Christmas in Brunswick GA

This is the Topaz sunrise on 24 Dec 06 making ready to weigh anchor to enter Brunswick GA. The old, to late to enter the unfamiliar harbour in darkness so dropped the hook at Lanier Island about two hours away. Pat called ahead to the Brunswick Landing Marina and made arrangements to secure to a marina for Christmas.

There is a large cruiser community here and we were invited to their Christmas Pot Luck Dinner. What a spread it was, Turkey, Dressing, Ham and all the Fixings. Fine deserts too numerous to mention (no Calories or Cholesterol) There where 30 to 40 cruisers in attendance, a very festive gathering including Guitar and Bag Pipes? Good time had by all.

This Marina is one of the best we have been to on the ICW, friendly and personable Dockmaster, helpful courteous staff, gigantic showers, free laundry. If your are in the area a good place to stop.

Other things you might like to know about Georgia. When we arrived here after living on the hook for the last week, we needed groceries and of course Christmas Cheer. So we headed to the nearest grocery store and stocked up also finding beer and wine and a bottle of port at the same time. After going through the checkouts, we had enough (two carts) so a taxi was in order. Pat took care of asking customer service to call us a taxi and I to the ATM for cash. While I was across the parking lot at the ATM and Pat was waiting for the taxi to arrive, the Store Manager came out and said to Pat that he would refund us for the beer and wine as it was against Georgia State Law to sell beer and wine on SUNDAY and he could not allow us to leave with it. So without a fuss Pat relinquished the beer and box of wine. As I returned and found out I was calm and cool and smiled as the beer and wine was no longer part of our Christmas plans. I believe we forgot to tell him about the Port and left it at that.

So If you ever stop in Georgia and are short of the festive spirit, Just hope its not on Sunday. Or you may be dry.

We toasted the Store Manager for not finding the Port.

Our new adopted pet.....we call him Big Bil

Big Bil followed us for miles....at one point we thought he was going to hitch a ride in the dink.

Topaz isn't too interested in giving up her spot as the Queen!!!

We were quite surprized that when we threw him some food (weiners) he doesn't catch them while in flight. You should see the "face plant" that they take from mid air...while the bil hits the water wide open, at least 50 miles per hour. Often the fish will be too big and send them head over heels. We have been trying to get a photo of this but they are always to far away.

Christmas is Just Around the Corner

Ted and I, with our upper decks a shining and stockings hung with care, wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas. It definitely will be a different Christmas as we battle the no-see-ums.

Today, Ted met an old aquaintance. The not so Tall Ship Royaliste (Rosborough 50 Bark) from his last tour on the Terra Nova in '96. New owners are Cathy and Gary, cocker spaniel May and two parrots. This old girl has quite the history behind her.

Fascinated with the tree roots and trunks of the river trees

Bridges and Sunsets

North to South...Carolina ... That Is!!

Approaching the Goose Creek Canal, the US Coast Guard had put out a “Pan Pan Pan” call requesting assistance of another sail vessel aground in the canal. A Hans Christian 38, with a 6.7 draft, had gone hard aground, on the right-side middle of the channel. The controlled depth of this canal is supposed to be twelve feet. There was a tug and barge coming north of him; he’d hoped that it would have caused a wave that would have lifted him off. Not so. Xcelsior, had answered the request, as we were approaching the canal and about thirty minutes away. Ironically, the Coast Guard sector was within a quarter of a mile away, as we pasted the base there were at least four RHIB boats as well as Tow Boat US (however, the Hans Christian did not have a membership to Tow Boat US or SeaTow). We managed to get a tow line and haul him out without damage to either boat. The next day we hear a call from another boat to Tow Boat US, who had gone hard aground in the same location. Shortly after, we had past a Coast Guard barge with a dredge…was he heading to that location?

Motoring across the Adam’s Creek (just across the harbour from Oriental, NC), in fourteen feet of water, we came across about a dozen bottlenosed dolphins. These creatures were not shy of boats. They played within feet of the boat from the stern, and weaving back and forth through our bow wave. Some doing the flipper jump. Bluish Grey, so close we could reach out and touch them, when they blew we were very much aware. One had approached the cock-pit area, as it dived, it blew. Topaz was alert with eyes bulging out of her head. At this point, she was sitting under the dodger on the edge of the companion way. She kept looking down below, as if expecting him to pop out of the bilge. Too cute!!

