Thursday December 19th, 2013
Hi Everyone,
WE MADE IT, with the help of our friends Paul and Susie!!!! This is our story.
After our last Blog, which we wrote when we were in Bulls Creek, we sailed on Nov 23 to Thunderbolt Marina in Thunderbolt which is a suburb of Savannah, Georgia. There some friends Debbie and Doug, who live in Savannah, came to meet us on the boat and took us on a tour of Savannah and then to dinner. We had a wonderful time with them. Savannah is a very Southern and charming town so I felt very much at home there.
We stayed at the Marina instead of moving on as gale force winds were predicted. Many boats stayed on the dock, even those who have done the crossing to the Bahamas 13 times. We decided, since we couldn't leave, to do some more sight seeing so we took a cab ride to The Riverwalk area. This is a very cute area with lots of shops. However it was so cold and windy we only stayed for a short time and I was really glad to get back to our warm cozy boat.
Our next concern was how to get to Jacksonville, Florida as our plane tickets were from there to fly home for Thanksgiving. We had hoped to make it to Jacksonville the day before we were to fly home which was Wednesday the 27th. However due to the weather we had to stay at the Marina in Thunderbolt. We decided to rent a car and drove to Jacksonville, spending the night there as our plane left early the next morning and we wanted to make absolutely sure we got on the plane to see our family for Thanksgiving.
We arrived at La Guardia on Wednesday and our daughter Brooke picked us up at the airport. We did not go home but stayed at Brooke and Ben's house. It was wonderful to see our grandchildren, Olivia and Amelia. Brooke's husband, Ben, cooked a great meal for us. The next day, which was Thanksgiving, Emily and Dan, and our son Derek came to their house. Brooke cooked the Thanksgiving feast with all the trimmings and we had many lively discussions which hopefully will be carried on when we are home for Christmas. On Friday, Emily and Dan took us to the airport and we flew back to Jacksonville and then drove to Savannah to the boat.
The next morning we were very aware that we had to make a lot of miles every day if we were going to make it to Lake Worth, Florida to make the crossing to the Bahamas in early December, before winter storms became too frequent. So we left the Marina at 7:00am. It was so cold there was frost of the main sail cover and our water hose was frozen. This was a first for us!!! We anchored that night at New Teakettle Creek, off the ICW. In 2010 we had stayed at an anchorage with power lines lower than our mast top near us so we wanted to make sure we did not do that this time. Hopefully you learn from your mistakes!
The next day was a high mileage travel day, going 67 miles. We also went aground in Jeckle Creek. Several times, but in soft mud, so we managed to get free and keep going. We were going very slow so it was not as bad as the first time we went aground. We also managed to get safely through an area were we went aground in 2010, right near a submarine base in southernmost Georgia. We made it to Cumberland Island Sound and anchored right at sunset.
The next day we motored another 67 miles and took a mooring at St Augustine, Florida. As soon as we got there Lynn had to jump in the dingy and go ashore to get to West Marine before closing so he could get a needed cruising guide of the Florida coast. He made it in time! The next day we went to Rock hall creek and anchored. We saw lots of dolphins and this was a very nice anchorage. Lynn had been concerned it would be uncomfortably subject to currents as it was very near the ocean inlet; however, it was fine and had several other boats anchored there. The next day we motored to Port Canaveral's Cape Marina for some repairs to the boat and dingy. I was disappointed as we were suppose to anchor at a friend of mine from college who lives on the ICW in Cocoa. However since we had repairs that were needed (low oil pressure reading, leaky hatch and crooked steering) we had to go to the marina. Linda and her husband came and picked us up and we stayed at their house for 3 days. She also encouraged me to do our provisioning for the Bahamas there rather than wait till Fort Worth and let us use one of their cars to do so. Thank goodness we listened and that Lynn agreed to do it at 10:00 at night. I have never bought so much canned goods!!! The Bahamas has food but is is much more expensive and sometimes hard to find certain items. I also should mention that we took Linda and Dennis out to eat and that night both Dennis and Lynn had food poisoning!!!!
After our visit with Linda and all the repairs were finished we motored to Vero Beach and took a mooring. The next morning, as we were leaving, we were approaching another boat that was just sitting there, not going under the bridge, but in the channel and in our way. We asked them if there was a reason they were not going under the bridge. They said they were having engine problems but what they failed to tell us is that they were aground. As we approached the bridge, trying to go around them, we also went aground. We had to call boat US to get us off. We now were concerned about making the dock at Lake Worth before dark, especially with the timing of the 8 bridge openings ahead of us that day. Lake Worth is where we were to make the crossing to the Bahamas from, meet the other boat Happy Hour ll and pick up our friends Paul and Susie who were flying from Chicago to make the crossing with us. So as you can see it was very important that we get to Lake Worth. We pulled in to the dock at 5:35, a few minutes before dark, and were greeted by our friends on Happy Hour II.
The next day was very busy!!! We were planning to leave the dock at 4:00 pm while it was daylight to anchor near the inlet to the Ocean. We planned to make the crossing after dinner at about 9:00pm. Lynn, Paul and Betty and Chuck from Happy Hour got together to plan the route. I did the wash and went to the grocery store. We left at 4:00 as planned. We anchored out at the inlet. It was a beautiful clear starry night. We had dinner and then everyone rested till we left at 9:00. We couldn't sail as the wind was on the nose so it was very bumpy. (Having sails full of breeze steadies the boat.) We were leading with Happy Hour following behind us. In the middle of the night we started hearing a soft thud occasionally, somewhere in the boat, and tried to figure out which door was swinging, what item was moving, but couldn't until Lynn began to realize that the thud was gradually growing louder and seemed familiar. Around 6 am, just before making it onto the Bahama banks at Memory Rock, Lynn remembered the sound that the mast made nine years ago when the base moved side to side and he went down below and looked at the mast base and found that it was moving as the boat rolled in the waves. We had it fixed firmly in place back then and it hadn't moved since, but now there it was again. A few minutes of exhausted reflection made it clear that this was a priority that couldn't be put aside, so Lynn made the decision to head south for Freeport, a major port with repair facilities. The crew and Happy Hours II were disappointed, of course, but off we went. Happy Hours continued on the planned course and ended up in the Abacos, a very nice group of Northern Bahamas islands.
