Back in Maryland Waters and Old Home Turf, or is that Surf?!!

 Day 9   Friday, April 28, 2017 -  62.1 miles, 7 1/2 hours travel  ... Doziers Regatta Point Marina, Deltaville VA to Calvert Marina, Solomons, MD

Today was a long run for Cally. She really is a trooper and handling each day and whatever we throw at her well, so far. Today was a long run for us, too. FLYS. I have never had so many flies hang out on a boat as it cruised up the Chesapeake Bay. I think they were so tried by the time they found us they just hung out. It was awful, with them biting us and really annoying Miss Cally. 

Lighthouse

This is how I like the Chesapeake Bay to be when crossing the mouth to the Potomac
That area can get quite snotty. Been there, done that.

See the purple box on the chart?
That is the designated area large ships navigate to
in order to pick up the Pilots off the Pilot boats

The trip itself was terrific. Rip picked a great day to come up the Bay. We have had plenty of bad trips on the Bay, this wasn't one of them. YAY! Current hurt us, so we were slower than we had hoped.

Bay Pilot Boat ... taking a pilot out to a large ship to bring her up the Bay and probably to Baltimore for off loading

Our view for two days

This is the office for the Marina. That 560 SEL Mercedes you see...
is the COURTESY CAR we can use to go to town for supplies!
I kept trying to come up with something I needed to go get just to use it, but couldn't.

Day 10   Saturday, April 29, 2017 - - 0 miles, 0 hours traveled ... Calvert Marina, Solomons, MD

Lab Partners at the floating pier for transients ... that's what we are called
when you only stay a short time at a marina

 The owners of the navy hull boat in front of us are delightful. Thea & Hans Kwak, of the Netherlands. Fun, they used to own a Monk 36, 2 years older than ours. Small world.

R/V Bay Hydro II
a research vessel across the pier from us. Big power cat.

I'm pretty sure I would like MARY ELIZABETH
how nice of them to name her after me

Through the covered slips, across the creek and above the tree line
you can see the bridge coming into Solomons the from south

Tomorrow is a travel day. So early to bed as we will rise early. Heading to the Rhode River, just south of Annapolis.

Day 11     Sunday, May 2, 2017 - 47.1 miles traveled, 5 Hours, 15 min travel time ... Calvert Marina, Solomons, MD to anchored on the Rhode River

Calvert Cliffs area ... can you see the house by the cliff edge?
Further north, there were homes that had to be razed once the cliff erosion compromised the foundations/structures

A Liquid Petroleum (LP) off loading facility on the Chesapeake Bay

On shore tanks to store the off loaded LNG

Cove Point Lighthouse

Day 12     Monday, May 1, 2017 - 0 miles traveled ... anchored on the Rhode River

Today was a restful day; No Pics. Cally got to go swimming on one of her potty trips to shore. We are anchored off an island with beach for her to do business, play and swim. We have been here in many times and in many different boats. Rip read a book all day. Finally a day without any work for him. I caught up on a few things and started a new book. Love having books on the Kindle app. It was a breezy day, all day and into the night. One big gust got Rip up during the night to check our hold by the anchor. All was set firm and as we left it when we went to bed, so back to bed for him. All in all, a quiet day enjoyed by all.

We secured a slip for the next week at Hartge Yacht Center on the West River, south of Annapolis. Time to visit family, friends, catch up on laundry, clean the boat and pick up a few supplies we found we need. A trip to Target or such is on the list. We have gone 13 days without hitting a grocery store. Not bad for a small boat! We can make it another 4-5 days, but will provision in Edgewater soon and again when we get ready to leave. We have not run the small counter top ice maker, yet. We did buy one small bag of ice in Deltaville. Cally gets 2 ice cubes before bed each night. Can't skip that routine.

This next week will be boring for the blog ... Cally swimming, us going to stores, Rip getting a much needed hair cut and us visiting friends and family. Things will get more interesting once we leave Annapolis. I promise!

Day 13     Tuesday, May 2, 2017 - 0 miles traveled ... anchored on the Rhode River

The view tonight on the Rhode River

Another view tonight; I have clients and friends on the far shore
Each has looked out to see us

Still breezy, but not as bad as yesterday. Well, said that too early. Rip had to stop cleaning the boat hull because of the breeze.

Cally needs to wait until closer to 3pm, low tide at 5:30-ish, to go to shore so she has a lot of beach to play and swim.

