We arrived in Palm Coast, FL on Thursday afternoon after running from dawn to dusk for a little over a week.  The weather kept us from making some offshore passages, so we stayed "inside" - on the ICW from Wrightsville Beach.  The waterway has a number of shoaling areas in southern SC and GA, and the tides are bigger so we had to do a bit more planning to time our transit through skinny areas so we'd have a rising or high tide.  Jim the Data Man was an ace, as usual!

We really enjoyed the trip and all the wonderful birds along the way, and the reward for the early morning departures is often a very beautiful sky.  This was sunrise as we were leaving the anchorage near Doboy Sound.

We took on 470 gallons of fuel in Brunswick, GA since we could get a very good price at a commercial dock that caters to the shrimpers.  It was the tiniest, rickety green shack on top of one of the roughest docks we've ever seen - but well worth it for $1.96/gallon!  Nice folks, too.

We had a very long run from Brunswick down to an anchorage just north of St. Augustine, and as (bad) luck would have it, we were delayed about 90 minutes with a closure of the ICW for some bridge demolition.  Those 90 minutes meant we'd find the anchorage well after dark, but we were treated to a neat view of some neighborhood holiday light displays on private docks.  We also spent some of the time waiting for the ICW to reopen with a Fantail 50 that we recognized from Nova Scotia this summer - we're always surprised at how often we run into boats we've seen somewhere else!

The weather forecast was potentially ugly for our short 32 nautical mile leg down to Palm Coast on Thursday.  Several strong storm fronts were going to pass through the area in the morning, and we had to time our passage to try and avoid the worst of them.  Data Man was watching the regional weather radar on the Internet and I kept an eye on the boat's radar to see the localized storm cells as they got near.  We kicked up the RPMs a little to sneak under a bridge as we ran from the black clouds just behind us.  We saw peak winds of 39 knots and sustained winds around 30 knots for a little while, but we were just fine since we had such good visibility into the movement of the fronts.  Jim got a great photo of the absolutely evil-looking storm clouds behind us.

We arrived with a little rain falling, but it felt great to put the turtlenecks and woolly hats away for a little while.  We're visiting some friends here for a few days before we head out by car to visit our famiies for the holidays.  We'll leave the boat here in Palm Coast for a few weeks during our visits, so we won't be blogging much until we get back in January when we resume the migration south to the Keys.

We're continuing our zoom south to Palm Coast, and we're anchored near Doboy Sound in southern Georgia tonight.  We usually make an overnight run offshore to avoid the shallows and big tides in southern SC and GA, but the weather didn't cooperate so we decided to keep moving and stay "inside" (on the ICW).  The big tidal swings mean that sometimes we have to wait for sufficient depth to transit a certain area, or that our speed will be impacted by tidal currents.  The ICW is composed of a veritable rabbit's warren of natural rivers and creeks, and this SC and GA section is very twisty, crossing from one river to another via small narrow cuts.  We were lucky with some low tides this morning when we came upon two bridges that we'd normally have to open.  We just lowered some of our antennas and scooted right through! 

It's been very pretty as we wind our way through the tidal marshes - we see dolphins every day, as well as bald eagles, loons, cormorants, pelicans, herons, egrets, terns, etc. 

We had an uneventful few days of travel through Norfolk/Portsmouth (where we stopped to fill the fuel tanks at a good price) through several bridges and the tidal lock at Great Bridge.  Normally we prefer to anchor rather than stay in marinas, but Midway Marina in Coinjock, NC is a convenient stopping point with the shorter hours of daylight for traveling and we were glad to have shore power to run the heat.  With each day further south, the temperatures are moderating a bit - and every bit helps!  We anchored near Belhaven, NC shortly after sunset the next day and were treated to a most beautiful sky.

We're finally heading south after our long pause in the Baltimore/Annapolis area.  Jim got his dental repairs well underway, new glasses, and a few other things.  We caught up with a number of much-needed boat chores - new zincs, impellers, etc., and we saw a number of friends in the area, though we didn't have time to see everyone that we wanted to.  We crammed as much as possible into the time but it always seems to be too little for what we'd really like to do.

We spent the month in a tiny little neighborhood marina just south of Baltimore in a lovely little wooded creek - a real surprise given the industrial area that we cruised through to get there.  We got to see the transformation of the fall colors and we really enjoyed the herons, ducks, and geese.

