Making it to Florida in Seven Weeks

Pictures: The two sailing couples and dog that brought us Treats on Halloween!; Tom and Beth Coleman on their boat QUIESCENT; an interesting poster in the window of a shop in Georgetown, SC; information about storm surge conditions to look for in Wrightsville Beach NC; a mini loaning-library in a small park in Beaufort SC; a farmer and his grandson at the Farmer'sMarket, St. Simons Island; our pizza party at the end of the free wine party, Brunswick Landing Marina (all the cruisers in the picture are from Massachusetts); Peter Mahoney maneuvers his boat WINDEMERE with ease in Georgia waters; a wild horse that swam across from a marsh to a beach as the tide came in, Cumberland Island GA; John Mackie and Ken in front of the Mackie's Victory Tug in Merritt Island, FL.

At this part of our trip we are covering a lot of ground. We'd like to get to warm temperatures fairly fast, and we've got a few unofficial deadlines. One of the dates we'd like to honor is Thanksgiving. We can join a group celebration and meal in St. Mary's GA or Vero Beach FL. Cruisers plan these group events and, in St. Mary's, the town pitches in with the turkeys and site for the dinner.
We left the Potomac River back on October 24th, and since then we have been in 4 more states. Crossing the state line into North Carolina happened on October 26. We had rejoined Tom and Beth on QUIESCENT that morning,  and became one of a group of boats in the lock at the start of the Virginia Cut Route through southeast Virginia and northeast NC. Ahead of us in the lock was a boat from New Zealand! After a quick chat we found out that they are finishing a 2 1/2 year cruise and delivering their boat to Florida to new owners. There is a "famous" restaurant on this route, the Coinjock Restaurant (named after the town it is in) and we had a good meal the night we stayed in the marina there. (We have always gone to NC via the Dismal Swamp Canal and so have never been to Coinjock. This year the Swamp route is closed due to damage from the hurricane a few weeks ago. Continuing all the way south we will be seeing damage from this storm.)
We have passed the Mayo shrimp dock other years, wondering if we should have stopped and bought fresh shrimp. This year we did pull over -- it's right on the waterway -- and we got 4 bags of giant shrimp, freshly caught and packaged. That night we made our own cocktail sauce and served the shrimp with lemon, and had a fresh carrot, a giant one from a farmer's market in Oriental, NC, as a side dish.
On Halloween afternoon, we were in Wrightsville Beach NC at a popular anchorage. A familiar boat was anchored nearby -- TAMURE. We have seen Kitty and Scott numerous times since we met them 8 years ago. They are based in Connecticut but we have seen them boating from Maine to the Bahamas. We got together with them for cocktail hour and then heard a knock on our hull, which turned out to be a dinghy of costumed adults, and one dog, who were going boat-to-boat treating with candy and samples of a delicious cider and bourbon drinks! It was one of those fun surprises that make cruising so pleasant!
Sometimes our route is mostly bordered by marshland and creeks, and the wildlife in these areas can be richer. We have seen an occasional immature eagle, one day a coyote pouncing on a plastic bag, playing with it. and tundra swans amid the more common birds. By November 2 we have entered South Carolina; QUIESCENT is traveling with us. In a quiet anchorage on the Wacamaw River we watched three types of woodpeckers, including a pileated woodpecker and a flicker all on the same tree bothering each other, while we had breakfast in the cockpit. A day later while anchored in a small creek, upper South Edisto,  at the end of the day, Heidi startled an alligator while kayaking. The alligator was sunning in some marsh grass and not visible from the low vantage point of the kayak. Luckily the kayak was not going fast and the alligator took off in the opposite direction. Up to this point we had not seen any alligators so one was not expected. Grassy banks will be treated with respect from now on!
