From mile 115 to mile 143 is where we saw the most wildlife. It was this stretch where we had a friendly wager with Bella Luna on who would see the first alligator, bald eagle and manatee for the day and it was also this area where we saw so many alligators we finally just stopped counting. We saw small little guys of about two feet long to some huge maybe eleven foot long ones.We thought this was a unique…
Butch and Teresa (the owners of Georgetown Landing Marina) were kind enough to let us borrow their truck so we could drive seven miles to the neighboring town of Welaka and visit the...Welaka Maritime MuseumThis museum has a collection of one-of-a-kind wooden boats that were all built by Richard Speas and is now maintained by his son Rand (below-center). Of all the museums we’ve been to this was one of the best, not just because it was all about boats, but…
As potential bad weather was forecasted for the next couple of days we left Murphy's Creek and made our way for Georgetown Landing Marina, just south of Welaka on the St. Johns River. We wanted to be tied up snuggly while the inclimate weather made its way past us. It rained and the wind was brisk for the better part of our stay so we took advantage of the time by catching up on boat chores including changing the generator…
Our first anchorage after Palatka was in an oxbow (a u-shaped bend in the course of a river) in Murphy's Creek, just off of Dunn Creek. Once settled Lisa and I lowered the dinghy to go explore for gators, eagles and turtles three to four miles up Dunn Creek.It didn’t take long before we started to spot the gators sunning themselves on logs (below-gator is in the left side of the photo on the log and the turtles are hopping…
Once the winter home of the Mellon banking family and the end of the line for railroads, Palatka was once the largest shipper of cypress wood in the world. This town is also considered the spot where the St. Johns River starts to become wild with natural habitat... gators, manatee, birds, eagles, snakes and more.Jack Carpenter stopped by our boat tonight to chat about the wonders of the St. Johns River. We learned a lot from him about the area and look…
After lots of discussion and planning we’re finally heading into the St Johns River to explore Florida’s hidden gems including the wildlife we’ve long heard and read so much about.First stop was a free dock at Six-mile Creek and a visit to the Outback Crab Shack, the restaurant which provides the free-dock, if you buy a meal at the restaurant. We were also surprised to run into a few slip holders from Ortega Landing Marina in Jacksonville, we just left…
We flew back from Ohio today. Larry and Louis met us at the airport and brought us back to the boat and a huge Thanksgiving day meal. They had been working on this meal all day and it truly was a feast. We were of course exhausted from the funeral and the long travel day. Our friends knew this and took good care of us and our tired souls. Thank you Larry & Margie, Wanderin' L & M and Louis…
We arrived in Jacksonville today after receiving some bad news from home yesterday while we were in St. Marys. Jim’s step-dad had passed away yesterday and now we are in a hurry to get our boat settled in Jacksonville so that we can fly home for the funeral and some family time. Our good friends Louis and Diane will keep an eye on Kismet for us while we are gone and have helped us in every way we could imagine.…
We arrived at Cumberland Island late in the afternoon but with time to relax and watch a "rookery" full of Great White Egrets and Wood Storks (see the tree, on shore to the right of Jim).Only one other boat anchored with us tonight. We all enjoyed an amazing sunset and a corned beef and cabbage dinner on Kismet.First thing in the morning we dropped our dinghy to go explore this part of the island which is just in front of…
One more stop together with Bella Luna, Foreign Exchange and Shore Thing, Two-Way Fish Camp in Brunswick, Georgia. This is a rather rustic marina located up the Medway River, north of Brunswick.Happy Hour was on Foreign Exchange tonight then we all had dinner in the restaurant on site, Mudcats Grill. This will be the last night we will all be together as Shore Thing and Foreign Exchange are stopping in the Brunswick area for the holidays. We will depart tomorrow…
Bella Luna, Foreign Exchange, Shore Thing and Kismet all left Savannah together today and decended on a really neat stop up the Medway River @ mile 620 on the AICW, The Sunbury Crab Company Restaurant and Marina.Elaine, (above right with Louis - and above left with her crew) and her husband, Barney, the owners, have extended a discount rate for all AGLCA and MTOA members. All of us here can attest to the down home hospitality that Elaine and her crew…
