Patti's trip log 2000

*excerpts that were also e-mailed

Updated 2/12/2001

We packed the car and left the house in Orlando about 9:30 AM. We headed to Merritt Island and loaded the boat. Patti and Laura went to the grocery store for a few items, while Jim, Karyn, Aaron and Jay readied the boat to leave. As soon as Patti and Laura got back we left our slip and went to the fuel dock. We left Harbortown Marina at 12:12 PM, with 125 hours on the port engine and 122 hours on the starboard engine. The distance in straight line to Daytona is 58 miles.

We started off by heading down the Barge Canal. We checked the bilge several times for any engine leaks, looking good. After leaving the Barge Canal and speeding up we checked the bilge again, doing fine. Then we slowed down to pass a sailboat. The bilge was checked once more and this time a small amount of fuel was seen sliding down under the engine on the Port Side. The port engine was turned off and we turned around to head back to the dock. This was the last thing we wanted to do. Then we decided to anchor on the outside of the ICW instead . Jay and Patti dropped the anchor. The windlass stopped as soon as the line started to go through. They lowered the rest was by hand. Jim went down to the engine room to see where the leak was coming from and if he could fix it. Aaron and Patti were doing the anchor watch, while Jay, Karyn and Laura went below to help Jim. When it was decided that the anchor was secure Patti went down below while Aaron remained on watch. Karyn, Jay and Jim were already in the bilge sweating. It was hot. Jim was looking from the stern of the engine and Jay from the front for the leak. Jay could barely get around the hot engine. They were trying to get to the fitting for the diesel lift pump, Jim thought it could be a bad O-ring leaking. Jay noticed it also had leaked little higher than that. This meant Jim had to tackle it from the front with his chest pressed against the hot engine. Jay had barely been barely able to fit there, but Jim knew the alternatives were to fix it now or go back to the dock. When Jim went to take it off, the fitting whipped around his finger. The fitting needed to be tightened with a tap wrench because it had worked itself loose. He just happened to buy a set of tap wrenches before we left. He did it, he fixed the problem and with mission accomplished we could container on our trip. While Jim was down in the engine room we could see a Boat US tow boat, circling around us like a shark. Just waiting for us to ask for help. We were happy we were able to wave him off because amazing Jim fitted around the engine to fix the problem. How come it's always the out board engine that you need to get to.

Jay and Patti pulled up the anchor manually because the windlass wasn't working. Later we found out that we had only blown a circuit breaker. Another problem solved.

Fortunately within a short time we were back on the ICW. Life was good again. Many dolphins were out frolicking along with us and we finally were able to have our lunch underway. We were feeling good to finally have some ICW Markers under our belt.

We noticed that in the Mim's area other boaters don't seem to wave unless they are other ICW cruisers.

While I'm at it let me tell you about "Song of the South." We wave to everyone. We slow to pass other boats, and we slow when there are boats tied at a dock. BUT. In the poorer areas where there are trailer homes and small fishing boats they just don't wave at all. I get the "FU look." BUT, if Patti waves, she can usually coax a wave out of the woman or kids, sometimes even a man. We call this the "Song of the South." It's interesting, and until we came up with the "Song of the South" game, a bit depressing.*

When we got to Pounce Inlet we had an option of taking a short cut. After much debate over the narrowness of the channel on this alternate way, we decided to go for it, "to save time." Remember we lost time with slight fuel leak earlier. This route was very vague on the chart with only very few markers. While traveling on it we saw that the depths were getting lower, but somehow we were managing to be follow a channel. The only problem was we were not going exactly where we wanted to be and we were not exactly where Patti "the navigator" thought we were. We noticed a sea towboat lurking and we were running out of water. Then at the same second the sea towboat called us on the radio to warn us that we needed to watch out, we could feel why and it was too late. We weren't going anywhere. He said we should be ok, but hung around any way to watch. Then he came back to give us a complimentary tow. We tipped him and he gave us an application for their towing service, along with a local chart. During all this excitement we got a second surprise, a call on the radio from a friend of ours from Orlando. John Arie, was just coming in from a fishing trip on one engine and told us he couldn't believe his eyes when he saw us, Jim told him he couldn't believe his feet. First time Jim ever ran aground in 40 years of boating and he had a friend witnessing the event. Small world. The good news was it was only sand and we had no damage.

After that we back tracked to get back on the ICW. We decided were taking no more chances. We're going marker to marker now, "staying in the Federally Regulated Channel." This will become our motto now on the trip. We traveled up to marker 39A and turned into Halifax Marina in Daytona. After a smooth docking they got floating docks, Jay, Laura and Aaron washed down the decks while Karyn helped Patti stow some of the food we had brought on earlier. This was our first chance since we left Merrit Island. While we were getting all showered and dressed, Jim checked our messages. We made some calls and learned from the Steks that Jim's Dad had gone to the hospital today for an apadectaomy. We were planning to stop by to see him tonight. Since he was still in recovery we decided to stay in Daytona an extra day. We walked down to Starvo's Pizza House for Greek salad and pizza. We came back, stowed the rest of our stuff and tried to relax. It's hard to believe it was only our first day.

Jim headed out early to see his father at the hospital. Robert, "Pop-Pop", was still groggy from the operation. On the way back to the boat Jim stopped to pick out the treats that Pop-Pop had bought for the kids. He wasn't expecting to be at the hospital when we arrived.

A little later we all got in the taxi for a short visit with Jim's Dad at Halifax Municipal Hospital. We met up with Bob and Edna Leslie who had also came by to visit Robert in the hospital. Afterwards, they stopped by to see our boat. They were very kind to take Patti to the Grocery Store and even bought some treats themselves for the kids. We went back to Stavro's Pizza House again for dinner and had another still wonderful Greek Salad.

After dinner Patti went through the Waterway Guide to mark the charts. In the process she found out how confusing Pounce Inlet is. Comparing three charts they all looked different. The Intercoastal Waterway Cockpit Cruising Handbook states Pounce de Leon "is not a good inlet for strangers to use, although it is used by locals all the time." The Southern Waterway Guide 2000 says, " Pounce inlet subject to shoaling and shifting. In fact entire inlet underwent a recent hydrographic survey, and jetties have been built. The inlet is dredged periodically, but the North Channel and Rockhouse Creek aren't included because they are not authorized federal channels… call the corps or the Coast Guard for the latest information before attempting this passage. At this writing the Coast Guard reports that shoaling likely exists inside the marked channel… Pounce De Leon Inlet to the ocean should only be used with local knowledge of the present conditions… when entering from seaward your best bet is to wait for a local commercial or charter boat and follow it in these boats come in around 4:30 pm. At other times, call Lighthouse Boatyard at the inlet on t he VHF and ask for assistance through the entrance." No wonder, the three charts looked different.

From now, we'll do our homework and "stay in the Federally Regulated Channel."

We left the slip and headed to the fuel dock. We put in 150 gallons of fuel in both tanks now both tanks are full. We also got our holding tank pumped out.

Planning ahead really paid off today. No surprises, no problems. St. Augustine Inlet was a little tricky but we were ready for it Red "ICW marker 60" is further east then one might expect. At Beach Marina the dockhandler was the most impressive one we've ever seen. He wrapped the line around the cleat like an experienced rodeo worker. Jay started practicing this maneuver. We spotted another Maxum 4600 at the Marina, Dock Wrecker from Myrtle Beach SC.

We called Jim's Dad; he sounded a lot better today. We went through the charts to plan out our trip for tomorrow. It looks like we can go offshore and make it to Hilton Head, SC. We went to Dinner at Billy's Boathouse Grill. The food was a lot better than we expected. Great fresh shrimps, and fish fingers. Jim had the mahi and mahi and Patti had the tuna. Both were very good with excellent sauces. The kids enjoyed a real steak, steak sandwich. Patti went through the Waterway Guide and Charts to prepare for tomorrow.

Traveling up the ICW some parts were a little tricky today, but no problems for us. We crossed the State line into Georgia at Marker "30" We had some "no wake zones" and lots of slowdowns passing boats. Lots of nothing to see. Everything went well today. Arrived at fuel dock and put 220 gallons of fuel in the tanks. The kids proceeded to wash the boat down. They took turns coming in to get cooled off and have lunch. It was hot. After lunch, Jim and Patti borrowed the courtesy car and drove to the store to pick up milk and a couple of other items. There really wasn't much for us to see here. Jim and Pattt drove by the two mansions, Goodyear & Moss. We saw the old Clubhouse, which is now a Hotel, the stables and the

indoor Tennis court. Maybe Newport spoiled them but they weren't impressed.

When we got back to the boat we got the kids. The kids went swimming in the pool while Jim and Patti sat on the porch of SeaJay's Waterfront Café & Pub, Inc. overlooking the pool, dock, Summer School and ICW. Jim and Patti ate the Shrimp Boil Buffet which we had smelled cooking earlier in the day. After our dinner, everyone went back to the boat where the kids ate. After their dinner the boys had boys time and girls went for a walk. The girls including Patti went up the old bridge to look down at the Marina. When they got back on the boat everyone watched the movie Horse Whisper and then went to bed.

We waited today at the dock to for the tide to come up. The tide here has an 8-ft difference. We need the extra depth in Jekyll Creek. We watched the weather. It didn't look like it would be a good day to go on the outside. The current and wind was pushing us tight against the dock. We headed up Jekyll Creek. We followed Ocean Bound II a while, when we got to St Andrew Sound we looked out and the Atlantic Ocean didn't look bad so we decided to head out.

On the way out of the channel we came up behind a dredge called the Meridian. We called him on the radio to ask the best way to proceed around him. He advised us to go south and then cut behind the stern of the anchored tug. We had a good trip on the ocean, at times we were about 14 miles out. Aaron worked well with the GPS in finding our marks. He had programmed them in the night before. We found the channel and made our way into Harbortown on Hilton Head about an hour ahead of Ocean Bound II. The dockhand greeted us in a Boston whaler to take our line. He also gave us a bottle of wine. Patti put it on ice. We still don't know what it was. We all walked around and checked out the stores and got an ice cream. It's hot. The kids and Patti climbed the 114 steps to the top of the Harbortown Lighthouse. We were able to look down at boat, she looked small compare to the bigger boats here. Patti took some photos and bought a Christmas ornament. Afterwards we checked out the pool. Patti and the kids played battleship with the torpedo. Jim showered and worked on the computer, he sent e-mails. It's nice they have us a telephone line here at the dock. Jim, Patti and Aaron went out t o dinner in Harbortown at Café Europa. Jim had the Cohi, Patti the tuna and Aaron the NY strip Steak with Key lime pie for dessert. He did very well. Jim and Patti weren't too impressed with the restaurant. Nice presentation but they could use help with the flavor. Boy, are we spoiled or do we just know better? We watched Happy Gilmore and then went to bed. We're tired. Luckily we can't go anywhere too fast in the morning.

Because of the low tide we hung around Hilton Head in morning. Jay and Laura washed the boat. Karyn and Aaron helped Patti bring around the laundry to the machine. When Jay and Laura were done they relieved Aaron and Karyn of laundry duties. We did four loads today. The kids and Patti made it up the lighthouse at least once more and some two times to check out the view. Jim checked the engines, the batteries and e-mails.

