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Oct 24, 2004
Georgia (Bless the wonderful storage on our Great Harbour)
Hi All,
My learning curve continues. Port Royal Military Base was not something I would not have put very high on my list (you know that list that the more I do the longer it gets) of things to do but I would surely have missed something. We spent a morning there and it was not nearly enough time. There is so much history in Beaufort and the museum at Port Royal just helped bring things a little more in perspective. I thought I had not inherited my Mother's love of history but I guess I did after all. We had lunch at a very nice restaurant on the base.
Our next stop was Hilton Head to visit friends, formerly Columbusites Jim and Suzanne Furlong. Windmill Harbour is the only marina we have visited where you enter through a lock. I did get up at 5:30 a.m., yes that's right, me at 5:30 a.m. and on my own, to see the predicted heavy meteor show but the lights in the marina were too bright to see much.
After Hilton Head we are back to anchoring. Our stop in Kilkenny Creek was so beautiful. The stars were
magnificent. I am sorry we were not here last night but once again I did get up during the night to view some of the meteor shower although there were not many.
The next night we anchored in our another favorite anchorage, Broghton Island. We have anchored here on almost every trip. I was a little disappointed we did not see any alligators. We always have before. We did see a wild boar and what I think was probably a wild horse. We will see more wild horses on Cumberland Island--another favorite anchorage. We have seen several bald eagles, deer and many kinds of birds. We are also back in dolphin country where we see dozens every day. I never get tired of seeing and loving the dolphins.
Brunswick, Georgia is where we are parting company with Miracles III. Paul & Connie have been wonderful traveling companions and we will truly miss them. They are leaving the boat in Brunswick for the winter. They have a condo in Melbourne that need some major attention since the two hurricanes visited.
We are headed to Florida. We will stop at another favorite, Jacksonville Landing where we usually dock in front of Hooters--Paul always enjoys that.
I will probably not have another Odyssey update for a while because the next two weeks will be very hectic. We are going to Green Cove Springs to have a few things done to the boat, I am flying back to Ohio to visit daughter Janet and Fiance Ken, Mom in West Virginia and Son Jeff, wife Kris and grandson John in Pennsylvania. When I get back I will do our major stocking for the Bahamas. I plan on using my flight time to make my "major" list. We are planning to stay six months. Bless the wonderful storage on our Great Harbour. It is always interesting to see how much our waterline drops.
Sue & Paul
Nov. 18, 2004
Waiting for weather at North Lake Worth, Florida
Hi All,
I hope this is the last Odyssey update from the U.S. We are looking at good crossing windows starting tomorrow night and lasting several days. We are currently in an anchorage in North Lake Worth and will probably move to the south anchorage tomorrow night to be "ready to roll" when we--no Paul feels the weather is right. I go on the Internet every night and print out the forecast. We are listening to the weather station on the VHF, Paul is checking the WX Works, and we are talking with other boaters.
We spent a week at Vero Beach on a mooring. The weather forecast was for possible gale force winds so we just stayed put. Staying put turned out to be fun. We were close enough that Paul and Connie Murgo came down from Melbourne twice--that sure did help with our "withdrawal symptoms" that we have since they left there boat in Brunswick, Georgia.
Also Fred and Linda, friends on Linda G were at the marina. We got in one (bad I shouldn't even mention it) game of Dominos but we did have fun. We went shopping together and had a couple of lunches "out". The biggy was when good friends Bob, Carole and Roxie from Boca Run came by. They are traveling in a motorhome this winter. Talk about withdrawal: We have not been to the Bahamas without them and we will really miss them.
Well, we have provisioned enough to drop the waterline considerably. Tomorrow we will do what I hope is our last last (not a typo) provision. We provision then use some "stuff" then we get twice as much"stuff" to replace the "stuff" we used. You must open the freezer VERY carefully. It has a strange resemblance to Fibber Magees closet but thank goodness for the vacuum sealer. ( Terry, are you finally using yours? remember I did keep my end of the bargain). The guest bathroom shower stall is filled to the top. I don't have to worry about anything falling because it is so full there is no place for it to go.
