The Great Adventure

Home At Last!

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 01:58:00 +0000

August 20, 2011

Kyle, Lisa, Brady, Don, Ryan

Charlevoix bridge opening to let us through to Round Lake and then Lake Charlevoix.

The journey is over. We're home finally. It was a fabulous experience, we saw places we'd never heard of before, we grew together as a team, we met the nicest people, and WE'RE HAPPY TO BE HOME. :-)

Lisa and her boys came to meet us at the dock in Boyne City on their bikes. We were so happy to see them. There's nothing that could make Papa happier than sharing his ice cream with two year old Brady.

Thank you everyone who read the blogs and gave me encouragement to keep writing. Now I

have a journal of our big adventure.

Lou and I are finding that it's great to be able to be in different rooms and get up in the morning without waking the other person up. At the same time we're remembering the "simple" life on the boat. On land we have to think about cutting the grass, weeding, dusting the house, finishing the laundry, unpacking the boat, finding places for all the "stuff" we're taking off the boat.......all at the same time. We're exhausted! :-) We won't feel so overwhelmed in a few days. It was easier to get the stuff together to go

Michigan Weather

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 13:47:00 +0000

Lou during a heavy rain and lightening storm on Lake Huron

You probably know the saying "If you don't like the weather in Michigan, just wait 5 minutes."

That just about covers our day on Friday, August 12th.

We left our anchorage in Harbor Beach with south-southwest winds. That was great since we're headed north-northwest. The winds piped up to 15-20 knots, and the white capped waves were hitting our port beam. Up---slide down---up---slide down. Some of the waves were 7' to 8' rollers. Except for having to hold on to move around it wasn't an unpleasant ride. That's opposed to the waves coming over the bow. Then it's up (slide down the side if you can see and slide down)---slam down---up---slam down. Then the waves turned north and began building up to 26 knots. We were headed directly into a thunder, lightening, and rain storm centered over our destination harbor. Lou stayed off shore long enough for the eye of the storm to move on, but we still got wet.

As soon as we docked, the sun came out.

Saturday's predicted weather is rain with light winds and possible thunderstorms. Our next port is about 10 hours north, so we've decided to stay put for another day. We're sitting in the boater's lounge visiting with Ian, from Southhampton, UK. We've having a wonderful visit. There's a bright spot in every day!

Pt. Huron Days

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 19:34:00 +0000

Blue Water Bridge, Pt. Huron

It never fails with destination sailing.......the winds are usually not from the right direction. In this case we are going north and west, so the winds are north northwest with thundershowers and high winds thrown in to get our attention. It must be an unwritten rule! This time we only had to layover two days in Pt. Huron before slipping away from the dock and through the two draw bridges and heading for the Blue Water Bridge.

Passing under the Blue Water Bridge

No matter how high the bridge is it always seems like it's going to break the mast. Sometimes I don't even look.

We managed to sail/motor sail 25 miles closer to home to a little port called Port Sanilac on Lake Huron. We've been here lots of times and like the facilities. We might have to layover another day because our next closest port is Harbor Beach. We have to anchor at Harbor Beach and the winds are predicted to hit 25 knots on Wednesday sometime. It's not good to be on an anchor in those kinds of winds. Lou wouldn't rest a second expecting the boat to pull the anchor free. Our only hope is that the winds shift and we could have a LONG day and get to Harrisville. One day at a time.

As soon as I make a plan, something changes it. We were going to meet some friends from Bay City in Pt. Sanilac yesterday for dinner. Unfortunately, we had to stay in Pt. Huron. Sorry friends. We'll have to get together when we have access to our car. Then our plans are not quite so fragile.

Detroit Again

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 01:33:00 +0000

Put-In-Bay Harbor with the Perry Monument. It's a great landmark when approaching the islands.

We decided to stay an extra day in Cleveland because the winds were about 15 knots but would be directly on "the nose." All that pounding is exhausting. The next day the winds were just as high but had swung around to give us a "following sea." We only flew the jib and made a bee-line to Put-In-Bay. The 58 mile trip only took 8 hours. We arrived in time for Happy Hour. :-)

Ambassador Bridge and Detroit

Day two of this wind pattern saw us slipping out of the P-I-B harbor and heading toward Detroit.

The winds were a little lighter, but the difference was that we could use the autohelm. It was a nine hour day to travel a little over 50 miles. The Ambassador Bridge and the skyline of Detroit welcomed us "home."

I just noticed that I write about the problems on this Great Adventure. These are the challanges that are meant to break up the monotony of the "ho hum we had a beautiful sailing day." We are truly enjoying this opportunity. Lou scrambles around the boat like a 30 year old and then takes aspirins to ease the sore muscles. I have learned to appreciate the sturdiness of this little boat and the variety of the days. There have been many more beautiful sunsets than rainy days.

That being said, we are both ready to get back to familiar waters and known ports. Lake Michigan here we come.

CAUGHT.......

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 02:28:00 +0000

between a rock and a hard place. That was our story for August 1, 2011. We left Erie, PA, early to try to get a jump on some predicted high winds for the day. As we left the dock, Lou and I were extra cautious because we had been told that there was a shale ridge and approximately where it was. You guessed it......we found it. As we sat perched on this piece of rock, we pondered what to do. "Call Boat U S and get a tow." The tow guy's boat was on the same dock as we were on and he met us in less than 10 minutes. It didn't take much to move us forward, but we couldn't do it ourselves. The guy laughed about it being the shortest tow he had ever done - about 11 feet.

Now comes the "hard place" part of the saying. We headed west in 8, 10, 14, 20, 23 knot winds directly on the "nose." That means that the boat was like a bucking bull. After about 7 hours of battling the wind Lou decided that we should get off Lake Erie and finish the trip tomorrow. But, we certainly didn't want to go back to the rock place. So, we nipped into the next port on the chart. Unfortunately, their docks didn't have deep enough water for us, so we started trolling for a safe place to tie up for the night. With winds this high, Lou did not want to put down the anchor. U S Steel had a canal that was deep enough , but the concrete sides were going to be a problem. Before we could get a line attached the trucks started patrolling the banks and watching us. This was not going to be an option. So, back out into Lake Erie for the extra two hours of getting bounced around to reach Ashtabula.