We only traveled 47 miles to go to Beufort, South Carolina. The only tricky parts were watching for the markers to switch from red on port, to red on starboard and back to red port. We also crossed Port Royal Sound. Arriving at Downtown Marina they were able to give us fuel right at our slip. We put in a total of 240 gallons.

We all walked into town. They have a lot of painted cows around town. Something to do with the Cows on Parade in Chicago. Aaron knew about this from watching the Travel or Discovery Channel. We found a bookstore where we got 2 out of the 3 required summer reading books for the kids. Looking at my shirt the clerk who sold us the books thought our boat was really appropriate named, Summer School. Often people think we are teachers or we homeschool the children. We tell them it's just because they've been bad in school and now they have go to Summer School. Usually they ask if they if they could go to Summer School too.

Well, It's hot here. We stopped at Banana's. We had sandwiches. The kids and Patti signed their names on the huge bananas painted on the wall. Heading back to the boat we spotted a playground. Jim and Aaron headed back to Summer School while the rest headed for the playground. Jay, Karyn and Laura played tag while Patti slept on the swing bench. We got to see the Beufort Swing Bridge open for two sailboats. Later we walked back to boat. Jim checked the engines and all looks good. The water level has finally even out probably caused by an air pocket. We watched 007 in The Spy Who Loved Me. At the end of the movie Laura looked out and spotted a tugboat with a barge going through the Swing Bridge. It only opens on the hour and half-hour.

Low tide will be 9 in the morning so we will leave late. We went into town for Breakfast at Blackstones. The waitress was real friendly and helpful. She even made suggestions for the kids. After breakfast Jim went to get his watch battery replaced at the Jewelry store and Patti and Kids went to the other bookstore. We found Aaron's first choice book from his reading list. It was an autographed first edition of the book, Thimble Summer for $75.00. We decided to keep looking. We found Dad. After checking out the store Orvis together. Patti, Aaron, Karyn and I went back and checked the other bookstore again. Laura picked out a Clifford Book there. Jim and Jay wandered waiting for his watch to be finished. We all met up again and headed back to the boat. We looked into taking a carriage ride. But it would be too late. The tide had started coming in and it was time to head out. Patti finished going over the charts for the next leg. We made docking reservations at our second choice because Downtown Marina was full and headed out. We ran with generator on to keep the air conditioner on downstairs. On the way out of town we passed The Castle, the house where they filmed the movie, The Big Chill and the US Marine Air Corp's dock. We had heard the jets flying overhead earlier. Then we headed on through the flats. Good area to go through at high tide. We passed a lot of sailboats and several powerboats and barges. When we would slow down to pass a boat the green heads would come on board. The children took turns zapping them with the bug racket we got at the Miami Boat Show. Patti hit one and killed him on Jim. Aaron hit one on Jim and killed it. Jim says the third person that hits one and says that, has better show him a body. We passed the sailboat Cali for the second time; they had stayed at same Marina as us last night. At the same time we passed there appeared to be a sailboat run aground on the side of the channel along the South Edisto River. He wasn't looking for any help though. Other than a few narrow or tricky areas not much to comment on. Elliott Cut between Edgewater Park and Riverland Terrace had a lot of nice houses but not a good place to dock your boat. Coming into Charleston their was a lot more boat traffic. We passed a police boat and coast guard boat. After another smooth docking at Ashley Marina, Karyn and Aaron started washing down the boat. Later they were replaced with Jay and Laura. They received two compliments from the couple on the boat Utopia in front of us. They had four children of their own but were really impressed with how our two worked so hard, even singing while they worked. Everything on the boat is still working well. (Knock on wood.) Jim and Patti went over the charts for tomorrow and called for a reservation in North Myrtle Beach. Later we decided we might just go to Georgetown and skip North Myrtle Beach. Patti, Laura and Karyn rode the courtesy shuttle to the market area near The Charleston Place Hotel. They found a Waldenbooks and bought Aaron's summer reading book and a couple of books for Laura. The girls wandered around the shops and flea market, they saw a couple of street people dressed as silver statues, looking for tips. Just as they got back into the courtesy shuttle it started to rain lightly. Perfect timing. We need the rain and it was light so as not to bother us. Aaron made some nachos tonight.

Jim woke up prepared our e-mails and headed to the Marina Lounge to send them. We had cereal on board and headed out. We could see the historic houses along the waterfront. We also passed Ft. Sumter where they wrote in the Star Spangle Banner the rocket's red glare. We went under Ben Sawyer Memorial Swing Bridge where we passed the sailboat Caeli again for the third time. We went through several landcuts. When ever we slowed down to pass a boat or for a no wake zone we had a lot of green heads come on board. There was a lot of nothing here, so they liked us. The children killed hundreds using the fly racket, a fly swatter and towels. When we passed one sailboat, he gave us a wave with a fly swatter in his hand. South of Georgetown there was a car ferry going over to Cat Island. Then we made a sharp left turn up the western channel to Winnyah Bay and Georgetown. That is where we tied up for the night. There seems to be a lot of fishing boats around. Many were tied up behind us at the dock in Georgetown. They were in rafts of four. There was a swift current coming into the dock. Small marina, for fuel they have a diesel truck off the dock with a hose running out of it. The dock office is very small sitting between the truck and the showers. After docking we headed in to check out the town and the harborwalk. We had sandwiches at the Deli and walked back to the boat. A lot of places were closed including the Pink Magnolia, which we had read about. Back on board, the girls played Barbies, Aaron wrote in his journal and Jay played Nintendo. Jim and Patti booked the marina for tomorrow night. There was some confusion in the waterway guides as to the phone number. One had it listed wrong. Patti went up top to mark the charts for tomorrow. She watched the fishing boats move around, several were coming in for fuel at the dock behind us. Some small boats came in to our dock and there were 4 men cleaning and trimming their fishing catch on the dock. Jay came up to say he was getting hungry. Patti went down to bake pizzas and shrimp.

The sailboat Cali came in around 8:30 and anchored next to the fishing boats in the channel. They were not really anchored in a good spot. They had no lights on so it appeared they went right to bed after a long day. After watching TV and catching up with the log, we too went to bed.

Headed out early. We had a lot of miles to cover today. We passed Caeli for the fourth time, they gave us a big smile. After we passed marker "W" we overheard a boat call the Coast Guard, they were taking on water. We hadn't seen any boats there when we passed. They must of Cut the marker between "96" and "W" hit the shoal and then dropped the anchor. We listened as the coast guard tried to get to them in the shallow water. The coast guard were able to get a high-speed pump to them. We heard that water was up to their gun plate.

We also passed Sailing Vessel Reliant another sailboat we've been traveling with.

Harborgate had three boats tied up on their fuel dock with power cords still attached. Not way for us to get into this dock for fuel. We headed North and actually found cheaper fuel at North Myrtle Beach Yacht Club. On the way into the fuel dock, we spotted two other Maxum 4600 at their docks. We were able to leave our card on of them on the way out. ----- Delight. Coming into the fuel dock the dockhand was not on the dock. Jim told Jay to lasso the cleat, which he did from the bow of the boat. His practice had paid off, but it was even more impressive from the bow. People walking by were very impressed. They asked if he was for hire.

Heading out from North Myrtle Beach Yacht Club. We started hearing weather warnings from the coast guard on channel 16 about the weather 65-mph winds, 2" hail and possible tornado conditions in Northeast South Carolina and Southeast North Carolina. Right where we were. We started watching the radar. We could see it coming. We started looking for a marina to tie up at to weather the storm. Holden Beach Marina didn’t respond to our radio calls and in the guide, it said they would take up to a 45' boat. We are a 46' boat. We did see a coast guard boat tying up to their dock as we passed. Just ahead Jim spotted a shrimp boat dock. One fishing boat was tied up to one dock and the other was free. We headed to it. When we got close Jim spotted a family on the dock. He asked if we could tie up because a bad storm was coming. They said yes. We quickly tied up the boat. It turned out it was a family with three children about as close as in ages as our children, their grandmother, and some friends. They were very kind to us. They wouldn't take any money for our brief dockage and even offered to take us to the store if we needed anything. The front came through and at first it didn't seem so bad and then the rain and the wind came. We could barely see down the intercoastal waterway. It was a drastic change in weather in a very short time. It had changed from a beautiful weekend day with lots of boats to a dark stormy day where you could hardly see. It cleared a little so we said our good-bye and thank-you. They asked us to send a post card and we were on our way. We were now following the storm.

We called Reliant to see how they weather the storm. They had pulled up behind a green maker and rode it out.

Heading out to the Bald Island visibility was low and it got rough. Apparently we traveled back slightly into the storm. We called the marina to confirm directions. It was rough seas rainy and windy. We headed in. One of the dockhands on the dock was not so good, you could tell it was the beginning of the season here.

Patti and Jim had a light dinner at -----, the restaurant at the Marina. We had the Caesar salad with the "local" salmon. Patti had the she crab soup, which came in a bread bowl, and Jim had shrimp cocktail, which was also quite good. The food was very good. The kids ate on board. After dinner Jim gave the boys haircuts and the girls headed out to explore. We went to the top of Bald Head lighthouse. There we had a great view of the harbor while the sun was setting.

We passed Huron, another sailboat that we've been coming across almost daily. Jim and Patti noticed they had sweatshirts on. Good idea. We got ours on too.

Today it got a lot cooler. The girls were huddle together under a blanket. Laura went down early but Karyn stuck it our for a longer while. Aaron says we caught up with the cold weather. We got to --- bridge just as it was opening, even though we didn't need it to open for us. The next bridge, we had to wait 20 minutes for. We were trying to catch the opening of the next bridge when we caught up to Litagator at ---- inlet and then they followed us for the bridge. We just made Osbourne bridge opening. At first the bridge tender said he couldn't wait for us and then he saw us turn the corner around the mark and he told us to bring her on up. We were running at 26 mph. We had good fuel now. Jim noticed the engines did not run as fast with the fuel from Ashley Marine. Litagator told everybody they talked to how Boat US had to tow them off a sandbar earlier in the day. They seemed very proud of that. They were also very happy to follow us for awhile. Even when we went through an inlet slow following fishing trawlers. We thanked the trawlers for their local knowledge. After coming through the bridge at m---- it was a little confusing with the markers, Litigator stayed behind us while we figured them out, and they were checking their charts too. We found our markers then we let Litigator know we were turning off the ICW for Beufort inlet for We noticed the marker numbers were different and it appears they added a few. We saw a Sea Tow boating waiting in the wings so we called them for some local into to Beufort Docks. They told us go down to the coast guard station and we will see a daymarker on our right. That was good because the marker number was different then what was on our chart. Docked at Beaufort Docks, we cleaned the boat inside and out. Laura and Jay did a terrific job washing down the boat even though it had gotten very cold. They didn't even complain. We all had dinner at Clawson's Restaurant. Sitting at the table we all felt like we were still moving. We decided we were land sick. It didn't spoil out appetite though. They had excellent food and had been written up in the Intercoastal Waterway Restaurant Guide. Patti had "Swimmers and Sinkers", blacken mahi mahi with fried oysters and Jim had shrimp tempura. We also had buffalo shrimp. But it was too much for us Jim and Patti brought more than half of their dinner back to the boat. The kids enjoyed as a special treat of French fries with cheese and bacon.

