Hello all you blog readers,
Posting a short note at the request of some family members.
We are back on High Spirits and moving her north to Deale, MD for winter storage. Today we are in beautiful Elizabeth City, NC where it has been raining all day. Joy is off getting a massage and a pedicure. Kind of a present from me.
We hope to leave tomorrow for the Dismal Swamp passage which takes two days to get to the northern end, either Portsmouth or Norfolk, VA.
From then we keep moving north until we get to Deale, MD. On Friday Nov 1 we are going to take our granddaughter, Erin, to Mt. Vernon if everything comes together. Mt Vernon is still open as it is a private foundation, not a Federal park site.
November we find us either in NH for a couple of days or just driving around the East Coast visiting our kids until we head out to Ohio for Thanksgiving. The weekend before Joyce is taking us to the Ohio State football game.
Finally back to NH by Dec 1 to collapse and enjoy the snow
Joe
ps Will put up some pictures later
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Saturday, April 20, 2013
to Family and Friends
Hi Everybody,
I was thinking this morning and I have decided to write one more blog about our travels on High Spirits. We have been either working, sailing, and living on High Spirits for about 29 months of the last three years. This final month represents a closing of one part of our sailing life and we are going to move to another sailing situation.
NEW PLANS
So here is the plan for at least the next year or so. We are going to take advantage of our family house in New Hampshire for summers and winters. Joy still loves to snow ski in the winter and we want to be able to use the lake with our children, grandchildren and friends. I enjoy working with the New London IRS/AARP Tax Volunteer group. We do about 500 tax returns a year for low to moderate income families with emphasis on seniors.
We will still sail on High Spirits in the fall and spring for now, just not for such a long time period. We plan on keeping the options open to return to the Bahamas in the winter, perhaps every other year.
FAMILY NEWS
Not sure everybody knows that Jill and Matt ( she is our middle child) are having their first baby around the third week of May. So we are making arrangements to see them more over the next year or so, including Joy visiting them before the baby is born.
Jill's other news is that she accepted an admission offer to Harvard University starting in July 2014, one year delay. She and Matt will be moving to Cambridge/Boston area for her one year program. After that, who knows. Not sure how this affects Matt's position at Columbia, but we will find out when we see them.
HATS OFF TO FRIENDS and FAMILY
I wanted to list some of the people we have met through sailing over the past year, or friends and family that came and stayed with us on High Spirits. So not in any order, mostly by their boat cards if we got one.
FAMILY
Jen, Mark, Erin and Adam - came to Hopetown, Abacos, Bahamas for a week of living with us on the boat and staying at the hotel. We had a room and a dock at Hopetown Inn and Marina and it worked out perfectly.
Erin (6) slept on the boat for the first three nights and then we think she discovered that her parents room had cable TV with, rumor has it, 400 channels from England and the USA. She learned to swim a little without any water aids, plus loved to fish with Nanni(Joy's name). She had a blast riding in the front seat of the golf cart we rented to go to Tahiti Beach one day.
Adam (3) also loved the water, exploring for shells on the beach and just doing everything everybody wanted to do. He is a very good swimmer for his age. Talks a mile a minute.
OLD FRIENDS
Four sets of old friends came to stay with us on High Spirits.
Dell and Jean - from Cleveland, Ohio. Church friends for over 20 years. Stayed with us in Marathon, Fl
Nick and Sue - oldest friends since the late 1970's. Our two daughters are turning 40 this year and were in nursery school together. They stayed with us in Green Turtle Cay.
