Cruise # 13 Start

     We started our 13th cruise south about a week earlier than average. We planned for a haul out where we used to have it done in the past and needed to adjust for the time ashore. The last five or so years we've been hauled for our annual maintenance in nearby Essex, CT. 

     Our first day underway was beautiful and nasty. Beautiful if you were on land, warm, sunny and dry. Nasty if you were on Long Island Sound bashing straight into the wind and 3+ft. seas. Nothing major broke. Several minor things did not fare as well. Some fresh blueberries flew out the fridge and decorated the galley. Think blue puree all over the floor. Several dinghy tie down lines chafed through but that was nothing new. Sigh. 

Throgs Neck and Long Island Sound behind us on day 3.

     Our start on our 2nd day was delayed because of very strong winds but we eventually left Port Jefferson in late morning when the wind eased. A little. The angle of the wind and seas made for an okay passage even with the heavier winds and we ended up on a free mooring in Port Washington, NY. Then we got underway very early the next day to go through New York City with the current. Hell Gate can be lots of fun (not) if you have an opposing current. The forecast was good so, even though we wanted to hopscotch down the NJ coast with day only trips, we decided we would do another overnight passage offshore to take advantage of a two day weather window. The seas were not quite calm, there were ripples on a gentle, small swell. We'll take it. Not our calmest overnight passage but close to it. The Cape May rounding was easy as we followed our previously established route on our GPS. We call it 'following the breadcrumbs'. You put your vessel icon on the recorded previous course track on the GPS screen and steer your boat so your icon stays on the track. It's still a bit scary to rely on your GPS and go very close (maybe 100 meters or less) to the beach to make the rounding. In the dark. Flat calm seas and a half moon overhead made it as close to easy as is possible. A few hours later we heard a sailboat that was behind us went aground in the Cape May Channel. We use that route if it is safer (due to wind and waves) than the beach route. We do not know if they screwed up or the channel had shifted from bad weather recently. 

     

     Going up the Delaware River was slow but calm. Nice boring sunny weather and seas about zero inches is nice (for a change) but when the current is against you, it's a slow passage. Boring, but boring can be nice. Beats having an adventure. Hate those. Last year this section was so rough our stern plants died from salt water spraying over the entire boat. We ended the day (two straight days that is) anchored in Chesapeake City. Very warm and dry. We planned to wander around the upper Chesapeake Bay until it was time to go to Pasadena, MD to get hauled. 

     

After two nights we went down to the Sassafras River. We've anchored near the mouth but this time we went about 90 minutes up the river to Georgetown/Fredricktown. We went just because we never had before. Pretty, but not really worth it. We stayed at a Sailing Associates Marina fixed dock for the price of a mooring and got showers and a swim in the marina pool. By not really worth it, I mean not worth the time it takes to go up the river and the time it takes to get back to the Chesapeake Bay main channel. 90 minutes each way. Like I said, a beautiful area but there are areas just as nice that are not as far off the road. After getting back to the Bay it was only another 90 minutes to be anchored in Worton Creek, one of my favorite spots. We sat out several storms here in the past but our run of great weather continued. We did not sight any of the eagles we could hear in the nearby trees.  

     When we left Worton the next day we, in fact, did see a bald eagle on a daymark right outside the creek. Impressive. The passage down the Bay was nearly flat calm and we went into the Magothy River and Sillery Bay to anchor for a few days before heading to our haulout facility. One of Carol's favorite spots, it is very beautiful, landlocked, quiet and protected. Our great run of weather was going to come to an end while there and it's not a bad spot to do nothing. 

     We didn't quite do nothing but fairly close. In Chesapeake City I did battery maintenance which I forgot to do monthly over the summer. This could have been bad and almost was. In our little cove in northern Sillery Bay I did engine oil changes before the serious weather change hit us. Other than that, it was mostly nothing. A little writing about our experiences and a lot of reading. Oh, and some observations of the sights around us. Just watching the day go by. The horses grazing on land, the birds swirling about overhead, fish tails snapping at the surface of the water, the nettles pulsing by below, the clouds drifting by above. Like I said, a total waste of time. 

