We're off!

Happy Halloween everyone! And happy birthday Lauren B.

We got off the bottom last night and left the dock this morning. Bill and I are en route to Annapolis where we will stay one night and leave for Solomons Saturday morning.

Here are some links to recent pictures that I uploaded to Picassa.

• Trip from Annapolis to Rock Hall
• On the bottom
• Annapolis Boat Show
• Redskins Game
• Port Annapolis Marina

Still stuck

Well, we never made it off the bottom today; we are staying another night in Rock Hall. There is an unusually low tide cycle going on due to the high winds that we experienced the other day. But we weren't the only ones affected. Here are some pictures that we took today. Bill and I saw about a dozen boats on the bottom.

Stuck.....

Well, we have been waiting since about 7 am to leave Rock Hall. High tide was at 7:40, but we are still firmly stuck on the bottom. Mary Elizabeth draws about 5.6 inches of water. As of 9:00, we are in 5.3 inches.

We even had a small work boat that moves boats in and out of slips try to pull us off the bottom. Didn't work even with both our and the small "tug's" engines at full throttle.

We'll make it eventually.... we hope.

It is another very cold day. Not only does Bill have pants and shoes on, but he has put on his foul weather gear too in the attempt to block some of the cold air and wind.

Rock Hall, MD = a Fixed Generator!

(Last view of Back Creek)

We left Annapolis Monday morning. After a stop at the fuel dock for some diesel and a pump out, we were on our way. The trip to Rock Hall is short - it took us about three hours (even bucking a current). But it was C-O-L-D. Bill finally gave in and put on a pair of jeans and sneakers; until Monday he was in denial and continued to wear shorts and flip flops even when he was shivering.

(view of Annapolis from the Bay)

We were both thankful we got to Rock Hall when we did. Almost immediately after we arrived, the wind began to seriously pick up and the rain started to come down. We basically hung out down below the rest of the afternoon reading and doing various boat projects.

(Bay Bridge)

Unfortunately, the mechanics were not able to come by until Tuesday afternoon. The good news is, however, that the generator is now fixed. It turns out that a connector had corroded, which was prohibiting something important from getting to something else important that makes the generator work (obviously Bill understands the mechanics behind the generator a WHOLE lot better than I do....)

Throughout the day on Tuesday the wind picked up and it rained hard. At one point we saw 40 knots on the wind indicator. And we are in a slip way back in a creek. We could only imagine what the Bay was like. The boats here in the marina were rocking and rolling with each strong gust of wind. There is nothing like hearing the wind rip through the halyards creating an eerie whistling sound. Bill and I were thankful we had the super duper fender that Dave and Molly gave us to keep us off the dock.

We decided to stay in Rock Hall one more day so we can run the generator off and on throughout the day. So far so good. Everything is working fine. Tomorrow we will finally start our trip south!!!

(a big gust)

Our Last Weekend in Annapolis

We have had a very nice last weekend in Annapolis. On Saturday Mark and Sara picked us up and took us to lunch at the very cool Narrows Restaraunt in Kent Narrows, MD. It was a rainy, windy day and being inside nice and warm looking at the water (versus being on the water) was a treat. And it was, of course, great to see Mark and Sara. We received a beautiful "goodie basket" complete with Sara's homemade mustard and pickels -- and a perfectly carved pumpkin. Awesome.

Saturday night Leslie and Katie drove up to Annapolis in the rain. We went to dinner and then had drinks back at the boat. Sunday we met Joe and Nancy for "one last" breakfast at the diner. Afterwards Bill and I did some last provisioning. And yes, we managed to find a place for everything on the boat.

This afternoon we went to downtown Annapolis to watch the Skins beat the Lions (yippeee!) and now we are back at the boat enjoying a beautiful late afternoon. Tomorrow is supposed to be a lot colder, so we are not necessarily looking forward to our trip to Rock Hall. Hopefully the generator mystery will be solved sooner rather than later so we can begin our trip south the middle of this week.

Again, it has been so nice to see everyone and we have really enjoyed our time in Annapolis. We are looking forward to amazing adventures and a winter season of exploring new places!

Port Annapolis Marina

Bill and I have made slip G35 at Port Annapolis Marina on Back Creek in the Chesapeake our "home port" for the past two months.