Madonna - spent two weeks with us up in Maine and in Canada ( our car trip)
Steven - college friend sailed Maine with us to Bremen, Maine
SAILING FRIENDS ALONG THE WAY THIS PAST YEAR
Steve and Linda on Yesterday's Dream ( old dock mates from E55th Street Marina in Cleveland)
Peggy and David on Wanderin' Star
Debbie and Butch on Swee' Pea
John and Helen on Aqua Mirus
Dick and Margaret on Alize
Corky and Anna on Kabria
Larry and Annette on Island Breeze
Gary and Janet on Lee-Ann
Mike and Chris on Missing Link
Jeff and Marilyn on Still Crazy
Bob and Barbara on Rob Ra Anne
Jim and Joey on My Pleasure
Phil and Sara on Spartina
Bob and Carol on Southern Cross
Dan and Ame on Mad'Em Cait
Mike, Michelle, Joshua and Bradleigh on Bay Tripper
Pam and Skip on CU@C
Johnny and Doris on 'Bout Town
I am sure I missed some people but we want to thank everybody who crossed our path and travelled with us, played dominoes or cards with us, and just enjoyed being with us.
Going to close with two pictures
Sunset at Peck Lake, April 18,2013
The beach looks great and the water inviting, but we going to take a blog break for a couple of months while we enjoy the summer up in New London, NH. Stop by and see us.
Fair winds and following seas
Love
Joe and Joy
I was thinking this morning and I have decided to write one more blog about our travels on High Spirits. We have been either working, sailing, and living on High Spirits for about 29 months of the last three years. This final month represents a closing of one part of our sailing life and we are going to move to another sailing situation.
NEW PLANS
So here is the plan for at least the next year or so. We are going to take advantage of our family house in New Hampshire for summers and winters. Joy still loves to snow ski in the winter and we want to be able to use the lake with our children, grandchildren and friends. I enjoy working with the New London IRS/AARP Tax Volunteer group. We do about 500 tax returns a year for low to moderate income families with emphasis on seniors.
We will still sail on High Spirits in the fall and spring for now, just not for such a long time period. We plan on keeping the options open to return to the Bahamas in the winter, perhaps every other year.
FAMILY NEWS
Not sure everybody knows that Jill and Matt ( she is our middle child) are having their first baby around the third week of May. So we are making arrangements to see them more over the next year or so, including Joy visiting them before the baby is born.
Jill's other news is that she accepted an admission offer to Harvard University starting in July 2014, one year delay. She and Matt will be moving to Cambridge/Boston area for her one year program. After that, who knows. Not sure how this affects Matt's position at Columbia, but we will find out when we see them.
HATS OFF TO FRIENDS and FAMILY
I wanted to list some of the people we have met through sailing over the past year, or friends and family that came and stayed with us on High Spirits. So not in any order, mostly by their boat cards if we got one.
FAMILY
Jen, Mark, Erin and Adam - came to Hopetown, Abacos, Bahamas for a week of living with us on the boat and staying at the hotel. We had a room and a dock at Hopetown Inn and Marina and it worked out perfectly.
Erin (6) slept on the boat for the first three nights and then we think she discovered that her parents room had cable TV with, rumor has it, 400 channels from England and the USA. She learned to swim a little without any water aids, plus loved to fish with Nanni(Joy's name). She had a blast riding in the front seat of the golf cart we rented to go to Tahiti Beach one day.
Adam (3) also loved the water, exploring for shells on the beach and just doing everything everybody wanted to do. He is a very good swimmer for his age. Talks a mile a minute.
OLD FRIENDS
Four sets of old friends came to stay with us on High Spirits.
Dell and Jean - from Cleveland, Ohio. Church friends for over 20 years. Stayed with us in Marathon, Fl
Nick and Sue - oldest friends since the late 1970's. Our two daughters are turning 40 this year and were in nursery school together. They stayed with us in Green Turtle Cay.