I finished my Christmas cards tonight. I am going to mail them tomorrow. Boy will that be a shock to some people who are used to getting mine right around Christmas? Maybe the day before, maybe the day after. I put Happy Holidays so I hope they realize that is a Christmas card--even if it is before Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving--another story. I am not sure what we will be doing, but I just hope we will be doing it in the Bahamas.
The latest email I received from our friends in the Bahamas is that that are "popping" back very quickly.
It was depressing to see evidence of so much of damage on our trip down the east coast of Florida especially south of Melbourne. Actually we were rafted with a boat in Vero Beach that had been in the hurricane. It was in pretty bad shape. The tow service came every few days and hauled off another damaged boat. I guess they can only handle a few at a time.
We are not planning to go straight to Boat Harbour when we get to the Bahamas so I will not be sending an email very soon. There is so much we have not seen in the northern Abacos that we want to "sightsee" on the way.
Happy Thanksgiving to all and to all a good night!
Nov. 26, 2004
On to the Abacos
Sue & Paul
Hello from the beautiful Bahamas.
We crossed on Friday Nov 19. We had a good crossing--not great but good. It was a little "bumpy" starting off from Lake Worth but the farther we got the better it got and by the time we got to the banks on the Bahamas it was flat calm. We crossed with several friends which made it even more comfortable. We saw dolphins in the Gulf Stream in middle of the ocean. We had never had that before. We saw a number of flying fish which always fascinates us. We neared the Bahamas the water turned such a beautiful deep blue. When we reached
"The Banks" the water is a beautiful teal and only averages about 15 feet deep. We had a number of dolphins. The big difference here is you can see the dolphins when they are under water. It is such fun to watch them dive.
We anchored at Mangrove Cay. We had a perfect night with no wind and the stars we incredible. The next day we made a leisure trip to Great Sale Cay and had another beautiful anchorage with more incredible stars. We are so happy to be "home".
The weather was so great we spent several days visiting different islands. We went through customs in Green Turtle Cay. This is the first inhabited island we stopped at. We saw several areas that were still being repaired from the hurricanes but not really bad.
We anchored at Manjack Cay and I had my first afternoon of shelling. We took the dinghy to the ocean side of the island. When we got back to the boat our friend Manfred on Seranade was anchored near us.
We had planned to spend several more days island hopping but there is supposed to be a front moving through so we decided to travel with Manfred to Marsh Harbour.
We have our same slip at Boat Harbour. They have done a great job of restoring the marina. There are still a few areas that don't have electric and water but they are working on them. The pool looks as beautiful as ever and the restaurant & gift shop are fine.
We had a wonderful carry in Thanksgiving dinner today with a bunch of our friends at the Tiki Hut.
Paul and I took our first walk downtown Marsh Harbour. Downtown doesn't look too bad just a little bare with only a few flowers and a lot less beautiful palm trees. The harbour is a different story. All the marinas in the harbour were wiped out and only one showed real evidence of returning soon. Most of the restaurants are open or opening soon as are the souvenir shops. The grocery stores are operating as normal.
Many of our Yacht Club members are here and we hear our friends (the sport fishers) from the Carolina Connection will be here next week.
We are planning to go to an open house at and art gallery at Man O War Cay on Saturday.
I am learning, or should I say, trying to learn cross stitch.
I will send pictures separately so the people who cannot get pictures can still get the email
Sue & Paul
March 4, 2005
Stray dogs and Man O’ War
Hi All,
I can't believe it has been so long since I sent an update. Where does time go? Actually we have had a restful winter. We have not had the amount of company we had last year and we also did not travel quite as much.
I could probably teach the pot cakes ( the Abaco Stray dogs) something about begging. I have become so good at it when I see a sport fishing boat come in. A loaf of
homemade bread or a plate of cookies really helps.
Paul and Connie Murgo, owners of Great Harbour The Rose, spent a wonderful week with us. They are Italian-Americans, and they just happened to arrive we when were having Italian night at the Tiki Hut.
While they were here we took them and Manfred and Susanna to Man O’ War Cay. We had lunch with Fran, Steve, Jeanie and Roger at the Hibiscus Cafe then went to Roger and Jeanie's house on Dickie's Cay which is right beside Man O’ War. We rented a car, while they were here and went to Treasure Cay and Pete's Pub in Little Harbour.