Patti, Karyn and Aaron did laundry. 9 loads at the general store where the kids had ice cream earlier. During this time Patti spotted Double O Seven, the 70 Neptunas that had engine trouble earlier at our dock. They were still washing her down. After laundry Goldfinger happened to be on TV and then the rain came. We had already decided to spend two nights here. Tonight Patti got to catch up with the log, saving the checking of the charts for tomorrow on our lay day. There's been no problem with anyone falling asleep at night on this trip.

We had already decided to use this as a lay day and spend and extra night in Beaufort. This was a good day to be on land. It got a lot cooler. Time for long pants and jackets. In the morning Jim found out that Double 0 Seven had fried their bow thruster. That probably caused part of his Battery problem.

Patti called up and rented a car and Jim waited by the General Store. Only problem was the car she rented was in Beaufort, South Carolina and not Beaufort, North Carolina which is where we are. Jim finally got it straightened out and we got a car.

We went to the Big K-mart first and got supplies including some batteries for the GPS and the binoculars. It was pretty neat that we really didn't need too much. As per Aaron's suggestion we went to Pizza Hut for their lunch buffet. Then we stopped at a Wal-Mart and a West Marine Store. We dropped the children at the boat and Jim and Patti went looking for a grocery store. We found a Pak and Sak. Although they had some interesting rolls with cheese on top, their deli didn't look appealing at all. We brought the food back to boat and were planning to drive back to M--- to return the car. We decided to take a tour of Atlantic Beach just to see what's there. We found a movie theater with Mission Impossible 2 playing. That's the movie we were hoping to see while we were in town but it was not playing in M---. We decided to keep the car and bring the kids back to see the movie. We also found a Food Lion, which was much nicer, and Patti bought some lunchmeats. When we got back to the boat Patti went over the charts for our trip to Oriental tomorrow. We then headed back to the theater with the children. They were big time with 4 screens in this theatre. They had ugly side curtains in the theatre and played a radio station with a lot of static while we waited. Fortunately the sound track on the movie was good. We all gave the movie 8's and 9's on the way home. We also stopped for a late meal at Mickey D's. The kids thought they might of made a mistake getting Mcflurry's when they got out of the car and it was cold but they did seem to enjoy them. We'll return the car in the morning.

Jim returned the car. He had to wait for a couple of stores to open up. He also picked up Donuts. They were a little slow at the rental place to say the least. But he did get the ride back. Patti and then went for a walk to check out the other shops we hadn't been to yet. We had to wait for some to open. They didn't open until 10. We saw a beautiful necklace at a Jewelry store that had unusual South Seas black pearls. It was quite different and Price was $14,000. Jim has excellent taste, finding and asking about that particular piece. It was their most expensive piece. I told him my birthday was tomorrow. But even I couldn't see spending that kind of money. When we got back to the dock they were fueling up another boat on our dock so we told them to leave out the hose we would fuel up too. We called up and made our reservation at Oriental Marina and after fueling we headed out. It was less confusing going back through the ---- and catching the ICW. We knew the additional markers that weren't on the chart. After the bridge ---- passed us we were following them. They then called to see how far we going but we were only going to a short hop --- miles to Oriental. The skies cleared up after a patch of blue appeared. It turned out to be a pretty nice day. Check chart for additional info.

The left over dinner's from Clawson's the other night heated up well for lunch. Patti had hers on the way and Jim ate his at the dock after we tied up. Laura and Jay washed the boat down again. Afterwards Karyn grabbed towels and the three headed for the pool, which was right behind the boat. Jim went to check out the sump pump for our shower with Aaron's assistance. Patti checked the boat in and then checked out the only store, which was just as dockhand had said, "an expensive clothing store." Jim's job ended up being more difficult than he thought. But with the help of the local marine store he kicked it's ---. It turned out to be the ball valve was sticking. Afterwards it was time for Jim and Patti to go to the tiki hut, which from the boat had looked a lot more exciting than it was. We headed in to the Marina Restaurant. They had really good oyster stew and unusual shrimp egg rolls. They had good rolls though they were more like benquits from New Orleans. We both had Seafood Nirvana, which was in a pastry that was not the best. We also tasted some Bay seasoning. We must be getting near Maryland. After dinner we sat on the boat until the mosquitoes came and then headed in for the night.

We had breakfast and headed out. We talked to the S/V Reliant that we keep seeing. Larry was cleaning a fuel filter so they were also were getting a late start. We ended up passing them after the 4-mile cut near Hoboken.

We took it easy today only 48 miles and we didn't push the engine. Good thing too, we noticed a couple of dead heads in the water. Aaron's marks were right on the autopilot compass and GPS lead us right to them. It was an easy docking at Robbs Marina in Belhaven, NC. Aaron even got a lesson on tying the line on a piling without going over the top. We really gotten this routine down, with tying up plugging in the water, electric and cable TV. Jim checked in and found out they had golf carts available. Jim and Patti checked out the town first. We found out it's quite small. We stopped at Farm Boys for BBQ beef and Pizza Burger "all the way." We found out "all the way" on the BBQ includes coleslaw on sandwich. They also had good milkshakes. First time in a long time we were able to buy lunch for two and get change back from a five. We rode down to the other marina. Noticed that at least 5 houses are being or have been recently raised up. It seems this area can and has been flooded. At our marina they have the generator raised up on stilts about 10 ft up.

After we got back to the boat, Patti took Aaron and Laura and then Karyn and Jay out for a golf cart rides. They all got to stop at Farm Boys and see the raised houses. With Karyn and Jay we stopped at the tourist information place and found out about the museum. We went to check it out. It was Mrs. Way's collection. From Buttons to fleas dressed as Bride and Groom to a 700 lady's dress it quite a collection. It also included which seem to impress the children the most embryos's of pigs with one eye, or two faces or 8 legs. They also had human embryos at 3 weeks and 4 and 6 months. Patti took Aaron and Laura back out to see the museum too it was the one thing in a town of 2200 people to see. When we got back to the cart we saw the couple from Reliant. They recognized us as the Summer School crew. They told us they were anchored out and rode their dinghy in they would stop by on their way to their boat. While we were waiting Jim and Patti were listening to the VHF. As 36-ft trawler was calling in because they were lost we could only hear half of the conversation but they had no GPS and were not sure where they were. They had left Beaufort this morning and apparently could not even say what the last marker they saw was. Larry and ------ stopped by a little while. They were tired and wanting to get back to their boat. They are heading back to VA. Tomorrow they are not leaving Belhaven until after lunch. Patti pasta with sauce and garlic toast for dinner. We watched Four Kings and headed back to bed. Patti worked on the log and Jim read for awhile.

We'll arrive in Norfolk tomorrow. Patti found out the bridge schedule ahead so we can plan. 30 miles ahead a bridge opens on the hour, 5 miles later the bridge opens on the 1/2 hour and 2.5 miles after that the bridge on the hour. We'll be traveling in a pack.

After dinner Jim checked the engines and they looked fine, Patti worked on the computer while the others watched a show about old circus acts. No problem with this crew falling asleep.

Patti was up early and did one more load of laundry. We left Coinjock a wee bit late or should I say after the pack. Most boats left early, about 6:30 AM to catch the bridges just right.

Between Coinjock and Norfolk is a 50-mile run we had rotten swells of 3' with a med. to heavy chop along with a 22 to 25 mph wind. We found a low spot coming out of Coinjock of 5.2 feet 15' off of an ICW MARKER! We checked twice, it was just low. Our shallow alarm goes off @ 6', we draw 4'. It scared the s__t out of Jim and Karyn. She was on the helm. There are bridges that just don't open during rush hour in the morning and evening. Then some only open on the hour, others only open on the hour and half hour, and did we tell you about the locks timing. After --- bridge everyone stays together to go through the lock. Or did we mention the 6-mph, strictly enforced speed limit in Norfolk. We saw the Navy in force in Norfolk their ships were everywhere.

We're at the Waterside Marina. They have a lot of people stroll by just looking at the boats. They usually give ours a second look. I think the Seadoo on the bow stands out. Patti walked over to the shopping mall with Jim and then went back with kids.

She has her feet up now and is checking out the charts for tomorrow. We are heading to the Cambridge and will be traveling in the Chesapeake that means we're using different books and charts again.

Patti and Karyn shared the leftovers from the prime rib dinner last night; everyone else just had sandwiches, an easy light dinner.

The cruising today was a lot different. We no longer see all the same boats. We travel in the big shipping channels using the GPS from point to point. We seem to be seeing a lot more sailboats especially when we turned into the Choptank River heading 13 miles upriver into Cambridge Municipal Marina. The marina entrance was a little confusing, but we found our way. They put us on the end of a t- dock. There appears to be 90% sailboats at the marina and yacht club.

Cambridge is a historic town established in1684 with a timeless look to it. It is not (yet) a cutesy tourist-trap; there was some charm along with some conveniences.

After docking we walked into town for dinner at Snappers, about the only place open. Karyn, Laura and Aaron brought 1/2 their dinners home. Laura had "Laura Fettuccine Alfredo. " The place wasn't run well but the view was nice. We ate outside and there was a small bascule bridge at Maryland Avenue across the small harbor that opened for many boats on demand. It is also the town's busiest street and separates the anchorage basin form the inner creek. It is manned 24 hours a say and opens promptly on signal, except during weekdays between noon and 1PM. We brought home dessert, which they messed up too.

There seems to be lot more sailboats around here.

We planned on staying here 2 to 3 days, we have a rental car, thank you Enterprise, they opened a branch here in Cambridge 3 months ago.

We visited the Maxum Plant in Salisbury, MD where they built our boat. The tour of the plant was great .We could see them making Maxums in various stages and learned all about how it is done. It was very interesting; Jim had already seen it before and thought we would like it. He was right.

In the afternoon we drove down to Assateague & Chincoteague Islands, It's where the wild ponies live. We actually did see several of the wild ponies, but more in Maryland then in Virginia. We saw ponies, no fences, about 15 of them, out on the salt flats and on the road, their telltale signs were all over. Pretty cool. *

We then went up to Ocean City, MD, but we just drove in and out of the town, (not impressed at all) and had dinner at Outback on the mainland instead. On the way back to the boat we got a view items at Wal-Mart and some food.

It's raining today. Ed the Cummins mechanic that does work at the Maxum plant, was here at 8:00 this morning and found the reason for us losing 175 rmp was a loose throttle cable, Cummins has a new throttle cable holder they are installing on their engines and we will order the new parts and have them installed during our next service.

We have been doing GREAT. No problems, all systems are working fine and everyone is healthy.*

Patti went out to do 5 loads of laundry with the girls. Afterwards we sent off one of our GPS for repair and picked up our new GPS at the Dockmaster's office that Jim had sent there. The boys went to work on installing the GPS and the girls went to St. Michael's to check out the shops and have some crabs at the Crab Claw. The crabs seem to be more work then Patti remembered but she did the hang of it after a couple. Karyn said they were fun. Both girls tried them and liked using the mallet and how they put the white paper on the table. It does get messy. We did get full on sharing only six crabs, three cups of creamy Crab soup and one salad. Laura also did have a kids fried shrimp plate.

