Sandpiper2007

We're home 9/4/08

2008-09-10T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hello All

I just realized that I have not posted a blog since we got home a few days ago. The trip from Alton to Green Turtle Bay was fairly uneventful. The weather was HOT and steamy; the days were LONG. Alton to Hoppie's is only about 35 miles but the next 2 days to the headwaters of the Cumberland were around 100 miles each - with amazing numbers of tows and commercial traffic. We saw one tow boat with 36 barges. The Mississippi and Ohio waters were swift and dirty. Not a lot of fun except that each mile brought us closer to home. The lock on the Cumberland was a breeze compared to the ones on the Illinois and the Mississippi.

We're glad to be home and are gradually getting caught up with our family, friends and clients.
I'll put pictures on this and the last post when I can get to the laptop.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Rob and Ann

We're on the Mississippi 8/29/08

2008-08-29T18:01:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We are in Alton, IL on the Mississippi River; Alton is a suburb of St. Louis. Turns out the Illinois is not so nice. There is very low water in the Peoria area and south of there. There are no marinas in Peoria that have enough water for us to get into. We would definitely recommend anchoring.

We hurried to Alton as we lost a very dear friend and we needed to rent a car and drive home and on the north Georgia. We returned to the boat today and are preparing to leave tomorrow and will dock at Hoppie's tomorrow night. There is a hurricane threat on the Gulf coast so we will hurry to reach Green Turtle Bay before the remains of it reach there. WE WILL CROSS OUR WAKE AT GREEN TURTLE BAY !!!!!

Our plan is to leave the boat at Green Turtle until around October 10th and then move on to Joe Wheeler and on to Florida in November.

We are still with Larry and Lola aboard "Lola Marie" and are looking forward to seeing many of you either in Nashville or in Alabama.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Ann & Rob

We're heading home 8/21/08

2008-08-21T15:40:00.001-07:00

Hello All

We are rapidly moving south and hope to be home by the end of the month. We traveled the whole length of Lake Michigan in 6 days as the weather was good and the water was relatively calm (for Lake Michigan) and are now a couple of days south of Chicago. We stopped in Hollard for an afternoon and visited with Barry and Cheryl Lilly. They very kindly hauled us around to several locations for reprovisioning.

The next day we joined Larry and Lola aboard "Lola Marie" in St. Joe. They are beginning their second loop and we will be traveling with them to Green Turtle Bay.

We left St. Joe and were in Chicago in just a few hours. We did not stop as we have been in Chicago many times. We did travel through downtown though and what a awesome sight!!! We would recommend that route to any boat that is able to get under the bridges. The next 35 miles has been described as pure hell - and rightly so. All the way to Joliet, where we tied up on a city park wall, was crowded with barges and tows with very narrow passages. It is all very industrial, very ugly and stinks! And unfortunately, you can't go quickly.

After that the Illinois River is fairly nice. We are beginning to see wildlife again. It is good to get back on the rivers - easy navigation and calm waters.

We send our love to all those loopers that we have traveled with over the last few months. We probably won't see you before we meet at Joe Wheeler in October. If you have time to do the Cumberland River, please give us a call. We'll be glad to do whatever we can to make your visit to Nashville memorable.

See you out there somewhere - or in Nashville - or at Wheeler . . . .
Ann & Rob

Moving down Lake Michigan 8/18/08

2008-08-18T06:04:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

Just a short note to let you know that we are moving quickly down Lake Michigan. The one picture I am posting is the sun coming up early one morning on the lake. We traveled to Charlevoix, Frankfort, Muskegon and are in Holland now. We are waiting a little later this morning hoping that the water settles down a little. The waves have been manageable - mostly under 3 feet - maybe an occasional 4. Today they are saying 2-4 feet, meaning an occasional 5 but lowering to 1-3 later. We have been traveling faster and eating up the fuel but. . . . Oh well . . . .

We spent yesterday afternoon with Cheryl and Barry Lilly (finished the loop last year) and had a great time. They hauled us around to reprovision. We should be good until we get home with the exception of fresh stuff. We are heading for St. Joe tonight to meet Larry and Lola aboard "Lola Marie". They are beginning their second loop and have been waiting for us to arrive before they leave, (St. Joe being their home port).

I think we will cross to Chicago tomorrow from St. Joe. Don't think we'll stop - we've been to Chicago many times and want to get started on the rivers ASAP.

See you out there somewhere . . . .
Ann & Rob

Charlevoix, Michigan 8/14/08

2008-08-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

Hello All -

We are in Charlevoix, a beautiful little town on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. We had a very nice cruise today - little wind and very manageable waves. We left the three boats we have been traveling with early this morning and will miss them. This is the first time we have been alone in quite a while. Of course, we immediately ran into several other loopers in this marina.

Note my picture of the flag as we crossed back into US waters and the quarantine flag that you have to fly between the time you cross into or out of foreign waters and pass customs. The bridge is the Mackinaw bridge in the very early morning light. The other picture is of the "MoJo Group" as we came to be called at our almost last supper together. From the left are David & Gretta aboard "Grettitude", Jeanette & Charlie aboard "Highlander", Rick aboard "MoJo". Of course, Rob and I and on the far right is Randy Cady, our Captain and Fearless Leader.

We plan to continue south as fast as we can. If the weather stays good and the winds are Ok, we should be in Chicago in about a week. It's 375 miles from Mackinaw to Chicago. We did over 50 miles today. We are hoping to catch up with Larry and Lola on "Lola Marie". They are leaving St. Joe in a few days - on their second loop.

See you out there somewhere. . . .

Rob & Ann

August 13, 2008 St. Ignace, Michigan

2008-08-13T10:56:00.000-07:00

Hello All

I know that some of you are wondering what has happened to us. We have not had Internet service or even phone service for days. We had a fabulous time on Georgian Bay and the North Channel. Four boats went together and hired a captain to get us through safely, quickly and still see the highlights. We more than accomplished our goals - and the cost was less that one prop repair per boat. While we were in the North Channel, we heard of four boats that had major problems - including a couple that actually sank. Some of you may know Joe and Mary Beth aboard the sailboat "Pot O Gold" - they ran aground and had to be rescued by the Canadian Coast Guard - they are on Drummond Island for repairs and may not be able to complete the loop this year - depending on how quickly repairs can be done.

This area is fairly easy to navigate but requires constant attention to details (mostly rocks) and miss one channel marker and you hit rocks.

We spent a couple of nights in Little Current, an anchorage in Baie Fine and a couple of nights anchored in the Benjamin Islands. Then on to Gore Bay, Meldrum Bay, Drummond Island (where we went through US Customs) and now St. Ignace - which is just across the bay from Mackinac Island. We're planning to leave tomorrow morning - down Lake Michigan- turning south at last.

I have so many wonderful pictures that I cannot post them all. I did get one on here that is a blur and can't figure out how to get it deleted.....so it is there - please ignore. This blogsite definitely has it's difficulties.

We're moving South on Lake Michigan tomorrow morning. We'll be in Chicago in about a week - weather permitting.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Ann & Rob

Killarney Sunday, August 3, 2008

2008-08-03T13:41:00.001-07:00

Dear Ones: We are in Killarney which is at the western end of the Georgian Bay. Pictures don't begin to do justice to the beauty of this area. It is absolutely beyond description!

We left Thursday am, having delayed a day due to rain, and traveled to Parry Sound, some on the small craft route and some outside. A wonderful, if somewhat windy and rough, day with a stop at the world famous Henry's for lunch. You can get to Henry's only by boat or float plane, of which there were several docked. Friday, we traveled to Byng Inlet, Saturday to Collins Inlet and Mill Lake. We anchored out in a beautiful secluded lake. Today, we made the short run to Killarney, a delightful little fishing (and boat tourism) village.

Note the picture of the barrel - it was the original "light house" marking the entrance to Pointe au Barel Station. The residents simply lit a fire in the barrel - now replaced with a beautiful lighthouse.

See you out there somewhere . . . .

Ann & Rob

We're in Midland / Penetang 7/29/2008

2008-07-29T06:02:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We are at the eastern end of the Georgian Bay, the far northern section of Lake Huron. We will be leaving tomorrow to cruise the Georgian Bay and the North Channel and should be in Michigan in about 10 days. There are about 12 looper boats spread out over 3 marinas in the area. We spent all of yesterday together hearing about the waters ahead of us. You could spend weeks here and not see all there is to see. We, along with several other boats, have hired a captain familiar with this area to guide us along our way. He will be staying on "MoJo" since Rick is alone on his boat for a while. We are looking forward to relaxing and letting someone else take the responsibility of navigating and planning routes, etc.