Bella Luna and Kismet arrived in Savannah, GA Friday afternoon and were delighted to find room at the city dock on the riverfront downtown right in the thick of all the action. Savannah is another southern town that is rich in history there is something to learn around every corner. The river is very busy with container ships, tugboats, old paddle wheel ships and water taxies.Also a wonderful walking town, we love to walk around Savannah but getting our exercise…
Due to the remnants of hurricane Ida, it was too windy to anchor out tonight so we tied up at Port Royal Landing Marina in Port Royal, South Carolina. We got a pump out and tied up in some very rough seas. You can't really see the waves in the photo but even though we were tied up we felt like we were on a bronco buster. It did finally calm down at night and we were able to get…
The more time we spend in Charleston, South Carolina, the more we seem to see and learn. For example, during a carriage ride, we learned that there are over a hundred church’s in Charleston, that three of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were from and are buried here, Charleston was the first state to secede form the Union before the Civil War and that the first shots of said war came within Charleston’s Harbor.No trip to Charleston would…
It’s nice to be back on the water visiting all of our favorite southern towns. In-between marina stops we have been anchoring in the breathtaking salt marshes where we find it pretty easy to feel at one with Mother Nature.Today found us dropping our anchor in DeWeese Creek for one night before we move on to Charleston, South Carolina for t least a five-day stop. Kismet dropped anchor first and Bella Luna tied up starboard to port.Cocktails tonight were on…
After a long day on the water we arrived in Georgetown, SC for a two day stop. Georgetown is the third oldest town in South Carolina and therefore it has a rich history. Before the Revolutionary War, Georgetown was one of largest producers of indigo in the country. Before the Civil War it produced fifty percent of all the rice in the United States, in the early 1900s they were the largest lumber producer on the east coast. Today they’re…
Southport, NC is where we... got our inverter fixed, shopped, ate well, celebrated Louis and Diane’s fortieth anniversary and relaxed in the warmth of Robert and Kay’s kind hospitality.Rick and Billy (above left) caught up to us on Sunday and we celebrated with a big dinner on Kismet.When we arrived in Southport, Robert (above left) was in the middle of a special sailing regatta which required pirate costumes. We think this is a good look for Robert.Sunday, mid-day, we gathered…
Snow’s Cut is a scenic channel, with beautiful sandy cliffs and a weedy marsh at the end, that cuts from Carolina Beach to Cape Fear River. This will take us to Southport today for a couple of night's while we get our inverter fixed.
Our second stop, after meeting up with the Wade’s in Morehead City was John and Judy Woody’s (above) house in Wrightsville Beach, NC. the Woody’s are friends of Louis and Diane and there was not one but two parties planned for this evening. John and Judy had three couples over for the weekend at their house and Louis and Diane had a multitude of friends over to our boats at dock for a going away party. We can tell you one thing…
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!First night out brought us to Surf City Marina and found Bella Luna docked right next to the Halloween Party Boat where we met Dave and Sharon (above right) who were putting the final touches on the Belle of Topsail for a big Halloween party this weekend. Once we got settled Diane and I (Lisa) went over for a private tour. We have to tell you they had some neat decorations, many of them came alive with music, lights…
We arrived at Coral Bay Marina, in Morehead City today, and left the boat to spend a couple of nights at the Wade’s Beach House in Cape Coral before we all hop on our boats to start heading south to Florida where we will cruise the St. John’s River together.We enjoyed meeting Mary C. and Charles (above right) again, friends of Louis and Diane’s, we had met them a few months ago when we drove down to Morehead City to…
After a one night anchorage just before Belhaven it was just a quick cruise over to Dowry Creek for one night. The weather was pretty dreary so we just worked on the boat and borrowed the marina’s loaner care for a quick trip into town where we passed this cotton field which was in full bloom.
