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!