Madonna - spent two weeks with us up in Maine and in Canada ( our car trip)
Steven - college friend sailed Maine with us to Bremen, Maine
SAILING FRIENDS ALONG THE WAY THIS PAST YEAR
Steve and Linda on Yesterday's Dream ( old dock mates from E55th Street Marina in Cleveland)
Peggy and David on Wanderin' Star
Debbie and Butch on Swee' Pea
John and Helen on Aqua Mirus
Dick and Margaret on Alize
Corky and Anna on Kabria
Larry and Annette on Island Breeze
Gary and Janet on Lee-Ann
Mike and Chris on Missing Link
Jeff and Marilyn on Still Crazy
Bob and Barbara on Rob Ra Anne
Jim and Joey on My Pleasure
Phil and Sara on Spartina
Bob and Carol on Southern Cross
Dan and Ame on Mad'Em Cait
Mike, Michelle, Joshua and Bradleigh on Bay Tripper
Pam and Skip on CU@C
Johnny and Doris on 'Bout Town
I am sure I missed some people but we want to thank everybody who crossed our path and travelled with us, played dominoes or cards with us, and just enjoyed being with us.
Going to close with two pictures
Sunset at Peck Lake, April 18,2013
The beach looks great and the water inviting, but we going to take a blog break for a couple of months while we enjoy the summer up in New London, NH. Stop by and see us.
Fair winds and following seas
Love
Joe and Joy
Thursday, April 18, 2013
In Florida
Hello Everybody,
Arrived in Lake Worth, Florida, also known as the West Palm Beach, Singer Island, and Peanut Island towns. Lots of big power boats and expensive houses to look at.
Trip over took 9.5 hours from West End, Grand Bahama Island. West End is the very end of the Island, about a 70 dollar cab ride from Freeport. There is nothing here due to the last couple of hurricanes. There are some large houses with private canals and docks but the West End Settlement has been better days. Still recovering from hurricane damage.
The crossing was okay, there were 2-4 foot waves hitting on the aft starboard quarter so we were kind of riding the waves at an angle. The wind was 10-15 knots mostly 120 degrees so we were able to keep both sails filled and run the engine to be able to do 6 plus knots and almost 8 knots while in the Gulf Stream.
The only worthy note about the trip was that I was down below and got knocked down by a large wave hitting the side of the boat. Fortunately as Joy puts it, the stairs broke by movement across the cabin and luckily for me the stairs knocked me on my left hip rather than me hitting my head or neck on the navigation table. That would have been a more severe injury. So that only hurts are to my ego, my left butt and the back on the ride side. Sitting on an ice pack as I write this part of the blog.
We travelled back with Dick and Margaret Dragonnette of Chagrin Falls, Ohio. They have been living on their boat since the Fall and keep "Alize" at Harbortown Marina in Fort Pierce. That is where we will tie up for 10 days and fly out to Boston and NYC next weekend after visiting Sally and Manny.
Joe, Joy, Margaret, and Dick celebrating our arrivals at Old Bahama Bay Marina in the West End.
Our last stop before heading over to Florida the next morning.
Joe
Arrived in Lake Worth, Florida, also known as the West Palm Beach, Singer Island, and Peanut Island towns. Lots of big power boats and expensive houses to look at.
Trip over took 9.5 hours from West End, Grand Bahama Island. West End is the very end of the Island, about a 70 dollar cab ride from Freeport. There is nothing here due to the last couple of hurricanes. There are some large houses with private canals and docks but the West End Settlement has been better days. Still recovering from hurricane damage.
The crossing was okay, there were 2-4 foot waves hitting on the aft starboard quarter so we were kind of riding the waves at an angle. The wind was 10-15 knots mostly 120 degrees so we were able to keep both sails filled and run the engine to be able to do 6 plus knots and almost 8 knots while in the Gulf Stream.
The only worthy note about the trip was that I was down below and got knocked down by a large wave hitting the side of the boat. Fortunately as Joy puts it, the stairs broke by movement across the cabin and luckily for me the stairs knocked me on my left hip rather than me hitting my head or neck on the navigation table. That would have been a more severe injury. So that only hurts are to my ego, my left butt and the back on the ride side. Sitting on an ice pack as I write this part of the blog.