Janet came for a much too short visit. We were checking out possibilities for her up coming wedding. She & Ken have pretty well decided on Treasurer Cay. Both Hope Town and Treasurer Cay have a lot to offer for a wedding.
While Janet was here we also went to the Flea Market at Man O’ War. I set up a table and sold some of the jewelry I have been making. I made about $175. I was really pleased and felt complimented that people liked my jewelry.
Abaco Bureau of Tourism had a "People to People" get together to say welcome to visitors of Abaco. They asked visitors to make a Junkanoo Mask. I did, and I won first place with my mask.
They had food, drinks, dancing, a limbo contest, that I did not enter, and a mini Junkanoo. It was a great time. Everything was free which always makes it better.
I am finally back in to a pretty good running routine. I really miss my running buddy Carole. By the way Carole, I did the five-mile eastern shore run in less than 45 minutes today. I am getting a little speed back.
I have not really done as much shelling as I would like to. We have had a lot of wind and not all that many "good dinghy days". Paul puts the dinghy up when we are expecting a real windy day and by the time I finally talk him into putting it back down it seems another front with winds is on the way.
I did another silk painting at Stitch & Bitch. It was much better than the first but I still had better not "give up my day job". It seems the only part of Stitch & Bitch I am really good at is the Bitching-- I guess I have had more experience at it.
If there was a contest for most books read this winter I am sure Paul would win. I did not know he was SUCH a bookworm. A friend gave me the new John Grisham book to read day before yesterday and before I had a chance to start it Paul had it finished.
The annual Barefoot Concert at Nippers is this weekend. We are looking forward to having a wonderful time.
I guess that's about it for now.
Sue & Paul
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This baby barracuda rests in the shade. He was nothing compared to his big brother.
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March 21, 2005
Adult Easter egg hunt
Hi all,
Let's see where did I leave off—Barefoot Man Concert. The concert was wonderful--wish I could say the same for the trip up. Guana Cay, Nippers location is about 12 miles. Our Inverter is out of commission, parts on order but this is the Bahamas Mon so who knows when they will arrive. Paul said we could not anchor over night. HE, not ME, turned down several offers to go with other people. HE decided we could take the dinghy. Fine—except we had to go North in 25-30 knot winds from the north.Talk about fun, no that is not my interpretation. I just hid under my rain poncho and held on for dear life. We made it and it WAS worth it. The Yacht Club had a large section reserved and we had about 50 people in our group which made it all the more fun. The trip home, thankfully, was much better. Nipper's is having an Easter Egg hunt this weekend and I want to go but NOT in the dinghy. The ferry does go to Guana Cay. From what I hear,
Johnny, Nipper's owner, "hides" a bunch of plastic eggs in the reef in the water in front of Nipper's. No one is allowed in the water until he blows his conch horn.This is NOT for little kids—just us big kids.
It is the time of year for snowbirds to start heading home—I am not a snow bird or anything related to snow or cold so we are not heading back to the states yet—besides we have our home with us. Our friends on Boundless Grace, a Nordhavn 47, want us to go south with them in April. If Paul gets the Inverter fixed and the water maker checks out we will.
I am running better than I have in years and enjoying it the way I used to. Paul is still reading—his project list is not getting shorter. My silk painting skills are improving.
We had a send off lunch at Man O’ War for a few friends, home one night, then Jib Room for St. Patrick's day party, farewell dinner on O' Henry, dinner on Serenade to welcome Susanna back then tomorrow back to Sarabande for farewell party for Susanna—yes she just got here and she is leaving. Manfred is looking for someone to help him take the boat back to the
states—anyone interested? Wednesday is South of the Border night at the Tiki Hut then I think we finally get to stay home one night. I may have to walk the docks to find someone to invite to dinner.
We did get to see the parrots again at Man O ‘War. I did not have the camera but really enjoyed watching such a beautiful bird.
