We loved the Jumentos, so definitely more time down there.
Our house in Milford just sold –
thereby fully casting ourselves into the future. We’ve already sold or given
away pretty much everything we owned. What we have is on the boat and what
could fit into a conversion van that we drove from CT to FL. The future is an open door, or an empty horizon in our case. At least for another year. We take things as they come, we don't plan beyond six months at a time. No, this can't last forever as we have to go back to jobs at some point and Jeanette has to go to High School, but leave us our dreams for now, on the good ship Dream Catcher!
At first glance, Baltimore, a bit rough around the edges, does not seem exactly deserving of its nickname. I was curious about the origin of Charm City and discovered that it was part of a public relations move to promote the city at a time when urban decay was blighting the area. In response to a request from the mayor, the four leading advertising agencies in Baltimore came together in 1975 and brainstormed an image to sell Baltimore's appeal. Having walked around some of the neighborhoods, I can confirm that the city does exude significant charm. Old brick buildings, cobblestone streets, and flower boxes abound. Hipster bars and chic bistros stand cheek by jowl with older establishments whose walls one wishes could speak. Beautiful parks, green spaces, a waterfront promenade that goes for miles, and great outdoor venues for fairs, concerts, and farmer's markets lend themselves to enjoying the outdoors. Our anchorage, adjacent to "The Anchorage" Marina, was the perfect location for a stroll along the waterfront and quick provisioning trips to Safeway (across the street) and West Marine (a block away). For a cruiser, those two features make this an ideal place to hang out for a while. We had the added bonus of catching up with Bernie and Andrea from Rollick, and their 2 darling daughters, Alex (6) and Jordan (3).
Cart full o' boat kids
Alexa, Jeanette, Jordan
Girl Friends
We last saw them in the Exumas and it was great to spend time with them, share some meals, and plan for more warm-water adventures. Ken even managed to squeeze in three races with Bernie on Jester, a J-105 (finishing first in the series), while Jeanette and I did "girl stuff."
The official race picture (Ken on mainsheet, Bernie on jib)
Despite the age gap, Jeanette embraced the opportunity to play with kids and renew friendships. She especially loved joining Alex and Jordan at Port Discovery - an all-play (and, as Jeanette proudly told me "a no-learning") venue for kids. Having spent an afternoon there myself, I can confirm that this place is a kid's dream - climbing structures, tunnels, a play kitchen, a water play room, a bubble tube, crazy fun games, four floors of activities - truly a must-see for the under-12 set. We also spent an evening at the National Aquarium, which was more interesting for its unique layout than for any specific collection. They did have several of our familiar friends - black-tipped reef sharks - and an enormous loggerhead turtle named Calypso. She swam and glided so gracefully throughout the tank that it took a while before we realized that she only had 3 flippers! The switchback walkway from the top floor down to the lobby was really the most interesting part of the aquarium as it took us through different ocean environments in such a way that we felt submerged and surrounded by sea life at every turn - very cool!
Inner Harbor
National Aquarium
Calypso
One of my favorite discoveries about Baltimore was its free art museums and I love that the city has made a conscious decision to make art accessible to everyone. Although it was undergoing an extensive renovation that closed several exhibits, we really enjoyed the Baltimore Art Museum. There was a little bit of everything and a significant collection of Manet that came from two eccentric sisters who were avid art collectors. One of the more whimsical features of the modern art section was a bicycle-powered shower, which makes me think that we've just scratched the surface of "going green." We loved our afternoon there, Ken and Jeanette contributed some original artwork to the craft room wall, and we continue to use its excellent online resources for art activities.
Baltimore sunset over The Anchorage
As I said before, Baltimore is a little rough around the edges. The sirens and police helicopters flying overhead with searchlights scanning the neighborhoods were a frequent reminder of its urban problems. Closer to home, from a boating perspective, was the amount of garbage in the harbor. The city has set a goal of making the inner harbor swimmable by 2020 and they have their work cut out for them. It is such a problem that the city has come up with some innovative ways to help stem the amount of waste that finds its way into the water. One such innovation is a current- and solar-powered water wheel that catches garbage at the Jones Falls outlet between Pier 6 and Harbor East that catches trash (and not just your run-of-the-mill trash but things like mattresses) coming down from the Jones Falls watershed. Booms funnel the trash up to rake-like contraptions that steer the garbage to conveyor belts and onto dumpsters. Baffles, strategically placed near outflows, serve to contain some of the floating trash and facilitate cleanup. Even more interesting were the garbage boats - small barge-like vessels with conveyor belts that retrieve trash from the water and deposit it into a dumpster. Some had a screen that lowered in front to scoop up trash from the surface. In spite of all these efforts, the amount of garbage is staggering. Truly, I've never seen so much floating trash and the waste that poured into the harbor after a rainstorm was just appalling! Baltimore has such a gorgeous waterfront - and so much of it - that I hope their efforts to clean it up are successful!