The marina boasts a pool, a service center, plenty of parking, a water taxi to downtown, laundry facilities, beautiful landscaping (complete with gazebos) a sandwich shop called the Wet Dog, etc. They have been very gracious in accepting our mail and package deliveries. And we have met many "neighbors" - both weekend boaters and live aboards.

As much as we are excited to get going again, we have enjoyed our stay here and would recommend Port Annapolis to anyone coming through the area.

Andrea's visit

We had a great time having Andrea here. She flew in Friday night from Boston. The weather has been a lot colder here in Annapolis, but she is used to it I guess.

Our weekend was basically eating and sports. Friday night we went to dinner with Michael and Jeremy at O'Learys (thanks Ben and Jen for the gift certificate!) Saturday Andrea and I hung around while Bill went to Alexandria to hand off the keys to the condo. We went to dinner with Joe and Nancy at Morton's (thanks Otis and Andrea for the gift certificate!) Sunday Andrea and I went back to the boat show in the morning to have another look at three of our "favorites." We also checked out Joe and Nancy's new Meridian -- what a boat!

Sunday afternoon was the Redskins game. They squeaked out another win and we had a great time. We were able to get a third seat in the same section so we could all sit together, which was nice. After the game, Andrea, Bill and I rushed back to Annapolis so we could watch the 8:07 Red Sox vs. Tampa game. Unfortunately, things did not go our way..... But if anyone had to beat them, I am glad that it was Tampa.

Andrea flew home on Monday night. So now Bill and I are hanging out getting last errands done before we leave. We have to be in Rock Hall on Monday. We were going to take off from Annapolis on Friday, but since we have no generator (and therefore no heat on anchor!) and it is cold (40s at night) we are not entirely sure we won't just stick around the dock for another two days.

Annapolis Boat Show

We didn't have a chance to go to the Annapolis Sailboat show last week. But today, after breakfast at the diner, Bill, Joe, Nancy, Shawn, Dayna, and I went to the Annapolis Powerboat show. We went on just about all of the trawlers that were there (Selene, Grand Banks, Nordhavn, Kady Krogen, etc.) and enjoyed the day. All of the boats are beautiful. I think that the Selene is both Bill and my favorite. We have been thinking about the possibility of getting a trawler, since we sail only about a quarter of the time. Although trawlers are not sailboats, they still are great on gas (and go slow). And there is about twice as much living space.

The big move is done!!!

Well, we have had a whirlwind of a few days..... After a heartbreaking Redskins loss to the Rams on Sunday, we picked Amy and Allison up at the airport late Sunday night. Monday morning Bill, Amy, Allison and I drove to Alexandria, picked up the Uhaul and got going..... We moved about 30 boxes, a bed, desk, and bedroom furniture. After lunch in Old Town Alexandria, Amy and Allison were on their way. They drove back to Boston Monday afternoon. We were feeling a little nostalgic being at the Alexandria waterfront for one last time (for awhile anyway).

Bill and I stayed in Alexandria both Monday and Tuesday night and spent two days packing up the 10 boxes or so we are keeping in storage (mostly pictures, etc.) cleaning up the condo, painting the walls, etc. We rented a Uhaul today and did the final move. We successfully fit all our stuff in a 5x5x5 unit.

And tonight we are glad to be back on the boat. We have pizza and a movie to look forward to and tomorrow we are meeting Joe and Nancy for the power boat show!!!

BBQ on (well... near) the Mary Elizabeth

We had a great day yesterday catching up with friends from the 1500 etc. at Port Annapolis. We were going to host the BBQ on the boat, but we had a bigger crowd than could fit on the boat so we had food and drinks up at the tables in the marina (which was just as nice!).

Bill, Rosemary, and Rosemary's sister from Crazy Horse dinghied over, as did Michael, Daniel, Jeremy, and their friends. We finally got to meet Alex, Ben and Jen's beautiful 5 month old baby! Joe and Nancy had big news to share when they arrived (with the charcoal, none the less -- thanks guys!); they bought a new boat! Bill and I are looking forward to seeing it at the powerboat show next week. Fred and Kim joined us, as did Megan and Michelle, Anne and Miles, and Katie (who spent the night). Dave and Pam got some tips from "cruisers."And Carol, Bill, and their dog drove from Soloman's. It was really nice to see everyone and we had the perfect weather for a get together. The only problem I only took two pictures!