Two hours later, in Morehead City (just across from Beaufort, NC) as we take on fuel and water, at one of the Marina’s, a fisherman had just caught a Blue Fin Tuna and fed the tail and other parts to the Pelicans. As he dumped the remains at the stern of our boat, every Pelican, Seagull’s, White Herrings and any other wild bird in the neighbor had a frenzy feast. Amazed by it all and yet keeping low, Topaz wasn’t sure what to make out of it. As they all flew above and swimming below her, squawking and fighting. Seeing first hand, survival of the fittest gets the better feed.

A couple of days later, we had come across and few more pods of dolphins where the ICW would cross with a stream from the Atlantic Ocean. Quite surprised that in all cases of viewing the dolphins it was always within ten to sixteen feet of water. Usually with a current. When we aren’t chasing bridge lift or swing times, most of these bridges are on restricted openings (hourly or hour and half hours), we find ourselves fighting to find six feet plus of water depth. Two locations within less than five miles apart, we were not able to anchor or go into a channel, as the water would go from ten feet to four feet. As quick of a blink an eye. Fortunately, it’s sand and easy enough to get off the shoal. One really has to play the tide game in these waters.

Myrtle Beach, SC the homes are huge and more dollars than Ted and I could even imagine. It’s also a world of condominiums with either a marina or golf course.
Or for those who enjoy life all round, they get both marina and gold course. As we head further south, the weather is getting warmer. The last two evenings were the first of many that we did not require the heater. Soon hopefully we will be able to work on that tan.

As I write this update, we are anchored in Charleston, SC and plan to lower the dinghy and tour the city all day Saturday (tomorrow). Life is still good and there hasn’t been a dull moment. Evening entertainment has been: watching Ted kill off mosquitoes and laugh at every kill, with our magic wand.

Foggy Intracoastal

Pasquotank River at the end of Dismal Swamp

The zoom on the camera wasn't working.....but if you click on the picture and look real close you will see that on the log sits six turtles. This river is on an average about 1/4 mile across....and without a camera handy we passed a small squirrel swimming across (couldn't have been more than 12 inches from head to tip of it's tail). Whatever, was at the other side of the river had to have been something real good!!! If he doesn't die of exhaustion first.

Dismal Swamp Canal

What can we say about the Dismal Swamp.....it wasn't quite what we expected. However, still over whelming. A number of times the water depth got hairy....the last four miles we ploughed the bottom through the soft mud. Our rudder and prop took some heavy hits. I loved the tree roots the way they spread through the eroding banks.

Foggy mornings between Maryland and Virginia

Work has been completed and Xcelsior looks like herself again!!! No more bruises.

This picture of the sailboat at anchor in a cove was taken at Sandy Point just outside of Reedville, MD. As it turned out we had meet the young man and his dog on this boat in Atlantic Highlands, NJ. We expect to run into him once again.

The second picture was a full ten hours of thick and dense fog....didn't see the sun until while after 3 p.m. and then this appears as three sun's.

Calvert Marine Museum

Calvert Marine Museum was much more than I had anticipated. The aquariums of sea rays, incubator of sting rays (three babies that have already hatched within one week apart). Three more to come out of there egg sack, Otters (2), Horseshoe Crabs (2), lots a various fish, Hermit Crabs, Seahorses, Light Emiting Jellyfish and much more. We ventured the Drum Point Lighthouse over the years this house has had a number of lighthouse keepers and their families. Two had a family of seven. The lighthouse isn’t big enough for three.

God Bless Ya'll...Real Good

Solomon’s, Maryland

During our two week stay at Zahniser’s Yacht Centre (while undergoing repairs to Xcelsior) we took advantage of having land under our feet. Miles and miles we walked the streets of Calvert County. Passing Ted’s favorite sign daily, sometimes up to three times. “God Bless Ya’ll …. Real Good”.

Our first weekend, we met a number of interesting, good people. Zahniser’s had there final event of the year “11th Annual ZYC Chili Cook-Off. There were something like 18 entries; we are got a small sample with numbered cups. Voting four categories: Boater’s Choice: Tastiest Overall, Ken won this category. In the past he’s had the Fishing for Compliments: Needs Help. Therefore when his chili wasn’t chosen for the Needs Help Ken didn’t think he had a chance at any other. So it was quite a surprise. Z’s Legal Lip Remover: Spiciest but Good had a three way tie, and in order to eliminate candidates they looked at who had the most Needs Help and/or Not Your Everyday Chili: Most Unique. Ted took this judging very serious and engineered a judging sheet up. My mistake was tasting the hottest sample first (not knowing I was doing that of course). The tongue burned so bad that I couldn’t taste anything after that one mouthful.