The next 8 days were spent partly at Knowles Yard getting the mast base tightened down, with metal plates bolted in to prevent any movement, visiting the island of Grand Bahama with Paul and Susie and, after they left, getting to know two other cruising couples, Mark and Rita and Geoff and Leslie. The latter had cruised the Bahamas before and had many valuable tips about places to visit, obtaining weather information and so on. Lynn worked on learning to use the single sideband radio and the satellite phone, intended to be main sources of weather information. Mark and Lynn took the boat out for a test sail at 7 am on the 18th, early to catch the high tide to get over the sandbar at the entrance to our inlet. In light winds, the mast base seemed secure. We had been hoping for a bit more wind and wave for a more rigorous test. Later that day we got our first slowdown in the boat work and first dip in the beautiful Bahamian waters. We saw an Eagle Ray and a lion fish in the inlet also that day.
On the 19th, we flew back to New York to celebrate the Holidays with family and friends and are still in the middle of that. We made a very nice dinner party at a friend's Friday night, put up the outside Christmas lights on the house, went and picked up our 3 and 1/2 year-old granddaughter, who helped us pick out a tree and then helped put the lights on it last night. We've laid in some provisions and look forward to the imminent arrival of our three grown children and their significant others, so the house will be full of celebration within hours.
We wish you and yours a very Happy Holidays. Be safe and warm and in good health. Our Best Wishes for a Happy New Year, Lynn and Sally of Southern Belle
Monday, December 23, 2013
Friday, November 22, 2013
Hello friends and family,
It's November 21st and we're back on the boat, back on our way south and, at the moment, anchored on St. Pierre's Creek in South Carolina. We've been having some very windy weather the last few days, so have been tying up to marinas more than we had planned. However, this is a very quiet and beautiful spot for the night and the wind has calmed down.
Our last blog was posted October 21st from Slade Creek in North Carolina. The next day we sailed across Pamlico Sound to Orient and up the Neuse River to New Bern. We rented a slip at Northwest Creek Marina, did boat chores, had that dinner with friends and drove home Friday. We babysat our granddaughter, Olivia, Saturday night and then spent most of the following week keeping appointments with doctors, dentists, hair cutters, seeing friends and grandma got to see Olivia's Halloween parade at school where she was dressed as Cinderella. The following weekend we took Olivia to see a local Halloween play, Bunicula, about a rabbit who seemed to have some creepy eating habits. The play was in Northport so after the play we gave Olivia the choice of going to a playground or looking at the boats at Northport village docks. What do you think she chose? Looking at the boats with grandpa!! The next day we had a big birthday lobster and oyster feast for two of our grown children. Emily was sorely missed at this celebration, unable to get away from graduate studies at Brown, but we did manage to eat her lobster in her absence.
On Monday, November 11th, we drove back to New Bern, intending to set out Wednesday, but were delayed by that blast of arctic air from central Canada. So we used the two days to get provisions, fuel and to settle bills for dingy repair and a new enclosure for the boat's cockpit. So we set out Thursday, Nov. 14th, after the small craft advisories were past. There was frost on the sail covers and steam coming off the Neuse River in the 27 degree morning air. Only the new cockpit enclosure kept us from freezing, so we appreciated it right away. That night we stayed on a dock in Moorehead City and walked to a hardware store, looking for micro fleece shammies for wiping the new plastic windows. Lynn found them and turned around to speak to Sally, only to find her roaming the aisles with a gleam in her eye that only a true shopper has, seemingly excited about the hose clamps and crescent wrenches.
November 15, we headed south on the IntraCoastal Waterway (ICW) on the way to a marina we had stayed in in 2010, Harbor Village Marina. On the way we went aground at Brown's Inlet, hitting a sandbar at over 7 knots, ending up sitting higher than usual in water 4.5 feet deep. Our boat needs 5' 2" deep water to float, so you can see the problem. This spot turned out to be a frequent eater of boats and the Boat US towboat was right there, just around a corner, so we were towed off within 20 minutes. Good thing we have the unlimited towing insurance. Might need it again along the way.
November 16th we continued along the way and didn't hit any sandbars, which is good. Lynn was getting a bit annoyed at how the speed boaters ignored boating rules about how close to come, how much salt water to spray on you and whether or not to come zooming directly at your bow or to stop and fish in the middle of the channel that you can't go outside of because it's too shallow for a sailboat. But that night we tied up to a marina in Holden Beach, almost directly under the highway bridge (see photo) and the people there were so sweet that Lynn had to apologize to himself for having bad thoughts about the North Carolina boaters. One lady gave Sally a ride to the market in her golf cart and three good old boys just back from fishing gave three lovely black sea bass to Lynn, with instructions on how to fillet them and how to cook them with the skin and scales still on. They were delicious!
November 17 we moved on southward, into the Waccamaw River area, a real wilderness. Several days of wind gusting to 30 knots was forecast, so we anchored in what was described in one of the most widely owned and used books, Skipper Bob's Anchorages, as extremely good wind protection, very good holding (the anchor holding on to the bottom). This small creek behind Richard Island is called Cow House Creek. It was just as described, very quiet. Could hardly tell it was blowing all that much. But the weather turned out better than predicted, so, on the 18th, we moved on 20 miles to a dock in Georgetown, Harborwalk Marina, which had excellent protection from the northerlies that were blowing. On the way, we were boarded by 5 young Coast Guard officers. They were friendly, but inspected the entire boat, including all of the bilge spaces under the floor. It seemed that they were practicing for characters who might have illegal stuff under the floorboards. But we passed all the requirements for a boat of our size (life preservers, fire extinguishers....) (see photo).
When we got to Georgetown, we hired a diver to check out the bottom of the boat for any damage from that hard grounding in North Carolina. He reported extensive gouging on the keel metal. So the next day, we had the boat lifted out of the water at a nearby boatyard, Hazard Marina, in what is called a short haul, see photo. We saw that there was no damage at all, aside from some paint scraped off the front of the keel. The good old boys in the yard decided that Captain Lynn is a bit paranoid, kidding I hope. Better safe than sorry when it comes to boat safety and seaworthiness. Also, at Hazard Marina, we met a true old salty sailor the locals introduced as Mad Dog. He had a beard down to the middle of his chest and immediately grabbed Lynn and started telling his tales of the sea, including running from women, several times, to New Bedford.?. It was hard to get away, a bit like the poem, The Rhyme of The Ancient Mariner, but we managed.