This is a cute port and the Ashtabula Yacht Club has the friendliest members we have ever met.

They could set the standards on how to make a transient feel welcome.

The weather is a bit iffy for the next few days, but we are pushing to get to Detroit and familiar waters of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. I didn't have a good picture to add to this post so I used one taken in the cold months. Maybe it will cool us down!

Back in the Great Lakes

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 19:20:00 +0000

Good night George. Good night Gracie.

Oh my gosh! We are both so happy to be back in fresh water and in the Great Lakes. We left Buffalo, NY, this morning and started west into Lake Erie. Lake Michigan here we come!!!! :-)

Dr. Seuss wrote a book called "Oh the Places You'll Go" which does apply to our journey on Tequila, but I'd like to change the title to "Oh the People You'll Meet!" In the three years we've been traveling by water to Down East in Maine and back again, we have met some of the nicest people. I'm going to list them so that I never forget how they helped us reach our goal of a long journey on our sailboat. They (maybe you are on the list) appear in no particular order.

*Bill sometimes of Charlevoix, MI - He has patiently push, prodded, provided web sites, fixed problems on our computers, and been our go-to computer guru. We can never thank him enough.

*Bob and Camille, Bristol, RI - This year Bob called us in April to offer us an apartment in his parents' house. We would have drown in a tent this year. It was a perfect little apartment for us.

*Bob, Sr. and Betty, Warren, RI- They were so nice with us and didn't seem bothered by our odd hours. They let us use their washing machine too!

*Gary, Lockmaster at Lock 26, Erie Canal - He drove us miles and miles from the canal to a motel when we couldn't sleep on the boat because of a diesel fuel leak.

*Faith and Ron, Buffalo, NY - They drove us to the grocery store and out to dinner. Those were two wonderful stops with very friendly people.

*Norm and Chris, Littleton, CO-They gave us their battery powered little refrigerator because our refrigerator on the boat stopped working.

*Marlene and Mike, East Lansing, MI-They were "crew" for the three years of the trip. Mike was invaluable in the building of the craddle for the mast and Marlene was a great galley companion.

They gave us a 2 step step-ladder that Lou needs to put the cover on the main sail. Great!

*The Tow Truck Driver, Bristol, RI- He drove us around when our car had a flat tire. Very nice guy.

*Matt, Grand Cayman Islands-He fine tuned the boat and tried to correct all our "bad habits." He needed more than four days to get that job done, but we appreciated his advice.

Cordray Family, Milburn, NJ- They were going to drive our car and trailer back to Michigan for us in August until Matt decided to do the driving. We still appreciated them being willing to do that for us. And, Lori brought enough food on her sail to feed us for a week.

Lloyd and Sharon-They have been storing our car since Matt dropped it off in Michigan.

Marie-She's been getting our mail this summer. (A belated thanks to Lisa and Don for getting it the other two summers.)

All the Lockmasters and Lift Bridgemasters for being so courteous and friendly on the Erie Canal.

The Crews at Bristol, Hop-O-Nose, and RCR Yachts for stepping and unstepping our mast and providing great service.

Everyone who shared charts, information, and stories.

Tim and Susan, Buffalo, NY-for providing us with transportation to the rental car location so that we could get home for Brady's birth.

Everyone who reads this blog and shares our adventure.

Lou-He brought me on this journey with his pockets full of patience. It takes a special person who can give the same instructions to the "helper" who has forgotten once again. :-(

H O T !!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 00:23:00 +0000

Chris and Norm Reynolds holding the lines.

We're in the middle of the summer heat wave. 100 degrees today! That's too hot. Why oh why doesn't Tequila have air conditioning and an ice maker aboard?

In the last week we've dealt with a diesel fuel leak, cleaned the bilges several times, made friends with the Lock Master at Lock 26, met our friends from Colorado (Chris and Norm Reynolds), and stayed three nights at the Peppermint Village aka Lyons, NY. We met the local "greeter", Bob, who took me on a tour and to buy ice. What service. The next day his fellow "greeter", Jack, out did himself by driving me to the laundromat and picking me up. Unbelievable.

Chris and Norm stopped for a few days on the Canal on their way to the Lake Placid area for the next seven weeks. We met them eleven years ago while going through the volunteer training for adaptive skiing in Breckenridge, Colorado. They spent 25 days on a 720 mile canoe trip on the Yukon River above the Arctic Circle a few years ago. That kind of experience makes them adjustable and flexible which is necessary for boat living. They have been real troopers with this heat. Last night Norm tried to sleep on the deck. He heard every train but kept trying to sleep until he rolled off the cushions and landed in the cockpit. It was a short night for all of us! They fit right in to grabbing the slimy lines and pushing off the slippery walls of the locks.

Lockport Tug to the Rescue

As always we try to provide a new experience for our guests. This time we found the silt shoals near the Genesee River. Stuck we were! With a 7 1/2 foot draft there was no way we could force our way through. The Lockport Tugboat came to pull us over the "bumps." At one point the depth sounder read 4 foot 8 inches. Norm sat on the bow and watched the tug pull us too fast and snap the line. He was moving back because he thought the cleat would be pulled out of the deck. Everyday is a new experience.

We've had a good time with them and hope they have stories to tell.

The Erie Canal 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 22:34:00 +0000

We're traveling the 340 miles of the

Erie Canal with our mast sticking out the front and back of the boat. Sometimes it gets us in trouble.

The Canal was opend in 1825 when there were no schools of engineering in the United States. It was the Govenor of New York who could see that a canal would open up the Northwest territories (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio} for trade and make New York City the hub of commercial traffic. Every major city in New York falls along the Erie Canal except for two.

There are 35 locks between Troy and Buffalo raising the water level 338 feet to Lake Erie height. The most wonderful ones are the five at the eastern end near Troy. They are the greatest series of high lift locks in the world.