On the way back we took the car ferry to Oxford. They had actually been on it once before. I explained how we all used to go to St. Michael's for crabs when we kept Contagious at Oxford. Mears Marina is still owned by the Mears but they no longer live there and have a manager. Patti also found out that they now own a marina in Annapolis too.

Aaron showed Patti how the new GPS works and they plugged in the waypoints to Baltimore.

Although the weather has cleared it's still pretty windy. White caps and flags flying straight out. After we did some work on the boat. Jim and Jay replaced the latches on the back cabinets that had rusted out on the back hatches. We stopped at Subway and then we drove over the Bay Bridge to Annapolis.

We arrived a day early for the Yacht Center Rendezvous. The dockhands were a little green and docking there was a little tricky with the strong current and wind. That and the fact that we had our lines set on the starboard side and then had to quickly switch to the port side. All went smooth because of out talented captain. After washing down the boat. Patti and Jim went to check in and stopped at the Sushi Restaurant for lunch. Then Patti and the kids went to the pool.

Karyn's Birthday. Patti and Jim got up and let the kids sleep in. It turned out that they all woke up about the same time, 9:30. Meanwhile, Jim and Patti had breakfast at the Bagel Place and bought a 1/2 dozen for the boat. We also stopped at West Marine and checked in at The Yacht Center. We dropped off mail to be sent. Then we saw a SunTrust bank and a mailbox so we picked the mail to be sent back up and made our deposit at the bank. Then we stopped at the Safeway for a Birthday cake for Karyn. The bakery was closed until tomorrow but we found a frozen Sara Lee cake that they agreed to write on for us.

Back on the boat we washed her down some more. Especially the top canvas area. While doing that we watched the boats start to come in for the rendezvous. About 5PM they set up a table with Margaritas, chips and salsa and we picked up our welcome package.

We went out to Razorback's for dinner. The food was quite different with different seasoning then we are used to and we wouldn't recommend it.

After dinner we met Steve and Cindy Blair from Summer Rays who were docked next to us. There have a sister boat Maxum 4600 that was built the same week as ours.

We attended the Maxum / Bayliner rendezvous @ "THE YACHT CENTER". THANK YOU MARK AND CHRISTINE FOR YOUR HOSPITALITY.

8-10AM Bagels & coffee were available poolside. At 10 they had a cruising planning session. While there we met up with 4 other Maxum Owners we have spoken to via E-mail. *

They had box lunches available for lunch and we hung out by the pool most of the day. Patti got another 6 loads of laundry done.

We met up for a group photo at 6:30PM and then it was time for a Caribbean Jam poolside. Aaron got in the act helping with the frozen drinks. Laura and Karyn started dancing and before the night was over 5 of the Clausens were seen dancing the night away.

Jeremy, Joan and Julia. The "JD" family arrived from Pennsylvania, to visit. It was Julia's first time on a boat. We all had a Great time, the JD's, Patti and our four kids went to Baltimore's Inner Harbor via water taxi to the National Aquarium. The Inner Harbor consists of waterfront shopping, museums and restaurants.

Latter the three JD's, Patti and Jim then went out to dinner at Austin's.

We chose a short day today, 48 miles, the weather service called for severe thunderstorms coming in with a front of cooler air later in the afternoon. *

We went up the Chesapeake Bay and then headed through the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal to Chesapeake City. The C& D canal was first opened for business in 1829. The canal is government-owned and a toll free link of the Intracoastal Waterway that connects the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays. Chesapeake City marks the end of the Chesapeake Bay heading North. The town was established in 1829 when ships had to be "locked through". Today even though the locks are locks are gone, it serves as the embarkation point where ships transiting the Chesapeake Bay pick up a pilot

Because of the current we chose the Chesapeake Inn Restaurant & Marina over the Schaefer's Canal House.

The entrance of the marina was very shallow. We asked the dockhand about the depth coming in. He said about 6 feet around the dock but it could be shallower around the entrance. He advised us to stay close to the red mark because it would be deeper over there.

Good thing after we docked we notice a couple of sailboats run aground behind us. They weren't near the red mark.

Aaron and Jay are washed down the boat. Karyn did the dishes. Laura is eight. That about says it all.

Chesapeake City was less than Mark Schulstad from the Yacht Center said it would be. Mark said you could do the town in one hour, he was generous. We walked around town. Most of the stores in town "shut down" @ 3:00 PM. Then we went to eat at the Chesapeake Inn & Marina, which is an absentee owner business and it really show it in every way conceivable way. It looked rather new but while looking around we began to notice it wasn't kept up. More so than just the table be dirty when we sat down. Then the waitress dumped a diet coke onto Patti's lap and our new Video Camera, yes directly on it. When we got back the sailboat was still aground behind us. *

Later the kids walked over for ice cream at the Canal Creamery.

The Blair (Baynard) House was nice, we had dinner there. We had a wonderful gazpacho and shared Baked Brie and then dessert. That was enough food for us.

On the Delaware River we encountered 2-3' seas overcast 62 degrees and threatening. 15 miles out the Coast Guard warned us that Small Craft warnings were being posted for Cape May and the Delaware Bay and that the seas were going to rise to 5-7 foot winds picking up to 20 to 25 mph. We beat it in but there were some trawlers and sailboats that would have to weather it. It's so nice to have a 24-MPH cruising boat to run away from the approaching storms. The sailboat and trawler captains were in their foul weather gear; we were on the enclosed bridge with light coats on safe and comfortable. Weather looks overcast and rainy for the rest of the week. We will have to run outside the coast of NJ up to NY. We will pick our day wisely. *

We came through the C&D Canal and ran down the Delaware River. Going down the Delaware River we caught up to and passed one large cargo ship. Then we ventured out of the channel (federally regulated channel) to set course for Cape May Inlet. Once at the inlet we followed the Cape May-Lewes ferryboat in. Local knowledge always is helpful. Inside the inlet we saw a dredge. Jim called to check which side we should pass. The captain said to pass and show him our starboard and pass close along side him. We got down to just a 6ft depth going by. We went through the canal slowly to Cape May Harbor. It was low tide and shallow. Once in the Harbor we called the Canyon Club Marina. The marina was also shallow.

Cape May. Explorer Cornelius Jacobsen Mey, sent by the Dutch East India Company to explore the coast, found the climate "charming " and lent his name to the shore area. The gingerbread of Victorian architecture is a recurrent theme in Cape May. At the southeastern most tip of the state, Cape May is one of the oldest seashore resorts on the Atlantic Coast. During the first half of the 19^th century it rivaled Newport as a favored summer retreat for Philadelphia and New York socialites. Pirate Captain Kidd, is also suppose to have filled his water casks near Lily Pond.

After checking in the Marina we sent and received e-mails. Then we took a taxi into town where we tried to find "Taylor Pork Roll." We came close; the driver took us to the Promenade. The kids got Pizza and Patti and Jim got hot sandwiches. We then walked around the stores. The kids were given $ 5.00 to spend. Aaron found an Orange creamsicle fudge ice-cream. Most of the rest was spent at the arcade. Afterwards the kids picked out t-shirts and designs and had them made. The Pizza, that kids ate, looked so good we brought one back to the boat in the taxi for dinner. We also had the driver stop for milk. There was nothing near the marina. After we got back we got fuel in the boat.

As I write you it's 7:30 AM Wed. and we are in Cape May, NJ. Were looking @ the weather channel today, "yes we have satellite on the boat, It was on the must have list just for this reason. Were waiting till 9:00 AM for a band of rain to move past us to the North, it's around Atlantic City now. We should be able to pass between this storm to our north and the next band over Pennsylvania and get into Manasquan Inlet, (Point Pleasant, NJ) tonight. 105 miles offshore + inlet distances. We will be in Manasquan for two days I am guessing. STRONG STORMS THURSDAY and marginal weather through the weekend. The trawler in front of us left @ 6:30 AM headed north, we passed him in the Delaware River, he does about 7 -8 mph. I figure he's going to get hit dead on with the weather. Boaters can be such Masochists sometimes. The Marina we are in will give you rides into town; they blew off the dockhands and walked in, 3 miles one way. We call it the "Camping Mentality". We're getting names for a lot of different things.*

We checked the weather in the morning. We waited for radar rain clouds to pass over. We decided to head out for Matasquan. We added 120 gallons fuel we followed m/v Headquarter out of the Marina we talked to them on the radio. They were also going out to head up but only to Atlantic City. We decided after seeing how big the seas were that we would only go to AC too. Three got seasick on the way. We also had to keep a sharp eye out for fishing pots.

Atlantic City a leading East Coast resorts during the late 1800's began a fishing village. It probably would have remained so had not someone noted that the configuration of the coast spared the island some heavy storms, and that the nearness of the Gulf Stream tempered its climate. The Boardwalk was first laid in 1870 to keep hotel lobbies and railroad cars free from sand. Since then the Boardwalk has been the city's best -know attraction. Since 1978 nearly a dozen casino- hotels have opened.

6/14/2000 Wed. 5:45 PM

Well, were at Atlantic City, NJ. The weather service said Cape May; NJ and Delaware basin was 2-4' seas, 15-mph winds. That was true for the first 7 miles then 5-8' seas, 15 mph winds with the occasional 9'er and the corresponding "hole in the ocean" to drop into. The seas and wind were at an odd angle to each other and were quartering to us. But we did miss the rain. Really no fun, so we pulled into Atlantic City after being beat up over the 45 mile run, we'll be here at LEAST 2 days @ Harrah's Marina, the kids wanted a heated indoor pool. And we have a phone line in the boat we were never in any danger, nor did we feel the least bit threatened by the weather, the boat is extremely solid. The skipper brave and true, etc. etc.

Susanne, Jim's 24 year old, SINGLE daughter is coming down to spend the night with us on the boat, and tomorrow so is a friend of Patti's.

Well, it's Friday and were still here, the local weather channel said it was 9-mph winds at 9 AM with no gusts in Atlantic City. I've come to the conclusion that either this is at AC airport, (inland) or if it is recorded here, THEY LIE. The wind is howling the flags are flying STRAIGHT out, and Patti was blown back buy a gust of wind as she stepped off the boat. *

Patti did 5 loads of laundry

Kathy, Patti's Sister was down yesterday, and Susanne, Jim's Daughter was down the day before and spent the night. Our kids noticed some things here in AC, they have seen people just throw their garbage in the street, and they saw a street sweeper stop to pick up a piece of mail in the street, and then open it and look inside. The gamblers are a dismal bunch; sorry if that offends anyone. The weather channel now says winds @ 16 mph. The VHF Marine Radio's weather band says the offshore buoys say 25 mph, this is more realistic. Aaron says the gusts are 30 mph at least, I agree. The boat is sitting in Harrahs Marina, just behind Harrahs Casino. The tide races under the boat an incredible rate. I estimate 3.5 to 4 mph at the peak. It's so fast that the floating dock behind us has an 8" difference from one side to the other, yes I said 8". Sort of scary when you're tied up to it. The marina has tried to put in a breakwater but has been turned down, the state says it would cause the rest of the channel to run even faster. They're right of course. Big money lost this one this time, but as big money will, they will be back.