On the 20th, we tried to go outside into the ocean to sail, but it was, again, blowing too hard, so we went back to the ICW. Again, we tried to anchor, this time in Dewes Creek, which was described as having excellent wind protection and holding, but turned out to have no wind protection at all. So we went on a couple of miles and stayed on a dock at Palm Island Marina. There we decided to give ourselves a treat and go out to dinner. We mostly have been cooking on the boat. We had a delicious Southern meal of blackened Maui Maui, collard greens and cheesy grits, along with a meeting of the Executive Board of Southern Belle (the Captain and the Boss). Issues having to do with fears and frustrations and cold, blustery weather were addressed and everyone felt better.
The next day we motored passed Charleston and on to St Pierce creek. It was another very quiet anchorage. Along the way we have seen many Dolphins, but by the time I get the camera out they are gone. However, it is so exciting to see them!! We also have seen many pelicans. I love watching them, especially when they go SPLAT in the water trying to get a fish. I have also enjoyed seeing the Spanish moss hanging on the trees which are turning fall colors and are so beautiful, being out here has really brought us closer to nature.
We are now anchored at Bulls creek, another nice anchorage. We are about 20 miles from Savanna, Georgia, where we will go tomorrow. We plan to stay at a marina there and have dinner with a couple we met from a friend of ours in New York.
Well, this is our journey so far. I am very excited to be here, Nov 21, 2010 was when I flew home last time and we had to end our first journey.
Lynn and Sally
On Monday, November 11th, we drove back to New Bern, intending to set out Wednesday, but were delayed by that blast of arctic air from central Canada. So we used the two days to get provisions, fuel and to settle bills for dingy repair and a new enclosure for the boat's cockpit. So we set out Thursday, Nov. 14th, after the small craft advisories were past. There was frost on the sail covers and steam coming off the Neuse River in the 27 degree morning air. Only the new cockpit enclosure kept us from freezing, so we appreciated it right away. That night we stayed on a dock in Moorehead City and walked to a hardware store, looking for micro fleece shammies for wiping the new plastic windows. Lynn found them and turned around to speak to Sally, only to find her roaming the aisles with a gleam in her eye that only a true shopper has, seemingly excited about the hose clamps and crescent wrenches.
November 15, we headed south on the IntraCoastal Waterway (ICW) on the way to a marina we had stayed in in 2010, Harbor Village Marina. On the way we went aground at Brown's Inlet, hitting a sandbar at over 7 knots, ending up sitting higher than usual in water 4.5 feet deep. Our boat needs 5' 2" deep water to float, so you can see the problem. This spot turned out to be a frequent eater of boats and the Boat US towboat was right there, just around a corner, so we were towed off within 20 minutes. Good thing we have the unlimited towing insurance. Might need it again along the way.
November 16th we continued along the way and didn't hit any sandbars, which is good. Lynn was getting a bit annoyed at how the speed boaters ignored boating rules about how close to come, how much salt water to spray on you and whether or not to come zooming directly at your bow or to stop and fish in the middle of the channel that you can't go outside of because it's too shallow for a sailboat. But that night we tied up to a marina in Holden Beach, almost directly under the highway bridge (see photo) and the people there were so sweet that Lynn had to apologize to himself for having bad thoughts about the North Carolina boaters. One lady gave Sally a ride to the market in her golf cart and three good old boys just back from fishing gave three lovely black sea bass to Lynn, with instructions on how to fillet them and how to cook them with the skin and scales still on. They were delicious!
November 17 we moved on southward, into the Waccamaw River area, a real wilderness. Several days of wind gusting to 30 knots was forecast, so we anchored in what was described in one of the most widely owned and used books, Skipper Bob's Anchorages, as extremely good wind protection, very good holding (the anchor holding on to the bottom). This small creek behind Richard Island is called Cow House Creek. It was just as described, very quiet. Could hardly tell it was blowing all that much. But the weather turned out better than predicted, so, on the 18th, we moved on 20 miles to a dock in Georgetown, Harborwalk Marina, which had excellent protection from the northerlies that were blowing. On the way, we were boarded by 5 young Coast Guard officers. They were friendly, but inspected the entire boat, including all of the bilge spaces under the floor. It seemed that they were practicing for characters who might have illegal stuff under the floorboards. But we passed all the requirements for a boat of our size (life preservers, fire extinguishers....) (see photo).
When we got to Georgetown, we hired a diver to check out the bottom of the boat for any damage from that hard grounding in North Carolina. He reported extensive gouging on the keel metal. So the next day, we had the boat lifted out of the water at a nearby boatyard, Hazard Marina, in what is called a short haul, see photo. We saw that there was no damage at all, aside from some paint scraped off the front of the keel. The good old boys in the yard decided that Captain Lynn is a bit paranoid, kidding I hope. Better safe than sorry when it comes to boat safety and seaworthiness. Also, at Hazard Marina, we met a true old salty sailor the locals introduced as Mad Dog. He had a beard down to the middle of his chest and immediately grabbed Lynn and started telling his tales of the sea, including running from women, several times, to New Bedford.?. It was hard to get away, a bit like the poem, The Rhyme of The Ancient Mariner, but we managed.
On the 20th, we tried to go outside into the ocean to sail, but it was, again, blowing too hard, so we went back to the ICW. Again, we tried to anchor, this time in Dewes Creek, which was described as having excellent wind protection and holding, but turned out to have no wind protection at all. So we went on a couple of miles and stayed on a dock at Palm Island Marina. There we decided to give ourselves a treat and go out to dinner. We mostly have been cooking on the boat. We had a delicious Southern meal of blackened Maui Maui, collard greens and cheesy grits, along with a meeting of the Executive Board of Southern Belle (the Captain and the Boss). Issues having to do with fears and frustrations and cold, blustery weather were addressed and everyone felt better.
The next day we motored passed Charleston and on to St Pierce creek. It was another very quiet anchorage. Along the way we have seen many Dolphins, but by the time I get the camera out they are gone. However, it is so exciting to see them!! We also have seen many pelicans. I love watching them, especially when they go SPLAT in the water trying to get a fish. I have also enjoyed seeing the Spanish moss hanging on the trees which are turning fall colors and are so beautiful, being out here has really brought us closer to nature.
We are now anchored at Bulls creek, another nice anchorage. We are about 20 miles from Savanna, Georgia, where we will go tomorrow. We plan to stay at a marina there and have dinner with a couple we met from a friend of ours in New York.
Well, this is our journey so far. I am very excited to be here, Nov 21, 2010 was when I flew home last time and we had to end our first journey.