As we approach the lock doors, we must wait for the water to come rushing out the bottom before the doors open and any boat inside can exit. Then we get a green light which means that we slowly enter a long box-like chamber with lines hanging down the sides. Sometimes we are in the lock by ourselves, sometimes with a barge that looks liked it can't fit, and sometimes with several other boats. We have to hold on to the lines while the chamber is flooded with water and the boat raises to a new height. Lock 17 at Little Falls lifts the highest level ------ 40.5 feet. It also has the only guillotine type doors rather than the hinging kind.

The Canal is a wonderous water route. At times we can pull up to a wall and hear a concert and at other times we are in wilderness. Off in the distance we hear the whistle of trains and sometimes the clack of their wheels on the rails. We catch a glimpse of roads and cars and then they disappear. On the western end of the canal we will encounter lift bridges as well as locks. It's an experience that we had two years ago when Mike and Marlene Cosgrove were with us. So, this year we thought we were well prepared to handle it alone.

We entered the first lock and soon became the comedy routine for the lockmaster and spectators. We had forgotten our preparations:

*We both needed gloves to hold the lines. The lines are slimy and the walls are too. We only had one set of gloves which Lou let me use. (What a nice guy!)

*We didn't play the wind right which kept driving the bow away from the wall so I couldn't grab a line.

*Lou jumped up to grab his line and left the boat in gear.

*Donna didn't push off quickly enough and the mast hit the wall.

*We didn't have a bucket with water ready for Lou to wash his hands. He left muddy prints on the black dodger,the cokpit table, the shifter, and the tiller.

The good news is that we are getting better. We're at lock 20 with only 15 more to go. Whew!

Trial 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 22:06:00 +0000

July 13, 2011 ALLEGED WIFE BEATER ARRESTED

St. Johnsville, N.Y., has the first occupant of it's jail since it's completion in 1958. Seventy-five year old Luis M. Diaz of Boyne City, Michigan, is being held pending an investigation of spousal abuse.

The incident occurred on the night of July 11, 2011. It was not reported until July 13, 2011, when fellow boaters called the local police. They were concerned about Donna Diaz and her safety.

Mr. and Mrs. Diaz are traveling on a 40 foot sailboat through the Erie Canal on their return trip to Michigan. They spend 24 hour a day/7 days a week together in 550 square feet with only one bathroom.

The prosecutors allege that Mr. Diaz punched Mrs. Diaz in the left cheek and jaw causing abrasions and bruising. Mrs. Diaz refuses to comment. Prosecutors speculate that it is too painful for her to talk.

Mr. Diaz maintains his innocence. He said, "After 45 years of marriage, I still love my wife and would never hit her. You've got to believe me!"

The trial is set for the afternoon of July 14, 2011. Witnesses are encouraged to testify at the trial so that swift justice can be found.

July 14, 2011 ALLEGED WIFE BEATER APPEARS IN HANDCUFFS

A pretty sorry looking old man took his seat at the defense table still professing his innocence while his handcuffs were removed.

The prosecutor presented a strong case against Mr. Luis Diaz. He gave numerous examples of Mr. Diaz becoming easily excited at sporting events, using vulger language, and drinking too much alcohol. On the night in question the prosecutor promised to paint a picture of Mr. Diaz "popping his cork" after a number of drinks and "hammering" his wife for not bringing him another one.

The defense maintains that Mr. Diaz is a mild-mannered patient man. In 45 years of marriage he has stood by Mrs. Diaz in sickness and in health. His habit is to walk away when she bugs him.

The first witness called was Mrs. Marlene Cosgrove of East Lansing, Michigan. It was Mrs. Cosgrove's eye witness account of the accident that brought a swift judgement of NOT GUILTY to the procedure.

Mrs. Cosgrove witnessed Mrs. Diaz stepping onto the boat, tripping on a line, and falling forward. Mrs. Diaz hit her cheek on the cockpit table which caused the bruising.

CASE DISMISSED

There is still no comment from Mrs. Diaz, but she did give Mr. Diaz a big hug.

(Donna's statement "It was bound to happen sooner or later. As falls on a boat go this was a good one. I didn't break a bone, I didn't break my glasses, and I had ice available to put on the injury immediately.)

Catskill, NY 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:21:00 +0000

Demasting the boat at Hop-O-Nose Marina

7-11-11

What goes up surely must come down. Two years ago we stopped at Hop-O-Nose Marina in Catskill, NY, to have our mast stepped (put up) after coming through the Erie Canal. It was a good place to leave our wooden cradle. This year (with Mike's help) the men searched high and low through piles of junk and other cradles and through three buildings that were about to fall down before finding the ones marked "Tequila". Amazingly only one piece of wood was broken and that was an easy fix.

Mike and Marlene left their car at Hop-O-Nose before taking the AMTRAK train to meet us in Pt. Washington. Here are some of their first impressions of the grounds and facilities:

*It's a Pig Pen Haven. The buildings are in complete disrepair with vines and trees growing through the walls and ceilings.

*The office is a total mess. How can they do business here? There is a big barrel to catch the rain water as it drips through the roof.

*It needs a good hurricane to put order to the chaos.

All of that is true, but on closer inspection this is what we found:

*John (the owner) seems to know where everything is stored. He told Mike and Lou exactly where to find the cradle.

*It's really a "locals" marina. The regulars all rush to take lines and greet the transient boaters.

*The equipment dates from the construction of the Erie Canal, but the people step and unstep 250 masts a season with it. They know what they're doing. (Last week they unstepped a $100,000 plus mast.) Today they arrived at 8:30 am and had the mast pulled and in the cradle by 9:00 am.

*They do make an effort to keep the waterfront area neat.

*The regulars share stories and make evryone feel welcome. They think the marina runs itself because they all help in some way.

The town of Catskill is cute with decorated cats lining the main street. Apparantly it's a boxing training center where Mohammad Ali trained.

Once again we have to thank Mike and Marlene for sharing our Adventure. Mike was an valuable carpenter when it came time to reconstruct the wooden cradle. And, Marlene is just a great "boat buddy." We're all sorry that their schedule and our late start didn't allow them to come through the Erie Canal again. We did try to provide some new experiences for them this time.

*Mike got to work with tide charts and planning the course.

*Marlene learned to tie the fenders on the life lines and handle the dock lines.

*Mike got to wear my foul weather jacket during a severe rain storm.