Sorry for the long delay between Blog updates!  We're docked in a little marina between Baltimore and Annapolis while we pause for some maintenance on the humans and on the boat.  Now that we're cruising full-time we need to plan for these kinds of stops now and then. 

Jim broke an old dental bridge and is now in the process of major renovations for his smile!  We both need eye exams and new glasses, etc.  The boat needs oil changes, new zincs, impellers, etc.  We're definitely making the most of our time here - catching up with friends as well as pouncing on the various chores and appointments.  So far we haven't had much time to sit still - this is much more tiring than cruising. 

We're anxious to head south, and we'll leave here around mid-November as soon as the last dental appointment has been taken care of.  In the meantime, we're enjoying the fall colors and the birds - wishing we had more time to explore and play in the Chesapeake since this is the best time to be here.

We left Mystic heading for NY City about a week and a half ago.  Just as we were heading out into Long Island Sound we were greeted by the sight of a submarine heading into the sub base at Groton, CT.

We had a good speed boost from the tide so we decided to make the marathon run all the way to City Island, arriving shortly after dark to a mooring at the Harlem Yacht Club.  It was neat to see the NY skyline as the sun was setting, and then to see the Empire State building light up and the Throgs Neck and Whitestone bridge lights twinkling as darkness settled in.

We stayed in the area to visit Robin's parents for the week - which was good, but always too short.  The thermometer is a steady reminder that it's time to keep moving south!

The trip around Manhattan and through New York Harbor is always a thrill - there is so much going on in one place - on land and on the water.  It's an amazing ride, and so exciting to pass so close to so much.  It was particularly interesting to be cruising through the East River during the Monday morning rush hour - a reminder of how lucky we are.

This is the view looking under the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges, with Lady Liberty in the background.

Once we passed through the Harbor, we had an easy cruise down to Atlantic Highlands, NJ near Sandy Hook.  We took on a little fuel and filled water tanks, and anchored with our traveling companions on BAY PELICAN to wait a day for good weather.  The weather day gave us a chance to explore the town of Atlantic Highlands - we found great bagels and a killer bakery, a good pasta special at the Italian restaurant and a good Thai place.  We also got to visit with my old friend Mike Clark and his wife Monica, and their 20 month old son Ryan.  Since the little guy had a proper life jacket, we took them out to the boat by dinghy (Ryan's first boat ride), and had a great time catching up. 

After spending this past year in so many new places, it's been fun to see familiar places with fresh eyes.  We're noticing things we never really saw before, and we're finding so much that is interesting and beautiful - it's a shame that many people can't fully appreciate what's right on their doorstep.  All along this trip the scenery continues to delight us, but the time we've gotten to spend with family and friends has been the real highlight.

We left Atlantic Highlands this morning with a stunning pre-dawn sky and NYC twinkling to the north.  It's a nice easy ride on the ocean today, and we'll be anchored near Atlantic City in time for dinner this evening.

We arrived in Mystic, CT on Monday afternoon and decided to head up the Mystic River and dock at the Seaport Museum for a few days.  Mystic Seaport is a favorite for both of us - the last time we were here was the weekend we got engaged 20 years ago!  It's really fun to be right in the middle of everything, and to stand in the cockpit with my morning coffee and look over at the tall ships MORGAN and CONRAD.

We've been lingering over the exhibits and falling in love with many of the different boats in the Museum's collection.  My favorite is this racing sailboat - a type called a "sandbagger" since it used sand bags as moveable ballast.

We are having so much fun talking to the Museum staff about boats, old engines, astronomy, navigation, etc.  We've been learning and doing and putting lots of miles on our shoes!  Yesterday we went to a little talk and concert of sea shanties and whaling songs - wonderful!

While we're waiting for the bad weather to move out of the area, we made the happy discovery that our friends Deb and Marty (and their bird Bugsy) are right down the River a few miles away.  We've been getting together with them every evening to catch up on adventures and other friends since we last saw them in Halifax.  They have a rental car and Deb took us grocery shopping - this is a very big treat when you've been cruising for a while!

We're still on our way to the New York City area to visit my parents, but the big winds have delayed us.  If you have to get "stuck" somewhere waiting for weather - this is the perfect place.

I didn't realize that it's been ten days since I've blogged.  We spent a windy day and a half in Boothbay Harbor, Maine after leaving Rockland.  Boothbay is very cute - another typical tourist town with lots of galleries and shops, but also the home of some very serious wooden boat building and repair for really large wooden sailing boats.  Several were in for maintenance when we stopped by the shipyard to see some of their projects.

