Back to Annapolis

This weekend had great winds forecast for another trip to Annapolis!  We were able to make the whole trip under sail, downwind with ~15kts at our backs.  Arriving in the mooring field, we had our pick of the balls and took #1, right off Ego Alley.  We headed into town and took a long walk around the Academy campus where we checked out their impressive fleet of boats.  Then, of course, it was time for ice cream! No matter how cold it is, the kids are always up for ice cream!

Downwind run into Annapolis

The lone boat in the mooring field!

Still loving that ice cream.  Brrrrr!

Saturday night was spent peacefully watching a movie.   Sunday morning we went on a long dinghy ride up Spa Creek and went ashore at Truxton Park.  It was soooo nice!  I love the crunch of leaves underfoot.  We even managed to find a geocache while we were there!

The boys enjoy a walk along the trail.

We left Annapolis around lunch, getting underway from the mooring under sail for the first time ever.  Figured an empty mooring field was a great place to try!  From there it was a day of total sail.  We didn't have to start the motor until just outside of the marina, and we made it to the dock just before sunset.  THAT was a great sailing weekend!

Our Captain enjoying steady breezes at the helm.

St. Michael's, Take 2

Our first visit to St. Michael's was in the height of summer and we swore we'd come back when it was a little calmer. This was the weekend! We left early Saturday with 18-20 knot winds from SSE giving us a nice push across the bay. Unfortunately the 2-4 foot seas on the quarter made the kids a little queasy, but not nearly so bad as last weekend! We anchored early in the afternoon and we're the lone boat for only a short time. Surprise, surprise--our dock neighbors, Libre Vie, were now our anchorage neighbors!

A quick trip to town afforded the kids the opportunity to play at the park, eat ice cream, and check out the great toy store. It also reminded us that we really need a long weekend here so that we can really check out the Cheaspeake Bay Maritime Museum. With the sun getting lower in the sky we stopped by Libre Vie for some wine (and orange soda for the littlest mariners!) and conversation before heading back home for movie night.

This morning we motored home with winds right on the nose. We decided to take advantage of what might be the last weekend with water at the dock to give the boat a good scrub-down. Still loving fall!

Solomons Island

Perhaps we were motivated by the start of the Volvo Ocean Race, or maybe we were just really anxious to leave the pier. Either way Saturday we got underway in 20-ish knots and took a hell of a pounding as we left the marina. 3 (and sometimes 4) foot seas on the nose, short period...just rough! As we turned south towards Solomons, the ride smoothed out a bit, but that put the seas on our port quarter and still made for an uncomfortable ride. I think everyone got nauseous at some point, but Trent was the winner with 2 purging runs to the head. Bless his heart, he made it to the toilet both times!

We made it to Solomons Island mid-afternoon and were a little surprised at just how much dockage is available there. But of course we anchored! We dropped the dinghy, were thrilled that the motor was working well, and cruised the town. We may have missed something, but I didn't see the draw of the area. It wasn't bad, but I didn't see much worth going ashore to check out. Maybe we need to read up on it and head back sometime. I was happy to head back to the boat (after checking out a boat that had the radar arch we have on order!) and enjoy movie night with the family.

Sunday was much calmer and we had to motor a good deal of the way back. The highlight for me was checking out the fall colors from the water. The pelicans were cute, too! On this trip we also got to try out the new radar (sweet!) and our new battery bank (also sweet!), so it was a good trip overall.

Now to plan our next fall trips before it gets too cold! On that note, today we learned that many of our neighbors are heading ashore for the winter. In fact, we are one of only two live aboards staying put at this point. Are we crazy? Or are we just going to have a fun winter with our other hardy neighbors? Time will tell!

Home Improvement Season

Like most American families we are excitedly getting ready for the holiday season by completing a few home improvements.  I am happy to announce that I got my new Fagor pots and pans in the mail and successfully cooked eggs and a real dinner this week!  What else???  Oh, I know--our radar got installed!  Finally the weather cooperated and today we added a sleek new radar to the mast with the help of the folks at Atlantic Spars & Rigging. 

The latest addition--a Raymarine radar.

Can't wait to try it out this weekend!  Now if only the new mattress would hurry up and get here...  :)

Bring on winter!

Apparently this weekend's Nor'Easter got everyone thinking...