Today Bill and I went to the Redskins game. It was another beautiful day - sunny, warm but not hot, etc. The Redskins LOST and everyone, once they got over the shock of losing to the Rams, was not happy. We are back at the boat now waiting to pick Amy and Allison up from the airport later tonight. Tomorrow is the big move.

We're back!

(Amazing view!)
(Caught in the rain at Busch Gardens)

(All the pics on this post were taken while we were in St. Pete. and all links are to pictures)

We're back!!! Bill and I had a fabulous time in St. Pete. What a great place!! It is truly a city that has just about everything; a beautiful waterfront, amazing museums, perfect beaches, marinas, great restaurants, a cute and very walkable downtown area, and most importantly - Bill's mom! We had a great time.

(View of Vinoy Park, the Pier, and beyond)

So, here is the quick synopsis of our 17 days in St. Pete...We went to Busch Gardens (where we saw amazing animals [see below] and rode 4 of the 5 roller coasters before it started to rain, hence the ponchos [see above]), we went to the beach, we went to the St. Pete Museum of Fine Arts, we watched thousands of people participate in the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Walk in St. Pete from Mary Alice's balcony, I went to the Dali Museum and the Henry Plant Museum at the University of Tampa, Bill played golf, we went to three movies (Eagle Eye, Burn After Reading, and Dark Knight).

(Some of the amazing animals that we saw at Busch Gardens)

We "attended" the Rays rally and went to two Rays playoff games (as incognito Boston fans, of course!), we went to Tampa, we finished watching all of the Lost episodes on DVD, we explored Clearwater and several other towns along the coastline, we watched two debates, we went to the "Pier", we went for walks, we ate at several great restaurants, we enjoyed the beautiful pool at Mary Alice's place. ....We laughed, we cried... kidding.

(Museum of Fine Arts, St. Pete)
(Start of the Susan G Komen walk for the cure )

It really was a great two and a half weeks and it was SO nice to see Mary Alice. Of course we WISH we could have stayed a few more days to see the Red Sox play at Tampa on Friday!
(Crabby Bill's -- Clearwater)

(Bike / walking path, St. Pete)

So... we flew from Tampa into Baltimore yesterday and drove back to Rock Hall, MD. SV Mary Elizabeth had a lot of work done while we were gone -- including the hull. And she looks stunning. Both Bill and I almost didn't recognize her; she looks brand new again.
(The Rays play in an indoor stadium)
(Coaster at Busch Gardens)

Almost everything was fixed on our long punch list -- and Island Packet was again great. The only problem is the generator, which we have been having problems with for several months. No one can figure out what is wrong. There was hope it could be fixed on Thursday with some parts that were ordered.... So we made the decision to take care of the cars on Thursday (which involved driving from Rock Hall to Annapolis to drop off Bill's car and then BACK to Rock Hall in my car to drop off Bill who stayed with the boat. I then continued on to Alexandria to take care of some "house stuff" so the place is ready for our renter in a few days.... It was a long day [5 hours total] in the car to say the least! We did find gas for $2.89 which was a plus. And thankfully we didn't hit too much traffic.) Unfortunately the new parts didn't help and even the specialized mechanic is stumped. So, even though the generator still is not 100%, Bill is going to solo the boat from Rock Hall to Annapolis tomorrow so Mary Elizabeth will be back at Port Annapolis this weekend.

(Henry B. Plant Museum, Tampa -- thanks Cynthia for the great tour and Sara for arranging!)

We are looking forward to having friends over on Saturday for a BBQ. And Sunday we are excited for a Redskins home game and then Amy and Allison fly in later that night. The "big move" happens on Monday.

Plans still stand to head south the last week of October. We wish all our friends safe travels as everyone starts the winter boating season. Dave and Molly have already gone (we miss you guys!) Andrea will be here for a last visit next week, which we are looking forward to!!!
(The Pier, St. Pete)

So, hope everyone is doing well. And thanks for continuing to keep in touch / read.



(sunrise, St. Pete)