We passed through the Big Chute on Saturday morning. What a thrill that was. I'm posting pictures - most were taken by Diane aboard "Bella Luna". We traded cameras so that we could take pictures of each other. We drove the boat onto a wooden frame, were lifted out of the water and transported to a lake several hundred feet down a hillside. What a thrill - like a giant roller coaster.

See you out there somewhere . . . .

Ann & Rob

We're in Bobcaygeon July 22, 2008

2008-07-22T15:35:00.000-07:00

Hello All -

We were able to locate the prop and the repair shop just delivered it here to the wall at Lock 32. The Trent Severn Waterway is beautiful - we have been having rain every morning and clearing and sun in the afternoon. Today we traveled through several lakes with lots of rocks - every rock that was large enough had a cottage perched on it. Some very small and modest and some quite large and lovely. Access is only by boat - no hydro (electricity) or water.

The lift lock at Peterborough was amazing. See the picture of "Phantom" and "MoJo" entering before us. There is another lift lock at Kirkfield - maybe tomorrow.

I mentioned in by last blog about the pot luck we were going to have in Peterborough. We set up on the back of our boat - expecting about 12 to 15. We ended up with about 30 folks - mostly loopers or guests. A good time and lots of food were had by all. Rob and I just went to bed - missing the free concert and fireworks. Oh Well . . . .

See you out there somewhere . . .

Rob and Ann

Peterbourgh July 19, 2008

2008-07-19T08:16:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone: Sorry we have not blogged for several days. We have not had Internet service anywhere on the Trent Severn Waterway - until today. We are in Peterbourgh - 4 days into the Trent Severn. Most of the locks in the Trent Severn are hand operated. Notice the picture of Rob and I opening up the gate - usually this is done by the terrific Parks Canada staff - but they will let you help.

We finally were able to leave Kingston on Tuesday, June 15th. We had to have an engine part shipped from the US and wait for the mechanic over the weekend. We had a diver check the props after our "incident" on the Rideau. Then we had to have the boat lifted by a crane (see the picture) and have one of the props changed out. We had extra props on board. We sent the damaged prop to the shop to be repaired and as of today, it is lost between Kingston and Peterbourgh. Don't know how such a big heavy box could be lost. I suspect it'll be found by Monday and we'll have to arrange to either rent a car and come back and get it or risk another shipping.

We have been traveling off and on with 4 other boats, "Victory", "Bella Luna", "Prime Time" and "Phantom of the Aqua". "Bella Luna" ran aground yesterday outside of Campbellford - it took the rest of us half a day to get them off the rocks and repaired. There are a couple of divers among us and they were able to replace the props in the water (see the picture).

Tonight we are attending a free concert and fireworks. We're having a pot luck dinner first for all the loopers in our marina.

We expect to be in Penatang... by next weekend and will be having a get together there on the 28th.

See you out there somewhere . . . .
Rob & Ann

Viva the Rideau Waterway!!! 7/8/08

2008-07-08T16:00:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We are in Kingston, Ontario after 4 wonderful days on the Rideau Waterway, a series of canals, rivers and lakes connecting the Ottawa River and Lake Ontario. It was a wonderful experience - with all kinds of scenery from the suburbs of Ottawa (beautiful lawns and terraced gardens) to marshes (bird sanctuaries), pristine lakes with rock cliffs and narrow passageways between. There are 47 locks which are easy to manage. All the locks and many of the bridges are hand operated - an interesting process.

We stayed on the lock walls or town docks (no power or water) but lots of nice people and pleasant little villages. We just had one small problem (hopefully small. . . .) which happened today. We hit bottom on a very narrow stretch of canal and then hit a log or rock. There was no way around this shallow area. We reported it to the lock master at the next lock and they were going to try to locate whatever it was that had moved into the channel before there is serious damage. We only draft 3 1/2 feet - many boats are 4, 5 or even 6 feet. Both small boats in front of us also hit it. We're going to have a mechanic on the boat tomorrow - so we'll see.

We'll be here in Kingston until Friday. Then we're going to Trenton, about 45 miles west on Lake Ontario and then we'll be about a week on the Trent-Severen Waterway.

See you out there somewhere . . . .
Ann & Rob

Ottawa July 4, 2008

2008-07-04T15:43:00.001-07:00

Hello All:

We have been in Ottawa for the last few days. We anchored out across from downtown on Tuesday, July 1st, Canada Day. We rafted off with "Double SS" and "MoJo" and had a wonderful picnic dinner as we waited for the fireworks. There were hundreds, if not thousands, of boats, mostly well behaved. The fireworks were terrific. Much fun was had by all.

On Wednesday, we moved to the blue line and waited for the "flight" locks to open. We were able to crowd our three boats into the locks along with one more small one. It was a tight squeeze but we navigated them just fine. It took about 5 hours to go through. We all ended up sunburned and very hot. We had lots of spectators and conversations with people from all over the world as we locked through - really fun. We were glad to get settled on the lock wall on the up side of the locks.

We are right in down town Ottawa, handy for sight seeing and shopping but not very quiet or safe, as it turns out. Last night we attended a concert with Pinchas Zukerman conducting and playing Rachmaninov. Absolutely wonderful!!! However after a late evening drink at an Irish pub in the neighborhood, we walked back to the boat and found about 15 of Ottawa's lovely teenagers, doing with teens like to do. A little while later we discovered a boat floating down the canal that they had untied. Luckily there was nobody on board. We called the police and made our way across the canal and caught the boat and retied it up. The kids disbursed when the police arrived. Today, the Canadian National Park folks came by and assured us that this was only the second incident this year, a vast improvement over prior years. They see to be doing what can be done. For those of you coming this way, I would invest in a couple of feet of chain and a couple of padlocks and simply lock your boat to the lock wall. The kids would simply move on to an easier target.

We're leaving tomorrow morning and moving down the Rideau Canal towards Kingston, on the eastern end of Lake Ontario. Old stomping grounds for us as we spent weeks there last summer.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Rob & Ann

On to Ottawa 6/30/08

2008-06-30T14:35:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We are in Montebello, Quebec - about 50 miles east of Ottawa and are planning to go into Ottawa tomorrow. July 1st is Canada Day - the Canadian version of July 4th. And Ottawa is the capital of Canada - so, we'll see how it goes. We can't get reservations at any of the marinas so will anchor out with 2 other boats. There are 11 locks right in Ottawa before we enter the Rideau Canal just west of Ottawa. Nine of those are a "flight" of locks - as in a flight of stairs.

We hiked through the woods today to visit the Montebello Chateau, the largest log structure in the world, (they say). The woods were nice after so much water. We took this picture of ourselves having a good laugh!

Again, the restaurants here are wonderful. Canadians must NEVER cook at home - there are restaurants and cafes everywhere and very few grocery stores.

See you out there somewhere . . . .
Rob & Ann

On the water again 6/27/08

2008-06-27T16:24:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We are in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellvue on the Ottawa River - staying on a delightful town dock or lock wall- they sore of run into each other. The dock is lined with restaurants and cafes all with outdoor seating. We had a Greek dinner tonight, Thai last night in Montreal and Lebanese the night before. The food is quite wonderful !!!

Today we left Montreal fairly early in light fog and arrived here around 3PM after going through 3 locks. We'll be Ottawa in a couple of days. It is doubtful that we'll find a place to dock there and Canada Day is next Tuesday. We're trying to rent a car in Montebello (about an hour from Ottawa) but no luck yet.

Note the picutre of the REALLY big boat that was docked in front of us. We moved when they left. DUH!!!

We've been traveling with a couple of boats - Woody and Ellen on "Double SS" and Rick and Peter on "MoJo". We love having company and more eyes to watch the navigation are always better. We are seeing more loopers now than we saw a few weeks ago. We have been moving really slowly and more are catching up. I expect we'll see a lot more when we get on the Trent-Severen - those who took the short cut through the Erie Canal will be on the same route as we are.

See you out there somewhere. . .
Ann & Rob

Montreal 6/23/08

2008-06-23T06:14:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

We have been in Montreal for a couple of days. We are docked right in the middle of the old city - it is a very old city. Many of the building around us were built in the 1700 and 1800s. There was a lot of activity over the weekend - As I said before, Quebec is celebrating it's 400th birthday this year. There was a fireworks display on Saturday night that we could see from the boat. We are going to do a city tour later today.