We travelled back with Dick and Margaret Dragonnette of Chagrin Falls, Ohio. They have been living on their boat since the Fall and keep "Alize" at Harbortown Marina in Fort Pierce. That is where we will tie up for 10 days and fly out to Boston and NYC next weekend after visiting Sally and Manny.
Joe, Joy, Margaret, and Dick celebrating our arrivals at Old Bahama Bay Marina in the West End.
Our last stop before heading over to Florida the next morning.
Joe
Friday, April 12, 2013
Getting ready to head NORTH
We have completed all the task needed to get High Spirits ready to head back to Florida. Checked the coolant, oil, filled boat with water, added diesel, and filled up the greaser.
Leaving tomorrow with Alize, Dick and Margaret Dragonnette from Chagrin Falls, Ohio. They keep their boat in Ft. Pierce at Whitaker Boat Yard. The plan is to leave Marsh Harbor tomorrow , cross Whale Channel and end up in Munjack Cay. Then possible stay there a day and then work our way north and west to Great Sale Cay and then into West End. Not sure what day we will be crossing the Gulf Stream. Could be as early as Wed, April 17 or as late as Tuesday, April 23. All depends on what people want to do, and what the weather for crossing is going to be later in next week.
Hope to do some snorkeling and fishing along the way. Perhaps we will even catch something we can eat!
We will not have any Internet or phone service once we leave Marsh Harbor tomorrow as we will be anchoring out in remote locations. Have our VHF radio so we can talk to each other, but the range is only about 20 miles
So most likely no blog until we get to Ft. Pierce.
Joe
Leaving tomorrow with Alize, Dick and Margaret Dragonnette from Chagrin Falls, Ohio. They keep their boat in Ft. Pierce at Whitaker Boat Yard. The plan is to leave Marsh Harbor tomorrow , cross Whale Channel and end up in Munjack Cay. Then possible stay there a day and then work our way north and west to Great Sale Cay and then into West End. Not sure what day we will be crossing the Gulf Stream. Could be as early as Wed, April 17 or as late as Tuesday, April 23. All depends on what people want to do, and what the weather for crossing is going to be later in next week.
Hope to do some snorkeling and fishing along the way. Perhaps we will even catch something we can eat!
We will not have any Internet or phone service once we leave Marsh Harbor tomorrow as we will be anchoring out in remote locations. Have our VHF radio so we can talk to each other, but the range is only about 20 miles
So most likely no blog until we get to Ft. Pierce.
Joe
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Dominoes at the Jib Room
Well another fast and furious action packed game of dominoes today, Joy came in third and I came in fifth out of five players. Played with Gary, Janet, and Mike. The regulars from two years ago.
Not much going on today. Filled up the greaser that delivers grease to the cutlass bearing. Boat is filled with diesel and water. Just have to check the coolant level, oil level, and pull up the dinghy and we are ready to go either Friday or Saturday. Waiting to hear from Dick and Margaret, think we will be travelling with them back to Ft. Pierce which is their home port.
Here are some pictures of Joy's birthday which is April 5
Joe
Erin, Joy and Adam on Joy's birthday. The cake came from Vernon's Bakery in Hopetown, Abacos, Bahamas.
Erin contemplating her blue drink umbrella.
Erin and Joy did a lot of fishing off the boat in Hopetown.
Adam in the pool at the Hopetown Inn and Marina, a great place for us as the room was right at the pool and the dock was very close to the pool.
Joe
Not much going on today. Filled up the greaser that delivers grease to the cutlass bearing. Boat is filled with diesel and water. Just have to check the coolant level, oil level, and pull up the dinghy and we are ready to go either Friday or Saturday. Waiting to hear from Dick and Margaret, think we will be travelling with them back to Ft. Pierce which is their home port.
Here are some pictures of Joy's birthday which is April 5
Joe
Erin, Joy and Adam on Joy's birthday. The cake came from Vernon's Bakery in Hopetown, Abacos, Bahamas.
Erin and Joy did a lot of fishing off the boat in Hopetown.