Fall is starting to assert itself - the temperatures are dropping just a little, trees are starting to show the slightest hint of color, and the towns and harbors have thinned out since Labor Day.

We left Northeast Harbor (Acadia National Park) on Monday and headed to Castine to visit our DeFever friends and to sit out some frisky weather.  Nearby Smith Cove has good protection from weather, and several large schooners in the area converge on Castine when the weather turns ugly.  Everywhere we turn, we see stunningly beautiful boats - traditional lines and elegant shapes for work or for pleasure.

We're still in Northeast Harbor, Maine - right in the middle of Acadia National Park.  We've been trying to do and see as much as we can - but there's enough here for a lifetime of exploration!  We hiked up to the top of Cadillac Mountain (Bar Harbor is on the right way down below)...

...We hiked and biked around Jordan Pond, Eagle Lake, and the Bubble Mountains - what's most amazing is the gorgeous pink granite!

...and we enjoyed the famous popovers at Jordan Pond House.  Jim chose to have his stuffed with two scoops of ice cream (peach and blueberry)!

Yesterday we took the dink up Somes Sound (a fjord), and today we'll be back on the bikes to explore more of the carriage roads that criss-cross the Park.

We had some big winds on Monday (Labor Day), so we stayed aboard to keep an eye on things, and it looks like the remnants of the hurricane will blow through here on Sunday - but it's not expected to be much trouble when it gets here.  We're in a very protected harbor anyway - so we're not concerned.

It looks like we'll leave here on Monday, probably heading for Castine.  We'll keep an eye on some of these other storms and will make sure we keep close to protected places in case we need to duck in somewhere.

In the meantime, we're still enjoying the beauty here - the mountains, the views, the aroma of balsam and pine, and the pink granite.

We left Yarmouth, Nova Scotia last night around 9:30 pm and had a very nice crossing to Maine, arriving on time in Northeast Harbor (on Mount Desert Island) around 11:15 this morning.  The stars were incredible last night, and the seas were nearly glassy for most of the trip.  We had a little fog as we got to the Maine coast, but it cleared as we entered the harbor, and the weather today is prettier than predicted. 

We continued our journey back down the coast of Nova Scotia with some delightful stops in pretty anchorages - among some islands in the LaHave River and just off the gorgeous sandy beach in Port Mouton.  We finally arrived in the town of Shelburne and took a mooring at the Shelburne Harbor YC.  Shelburne achieved some fame as the site of the Disney movie "The Scarlet Letter" shot in 1994.  The waterfront is historic and very pretty, and the folks at the YC were very friendly.

We also met a couple from the DeFever Cruisers club who are building a summer house nearby, right on the water.  They took us to two excellent local restaurants and showed us around the area.  We keep meeting people - friends old and new - which has made the trip really special.

After a few days in Shelburne, we headed down to Yarmouth to wait for good weather to cross back over to Maine.  We first arrived in Yarmouth to begin this part of our trip two months ago, in fog, and we arrived back here once again in the fog!  We tucked into the harbor just before the high-speed ferry was to depart for Bar Harbor, Maine.  "The Cat" is a 285' catamaran ferry that travels around 50 mph and can carry up to 700 people and 200 cars and trucks.  The Cat makes the trip in three hours, and we do it in 14.5 hours.  Here she is, looming in the foggy late afternoon.

We're at the edge of the Bay of Fundy, and the tides here in Yarmouth are about 15'.  Some fishermen take advantage of the tides to careen their boats for maintenance - this boat will be afloat at high tide.

We exhausted the sights of Yarmouth while waiting for a good weather window to cross back to Maine, so we rented a car for the day and explored farther into the Bay of Fundy on a peninsula and two small islands.  This area has a serious fishing industry - scallop draggers, offshore and inshore lobster boats, seiners, and long-liners.  Fish stocks are declining, and the sheer number of fishing boats and the volume of their catches explains why.

Contrast these modern boats with the traditional sailing vessels that were used for fishing these waters, year-round.  The large sailboats would launch 24' dories (equipped like the one below) out in the ocean manned by one or two fishermen who hand-lined a load of fish weighing a ton before they could return to the mother ship.

We will leave for Maine tonight at 10pm, and should arrive late morning.