Note the picture of the boat with the tug. It is one of the old boats that was used in the historic canals and was pulled by oxen or mules. It is being moved (by a tug boat and an inflatable boat) from a maritime museum to Quebec City for the summer, quite a process to go through a 100 foot lock.

I've also added a picture of the one lock on our trip with a floating dock inside the lock - the easiest lock we've ever been in. The strike here in the Canadian national parks evidently not happen. Good news for us. The rest of our trip will take place as planned - barring any further problems.

See you out there somewhere.

Rob & Ann

Chamblee, Quebec 6/19/08

2008-06-19T14:31:00.000-07:00

Hello All;

We transversed the Chamblee Canal today. The canal is extemely narrow and shallow. No problem with water depth for us but many boats may have a problem. This canal is very interesting in that it is so narrow and the 9 locks are so close and so small that the staff not only must know every boat on the canal and what that boat's schedule is so that boats can be instructed where to pass each other. They also operate the locks by hand. We are traveling with "Double SS", a boat exactly like ours. We are each about 47 feet in length (including anchor and dinghy) and almost 19 feel in width. The locks are 100 feet long and as small as 20 feet in width. Interesting to try and fit both boats into the lock and not hit each other or either gate. And 8 of the locks are within a little more than 1 mile. So. . . no time to even sit down. Whew - I'm glad we're done with that. We do have power and water for the first time in a while - so we are taking the opportunity this PM to do laundry and cook a couple of meals.

We really liked St. John. It's a very pretty little town with good restaurants. Last night we ate in one that had the menu in 2 languages, French and Italian. We figured it out and had a wonderful meal. There are several other loopers with us in addition to Woody and Ellen on Double SS. That's always fun. Tomorrow we'll be on the St Lawrence heading towards Montreal.

See you out there somewhere. . . .

Rob & Ann

Lake Placid 6/15/08

2008-06-16T13:30:00.001-07:00

Hello All

Note the last picture of Quebec City as we crossed the St. Lawrence on the ferry.

The boat is still in Plattsburg NY. We went to Quebec City - waiting for friends to catch up with us. When we finally met them, Ellen was having a tooth problem - and we had a car - so we took her to Lake Placid for dental work. We're sorry she is having a bad tooth but greatly enjoyed the trip back and forth and the evening we spent there. It is a beautiful place in the Adirondacks where the Winter Olympics have been held twice.

Note the picture of Woody and Rob - with Ellen's and my reflection in the window behind them. Just for fun. . .

We're leaving in the morning - heading north into Canada. We'll be crossing the border in less than 30 miles and plan to stay on the lock wall just south of the first lock on the Chamblee Canal.

We're hoping for the best on the three canals we plan to travel in Canada. There is talk of a strike by the Canadian national park workers - which will close the canals. The AGLCA meeting has been cancelled for July due to a lack of interest. We suppose the high fuel prices and worries about the economy has prevented many boats from traveling this summer.

See you out there somewhere . . . .

Rob & Ann

Quebec City 6/12/08

2008-06-12T04:50:00.000-07:00

Hello - we are leaving Quebec City this morning - heading back to Plattsburg, NY. We did a city tour yesterday and love this historic city, which is about the same size as Nashville but much much older. The building our hotel is in was built in the 1700's. This area was first settled in the 1600's and has changed hands between the French and the British several times before finally becoming Canadian. The old city is so much like European cities that you would swear you were in France, Belgium or Switzerland. Most people spead English in addition to French so it is easy to navigate.

There is lots of news here about a possible strike by the Canadian National Park workers, closing the Richleau and Trent Severn Canals. I'm beginning to think finishing this trip is not in the cards. Don't know what we'll do if we cannot use the canals. None of the other option are great.

See you out there somewhere. . . .

Ann & Rob

St Lawrence River (by car and ferry) 6/10/08

2008-06-11T06:37:00.000-07:00

Hello All - The boat is in Plattsburg, NY (we could not get docking space in Burlington for several days stay) and we rented a car and drove north to Quebec. We crossed the St Lawrence River and followed the river to Quebec City. This is a beautiful drive and Quebec City is one of our favorite places in North America. It feels (and sounds) like Europe.

We'll be returning to NY on Friday and hooking up with Woody and Ellen Sutton on Double SS.

I'm attaching a couple of pics from the ferry crossing and will add a few from Quebec City later today. This lighthouse pic was taken just south of Plattsburg. It is a private home built from a historic lighthouse.

See you later today - we're off to explore the Quebec City.

Ann & Rob

Heading North 6/9/08

2008-06-09T03:33:00.000-07:00

Hello All - We are in Westport, New York, about half way up Lake Champlain. We stayed at the Lock 12 Marina on Saturday night at the end of the Champlain Canal. It is a very eclectic place with a wonderful restaurant called Finch & Chub - not to be missed. We put our nieces on the train back to Albany where they rented a car and are now at Niagara Falls.

Lake Champlain is beautiful, with clean water and a gorgeous shoreline. We're going on to Plattsburg, New York today, assuming the fog clears up. We're going to rent a car and travel on to Quebec City. By the time we get back to Plattsburg, Woody and Ellen Sutton will have caught up with us. We'll be able to visit Burlington by car - we cannot get marina reservations for the several days we'll need them.

Note the picture of Fort Ticonderoga - do you remember that from your American history?

See you out there somewhere . .

Rob & Ann

We've been to Maine 6/6/08

2008-06-06T05:43:00.000-07:00

Hello All,

We loved the time we were able to spend in Maine. We explored the Freeport area (LL Bean store and all the outlets, of course) and spent a day at Acadia National Park. We especially loved the back roads we took through Vermont and New Hampshire to get there. This is a really beautiful part of the country. We tend to think of the Northeast as all urban, which is not at all correct.

We are on the Champlain Canal, which is partially Hudson River and part canal, connecting the Hudson with Lake Champlain. The locks on this canal are cleaner and easier to manage than those on the Erie.

My brother and sister-in-law were with us for a week. We took them to the airport in Albany and picked up two nieces for a few days. What a joy to share part of this adventure with family.

See you out there somewhere . . .

Rob and Ann

We're back in Albany. 5/29/08

2008-05-28T06:26:00.000-07:00

Hello All:

I could not resist showing you a picture of our four beautiful grandchildren. The girls both graduated from high school in the last couple of weeks. What a thrill for them and for us. And their brothers are happy that they will be leaving for college. I told the boys that meant more intense scrutiny for them! Anyway, we had a great time at home - would not have missed it for the world.

We are back in Albany at the Albany Yacht Club. My brother and sister-in-law are coming in today and we'll spend a couple of days on the coast of Maine (by car for those of you who are not great at geography) and then visit Copperstown. My father played for the Brooklyn Dodgers an eon ago so baseball of great interest. We're also looking forward to the LL Bean home store and the Vermont Old Country Store - it's only a couple of hours from here and a beautiful drive.

We are beginning to see a looper or two. I think you guys will catch up with us in the next couple of weeks. We're moving pretty slow.

See you out there. . .
Bob & Ann

Albany, New York 5/13/08

2008-05-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We're in Albany, having gone through 10 locks today. Well actually, we're about 10 miles south of Albany at a marina with experts in electronics. Our compass is out and will need to be replaced. They will take care of it tomorrow and the we'll move the boat back to the Albany Yacht Club.

The locks went pretty well today - we only made fools of ourselves once. One out of ten isn't bad. Again, our deck is so high, it is difficult to reach what we need to reach. But we made it fine. We have a lot of cleaning up to do before we head home - there is mud and gunk everywhere from the locks.

I'm attaching a few pics - note the really dumb goose nesting on rocks. Also, if you look at the pic of Winter Harbor Marina from my last post, you'll notice that the price of fuel is blank on their sign. I don't think they want to advertise almost $5 per gallon for diesel.

See you out there somewhere . . .

Bob & Ann

Goodby to Brewerton and Winter Harbor!! 5/12/08

2008-05-12T07:46:00.000-07:00

Hello All . . .

Here is our last view of Winter Harbor Marina. We left on Saturday around 9 am as the temp warmed, went through 4 locks and spent the night in Ilion. Sunday we had 8 locks and are now in Amsterdam. We'll stay here today waiting for better weather and leave again tomorrow morning for Albany, going through 9 locks. We'll be leaving Albany for home on Friday, May 16th for our 2 granddaughter's high school graduations.