The Calvert Connection bus transit system for 50 cents each took us south over the bridge to St. Leonard’s for shopping. Every shopping outlet you could dream of within a three maybe four block radius. Then return trip was longer as it would take us to California, Hollywood, Oakville and Wildwood before heading back to Solomon’s.

There's no dust on these guys!!

Repairs are coming along really well. Xcelsior is starting to look more like herself....and it's only day four. The service repair here at Zahniser's Yacht Centre, Solomon's, MD are highly spoken of by local yachters and seem to be quite efficient.

On Monday, everything is striped off the bow of the boat. Tuesday, Glenn has completed the fabrication of the anchor extention, while Dale is doing the first stage of the fibreglass repairs. Wednesday, Sean and Glenn work on the pulpit.

Boy are our faces RED!!!

So we're motoring along...see!!! And it is all Ron’s fault...Again!!! We knew we were sailing through a Navy weapons range, just around the corner. Ron, telling of his experience transiting this range, and seeing on the chart it says to see note 334.200.
At the same time we are in auto helm making for the green mark about ¾ mile ahead. The next thing we heard very loud jets taking off from Patuxent River Naval Air Station (four F18’s, four A10’s and two Intruders). We were just at the end of the runway. Is this the mornings Combat air group? We will be in the target area in less than an hour. Therefore, we really needed to find out what time the range opens for live or inert firing? Both of us started looking all over the pages of the newest chart book available from Map Tech to find the answer. The last Gunnery area we went through this information was on the same page, giving the range hours and what days they fired. “Forward to this page, no back three pages, check the legend in the back, no back to the other page” when... BANG!! It was too late.
Looking up into the green mark, she’s BIG and tangled up in our bow. Fortunately we were only traveling 4 knots. Topaz, who was curled up under the dodger made a “B” line for below. We couldn’t believe what we just did. Hitting green steel tripod day mark in 25 feet of water, dead in the middle, just under the A frame. It cleaned the pulpit, the forestay (including the furling and disintegrating the drum), totally destroying the anchor and roller extension. Finally, lifting the front half of the anchor windlass and mounting bolts through the deck. No longer having a need to find that note. Repairs were now in order.
Xcelsior, being put into reverse and pushed off from the mark. At this time, as we came unhooked, I realized we had no forestay attached to anything. The baby stay was a blessing, other wise the boat would be in need of a whole new rig. So I quickly attach the Spinnaker halyard and topping lift to the toe rail, to prevent the stick from coming down on our heads. We now sit at Zahniser’s Marina, in the same harbour, we just sailed from less than an hour before.
Boy is our faces red! How all plans change in less than a few minutes.

Why Is It???? You Never Have a Camera When!!!!

There we were today, taking advantage of the calm before the storm, Ted and I, in the dinghy scrubbing the (scuzzy, slimmy, greasy) waterline of the hull in Solomon’s Island, MD. Within less than a three foot radius, along came two beautiful Swans. I had just made a comment like “why aren’t the ducks feasting off the hull of the boat with all this grass?” and I looked up. I could have reached out and petted them. Two beautiful Swans, just chatting away, as if to ask “What are you doing?” No camera! Go figure! Top it off Topaz, is up forward in the V Berth, sleeping away. If she had of been up on the deck, it would have been a very entertaining moment. Shortly after, satisfying their curiosity, they swam around the boat and came back to the stern of the dinghy. Chatting some more. It was really exciting to see such wild creatures not afraid of humans, what so ever.

They came back the next morning..and I was sure to get a photograph this time around. The local boater's here do not see the cuteness in these creatures as I do. Apparently, they steal tools or anything you might lay down in their reach. Talk was to send them back to the Queen of England. I guess that's where they orginated as a gift.?? I'll have to do some reach on this, as to which Queen gave the gift I'm not sure.

Just a couple of days before hand, we were at a bus stop in Annapolis. As I had approached a lady sitting at the bus stop. I had asked, if one of the buses that stopped here, would take us to a grocery store? She in turn had a budgie bird down the front of her jacket on a harness and tether. She felt that the bird gets bored, in the apartment, and tries to get him out as much as possible. Cute little guy, as he climbs out and onto my hand. However, it was a chilly day and we’d hate to see him get a draft.

Light Houses of Chesapeake Bay