July 30, 2007 Monday,
We have been back here for a few days now and Andrea is getting her first look at Oriental. I'd say she likes it! We have met a bunch of great folks, both house dwellers and cruisers. Last night, there was a big potluck/BBQ on the docks. It's not hard to put our weight down for a while.
At the moment, we haven't at all decided where we are going to go from here. North is as close as we can get. NC isn't a total paradise - hot, humid, and buggy have something to do with that and air conditioning on the boat becomes critical for comfort. We have borrowed an A/C unit from a dock neighbor that fits over our forward hatch and cools our sleeping area. What a relief!
Our phone doesn't work well here, but our regular email does, so don't be afraid to write.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Monday, July 09, 2007
Oriental, North Carolina
Monday, July 9, 2007 Oriental, NC
While in Florida, I took on the revarnishing of the cabin floor. The old original finish had worn through and was stained with salt water. This is a shot of the original.
And here is the finished job. It took almost 2 weeks, given the heat. I had to strip and scrape back to bare wood and then build up 3 coats of varnish. I'm sure Andi was glad to not be around for this job and I was glad to be able to leave my messes out overnight.
Here is Saeta in her slip in Oriental, NC.
And here is a panoramic shot off our stern showing the incredible green woodlands, the Neuse River to the left and Whittaker Creek to the right. Double-click on it to make it larger.
Paul and I brought the boat from Historic Beaufort, NC after spending a few days checking out the town (sorry, no pix). We enjoyed the town, but found the restaurants pretty pedestrian. We are spoiled by the high level of competition in the San Francisco area. Here, the restaurants serve decent, but uninspiring fare. We do better cooking on the boat.
We took the boat 24 miles up the ICW through Adams Creek into the Neuse River and in short order were off Whittaker Creek headed for our slip. On the way in, I saw a bunch of crab traps off to port and thought they marked the edge of a shoal. So I moved a little farther to starboard. Oops. Big mistake. We went aground...stuck in the mud. There are no lunar tides here and so we couldn't wait for high tide to float us off. Since the mud was soft, the marina advised just "plowing" through it. So I put the boat in forward and gave it some power. The GPS told me that we were moving at 0.1 knots - not very fast, but still moving. It took almost an hour of "plowing" before we got back into the channel. After that it was easy.
I've now been here more than a week and Paul, a great companion, has flown back to Carmel, CA. In a few days, I will also fly to CA to join Andrea at a music camp called Sweets Mill. This is where we first met, so it is very special for us. We will do music for a few weeks and then fly back here.
We can get mail here addressed to us, care of:
Whittaker Creek Yacht Harbor
PO Box 357
Oriental, NC 28571
One of the differences we're finding here is there are thunderstorms most afternoons that produce a bunch of rain for an hour or so. It's starting that right now. That means things are very green. If this state weren't cleared, it would be wall-to-wall trees! But the humidity is high and the next month is going to be hot! I'm glad the marina has a swimming pool.
Don't be afraid to write.
While in Florida, I took on the revarnishing of the cabin floor. The old original finish had worn through and was stained with salt water. This is a shot of the original.
And here is the finished job. It took almost 2 weeks, given the heat. I had to strip and scrape back to bare wood and then build up 3 coats of varnish. I'm sure Andi was glad to not be around for this job and I was glad to be able to leave my messes out overnight.
Here is Saeta in her slip in Oriental, NC.
And here is a panoramic shot off our stern showing the incredible green woodlands, the Neuse River to the left and Whittaker Creek to the right. Double-click on it to make it larger.
Paul and I brought the boat from Historic Beaufort, NC after spending a few days checking out the town (sorry, no pix). We enjoyed the town, but found the restaurants pretty pedestrian. We are spoiled by the high level of competition in the San Francisco area. Here, the restaurants serve decent, but uninspiring fare. We do better cooking on the boat.
We took the boat 24 miles up the ICW through Adams Creek into the Neuse River and in short order were off Whittaker Creek headed for our slip. On the way in, I saw a bunch of crab traps off to port and thought they marked the edge of a shoal. So I moved a little farther to starboard. Oops. Big mistake. We went aground...stuck in the mud. There are no lunar tides here and so we couldn't wait for high tide to float us off. Since the mud was soft, the marina advised just "plowing" through it. So I put the boat in forward and gave it some power. The GPS told me that we were moving at 0.1 knots - not very fast, but still moving. It took almost an hour of "plowing" before we got back into the channel. After that it was easy.
I've now been here more than a week and Paul, a great companion, has flown back to Carmel, CA. In a few days, I will also fly to CA to join Andrea at a music camp called Sweets Mill. This is where we first met, so it is very special for us. We will do music for a few weeks and then fly back here.
We can get mail here addressed to us, care of:
Whittaker Creek Yacht Harbor
PO Box 357
Oriental, NC 28571
One of the differences we're finding here is there are thunderstorms most afternoons that produce a bunch of rain for an hour or so. It's starting that right now. That means things are very green. If this state weren't cleared, it would be wall-to-wall trees! But the humidity is high and the next month is going to be hot! I'm glad the marina has a swimming pool.
Don't be afraid to write.
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