     When we picked up the anchor after three nights and one serious storm the anchor was a bit difficult to pick up. Dug in well. That's good but makes for some work. A trade-off. We also saw one of the eagles we'd been hearing around us. I may be wrong but we seem to be seeing more and more bald eagles in the upper Chesapeake. Nice. We won't see them in our next stop. Too suburban. That stop was Bodkin Creek where we anchored to await our scheduled haul-out. 

     

     We got hauled out at Pleasure Cove Marina for the first time in 5 or 6 years. It went well and was only a little more expensive than Essex Boat Works in Conn. Carol likes it better here because it is cooler than it is in Conn. in August. Duh. Boat looks pretty but the new depth sounder we installed does not match our GPS. Very upset with the GPS Store where we bought it. It cannot be replaced without hauling the boat as it would leave a large hole in the bottom of the boat. Not good. 

     

     We left the marina after 4 nights and headed to Annapolis. A bit lumpy along the way but the 2-3 foot seas were mostly behind us (as was the 15+kt. breeze) so it wasn't too uncomfortable. It was fast anyway, even against the current. A clean, smooth boat bottom surely helps.

     We got 94 gallons of diesel when we got to Annapolis and then looked for an open City mooring. None available. We anchored well up Spa Creek and hope we will hold on as a gale, the remnants of hurricane Ian, will hit us our first night. Not likely to be fun. It is supposed to rain most of every day we are here but we already stocked up on groceries in Pasadena courtesy of a ride from a semi-local boating friend, Gwyn. We just need to get some pre-ordered prescriptions and flu and Covid boosters. 

     We are not going to the Annapolis Boat Show for only the second time in 35 or 40 years. It is too late this year and we would be late to my medical appointments in Miami in November. Sigh. We will miss going to the show. IMHO, they made an error with the scheduling. 

     We plan to be in Annapolis 4 or 5 days, weather dependent. Of course surviving the first night is weather dependent, too. I hate "I" hurricanes. 

Summer 2022

      As we come to the end of the summer of 2022 and prepare for our fall migration this will be a summary (or summery) of the season. I'm kind of thinking of it of the summer of not seeing because of cataract surgery in each eye but let's start at the beginning. 

     After our arrival in May we spent time tied up at the dock at Old Lyme Marina. This is because our mooring is not installed until mid-May usually. It helped being on the dock because of the colder than normal spring weather and we could plug in to get some heat at night. Not to run full time but to just take the chill off. The marina was way behind schedule due to winter weather issues and Covid running through the staff. They were vaccinated but caught an Omicron variable. No one had very serious symptoms, fortunately, but, of course, it wasn't fun either. We have not caught it. Yet. Still alive. It would be very serious for us with our compromised (nearly nonexistent) immune systems. 

     By the end of May we had started our seemingly endless medical visits. I have a PCP, endocrinologist, dentist, cardiologist, ophthalmologist, oncologist, dermatologist and I'm probably forgetting someone. Then there are various blood draws and scans thrown in. Carol has the same visits to schedule, removing the endocrine and oncology doctors and adding pulmonology and rheumatology. Scheduling is fun as we try to get all these done in Connecticut. In Miami we only do my oncology follow-ups. Faith in, and comfort with, the medical options available here are why we cram in most if our medical visits in the summer. Yes, there is quality care in other parts of the country but there are places where there is not. There are known unknowns and unknown knowns. Huh? 

     This year we opted for my cataract surgery in both eyes. Knew this was coming after observing the changes over many years. Wish I had done this last year. The problems we had were unique to us living on a boat. You can do no lifting,  bending down or pulling for one week. This is an impossible restriction while living on a boat. Then there is two weeks between each eye surgery. Of course there are multiple doctor visits before, during and after each procedure. The actual surgery is not long, difficult or particularly uncomfortable but suddenly one eye has a new, clear lens and sees much better than your old eye did. It still needs correction however and you no longer have the right prescription/correction in your glasses. One eye is new, one is old. Then you have the second eye done a few weeks later and you have correct glasses for neither eye. You have to wait weeks before you can be measured correctly. Your eyes have to settle after having your original eye lens lasered into oblivion and replaced with an artificial one. Once both eyes were done I could read just fine but could not quite see well enough to drive. You can opt for close vision or far vision but the combo option has not been perfected yet. I had 20/60 vision which is not quite legal to drive. This was a tremendous improvement over my 20/200 previous vision but I still needed glasses and there was a built in delay before the exam for, and the eventual delivery of, new glasses. Hence the summer of not seeing. About a month and a half all together. 