We have not meet any other Loopers, yet. Those doing The Great Loop call themselves Loopers. We are apart of the Class of 2017, but ahead of most of the pack. Since boats travel in the same direction, same basic path and with the weather; many times we will have other boats traveling with us, at marinas or at anchor by us. Just none yet. While we stay put for the week, some may catch up to us.

There is a t-shirt for the Class of 2017; with a list of all the boats on the back who are on The Great Loop this year. Well, those who bought the t-shirt, anyway. Can you find our name? Now, if we can only find our t-shirts. They were sent by post office mail to us before we left, but didn't arrive before we departed. They were forwarded by the post office, after a nine day wait, to the mail agent handling our mail. Once they receive them they will ask where to forward. We are hoping they arrive at the agent in time to be sent to Ham, Rip's brother, while we are here in Annapolis.

Otherwise, we have to have them sent to a marina we plan to stop at along the way and ask them to hold it for us to arrive. OR, there are Harbor Hosts at almost each stop, be it anchorage or marina. Harbor Hosts are folks who belong to the Americas Great Loop Cruisers Association (AGLCA) and offer to help Loopers traveling through their home port. They may help by explaining how to cruise a certain local passage or inlet that is narrow, notoriously shallow or not marked well, suggest favorite places to eat, where to get boat supplies, receive packages for you or transport you and or your pet to places. Many have completed the Loop and have other vast knowledge to share, too.

Day 4   Sunday, April 23, 2017 -  21.6 miles, 3.0 hours travel  ... Deep Creek Basin, Millville, VA to Sunset Boating Center, Hampton, VA

Daily life on board a boat involves an entirely new set of decisions ... like where to go today and where will we spend the night. Lots of rain is heading to the east coast for a couple of days. All our boating friends are talking about where they are holing up until it passes. When everyone talks about holing up some place and no one is planning on moving anywhere ... you know there is a good storm coming. This morning, we were in a safe, protected anchorage but getting the dog to shore in heavy rains in the dinghy wouldn't be fun. We wanted to get to Hampton, VA to a marina friends have raved about. However, the winds might make it an uncomfortable ride. So, decision time? Do we stay and be miserable for 2 days or head out and see how the wind and waves treat us; knowing we could retreat and go to Norfolk if it is bad? Staying in Norfolk would be a lot more expensive. The Captain decided to go. And a good decision it was for us all. The wind wasn't bad, the ride wasn't clam, but easy enough.  We crossed the river further west, toward Hampton Flats (north side of Hampton Bar ) and through the 10' easterly channel to Hampton River.  We did this to stay in the lee of the Hampton side rather than going near Hampton Roads Inlet to use the main entrance channel to the Hampton River.

Travel today took us through several rail road bridges. Usually they are up and out of our way, unless a train is actually passing through. There are A LOT of trains in Norfolk. We had to wait for an opening at one of them. 

Open railroad bridge, we can pass right thru
The middle section lowers for a train to pass

The Elizabeth River through Norfolk is very industrial. You pass many container ships off loading, but also many U.S. Navy ships. Some appear to be under construction, some I guess are in for extensive repairs and others are docked and staffed. One "Warship" left their slip as we approached. They announced on VHF their intentions and "TO STAY CLEAR OF MY VESSEL". We did. No pictures thru this area, pretty much frowned upon to take pics of the navy ships. Each area of ships was patrolled by a boat with guns, though some have floating barricades. We didn't want to be stopped, so no pics.

Only a short 3 hour run today to a quiet marina, Sunset Boating Center, where Cally can use her ramp to get on and off the boat with a pretty neighborhood to walk. There is only one small patch of grass within the marina. Older Victorian homes and sidewalks line the streets making for a nice walk. All in all quite a cute neighborhood around the marina. we are in a protected cove with friendly staff, too.

Sunset Boating Center

Docks at Sunset Boating Center, Hampton VA
Lab Partners is hidden by 4 other boats

Old Victorian homes line the streets from the docks

Cally, the tourist

Then, there is cooking on a boat ... which includes game time. I play "where is it" quite often. Where is the "almond flour or the Gazebo Dressing? You get the idea. This boat has a lot of storage space. But, remembering where it all is, well that is taking some time. So far, I have found most everything, it just takes longer on a boat than opening the pantry door at home. Most of the food storage is under the salon settee. Accessing the storage is from above, under the cushion via our added hatch, or from the sliding doors at the front of the settee. Things are mostly organized in baskets by food group or type: baking, can goods, etc.