Yesterday Paul andf I went to Fowl Cay to go snorkeling. We were about a mile from the mooring balls where we were going to tie the dingy and I saw a BIG barracuda. When we got the boat tied off I told Paul to go ahead to the first coral head and I would go with him to the second one when he came back. There were several other boats around and people snorkeling. I was enjoying my viewing bucket.
So many different beautiful fish, large sea fans, lots of coral and all of a sudden the BIGGEST barracuda I have even seen stuck his face right under the bottom of my bucket. He just looked up at me as if to say "what's for dinner?" I said NOT ME!!! How I ever kept from falling out the other side of the boat I don't know. He just sat there and stared at me. Finally—Paul
came back to the boat. When he got close I was able to tell him there was a BIG barracuda on the other side of the boat. He decided to have a starring contest with him for a few minutes before he finally got in the boat. Would have served him right if "Berry" had decided to have a "bite" of lunch. Needless to say I did not go snorkeling. We'll see if I am ready to snorkel this weekend.
Our weather has, finally, been the best of the winter. Mid 80s in the daytime and high 60s at night. The winds have also died down. The marina is filling up with Sport Fishing boats. I think we are the smallest boat here. We have a 65-footer on our right and two 65-footers in front of us. The one guy was telling us his "dinghy," a 33-footer, is over on dock two. I wanted to tell the guy what a dingy is.
I saw a bumper sticker the other day I loved (yes they have bumper stickers here) It said "who stopped payment on my reality check". I am having my reality check right now, I am working on our income taxes. You should not have to worry about that "stuff" when you retire.
Until next time.
Sue & Paul
May 12, 2005
Back to the USA
Hi All,
Just to let you know we are back in the good old USA. We, reluctantly, crossed over on Monday May 9. We were just 10 days shy of 6 months.
Since last I wrote, we spent 3 wonderful weeks at Man O War. The more time we spend there the more the we love it. I ran everyday and was running quite well. I learned to do okay on the hills. The island is about 3 miles long and I made a course of 7 miles.
We finally left Man ’O’ War and headed for Baker's Bay to anchor for a few days. That is another favorite of ours. The water across the cut was too rough to take the dinghy to Spoil Cay which has some of the best shelling, but I did get to go shelling in Baker's Bay--not a lot of good shells but I got my "fix".
Our generator developed a problem so we headed to Green Turtle Cay. We went into a Marina there--the Other Shore Club. Green Turtle is about 3 1/2 miles long so I made an 8-mile course to run. A couple of days the humidity was pretty high, but I still ran.
We just happened to be there for a "BOONDOGGLE" fest. It was being sponsored by a guy from Columbus Ohio who is building a house---Button Wood house-- on Green Turtle. The festivities lasted 3 days but we only got in on the first day because Paul (not me, I try really hard to never miss a party especially with free food) decided it was time to move on. We heard of a nice long weather window to cross back to the states.
We spent a day at Angel Fish point and then a day at Mangrove Cay. The trip was like ridding through an aquarium. We saw many beautiful fish and I don't think I have ever seen so many beautiful sea biscuits. They looked like they had a beautiful star on top. We saw several large barracudas.
We were the only boat at Mangrove except for a short period when a sailboat came in for an overnight. Paul cleaned the props and we both did some swimming and just really enjoying the warm beautiful water and not a single barracuda. I am not real fond of barracudas.
Our crossing was one of our best yet. We had next to no winds and very gentle rollers. I have some pictures that I will send next week.
We checked in Customs & Immigration at West Palm Beach. I spent 40 minutes with Verizon getting our service back to regular BUT of course as usual they have really screwed up the billing. I am not sure what to do about Verizon they are getting close to Dell in my book of screw ups.
We went to a Publix grocery store--I got a little carried away and when I get carried away I have a very difficult time carry all my carryings away. Paul & I each had our back packs. We had our large cooler bag and we both had our arms full of bags but we made it back to the dinghy and then safely back to the boat.
We are now on our way up the Intracoastal waterway to Green Cove Spring. We will have some things done to the boat & the generator before we head north.
All for now.
Sue & Paul
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Reynolds Park Yacht Center in Green Cove Springs is home to recreational vessels as well as these federally owned cruise ships.