We met John & Marge and their daughter Brianna from the Rartian Yacht Club here, (Perth Amboy, NJ) Jim's hometown. A Freedom 44 Britanya. Jim was a member of the Raritian Yacht Club 30 years ago. They spent three weeks going 150 miles. The weather has been the pits offshore. They talked about the McCanns now running Boozes mooring service, and the Lightners and a few other friends. They offered us their mooring at the club as they are heading to South America. We spent last night talking with them on their Freedom 44 sailboat.*

Patti, the kids went to Ocean City, NJ with her friend Denise and her stepdaughter Megan and Patti's sister Kathy. Ocean City is a dry town on the Jersey shore. When the Lake Brothers, all ministers, established the summer resort in 1879 they decreed that no liquor would be sold, this injunction is still in effect. That's where Patti and her family had a house when she was younger. Patti's past-times the kids call it. They walked the boardwalk. They stopped to eat at the foodcourt. Went in the stores while Jay rode some waves and chased the birds. They got soft ice cream at Kohrs on the boardwalk. Karyn got an OCBP sweatshirt. On the way back to the boat we stopped at Lucy the Margate Elephant in Margate City. Lucy is a building in the shape of an elephant complete with a canopied seat called a howdah. Six stories high and built of wood and tin, it was constructed in 1881 by real estate developer James V. Lafferty to draw prospective buyers to his holding. It has served as a real estate office, a residence and a tavern. Driving through Atlantic City the kids noticed some of the Street names that perpetuated some of the names on the Monopoly Board. Avenues parallel to the ocean are named for oceans or seas: Arctic, Mediterranean and Baltic. With few exceptions, streets perpendicular to the ocean bear the names of state in order roughly approximating the state's geographic position. Kathy brought the Clausen's back to the boat we dropped off the kids except for Jay an then we went to a supermarket just North of Atlantic City in Brigantine.

We are all spent and can us the extra time to recover. There are fisherman who (drift) past the docks here, the tidal race really moves them along. 40% chance of thunderstorms this afternoon, I'm going to put in a 6th line to the dock and an extra fender, we have a bow, cross stern and two springs and a close stern already. Rain is in the forecast for the next two days as a front passes over us. The pool here is indoors as well as the miniature golf. Break out the Nintendo and move into neutral.

News flash, Patti just came in with a sad face, she put in 3 quarters of her laundry money and won $25.00. MORE TO FOLLOW. They may have created a monster.

Patti did 4 loads of laundry

Hi, from PC this time. I wanted to set record straight on my gambling experience. We got a lot of e-mails about it. Well, I didn't tell Jim everything until after we left AC. Yes, I did win $25 and I also used more than 3 quarters. I had gone into the casino earlier in the day to get a $5.00 roll of quarters for laundry. For Laundry, really. Later while I was doing the laundry, and I was putting the quarters in the machine. I decided to take a walk into the casino. I mean we had already been there a couple of days and I had stayed away. I ended up putting12 quarters in one at a time and won 100 quarters. I even got my initial investment back. Jim said I could bet another $2.50 so I went right back (he thought I would at least wait awhile and was surprised later to find out I went back so fast.) I won another

15 quarters gain, but all of these went right back in the one arm bandit. Luckily, I only brought the $2.50 back in the casino so I couldn't loose anymore than that. I hate to loose more than I love to win. So even though I'm still $23.00 ahead I now feel bad that I lost the extra that I won. Time to walk way. After I stopped betting I did go back again to check out my slot machine. Another lady was playing it, I saw her go through at least a100 quarters and put more paper money in it. She was betting 5 coins at a time and just pushing the button. I was just doing my one-quarter and I would pull the arm. Of course I would cash out anytime I won, just to hear the coin fall. I know it's small time but I look at it as I won 23 loads of laundry. I carried my bucket of quarters to the boat and keep them in it, saving them for Laundry.

4 loads of laundry. *

We got up at 6:30 AM Jim was up even earlier. First we check the weather on the weather channel. We listened to Noah on the weather radio and then we went up to 16th floor of Harrahs to look out at the inlet. We decided to go for it. We went back down and headed out. We had following seas, which helped for a smother ride. The weather was so good and the waves working so well we decided to go further. We went into Manasquan but only to buy fuel. We bought 120 gallons of fuel. It was a zoo, Patti then realized it was Saturday. We continued on past Sandyhook. And the Highlands, which takes its name from the hills that rise abruptly from the shore. The 266-foot Mount Michelle is one of the first points of land sighted by ships bound for New York Harbor. Aaron and Jim had already charted the route and put all the GPS coordinates in. We went up the Ambrose channel, under the Verazano Bridge. Pass Coney Island. We went past the Staten Island ferry. Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, World Trade Building, rose island, United Nations. Through Hells Gate with 6 knot current. Past Riker Island, the East River we got into Manhassett Bay. We stopped for fuel at Capri Marina. We bought 135 gallons of fuel in Manhassett. Aaron noticed the Price is up $2.00 gallon. We had paid $1.02 a gallon earlier in the trip. Dockage is also up $2.00 ft.

The girls washed down the boat and the boys straightened up inside. It was hot and humid. We all went for a swim at the pool and ate at the snack bar. $62.00 later. Welcome to New York. Back on the boat Jim checked the batteries with Jay he found one dead cell. He disconnected that one so it would drain on the other. We got a few drops of rain, it was all around us but somehow we once again managed to miss it. It's 8:45 and I feel it's past my bedtime. *

Raining Jim and Patti went up to snack bar for breakfast sandwich. The rolls were stale so we took water taxi up town. We asked to go downtown and the driver said we were downtown so we went up town. We found a Greek deli and NY Italian deli. We bought food back to boat.

We had to wait in the Marina for the tide to come in enough for us to leave the Marina. The change is real big here. Finally we had enough water beneath us and we were able to motor up Long Island Sound. One of our high points of the trip was having a submarine suddenly appear on the horizon. We pulled into the Newport Yachting Center in our old hometown, for fuel and ending up getting a "preseason" slip. Jim and Patti walked up the hill to Puerini's, which was always one of our favorite restaurants in town, for dinner. Afterwards we got in the kitchen and found out finally how to make Jim's favorite dish, Chicken Marsala, "the old style." We were always missing one secret ingredient. Our friends Donna and Glenn Leathem stopped by to us.

We picked up a rental car, and drove to the Coffee Corner for breakfast. Our favorites here are their Stuffed French Toast and Huevos Rancheros. Patti walked over her Mom and Dad's apartment with the kids. Her Father Frank Byrne was heading out to a Rotary Meeting with his good John Drake. Patti headed over with her mother and the kids to t he Newport Creamery. When we got back to Summer School our friends Brian and Marianne Needham stopped by and we had champagne. They are members of the Newport Yacht Club who were receiving the single handed cross Atlantic Racers. Later, our friends Al and Regina Shers stopped over with their son, Kevin. We all walked over to Brick Alley Pub, another one of our favorite Newport Restaurants where the Shers treated us to dinner, thank you very much.

We went to the Newport Creamery with the children for breakfast. While we were there we did 10 loads of laundry next door, at Toppas Laundry, during breakfast at. Our friend Dave Deyo stopped by to join us for breakfast and the we went to his house. We saw "little" Dave and his pet iguana. Patti went over to visit her parents. Later we went out to our friends Steve and Jeanne Grimes for a pleasant dinner. While we were there our friends George and Sandy Steele called and we arranged for them to stop by the boat in the morning.

Our friends Ann and Jack Twomey stopped by in the morning along with the Sandy, George and their son, Jamie. The Steeles also brought Donuts for all of us for breakfast. That afternoon we drove over to our friends Bill and Jean Babcocks for a wonderful Lobster Dinner and we got to see their new house. They did a great job building. It felt a little strange at first because it was just like their old house but different. It was as if they had stretched the old house to make it handicap accessible. The kids flew kites, Jay flew his seagull kite with his fishing pole. Bill kept saying it looked really real. While at their house, Lois Mussell called to tell Jeanne that the Italian boat is arriving over night. They were suppose to greet the boat and act as a liaison when they arrive. Jeanne asked if we would deliver strawberries to the boat in the morning since we will be close by.

We agreed.

Patti went by the trailer in the morning to check on Italian boat and found out that the boat hadn't arrived yet

Jay and Patti rode on Oldport launch to check the Vickers mooring in Brenton Cove. They had offered it to for use during our stay. We decided instead to move the boat to Oldport Mooring 113 in front of Yachting center about 2/3 across the Harbor. It turned out to be very close to our friends Jeff and Carol Bosech's sailboat, Blonde Stranger.

We went to another old favorite, Flos for Lunch. Then we went to Castle Hill to see Elizabeth, she used to baby-sit the kids. We drove around Brenton State Park, had Dell's Lemonade and bought kite string. We moved our stuff to the Grimes house in Portsmouth RI. They have a lovely home over looking the Sakonet and were going out of town. They were nice enough to offer their house while they were away.

The Steeles called and we them asked what time did they want us over. George told us now would be good. We headed over, we had told them because of Jim's and Karyn's allergies to their cats we couldn't stay long and we had to stay outside. Their must have been a misunderstanding because they had a generous amount of food that we could not to stay to enjoy. We also found out that the Italian boat had come in and we had to get down to the Newport Yacht Club.. We went to Newport Yacht club to give Strawberries to the Italian monosailer that had just arrived. He seemed very happy to see us and started eating the strawberries right out of the bucket.

We stopped at Walts and then saw David Deyo briefly. He will be joining us on the next leg of the trip. On the way back to the Grimes' house we stopped for a quick visit at our friends Charlie and Janet Igos' house. They gave us a tour of their property, they had expanded their fish pond since our last visit and their yard was beautiful. They have a horse, a dog and a cat.

Jeanne arrived in the morning to make pancakes for the children. She was on her way back from a Graduation in Long Island and heading out to join Steve on Cape Cod. Jim and Patti had breakfast at Foodworks. We stopped at Clemets market everyone has been talking about their new market with a new sushi counter We saw Steve's brother, Dom at the Sushi Counter, we bought some items to take back to the house. Patti did 5 loads of laundry. That night Patti took the kids to back to Newport for another visit with Grandma and Grandpa Byrne. Later we watched My FAIR Lady back at the Grimes.

We woke up at Grimes, packed our bags and headed back to boat. When we got back we all slept. It seems we have gotten used to being on the boat and actually missed being on her. Patti took the kids in to walk around town. We checked out the shops. Aaron found a T-shirt he liked with a lobster playing the Saxophone.

Patti discovered Elizabeth's was open on Thames Street. We used to enjoy this restaurant a lot and were disappointed years ago when they had closed. Patti and Jim headed their for dinner. What I remember most however was it was hot. It was strange to be in a restaurant without air conditioning.