*Marlene figured out the storage system (what system?) in the cabin.

I'd have to ask them if there was anything else, but they are already on their way back to East Lansing. I wonder when the next boat experience will happen with them.

Good-bye friends!

Goodbye New York

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 14:17:00 +0000

Lori and Ashley

New York from the water is really spectacular. The skyline, the lights at night, the Statue of Liberty, and the wake from all the ferry boats kept us rockin' and rollin'. We were happy when the ferry service stopped running every night so the boat would stop pitching from side-to-side! Lou and I were happy that Lori Cordray (our niece-in-law) could join us for a sail in the New York Habor. She brought Kristin and Ashley (7), of course, and a friend and her three boys. OH BOY.......four kids under 8 can be difficult on a choppy waterway. However, these kids were content to stay in the cockpit and wear their life jackets. It was great to sail under the Brooklyn Bridge and around the Statue of Liberty.

Then we met Gui (our first exchange student) and Christine and their two little girls for dinner. It gave us a chance to catch up with their lives and meet Lily who was born in February. Nina was a little shy (she's 4), but she warmed up to us quickly.

We squeezed in a lot in one day!

Gui and Lou

After consulting the tide charts (several times to be safe) we left NYC and headed north up the Hudson River. I was so happy to cross under the George Washington Bridge. It is the point at which we could change our insurance back to "Great Lakes and inland waters." This classification lowers our boat insurance by half!!!!! Wahoo!

The Hudson River Valley is a sharp contrast to the port of NYC. It's a wide river spotted with llittle towns making it a pleasant trip north. The Palisades on the New Jersey side are 300 to 500 foot high cliffs. We saw several freighters on anchor waiting for their turn at the docks of the city. We slipped right by Tarrytown (aka Sleepy Hollow.) According to Washington Irving, the author of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," the name came from the Dutch farm wives' complaining about their husbands tarrying too long at the village tavern. :-)

We stopped for the night (and the pool) at Haverstraw Bay Marina. When we were here two years ago with the Morris family, it was about 104 degrees. This year it was only 88 degrees but the hyumidity was 100%. Haverstraw Bay is 25 miles north of the George Washington Bridge which made it an easy day. This marina has 1,000 slips. Unbelievable.

The Cosgroves are "seasoned" crew after three summers on Tequila. Mike is learning more and more about charting, tide charts, and docking. Marlene is a valuable galley wench and is even learning some sailing knots. They've been great sports about sailing/motoring and all the related issues on a boat. They can go with us anywhere! Besides, they play Mexican Train and Farkle like champs.

Lou, Marlene, Donna, Mike

Marlene Mike

New Experiences

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 16:28:00 +0000

June 30, 2011 Matt "talking" to Tomeaka via the iphone creating a Personal Hotspot. It's a great invention and allows me to blog from the boat.

Pt. Washington is located in Manhasset Bay, Long Island. It's only 20 nautical miles from New York City. It's a well protected deep harbor with 14 marinas and 300 moorings and plenty of room for anchoring. We thought it was the perfect spot to work out a crew switch (Matt leaving and Cosgroves arriving) and wait out the 4th of July craziness in Ne w York.

All went according to plan-----Lou, Matt, and I docked and had a chance to give the boat a good wash down to get the salt water off EVERYTHING. We had some great sails with Matt with salt spray crashing over the bow and hitting the dodger "windows." Since we arrived the day before Mike and Marlene were to arrive, we decided to treat ourselves to a restaurant meal. That was a mistake! By the next morning all three of us were sick. We must have gotten food poisoning from the restaurant. Fortunately, it wasn't a long lived illness.

Picture of Lou "ralphing" Omitted

Mike and Marlene arrived without a hitch. They traveled by car from East Lansing, Michigan (2 hour delay crossing from Canada back into the US), taxis, and train to Pt. Washington. But, they made all the connections and arrived in time to witness us "feeding the fish." Lucky them!

So far they have had quiet time on the boat. Well, not totally quiet. We've heard a concert, witnessed a great fireworks, watched lots of harbor activity, seen the local fish jumping, and been boat-bound because of rain. Mike thinks this is a better protected harbor that the national highways: Harbor Police, Bay Police, Harbor Master, and the Nassau County Sheriff with 7 officers, and the Coast Guard.

The good part about being "stuck" is that Mike and Lou have had time to plot our timing through the East River into New York Harbor on the 5th. It's critical to go through Hell Gate at slack tide because the current can be up to 5.2 nm. You don't want to go against the current.

Mike and Marlene got to experience an on-boat shower for the first time in 4 seasons on the boat. (We've always been able to get to a shore shower.) That was a new experience. Four days on a mooring requires showers!!!!!

We're planning to move on to NYC on July 5th and have a couple of days cruising the harbor. It should be in the high 80's while we're there. Whew.

Live and Learn!

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 18:59:00 +0000

Day 5 June 30, 2011 Pt. Washington, Long Island

Matt has spent the last five days trying to teach these "old dogs" new tricks. Here are some of things we've learned:

*Lou - Matt made Lou practice using paper charts to navigate into Pt. Washington. It was a bit of a struggle to give up the computer navigation system, but he got the hang of it. He also worked on analysing the methods of a project before beginning it. He's really good at boat organization.

*Donna - Matt showed her all the interesting things in the Eldridge Tide Book. The information was interesting, but the tide charts are still a mystery! He also got her to realize that there is a difference between a 2009 and a 2011 Waterway Guide Book. :-( We couldn't find the marina from the '09 book.

*Matt - The old folks are slow; their hearing is GONE; and bad things happen when the rigging tape is missing.

*One thing both Lou and I have noticed is that when Matt sees something that needs to be fixed, he fixes it........RIGHT NOW! That's not our system.......notice that it needs to be fixed, write it down and lose the note, search for supplies, think about it, think about it some more, get around to fixing it.

One thing (among many) that Matt pointed out to us was that we should bring the dinghy up close to the transom when getting ready to do docking/mooring tactics so that the lines don't get caught in the prop. Great idea that we had never considered. So, he drew in the dinghy and discovered that there was no rigging tape on the backstay. The cotter pin punctured a hole in the front of the dinghy. It was a fixable problem (we carry patching kits with us) and he put the rigging tape where it needed to go.