The weather has been amazing, warm and sunny each day with no rain for the past 4 weeks, probably not since one drizzly afternoon in Connecticut or New Jersey. We spent 3 days in Beaufort SC, a very nice medium-sized town where lots of cruisers stop and where we have visited a few times. Our first experience this time was finding that the place we picked out for lunch was offering free food if we were ordering drinks from the bar! How friendly is that!?!
In Georgia, which we reached on November 9, we stopped at Kilkenny Creek and had a nice upscale dinner at the only place in town, "Marker 107". We needed to cheer ourselves up after the results of the presidential election...... QUIESCENT has "left us in their wake", having to speed up to deliver Beth to an airport in Florida to go home for a while. In one isolated stretch of the ICW in Georgia we took the line of a grounded-out sailboat from Toronto and tugged them into deeper water. We also came across two small islands that day that had no houses or other buildings (we hadn't seen any houses anywhere for miles) but that had multi-colored goats on the first island, and black (angus?) cows on the second. It would be nice to find out the story about these islands.
Our mail for the past 5 weeks was forwarded to St. Simons Island and we picked it up there. It wasn't in yet on the first try, a bike ride from Ft. Frederica, a National Monument on the island, but it was a nice 8-mile ride, all bike paths. We moved to nearby Brunswick and backtracked the next day to get it. In Brunswick we stayed at Brunswick Landing Marina, a special place that offers free washer and dryer use to patrons, AND free beer on tap every day PLUS three free wine parties a week. We got to one wine party and it was very well attended; I imagine some boaters would find it difficult to move on. We connected with friends from back home, the Mahoneys on WINDEMERE, while at Brunswick. They are traveling to the Bahamas for the winter on a 42' WesMac lobster boat. It's quite entertaining to see the WINDEMERE sweeping through a fleet of sailboats and trawlers, the only long, low powerful working lobsterboat around!
On November 16 we anchored off of Cumberland Island, the last of the Georgia sea islands. WINDEMERE was with us for a few days and they have invited us to breakfast on their boat. We entered Florida waters this day and split up with the Mahoneys for a while, so breakfast was a good time to talk about plans and hear about the Mahoney's past winters in the Abacos. In Florida during the past week we have spent time in St. Augustine, Palm Coast, Kingsley Plantation (another National Monument) and Cocoa. We have seen white pelicans, osprey, eagles, dolphins, manatees and (we think) an immature golden eagle. We got "boomed" several times on our mooring by the cannon demonstration at Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, and we laughed watching kids and toddlers play on the "Green" at the European Village in Palm Coast, while we had Mexican food at an outdoor table. There has been a lot of damage from the hurricane that hit the southern East Coast
in early October: trees down, docks partially destroyed, some boats up on the river banks or sunken. We skipped past Fernandina Beach, the first town in Florida, because their docks and moorings are damaged and closed.
This week a cold front has come through our area in North Florida, but it has been at least 65-70 every mid-day and still sunny (you need a hat and gloves, though, in the mornings). We are heading for Vero Beach and will stay to the end of the week, taking part in the Community Thanksgiving that the cruisers set up there each year. Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers!