As those of you have been on the eastern part of the Erie Canal know, the locks are difficult to say the least. Try for a day with warm temps and NO wind. We found it especially hard as our boat has a very high deck and the decks are bowed, leaving the lines WAY down there and WAY out there. Thank goodness of expendable boat hooks, long arms and strong backs. We are also using our walkee talkee thingees so we don't yell at each other so much. Be sure to bring good waterproof gloves and lots of patience.

We have found the lock masters friendly for the most part. The summer crews are not working yet so things are a little slow and a little unorganized. Last year the locks were free, this year we had to purchase two 2-days passes for $20 each to use the locks for 3 days. There are less expensive per day options if you need more time. A season pass is $100. You purchase the pass at the first lock you go through and may be asked to show it at each lock so keep it handy.

I'm uploading several typical scenes from the western Erie Canal. Please excuse the positioning of pics on this blog. I seem to have no control where they end up.

See you out there somewhere . . .

Bob & Ann

Yea!!! We are back on the water!!! 5/9/08

2008-05-09T12:23:00.000-07:00

Hello All - After a looooong dry spell, we are back on the water. We are in Brewerton, NY, on the Erie Canal and will be leaving tomorrow, traveling east on the canal towards Albany. We'll leave the boat there for a couple of weeks and fly home to celebrate Rachel and Jessica's high school graduations.

We have spent the last few days reprovisioning, cleaning and planning for the rest of the loop. When we get back to Albany on May 26th, we don't plan to be home again until Labor Day. That will take some doing, as I am still in charge of the books and payroll for our company. Rob will take care of his clients by phone and e-mail. We'll both depend heavily upon our wonderful staff in Nashville.

We loved seeing our boating friends at Joe Wheeler in October and at Charleston in April. What a treat to see old friends and make new ones. We especially enjoyed getting to know Elaine, the widow of Skipper Bob. We, along with Elaine, made a presentation to Ron and Eva, the creators of the AGLCA. What a thrill that was.

We also enjoyed a mini-reunion in March with Bob & Liz, Paul & Jane and Larry & Lola. We met at our son's lake house on Tim's Ford between Nashville and Chattanooga. We had a wonderful time and hope to make this at least an annual affair - and perhaps include more folks next time. The last time these four couples were together, we were fighting the wind/current/tide on the Cheasapeake together - one of the more memorable days of our trip.

Much Love to all.

See you out there somewhere

Bob & Ann

We're home! August 18, 2007

2007-08-18T13:49:00.000-07:00

Hello All

Don't know if we still have any readers or not. We are still among the living and breathing. We've been home for a few weeks. Nashville is HOT and DRY! It's been over 100 every day for almost 2 weeks. Makes us long for Canada!!!

The boat is being fixed as I write this. The new engine is in and almost installed. The hole in the side that had to be cut so that the crane could lift the old and the new engines into and out of the boat is being repaired. They tell us that we'll not even be able to see where the hole was. We have excellent craftsmen and mechanics and think all will go well. We plan to drive back to Kingston around the 9th or 10th of September and take the boat back to New York where it'll be stored for the winter.

We'll be back on the Erie Canal next spring when the canal opens around May 15th. In the meantime, we'll see some of you at the rendezvous at Joe Wheeler. We won't be able to stay long but plan to be there the day before and the first day. Can't wait to see all of you. We have really missed our boating friends.

Safe Travels
See you out there somewhere
Bob & Ann
Aboard Nothing at the Moment

An update on our situation. July 17, 2007

2007-07-17T04:32:00.000-07:00

Hello All . .

Our situation has improved since our last post. We have been towed to Collins Bay Marina, which has a crane available to lift the new engine that should be delivered today. Since Yanmar is no longer manufacturing our particular engine, we thought we would not be able to locate an engine but were finally able to find one in St Petersburg. It is on a plane coming this way as I write this. Today, we'll have to deal with the GST tax and get it through customs.

There are 2 possibilities of ways to install - either disassemble the new engine and reassemble it in the boat or cut a hole in the boat and lift it by crane into the boat. Since the 1st choice would probably negate the warranty, we have decided on the 2nd choice.

Since we don't want to watch our boat cut apart (and don't want to deal with all that fiberglass dust) we are going to leave the boat for a few days. We'll probably drive up to Ottawa for a couple of days and then drive over to Penetanguishene for the Summer Rendezvous.

Thanks to all for your good thoughts. And thanks to all you wonderful folks here in Kingston who have been helping us put our lives (and our boat) back together again. By the way, we're taking up a collection for the "Levine Engine Fund". Strictly non-profit, of course.

We're still not sure where we'll go from here. It's obvious that we'll not finish the loop this year. We'll probably take the boat back to New York and store it for the winter. We'll keep you up to date on our progress and will see many of you in Pentetanguishene. (At least I can spell that - have no idea how to pronounce it! I can pronounce rendezvous but can't spell it! Ah well . . .)

See you that there somewhere - sometime . . . .
Rob & Ann

We're stuck - - June 11, 2006

2007-07-11T05:24:00.000-07:00

Hello All . . .

We're stuck in Kingston, Ontario. About half way across Lake Ontario, one of our engines shut down. Turn's out it is fried and will need to be replaced. At this point, it looks like this was caused by an installation problem - one of the oil hoses was placed too close to the bottom of the engine compartment and friction caused it to lose all oil, causing the engine to freeze up. Unfortunately, our 2 year warranty period was up 2 months ago.

The good news is that we made it into Kingston just fine - with the help of Larry and Lola on "Lola Marie". We limped in on one engine and minimum steering ability but managed to make it fine. We found a marina with room for both boats and have since been moved to a better location with power and water so that we will be able to stay on the boat during most of the repair time. Many thanks to Larry and Lola for all their help and to Kingston Marina for making accomadations available.

Since we were already short on time and hate to miss the Great Lakes, we have about decided to spend the fall in this area and leave the boat for the winter. Then we'll have all next late spring and summer in the lakes.

Anyone have any sugar for the lemonade? We have plenty of lemons. We'll keep you posted on our progress.

See you out there somewhere - sometime.

Rob & Ann

Canada here we come! 7/8/07

2007-07-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We are in Oswego, New York - on the southern shore of Lake Ontario. We're going to cross the lake Monday or Tuesday. We loved the Erie Canal, except some of the locks were very difficult. The canal system locks were not designed for large boats. Many of them have only ropes to hold on to and nothing to tie the boat to. When there was wind, it was almost impossible to have any control over the boat at all. We were so glad to pass safely through the last lock yesterday. We passed through 8 locks on the Oswego Canal and 23 on the Erie Canal. We are looking forward to being in Canada - have met many very nice folks from Canada on our US waters.

See you all out there somewere!

Ann & Rob

We're Back! June 30, 2007

2007-06-30T15:04:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We are back on the boat - got back to Albany about 2 this morning. We had a wonderful time in Park City, Utah and Boise, Idaho. We attended 2 family reunions and visited many family members and friends.

We will be leaving in the morning and entering the Erie Canal - heading for Canada.

See you out there somewhere. . .
Rob & Ann

Monday, June 18, 2007

2007-06-18T05:58:00.000-07:00

Hello All . . .

We rented a car on Saturday AM and drove up into the Adirondacks for a couple of days. We visited Lake George (where Robert went to camp as a kid) Fort Ticonderoga (which was right out of our 4th grade America History books) and spent the night at Lake Placid (site of 2 winter Olympic Games). Yesterday we drove back into Vermont, via a ferry across Lake Champlain (very cool). We drove pretty much the whole state and wished we had time to stop at all the neat places we saw. We did stop at the Old Vermont Country Store and loved it. A great place for gadgets and old timey stuff that is hard to find anywhere else. Many of you are probably familiar with their catalogs. Today we are driving back down the Hudson River and visit the Vanderbilt and Roosevelt homes and eat lunch at the CIA (Culinary Institute of America).

See you out there somewhere . . . Utah and Idaho later this week.

Ann & R0b

Hudson River, NY June 15, 2007

2007-06-15T13:37:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We are in Albany, New York. The Hudson River is amazing. Everything about it is beautiful. We stopped in several small towns and explored. We are going to rent a car and spend a couple of days in the Adirondack Mountains including Lake Placid. Then we are going to Hyde Park and visit the Vanderbilt Home, Roosevelt Home and the Culinary Institute of America. We have reservations for lunch there. On Wednesday, the 20th, we are flying to Park City, Utah and Boise, Idaho for family reunions.