Baffles along the shorefront
Cutest little garbage boat ever!
Fun Facts
Baltimore's skyline is concentrated around the Inner Harbor, drawing the eye away from the industry surrounding the rest of the harbor, including the Domino's sugar plant. It would be easy to dismiss this rusty old refinery but for the fact that sugar accounted for Baltimore's rapid growth in the 18th century due to its involvement with sugar-producing colonies in the Caribbean. When the wind blows from the right direction, it carries the scent of burnt sugar or, as I prefer to think of it "Crème brulée."
The Second Continental Congress met here between December 1776 and February 1777 making Baltimore the nation's capital for a brief time.
And let's not forget Francis Scott Key who was aboard a British ship while U.S. forces successfully defended Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor from British attack during the War of 1812. Upon seeing the American flag (the original "Star Spangled Banner" that was sewn by Mary Young Pickersgill in Baltimore) still flying from the fort the next morning, he wrote a poem about the defense of Fort McHenry that became the national anthem in 1931.
Construction of the first railroad - B&O Railroad (Baltimore and Ohio) - opened up a corridor to Midwest markets making Baltimore a major shipping and manufacturing center. The first umbrella factory in the U.S. was established here in 1828.
The first U.S. post office, first newspaper, and first stage coach route were begun in Baltimore.
The first Clipper was built here and for a time Baltimore was known as Clipper City.
Many, many, many other "firsts" due to Baltimore's strategic position on the Chesapeake and within the mid-Atlantic states.
Snowballs (slushies, snow cones, etc.) were invented here during the industrial revolution.
During the 1800's, Baltimore was the second largest port of entry for immigrants.
Billie Holliday, Thurgood Marshall, Babe Ruth, and Michael Phelps were born here. Edgar Allan Poe died here.
And to leave this strange compilation on a whimsical note.... In 1946, the Baltimore Zoo had an elephant named Minnie who played "St. Louis Blues" on the harmonica.
Baltimore Waterfront
Fort McHenry
Fruit Fly Farm
One of the last things we did before leaving St. Michael's was to buy some fresh produce, including a watermelon. A couple of days into our Baltimore stay, we decided that it was time to cut into its juicy flesh and cool off with a watermelon salad. As I reached under its bright green orb expecting to find a firm surface, my fingers sank into wet, sopping, rotting watermelon flesh. Eeeewwwwww!!!! I quickly scooped it up and brought it outside to be dealt with later. Grabbing rags and cleaner, we set to work cleaning all watermelon juice-soaked surfaces. Sadly, said watermelon had been placed over an air conditioning vent, which was cleaned as well as it could be. Several days later, I couldn't help but notice a noxious odor emanating from the a/c vent behind me. We immediately set to work on re-cleaning the vent, this time with clouds of fruit flies buzzing overhead. To make a long story short, over the course of several decontamination attempts, I discovered watermelon juice in various stages of drying/rotting deep within the a/c venting. I ended up removing several lengths of vent hose, which Ken gamely replaced with new venting. Whew - what an ordeal! So glad that's over! Except that it's not. Nope, the juice actually trickled down much farther than we could have imagined; and while the upper vent has virtually no odor now, the lower vent (read "my bedroom") smells like it's connected to a vomitorium. I am convinced that all of the venting needs to be replaced, while Ken is convinced that, given time, it will just go away. He's been diligently running the a/c to diffuse the smell, simultaneously wearing down my resistance. Whether it's the cooler weather or whether the juice really is just in some final stage of decomposition that no longer smells, the odor does seem to be dissipating and the fruit flies are almost gone. Stay tuned!
Bahamas Bound
Now that we've left our northernmost stop and have turned south, we are officially on our way back to the Bahamas. I know it's a bit premature as we still have two months of hurricane season to sit out, but every time we raise anchor now we are moving, slowly, southward to those warm, clear waters.