POTOMAC RIVER PAUSE

Pictures: Before we left home we bought a new mattress, then took the cover apart to custom fit one side for the bow of the boat, then we sewed it back up on our diningroom table; Mom (Gladys) in our main cabin for a visit; the UN building, with the spire of the Empire State Building to its right in NYC; our new inflatable kayak before launching, Atlantic City in the background; Heidi's reflection looking into the pilot house; VICTORIOUS is at the dock in the background of the restaurant deck in Chesapeake City; at the private dock in Church Creek, off of St. Mary's Creek, off of the Potomac; Bob Allnutt with Ken on Bob's dock.

Due to Hurricane Matthew we did not leave at the beginning of the week (Oct. 3-9) but when it was clear that we would not be in it's path, Ken moved VICTORIOUS from Cohasset to Duxbury. The next day, Oct. 7, we left from Duxbury on our Grand Cruise!
Saturday, Oct. 8 was fun. We had spent the night in Marion, in Buzzards Bay, and were able to come in to the town dock in the morning. It was a perfect place to invite my sister and mom to come see the boat, and us.  The access to the dock is very convenient for people who are mobility challenged. My mom is 94 and gets around quite slowly, but it was fairly easy for her to get into the main cabin on the boat. Sister Sharon brought us muffins and coffee. We also got to see friends who were using the town dock to prepare for a race weekend in Menemsha. Peter and Kate Cassidy use their boat a lot and homeport in Marion. We hadn't seen their two boys in a while (they are now 11 and 7 years old) and the tug provided an interesting counterpoint to their sailboat, to explore.
On day three, starting from Block Island, we were fighting a vicious north wind. In retrospect, we should have not been out there, knowing the forecast. Eventually we got to Stonington CT, spending two days there. To compensate for the windy weather, we next had several days of very nice, sunny, mild weather. We transited the East River in New York City with 3 extra knots of current (that added almost 50% more speed), and made sure we saw the United Nations Building which we had previously missed.
The next time we needed to stop for a couple of days we were in  the bay across from Atlantic City. We were anchored, and it proved to be a quiet spot out of the heavy winds that had sprung up. Each time we have had a day that we don't travel, we have plenty of chores and tasks. Loading the boat with lots of food and clothing for almost every eventuality means that we have to find places to stow it and we are still emptying bags at this point and stuffing gear into the backs of lockers.
We have a new Advanced Elements inflatable kayak and in this bay we got it inflated and tried it out. It will be a nice addition to our bag of "toys" to use on this trip.
One of our favorite stops in the northeast is Chesapeake City, and we got there in the middle of the day, and got a spot at the free dock (the free city dock is one of the reasons we like it there so much!). We had lunch on the deck at the Chesapeake Inn, looking out at the harbor, surrounded by avid sports fans settling in for the game -- in this case the Eagles -- and it was very festive. However, since it was not our team, we decided to leave and continued on south to an anchorage, again with extra current pushing us.
Great weather has continued from that day, for almost a week. We have stopped in Annapolis and docked next to friends from home, the Colemans (they've been in touch with us all week). There we got groceries and went out to dinner, each time using an Uber cab with our friends. We made a stop just off of Little Choptank River on the Eastern Shore of Maryland to tie up to the dock of Victory Tug friends Bicki and Dave. Besides using their dock they cooked dinner for us. (They had stayed with us in July when there was a gathering of Victory Tugs in Plymouth and they arrived by car.) Two days later we were at another Victory Tug owner's dock just off of the Potomac River. Bob Allnutt invited us to stay even though, or perhaps because of, a weather change that will bring a lot of wind for several days. Bob was also a guest at our house in July.
We are just at the point where it is sunny and beautiful, but tonight and the next two and a half days may be terrible for traveling. We are tucked up near to shore on the dock and will be in the lee of any strong wind. This creek, off of St. Marys, off the Potomac, has other small creeks off of it which are perfect for the kayak. These seem to be "bonus days", much warmer than we thought we would have, and in well-protected places.
We had a full moon earlier this week, a night full of geese flying and honking (who knew they flew at night?), an afternoon of very fast jets taking off from Patuxent Naval Air Station, and we are starting to see some of the other boats that are heading south, including one from the Netherlands and three from Maine. We should connect up with the Colemans on their boat next week, and we just heard from another Massachusetts boat, captained by our friend Peter Mahoney, that will be leaving soon for Florida, and who will catch up to us as he can go much faster.
Stay tuned!

Summer Update

Pictures (top to bottom): most of the tug boats that were in Plymouth are in this picture; several of the boat owners are taking a break on the edge of TEDDY BEAR (from Long Island); Dave Howell and Ken wearing port-and-starboard colors, as they return from trying to rescue the drowned drone in Plymouth Harbor; Eri, Pete, Justin, Kenny, and Jamie on the dock in Plymouth; Ken and Tom Fisher shopping in Provincetown and trying to not get picked up; our grand-nephew Leo Bernard takes his job seriously, steering VICTORIOUS in Yarmouth, Maine; picking out lobsters at the dock in Carver's Harbor, Vinalhaven; Lynda and Frank Cassidy proudly show off SIMBA after a few years out of the water; Tammy was just here for a visit and she got to play with Kenny in our cockpit; Dick and Barb MacLeod in Casco Bay waters; at a friend's dock in Marblehead

We had some 45 degree weather last week, mostly early morning hours, but it has been a wake-up call that summer is winding down. We still are visiting and using our boat, entertaining family and getting it ready for a cruise down the ICW , so in that way, summer has NOT left. In the next few weeks we'll be walking the tightrope to find the best time to leave Massachusetts, avoid any stormy weather, and keep on the warm side of the shortening days.