I'm attaching several pictures of the Hudson. Note the interesting little light houses in the middle of the river.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Ann & Bob

New York - Here We Come June 12, 2007

2007-06-12T13:44:00.001-07:00

Hello from the Hudson River - Today we traveled from Sandy Hook, New Jersey through the New York Harbor, past the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Manhatten and about 30 miles up the Hudson. It was cloudy while we were in New York City so my pictures are not great.

It is quite a relief to see the end of salt water and tides. We'll be in Albany in a couple of days, depending on weather. The Hudson is beautiful!

See you out there somewhere . . .

Ann & Bob

Sandy Hook June 11, 2007

2007-06-12T13:30:00.000-07:00

Hello All

Today we cruised from Atlantic City to Sandy Hook, NJ which is located on the South end of the New York Harbor. We had a delightful dinner with Lenny and Marilyn, cousins from New York who are traveling with us to Albany. The highlight of our day was a 103 year old lady we met in the restaurent who was a absolute delight. We had a easy trip, calm water for the most part and sunny skys. We had a bit of a problem getting settled in the marina. We can sure tell what part of the country we are in by the attitude of the marina employees. Anyway, we did just fine and are leaving in the AM for the Hudson.

See you out there somewhere . . . .

Bob& Ann

We're in Atlantic City. 6/10/07

2007-06-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

Hi All

We cruised on the outside from Cape May to Atlantic City. Water was calm although there was a little fog. We were in Atlantic City before noon. We checked out the casinos and the boardwalk. What a hoot!!! And what a place to people watch. We are not gamblers so a few minutes at a nickle slot was enough of that! Cousin Bill, Van, Gus and finance' Nancy accompanied us. They are all leaving today and Cousin Lenny and his beloved are joining us later today and will be with us to Albany. We hope to leave for NY tomorrow.

See you out there somewhere. . . .

Bob & Ann

Cape May June 7, 2007

2007-06-07T14:41:00.000-07:00

Hello All -

we are in Cape May, NJ, a beautiful and historic seaside town. We cruised from the Baltimore area to the C & D Canal, where cousins Van and Bill joined us. We left yesterday morning and had a beautiful and calm day down the Delaware Bay to Cape May. Will be leaving in the morning for Atlantic City. Hope all of you are well and safe.

Ann & Bob

Back on the water 6/5/07

2007-06-05T16:19:00.000-07:00

Hello All . .

We flew back to Baltimore from Nashville on Sunday and cruised from Baltimore to the C & D Canal today. We had the perfect day on the water - calm seas, warm weather and no boat traffic. If doesn't get any better than this.

My cousin Bill and his wife Van are joining us this evening. We'll probably cruise on down the Delaware Bay tomorrow to Cape May.

Don't have a lot of pics to upload - just a couple of interesting boats and a lone swan.

See you all out there somewhere.

Ann and Rob

We survived the Potomac - May 20, 2007

2007-05-20T08:19:00.000-07:00

Hello All -

Yesterday, we left Deltaville, VA - finally - and traveled up the Chesapeake to Solomans, MD. The weather was questionable when we left but we all (5 boats) had a bit of the "let's get going syndrome". We had been in Deltaville for too many days waiting for the perfect day. The water was not too bad until we crossed the 18 mile entrance to the Potomac River. We were in a washing machine - to say the least. We had waves crashing over the top of the boat. We were in no danger but were not having any fun.

We had no damage on the boat to speak of - one of the tachometers is not working correctly and one of the straps broke that holds the dingy. Several of the other boats did not fair so well - but nothing that can't be fixed. It did take a while to clean up the mess inside the boat. Again, nothing broken except a light bulb. Interesting - the lamp, which I had put on the floor, was still standing but the bulb was broken. Actually, a bottle of water fell on it - the bottle was cut by the glass so we had water and broken glass everywhere. And we got the drain in sink in one of the heads all cleaned out. Stuff, and that is a nice word for it, was everywhere, from the floor to the ceiling. Imagine the force it took to do that!

Today, we are back in a holding pattern. Tomorrow doesn't look too bad, so if that holds, we'll head north to the Patapsco River that leads to Baltimore. We'll leave the boat there and fly home for about 10 days. Looking forward to seeing our family and friends.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Bob & Ann

May 17, 2007 We're still in Deltaville!

2007-05-17T10:56:00.000-07:00

Hello All - We're still here in Deltaville waiting for calmer weather. Tomorrow looks like it might be the day. We've had a great time here - lots of other loopers. We had a birthday party yesterday for Robert. We're have to have a couple of good days to get to Baltimore to fly home for a few days. I'm going to include a picture that my brother sent to me - this was taken down around Titusville.

See you out there somewhere

Ann & Bob

May 16, 2007 Rob's B'Day

2007-05-16T06:40:00.000-07:00

May 13, 2007

2007-05-13T10:21:00.000-07:00

Hello All - Happy Mother's Day!

We are at the Atlantic Yacht Basin in Chesapeake, Virginia - just south of Norfolk. Tomorrow we'll head for Hamption Roads and North. We plan to spend a week or so on the Chesapeake Bay and then fly home from Baltimore for the last week in May.

Yesterday we rented a car and drove across the Norfolk Harbor to Hampton Roads and down to the Dismal Swamp and Elizabeth City. I'm posting some pictures - note the surprise at the end of a hiking trail in the visitor's center - a mailbox with a diary in it. I'll try posting a picture of one of the pages - what fun. The canal in the swamp was started by George Washington who owned some of the property in the 1700's and needed a way to ship timber. During the 1800's it was a place where escaped slaves lived. I can't imagine how anyone could have lived there. And it definately isn't dismal! Check it out on Google - it's really a facinating place.

See you out there somewhere. . .

Ann & Bob

We survived the WIND!! 5/10/07

2007-05-10T13:33:00.000-07:00

Hello All

Guess all of you have heard of or experienced the storm off the coast of North Carolina - it is now the first named storm of the season. We were holed up in Oriental, NC for several days - had sustained winds of about 30 - 35 MPH with gusts to about 50. Oriental has no tide under normal circumstances so the docks are fixed. As you can see from the pictures, the storm surge of several feet came to within inches of covering the docks. We had to constantly watch and change the fenders and also change our lines so that we had control from the boat instead of from the docks - in case we could not get off the boat. We never lost power but did lose internet coverage from time to time. Cell phone coverage was very almost non-existent.

We had fun anyway - there were several other loopers there along with other really nice folks. We ate together several times and generally made the best of it. If you have to be stuck, Oriental is a great place to do it. It is a very small town with about 900 residents and 1000 boats. The marina owner took all of us to the grocery and to a fresh food stand where the farmer actually picked the vegetables out of his garden for you - including strawberries. Probably the most interesting thing that happened was that the boat at the end of the dock by the street was waked by a garbage truck! What a hoot!

We are now in Coinjock about 50 miles south of Norfolk and expect to go on to Norfolk tomorrow. We had terrible fog leaving Alligator River Marina this morning - but an easy crossing of the Albemarle Sound - thank goodness. And yes, Ann, we are still south of the Mason Dixon Line.

Our love to all . . .

See you out there somewhere.

Ann & Rob

See you out there somewhere

Outer Banks 5/3/07

2007-05-03T03:49:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We took a vacation from the boat for a couple of days, rented a car and took the ferry to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Love It!!! This is one of the most beautiful and interesting places in the country. We arrived by ferry on Ocracoke Island, drove through Cape Hatteras, Nags Head and visited Kitty Hawk. The Wright Brothers memorial is very interesting. Until yesterday, I really did not believe that airplanes actually flew. How could anything SO big actually stay off the ground. (I still question how large boats can float???) I wish I would have had a really good teacher in science and math!!! All kids should come here and really pay attention! Amazing to be in a place that REALLY changed the history of the world.

One of the pics I included is a very large sand dune named Kill Devil Hill (interesting name - never did hear where that come from.) This is where the Wrights brothers experimented with gliders and learned the basics of flight and piloting.

We took this opportunity, since we had wheels, to do some provisioning, get haircuts, etc. We're heading back to Morehead City today and will start north again tomorrow - assuming weather is good. We're at a lovely Hilton in Kitty Hawk with high speed internet - what a treat.

See you out there somewhere.