Lynn and Sally
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
October 21, 2013
Hello to friends and family.
We are anchored in Slade Creek in North Carolina which is mile 140 of the ICW (Intercostal Waterway) in a very quiet place. We were the only boat anchored here till just a few minutes ago; now there are 2 boats! But it's still the quietest place we've ever seen. Every day has been a new adventure since we left Annapolis.
Oct 14th - We sailed to Solomon's Island (which is still in Virginia) and anchored. There were many boats at this anchorage, but we found a spot next to a Tanaya 37 which is a traditional ocean boat, with pointy bow and stern and lots of beautiful woodwork. As we pulled up, I noticed the guy had a t-shirt on with MEMPHIS written on the front. We chatted and he told me he had gone to high school and college in Memphis and he knew all about the barbecue there (The Rondevue and Gridley's), small world. That night the wind died down while we were sleeping and our boat and his boat bumped. Lynn heard a knocking on our hatch where we were sleeping and he crawled out the hatch to see what had happened. The guy said let's just raft up for the night so Lynn put out our fenders and lines and that is what we did. He even apologized to Lynn for waking him up, Southern hospitality! "No problem, because I'm not awake," Lynn told him. The next morning we pulled up anchor and left. They were sailing North to New York and of course we are going South!
Oct 15th - sailed to Pittman's Cove. I actually put us aground but Captain Lynn was able to get us off, thank goodness. If we had to call Boat US I would have never lived this down. That night, we anchored in a small cove in front of some beautiful houses.
Oct 16th - The next day we sailed to Norfolk, Va. We saw many huge Navy ships and huge dock cranes that looked like yellow robots. We anchored next to the Highway Bridge at Mill Creek. Lynn rowed the dingy to shore to try and get some fresh fish for dinner and some toilet paper but what he brought back was shrimp with the heads on and scallops wrapped in bacon! The fellow on the dock negotiated a price and then drove home to get them out of his freezer. A nice guy, very interesting stories and a thick southern accent.
Oct 17th - Was truly a day of adventures! We stopped at a dock again in search of toilet paper. The store had maybe 5 items but we were able to get 8 rolls of toilet paper for only $14.30 !! The most expensive toilet paper I've ever heard of. But we needed it. We then started our passage through the Dismal Swamp Canal but because of stopping for the toilet paper we were behind most of the other boats. As we were nearing the lock the lock master radioed, "Southern Belle we will wait for you to get here before closing the lock. You got 20 seconds..." New boat speed record. We wondered how he knew our name but as we pulled up to the lock we saw some boats tied up we had done our overnight sail with down the New Jersey Coast. It was nice to see familiar faces. We didn't have time to get out our lines and fenders before entering the lock but it turned out that didn't matter as the electrical functioning on the locks broke and they had to call a mechanic!! Many of us thought we might be there overnight!
The locks were finally fixed after about 2 hours and we proceeded to the bridge. However, we had not heard the announcement to turn off your motor and close your raw water intake valve as there was so much green algae in the water. So as we were going to the bridge our raw water intake plugged up which meant we had to turn off our motor and Lynn had to go down below to fix it. I was left on deck to try and steer without the motor, so we didn't bump into any greenery. The current completely turned us around and we were headed back towards the lock. Needless to say I had a moment of sheer PANIC! However Lynn unplugged the raw water intake quickly and we were able to turn on the motor and turn around to head back to the bridge, but now all the other boats had gone through the bridge and it was not opening for another hour and a half - UGH! We tied up to a wall right near the bridge and, while we were waiting, I cranked Lynn up the mast so he could fix our steaming light, and when he came down he still had time to go get some much needed Southern beer at the gas station. At the gas station, Lynn had some fun conversation with some good old boys sitting on a bench watching the world go by. When we finally did get through the bridge, my stomach was in knots again as it was just a few hours before dark and no one wants to be going through the Dismal Swamp canal in the DARK!!! We also now had passed from Virginia to North Carolina. While we were motoring along the Dismal Swamp Canal our keel hit submerged logs 6 times making a thud, but who is counting!!!! We also saw our mast hit the top of trees knocking branches on the deck of the boat! We had to steer watching the trees above us as well as the water around us. Just before I was going to have another panic attack as it was nearing darkness, we spotted another sail boat tied to small dock so we asked them if we could raft up. They were Canadians and very nice and said "tie up and come have cocktails with us" which we did. As we were having our drinks and hor d'oeuvres, a Cataraman passed with just 2 women (a mother and daughter) on board . They said "you stopped; we are going to keep on going"!
Oct 18/19th - These 2 days were a lot less "nerve wracking"! We motored down the Pasquotank River and went to Elizabeth City where we were able to stay on the FREE town dock. The people there were very friendly but it was homecoming weekend and, after the high school marching band paraded by, the old town around the docks was very quiet. Most stores seemed to be closed.
Oct 20th - We sailed through Albermarle Sound to the Alligator River. We stayed at the Alligator River Marina which is one of my favorite Marina's as it is very relaxed and "down Home". This is also the place where we found (in 2010) the little rubber alligator that rides with us on Southern Belle (a favorite of our granddaughter Olivia). We had a great meal in the restaurant, cheeseburgers, fried corn fritters, fried onion rings and green beans (had to put something healthy in the mix). So now we are on our way to New Bern, North Carolina where we will meet our friends Paul and Susie for dinner. We met them the first time we tried to do this voyage in 2010. They were aground and we helped pull them off (this is how former therapists make friends) and then we sailed with them till we got to Georgia where they kept their boat. On Friday, Oct 25th we are going to leave our boat in New Bern and drive home for a family and friend visit.
Love Sally and Lynn
We are anchored in Slade Creek in North Carolina which is mile 140 of the ICW (Intercostal Waterway) in a very quiet place. We were the only boat anchored here till just a few minutes ago; now there are 2 boats! But it's still the quietest place we've ever seen. Every day has been a new adventure since we left Annapolis.
Oct 14th - We sailed to Solomon's Island (which is still in Virginia) and anchored. There were many boats at this anchorage, but we found a spot next to a Tanaya 37 which is a traditional ocean boat, with pointy bow and stern and lots of beautiful woodwork. As we pulled up, I noticed the guy had a t-shirt on with MEMPHIS written on the front. We chatted and he told me he had gone to high school and college in Memphis and he knew all about the barbecue there (The Rondevue and Gridley's), small world. That night the wind died down while we were sleeping and our boat and his boat bumped. Lynn heard a knocking on our hatch where we were sleeping and he crawled out the hatch to see what had happened. The guy said let's just raft up for the night so Lynn put out our fenders and lines and that is what we did. He even apologized to Lynn for waking him up, Southern hospitality! "No problem, because I'm not awake," Lynn told him. The next morning we pulled up anchor and left. They were sailing North to New York and of course we are going South!