We've had some great sails with Matt After we left the Connecticut River we went to Milford, CT. It was just as cute as it was two years ago. Our next stop was to Northport, Long Island. We dinghied into twn with our pump on board for a walk-about. The boys found the Happy Hour spots, and I got a pedicure. What luxury. Today we're in Pt. Washington to wait out the Fourth of July activities. Matt will be leaving us and Mike and Marlene Cosgrove will be arriving.

It's been great spending a few days with Matt. Thank you Tomeaka for sharing him.

The Journey Begins

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 19:21:00 +0000

Day 1........Newport, RI June 26,2011

Welcome aboard Matt! This is an unexpected gift from Matt AND Tomeaka. Matt has taken a 6 month leave from his job in the Caymans to race on PowerPlay----a Cayman owned TP 52 race boat. The racing in and near Newport coinsided with us passing by. Tomeaka has "gifted" us with a few days of Matt's helping us move through the Long Island Sound. Lou is thrilled to be on a boat with "his boy" and I'm thrilled to have a knowledgeable sailor aboard. He has found the tools, tweaked the rigging, tightened up some loose fittings, and helped Lou problem solve an issue with the autohelm. That's in the first 2 hours.

Matt's a "going-machine." He raked and tuned the mast and hoisted the main. We were making great head-way and passed port after port. At the end of the day we had covered 55 nm. That's a lot for us old folks on an old boat. It was a beautiful sunny day and the boat was humming.

Day 2 - June 27, 2011

Morning-----very early morning----is such a peaceful time of day. The sun is rising, the wind is quiet, and the water is flat. We started at about 5 am to take advantage of the flood tide. And, we did. We were at a moderate engine speed with no sails, and we were going 8.7 nm. On The Good Ship Tequila that's 30% faster than normal cruising speed. Tides are an awesome thing, but frankly I'll be happy to be back in the land of fresh water and no tides. In 14 hours we have covered about 100 nm. I like having Capt'n Matt on board.

I went to sleep with the sound of father-and-son chatting on the deck. NICE.

2011 The Blog is Back

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 18:17:00 +0000

We just want our "fans" (thank you for following our adventure) to know that the boat is in the water and floating, we're living aboard in 550 square feet, we have no automobile transportation, and we have returned to a very simple life style: Where are we going today? Do we have water in the tanks? How full is the holding tank? I tried to cook dinner the first night aboard only to find that the flame lighter didn't work and we had no matches. So, no hot dinner that night....shrimp salad filled the limited menu.

I always feel a thrill when the boat slips into the water and the straps are slack. She floats! After a winter in dry dock up on jack stands, she looks great in the water. We arrived in Rhode Island in mid-May ready to clean and polish the old girl (she's 27 now) and paint the bottom. It rained and was cold EVERY DAY. Thank heavens we weren't tent camping this year. We did manage all the clean-up projects before going on a little vacation.

Lou decided to bring along a new girl for the beginning of our 2011 adventure. She came with Donna but isn't much of a friend. Her name is SICKNESS. Two doctor visits and a trip to the Newport ER have provided enough drugs to keep us going. It's nothing life threatening----just miserable---sinus, bronchitis, ear infection, burst ear drum, and unstoppable coughing. Of course, we had to share with Lou too. I predict that we will get better.

Our plans are somewhat fluid. Is that a surprise? At this point we plan to be in Newport over the weekend to see Matt and then head for New York City. That involves going through the Long Island Sound, up the East River, and around the tip of Manhattan. We'll be sure to wave at the Statue of Liberty as we glide by.

We did a sea trial today with our broker, Casey. Everything worked on the boat as it was supposed to work. You can see from Casey's face that he loved the way Tequila handled. We had a great sail and skipped back to our mooring just before the rain drops.

So, once I post this blog, we'll go back to the boat and batten down the hatches. Rain in coming.

Fall 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 00:07:00 +0000

Brady is 15 months old already. He is trying to talk and has a lot to say. However, at this point it comes out in screams.

Ryan is our 4 year old grandson who is the "life of the party." He keeps life interesting.

Kyle is 7 years old and in the 1st grade in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. He loves school and playing soccer.
We've recently spent a few beautiful fall days with our favorite grandsons. They had a ball jumping in the leaves, and we had a ball watching them!

Please forgive my mistake. When I edited my blogs in preparation for printing them in a book, I stored them in "draft" form. Now I find out that they have to be resent in order to be printed.

So, you will be receiving all 57 posts from 2009 and 2010. Please use the delete button. You certainly don't have to read them AGAIN. So sorry to bother you.

Hope your fall has been as beautiful as our's in northern Michigan. Keep well and be happy.

Good-bye Summer 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 00:19:00 +0000

We hate to end this summer of sailing from Rhode Island to Maine and back again. It's been a great experience.

Earl (the hurricane) pushed our decision to return to Bristol up by 10 days. We were in Woods Hole, MA, and planning to tour some of the oceanographic places and then head on to Martha's Vineyard with Sharon and Lloyd. The advice of all the "weather experts" at the yacht club was that we should head as far away from that area as possible. So, we made a beeline down to Bristol, RI, and had plenty of time to secure the boat for whatever Earl wanted to throw at us. Fortunately the storm turned and we barely got any rain or wind.

Sharon and Lloyd were in complete agreement........but now they are involved in unloading and putting the boat away. Lucky them. Really, we feel so lucky that they will help us. By the end of Labor Day Weekend we will have readied the boat for winter storage. Then we will go off to Boston to be tourists with them before putting them on a plane to return to Michigan.

Thank you for reading this blog and sharing in our adventure. Next year we will begin the journey back to Michigan, so stay tuned. :-)

Almost the End

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 20:13:00 +0000

Replica of the Mayflower

Lloyd and Sharon

This has been the summer Lou and I have dreamed about.....living aboard, an engine without problems, beautiful days with a few foggy/rainy ones to remind us of the beautiful ones, fabulous friends who have been great boat buddies, and a fun filled week with family on Mt. Desert Island. Maine,(sailing in Pebnobscot Bay was even more wonderful than we imagined.)