Food storage access from the front of the settee (couch)

Food too far back for my arms to reach
is accessed from the top side, under the cushion

Cooking itself is space challenged, but working well. Especially for the first days aboard full time, we planned meals with little hassle to prep and cook. I will get bolder as the days click off.

The basic Galley (kitchen) space I use; not like at home. Morning bacon & eggs!!
The dark vertical board is a bamboo cutting board Rip made for me. I comes down over the two burner cook-top
to give me a full depth flat surface to work when not cooking.

Day 5   Monday, April 24, 2017 - 0 miles travel ... Sunset Boating Center, Hampton, VA

Supposed to rain all day today and tomorrow; so staying put today & tomorrow. One of our favorite updates/upgrades/improvements Rip made for the boat, is a sun shade awing for each side of the boat. With fore thought and planning, Rip also designed the awning to work a cover from the rain. Especially useful today; provides a space for Cally to go to and get dried off before entering the boat. Wet dog on a boat is not ideal. 

Cally coming into the "tented" area from a walk to get dried off
Here. she was shaking off some wetness, so fuzzy Cally

Day 6   Tuesday, April 25, 2017 - 0 miles travel ... Sunset Boating Center, Hampton, VA

Rain, fog & clouds cleared around 10:30 am. Hope to get on the move north tomorrow.

Day 7      Wednesday, April 26, 2017 - 46.5 miles travel ... Dozziers Regatta Point Marina, Deltaville, VA

Very cloudy, even cold today. Easy cruise out Hampton River into The Chesapeake Bay. Skys were to clear around 1pm. 

Overcast and chilly across the entrance to Mobjack Bay

Skys brighten for a bit as we approach the entrance to the Rappahannock River

We saw sunshine for a bit, then clouds rolled right back over us. We stopped for the day at a favorite spot of a lot of cruisers, Dozziers Regatta Point Marina in Deltaville. VA. We have been here twice before; once by boat and once by car when attending a Monk Owners Association rendezvous. Really nice facility plus the nicest, happiest people work here. 

Dozziers Regatta Point Marina, Deltaville, VA

It has been one week living on the boat full time. We are starting to get a groove on how things work, what needs to be done, etc.  It also means time for laundry. Yep, things like laundry still need to be done. We really don't need to do laundry, yet; but the facilities are nice and it makes the chore easier. The laundry is right by the pool. I will wait until tomorrow to do laundry ... maybe hang by the pool until it is all done? Sound like a plan?

Day 8     Thursday, April 27, 2017 - 0 miles traveled ... Dozziers Regatta Point Marina

Beautiful day today! Bright sunny sky's and a wonderful breeze. Laundry was done early this morning. Only one load, yay. 

Bath House and Laundry ... right by the pool
too cool today to jump in.

Clean laundry facilities ... not my mess on the counter top, either

I prepped breakfast for tomorrow cooking bacon in advance and making hard boiled (steamed?) eggs in my Instant Pot. LOVE the Instant Pot (IP). Wow, eggs come out perfect every time and so easy to peel. Anyway, with breakfast done, leaving in the am is quicker with less hassle.

IP at work in the galley

Rip is busy plotting our route to the next stop, Calvert Marina in Solomons, MD. We know where we are going, but with way points plotted out we can keep up with our ETA at the marina. For Cally's sake, we don't' like to cruise too long on any given day. Currently she is not boat trained, but maybe  some day in the future. 

Cally on patrol

Cally is busy ... being a busy-body. She is SO nosy.

Lab Partners

And, so it begins

Day 1   Thursday, April 20, 2017 -  53.48 miles, 8.0 hours travel
Campbell Creek to Tuckahoe Point on the Alligator River, NC

After five years of dreaming and planning ... we (Cally, Rip and I)  have started the trip of a lifetime. I call day 1 a success.  We spent the prior night on the boat at the home dock, just to make things easier for leaving this morning.

Morning coffee before we start ... the white AGLCA burgee ready to fly
America's Great Loop Cruisers Association flag showing we are in the process of "Looping"

We left our home dock earlier than I thought we could or would and easily cruised out Campbell Creek, out Goose Creek, across the Pamlico River, up the Pungo River and through the Alligator-Pungo Canal to an anchorage at Tuckahoe Point on the Alligator River.

Leaving our home port; thanks for the pic Mel & MJ

We have been to this anchorage once before, with friends Dick and Cathy Harville, on board. There is a boat ramp and finger pier to take the dinghy for Cally to go ashore. The canal back to the ramp is long,  and a bit creepy, yet nice. I always think I am going to hear Dueling Banjos, think Deliverance, playing somewhere off on the shore.