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June 3, 2005
Reynolds Park Yacht Center
Hi All,
Well, I did it again. Sorry we did not fall off the face of the earth. We have been so busy and having a good time even being "stuck" in a marina. We are at Reynolds Park Yacht Center in Green Cove Springs. What a nice place to be "stuck".
Let's see, I left off just as we started up the Intracoastal waterway. We had one of our better trips. Paul picked great anchorage some old favorites and some new.
We had a wonderful Manatee show in the Haul Over Canal--near Cape Canaveral. We had lots of dolphins also. The highlight had to be anchoring next to St Augustine lighthouse just as I was finishing up a cross-stitch of St Augustine Lighthouse which has moved near the top of my all time favorites.
We made our usual stop at Jax Landing. We were greeted by GH owner Hugh Hazeltine. We had a nice visit. We had dinner at Hooters--more fun for Paul than me--I just don't seem to get impressed by the too scantily clad ( and too-young for Paul) girls.
We arrived in Green Cove on my birthday--my very important birthday--No. 62. Hard to believe.
We were met by Great Harbour owners (until next week) Neil & Gail O Donnell of Sybarite, GH Berlie Mae owners, Ted & Terri Woehr came soon after and then we were all joined at dinner by GH C-View owners, Pat & Earl Dehart. We went to an Italian restaurant then back to Sybarite for surprise ice cream cake. Thanks to you all for helping to make my birthday special. I heard from all my family which is also very nice.
I just recently learned a friend, Joyce Mckimmie Reno, from my high school days ( notice I did not say "old) lives near Gainesville. She & I have been corresponding recently. Joyce & husband Bob came for a visit. It was so much fun catching up on Moundsville.
We rented a car and started our many errands. We had a fun trip to Palm Beach to pick up a new membrane for our watermaker. We stopped at the Outlet Mall in Vero Beach. I love the Bahamas but they don't have outlet malls. I tried really hard to do "justice" to my shopping trip.
We stopped in Daytona Beach at Aunt Catfishes restaurant, a favorite of ours when we went to Bike Week years ago--It is still very good--so much for the diet.
I made my trek to the Social Security Office. Paul and I both thought there would be no social security by the time we made it to "the age of benefits". I will get my first check in July. Yeah!!.
Gail and I had a day at the a nice lunch and day at the beach then Paul and Neil met us in the evening for dinner.
Paul has been working hard getting many projects done and still making time to go shopping.
I have been running everyday. I have worked out a nice 7-mile course but it has been very humid. I am doing quite well with the heat but not the humidity. I did hear about a 5K run on Memorial Day and decided to run it. Paul did a very good job playing pit crew and camera man. I tried to do him justice by taking second place in my age group. I got a nice plaque.
Mirage launched the newest Great Harbour N37, named Avocet by owners Steve and Marilyn Smith, who were joined by their guests Diane and Bob for a week. They are all fun people and a great addition
to the GH family. We enjoyed spending time with them.
Paul and Connie Murgo, of the GH 37 The Rose, drove up from Melbourne to spend an afternoon with us. We came south with them last fall and became very good friends. It was great to see them again.
Our "few days" here has turned into a few weeks but a good few weeks. We are leaving this weekend to head north. Our Float plan is to head north. We are doing a Down East tour, New England Coastline, in late August-early September. but other than that we are just heading north.
We will be trying once again to see more of the places we have missed on our previous trips and enjoy some of the wonder anchoring opportunities.
Stayed tuned for the continuing saga of Odyssey.
Sue & Paul
June 11, 2005
Northbound in ‘The Ditch’
Hi All,
We are "holed up" at beautiful Amelia Island. I can't think of a nicer place to wait out some bad weather. We have had dolphins swimming right off our swim platform all day. Amelia Island is such a neat little town. In addition to so many wonderful shops, historic homes & buildings, nice beach, I found a perfect place to eat, a seafood market. The fresh shrimp & fish are brought in daily. We ordered a fish basket--must have had 3 dozen shrimp and a big basket of fries. It was fantastic and only $7.25 including drink with free refills-- my kind of place. I also got a crab cake to bring back to the boat for today.