Rob & Ann

A few interesting pics - posted 5/1/07

2007-05-01T03:56:00.000-07:00

Bald Head Island Posted 5/1/07

2007-05-01T03:16:00.000-07:00

Hello All

I am a little slow with my posting. We are currently at Morehead City, NC - renting a car today and exploring a little of the Outer Banks. Will stay at Kitty Hawk tonight - I have always wanted to go there. Having a car will give us the opportunity to find stock up on some supplies that we have been needing.

We absolutely LOVED Bald Head Island and would recommend it to anyone who can take an extra day. The island has no cars except a few service vehicles - everyone uses golf carts which can easily be rented. The beaches are absolutely beautiful and virtually deserted. There is a beautiful golf course, a couple of really fine places to eat and a good grocery store. There is no access to the island except by ferry or by boat.

We have working on tentative plans for the next couple of months and are going home for the last week in May - will fly out of Baltimore. We plan to fly out of Albany for a family reunion in Park City, Utah and a quick visit with family in Idaho toward the end of June. Hopefully, weather will cooperate and we'll get where we need to be when we need to be there.

See you out there somewhere . . .

Ann & Rob

2007-04-27T14:19:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone - here are various pics from Georgetown. We had a really wonderful few days there. There were quite a few other loopers plus our daughter-in-law's parents, Elton and Cathy live there. We had a birthday party for Ellen and for me at the Rice Paddy - wonderful food and even more wonderful company. Thanks to all who participated. Elton and Cathy came and brought one of their model boats for all to see. Elton makes them to scale from popsicle sticks. They really interesting and beautiful.

We are now at Bald Head Island - I'll publish another post for that.

See you out there somewhere.

Rob & Ann

Fort Sumter Posted April 27, 2007

2007-04-27T13:04:00.000-07:00

Dear Ones

These pics were taken at Fort Sumter in Charleston Bay. I won't bore you with a history lesson as we all learned about this in grade school - as if I could remember. We really enjoyed Charleston. Bill and Eva were with us the last few days we were there and will continue on with us to Wilmington NC. I'll post again for Georgetown and Cape Fear.

See you out there somewhere. . .

Rob & Ann

Charleston 4/21/07

2007-04-21T08:09:00.000-07:00

Hello All

These pictures were all taken at the Charleston Tea Plantation - the only place in the US that tea is grown and processed. Very beautiful and interesting place. I have not taken many pictures in the city of Charleston - there is so much to see and do here that it is almost overwhelming.

The American Great Loop Cruisers' Assoc Spring Rendezvous was wonderful. Lots of great people, greaat speakers and great food. What more could you ask for. We are moving on to Georgetown tomorrow, along with several other boats.

See you out there somewhere.

Ann & Rob

We survived the wind! 4/17/07

2007-04-17T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hello All. We are in Charleston, South Carolina - a beautiful and charming city. We are attending the America's Great Loop Cruiser's Association Spring Rendezvous. What Fun! We know or have at least met almost all of the members who are attending. I'm not sure just how many are here but probably 250 to 300. There are around 175 boats that we know of doing at least part of the great loop this year.

We were hit by the storms that came across the US over the weekend. We did not have a lot of lightning but did have major winds. I heard that we had steady 40 mph winds with gusts to 60 mph. We are on the inside of a dock so the wind was blowing us away from the dock - only problem we had was that we could not get off our boat without a huge leap - both of distance and of faith. The boats on the outside really had a bad day. We all did what we could to help but mostly we just had to wait it out. I'm including a picture I took of the boat across from us. Several men are trying to push it away from the dock to get more bumpers in.

Every time we stuck our head out, we were drenched by sea water coming across the 20 foot dock and over the top of our boat. Thank goodness, we were not out in the ocean - with 20+ foot waves.

I'm also including a picture I just took of Rob, off to do his Coast Guard Auxilliary boat safety inspections.

Bill and Eva are joining us tomorrow and will go with us to the Wilmington, North Carolina area. We can't wait to see them.

See you out there somewhere . . .

Rob & Ann

We're in Charleston 4/14/07

2007-04-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

Hello All - Yesterday we made the run from Beaufort to Charleston. We had the perfect day. Calm winds, calm waters, clear blue sky and lots of company. There were many boats making the same or similar journey. The Charleston City Marina is full of boats here for the AGLCA Rendezvous. We're taking the shuttle down town this afternoon. Will update tomorrow.

See you out there somewhere.
Ann & Rob

Beaufort SC Pictures 4/12/07

2007-04-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

Hello Again - Here are some pictures from historic Beaufort. This is one of the most interesting and beautiful places we have ever been. Love it!!!

We are off to Charleston tomorrow! Wish we could stay here longer but weather is approaching.

See you out there somewhere!

Ann & Rob

Beautiful Beaufort 4/12/06

2007-04-12T06:06:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We are in Beaufort, South Carolina. We moved the boat here yesterday morning with a calm and enjoyable crossing of the Port Royal Sound and Parris Island. The coasts of Georgia and South Carolina are a maize of sounds, rivers and creeks. Many of the rivers and creeks are not navigable - very shallow with many shoals. Also, these states have not done much dredging in several years, making boat travel difficult. We are only traveling during the 3 hours before and 3 hours after high tide. We will probably leave for Charleston tomorrow as the weather is supposed to be bad on Saturday and Sunday.

I'll post some pictures in the next couple of days when internet reception is a little faster.

See you out there somewhere.
Ann & Rob

2/28/07 Post Updated on 4/6/07

2007-04-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

Hello All - - -

We spent most of Januaary and February at Riveria Dunes Marina in the Palmetto-Bradenton area. The highlight of Feburary was a visit from Earl and kathy. We spent a day at the Miami Boat Show - the last time we'll ever do that willingly as we spent 2 hours looking for a parking place. We did enjoy stayng with Ann and Terry on their boat in Ft. Lauderdale and enjoyed dinner on South Beach with friends Chuck and Barbara, owners of the Columbus Marina.

We toured the Kennedy Space Center and Epcot with Earl and Kathy. We especially enjoyed the space center - saw the shuttle on the launch pad ready for a March 15th launch. We then drove back to the boat and spent the next few days at the Ringling Museums and at Fort Desoto State Park (one of the best beaches in the world) and various other places in the area. Had a lot of fun showing Earl and Kathy some of our favorites.

Rob and I left Palmetto on the 25th and spent a couple of nights at Crows Nest Marina in Venice. Did not run into the "Venice Nazi" - an out of control Florida river policeman whose reputation preceeds him! We enjoyed dinner with Barry and Alden and got all the latest on all our friends who now live in this area of Florida. We'll definately be back next year!

Yesterday we cruised to the Gulf Harbor Marina in Ft. Myers. Had a fabulous and long day cruising inland waters. We saw dozens of dolphins - they chase boats just like dogs chase cars. There were 5 or 6 of them with us for many miles. They would jump our wake, dive down and then jump and land sideways. I guess they were trying to see how big a splash they could make. Amazing! In addition to the usual sea birds, we saw several bald eagles fishing and many osprey nests with occupants - looked like they might have been sitting on eggs. Very Cool!

John and Pyllis will be meeting us tomorrow and we'll cross Florida via Lake Okeechobee Waterway and end up in the Stuart area and then head North.

See you out there somewhere!

Rob & Ann

Hello from Rob & Ann 4/6/07

2007-04-06T06:25:00.000-07:00

Hello All - We have been in Nashville for the last week or so. We're planning on driving back toward Hilton Head on Easter Sunday. Will spend the night in the Ashville area and go on on Monday. We have enjoyed being home for a few days. We're catching up at work and trying to get our corporate and personal tax work to the accountant. We had a wonderful Passover with our family. It was great to see everyone and catch up on the news.

Since my last post, we traveled from Amelia Island to Brunswick, where we picked up Wayne and Sara and then traveled on to Savannah with them. We left them in Savannah and traveled on to Hilton Head before heading home. We LOVED Savannah, as always. We have been there several times and see new things each time we visit. It is a amazing city. We docked right in the historic area and were able to tour easily and quickly. As you can see from the pictures, the azaleas were in full bloom - these pictures were taken just a few feet from our boat.

We have learned a couple of things traveling through the very shallow waters from Amelia Island to Hilton Head. First of all, if you see sea gulls WALKING across the channel in front of you, you know you may have a problem! We did run aground about half way just North of Brunswick and had to call Sea Tow. They were wonderful - arrived quickly and knew just what to do. Until we leave these shallow waters, we'll only travel 3 hours before and 3 hours after high tide.