Oct 15th - sailed to Pittman's Cove. I actually put us aground but Captain Lynn was able to get us off, thank goodness. If we had to call Boat US I would have never lived this down. That night, we anchored in a small cove in front of some beautiful houses.
Oct 16th - The next day we sailed to Norfolk, Va. We saw many huge Navy ships and huge dock cranes that looked like yellow robots. We anchored next to the Highway Bridge at Mill Creek. Lynn rowed the dingy to shore to try and get some fresh fish for dinner and some toilet paper but what he brought back was shrimp with the heads on and scallops wrapped in bacon! The fellow on the dock negotiated a price and then drove home to get them out of his freezer. A nice guy, very interesting stories and a thick southern accent.
Oct 17th - Was truly a day of adventures! We stopped at a dock again in search of toilet paper. The store had maybe 5 items but we were able to get 8 rolls of toilet paper for only $14.30 !! The most expensive toilet paper I've ever heard of. But we needed it. We then started our passage through the Dismal Swamp Canal but because of stopping for the toilet paper we were behind most of the other boats. As we were nearing the lock the lock master radioed, "Southern Belle we will wait for you to get here before closing the lock. You got 20 seconds..." New boat speed record. We wondered how he knew our name but as we pulled up to the lock we saw some boats tied up we had done our overnight sail with down the New Jersey Coast. It was nice to see familiar faces. We didn't have time to get out our lines and fenders before entering the lock but it turned out that didn't matter as the electrical functioning on the locks broke and they had to call a mechanic!! Many of us thought we might be there overnight!
The locks were finally fixed after about 2 hours and we proceeded to the bridge. However, we had not heard the announcement to turn off your motor and close your raw water intake valve as there was so much green algae in the water. So as we were going to the bridge our raw water intake plugged up which meant we had to turn off our motor and Lynn had to go down below to fix it. I was left on deck to try and steer without the motor, so we didn't bump into any greenery. The current completely turned us around and we were headed back towards the lock. Needless to say I had a moment of sheer PANIC! However Lynn unplugged the raw water intake quickly and we were able to turn on the motor and turn around to head back to the bridge, but now all the other boats had gone through the bridge and it was not opening for another hour and a half - UGH! We tied up to a wall right near the bridge and, while we were waiting, I cranked Lynn up the mast so he could fix our steaming light, and when he came down he still had time to go get some much needed Southern beer at the gas station. At the gas station, Lynn had some fun conversation with some good old boys sitting on a bench watching the world go by. When we finally did get through the bridge, my stomach was in knots again as it was just a few hours before dark and no one wants to be going through the Dismal Swamp canal in the DARK!!! We also now had passed from Virginia to North Carolina. While we were motoring along the Dismal Swamp Canal our keel hit submerged logs 6 times making a thud, but who is counting!!!! We also saw our mast hit the top of trees knocking branches on the deck of the boat! We had to steer watching the trees above us as well as the water around us. Just before I was going to have another panic attack as it was nearing darkness, we spotted another sail boat tied to small dock so we asked them if we could raft up. They were Canadians and very nice and said "tie up and come have cocktails with us" which we did. As we were having our drinks and hor d'oeuvres, a Cataraman passed with just 2 women (a mother and daughter) on board . They said "you stopped; we are going to keep on going"!
Oct 18/19th - These 2 days were a lot less "nerve wracking"! We motored down the Pasquotank River and went to Elizabeth City where we were able to stay on the FREE town dock. The people there were very friendly but it was homecoming weekend and, after the high school marching band paraded by, the old town around the docks was very quiet. Most stores seemed to be closed.
Oct 20th - We sailed through Albermarle Sound to the Alligator River. We stayed at the Alligator River Marina which is one of my favorite Marina's as it is very relaxed and "down Home". This is also the place where we found (in 2010) the little rubber alligator that rides with us on Southern Belle (a favorite of our granddaughter Olivia). We had a great meal in the restaurant, cheeseburgers, fried corn fritters, fried onion rings and green beans (had to put something healthy in the mix). So now we are on our way to New Bern, North Carolina where we will meet our friends Paul and Susie for dinner. We met them the first time we tried to do this voyage in 2010. They were aground and we helped pull them off (this is how former therapists make friends) and then we sailed with them till we got to Georgia where they kept their boat. On Friday, Oct 25th we are going to leave our boat in New Bern and drive home for a family and friend visit.
Love Sally and Lynn
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
October 13, 2013
Greetings to everyone from Spa Creek, Annapolis, Maryland. We hope things are going well for all of you. We have been on anchor here for two weeks, arriving from Swan Creek on September 27th. We were going to visit St. Michael's further down the Eastern Shore, but decided to come to Annapolis wary to make sure we got a good spot before the crowds of power boats and sail boats arrived for the power boat show followed by the sail boat show. Also, we wanted to keep company with several of the sailing buddies we had met way back when in Atlantic Highlands, to enjoy their company, in addition to the other nice parts of cruising.
We sailed into Annapolis' outer harbor, dropped sails and circled for 30 minutes until the Spa Creek bascule bridge opened and we proceeded through the very narrow opening and west about .9 mile to drop anchor right next to a park and surrounded by cute houses looking over the water. The protection here from the gusty winds that have been blowing for days is excellent, though we did put out two anchors one windy night, only to have them get tangled up, causing the boat to drag. I got out in the dingy and pulled the secondary anchor, got covered with rank bottom mud and found it wrapped twice around the primary anchor chain. Our boat was nowhere near the spot where I originally dropped the anchor. We're on just our primary anchor now, which seems to be working fine.