It was Foggy today. Our friend's Steve and Marianne Griffin came out to the boat by launch with muffins, cinnamon buns and Danish from the market. After a pleasant visit we drove up Providence, RI to visit the Italian section on Federal Hill. We ate lunch at Andinos. All the kids tried Calamari. Karyn and Jay even liked it. That night we went to Boesch's house for dinner. The kids enjoyed playing with their children, Hunter and Colton. Lil Dave stopped by the boat.

Thank You Friends. You made us feel like we were home. If, as we thought we lost some weight coning up the ICW we certainly put it back on in Newport. We were in Newport for 8 days; we put off going to the Vineyard, and Nantucket and chose a longer stay in Newport. Good Choice. We ate and visited, and ate. We left Newport and went through the LI Sound back to Port Washington, NY and then around Manhattan Island, again, just because, and up the Hudson River to Kingston, NY. We spent the night in Roundout Creek and left then next day for the Erie Canal, were here 6/30/00 on the Erie Canal above lock 6, (there is no lock #1, it was replaced with a new #2). David Deyo is with us; he joined us at Newport for the trip up. Life is good. When we first got to Roundout Creek, we heard the Erie Canal was shut down. Well, what happened was a dam blew out around lock # 10 and they had to lower the level of the connecting pools to work on replacing the dam. Work should be complete around 7/2/00. But we called and the pool level is now rising and there should be no problem for our boat. But there have been other boats here for over a month waiting. They generally draw more water than we do. We will have to sign a waver to go through tomorrow but they say no problem for a 4' draft boat. OK!!!! Everything is running well and we've over 1800 miles under the keel. And of course we are all well. *

Karyn and Laura washed down the boat. Patti went to do 2 loads of laundry she had trouble finding enough quarters, no casino's in sight.

Jim and Dave fixed the awning the one bar needed to be raised slightly and Jim added the black strips for drainage. They also added oil. We walked over to PW's Chowder for dinner. The boys Jim and Dave had filet mignon and shrimp cocktail and Patti had the corn and crab chowder with Tuna. The food was better than the frozen drinks.

Went around lower Manhattan and saw the Statue of Liberty again. After we arrived at Roundout Yacht Basin and were waiting to get fuel and dockage . We noticed the Fleming, Leatherback we saw at Coinjock and Virginia was here. While fueling we found out that some Locks are closed on the Erie Canal until July 2^nd. Not good news. It started to rain as we docked. The dockhand untied a line from the Bluewater boat next to us we were coming in and had it floating in the slip as we backed in. That also meant that as were docking he was retrieving the line on the boat instead of catching our line. Luckily the man from the boat on the other side helped us and Aaron and Dave were quick to get off the stern to do the lines.

Jim, Patti and Dave and Jim went to the dock store to find out more about the area and the locks. We bought a colorful chart book on the Erie and New York Canal. Patti asked if Caeli came through and found out that she had arrived and was actually was dry dock at the Marina. The dockhand told us there was a story but he was too busy to get it. The dockhand had come up on a boat Getting There and Caeli had asked to follow him for a while before the Rock. He referred to it as the boat that wouldn't float.

Jay, Karyn and Laura headed to the pool. Patti went out to find Caeli. Dave and Jim checked out the shower sump pump. We ordered out for Pizza and meatball parm subs and a cheese steak delivered to the boat.

Patti found a supermarket in the Marina literature that said they would provide transportation. She called and a young man came out in a Green Susuki to pick her up. He even told her to ask the cashier for the boaters' discount. It turned out to be 5%, which she gave back to her driver after he brought her back to the Marina. There was no one working the IGA store over 25 and they even had the Yankee game playing on the radio. They only had Adirondack soda. And two 12 packs of Pepsi for David. One was Caffeine so I only got one regular. They did have Land o lakes cheese and Boars head meats. The driver was real good and pulled the car around while she was checking out and even loaded the car and her cart at the Marina. On the docks Patti met the couple aboard Mariah, she was not the same boat as the one we had seen in Chesapeake City.

Dave and Jim worked on the sump pump for the shower; they added all new parts again.

After Breakfast we headed out. Passed Rockin Robin and Mariah on the way. Went through the Troy lock and locks 2-6 on the Erie Canal. We pulled into Blain Marina. We went in very slowly and carefully because the Depth sounder kept going off. We made it in fine. Linda from Grace greeted us. She works at the Marina in the summer and lives on their boat Grace with her husband Bill. They were going to name it Amazing Grace but decided the name was too long and shortened it to Grace. They had also brought the boat up from Florida. I think Ft. Lauderdale. They had to cheat at the end and have it trucked in the last part. So that she could arrive in time to work at the Marina.

We lowered the seadoo and Dave took the boys out for a ride. They had a pot luck picnic tonight dockside with hot dogs and Hamburgers. We brought out shrimp and Karyn made Banana Bread. We had to turn off the AC to run the convection oven since the power was so low on the dock. We met some of the crew on the other boats. We met two other couples of the Great Loop Club, Ann 7 Tom Caywood of Manana and Frank and Sue Clements of Dos Amigos. Several boats have been waiting at Blain Marina for the locks to officially open. A lot of "Canada" not Canadian Geese came by. We saw one with a white head and Canada goose body. They said it was a mixed marriage. We also saw 5 baby ducks. Karyn and Laura feed some. We saw Wooden Shoe III at the dock. We had locked through with them just before Norfolk, VA. We heard that he had to go to the Hospital because of a Bleeding ulcer. He then flew home to be checked out by his doctor. Jay, Karyn and Aaron took the seadoo out and then Jim took Laura out for a ride. He had to take a shower afterwards. Jim and Dave worked on leaks on the front portholes. Then they changed the cable way into the throttle linkage for the engine. Jay helped put screws in while the other kids took showers. Jay did a good job and didn't give up.

And will be closed until July 2d. BUT..... After talking to other people.... You can sign a waver and IF your draft is less then 5,' ours is 4,' you can transit through...

Were here on the Hudson River 45 or so miles south of the Erie canal's entrance at Troy, NY.

The first report is that locks 9 through 13 are closed, closing about 32 miles of the canal... Lock #10 is under repair. It should be completed by July 2d. There is an air of pessimism here at the marina. It seems like some people have been here waiting for a while. But when we look around they are mostly 5' plus draft vessels. Were trying to get more information, we'll call tomorrow. *

Lock 12 Rains caused such flooding that the amount of water and debris sent down the river "Blew Out" a gate. Well, the water went over the dam, the lock and everything else by 3'. That was about two and a half weeks ago, we watched the workmen and had a great view. Boats JUST started going through via "waivers" about 4-5 days ago. Dam 13 released water to fill the pool and the parade has started. *

When we arrived at Lock 12 we debated going through or not but we decided to tie off just south of the Lock. This is the lock that that the dam was broken at after the storm. They were almost finished with the coffer dam.

Patti, Laura, and Aaron walked a little over a mile (round trip) to the store up the hill. We thought it might me cool to bring a Pizza back to the others. The lady in the store said we would have to wait 10 minutes because she was alone and would have go in the back to make it. They had a big sign out side for milk shakes so the kids asked for them to which they ere told they had to wait 10 minutes because she didn't know how to make them. We did wait for the milkshakes but we changed our mind on the Pizza. Good thing because instead Jim cooked filet mignon steaks on the grill, we accompanied this with bernaise sauce, baked potato, salad and Ravenswood Dickerson Zin. The most memorable meal on in Patti's book on the boat. All of this on less than a 1/4 of tank of water. We had to disconnect the water hose the night before and forgot to top of the water tank before we left. We ended using water out of our tanks for our morning showers. Oops. Well the dishes can wait until morning this time. We got a bucket of water out of the canal to save water while flushing. For the record we never did run out, but we had to become very conservative.

The coffer dam is finished at lock 12 on the Erie Canal, there was a $30,000. a day penalty if it was not done. Cost to build the dam $1.6 mil. Today, Sunday July 2d, the dam closed and started to rebuild the pool and we were there. We signed the wavier and went through before it was built up all the way and they had a chance to put the channel markers back in place, 7.5' was the lowest we found. *

We went a whole 50 miles today.

The train tracks as well as an Interstate Hwy. (I 90) parallel the Erie Canal. The trains run constantly and they are over 100 cars in length. You "feel" them coming when you are on the canal, they pound the land and their vibrations are transmitted into and through the water and vibrate the boat. The train line here is running double decker shipping containers. We saw big trains out west but never double shipping containers before. The kids were catching crawfish yesterday alongside the lock walls. There are millions of them up here. I asked a fisherman, "Does anyone catch them and have crawfish broils, or can you get them locally?" Nope. They might use some for bait for fishin' but that's about it. They lowered a lock all the way here recently and they literally covered the bottom of the lock. Amazing, in New Orleans you pay dear for them.

Do not think for a minute you require higher brain functions to operate a boat. We see it everyday, stupid things. There's a sailboat that we have seen every day for 4 days now. The IQ of the couple seams to be in the 85 to 90 range. Patti was going to video them one day coming into a lock but it was just painful to watch. A comedy of errors, got the line, lost the line, dropped the boat hook over board, almost stepped on the dog, (this is a 24' sailboat with two adults and a dog). OH Joy. At least we have seen no major boat bashing, we've been out about 44 days or so. Everyone got pulled in the tube behind the boat today the water temp was 78, I was VERY good to Patti, I was VERY tempted to be BAD and dump her BIG TIME. I didn't.

There is a NEW marina in Brewerton that has indoor heated boat storage I want to check it out in two day when we pass by. Perhaps we'll back track and leave the boat there if all works out. The big boats are starting to come through tonight, a new 85' monster came by earlier this evening, purposely built for the Erie Canal height restrictions, with hinged masts and quick folding antennas. We've been getting our mail and spare parts forwarded to us along the way, little things, really. We fly a flag on out GPS mount for the "Great Loppers" and met two other couples doing the loop two days back from Texas. We also fly a Great Lakes Cruising Club Burgee on the bow and expect to run into them up on the Great Lakes.

Jay (11) was running the boat into and out of the locks on his own, Aaron took it out of a lock once, and Patti tried it in and out once. My money is on Jay, he's a natural. His hand movements and instincts are excellent. The boat is beginning to get that "lived in look." We might need an "lay day" soon to clean her up and get her into her fighting trim. Then again, we might do that on a weather delay day.

Did you ever have a memory that you couldn't just quite catch? I'm have one and can't decide if it is a fragment of a dream I'm remembering, or if it's real. I usually get it in the morning and by the time I "go through the morning ritual" it's gone. It's been around for a month or so, I'm trying the pen and paper by the bed trick. Or is it the onset of senior moments. I'll keep everyone up dated. Or is this another form of cabin fever? I myself can't wait for the answer.*

Yes, Skinners Harbor, Sylvan Beach, NY. Yes, its on the Erie Canal. The East side of Lake Oneida. 2 days travel to Lake Ontario. We found out yesterday, (it was raining lightly all day and we were motoring) that the coffer dam let go on the dam under repair @ lock 9, whoosh, and there was a problem on the dam @ lock 10, a section also let go. They, the Canal System engineers, measured and agreed to let boats drawing 6' or less pass after they sorted out the mess. The NY State Canal System has had some problems this year, but we seem to be past them.

