Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Roxy



Roxy went to the Rainbow Bridge on Monday, October 28th, 2019 (nine years to the day since I lost my mother). We had a weekend of special meals and tons of love.  The transition was very relaxed and the staff at Pamlico Animal Hospital were kind, compassionate, and caring.  

On Friday, I spent several hours pouring over thousands of pictures of her taken over 14+ years.  We have had a great time being her peeps!!  She definitely has had a rich life living on a boat as a gypsy and watching divers’ bubbles on dive boats. 

She now is pain free and running - jumping like she did when she was young. Her vibrant and spirited personality will live on in our hearts and the many stories we have to tell of her shenanigans.  Her earthly body was reduced to ashes and they will be permanently placed on a beach in the Bahamas - someplace she loved.  For a happier post go back and read the blog post from February 2, 2014 - the blog is from Roxy’s perspective. 

She was always pretty good at making her wishes known and had become even more assertive in her senior years.  When she wanted me to know that she was still hungry, she had learned that knocking her empty food bowl across the floor of the boat would get my attention.  I'm quite sure that her entrance into the afterlife was probably punctuated with that action since the appointment at the veterinarian was at precisely the time she usually let me know it was time to eat.  


As for her peeps, they are trying to stumble through the days without her. Looking forward to the day we will be reunited at the Rainbow Bridge. Below are a few of the many pictures we’ve taken that show her huge personality through the years. Enjoy your white sand beach and turquoise water, Princess Roxy!





Roxy at 3-6 months of age.

Roxy at about 6 months to one year - still very hyperactive.
Roxy and Darrell playing in June or July 2005.  She was about six months old.

Roxy pointing birds on our deck.

Roxy on the S/V Lillian.
Long Island, Bahamas.
Roxy and Ann in the kayak in Marathon.











Roxy watching diver bubbles.


Roxy and manatee - photo credit John Greenwalt.



Riding on the dinghy.

Roxy and Darrell in the dinghy.
Roxy begging - what she does so well.
Roxy and Journey begging from mom - 2016.



A favorite - she was happiest on the sandy beaches!

At home in TX - I was that crazy dog lady!
Roxy tending lines on the sailboat.
On a walk on the beach.


Where we will meet again.






Road Trip from North Carolina to Texas

We rented a car for a trip back to Texas to visit family and friends. We decided it was about time to see some of the countryside around us while making a pilgrimage back to the Texas panhandle. The boat was safely tucked into a slip in Dowry Creek Marina bear Belhaven, NC. 

The only calendar on the trip was to be in Amarillo by October 18 - Ann’s Daddys birthday. So we loaded up the car with Roxy and her stuff plus lots of warm clothing. When we reached western North Carolina, we were not disappointed!!

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a must see. Don’t be in a hurry if you take the route but plan on lots of beautiful vistas!  We spent about four hours going 100 miles and thoroughly enjoyed it. After that, we were ready to hit the interstate and head west. 

We arrived in Pampa, TX by Saturday morning to go see a flag football game starring our grandson, Lyric. Then we went to see my mother-in-law and on to see my dad. Sunday evening, we spent relaxing and visiting with the kids and grandkids plus their extended family. 

The week was filled with visits with friends and family. On Friday, a highlight was to be able to celebrate my dad’s ninety-second birthday. Saturday brought more football and baseball and last minute visits. 

On Sunday, we left to head east again with planned visits with friends along the way. Another short foray into the Blue Ridge Parkway was well worth the detour. The leaves had increased their fall color while we were out west. 

The last stop of the trip was a big highlight for us both but mostly Darrell. We went to Charlotte to the offices and shop of Joe Gibbs Racing Team. Jason Shapiro gave us a grand tour of the facilities. It is mind boggling!!  We spent the night and enjoyed a much overdue visit with Nicole and their girls who are growing up WAY TOO FAST!!


The next day we left late and still made it back to the boat by about 3PM. It was a wonderful trip but it’s always great to be home. 

Blue Ridge Parkway


Linley making us breakfast

Daddy and I - 92 years old!

Having a birthday celebration.

Blue Ridge Parkway


Darrell got to visit JGR Racing Shop!




Friday, October 25, 2019

Chesapeake Eastern Shore

Magnificent late summer and fall weather has been the case. Cool evenings and nights without the hundred degree heat indices during the days. 

While traveling, we saw and purchased a copy of Chesapeake by James Michener. What a great volume to accompany our travels!!  

Our next stop was the first on the eastern shore of the Bay. St. Michaels is a great little town that we were told by more than one person not to miss. They were right!!  And like I’ve already said, the museums just keep getting better. This one did not disappoint us. We had a seafood feast on the waterfront that was outstanding. 

Next stop was Oxford, another historic town noted in the book and mentioned by locals. Small but great historic buildings. Home of the oldest operational ferry in the US. 

Cambridge was just across the Choptank River from Oxford. We spent a few days there waiting on weather. A bus ride away from Walmart!  Fresh crabs 🦀 right off our stern. Live music one night from Snappers. Great town!!