We finally pushed off the dock in Green Cove on Wednesday morning. We went to Jacksonville Landing. We spent 2 days doing more checking out the town than we have done previously. I tried to walk Paul's legs off and I had ran the new bike path. They are really trying to build up downtown Jacksonville. We took the dinghy to the Ortega River. Paul found another West Marine--I think he can smell those places. Alas no Super Walmart for me so I made the most of Radio Shack.
We pulled away from the dock at 6:30 AM, of course Paul's idea. I would have gone back to sleep but there is too much to see in that area. We passed Jax stadium where the Super Bowl was played this past year, then several gigantic freighters and military ships. We had so many dolphins. I still love watching the dolphins.
We stopped to get our first fuel since before we went to the Bahamas. It is nice to have such good fuel mileage but it was like sticker shock at $2.01/ gallon and that was at Florida Petroleum which is a commercial place and commercial prices. The marina was $2.19 /gallon. We tried taking just enough to get us in "better price country".
Today we are getting caught up on real important things like our domino games, sleep, books, watching TV and me playing on the Internet.
Tomorrow we are headed for Cumberland Island.
Stay tuned. I enjoy all the comments on our updates but I think we had the most ever on the picture of the captain working so hard on the crossing
Sue & Paul
June 21, 2005
Wild horses and buffets; makes you wonder
Hi All,
The last I wrote we were still in the sunny state of Florida which was anything but sunny our last three days there. We had the most rain we have seen in a long time but we were snug in our nice anchorage at Fernandina Beach ( Amelia Island).
Our next stop was in Georgia at Cumberland Island--a favorite stop of ours.
Shortly after we arrived we got to see a submarine leave Kings Bay Submarine Base headed to sea. I have always wanted to see one, and this is the first time we have lucked out although it was mostly submerged, seeing it and the 6 escort boats was cool. This is the only way Paul wanted to see one. He is always a little apprehensive in this area hoping NOT to have one pass us. We have heard they give a tremendous wake.
We spent more time on the island than we have had an opportunity to in the past. We spent a whole afternoon walking the beach and yes I collected a lot of nice shells--remember that is ballast for the boat--although I am not sure what things of Paul's I may have to start pitching to make room for my shells. We did get to see the wild horses and also some wild turkeys. We also toured the area where the Carnagie early 1900s Mansions were. I was disappointed we were not allowed to visit Graystone Manor ( where John Kennedy Jr. was married) We were told we could call and might be able to get a dinner reservation if we called far enough ahead, but for some reason when Paul heard the price ($100+ per person) he said no.
Our next anchorage, another favorite, was Broughton Creek where last fall Paul and Connie Murgo took the picture of me and Paul that I used on our Christmas letter.
We moved on to South Carolina, passing by Savannah and another very favorite stop, Hilton Head Island and good friend Jim and Susanne Furlong. Paul had ordered some parts he needed and we were picking them up at Ladies Island Marina in Beaufort, SC.
Joe & Candi Nilles are the managers of Ladies Island Marina. We met Joe & Candi on our first trip north in Elizabeth City, NC and have met up with them a number of times since including the Bahamas. We had a fun three days with them. They are wonderful hosts.
I had not had an opportunity to run since we left Florida but thank goodness I could run at Beaufort--especially after Friday night at the Golden Corral Buffet. I have no will power, and I make certain I get my moneys worth.
We have been talking with new GH owners Jonathan & Judie Jenkins who just bought Sybarite II ( now Double JJ) from Neil & Gail O'Donnell. They are right behind us and hopefully will catch up soon.
Our next major destination is Barefoot Landing, ( Oh no! More buffets!) Myrtle Beach, S.C. We plan to spend three days there.
That's all for now.
Paul & Sue
Aug. 7, 2005
The Chesapeake and lovin’ it
Hi All,
I have been trying to get this out for quite some time. Now I will just take time to send a quick update.
We had a wonderful but too fast and hectic trip to Ohio. We had the opportunity to see my Mom, Son Jeff, his wife Kris, our special grandson John, daughter Janet and Fiance Ken and several good friends. We also picked up our new method of transportation--our scooter. It was a lot of fun getting it on the boat.
The trip was beautiful. I have always enjoyed the mountains.