Last week we were in the eye of a 4 day nor'easter. That resulted in heavy rains and high winds. When we tried to stop in Marblehead, we were encouraged to move on before the 7 to 11 foot waves started rolling in. We went on to Jim's in North Weymouth and were well protected in the Back Rive. (Thank you Jim!)

Lou and I took this time to get off the boat and be tourists for a few days. We went to Plimouth Plantation and thoroughly enjoyed the actors who played the parts of actual pilgrims. Then, we went aboard the replica of the Mayflower. Oh my gosh! I got a refresher on my history of these settlers. They were English who fled England over the church and lived in Holland for 11 or so years. Life was very difficult in a foreign land, and the men had diffculty finding work. Besides, they wanted their children to remain English. So, they signed an agreement with a group of investors who bought the ship and agreed to feed and cloth the pilgrims in exchange for 7 years of work for The Company. At the end of 7 years each person would be granted 20 acres in the winderness. That was more land than nobles were given in England. So, while the work was extremely hard and the weather severe, people were willing to take this risk for a better life for their family.

Once we toured the Mayflower I realized that the sail across the ocean was even more difficult than I had imagined The exact dimensions of the replica of the merchant ship Mayflower are:

106.5 feet long, 90 foot hull, 25.5 foot beam, and 13 foot draft. There were 102 passengers traveling in the hole for approximately 3 months. I could barely stay down below for 10 minutes. Once they arrived in Plymouth Colony they faced farming in a wilderness, having to grow all their food, untold dangers, and living in 1 room dirt floored mud sided houses. It is unbelieveable to see.

So that's enough history. We've started talking about our "adventure" and I want to write it down so I don't forget:

PEOPLE WE'VE MET:

*Bob and Camille in Bristol, RI, aka the Commodore and his wife. They invited us for dinner, talked about sailing spots, gave us charts, and introduced us to lacrosse.

*Jim Halpin lives on the Back River of the Fore River in North Weymouth, MA, which is near Boston. He arranged for us to use his friend's mooring both on the way to Maine and on the way back to Bristol.

*A perfect stranger we met on Martha's Vineyard who shared stories about the Methodist Camp Meetings and the cute Victorian cottages.

*Another perfect stranger we met at the Boston Yacht Club in Marblehead who was full of stories about where to go and where to stay on our journey up to Maine.

*The lady who Marlene and I talked to in Marblehead who's house was built in the 1600s.

*The barber who cut my hair in Rockland, Maine, who had been cutting hair for 50 years.

*Sarah Rogers who encouraged Lou's new interest in drawing and painting.

*The librarians we met in several of the little ports. In Castine I met the Director of the Library who grew up in Keane Valley, NY, and knew our friend Norm from Colorado.

*Judy who is a waitress in Braintree, MA. She was so interested in our trip that she wanted our blog address and didn't charge us for breakfast.

*Seeing Don and Louise Tuski in Bath, ME. Don was the former President of Olivet College in Olivet, MI. He is the new President of the Maine College of Art in Portland.

OUTSTANDING EXPERIENCES

*Whale watching near Bar Harbor, Maine.

*Seeing and feeling the power of the tides in the East River, NY, and the Kennebec River in Maine.

OUTSTANDING FOOD

*Lobster stew in Tennants Harbor, ME

*Peach Shortcake at the Ebb Tide in Boothbay Harbor, ME

*The Front Room in Portland. We would fly to Portland just to eat there again.

*Kelly's Landing (thank you Cyndi) near N. Weymouth for their twin lobster dinner for $20.

OUR BOAT BUDDIES

*Cyndi McChesney from Colorado. She lived through the "night of the mosquitoes" and was still smiling. She introduced us to Jim!

*Mike and Marlene Cosgrove from East Lansing. Mike learned to helm through a gazillion lobster pots going into S. Freeport and pretty heavy fog going out. Marlene was a handy galley winch who was always happy.

*Dave Himes from Chicago who was living one of his dreams and planning to check it off his bucket list. Dave loved every part of every day.

*Sharon and Lloyd Slinglend from Trenton, MI. They are our old (read that as OLD) friends who met us in Boston. They have sailed with us in the Detroit River long before Tequila was remodeled. One 4th of July we wore every jacket we could find and were still cold. Hopefully this week will be filled with warm suuny days.

Our big thanks to Cyndi and Sharon who each helped us see a whale.

Back to Boston

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 15:13:00 +0000

Lou has found his next "dream boat." While we were in Salem we were able to go aboard this 150 foot Barquentine sailboat. The size of the masts and the lines made our rig appear doll-like. This boat carries 10,000 square feet of sail and a 14 foot draft. Just think that I worry about our 7.5 foot draft. It was a very interesting tour.

We stayed an extra day or two in Salem so that we could do some very touristy things.....ride the trolley, visit some museums, etc. Salem is famous for the witch trials that occurred in the late 1600s, but it's real fame is from the world wide shipping industry. Salem was THE major international port at the time. It's said that the captains could sit in their parlors looking over Salem Harbor to Marblehead where the pirates kept their boats.

We tried to moor in Marblehead to reprovision and take on water, but the harbormaster strongly encouraged us to go back to Salem (only 3 miles away) or continue toward Boston. I'm so glad we opted to continue to North Weymouth (near Boston). We traveled through a rainy day, but the seas were pretty calm and the winds were still light. After we were settled on the mooring that Jim Halpin had secured for us, the winds began to build. We are tucked way back in the Back River of the Fore River off the Hingham Bay, but I honestly was worried that the mooring wouldn'd hold us. It blew HARD and rained all night and continued into Monday. I think Lou and I will just "hunker down" and stay below all day today. Maybe this weather front will pass soon.

We'll be here until Friday when our old friends from Michigan join us for the return trip to Bristol. Sharon and Lloyd are bringing the good weather with them I hope. Otherwise, it could be a repeat of last year when Bill and Karen Murray came and we were in the tail end of a hurricane. Yuck!

F O G

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:58:00 +0000

Fog comes when least expected or at the most inconvenient times. We had planned to leave Portland between 6 and 7 am this morning, however we can't see the boats right next to us in the mooring field. Now is a good time to revise the schedule.

