Well, here we are, living on a boat, on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay in the USA!. Some of you said you would like to hear how we are getting on, so here goes with Island Way Newsletter Number 1.
Island Way, our new home, is a four year-old, 40ft Island Packet, built in Largo, Florida. We found her on the Internet and came over in March to have a look and to have a survey done. She is really comfortable, has plenty of living and stowage space AND headroom for the two of us - with room to spare for visitors. She sails well in anything more than 10 knots of wind and motors quite happily at 7.5 knots, giving us a motoring range of up to 450 miles before refuelling. Having decided she was just what we were looking for, we sold River House at the end of April, and I came out here in mid-May to complete the purchase.
We spent the rest of May and June visiting friends and relatives from Scotland to Italy and sorting out affairs financial, residential, non-residential, nautical, etc etc - a process which ended up taking us four days beyond our 3 July deadline (we'd hoped to be here for the 4th of July party/fireworks, but it wasn't to be). We had three weeks on dry land while various things were done to the boat, mostly involving holes in the hull below the waterline. Maryland was in the grip of one of the hottest heatwaves ever, and we sweltered in temperatures of 40 degrees plus for much of the time, surviving on copious quantities of iced tea. The boat was finally relaunched on 28July, much to our relief - cooling breezes, running water and refrigeration at last!!
On 4 August we set off, via Annapolis, for Washington DC, where ten days later we were due to meet Peter, in mid-vacation from Aberdeen. Our first day of really good sailing included one of Chesapeake Bay's notorious squalls, with winds gusting up to 40 knots. Happily both boat and crew coped without undue drama, and the boat's performance helped to reinforce our confidence in her. The rest of the trip to Washington was accomplished with a combination of sailing and motoring (rather more of the latter than the former - not much wind about!). We found some really delightful anchorages on the eastern shore of the Bay and on the way up the Potomac river, and the experience of taking Island Way into Washington was truly memorable. The Beltway (Washington’s M25) has a bridge carrying the traffic over the river. Bridge height - 50 ft, mast height - 54 ft! No problem, as they very obligingly stop all the traffic to let boats through. On weekdays, this only happens between midnight and 0500, but even at 0430 there must have been at least 50 to 100 trucks and other assorted vehicles cursing as we motored serenely through the open jaws of the bridge. North of the bridge, there are about 5 miles of Potomac to negotiate before arriving at an anchorage right in the heart of the capital, only 20 minutes' walk from the White House and most of Washington's other main attractions. It was the first visit to Washington for both of us, and after 36 hours (footsore and somewhat bemused by the number of museums, memorials, exhibitions and impromptu games of baseball) we concluded that a month would have been better scheduling than just three or four days. However, Peter was keen to get going as soon as possible after arrival, and we wanted to get him to Baltimore for his return flight, so we said our farewells to DC and headed back down the Potomac. En route we were able to anchor just off Mount Vernon (George Washington's home) where much was learned about the great man’s life and even more about his death, with which there appears to be a particularly strong obsession - probably something to do with this year being its 200th anniversary!
We arrived in Baltimore four days later, once again with free anchorage provided right in the heart of the city. A most bizarre experience, as the rather small anchorage is shared with about fifty pedalos and little electric boats which swarm round the anchored yachts like bees round a hive. However, we were a short walk from all the major attractions and from the Light Rail which goes to the airport, making Peter's departure very easy. Our second evening in Baltimore saw the arrival of another boat flying the Red Ensign, also registered in Portsmouth. The couple on board turned out to be neighbours from Port Solent!! It's a small world!
We are now back in Rock Hall, where Island Way will be based until early October. We fly back to England for a couple of weeks on about 6 September, to sort out various odds and ends that didn't get sorted out before we left (including meeting our new tenant, who moved into 1 Sennen Place at the end of July). We then head for the Annapolis Boat Show on 6 October, and after that we shall join the southbound exodus of boats setting off for the post-hurricane-season Caribbean. We are still undecided about our route to the Caribbean - either the Intra-Coastal Waterway which goes all the way to Florida, and then across to the Bahamas; or the Intra-Coastal as far as Morehead City, North Carolina, and straight from there to the British Virgin Islands. Either way, we aim to be enjoying clear blue water, sandy beaches and more sunshine by the end of November. Well that's about it for now - we'll probably be bombarding you with salty tales from time to time. Do keep in touch.
Love and best wishes - John and Barbara