The weather when we first sailed in here was blue skies and warm, temperature in the 80's. Then Tropical Storm Karen, in the Gulf of Mexico, made landfall, weakened and travelled eastward across Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia to the Atlantic coast, made it's way north and parked just east of the Chesapeake Bay. From this parking spot, Karen's remnant has been sending heavy rains and gusty winds since Wednesday, Oct. 9th. Just in time to soak the sail boat show. Not the power boat show. Just the sailors. I heard several people say they'd heard the weatherman say over 5 inches of rain so far. So each morning we get up, dress warmly, put on foul weather jackets and I go out to prepare the dingy. I pump out the 50 gallons of water from the rains, add some air to the leaky right pontoon, wipe down the tubes and seat and start the outboard, which has been running well, thank goodness. Sally comes out and gets into the dingy, moving carefully always and we motor the mile to the dingy dock next to the boat show. We join in with the other sailors in their yellow or red foul weather gear and spend the boat show days looking at stuff, conversing with the proprietors and other sailors, adding to our store of valuable information about weather, the Bahamas, gear of all sorts - and listening to and telling sailing stories. We were standing in line for the weather seminar yesterday and this older gent behind us started telling stories of his one trip to the Bahamas, admitting he was beyond his level of skill and preparation and regaling us with a collection of terrible experiences with large waves, strong winds, awful harbors. All very scary and discouraging to those sailors out for a first or almost first time, hoping for warm sun, lovely harbors, nice sailing and lots of fun.
Later yesterday, we were talking to a guy about his wifi antenna and he talked about being on anchor on a key in the Abacos (northern Bahamas), relaxing in the sun, his wife working on line on the boat. He made it sound like you want it to be, nice and warm. There are all sorts of characters in this sailing scene and wildly contrasting opinions about how things are, so we have to sort through that in addition to running the boat and navigating our way south, down the coast. So far, we're doing well. Haven't hit anything. Keeping warm, mostly. Are saving our running aground for later, in the Intra Coastal Waterway (ICW). Just kidding, sort of. But with the government shut down, I wouldn't think that the dredging of the ICW's shallow spots, already inadequately funded, is going to get any better.
Sally had a very nice visit back on Long Island with her sister and with our older daughter's family, Brooke, Ben, Olivia and Amelia. Amelia who is 4 months old just started to roll over while Grandma was visiting. Grandma also got to go to a swim and dancing class with Olivia, reminding her of Brooke and Emily's dancing classes and Derek, Emily and Brooke's swimming classes when they were growing up, very nostalgic and wonderful to enjoy being a grandma!! Lynn spent last weekend visiting psychologist friends and their teenage children and had a very nice time there. For me (Lynn) it was a reminder of how much I love psychological ideas and clinical work and why I'm only able to describe this cruising trip as "taking a break," rather than as "retirement."
It has been fun and stress-relieving and the other sailors we've met have been really wonderful people, sharing information, beer and some of the gear that cruisers need. And it does feel good to not have to keep an appointment schedule, to take as long as I want at what I'm doing. There are, of course, parts of cruising in which time counts, such as getting up early to start a long day of traveling. That goes with traveling slowly and trying to get somewhere. It does serve as a kind of antidote to the hurry of modern life. Gotta go. Hope all is well with you and your loved ones. Lynn and Sally of Southern Belle
Greetings to everyone from Spa Creek, Annapolis, Maryland. We hope things are going well for all of you. We have been on anchor here for two weeks, arriving from Swan Creek on September 27th. We were going to visit St. Michael's further down the Eastern Shore, but decided to come to Annapolis wary to make sure we got a good spot before the crowds of power boats and sail boats arrived for the power boat show followed by the sail boat show. Also, we wanted to keep company with several of the sailing buddies we had met way back when in Atlantic Highlands, to enjoy their company, in addition to the other nice parts of cruising.
We sailed into Annapolis' outer harbor, dropped sails and circled for 30 minutes until the Spa Creek bascule bridge opened and we proceeded through the very narrow opening and west about .9 mile to drop anchor right next to a park and surrounded by cute houses looking over the water. The protection here from the gusty winds that have been blowing for days is excellent, though we did put out two anchors one windy night, only to have them get tangled up, causing the boat to drag. I got out in the dingy and pulled the secondary anchor, got covered with rank bottom mud and found it wrapped twice around the primary anchor chain. Our boat was nowhere near the spot where I originally dropped the anchor. We're on just our primary anchor now, which seems to be working fine.
The weather when we first sailed in here was blue skies and warm, temperature in the 80's. Then Tropical Storm Karen, in the Gulf of Mexico, made landfall, weakened and travelled eastward across Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia to the Atlantic coast, made it's way north and parked just east of the Chesapeake Bay. From this parking spot, Karen's remnant has been sending heavy rains and gusty winds since Wednesday, Oct. 9th. Just in time to soak the sail boat show. Not the power boat show. Just the sailors. I heard several people say they'd heard the weatherman say over 5 inches of rain so far. So each morning we get up, dress warmly, put on foul weather jackets and I go out to prepare the dingy. I pump out the 50 gallons of water from the rains, add some air to the leaky right pontoon, wipe down the tubes and seat and start the outboard, which has been running well, thank goodness. Sally comes out and gets into the dingy, moving carefully always and we motor the mile to the dingy dock next to the boat show. We join in with the other sailors in their yellow or red foul weather gear and spend the boat show days looking at stuff, conversing with the proprietors and other sailors, adding to our store of valuable information about weather, the Bahamas, gear of all sorts - and listening to and telling sailing stories. We were standing in line for the weather seminar yesterday and this older gent behind us started telling stories of his one trip to the Bahamas, admitting he was beyond his level of skill and preparation and regaling us with a collection of terrible experiences with large waves, strong winds, awful harbors. All very scary and discouraging to those sailors out for a first or almost first time, hoping for warm sun, lovely harbors, nice sailing and lots of fun.
Later yesterday, we were talking to a guy about his wifi antenna and he talked about being on anchor on a key in the Abacos (northern Bahamas), relaxing in the sun, his wife working on line on the boat. He made it sound like you want it to be, nice and warm. There are all sorts of characters in this sailing scene and wildly contrasting opinions about how things are, so we have to sort through that in addition to running the boat and navigating our way south, down the coast. So far, we're doing well. Haven't hit anything. Keeping warm, mostly. Are saving our running aground for later, in the Intra Coastal Waterway (ICW). Just kidding, sort of. But with the government shut down, I wouldn't think that the dredging of the ICW's shallow spots, already inadequately funded, is going to get any better.