Adam in the pool at the Hopetown Inn and Marina, a great place for us as the room was right at the pool and the dock was very close to the pool.
Joe
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Tuesday at the Jib Room
Jen and family left yesterday and so we are back at the Jib Room playing dominoes with our friends, Joy did some snorkeling with Jeff and Marilyn this morning. We meet them at West End, and they are now back at Marsh Harbor after having to go back to the States for Jeff to work. He job shares his job with another doctor. This time he is here for 6 weeks or so and then back to work for a while
Joy won the dominoes today, and we ended up having pizza for supper.
Going to try and load some pictures of her birthday party, her birthday is APRIL 5.
no luck on loading pictures. will try tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow is boat chore day, have to load the greaser with fresh grease, check the oil and coolant levels so we can be ready to leave on Friday or Saturday to get back through the Whale Channel and head north to get ready to get to Florida.
Going on airplanes on April 25, Joy to NYC to visit Jill and Matt for the weekend, I am going to a PBE mini reunion about our total house renovation project.
Joe
Joy won the dominoes today, and we ended up having pizza for supper.
Going to try and load some pictures of her birthday party, her birthday is APRIL 5.
no luck on loading pictures. will try tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow is boat chore day, have to load the greaser with fresh grease, check the oil and coolant levels so we can be ready to leave on Friday or Saturday to get back through the Whale Channel and head north to get ready to get to Florida.
Going on airplanes on April 25, Joy to NYC to visit Jill and Matt for the weekend, I am going to a PBE mini reunion about our total house renovation project.
Joe
Monday, April 8, 2013
Joy's Birthday
Today is Joy's birthday. Spent the day staying out of the rain as a big storm rolled in during the morning hours and then again tonight. Jen and family are all staying in the hotel room.
We took the shuttle over to the other side of the harbor where most of the buildings, stores, and restaurants are located. Mailed some post cards to Erin and Adam's friends.
Had lunch at Captain Jacks, then came back to the boat for more rain.
After dinner we had a cake from Vernon's Bakery. It was a banana, guava, and pineapple cake, kind of like a carrot cake but no carrots. He ran out of his coconut mixture so no coconut cake. That is his special item.
Anyway, here are some pictures from today. Tomorrow we are off on a fast boat to Man O War Cay for their Family Heritage Day. Should be fun. Back by 3 pm to enjoy the pool. Leaving early Sunday to ride the tide out of Hopetown back to Marsh Harbour. Hope to get some sailing in.
NOTE: IT IS NOW MONDAY, APRIL 8
Jen and family left today for Florida and tomorrow for Hyattsville, had a great time with them
Howver, Internet has not been user friendly, eps in Hopetown where I was unable to load pictures. Will try now in Marsh Harbour
PICTURES ARE NOT WORKING, WILL TRY TOMORROW
JOE
We took the shuttle over to the other side of the harbor where most of the buildings, stores, and restaurants are located. Mailed some post cards to Erin and Adam's friends.
Had lunch at Captain Jacks, then came back to the boat for more rain.
After dinner we had a cake from Vernon's Bakery. It was a banana, guava, and pineapple cake, kind of like a carrot cake but no carrots. He ran out of his coconut mixture so no coconut cake. That is his special item.
Anyway, here are some pictures from today. Tomorrow we are off on a fast boat to Man O War Cay for their Family Heritage Day. Should be fun. Back by 3 pm to enjoy the pool. Leaving early Sunday to ride the tide out of Hopetown back to Marsh Harbour. Hope to get some sailing in.
NOTE: IT IS NOW MONDAY, APRIL 8
Jen and family left today for Florida and tomorrow for Hyattsville, had a great time with them
Howver, Internet has not been user friendly, eps in Hopetown where I was unable to load pictures. Will try now in Marsh Harbour
PICTURES ARE NOT WORKING, WILL TRY TOMORROW
JOE
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