Sadly we had to take Clara & Bill to the airport in Halifax - we hated to see them leave.  As a consolation, we took the coastal meandering route back to Lunenburg and we made a brief stop to see the famous Peggy's Cove.  The cove is a tiny fishing village with a classic Nova Scotia lighthouse, but it's interesting since this particular area is very noticeably shaped by glaciers.

We haven't spent any time on the Fundy side of Nova Scotia, and we wanted to see a little of it before we head south, so we rented a car and arranged for a rafting trip on the tidal bore with Clara & Bill.  We drove to Truro at the end of the Minas Basin where the tide meets the Shubenacadie River.  The rafting trip takes you out in the mouth of the river and you get to repeatedly attack the white water waves created when the force of the huge incoming tide meets the outflowing river and actually turns it backwards.  This is the "before" photo - looking across the Basin.  Everything that's green will be the edge of the shoreline once the tide comes in.  The little reddish specks in the center of the photo are some of the rafts gathering at the water's edge at low tide. 

This "after" shot was taken from the same spot, and the old shoreline is now under about 33' of water.

What happens in between is the interesting bit.  There are a lot of bald eagles around since the river is a good food source for them.  They never cease to take my breath away!

As far as the rafting goes, the actual tidal bore isn't as violent or wild as you might think, but it's easy to see rough water meeting placid river water.  The initial meeting is rather tame, but as the ocean picks up velocity and volume, rapids build up shaped by the contours of the riverbed.  It's very safe whitewater rafting since the water is deep and there aren't any rocks.  The rafts have 60hp engines on them, and they crash through the white water, then zip back downriver and do it again.  The rapids continue to move upriver, so we chased them for about 2 hours.  Each raft driver would gauge the fear level of their group and find suitably sized waves.  We were crazies and ended up with big mouthfuls of water from laughing so hard when the waves would crash on us.  What fun!!  The river is very cloudy with a reddish brown silt, so the effect felt like having buckets of cold watery chocolate milk slammed into your face.  We were utterly soaked - Jim was washed out of the boat at one point when it swamped, and Bill & I were in the bow taking the brunt of the waves.  Clara was the only smart one!  We got one of those disposable waterproof cameras to snap some photos in the deluge, but we'll have to wait to get them developed to relive the experience.  Here are Soggy Bill, Damp Clara, and Dripping Jim.

After a shower and a nice BBQ at the rafting company, we spent the night at a lovely B&B in Truro.  The town is interesting - they lost a lot of big elm trees to Dutch Elm Disease, so various artists carved the remaining tree trunks to honor various people.  Neat!

Our good friends Clara & Bill flew into Halifax to cruise with us - it's exciting to be able to share some of this with them.  We had been saving a lot of our touring for the southbound leg of the trip, so we headed to the famous Citadel in Halifax - a really interesting fort that was sunk into the top of a hill to provide a landward defense for the city.  It was staffed by a regiment of Scottish Highlanders in the mid-1800's, and once again Parks Canada has pulled out all the stops with wonderful actors, costumes, displays, and ambiance! 

After touring town we cruised down the south coast to a large area known as Mahone Bay.  It's a large bay with many islands and nooks and crannies.  We visited each of the three towns in the Bay - Chester, Mahone Bay (the village), and Lunenburg.  Each is charming and relatively small, with art galleries and interesting shops. 

Chester was in the midst of (sailing) Race Week, which was fun to see.  The village also has a small playhouse and a youth theatre program in the summer.  We lucked into the opening of "How to Eat Like a Child" done by a terrific group of children and directed by a very innovative group of adults.  I think the grown-ups laughed harder than the kids did - probably because we recognize too much of ourselves! 

The next village we visited was Mahone Bay with it's famous three churches along the harbor.  We picked up a mooring and dinked ashore to explore the shops (lots of innovative art, quilts, and pewter).  Weather is so changeable here that we didn't worry when it started to rain, but it ended up raining all day until we got back to the boat!  We had a ball anyway, and we've learned that the warm engine room is a good place to hang soggy things.

We cruised to the third famous town in this area - Lunenburg, which has been declared a UNESCO world heritage site.  We were here briefly on the trip north and we just loved it, so we were glad to be back for a few days to really explore.  The famous Bluenose II was in port, and we happened to be right behind her heading into the harbor.

We docked on the wharf at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic - a very tall wharf that required some climbing to get off the boat, but it's a great location right next to Bluenose II.

We met friends of Heidi & Peter who summer here, as well as Ed & Barbara from PACIFIC PIXIE that we met in St. Peters.  Small world!