Our summer was fun and busy but hot!!  The Lord Nelson Victory Tug gathering, the "Northeast Rendezvous", was successful, with 10 boats converging on Plymouth,Mass., and a total of 40 owners (some of them came without boats) and guests. We had representatives from Florida, Ohio, Maryland, New York, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, Ontario and New Brunswick. The dock space was big enough to have our Friday night potluck right by the boats, then on Saturday night we had a big dinner at the restaurant at the top of the gangway there. We had time to visit all the boats and make some new friends, and we got a lot of help from other attendees so that hosting the gathering was not too overwhelming. We could have gotten into the Plymouth downtown more, as its a great place to explore, eat and drink, but the weather was very hot, and it was discouraging to do anything strenuous. An awesome drone view of the docks at Plymouth is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHgpYJxu7-8&feature=youtu.be (8 tugs on the outside of the facedock and 2 on the inside mixed in with other boats). 

After a month to "recover" from the rendezvous, and quite a few chances to take friends and family out to our boat in Cohasset harbor, we left for a Maine vacation in mid-August. Ken, especially, was anxious to get away and relax. He has put in a lot of hours getting VICTORIOUS up to speed with the best, most effective and most affordable solutions to all her needs. But one final (probably not!) need was in evidence as we cruised up to Marblehead, then Isles of Shoals, before getting to Casco Bay in Maine. Our steering had been examined and tested and rebuilt, but was still not working properly. Friends in Falmouth Maine suggested that we have the problem checked at Yankee Marine in Yarmouth. 

(On the way we enjoyed a group dinner in Marblehead with Pete and Barb Maitland, Mark Maitland, Holly, Andy and Jett Varela, plus our son Pete and wife Eri. There were whales in the waters south of Isles of Shoals and then again south of Portland. We think the first one was a large fin whale. We spent a weekend at Cliff Island and took walks there for exercise and ice cream! Barb and Dick MacLeod joined us there in their boat and with them we stayed up late talking and laughing!)

At Yankee Marine we had a dock space and a nice restaurant next door to check out. We ended up there for 5 days, and got the steering problem addressed plus we had the mechanics install a new auto-pilot system. We got in some exercise by walking to the village about 3/4 mile away. The MacLeods took us off for a day to visit Eagle Island in their runabout. We had lunch with them another day at the nearby restaurant, and again by ourselves a few days later. There was even a "small world" incident when an old friend, Pam Hobson, saw Heidi in the village. She couldn't stop then but called that afternoon and we got to visit with Pam and Steve (we have been out of touch with them since they originally moved to another town in Maine)  at their place very close to our marina. 

For the rest of our time in Maine we were in Penobscot Bay, at Carver's Harbor and Perry's Creek on Vinalhaven Island, Pulpit Harbor on North Haven Island, and Lincolnville, to visit Andy Hazen at his brewpub. One afternoon (in Perry's Creek) we got visited by an old friend, Dean, who spotted us before we had identified his boat. It's fun to find old friends in small creeks in Maine! 

On the way home we had a planned overnight visit with friends who we have known since we and they were cruising in catboats. We had dinner on their boat in a small anchorage in Muscongus Bay, and it was delicious! The next day we hiked with Frank and Lynda on Harbor Island.  With three more stops, in Boothbay Harbor, Cape Porpoise, and Isles of Shoals we were back to Marblehead. 