We'll see many of you in Charleston and hope to see the rest of you out there somewhere.
Rob & Ann

Computer Issues March27, 2007

2007-03-27T03:50:00.000-07:00

Hello All

We are halfway between Brunswick and Savannah. Weather has beautiful until yesterday - high fog all day - cool and breezy. Our computer is working only parttime so we probably won't try to post until we get home at the end of the week.

See you out there somewhere.

Rob & Ann

St Augustine 3/21/07

2007-03-21T13:02:00.000-07:00

Dear Ones - we LOVE St. Augustine! Unfortunately we have to leave tomorrow morning. Can't wait to come back here next year. We have run into several other "loopers" - we're meeting for dinner tonight. I'm uploading several St. Augustine pictures. Check out that white peacock on the roof - and the stairs going up inside this beautiful lighthouse.

See you out there somewhere.

Rob & Ann

Sunday March 18,2007

2007-03-18T15:06:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone:

Today we went from Titusville to Daytona - saw our first real live lighthouse - even though it was from a distance. This was taken at Ponce de Leon Inlet. We discovered that this area is pretty dangerous - we bumped on the bottom several times - and we only draft 3 1/2 feet. The guide books say that there is a lot of shoaling and the Core of Engineers or Coast Guard or whoever is responsible for the buoys cannot keep up. If you come this way and notice that the buoys don't line up and look really wierd - believe what you see. It is wierd - and shallow.

Our most exciting thing today was to see a small island completely covered by pink flamingos. Evidently they are migrating and all decided to stop at the same place. My bird book indicates that it is fairly rare to see them in Florida waters at all. The area around NASA - Cape Canaveral is a wildlife refuge. We saw more water birds than we have ever seen before. Many types including osprey and eagles.

Tomorrow we head for St Augustine.

See you out there somewhere.

Ann & Rob

Heading North 3/18/07

2007-03-18T05:17:00.000-07:00

Hello All - we are on our way this morning. We're heading to Daytona today and St Augustine tomorrow. Plan to spend a couple of days there before going on North toward Savannah. We'll be going back home April 1st for Passover, income tax and to see our grandkids and family.

John and Phyllis spent about 10 days with us - had a great time. The weather is cool and clear - perfect for cruising. I'll try to post more often now that we are actually traveling more. Spring is finally here, although the winter in Florida is mostly warm and breezy. How bad is that??? Next winter we plan to explore the St John's River (South out of Jacksonville) and perhaps the Keys.

We have been at the Titusville Municipal Marina for the last week or so. There are many manatees who live here in the marina. Yesterday we saw 10 or 12. They love fresh water so the always show up when a boat is being washed. It is illegal to give them fresh water so you have to be careful not to encourage them. Many of them have scars from being hit with boat propellers. They are so cute and friendly, it's hard not to be friendly back!

See you out there somewhere.

Ann & Bob

We're Still Here 2/15/07

2007-02-15T11:24:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!

No we did not drop off the end of the earrth or drown in the river. We have spent the last 2 months at the Riviera Dunes Marina in Palmetto, Florida. It is really beautiful marina and a nice little town. We are leaving in the morning (by car) for Fort Lauderdale and the Miami boat show. Will be meeting Earl and Kathy in Ft. Lauderdale. They'll be with us for a week. We plan to spend a couple of days in Orlando and then come back here.

We'll probably see some of you in Miami - if not, we'll meet out there somewhere.

Ann & Rob

January 12, 2007

2007-01-12T06:38:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year - We have been home for the last week or so and are leaving this morning to go back to Florida. The boat is on the Manatee River just south of Tampa Bay. We'll be there until the end of February.

I uploaded some pictures - most from the town of Tarpon Springs - a few miles north of Clearwater. It is a Greek fishing village - mostly sponges. Lots of restaurents, shops and museums - very picturesque. Check out that Greek bakery - Yum.

We crossed the Gulf from Steinhatchee the day after Christmas. It was a very long day - dawn to dark. The water was a little rough early in the morning but smoothed out as the day went on. We stayed the night in Duneden - between Tarpon Springs and Clearwater. We followed the intercoastal waterway from there to Palmetto. We really enjoyed this trip - lots of bridges - only one of which we were not sure we could get under. Actually we cleared the bottom of the bridge by just a few inches. We crossed the opening of Tampa Bay parallel to the Sunshine Bridge and into the Manatee River.

Sarah and Ed will be with us for the next 10 days or so. We plan to visit beaches, museums, etc. in the Sarasota - Tampa Bay area. Looking forward to some time without so much to do.
Again - Happy New Year everyone!

See you out there somewhere -
Rob & Ann

We're in Palmetto. Yea!

2006-12-30T06:09:00.000-08:00

Hello All:

We finally got a couple of really good weather days and crossed the Gulf from Steinhatchee to Clearwater. It is about 120 miles. We left at dawn and arrived close to dusk. The water was a little rough early in the morning but smoothed out as the day went on.

Yesterday we cruised the Intercoastal Waterway from Clearwater to Palmetto. We'll be here at Riveria Dunes Marina until the end of March. Today we are renting a car and driving back to Steinhatchee to get ours. We are planning to stop in Tarpon Springs for lunch - love that Greek food. I'll try to get pictures of the sponge fishing boats. We loved the ICW and are glad that we did not go outside. It takes a little longer but it was more interesting. We did not have any problems with bridges. There was only one railroad bridge that had to open for us. One highway bridge was really close. We had only about a foot to spare. Crossing Tampa Bay was no problem with calm waters and pretty good markings.

We are having a little problem with our navagation electronics - it is giving us about a 10 degree variance. That is something we'll have to work out.

I left the cord to dump pictures onto the computer at home so will have to show those to you later. We're going home around the 4th or 5th of January for a week. Would love to hear from everyone.

Happy New Year to all. See you out there somewhere!
Rob & Ann

We're home again 12/12

2006-12-12T08:25:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone - we came home on Dec 8th.

We left Steinhatchee, Florida (directly west of Gainesville for those of you who don't know where that is) and came home a few days earlier that expected. There was supposed to be several days of high winds and big waves so we decided to ditch it and catch up at home. We crossed the Gulf from Appalachicola (southwest of Tallahassee) to Steinhatchee on the 6th in fairly rough water - at least rough for those of us who are used to the inland lakes and rivers. Terry, a friend from Nashville, flew down and crossed with us. I have decided that 3-4 foot waves is about my limit. I did not get sick but came close. In fact, all 3 of us fought it all day. Not a lot of fun. We did see lots of dolphins in the bay which was very cool. Steinhatchee is a really beautiful little fishing village. Totally isolated, clean water - lots of atmosphere. We'll enjoy visiting it again. Apalachicola is also beautiful with lots of shrimp and oyster boats and little seafood factories lining the waterways. We are looking forward to going back there someday also. Hopefully when it is a little warmer. It was REALLY cold the last week or so. In the teens or 20s at night and 50s in the daytime - not what you would expect anywhere in Florida.

We have had THE BEST seafood. Appalachocola is the oyster capital of the world, I think. The restaurant at the marina had about 25 different ways to prepare them and you could order any combination. Absolutely fabulous! The oysters were taken right off the boat into the kitchen. Talk about your fresh seafood.

Our plan is to leave Nashville around the 23rd, cross the rest of the Gulf to the Tarpoon Springs area or on to Palmetto (the south side of Tampa Bay) if we have time. We have been invited to go to Bimini with Terry and Ann on their boat between Christmas and New Years - assuming the weather is good. Will keep you updated.

See you out there somewhere . . .
Rob & Ann

Thursday Nov 30

2006-11-30T10:28:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing day yesterday. We were crossing Santa Rosa Sound when at least 20 dalphins joined us. They were playing in our wake. There were many full grown and many babies jumping and diving. What a thrill! We had been seeing one or two here and there but this was a whole pod. We also passed a beautiful shrimp boat named "Miss Mildred" - don't often see them with the nets out like this.

We are in Sandestin waiting for weather to pass. Will do laundry and grocery shop. Next stop will be Panama City. Should be there for a few days.