Hard to see, but there are a series of white PVC pipes marking under water stumps
we hit twice on ones not marked on our 2 runs in & out

We were serenaded by 4 fighter jets overhead for an hour after dark. You could only see their lights as they whizzed by us. Guess they were on training flights out of Cherry Point. First night's sleep on the boat came early and was wonderfully uneventful. One of the upgrades to the boat was a new memory foam mattress. Huge comfort improvement over the expensive custom mattress a prior owner had installed.
Cally did great! She really loves the dinghy rides with the wind blowing her ears.

Day 2    Friday, April 21, 2017 -  57.85 miles, 7 hours travel
Tuckahoe Point on the Alligator River to Coinjock Marina, NC

Nice cruise this morning; down the Alligator River and across the Albemarle Sound. After an uneventful crossing of the Sound, Cally was doing great and not fussy about the time, we pushed past our planned stop up the North River and on to Coinjock Marina.

Boats on the face dock and restaurant on the other side; quite convenient

Cally's ramp for getting on and off the boat

Known for their Prime rib, we thought we should make this our stop for the day. FYI - Coinjock should also be known for their homemade potato chips! They were really good. Rip and I got Prime rib and Cally had lots of grassy areas to walk and do her business; plus attention from all the other boat owners on the dock and some of the staff, too. Folks at Coinjock Marina are very nice and super accommodating. Their reputation preceded them, by way of Active Captain reviews, and they did not disappoint. Great dock hands to help boat tie up. Nice bath facilities. The dinner was very good, plus the restaurant had a couple playing playing and singing music until 9 pm. They were good and a fun time was had by all.

A little celebratory bubbly to go with our Prime Rib
We do not like glass on the boat ... so, DuraClear Champagne flutes for us

Concert by the docks!!

Day 3   Saturday, April 22, 2017   -  43.1 miles, 6.0 hours travel
Coinjock Marina, Coinjock, NC to Deep Creek Basin, Great Bridge, Va.

Today took us North on what is called "the Virginia Cut" towards Great Bridge, VA. A route we had not taken previously, but our usual route, the Dismal Swamp Canal, is still closed from damage by Hurricane Matthew. This was a very scenic route. We had a flotilla of 6 boats thru 2 bridge openings and our first lock of The Great Loop. All in all a good day.

The view today; one of the bridges we easily fit under ... 65' clearance underneath

The end of the Albemarle Sound heading into the North River up to Coinjock

That said, there was a mistake on my part when planning for the first bridge opening. I read it opened on the hour and half hour M-F, basic daylight hours. On demand all other times. Rip called the bridge tender ask him to hold an opening as we wouldn't be to the bridge until slightly after the hour and with a large group behind us. He came back with, "On Demand". Yep, today is Saturday and I had no clue. Thought it was Friday. So, the bridge opened on demand once we got close enough. Lesson learned. I need to keep up with the days of the week, not just the date.
We are anchored at Deep Creek Basin tonight; a small anchorage with deep water and sandy beach on all sides for Cally to go ashore. The roar of I-64 can be heard; heck I can see the traffic on the highway from our anchorage. I doubt it will stop any sleep tonight. Since shore is so close by, I used the SUP to take Cally to shore. Rip outfitted the SUP with an attachable seat back; so it really works as a flat kayak. Cally with her leg issues sits weird and off to one side, never straight, so standing to SUP is hard. Seemed to work well. No one fell off. Now it is raining and getting cold ... so the SUP goes up and the dinghy comes down. Way too wet and cold to SUP to shore now. Humm ... lightening and thunder ... someone might have to wait until morning to go back to shore. Cally really doesn't like to go out in the rain at home, betting she will not like going out in the rain off the boat either. stay tuned.

We have the Green Light to start the Loop

I don't usually "post" but friends and family have been asking for the past 2-3 weeks "when are you leaving on the Loop?".  Until yesterday, we couldn't really think about setting a date.  We were in that limbo hell of waiting on medical results.  On Friday afternoon of March 17 Beth found out she would need a biopsy, the following week came the surgical consult, the week after a core needle biopsy, then the added agony of waiting... yesterday morning we finally got the results.  Benign!  Relief!  Smiles!  Some decent sleep!

Still haven't set a date, likely to be during the last 10 days of April.  Watch out fellow Loopers - - here comes Cally!