The weather on this cruise was perfect, and not as hot as it would have been at home. But now our luck was running out, as two different hurricanes were messing with the forecast. We had time to see Mike and Mimi for a bit (they were staying in Marblehead for the weekend) and to greet Justin, Jamie and Kenny as they arrived to spend the night on the boat. But we had to cut everything short and take VICTORIOUS home at 4:45pm. Justin helped us and we were back on our mooring by 7:15 pm.

Next up is preparation for our 7-month cruise to Florida. We haven't done long-term cruising for 5 years, except for bringing VICTORIOUS back from North Carolina a year ago.It's exciting and tiring! the big issues seem to be taken care of, but the to-do list always has a dozen projects on it. These are the fine-tuning details, and ones that keep us ahead of break-downs in isolated areas. We also have some comfort items on the list.

Most likely we will post about once a month on our cruise. Here's to a fine fall!

New-to-us 30 Year-Old Lord Nelson Victory Tug

Pictures: in Cohasset Harbor summer 2015; one of the doors in mid-strip; both main cabin doors with new finish; our new grandson, here at about 6 months (had to slip that in!)

Here's a quick update that I will post on our two blogs. For almost 8 years, we have had the Cruising with Rising Tide blog and the Anchors-Away! blog. Now we need to start a new story, as our last Rising Tide is headed to Vermont with it's new owner this coming weekend, via the Hudson River. We are back using anchors (after two winter seasons of camping in a travel trailer) and our new boat deserves a new blog. Interestingly enough, we have become part of an enormous on-line presence in the Lord Nelson Victory Tug owners organization. (www.lnvt.org); our boat VICTORIOUS is hull number #26. Check out the website and you will learn all you ever wanted to know about Victory Tugs and more! And we will be adding to the volume with our own angle. 

During this past winter we brought home almost all movable parts of VICTORIOUS, including 6 doors, and we have been refinishing bit-by-bit. When we bought the boat last May (2015) we had limited time to do cosmetic work, let alone the important behind-the-scenes items, so we mainly worked on removing several layers of varnish from the deck and bringing on our own favorite GPS system. Ken and the boatyard in Wilmington NC where the boat had been kept, got quite a few engine/prop shaft/bottom painting, etc tune-ups done. 

Other winter projects this year were to replace the tug's steady-sail mast, repair the boom, design and order a new swim ladder, make lists for spring refitting, and we also fit in a 4-week driving trip to Florida, staying for one week each in Palm Coast, Englewood, and Stuart. We have a new grandson born in October, Kenny, and we definitely made time to watch him grow into a now bouncing 8-month old.

We have not yet launched our tug for the season, as we have had a long list of must-haves and fixes. The teak deck needed to be re-grouted and many bungs replaced; we also have teak on the main cabin rooftop and the raised portion of the forward deck, and they needed the same treatment. We continue to strip red Awlgrip from portions of the teak trim around the doors and on the main sliding hatch. We may never get to the end of the painted teak! Ken and our sons added a thick bumper material all along the bilge guard outside of the boat; prior to that Ken and Heidi removed stainless steel strips that had been the "protection". We have a new alcohol cook stove and oven, replacing the electric stove that would have to run on shore power or generator. Ken is replacing the walls on the refrigeration compartments (they had started to rot) and added a new dual fuel filter for the engine. We replaced a leaky forward-cabin hatch with a better-fitting one. There are innumerable other projects but you get the idea. 

In July we will go from our mooring in Cohasset to Plymouth (5 towns away but somehow a long tug ride) for the Summer Northeast LNVT Rendezvous. We are hosting and have had a good number of boat owners respond so far. There may be 10 Victory Tugs at the dock at Brewers Plymouth Marina.

For the remainder of the summer, it would be nice to spend some time in Cohasset relaxing and reconnecting with old friends. But we won't rule out a cruise downeast, somewhat of a tradition. We hopefully will be ready to take VICTORIOUS south to the Intracoastal Waterway and Florida in the fall, and can stop in some of our favorite Vineyard and Buzzard Bay harbors on the way. We've had a productive season preparing the tug, so it seems we are on track for those plans.

Here's to a good summer.