See you out there somewhere.
Ann & Rob

Nov 27 Update

2006-11-27T14:20:00.000-08:00

Hello All - - We have been here at The Wharf in Orange Beach, AL for the last 10 days or so We have decided to leave tomorrow and begin our move to warmer climes in Florida. We plan to leave Carabelle for the Gulf crossing around December 5 or 6 depending on the weather, of course. We won't go straight across due to the short days. We can't do 130 miles in the daylight this time of year. We'll stop in St Marks, Steinhatchie, Crystal River, Clearwater and then to Palmetto for December, January and February. This should be an interesting crossing. The "armpit" if Florida is very shallow, especially in winter which could take some time as weather is
critical.

We have really enjoyed Orange Beach. We've had a car for the last 10 days so have been able to see a lot of the area. The hurricane Ivan damage is mostly cleaned up. Except for the state park on the gulf. It has not been touched yet but I think the plan is to tear it down and completely rebuild. We took the ferry across to Dauphin Island and looked around there. Drove to Bayou la Batre, a small fishing village close to the Alabama Mississipi border. There used to be a really good diner with piles of oyster shells around. All that is gone with no evidence of oysters at all. We did not drive any further west.

One of our boat neighbors gave us a 20 lb redfish the day after Thanksgiving. We had no way to filet it or even cook anything that big so . . . we had noticed a restaurent on the beach with a sign that said "you hook it, we'll cook it". Took the fish there and had the best seafood meal in many years. What a neat experience that was.

We're planning to be home for a week or so mid December. We are still speaking to each other so feel that we have accomplished a lot. Heard about "Boat Sex" at the meeting in October - all women at this particular meeting. Boat sex is when he stands on the bow of the boat and she stands at the stern and they yell "---- you" at each other. Pick your own 4 letter word.

Keep in touch - see you out there somewhere.
Love to all
Ann & Rob

Back on the Water Again

2006-11-18T12:25:00.000-08:00

Hello All - Rob and I have been home for the last couple of weeks. Working hard to catch up on client appointments and bookwork. Last weekend we went to the lake house with Sarah & Eddie and Bill & Eva. Went to see Lion King Friday night and left for the lake on Saturday morning. Had a fabulous time. We hiked, played cards, read and sat in front of the fire, talked and laughed and ate at least every 15 minutes. It is so rare to have such good friends that you can completely relax and just enjoy each other.

We had an interesting trip in and around Mobile Bay. We went from Bobby's Fish Camp all the way to Dog River - about 130 miles - we knew of no good stopping places. We left late because of heavy fog and were delayed further by a late train on a swing bridge. We entered Mobile Harbor just a dusk and had another 15 or so miles across Mobile Bay in the dark! Mobile Bay is very shallow so you have to stay in the shipping channels. We did fine - but it was scary and really wierd to just forge ahead into total darkness. Thank goodness for electronics. Spent 3 nights at Dog River Marina. When we left Dog River for Orange Beach, the weather said the waves on the Bay were 1 to 1 1/2 feet - Big mistake - they were more like 4 to 6 feet. Again, it was a scary crossing - with waves over the top of the boat in some places. Again, we made it Ok with no damage. The Orange Beach Marina is very nice and we expect to be there until the end of November.

Wednesday, Nov 1st

2006-11-01T06:07:00.000-08:00

Good Morning All.... As you can see, I finally figured out how to upload a picture to the blog site. We took this picture at Bobby's Fish Camp on the Tombigbee River in Alabama. This is the only dockage in about 250 miles - no services at all - it is just a dock. We had a perfect afternoon there - no other boats - Bobby was not even around.

The next day was interesting. We had a run of 130 miles with no choices but to go all the way. We had heavy fog until around 9 AM and a railroad bridge delay. We waited for about a hour for the bridge to open. We arrived in Mobile Harbor just at dusk - wove our way through huge ships and oil tankers and finally into Mobile Bay after dark. We still had about 10 miles to the marina at Dog River. We made it fine with the help of radar, a good chart plotter and a good search light. The moon was bright and the weather fine which helped. The Bay is only about 9 feet deep and I'm told that you don't want to be on it in a storm. You also cannot go out of the channels because the "spoil" from the dredging is dumped along the channels making it very easy to run aground. We are at Dog River now, finally have good internet reception. We are planning to leave later today or tomorrow for the Gulf. We are really enjoying the seafood - fresh oysters and shrimp - right off the boats.

We have rented a car and plan to be home on Friday or Saturday. We are feeling the need to see the grandkids and catch up at the office. We will have been gone from home a month - long enough.

I'm going to try uploading some more pictures . . .

See you guys out there somewhere.
Love from Bob & Ann

At long last - Service - sort of

2006-10-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

Guess we were too optomistic about the ease of internet service on the water. This is the first time in days that we have had any service at all. And this is questionable. We are in Columbus, MS about a third of the way down the state. Tomorrow we cross the border into Alabama - then three days to Mobile Bay and another day to our destination at Gulf Shores. Then home for at least a couple of weeks. We have had a lot of cold weather and rain. Unusual for October. It has been more like November weather. We've been here in Colmbus for 3 nights. Have been traveling with several other boats - there are about 20 transients were at Columbus - we're rafted 2-3 deep - waiting for weather.

I fell at Aqua Yacht Harbour and hurt my back but am getting better each day. No permanent damage. Had to find a dentist this morning to fix a crown that came off. Will have to learn to deal with these things. The boating community is much like our community at home - everyone helps out.

We're looking forward to the next few days. South Alabama is much like the Everglades. Lots of sloughs, swamps, rivers of grass and all the wildlife that goes with that. Last time we went through this area, we did not see another boat, a car or house for 2 days and over 200 miles.

Will send this now - can't believe I have been on for 15 minutes without locking up.
See you guys out there somewhere.
Love
Bob & Ann

Thursday Update

2006-10-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

Hello Dear Ones - We are at the beautiful Joe Wheeler State Park in Northern Alabama. Have had mostly beautiful weather. Today it's raining pretty hard. We're leaving tomorrow for Aqua Yacht Harbor. Will have the boat lifted on Saturday for maintenance work and leave for the Gulf probably on Monday. We have made lots of new friends here at Wheeler and expect to see many of them on our way around the loop. I'll work with pictures at Aqua Yacht where we should have better internet service. It's terrible here. Missing all our family and friends. See you out there somewhere.
Bob & Ann

2006-10-13T13:37:00.000-07:00

Hello Dear Ones . . . It is Friday, October 13. We have not had internet service all week. We are going to have to buy some sort of booster so that we can receive service in more places. All the tech stuff is very frustrating. Our trip got off to a slow start - The very first day we arrived at the first lock, entered and were told that the power had gone down. We sat in the lock for 8 hours before they could even close the door. We finally got down and arrived in Clarksville just at dark. Took us all day to go just a few miles.

Made Green Turtle Bay the next day. Left early the next morning and immediately ran aground. Seems that Lake Barkley is around 10 feet under winter pool due to human error. We thought we had lost rudder control and possibly an engine. We made it back to the marina on one engine, had the boat pulled. Thankfully, they found nothing wrong. Guess whatever was stuck in the prop fell out. We have a little vibration but have been operating OK since. There were many boat with major problems from hitting rocks and trees on the lake bottom so we feel lucky that our problems were minor.

We are now at Joe Wheeler and will be here for at least a week. Bill, Eva and Kathy Breedlove have been with us. Jim Breedlove is arrving tonight and we'll spend the weekend together. They are all leaving on Sunday and then Rob and I'll attend the Loopers meeting next week.

Our weather has been fabulous, except for a little cold and rain yesterday afternoon. We got through Wilson Lock just fine - after a 3 hour wait. I'll write more about that next week and post some pictures (if I can figure out how). It was a very interesting experience. Had no problems with Pickwick or Wheeler locks.

Will post more next week. Miss all of you.

Ann & Rob

A New Day in the Life of . . . .

2006-10-04T05:04:00.000-07:00

Good Morning Family and Friends . . . .

We are finally leaving on Saturday morning, October 7th, accompanied by Bill, Eva and Kathy Breedlove. We'll be traveling on the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers to a Great Loop Cruiser' Ass'n Rendezvous in North Alabama and then on to Gulf Shores, Alabama. We'll be driving a rental car back to Nashville sometime the first week of November.

We are semi-retiring; we plan to be in the office a few days each month and will be able to handle most of our business remotely.

This is quite a change for us "old folks". All this electronic stuff is scary and a huge challenge. Some of you may remember Rob's experience with his "man overboard" button. If not, let us know and we'll repeat the story.

You'll be able to check out our progress on this blog site and see some of our pictures. We have planned and prepared as much as humanly possible but . . .

See you "out there somewhere".
Love to All
Ann & Rob