We ended our day in Coinjock, North Carolina at Midway Marina. There are two marinas here right across from each other in the Virginia Cut. We wanted to get a slip at the Coinjock Marina but they were already fully reserved for the night when we called. There are an incredible number of boats heading south, normal migration activity this time of year. All day we passed by many slower sailboats and got passed by ourselves by fast, sport fishing…
It just doesn’t get better than this for a boater (or a photographer). When the skies are deep blue with clouds that look like whispy cotton and fluid water that ripples more like jello just before it’s set. Reflections of sky and trees on the mirrow-like water reminded us why we love spending so much time on the water, traveling on a slow boat.
We had a lot of bridges today and one lock. It has been a while since we have had to go through a lock but this one was only three feet up and was located just before Great Bridge, our final destination for tonight. We were hoping that there would be room at the free dock, there are two of them by this bridge, one before and one just after. The one on the north side of the bridge was…
Leaving Jackson Creek fairly early this morning to head through Norfolk and then just a little south of that to Great Bridge where there is a free dock we hoped to tie up to tonight. It was a beautiful sunny day as we passed all the majestic battleships, cargo ships, barges and Coast Guard Patrol Boats.I never knew that they had PINK bottom paint, did you?
Our trip south starts from the Chesapeake Bay with the first stop being an anchorage near Deltaville. We heard from our friend Wade that he and his friend John were heading north, up the Chesapeake, on his boat Miss Happ, we arranged to meet at an anchorage in Jackson Creek for the night.We got up the creek first and Wade arrived about an hour and a half later. Jim went over to hang out with the guys while I took…
We didn’t have much time to enjoy Oxford, but this time of year there is not much open anyways, the restaurants were closed, but we did find the small bookstore and grocery store open. We anchored in the harbor and dinghied to the town dock to tie up, then we had a walk around town as we felt the first effects of a warm fall day as it descended on this tranquil little town.Oxford is one of the oldest towns…
Lisa sold books on Kismet while Bill, Rick and Jim sold the many benefits of becoming an owner of a Fathom Yacht. I (Lisa) enjoyed being one of the “guys” for four days, we met lots of interesting folks and had lots of fun on our off time. Even though the weather was gloomy, three days of cold and non-stop rain, the turnout was incredible. HarborView's excellent sales team. (Above: Jim, Rick & Bill)
We left on Sunday to head north to Oxford, Rockhall and Annapolis for the Boat Show. After the show we will start to head south towards Florida meeting up with our friends Louis and Diane, in North Carolina, to head towards the St. Johns River where we will spend a month exploring this highly rated Florida treasure.This was our favorite lawn art (above: left) during our daily walks around Solomons.
Trawlers, trawlers, trawlers. That’s all you could see at the Trawler Fest in Solomons last week. Our friend and cohort Rick Garton (above), Lisa and I took the Pilothouse Fathom (that’s for sale) and our flybridge Fathom (that’s not for sale) just up the creek to Calvert’s Marina for the big event. Rick and I showed off the pilothouse Fathom while Lisa sold our book When The Water Calls...We Follow from the cockpit of our boat. The show was a…
The 8th annual Solomons Watermen Festival is a great taste of the local culture and one we’re glad we were able to attend. Scott, Angie, Lisa and I went by dinghy to the county docks where the competition was being held, so we could witness the standing room only Watermen Docking Competition.Here’s how it works... one at a time a watermen boat backs into a slip to wait for the signal to start. After the signal the waterman’s goal is…
We have had some interesting neighbors while spending the summer at Solomon's Yachting Center especially Ron and Suzy Striegel on their beautiful Hatteras yacht, Reel Estate. Ron and Suzy invited us over for Happy Hour while Scott and Angie were here and we were all captivated, not only by the spread of hors d'œuvres and Golden Margaritas, by their boating stories and experiences.They showed us photos of 9/11 as they were transiting down the Hudson River past Manhattan during the…
We were out in the dinghy when this storm moved over us. Very dramatic with the dark clouds and rain off in the distance. We made it back to the boat just minutes before that big downfall. Last night Scott and Angie treated us to a fabulous dinner at the Dry Dock just down the road from our marina. Thanks guys!