Sally had a very nice visit back on Long Island with her sister and with our older daughter's family, Brooke, Ben, Olivia and Amelia. Amelia who is 4 months old just started to roll over while Grandma was visiting. Grandma also got to go to a swim and dancing class with Olivia, reminding her of Brooke and Emily's dancing classes and Derek, Emily and Brooke's swimming classes when they were growing up, very nostalgic and wonderful to enjoy being a grandma!! Lynn spent last weekend visiting psychologist friends and their teenage children and had a very nice time there. For me (Lynn) it was a reminder of how much I love psychological ideas and clinical work and why I'm only able to describe this cruising trip as "taking a break," rather than as "retirement."
It has been fun and stress-relieving and the other sailors we've met have been really wonderful people, sharing information, beer and some of the gear that cruisers need. And it does feel good to not have to keep an appointment schedule, to take as long as I want at what I'm doing. There are, of course, parts of cruising in which time counts, such as getting up early to start a long day of traveling. That goes with traveling slowly and trying to get somewhere. It does serve as a kind of antidote to the hurry of modern life. Gotta go. Hope all is well with you and your loved ones. Lynn and Sally of Southern Belle
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
September 25, 2013
Hi everyone,
We arrived from Atlantic Highlands in the overnight sail at
Cape May, NJ early on Sunday, September
15 and pulled into a dock, as we
were so tired from the 22-hour night sail.
We now have made the New Jersey Coast as Cape May is at the southern tip
of New Jersey! We stayed there three
nights to catch up on the wash, check our emails, read and write letters. I
even made blueberry muffins and we got to Skype with our oldest daughter,
Brooke, her husband Ben and our two grandkids, Olivia and Amelia! It was so
nice to see them even if it was on a computer.
Then on Thursday,
September 19 we left early in the morning before sunrise so again we got to
see the moon, this time full and low on the western horizon, and then a
beautiful sunrise. I am so thankful to
be doing this and being such a part of nature. It reminds me of when I was a
young girl at camp in Wisconsin. We motor sailed up the Delaware Bay and
through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. It was a very warm and sunny day,
beautiful for traveling except Lynn missed having more wind. We anchored next to our sailing buddies from
Quebec at Chesapeake City, MD. Lynn
rowed our dingy over to pick them up and brought them over for some wine and
cheese. Francoise brought her
English-French dictionary so we could converse as they speak some English but
mostly French. I have really enjoyed
meeting so many interesting people!!
We left the next day, Friday
Sept 20, saying goodbye to our sailing buddies as they were sailing to
Washington, DC and we were going to Georgetown, MD on the Sassafras River. The Sassafras River was beautiful, a lot of
foliage on both sides of the river. Anticipating
a big weather front, again we went to a dock for protection from the weather. The weather front turned out to be only rain
but no lightening or thunder, thank goodness, and we had a very enjoyable two
days. We had another couple, who are from Canada and Argentina, and are also
sailing to the Bahamas over for wine and cheese during the pouring rain. It was
very cozy being on the boat with the rain.
The next day was sunny so Lynn and I took a kayak ride and then stopped
at their boat for a beer and Sangria! We
not only went for drinks but to discuss our itinerary for the next day. We
decided to sail to Swan Creek, which is on the Eastern side of the Chesapeake
River, about 35 miles south of the Sassafras River.
So here we are at
another lovely quiet anchorage on the Chesapeake. We are anchored in 7 feet of
water and Southern Belle requires 5 feet 2in so it was a little tricky getting
in this harbor without going aground but we did it! We have been here two
nights. Yesterday we walked into town, about a mile and a half. We were
shopping at this store and, when I picked up an ornament, the glass shelf fell,
breaking several items. It was
embarrassing, but it turned out that the self fell because a bracket was
missing. So it wasn’t my fault. Today I am writing this blog, which is a first
for me. And Lynn is out walking and
shopping with some of the Argentinian Canadian sailing buddies. I’m also baking
cookies. It’s a beautiful, blue-sky day
and Swan Creek is quiet and peaceful.
Miss all of you.
Love Lynn and Sally
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
September 17, 2013.
Hello friends and family. We did, indeed, get going, but on Thursday, September 5th, rather than the 4th. Too many last minute things to do, not rare in the sailing world. We are happy to report that we are in Cape May, following a very nice, but exhausting night sail from Atlantic Highlands at Sandy Hook, New Jersey. Yes, Sally did agree to a night sail, after swearing off those nasty things years ago. The cause for this change was our happening to meet a French Canadian sailor anchored next to us at Sandy Hook. A sailor with a very good grasp on weather knowledge. Also, there was a group of sail boats waiting there for a weather window and about 10 of us set out at 11:00 am Saturday morning, September 14th, on a northwesterly breeze of about 14 knots. This put the wind behind the boat, on the right side for a comfortable ride, small waves of about 1 to 3 feet. We sailed past Barnegatt Bay about 8:00 pm and past Atlantic City for several hours beginning around 11:15 pm. We had estimated 21 hours for the 135 mile passage, but wound up getting to Cape May way too early and sailed as slowly as possible until the sun rose and we could see our way into the inlet.
Hello friends and family. We did, indeed, get going, but on Thursday, September 5th, rather than the 4th. Too many last minute things to do, not rare in the sailing world. We are happy to report that we are in Cape May, following a very nice, but exhausting night sail from Atlantic Highlands at Sandy Hook, New Jersey. Yes, Sally did agree to a night sail, after swearing off those nasty things years ago. The cause for this change was our happening to meet a French Canadian sailor anchored next to us at Sandy Hook. A sailor with a very good grasp on weather knowledge. Also, there was a group of sail boats waiting there for a weather window and about 10 of us set out at 11:00 am Saturday morning, September 14th, on a northwesterly breeze of about 14 knots. This put the wind behind the boat, on the right side for a comfortable ride, small waves of about 1 to 3 feet. We sailed past Barnegatt Bay about 8:00 pm and past Atlantic City for several hours beginning around 11:15 pm. We had estimated 21 hours for the 135 mile passage, but wound up getting to Cape May way too early and sailed as slowly as possible until the sun rose and we could see our way into the inlet.
The hardest part of this passage was that we had been bouncing around on anchor for a couple of nights at Sandy Hook and I hadn't slept much, so I started out on the night sail already very tired. So Sally provided the motivation to keep going as well as the hot tea and snacks, while I bundled up in long johns, pants, turtleneck, sweater, fleece jacket, heavy socks and sea boots, full foul weather gear and watch cap and stayed curled up in the right back corner and steered with my feet. My arms were too tired to steer for long, but the legs did pretty good for most of 20 hours.