Just a note: the big lock 17 at Little Falls used 5,000,000 gallons of water to lift our boat 40.5 feet. The lock tender said he could drop all that water in 6 minutes if he wanted to, but of course there could be no boats in the lock chamber.

We worked on cleaning the boat inside and out. Good thing we weren't going anywhere because it was a Zoo on the water. We saw a car boat driving around a lot. Boats would pull in front of us to get fuel. Some were not very good drivers. Low IQ. Dave and Debbie came down. We watched video of the trip with David from Newport. Then boys started working on the fuel gauges while Debbie and Patti went to the next town for food. It was a big supermarket so Patti bought a lot. We got Hamburgers for tonight. Debbie made Pasta salad. They were finishing up about the time the girls returned. We cooked Hamburgers on the Grill. Aaron made frozen drinks. We went upstairs to watch the fireworks from the boat. After the fireworks we watched the parade of boats go by. We could also see the line of traffic going both ways on the bridge.*

We picked up Debbie Miller @ Skinners Landing and Dave Deyo is still with us. They have the Penthouse. (sun pads up on the command bridge) Great Views, but the temperature control is a bit lacking.*

Debbie's son Lucas dropped off Debbie and Dave. While pumping out the head a seaplane taxied by and took off over Oneida Lake. We headed across the lake ourselves. On the way out we saw a yellow boat that looked like it had sunk the day before.

We stopped at Winter Haven Marina in Brewertown, NY to check out the winter storage. Inside and heated. He is sending out contracts and will give everyone 2 weeks to respond. We went through 1 lock on the Erie Canal and then we stopped by Lock 1 on the Oswego Canal. They have a program where the children do community service by working for the boats at the old Lockhouse. They had free coffee, lemonade and icetea. They also took orders for the local restaurants and went to get the food and brought it to us at the table. Karyn made friend with one Brat, DeeDee. I did 5 loads of laundry and laundry mat next to the dock. We walked up for IceCream. Watermelon, Raspberry and Blue goo. The sun was setting when we got back to the boat.

Erie Canal, GONE

Oswego Canal, GONE

Lake Ontario, GONE

2100 + miles under the keel.

Were at Bonnie Castle Resort in Alexander Bay, NY. On the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Spot we have is just phenomenal. Protected from the Seaway by 50' of lawn and DIRECTLY across from Boldt Castle. And the sky and clouds, are a beautiful clear blue with puffy white clouds and just a crisp nip in the air. Just Perfect.*

We went through the Oswego Canal and crossed Lake Ontario to the thousand Islands. The weather at Lake Ontario was great, light overcast, seas under 1' and winds 5 to 10. When we arrived at Alexander Bay ,the Marina didn't answer the radio.

We tried to phone them and they said their radio didn't work but then they went out and looked at us. We could just pull right in Keeping the Welcome to Bonnie Crest sign on the left. It was shallow with 4.2 being the lowest depth we saw. We were tempted when they didn't have a radio not to stay but it turned out to be one of the best slips with a great view of the river and of Bolt castle, and the light house.

Within 10 minutes of pulling into the dock we had a Muskrat swim around our boat and find the exhausts he swam into and up one only to find out how warm it must have been inside. He came out real quick. I suspect he will be back. I'm going to start up the engines daily just to discourage any building attempts or second home thoughts he may harbor.*

We have picnic tables and a great view of the sunset. We cooked sweet Italian sausage and summer sausage on the grill. Aaron made frozen drinks. We had wine, cheese, crackers, pate , Italian mushrooms and fresh pineapple. It was very fun. The girls Barbie and Ken even got in to the act. But that's another story but we got it on video.

Patti and kids went to Bolt Castle on Heart Island. They were impressed with the architecture and the size, but were disappointed that the rooms did not have furniture. I think the Newport Mansions have spoiled them. The man who built the castle was Mr. George Bolt who was the owner of the Bellevue and Stanford Hotels in Philadelphia and also was the proprietor of the Waldorf Hotel in NYC which was later added to by the Astoria Hotel. He changed the way guests were treated in hotel. When he bought the island he change the spelling of the name from Hart to Heart. After owning the island he added other building, a few years later he had the original house taken down and started building the castle. He spent over 2 million dollars but stopped all the work when his wife died in 1904 and he never went back to the island. That is why it was never finished or furnished. It was abandoned and deteriorated until the Thousand Island Bridge Authority took control in 1977 and started tours. They have been fixing it up ever since. Karyn was disappointed that it didn't have any furniture. Then we walked around Alexander Bay. Not too much in this town. Jim had brunch with our neighbors, Michael and Louise Jackson. They are from Canada and leave the boat here for the summer. Dave and Debbie walked around town and tried several restaurants until they found one where they were waited on. They ended up eating at Captain Thomsons. The hotel where Aaron fell off the water bed 13 years ago. Dave and Jim worked on the throttle linkage again. They think they got it this time. Jim, Patti, Dave and Debbie went to Riverside for Windows on the Bay for the Seafood and Beef Buffett. The cold salads were good, the crab was great and beef was also very good. Jim, Patti and the kids watched the movie Sleepy Hollow except for Laura who went to bed. Later the kids said she was smart because it was scary. They watched it until the end so it would be better.*

Patti is sitting now at the picnic table beside the dock with the ibook , Aaron is next to her designing a barbie castle for the girls similar to Bolt Castle which happens to be in front of him. Jim has two chairs , one for his feet sitting by the St. Lawrence River reading about the locks on the St. Laurence. The girls have a blanket laid out in the shade playing Barbie's. Jay, Dave and Debbie are out on the sea doo explorer.

Well that didn't last long next thing Patti was out on the sea doo with the girls, then Aaron and Laura and then Jay. They all got a ride around Bolt Castle. Their was a medieval wedding going on with costumes at the castle. When I took the kids around the island on the sea doo yesterday we saw a wedding go on with the wedding party and many of the guests dressed up in medieval dress After Meatballs with sweet and sour sauce Jay and Patti found the shortest international bridge by following the Garanque ferry. Jay went fishing. Karyn, Laura and Aaron cleaned the boat. Debbie's children Ashley and Lucus came by and picked up her and David. Light dinner tonight. The kids played with the children from the Sea Ray next door Magic . Another beautiful sunset and shower time for the kids. We all got sun.*

We've been busy. Haven't had a chance to write. Still updating the log from when we were in Newport. We've been having great weather for 10 days. Today it's raining, we saw coming. I was thinking about going to the Laundromat, the dock master had even offered to give me a ride but with the rain it seemed best just to stay inside and have hot chocolate and go over charts of where to go next. Out the window I can still see tour boats going by Bolt Castle on Heart Island. I'm not sure if people are getting off or not. I wouldn't want to walk around today.. What a difference a day makes in weather.*

On our first day in Kingston, Ontario, Karyn and I went food shopping. We walked to a "big" supermarket that they recommended at the dock office. We immediately noticed things were different then we're accustomed to when we had to pay a 25 cent deposit to get a shopping cart. I went inside to get a roll of Canadian quarters (I would need them later for laundry) I thought it was strange that their wasn't a customer service window. We went back outside and it looked like a bank across the street. We went in and it turned out to be a liquor store. So we got our roll of quarters and found a bottle of wine. Good deal, eh? Back in supermarket it got stranger. Everything in the store seemed to be a big size with not much variety. When we discovered they didn't have a deli or bakery we gave up and put all but a couple items back. At checkout we discovered it was an extra 5 cents for a plastic bag. We got our 25 cents back for our cart and walked to the A&P. Jim had suggested we take a taxi there in the first place. He was right. Karyn thought it was really strange that the milk comes in liter bags. It does feel weird. The only thing we couldn't find was American cheese. I still can't seem to find it anywhere. Jim says that's because were in Canada, but I can't even find anything that looks like it.

Jim and I went in for dinner. We saw the ladis from MV "Manana" and "Los Amigos". They had made through the Erie Canal and had gotten in Yesterday. They were the lasts ones through lock 9 before it broke. The lock attendant even opened the doors again so that they could go through. It blew 15 minutes after they got through. They said they knew it was going to blow and had all the equipment there already.

We ended up at the Thai Restaurant that we passed earlier on the way to McDonalds. *

Jim and Patti headed into town for breakfast. We tried the bagel place we bought Coffee at yesterday. The bagels were not as good as Einstein's in Orlando.

Later we learned that when they were swimming in the basin, that that was one of the most heavily snake populated basins in Canada. Luckily they saw any, but we heard that sometimes there are so many that they come up in a boil.

28 miles in 9 hours and 45 minutes. We beein' lockin' since we left Kingstown Ontario. Including Florida, we went through 48 locks so far. And the Rideau has just about as many in itself. And now for a bit of History, The Rideau was completed in 1832, and still uses people power to open and close the lock gates and the valves. The depth is 5' or at least it should be, we use up 4'2", we've spoken to many people on the canal and the say, STAY IN THE CHANNEL. You will hit bottom out of the channel. This is the Niagara Escarpment, (all rock) no sand or mud here. There are 14 locks to raise your boat and 31 to drop her into Ottawa, and the Ottawa River. We be lockin'. We stayed in Kingstown Ontario an extra day, 14 loads of laundry told us to stay. Patti calls this a change of location not a vacation. Well, at least that the case when it's laundry day. Were drinking wine tonight, big surprise, we're beat, this was a tough 28 miles. The kids went swimming after we tied up, the water is 79 degrees. Pasta for dinner tonight, with more wine, It's going to be an early night, locks open at 8:30 AM and close at 7:00 PM, dockage at a lock costs .45¢ per foot CN, a deal for sure. Newport RI was $2.50 per foot US, but in fairness they gave us water and electric. The Canadian exchange is about $1.46 CN to $1. US. That's a deal for us on dockage and food, Fuel is sold by the liter, and when you do the math it's about $2.95 for regular per gallon. Win some lose some. I've been told Americans have been cherry picking some GREAT properties in Canada because of the exchange.

We have not met any family's of six over the last 50 or so days. We are the oddballs, that's nothing new to those of you who know us well. There are all older couples out here in big boats. Kids beware! We'll, the odd grand kid shows up from time to time at a marina but that's it. So our kids are on their own. So what's new there!

Here's notes to Maxum, we, the Clausens are not the demographic to use to market your boats. We have not met any families of six over the last 50 or so days. We are the oddballs, that's nothing new to those of you who know us well. There are all older couple out here. Kids beware. We'll, the odd grand kid shows up from time to time at a marina but that's it. So our kids are on their own. So what's new there!*

The Rideau is a great place for us, the water is pristine, the people nice, the air clean and crisp. The lock masters, (more than one) have told us we have the biggest Maxum they have ever seen. It is the biggest one Maxum makes. I tried to coax it into a space on a lock wall today. It might have fit, but Patti said, Jim No, your going to hit that boat. I of course listened to her, god help me if I didn't, I would never have hear the end of it. I might have made it. Maybe. I forgot just how big this boat was. Thanks Patti.

Smith Falls, on the upper lock wall. This place is a small piece of heaven, water to fill our tank from the lockmasters house, three restaurants you can walk to, a GREAT BIG supermarket, our kids are swimming off of the stern, and were in a park all by ourselves, almost.