Jim and I celebrated our seventeenth wedding anniversary last Saturday then on Sunday afternoon we welcomed our friends Angie and Scott Way, Waterways (above, right), who flew in from Charlevoix, Michigan, for a brief stay on Kismet.I think we would all agree that the highlight of the visit was, after waiting for a calm day, going up the Patuxent River to St. Leonard’s Creek to anchor out for the balance of the afternoon enjoying grilled hamburgers, a little deep breathing…
MTOA (Marine Trawler Owners Association) is a member driven cruising club that Lisa and I joined earlier in the year. We joined as a means to meet like type boaters as we travel and through their national and regional gatherings. As luck would have it MTOA was having a National Rendezvous in Crisfield, Maryland... a short 45 miles southwest of Solomons on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The mission of the group is to share, compare, help and…
On our way to the MTOA Rendezvous we planned an overnight stop at Tangier Island.Tangier Island, Virginia is a set of low lying islands, first settled over 300 years ago, that sit off the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. We had heard and read good things about this watermen (men and women who make their living fishing and crabbing on the Chesapeake Bay) town and because we had never been we needed to go. Tangier Island is not a…
It was time for a complete overhaul of my little herb garden. I had to cut the thyme and parsley way back and hope it comes back with some fresh soil and a little loving care. Boating just wouldn't seem right without being able to dig in some dirt once in awhile. Jim is a sweetheart to go along with my herbal obsession, most captains would not allow anything this messy aboard.
Lisa and I are crazy about being on our Kismet traveling, anchoring or sitting at the dock. Some might say we’re a little over the top! We never are at a loss for things to do, places to go or projects to work on, but every once in a while it’s nice to get off the water and onto land. So when we were extended an invitation from our boating friends Louis and Diane to join them at their beach…
It was fun to dress up a little and put on our dancing shoes. Jim had to "borrow" a dinner jacket from the club's closet and I had to dig down deep in our little closet to pull out some un-boat-like shoes but it was well worth the extra effort and we had a great time. We especially enjoyed watching the couples doing the "Shag" en masse.The four of us shared the evening's festivities with the Wade's friends, Mary C…
After the tour of the Arlington National Cemetery, we proceeded on to our scheduled appointment and guided tour of the BoatUS Headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia.From left to right: Bernadette Bernon, Colleen Halverson, Gordon Cameron, Lisa, Jim and Terri Parrow BotsfordLast week Gordon Cameron, BoatUs' Web Content Coordinator, emailed us and suggested that since we were still in the area that we should come to Alexandria, VA to meet the staff at the BoatUS Internet Operations, which we have been working with…
... they were all buried in Arlington National Cemetery.Today we made a road trip to Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia. First we visited the Arlington National Cemetery.Our national cemetery is the best known of over one hundred national cemeteries in the United States. It is 624 acres and shelters the remains of over 320,000 servicemen and women, veterans from every war and major conflict in United States history.The memorials and monuments are interspersed with the graves of hundreds of thousands of…
Sometimes, while docked at a marina, it can be easy to get caught up in boat chores and other tasks of life and work. The marina is busy with boats coming and going and people to talk to and socialize with. Don’t get me wrong, we love marina life, the boats, the people (not so much the boat chores and work).So whenever a hot, calm, August Sunday presents itself to us our thoughts, almost simultaneously, turn to thinking about the…
We last saw the Wade’s as they waved goodbye to us from the docks of their Morehead City homeport marina back in May, so we were excited when Louis and Diane said they could come to Solomons for a visit. They called upon their noon-time arrival so we met them for a two-hour get-caught-up lunch, lots of laughs about our shared boating experiences and discussion of future plans. Later we all met back on Kismet for cocktails and one of…
After over three years of hearing about Saint Michaels, MD and how this is a must stop on the Chesapeake Bay for all cruising boater’s bucket lists we decided it was time for us to cross it off our list.We departed for Saint Michaels, a 45-mile trip to the east side of the Bay from Solomons, at 7 a.m. With Bob and Sharon, Catch Me If You Can.Part of our boating mission, this summer, is to visit new places and…