When we got "home" to Solomons we finally got to meet Jonathan and Judie Jenkins. We have been corresponding by email for about 2 years. They just purchased Double JJ, the Great Harbour that belonged to our friends Neil and Gail ODonnell. Jonathan was a big help to Paul getting the scooter aboard.
We traveled with Jonathan and Judie for a week. We anchored in Solomons where Judie and I did a couple of great kayack trips. We traveled together to Annapolis, MD. We picked up the Navy moorings--Jonathan and Judie's first and they must have really liked them. We talked with them today and they are still on the mooring. They have had more jelly fish in their generator intake than I have ever heard of anyone getting. They are getting them now in the water that we swam in--scary thought.
We said see you soon to the Jenkins and headed to Baltimore to more good friends. Fred and Linda on Linda G, our good friend Manfred but not Susanna. She is busy with another movie.
There were 4, counting us, Great Harbours there. We are "staging" for our Down East tour.
Another first--meeting GH Fiddlers Green--Terry and Chris Smith. We have passed them on the waterway, read their very humorous chronicles of their adventures and talked on the phone but finally after 4 years met them in person. Puffin, Carl and Lois Lance and the newest GH37 Gene and Judy Koetitz on Lo Que Se A ( means whatever --good name for a boat).
Every time we go to Baltimore we find so much more to see and do and we still have not "done it all". I found a wonderful place to run. The humidity the past 3 weeks has been almost unbearable but I did still run when I could.
When we were in Green Cove Springs we got acquainted with Steve and Marilyn Smith the owners of the brand new GHN37 Avocet. They live in Virginia and came up to spend a day with us. It was fun to see them again.
Paul and I did the tourist thing one day and walked downtown--about 2 miles--not bad.We had lunch ( we called it our Anniversary dinner) at the Hard Rock Cafe--lots of fun. We toured the submarine Torsk, Chesapeake Lightship, and Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse. Our "seniors" ( we are finding the good part of growing older all the time) pass for only $6 also included a Coast Guard Cutter but we ran out of gas and still had to walk home--not good. We could have taken the water taxi but we struggled on home and spent the rest of the afternoon at the swimming pool.
The water pump on our air conditioner pick the worst possible time to give up helping to make us comfortable. As if hot flashes aren't enough to deal with in this humidity--BUT I am not cold.
We anchored with Lo Que Se A at a wonderful anchorage in the Bohemia River. I swam over to their boat and Paul joined me later. Somehow when we swam back to our boat it seemed twice as far But we were cool in the water.
We finally got out new part in Chesapeake City and now that a cold front has come through we have air conditioning-- more important-- if when we get to Maine and it is cold at night we have heat--it is a little hard to think about heat when it is so warm outside.
We are now traveling with Lo Que Se A, Puffin and new GH owners Lazy Dolphin, Barbara and Randy Semper. We all met up at Chesapeake City--what a neat little town. The last time we were here we came in after everything was closed but this time I got to "do the town" and I did the town. We also went to the Cand D Canal museum with exhibits explaining the history of the canal.
We ( the 4 boats) left Chesapeake City yesterday afternoon and went part way down Delaware Bay. Paul dragged everybody out at first light this morning to come on into Sunset Lake ( Cape May). It was a good thing because some nasty storms passed very close by soon after we got anchored--we just had some light rain.
The guys have been conferring, with the help of Weather WX our satellite weather, and have decided if we leave at first light AGAIN tomorrow we may have a nice trip clear to Sandy Hook. This is the only place we have to go in the ocean. Puffin is the only ones, besides us, who have traveled in the ocean so we NEED to have a good experience.
I have been wanting a new camera with more zoom but could not justify the cost. I dropped my camera and lost all the zoom and since I could not make a trip to New England without a camera I had to buy a new camera. I bought it in Baltimore. I have taken some really good pictures. It is such fun traveling with 3 other boats like us.
I will try to send some pictures in a separate email because of those who cannot get pictures.
Till next time.
Sue and Paul
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Odyssey is dwarfed by the Staten Island Ferry as it plies the waters around New York City.
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Aug. 9, 2005
Heading to New England
Just a quicky but I am so excited I had to share.