Kids were towed in the tube behind the boat and later went to the playground.*

Friday, July 14, 2000

We rented a car and the six of us drove into Ottawa. We went to the Governor General's home for the changing of the guard, the Canadian Mint, The Canadian War Museum, and took in the Monet and Renoir Exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada. Very cool, but very tired feet.

We need a good 20 mile day to run and get past some low areas coming up and the weather is getting progressively worse today, RAIN. We have the weather channel on satellite TV. Yes, we are spoiled, and yes, we are still afloat and all talking to each other. rented a car. Went to Smith Falls Railway Museum of Eastern Ontario, Hershey Chocolate factory then we drove to Ottawa we saw Rideau Hall, the Governor Generals historic home and workplace footmen with bearskin hats so that horses would smell the bear and be afraid. Parliament, National Gallery of Canada, army exhibits outside of Canadian War museum and Royal Canadian Mint.

So we got ready to go today and had second thoughts. So, Patti took the kids to the Rideau Canal Museum one quarter mile away, we took them there 2 years ago when we drove here with our car, Patti wants to see how much the remember.

Walked with the kids to Rideau Canal museum. They swam off the stern of the boat again. Watched movies. Patti read more of her book Perfect Storm.

Saw two small boats pull in the lock and then out again. The lock attendant pointed and told them to go to the gray building. The Best Western They were very wet, one had a towel over his head and they headed over.*

We started up to go. I told the lock attendant that we were going. He said we would have to wait a while they are going to work on the dam. Jim started the engines and we headed over. The other boats were coming out. Two small boats that we saw come in yesterday started up and another boat came down the waterway. All 4 of us went through the first locks together. We entered the next one and a 39 ft boat, Nimbus with a couple and their mother came in. After we locked in I went out to help them with their lines. Then Patti overheard the Captain say we are not going to fit. Patti helped them, the captain was happy and asked to be hired on. The next lock they went next to us. We fended off them from out boat. This became the usual practice. We would lock in and watch them. Jim always makes it look easy. They were with us until _____ where they pulled in for fuel and maybe the night. The 4 guys in the two small boats were with all of us the whole day. One seem to be losing interest and the more they drank the more they would use the bathrooms at the lock houses.

Pirates Cove Marina, exactly where that is I do not know, we hit the bottom once today about 2:00 PM IN THE CHANNEL, WHAT WE HIT I DO NOT KNOW, NO DAMAGE DONE. And we hit again going into the marina, the "guys" on the dock say, Oh Yeah, dats the 4 foot bump, yeah we hit dat too but its clay so no harm done, EH? We wanted a nicer marina but were not in the nicer marina kind of area. This is like camping, except for the satellite TV. Only one AC unit will work, they are short on power here. We have to dock the boat bow in, that's bow into the grass. Get the picture. It's that kind of place, no staff at 5:30 PM, so the other boaters told us where to go. *

The good news is we did not bump on the way out, I coasted over the (hump) and we have no prop or gear problems after I ran her up. Bugs were vicious her. Never go here, never never never. Colin, the captain of the boat we've been locking with went down 5 miles past Pirates Cove, they had no dockage at all for a boat his size so they put him on the gas dock, we've been at gas docks after hours too. He said it was about the same for him where he was.*

At the first lock we caught up to Nimbus. The captains name is Colin. We are both headed for Dows Lake Pavilion.

We're in Ottawa @ Dowes Park Marina just above the final 8 locks that will drop us down to the Ottawa River, we'll go down just after 9 AM tomorrow. That's when the bridge will open up for us to travel, (after rush hour), locking will take three and a half hours at least. The Ottawa River is quite wild, few towns, and fewer marinas. Sort of the black hole of this years trip. At least the water is deep.*

_

This is no black hole. Were staying in the marina @ Le Chateau Montebello, a Canadian Pacific Hotel. A private 65,000 acre property, which includes 70 lakes. They own the Plaza in NY, and the hotel we stayed at in the Canadian Rockies last year. Very Nice. The hotel itself is like staying at the lodge at Yellowstone only better, it's a log structure built in the 1930's out of 10,000 red cedar logs. It's maintained better than Yellowstone and is much cleaner. Although it does lack buffalo's roaming around outside the hotel. It does however have an indoor and outdoor pool, sports complex, curling ring, and permanently employed French chefs instead of summer only college help. And of course were on our boat, yes the boat. There is no English guide to the Ottawa River. I've been translating a marginally useful French guide to locate diesel fuel further down the river. The river is BEAUTIFUL and deep. There are no bridges between Ottawa and here. They use ferries. In one spot they had five of them running at once shuttling cars and big trucks across the river. The speed in which they loaded the cars and trucks was incredible. The boats are mostly runabouts to 35 footers, and they are gas engines. I was told that if I was to call the next ferry, the day before, I could arrange to have a diesel fuel truck meet me and fuel me from the ferry. This is a great place for the new Maxum 35 footer. This is an unusual place for our 46 footer. The French guide shows a new marina/yacht club on the river. It's not on the charts. We called and yes, they have Diesel and can put us up for the night before we tackle the massive locks of the St. Lawrence Seaway. We have about 300 gallons on board but we want to take on a full fuel load before the St. Lawrence locks, depending on the traffic, (commercial vessels go first) and you cannot lock in with them. You may have a long wait, Speaking of waits we waited 1 hour for the flight of 8 locks to clear down to the Ottawa River, it was only an hour and a half to lock down the eight locks. Patti got some great pictures. *

The weather is a (10) today, just magnificent. Patti and the kids went riding horses. Poor me I'm here on the boat alone. Smiling like the Cheshire cat.

We spent an extra day at Le Chateau Montebello, there was a bit of rain so we stayed put and made new friends, Henry and Jeanette from Montreal, along with Bob & Judy from Ottawa. They Dance, Drink and play Pool. That about says it all.*

Yacht Club Point-Aux-Anglais,

OKA, Quebec, on the, Lac Des Deux-Mountagnes

We traveled 44 miles down the Ottawa River to OKA. Pumped out, refueled, and washed the boat. We passed through a single lock today, 19.2 meters drop, about 62 feet, our deepest lock yet, they have a floating dock inside and you get a gentle drop along with about 18 other boats.

We have come another 101 miles, and passed through the lock @ St. Anne as well as 4 Seaway Locks, two Canadian, and two American. In the Canadian locks, the Canadians throw you a line and you hold on to it for the lift, oh and since we were the largest power boat all the smaller power boats raft up to you, or us as was the case. The American locks had floating barrels build into the lock walls, you roped them and they rose with the water level again all of us rafting together. The Americans made you wear life jackets while on deck, the Canadians expected that you would not want to fall in and hence didn't care. The lock tender said they used 12 million gallons of water each time they lower the lock. Jay our 12 year old drove us into one of the Seaway Locks and did a proper job of it. No one in the Seaway Locks would answer calls from us or other boaters on the VHF marine radio. The lock master, to which we paid $10 per lock told us that we were considered pleasure traffic and the un written rule was not to answer any of our calls. Hence the silence.

Silence was the way the VHF radio worked in Canada. While in the US someone is always talking, the Coast Guard is always giving a safety announcement, or Seatow is going to find and tow in another land lubber. We scanned 8 Canadian Channels and rarely heard a soul. In fact while most US boaters monitor ch 16 while underway, most, I'm lead to believe, Canadians don't even have their radios turned on.

Dining here at Crysler Park is limited, there is the choice of the Diner to the left of the entrance 1/2 mile away or Fine dining at the Golf Club 2 miles away. The manager of the marina had his assistant drive us in the Parks Canada van to the, you guessed it Golf Club. We had the Veal Special, it cost us $7.75 US with pasta, salad, coffee and desert. It was their priciest item on the menu and it was good. Food tastes better when your somewhat starving. Not that you could tell it by looking at me.

Oh, and while I'm at it Marina Operators Lie, but so do Boat Owners. The Marina Operator says "I have 10' in the channel it's ok come on in," this means the channel is 7' deep in places. The boat owner says "I draw 5' of water," this means I draw 4'.

Patti and the kids went to Upper Canada Village. This village was created when they dammed the St Lawrence seaway they brought building from the towns to be flooded to create this village. It's like Sturbridge village in Mass. Where you have people dressed in olden time clothes acting out their jogs. They have the old school house, the blacksmith, the newspaper printer, the miller and so on. The children really enjoyed their stay. They even got to milk a cow. They also have an old miniature train and an old canal boat pulled by a horse. A great change of pace for the children and educational too. But that's what Summer School is all about.

We back. The only thing I can say is that we were very disappointed to learn that the owner put up a sign blocking the view from our slip. They took away the best part of the slip. Patti went into town and bought a couple of Christmas items we spotted on our first visit. We also found out from the Dockmaster that their was a deli close by the Marina that we didn't find on our first visit. They even had Land O Lakes American Cheese. He was also even kind enough to give us a ride to the store and back to the boat.

We went back across Lake Ontario, to Oswego Canal to Winter Harbor Marina on the Erie Canal. Lake Ontario was a little rougher than when we had crossed it on the way to the Thousand Islands.

Jim and Patti were given a ride into Syracuse airport to pick up a rental car.

Patti and girls did 14 loads laundry.

The children assisted boats coming into the dock for fuel. They were rewarded with shirts, which they enjoyed. Thank you.

These days were cleaning up and packing up.

We're eating up the food left on the boat; the children love this because they can pretty much eat anything they want at anytime. Actually we're in pretty good shape

Cummins mechanic here to check on the engines.

We went to the car race track with the children.

Dave and Debbie showed up went out for and Italian Dinner.

Caught up with Dave and Debbie, went to Syracuse to see a Car Show

We headed over to the airport early in the Am only to find out that our flight had been cancelled and we were rescheduled for a later flight. So we went out to breakfast and then went back to the boat to wait. We did find a few odd things to do on the boat while we waited for our flight.

We've caught a couple episodes of TV show survivor on this trip. The children have figured out that we've been away longer then they were on island. They are starting to miss their rooms and their stuff.

Last words from Patti

During the trip I have left most of the e-mailing to JC. He was the best at quickly getting out our latest travel info typed up. Finding the phone line was often the hardest part. He would have to beg, borrow or buy a line. Yes, he went door to door asking to borrow someone's phone. Luckily, the second homeowner did let him in. It was easier when a marina or yacht brokerage office would let us use their line; or when Steve and Jeanne's generously offered us to stay at their house in RI and we used their line. One time a lockmaster let us borrow their line when we stayed at the lock couple days. We even borrowed the phone line in one of my Laundromats. In Canada we found some of the pay phones were set up to tie in a computer. Once we paid to use the line at a Print shop. Overall, It's been worth it and we have enjoyed hearing back from many of you as well.

I took over keeping the trip journal. So far, I have over 70 pages on our "trip log". I try to keep up with the Journal every night but I have more stories including some laundry to add (93 loads of laundry, so far). To help me with the trip log, I do have the 10 hours of video and 14 rolls of film to check. While traveling we did send copies of the videos to our parents. Which is better I think than the "Survivor show" did in getting Jenna's families videotape.

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