As we headed south, there were fewer places to visit on the eastern shore so we were content to revisit some like Solomons Island, Reedville, and we didn’t want to pass up Deltaville. There was a crab feast being held at the Deltaville marina that was fantastic!

We waited for just the right weather conditions to leave for Norfolk and we were rewarded. We had a great downwind sail to Norfolk. This time around, the anchorage was pretty rough at night (midnight) from the barges so one night was enough. 

We had another good crossing of the Albemarle Sound except that the wind direction wasn’t the best. Fortunately though, the sea conditions were benign. We made good time and stopped again at Dowry Creek Marina - we just love it there. 

The nights are starting to be a lot cooler. Days are still warm. We sailed to New Bern, NC and were able to tour downtown. We got to go to a dinner there and visit with people we met down in the Caribbean several years ago. We would have stayed longer but they didn’t have space for us at the marina. 

We stopped overnight in Oriental and came back home to Dowry Creek Marina. Darrell pulled the propeller off the boat to have it changed to better match our new transmission. A shop in Beaufort did some change to the pitch and it might be enough. Otherwise, we’ll get a new propeller. 

We picked up a rental car in a nearby town yesterday. Now we’re getting ready to take a road trip east. We’re excited to see family again!!






Monday, September 16, 2019

Upper Chesapeake Bay

With fuel and cigarettes, we are now ready to move on up the Bay!  WHEW!!  Next stop Solomons Island. Mercy sakes we have never seen so many marinas and so many pleasure craft (especially sailboats) in one place!!!  We picked up a mooring here and made use of the bicycles to explore this pretty gem. While we were there, we went to the Calvert Maritime Museum. The museums just keep getting better and better. This one did not disappoint!!

We were able to spend some time investigating the problem with the windlass and got it fixed. It was an electrical issue that was hard to track down but we did get the gear oil changed while we had it off (usually a major PIA!). Now we can sleep a little easier - lol.

We made a couple of stops on our way to the next destination - Annapolis. One was exceptionally pretty in South River. One day, we put a few extra travel miles under our keel. We were motor sailing north when we heard a mayday call over the radio. We quickly discovered that we were close to the boat on fire!  We turned and quickly headed in their direction. Since sailboats are so slow, they were assisted by faster and closer boats before we could reach them so we turned back on our path. Glad it had a good outcome!

After researching in our travel books, we decided to view some of Annapolis from Back Creek - a little less busy they said. We spent Labor Day weekend on a mooring here. We made the hike to get groceries which was a little over one mile each direction. Not bad but those groceries get heavy on these treks!!  After the crowd started clearing from the holiday weekend, we moved around to Spa Creek for a couple more days. We were rewarded for our patience. We spent a glorious two days enjoying the tours of Annapolis Naval Academy. Wow is that an impressive place!!  We plan to encourage Lyric and Linley to consider trying to make this their college choice!!  If you could see the formation for meals to get all 4,500 students into the cafeteria - jaw dropping!!

So, with Devil Dorian no longer wreaking havoc on the Bahamas, we needed to figure out where we were going to go. 
The path when it finally started moving again would take it across North Carolina (near where we made close friends in our extended time there) and a few hundred miles within our current location.  With the predictions, we decided to return to the South River, up Harness Creek. The anchorage is so beautiful and protected. The shore excursions to walk Roxy are to Quiet Waters State Park and they were!  We had very little wind and rain from Dorian. Thank goodness!!  

Temperatures are not as hot as they had been in July and August. Plus we want to find a place that we can safely leave the boat for a few weeks - if there are no hurricanes threatening!  We hope to take a road trip and drive to Texas for a visit. Pray for good weather!  It's time to head south and explore the eastern side of the Chesapeake Bay..



Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Chesapeake and Potomac River


Wow are we impressed with the sailing grounds in the Chesapeake Bay!  It bears respect akin to the respect for the ocean. There is a local cliche “the Chesapeake Chop”, for how rough it can get. And there are so many deep water rivers to explore!!

Our first trip up a River was to Yorktown on the York River. We had to anchor across from the famous battleground because the current can be up to 3 knots at the marina there. A few days soaking up a little Revolutionary  War history. 

Next stop was Deltaville where there was a lot of boat building back in the days of wooden boats. The Maritime Museum there was fantastic!  We spent a whole week there in a cozy anchorage. We paid a small fee and had full use of marina facilities for the week. 

One afternoon in the anchorage, Darrell decided it was time to clean the boat bottom. He didn’t don a wetsuit and he regretted that decision for a few days!  He was stung by sea nettles in several places - some very private!!  He’s decided that he was paid back for not being sensitive enough with dive and snorkel customers about their stings. He will be a lot more courteous and sympathetic going forward. 

On the advice of a friend and former dive customer, we rounded that peninsula to go see Urbanna. We were lucky enough to have dinner with Mark. A lovely town off the Rappahannock River. Some of y’all may remember the pictures of the old pharmacy bottles and soda counter. The general store was closed or we would have spent a few hours in there too. 