The first parts of the cruise, we sailed to Branford, Connecticut and got to visit with our friends Mark and Kim and their 3 kids Michael, Jason and Julia. They have a very busy family schedule, but they were kind enough to fold us right into the schedule. We helped Mark shop and then we all cooked a very nice dinner at their house. We got up at 5:15 am, Mark driving us to the boat at that early hour, and we set out on the next day's journey, to City Island. Thank you Mark and Kim.
On the way there we had some nice morning sailing, then had to motor in the afternoon and I staring out at Long Island Sound, had another social inspiration. We called our friends, Jim and Gail and invited them and their daughter Emma to come have dinner with us on City Island. They met our boat, Southern Belle for the first time and had appetizers in the cockpit. We went out for a nice seafood dinner nearby. It was great seeing them, but then we had to say our goodbyes for a while.
The next day, Saturday, the 7th, we sailed through Hell's Gate, down the East River, through New York harbor, under the Verrazano Bridge and south to Sandy Hook. It was a beautiful, sunny day, with moderate breezes, except for the wind tunnel under the Verrazano Bridge, which Sally didn't like. But the next couple of hours were sailing bliss for Lynn.
We anchored just inside the breakwater at Atlantic Highlands and had nice shelter from the southwesterly breezes for the next 4 days. Our son, Derek, came over on the ferry for an overnight visit which was a real treat for us. We also got to see him again as we took the ferry to New York for a movie and dinner. We saw Pacific Rim, a movie in which aliens invade the earth through a space-time warp that comes up in the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, so really this was a sailing movie. Huge creatures battle with man-made robots and, very unusual for an action, techie sic-fi movie, there was depth and love and conflict and growth in the human characters. So we all really liked it. Afterwards, we ate at a Moroccan restaurant and got soaked in a wild thunderstorm that just poured on Manhattan. We got the last ferry back to New Jersey and the storm passed, so we had a relatively decent dingy ride back to our boat. However we arrived at the boat soaking wet!
So here we are tied to a dock at Cape May, catching up on sleep and researching the weather for our next leg, 65 miles up Delaware Bay and River and into the Chesapeak and Delaware Canal on the way to Chesapeake Bay. We are currently thinking of leaving at dawn on Thursday, a day with a forecast of very light winds and a low tide around 1:00 pm so the currents after that will help pull us along up the river.
Sally has been impressive in her health and energy, participating in voyage planning and socializing on the phone and computer and with our new French and Argentinian Canadian sailing buddies. I am the captain, but really that sometime seems to means I am just along to fix stuff and run the boat. Small example: this morning I disassembled and cleaned and greased and re-assembled a valve on the head. It was becoming too difficult for Sally to twist it. Now it's good. So I am a good guy for today. Actually we're doing very well, having some fun, dealing with the fears that come up with sailing and, perhaps, quieting the health worries we were so caught up in for the last three years. Love to you all, our family and friends.
Monday, September 2, 2013
September 1, 2013
Hello to our family and friends on land and in the cruising community. It's been about two and a half years since our last posting on this site and a lot has happened. Most of you have kept up with events by e-mails sent to everyone who gets the link to this blogsite, so you know that Sally had to fly home before reaching the Bahamas for medical diagnosis and treatment of an immune system disorder that occurred after she was injured during a docking incident in November, 2009. I and our son, Derek, and Seth, a friend of Derek's, had cruised on for another three weeks and then left the boat in in the Bahamas December 2010 and flew home for Christmas. Our last cruise ended in December, 2010 in the Bahamas.
Sally's original injury and autoimmune disorder was treated successfully and was resolving by November, 2011, but then she started feeling nauseous and, when the cause of that was investigated, it turned out that she had a lymphoma tumor on her pituitary gland. She and her family and friends spent a lot of time in the hospital during chemotherapy from December, 2011 to April, 2012, at which time she was done. Followup MRI's and examinations have indicated she is free of the cancer and she has regained much, but not all, of her strength and physical vigor. Sally is walking without any aides and has regained leg strength and balance that allow her to move carefully about on the boat. And she is able to use a device that clips onto our boat hook to reach a docking line out to a piling or a cleat, so no one has to step off onto the dock during docking maneuvers.
Our recent August cruise tested our ability to dock, sail and anchor as well as giving time to do necessary repairs and preparations to the boat. We did well and had fun, so we have decided to head south for the Bahamas again. Southern Belle sails South again.....
Our scheduled departure date is September 4th as we finish preparations, provisioning and Lynn dives under the boat and cleans the prop. When the current crop of thunderstorms passes, we will head west down Long Island Sound, through New York Harbor and down the New Jersey coast. We'll keep you posted. Love, Sally and Lynn of Southern Belle
Hello to our family and friends on land and in the cruising community. It's been about two and a half years since our last posting on this site and a lot has happened. Most of you have kept up with events by e-mails sent to everyone who gets the link to this blogsite, so you know that Sally had to fly home before reaching the Bahamas for medical diagnosis and treatment of an immune system disorder that occurred after she was injured during a docking incident in November, 2009. I and our son, Derek, and Seth, a friend of Derek's, had cruised on for another three weeks and then left the boat in in the Bahamas December 2010 and flew home for Christmas. Our last cruise ended in December, 2010 in the Bahamas.
Sally's original injury and autoimmune disorder was treated successfully and was resolving by November, 2011, but then she started feeling nauseous and, when the cause of that was investigated, it turned out that she had a lymphoma tumor on her pituitary gland. She and her family and friends spent a lot of time in the hospital during chemotherapy from December, 2011 to April, 2012, at which time she was done. Followup MRI's and examinations have indicated she is free of the cancer and she has regained much, but not all, of her strength and physical vigor. Sally is walking without any aides and has regained leg strength and balance that allow her to move carefully about on the boat. And she is able to use a device that clips onto our boat hook to reach a docking line out to a piling or a cleat, so no one has to step off onto the dock during docking maneuvers.
Our recent August cruise tested our ability to dock, sail and anchor as well as giving time to do necessary repairs and preparations to the boat. We did well and had fun, so we have decided to head south for the Bahamas again. Southern Belle sails South again.....
Our scheduled departure date is September 4th as we finish preparations, provisioning and Lynn dives under the boat and cleans the prop. When the current crop of thunderstorms passes, we will head west down Long Island Sound, through New York Harbor and down the New Jersey coast. We'll keep you posted. Love, Sally and Lynn of Southern Belle