I woke up this morning thinking about our week on Mt. Desert Island and realized that I hadn't written some of my favorite memories.

*Taking the kids 2 by 2 out to spend the night on the boat. Ryan was so excited about his very first time sleeping on the boat that he talked non-stop as we dingy-ed through pea-soup fog to the mooring.

Jon-boy had tons of questions and beat Papa (Lou) in the fastest game of War I've ever seen.
Kyle and Jon-boy got to have a sleep-over on the boat and had a great time together. I couldn't believe how quickly they all settled down when it was lights out. It seems that we all went to bed by 9 pm.

*Brady had no problem adjusting to the sounds of the boat motor and took great naps on our bed while we got the sails ready. It was a contest to see which parent volunteered for the nap duty.

Kate came to the boat by herself. She's the oldest and the only girl so she got the bed all to herself. She played Farkle with me. I loved watching Kate entertain Brady. He loved it too.

*Lou made friends with a perfect stranger who was drawing at a picnic table. He has a new interest in painting/drawing and may be developing a new hobby.

*Lisa designed really funny (and gross) relay races in the backyard.

*Jon helped me with my bike on the 6 mile ride in Acadia National Park. As it turned out, the right side gears completely "blew out" and I had to pedal in "1". The group was always waiting for me to catch up. :-(

*I loved planning the Pirate Treasure Hunt and making the official treasure map on the boat. The best part was that the kids loved it. They drank swill and yelled Arrrrrgh when the rules were read.......no fighting, no gambling, keep your weapons, clean, no brushing teeth, etc. Even the parents put eye patches on and went on the walk through town. They were all laughing by the time they got back and discovered the treasure. Ryan kept asking if I could make up another treasure hunt for them.

*We had two fun sails with the group. Sharon is a sailor-in-the-making. She wanted all the sails up and even tried badgering Lisa into flying the spinnaker. It didn't work.

*We're so happy that we were included in the memory making vacation with these two young families.

On another note, Dave Himes discovered his true identity while in Boothbay Harbor. He thinks he is a "pareidoletist" (sp?). That's a condition of the brain that sees shapes in vague stimulus like driftwood or clouds. Must be a talent. All these years people thought he was daydreaming.

Dave introduced us to Jane and Bill Berry who now live in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Jane invited us for dinner and Bill drove us around Old Orchard Beach and to and from Portland. They seemed to enjoy their afternoon sail, and we certainly enjoyed a home cooked dinner.

Speaking of dinners......if you are ever in Portland, go to a tiny little restaurant called The Front Room on Congress Street. The meals are FABULOUS!!! Thank you Dave for dinner.

Bill and Jane Berry

The Front Room restaurant - Donna, Bill Himes, Lou, Bill and Jane Berry

The fog is lifting and the captain has decided it's time to move, so guess that means it's time to end the blog.

A Week With Dave

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 20:33:00 +0000

Our sailing buddy, Dave Himes.

Notice the grin? It never left Dave's face.....early in the morning, mid-day, late at night......

He was fulfilling an item on his "bucket list" and thought everything about the week was perfect. That's just the kind of guest I like on the boat! Here are some of his thoughts.

Things he liked: seeing so many sailboats, spending the week "shopping" for his next boat (joke), playing Farkle, experiencing the tides, noticing the difference between Great Lakes smells and ocean smells, all the cute little harbors, the challenge of navigating through channels and multiple islands while trying to match the information on the charts and GPS, and watching for the sea critters (seals, porpoise, jumping fish, heron, horseshoe crabs).

We did our best to provide him with every variety of sailing condition, but failed to find the 15 foot waves. He had a great day with main and jib and a 20 degree heel, jib only, motor only, and fog with about 100 feet of visibility. He loved it all.

He got lots of lobster eating opportunities but liked the lobster stew from Tennant Harbor the best. He thinks I'm Houdini-in-the-galley which is quite a compliment since most of it was created by opening cans.

He decided that playing Farkle with Lou requires a new set of awareness. His new strategy is SHOW NO MERCY! When Lou finds a sliver of opportunity, Dave plans to pinched him off.

It's been a great week and we're sorry to say good-bye. We're off to Portsmouth in the next day or two.

Good-bye Maine

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:49:00 +0000

This is a hard blog for me to write. We will be leaving beautiful Maine in a few days. I LOVE MAINE! The coast is dotted with islands big and small, the shoreline is rocky and tree covered, the fishing villages are cute and the people are friendly, and the lobsters are plentiful. We've had very little rain and fog which makes the travel easier and my disposition a whole lot better.

Our last night in the "true cruising grounds" of the Penobscot Bay was spent in Stonington. This port has a reputation for loud and rude lobster men who really don't want cruising boats in their water. There are reports that they rev up their exceptionally loud engines at 4:30 am and "buzz" the boats of the sleeping cruisers. If the noise doesn't wake you, the wake will. We were there on a Saturday night and the lobster men don't fish on Sundays. Lucky us!

We met out friend, Dave Himes, from Chicago on Monday in Rockland. We took him and his friend Bill out for a great morning sail and returned to pick up the Rogers family.....Todd, Sarah, and Everett.....for an afternoon sail.

Todd used to crew and captain on the schooners in this area. He loved all the "tweaking" that can be done on Tequila to fine-tune the rake of the mast and the angle and flatness of the sails. I don't think he stopped grinning the whole time he was helming. Sarah and Everett (7 years old) did just fine on their first sail on an old racing boat. Everett liked standing on the bow.

Everett liked us well enough to invite us to watch him race his mountain bike that night. I was so impressed. He's a strong little guy and can really handle his bike. The race was at their local ski hill.

It was a really fun day with this family and two great sails. It seems that we have to motor a lot when we're going from Point A to Point B, but when we're "fun" sailing, we can go with the wind.

Todd, Lou, Everett, Donna, Sarah

Dave will be sailing with us as far as Portland. We need to thank Diane, his wife, for sharing him with us. He LOVES looking at all the different boats in the harbors. He wants Diane to know that they all look better than his 22' Catalina. Dave is a sailor and likes all the "stuff" that sailing involves. He's another good "boat buddy."