     Our first summer venture was to Hamburg Cove for our Memorial Day Rendezvous. Not too many Waterbury Squadron members have boats any more so only three boats showed up. Our starboard saildrive/transmission started making a strange noise and then failed to be in gear while maneuvering around the moorings. It took more than two months to get a mechanic to come to the boat to make repairs. Still makes noise but it is working. Because we sat for so long barnacles grew crazily on the boat and props. Not much rain made for saltier river water and very unusual growth. Because of my eye surgeries I could not go in the water and no paid diver would come to us. Sue and Al of Gelato came to the rescue (THANKS AL!) and dove to scrape our props which let us get to Block Island with the kids. The boat bottom was still covered in marine growth and we were slow but, with the props cleaned by Al, we could get underway. Cobbe's behavior mostly okay in an almost 5 years old kind of way and Kaia's 5 month old developments were nonstop. 

     I had fewer days at the Museum due to my eye surgery issues but I worked in a rotation of the different exhibits we interpreters (docents) man and the variety helped pass the time. As much as I love having the deck of the last wooden whale ship in the world, the very hot, dry summer combined with my health situations made the air conditioned exhibits much more comfortable than the Morgan. The Museum had several social/dining events for the staff and volunteers as well as the workshopping of a new play and CPR/AED training. There is something special about being an 'insider' at the Museum and having 'inside information' and background knowledge and then sharing it with visitors. Plus, after nearly 40 years, I still love just wandering around the grounds. It's a special, historical place. 

     Carol's health issues, after several dormant years, crept up. MOHS surgery on her temple for Basal Cell skin cancer was relatively minor but the process was, uh, interesting. Except for the actual cutting, I observed. Close up. Like I said, interesting. The photos are kind of gross, however. Not posting them. But, all good. No trace left. Stamina became more of an issue, too. Very brief walks led to heavy breathing and fatigue. Cardiology thought it to be a pulmonary issue. The pulmonologist believed it to be a cardiac issue. Sigh. At least her non-original equipment heart valve still seems to be working fine. Warranty has long expired, however. 

     We had planned to go to Coecles Harbor, Shelter Island for Labor Day Weekend to meet the kids. Unfortunately Kaia caught Covid. She was the only one not fully vaccinated yet and, of course, everyone else also developed it. Much milder in the vaccinated but still not fun. 

                            Sick baby

     The passage to Coecles was surprisingly quick considering it was mostly against the current. The first night was breezy and a bit choppy but not terrible. Then it turned beautiful. I managed to do some bottom scraping and to put new zincs on the props. The used zincs I put on a few weeks earlier vanished. Hope these stay put. They are very expensive but neccessary. The hull was badly covered in growth but the props were okay after Al scraped them for us and I touched them up a few weeks ago. The passage back home on Labor Day was fine, too. Poor current direction but the forecast rain held off until we were home several hours. When the rain started, it went on for 40 hours. And heavy. Major flooding occured all over southern New England. 

     The last week in Old Lyme was for stocking up, putting things in and taking things out of storage, and a few more medical visits and tests for Carol. At least I am done with medical until November in Miami. Done with chemotherapy for good. Bloodwork and oncology visits will continue every three months or so. CT scans will be periodic, too. If/when my remission ends the treatment will be in pill form unless there are further advancements in treatment options before then. Not pessimistic about the future, it's just the type of lymphoma I have. Chronic. Not curable. Not aggressive. Should be years of remission. It's been 2 1/2 so far. Could be worse. 

     As I post this entry I have one more weekend at the Museum and Carol has one more doctor visit. Can't head south without the cardiologist's okay. Carol is also going to see the kids for our last weekend in Conn. and I'll join her briefly to leave our car there in Long Island for the winter. 

     The next posting should be from Pasadena or Annapolis, MD.