We ( Odyssey, Lo Que Se A, Lazy Dolphin, and Puffin) left Cape May NJ yesterday (Monday) went on the ocean to Manesquan, NJ then today back out on the flat calm ocean to New York City.
This our 4th trip to New York City BUT the first to stop--yeah!!! and it is so much fun with 3 other boats just like us. We are anchored tonight behind the Statue of Liberty--can't really see all of her but we can see her head and arm all lit up.
The Verazano Bridge is all lit up also. The New York Skyline is so spectacular!
This evening we had our dinner interrupted with the Queen Mary II going out to sea WOW what a sight and to watch her go under the Verazano Bridge.
I gave my camera a very good work out today. Our friends also took some pictures of us that hopefully I will share soon.
We are going to play tourist tomorrow.
Sue and Paul
Sept. 9, 2005
Cruising Down East with the gang
Hi All,
I am not sure when I will get this sent but since it has been so long and so much has happened I thought I should get caught up. We are currently cruising down a beautiful absolutely flat calm ocean. So far today we have seen several whales, dolphins and a great number of seals.
Our Down East Tour officially ended this morning. 2 boats are going farther north and since we want to be in the Bahamas for daughter Janet's wedding we decided we had better head south.
There have been so many highlights to this trip but if I had to pick one I would say the wonderful experience of traveling with 7 other Great Harbours. I am sure we were a sight to behold. Our weather has been exceptional. If I tried to tell all of our experiences this would be entirely too long so I will just try to give some of the highlights.
We had a few days with our good friends Paul and Connie Murgo, The Rose, and were sorry they could not join us on the trip to make it nine GHs.
We steamed ( at our whopping fast speeds of 7 to 8 knots) out of Jamestown and headed for Onset.
Traversing the Cape Cod Canal showed us things are different up here and oh so beautiful. Our next stop was Provincetown and I guess you could say EXTREMELY eclectic. I did not take my camera downtown at night so I missed some real Kodak moments. Paul and I hiked the 252-foot Pilgrim Monument where we could see four lighthouses and a fantastic view of the harbor. We had an old fashioned clam bake. I did eat one raw clam but found I prefer mine cooked. The steamed ones and the clam chowder were wonderful. We were all given a "doggy container" of clam chowder to bring home and I got the four leftover pieces of blue berry cobbler and the best part of that was Paul isn't crazy about clam chowder or blueberry cobbler so I had to eat it all myself. I am such a martyr.
Our next passage was through Stellwagen Bay which is noted for whale watching and we were not denied. One of the whales seemed to be enamored with Odyssey and provided us with a spectacular performance and prize winning pictures. I was totally entranced so I was lucky to get the few pictures I did get but I will have the ones in my mind forever. Whales are spectacular!
Our brief stopover at Isle of Shoals provided us with the only real fog we experienced. We skipped Gloucester ( one of several places we missed and are planning to stop on the way back) to head on to Portland to be at a marina in case Katrina decided to spread her wrath on us. She stayed inland and pretty well missed us altogether. Our hearts and prayers go out to the so many others who were not so lucky.
Portland had mile and miles of trails for me to run on. I tried new ones everyday. I was exhausted when we finally left just trying to run everyday and still keep up with all the other activities including a trip to the LL Bean outlets, a Farmer's market, several trips downtown, our non progressive dinner ( changed from a progressive dinner --boat to boat--to a carry in at the marina lounge) and an evening with Eileen Quinn, a very witty song writer and performer.
Our last stop was Boothbay Harbor where we anchored in a snug, deep water anchorage that worked out very well. We had our own pet seal who put on many performances but was extremely camera shy and had a keen since of camera detection. We made several trips "to town" and did a lot of socializing--ending with our lobster banquet.
The New England coastline is, as described many times, incredibly beautiful and we thank Mirage for arranging this trip that Paul and I would probably never have ventured out on our own but are so glad we did it.
We did have temperatures in the low 50s and I had to pullout my electric blanket but it was all worth it.
As usual I will send pictures separately for those who can't get the emails with pictures. I have taken over 1,500 since we left Baltimore with my new camera.
Sue and Paul
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