Mt. Desert Island

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:41:00 +0000

We met the Sytsemas from Mt. Pleasant, MI, (Don, Lisa, Kyle, Ryan, and Brady) and the Morrises from Wantage, NJ, (Jon, Sharon, Kate, and Jon-boy) last Saturday. Boy is it good to see family! We have had so much fun with these 9 people exploring Mt. Desert Island and Acadia National Park.

We have sailed in the only fjord in North American and to an island for exploring, biked, and watched three of the kids jump off the boat into the 68 degree water. (They weren't in too long.) The meals have been terrific and the companionship outstanding. All the kids get along so well that it's fun to see them together. The funniest meal was when Lisa and Sharon cooked the live lobster and actually had to handle them. We should have video taped the action in the kitchen.

The activity that we all liked the best was the Whale Watching Cruise. We picked a perfect day for it. The winds were so light that the ocean was actually "flat." We had to be reminded that we were in the ocean. There were about 25 or 30 sightings of whales (sometimes the same whale in a different location.) We saw and heard them spout water from their blow-holes, dive and lift their tails out of the water, one flipped on her side and had a flipper out of the water, and one actually jumped all the way up and out of the water. The last whale we saw actually slapped her tail four times as though she was saying good-bye. It was absolutely amazing!

A Race

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:13:00 +0000

As we left Bucks Harbor, Lou found a boat to race. This schooner had all her sails up and we only had the head sail flying. Nevertheless, Lou tried hard to out-sail her. He didn't win.

We're at Acadia Nation Park on Mt. Desert Island. Our sailing goal for the summer has been to meet Lisa and her family and the Morris family (Don's sister) in Northeast Harbor on Mt. Desert Island (it's pronounced like the sweet treat after dinner) on July 31st. We've traveled from Bristol, RI, to here and arrived 2 days early. We're so proud of ourselves! We stopped for the first night in Southwest Harbor but only have 2 miles to go to reach Northeast Harbor. It's so beautiful here: the mountains of the island, the waters of Penobscot Bay lapping around the boat, the rocky tree-lined shores, the boats on moorings, and the water slipping around the hundreds of islands.

We came through some challenging spots to get here, but it was a beautiful day for it. The winds were dead calm to start. Then, we had to negotiate York Channel and Casco Passage to get into Jerico Bay. By the time we got into Blue Hill Bay the winds started building and were piping up to 22 knots for our entrance into SE Harbor. These is a small craft warning on the weather station. We're on a mooring and feel safe and sound, but the boat keeps spinning around. The wind and tide and currants do strange things.

Our new favorite boat game is Farkle. (Thanks Mike and Marlene.) So far I've been winning.

Just a small sad note about our friends Brian and Shannon Cosgrove. They live in a section of Chicago that was seriously affected by flooding of the sewer system. Their basement was under sewer water and they lost all appliances, the furnace, all their books and Shannon's teaching material, but most importantly all of their photos and all of Shannon's Mom's photos. It's at least $30,000 that is NOT covered by insurance. The photos are irreplaceable.

Good Thing for Friends

noreply@blogger.com (Galley Wench) — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 16:34:00 +0000

An old neighbor, Todd Rogers, from Bath, Michigan, lives in Rockland, ME, with his new wife, Sarah. We drove to Rockland about a month ago to share in their wedding memories. Todd was kind enough to drive us back to Portland (about 1 1/2 hours each way) to pick up our new phone. YEA! We're back in the land of cell phone connections. (What did we ever do without them?) It was a relatively long process, so Todd and his pal, Brewer, used the time wisely. Sometimes we just need a car. Enterprise didn't have any cars available and the other company was out of business........ We'll be in debt to Todd for a long time.

This schooner slipped on a mooring close to ours last night after we went to bed. Imagine how much fun it was to watch her raise the sails with the manpower of the guests while still on the mooring.

When we got back from Portland, we went to dinner with Todd and Sarah. During dinner there was a HUGE storm. The winds were gusting up to 40 knots, the rain was pelting the windows, the thunder and lightening was cracking all around the bay. Once again they were willing to "save" us with a bed for the night. But, by the time we got back to Rockland from Camden the rain had stopped and the lightening was off in the distance. Lou and Todd bailed 4" to 6" of water out of the dinghy, and we motored out to the mooring. Actually, we didn't even know that another storm rolled through about 1 am.

Todd has sailed in Penobscot Bay as first mate and then captain on the windjammers for several years. Now he has his own remodeling and renovation business for homes and boats. His love of sailing (and knowledge of these waters) was evident when he described gliding into a cove and dropping the anchor. His advice on various routes and passages to Mt. Desert Island is invaluable. I spent the winter pouring over the Cruising Guide to the Maine Coast. It's a 466 page book that lists so many coves and harbors and passageways that I couldn't make a sailing plan. We'll be following Todd's cruising advice and stopping at places like Cradle Cove, Castine Harbor, Bucks Harbor, and passing through Eggemoggin Reach and Casco Passage into Jerico Bay near Mt. Desert Island.

We've now spent a whole day in our foul weather gear motoring through rain and "pea soup" fog. The visibility gradually improved by the time we arrived in Castine Harbor. This is one of the oldest communities in North America. It has been continuously occupied since the early 1600s. At the end of the 19th century the steamboats brought the summer people or "rusticators" as the natives called them. There are some beautiful 18th and 19th century homes in perfect condition. In 1942 the Maine Maritime Academy was founded here.

More lobster trivia: Lobsters remained relatively unchanged for nearly 100 million years, despite their unusual build. Its brain is in its throat and its nervous system is in its belly. They listen with their legs and taste with their feet. Plus, their teeth are in their stomach and their kidneys are in their head.

We have had a few delightful days in Rockland with Sarah and Todd. Todd has driven us on all our errands, poured over the charts and given his advice, supplied us with Maine-made maple syrup and garbage bags, and been a gracious host. Sarah has shared her home and husband with us. Thanks guys for everything. Hope to see you again soon.

Just a note: We are sailing in places without internet connections, so we may not be able to reply to your emails promptly. Cell phone reception is also iffy.