Rip

2016 - The Year of Upgrades; Prep for Living Aboard

After 28 years in commercial management and development with the Minkoff Company, Inc/B&R Mgmt in Bethesda, MD; Rip retired Jan 15, 2016. Rip has spent 2016 and most of 2017, so far, upgrading Lab Partners. From electronic upgrades to adding storage and from canvas/sewing projects to brightwork and waxing - he has done it all. SO, when I say "we" did something ... remember, "we" means Rip! Yes, I handed him tools or held the ends of things and, yes, he engineered sewing projects while I did most of the actual sewing, but not all - this multi-talented guy sewed, too.. Thank goodness for the Sailrite LSZ1 sail makers heavy duty sewing machine and our garage loft, we aptly call the Sail Loft.

Completed projects to make the boat more comfortable, safer and generally more fun for living aboard for a year include:

Repainted house doors and glazed lower section

Installed Galvanic Isolator

Replaced autopilot with new Raymarine Evolution EV-200

New LED lighting Throughout cabins

Replaced Xantrex with Magnum MS2012 True Sine Inverter/Charger

Helm seat brace

Install holding tank gauge

Storage in master (port aft)

Webasto Diesel Heater

Replaced Shorepower switch with 4 pole version

Install new 140 Amp alternator and controller

Replaced Radar with HD Radar

Install Sterling smart charger

Installed Vesper XB-8000 AIS transceiver and antennas

Replaced Norcold Fridge with Noval Kool

Trimming the top rail

New Noval Kool Frig installed within the old opening yet, 
we have 2.2 cubic feet more interior space! On a boat ... that is a lot of space.

HD Radar!!

Installed and ready to go back up

Doors repainted & new glass added ... now, including glass on the bottom panel!
Interior is so much brighter with bottom panel of glass.
Thanks for the idea Maurice & Renee of Le Marie Sophie!

Central Vac installed - a MUST with a Lab aboard

New teak chart book box; lid lifts to access the stored charts,
while the top with fiddle rail holds the current chart displayed

Teak rack is a charging station for our 2 phones and 2 tablets

New salon curtains; wasn't on the list until I washed the original ones & they started to shred
(this was done before the new glass was installed at bottom of doors)

New master stateroom curtains made to go with the switch in bedding

Made a bag for the inflatable SUP ... we made bags for EVERYTHING
Bike, bike trailer, awnings, stern anchor, dinghy davit lines & more
Look who is ready to help, right there by her daddy's side 

Cally helped, too!

New winch and sheet bag for the dinghy davit

Hatch covers to block light and heat in the staterooms

Hidden storage for the screen from the new opening center window
This is ingenious, but hard to appreciate unless you are on the boat
it just disappears in the ceiling of the salon

New Helm (& Co-Pilot) chairs & cushions
and the long one is Cally's cushion.
Seat slides to centerline for use or to port for clear aisle.

Made window screens to help block heat & filter light
from inside.  You can still see out really well

New Life Sling bag - hope we never need this Man Overboard tool
Bag for the stern anchor; ready for quick deployment

Cally's Dock Box -(behind the sign) hidden inside this Sunbrella/Phifertex wrapped aluminium box
are her 2 ramps( to access docks from the boat) and her steps (to access the dinghy)

HUGE storage locker added into unused space in transom
access thru master stateroom

Tons of space for storage
Locker goes higher than you see and further to the right, also

added easy access to easily reach the storage space under the settee 

where there is a project ... there are tools and sweat

Step for salon helm chair with tool storage

Removable brace to hold the helm chair in place in rough seas
it was top heavy and prone to moving before

Picture frame is actually mounted via a TV wall bracket
It switches with the TV (left side) when we want to watch TV from the master stateroom
Otherwise TV is safer, out of harms way, off to the side; as shown

Knife rack so I don't cut myself when searching thru a drawer
and safe from falling on Cally if we are in heavy seas.

New 2-Burner Cooktop
this looks tiny, but it is good sized

Custom Bamboo & Teak cutting/prep board over the new cooktop
really extends the work space

Storage shelf added behind a closet
was completely unused space previously

Made awnings - shown deployed to shade the cabin from sun/heat
also provides a place to bring Cally under to be dried off before entering the cabin

Awning covers the side decks shading the cabin door

Rip had a running list of things to do ... over 125 items to do. Some items were routine maintenance, many items we decided to do along the way were never listed. Now, some of the items were parts of the whole item, or steps to take, but still ... the amount of work and the fantastic results are nothing short of amazing. So much more storage space to stow things, more things can be safely and correctly put away; everything is more organized.