So much to report since our last entry upon our arrival at St. Augustine! We enjoyed our time there so much that we stayed three nights. We visted the old fort (the Castillo de San Marcos), attended services at Trinity Episcopal Church, visited the Cathedral and the Presbyterian Churches, walked around the historic downtown, had a delicious Valentine's Day dinner, and just thoroughly enjoyed this lovely city and the great marina facilities. It helped that this was the first nice weather we have had! Still a bit cool, but sunny.
On Tuesday, we departed St. Augustine and traveled 53.8 miles to Daytona Beach, Halifax Marina. We were very happy to get to Daytona, as we had friends to visit! On Wednesday, Carolyn and Charlie Unger, friends from our church in Northville, picked us up, took us for a beautiful drive along the beach and to their lovely home in Ormond Beach for dinner. Carolyn and Charlie spend their summers in Northville and their winters in Ormond Beach. A sunny(cool) day, and so nice to spend time with friends from home!
Then on Thursday, Linda and Ed Thorne, whom we had met last spring at Cape May on our return trip from the Chesapeake, took us to visit Ponce Inlet and its beautiful surroundings. Another beautiful day, and warmer temps! And a great dinner at their very nice home in Daytona Beach. Linda and Ed spend their winters at their home in Daytona Beach, and their summers traveling north on their lobster boat to visit friends and family. We feel so fortunate to have such wonderful friends!
We stayed an extra day in Daytona Beach, as we were waiting for a package which was being delivered to the Unger's house. Charlie brought it to us on Friday, and then took Dick to an Astronomy Club session at Embry Riddle University that evening. Very interesting!
Saturday, our route took us through some prime fishing territory, en route to Titusville. We saw lots of dolphins along the way. They are so beautiful and graceful as they surface briefly and then dive again. Dolphins have become an everyday sighting, but it is still a thrill for these northern New Yorkers every time we see them! Sunday morning, our friends Cliff Bean and Judy Clary, who have a Morgan 34 at Van Slooten Harbour Marina (Trefoil's summer home) on Lake Champlain, arrived with bagels and coffee! We enjoyed time with them in the morning, then later that afternoon, they picked us up and we went back to their house for dinner! Cliff and Judy spend thir winters in Titusville and their summers at Lake Champlain and in Massachusetts. (We are happy to report that all of our female friends are excellent cooks!)
Today, we moved from Titusville Municipal Marina to Westland Marina, a DIY yard right next door. The energy here is amazing! There are many boat projects going on, both in and out of the water. Today, Dick worked on the installation of the tillerpilot. This will be a welcome addition to our cruising!
Yesterday and today, temperatures were in the 70's, sunny skies (until the rain and thunderstorms this evening!). So wonderful to have Florida weather finally!
Today, Karen met a couple from Albany, NY, who have a camp in Galway! They have been cruising for 4 years, and Rob offered an interesting comment, "When you are retired and staying in one place, you see the same people all the time. When you are cruising, you meet different people all the time. And some of them will become very good friends." We realized that this accurately describes what we have encountered. We greatly enjoy all of our friends back home but meeting new people is what makes cruising so great!
Trefoil continues to be a small but comfortable home for the three of us. We love having new adventures every day, but being in our own home every night.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Hi guys! Love reading about all this! Sounds much nicer than what I've done in the last couple of days . . .
On Thursday, after work, I left Northern Virginia for Connecticut, to be with my surveyor as we finish up the marine survey on the boat I have under contract. We had also planned to do the sea trial, all on Friday (26 Feb). As I got to Harrisburg, the snow started to fall. By the time I was on the north side of H'burg, it was coming down like it had no place to go but down, and the wind was howling! I kept the car pointed north and plowed right into it. By the time I got to Schuylerville, the blizzard was raging full fury, trucks had pulled over (good thing too, because one in front of me was witnessed as a gust caught an empty trailer and it nearly jack knifed!) and the going was S L O W. I vowed I would continue until the snow got higher than the chassis of the car--as long as the car could go, so would I. I had planned to stop for the night in Scranton. I have never been so happy to see Scranton in all my life! The first 100 miles of my trip took 2 hours. the last 100 took 3.5 hours, all this after a full day's work. I put my head on the pillow after the most challenging part of the trip--getting from the interstate to the hotel.
The following morning (Friday) I went out to the car at 6 a.m. and started digging. I was on the road by 6:45. As I pointed the car east on I-84 I only saw 4 cars in the first 40 miles. The road was snow pack over ice. I made it into NY, under I-87, across the Hudson, and nearly to the Taconic Pkwy, when everything just stopped. No traffic was moving, it was as frozen as the scenery. I was able to shimmy past some trucks and backed down an on-ramp, and continued along Rte 52, until it joined up with i-84 again near the CT state line. I pressed on, as the team was assembling at the marina (the surveyor, the brokers, the owners). I got a call from them that they were going to proceed without me for the haul-out and would wait for me to take the sea trial. They called me three more times to get an update on my progress and said a squall had just begun, and could I hurry it up--I nearly flipped my lid--I had been pressing as hard as I could for 18 hours since I had left work the night before to get there. I finally arrived, found my way down a sleet-covered dock to the boat where it was waiting with the team aboard and both engines idling. The snow was coming in sideways and the chop INSIDE the breakwater was amazing. Winds were 25 kts sustained, with gusts to 35. The boat, with all its profile, was listing under its force. We motored past the breakwater and out into the Sound with winter's fury punishing us. Then the order came from the surveyor who was in the engine room to run both engines up to full throttle. We did, and the combination of spray, snow, wind, and noise was exhilirating! As soon as we observed the tachometers, we turned around and headed back to the marina. I learned something about this boat--even in those conditions, I felt safe.
After tie-ing up in an empty slip, and having a private conversation with my surveyor in the cabin while the others headed for the cars, I made my final decision to proceed with the purchase. I followed the brokers to their office after they bought me lunch and signed some paperwork. The deal should close sometime next week if the abstract looks good. I will keep the boat in CT until the canal opens in May. I pushed hard to get this all taken care of because my loan approval was expiring on March 8 and I am away on business all next week. I didn't want to be without a boat this summer, and this was my last chance.
Hope your travels are balmy and pleasant, and your visits with friends are warm and engaging. I miss you guys and look forward to seeing you in the summer!
Cheers!
--Rich
oops--in my previous post I mentioned Schylerville--it should have been Schuylkill, PA.
Post a Comment