Reedville was the next stop on the same river. This little town is known as the Menhaden Capital.  They make omega oil and chum (fish bait) there. Imagine the odor if you can.....  We moved anchor spots a couple times based on wind direction. 

Next was the famous Potomac River of Revolutionary days. It is 100 miles up the river to reach Washington DC. Since we travel so slowly, it was a few days passage to reach our ultimate destination. The tidal flow in the river reaches a few knots and in a slow boat is a force to be reckoned with. We spent three or four nights in gorgeous waterside locations. 

And finally, we were rewarded for our efforts. We came by the National Harbor, under the Woodrow Wilson Bridge to begin seeing the easily recognized Washington Monument. We spent five nights on a mooring across from the Wharf. We did the first day without much of a plan and spent a lot of time walking. After that, we purchased tickets on a trolly tour to save our energy. We still put a few miles under our feet on those days too. We only had enough time to hit the highlights but we thoroughly enjoyed what we did see. Each Smithsonian museum needs at least a day or more so we only skimmed the surface in these. We saw the Arlington National Cemetery and the changing of the guard at the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier. We saw war memorials and presidential monuments. We even took a water taxi ride back to National Harbor and did a little gambling in the MGM casino there.  Our nations capital did not disappoint!

The trip up the Potomac was a lesson in tidal flow (current) and wind direction. You know, we try to sail as much of the time as we can. It’s difficult to do in a narrow channel with the wind direction that always follows the course of the river!  However, we paid a little attention going back down river and at least used the flow to augment our efforts. It paid off with greater distances traveled per day and less frustration for the crew. The wind - well you can’t do much about that. 

Except pay attention to the afternoon squalls that develop and bring storms to cool off this heat. Our second day south we were doing that - watching the sky. Sure enough, around five or six PM there were developing squalls all around us. We headed into a creek and found a lovely spot to anchor. The storm came and went but was fierce with wind, lightening and a little rain. When the weather seemed calm enough, we went to bed. 

About 10:30, something woke Ann (she’s the light sleeper of the crew).  We had dragged anchor and were aground - listing to starboard. Unfortunately, it wasn’t low tide yet. For the next four plus hours, we leaned over to approximately 15-20 degrees. Nothing to do until daylight and tides to make getting her off possible. So Ann finally went to sleep and so did poor Roxy. It was difficult to walk at that slant for our aging canine!!  Morning came (with it high tide) and we started Alibi up and moved our anchor to a deeper location!!!  No problem!!

And I must add, things like this never happen when you are prepared!  We were starting to think about where we need to get fuel next. The windlass is acting up. AND most importantly, Darrell is out of cigarettes. 

So the next morning we were going to a marina close by to get fuel. We spoke to the dock master about the depths in the channel and according to him should have had enough water to come in and buy fuel. WRONG!!  Next to the second channel marker we were aground - stuck again right at 12 hours since the last escapade!!  With Darrell in the dinghy and me in the big boat, we were able to free ourselves. Fuel stop # 2 scratched!  

About twenty miles on down the river is a large river and Darrell spoke to them yesterday and they had fuel. So, off we go with enough wind to motorsail for a change. We have anchored in another lovely scenic little creek and the marina does not answer the phone or the radio. Meanwhile, Darrell is out of cigarettes and we are getting low on fuel. Stay tuned. . . .

Saturday, August 3, 2019

Unfortunately, these are not in the correct sequence but I had a difficult time loading them and some didn't load at all.  I wanted to have some pictures here since not everyone can view the ones I post on Facebook.  

Ann giving a shot to Buster the goat.  Roxy supervising.

Farmer Ann

One of the baby sheep - lamb?

Darrell and the former owner of Alibi - Dick.

After 10 years, we're still friends with our former boat owner!

A replica of one of Columbus's ships.

Sights in Beaufort, SC.

Love these old buildings in SC

We got to celebrate Jan's birthday in North Carolina!

Alibi without her mast - a first time for us!

Heading back to water!

Memorial Day tow!  UGH!!!!

Out with the old transmission.....

In with the new

So pretty and new!
  
Caboose in Belhaven on Independence Day









The mascot of Norfolk, VA


Beautiful Japanese Garden in Norfolk

Battleship Wisconsin


Deck with anchor chain of the Wisconsin.




Displays all over in Nautilus.

Statistics for the ship.

Where she served.

Another mascot sculpture.

Darrell went sailing in this boat



Brick sculpture in Portsmouth, VA.



Boat building shed at the museum






Sculptures in the park at the Maritime Museum.


A Chesapeake sailing skiff in the museum.

Deer are everywhere here in NC and VA!!

Our carriage in Beaufort SC for a downtown tour.

Mama and ducklings swimming by our boat.

Beginning of the festivities in Bath, NC for Memorial Day.

Letter from a nurse during WWII at a Veterans Memorial in Norfolk, VA.

Some statistics from the USS Wisconsin.

Handmade boat Darrell got to go sailing in near Norfolk.

Danny from Downeast BBQ Boys!