Cheshire Crab Lunch Cruise

After a week full of rain we had a gorgeous weekend. And since none of us were raptured on Saturday, Sunday was perfect for a lunch cruise with a crew of 9.

We took the quick trip to the Cheshire Crab in Pasadena, MD. I'm glad we had such a good group of people with us because the service at the restaurant was horrible. I'm really not one to complain much, and frankly with such a beautiful day we were hardly in a rush. However, our waitress was VERY SLOW in getting things to us. We sometimes had to remind her two or three times to bring water, or beer, or butcher paper for the crabs. The website says that they are under new management so maybe they are still working out the kinks for the season, but I still don't think we'll be back anytime soon. In case you are wondering, yes we did say something to a manager before we left but she didn't help the situation at all.

On the flip side, there was a whole new form of entertainment during lunch. Pleasure Cove Marina has a large indoor storage facility for boats. They are constantly putting boats into the water and pulling boats out. Can you imagine seeing your boat in one of these lifts?
Or maybe this is more your style?
It's a little hard to see because of the pylons, but that is a jetski on a smaller lift.

The guys working the lifts were definitely earning their money that Sunday. I understand the postives about having your boat out of the water when it's not in use, but how often is a boat dropped? I never hear about issues, so I'm sure my concerns are unfounded but it's still a little scary to think about.

Karma and When Life Gives You Lemons

No, our boat is not a lemon, thankfully! But you will have to read to the end to find out what the post title means.

This past weekend we did our first raft up of the season. The weather was looking iffy but we decided to go anyway. We left Baltimore at 6:15 Friday evening and made our way to Fairlee Creek. Little did we know what kind of adventures we would have.

Within 20 minutes of getting anchored, Tony and Amy showed up. We weren't expecting anyone else until Saturday morning so this was a pleasant surprise. They also knew another boat that had anchored in Fairlee so we were able to make new friends. We ate, we talked, we sat outside in the cool evening, what a great start to the weekend.

With a little planning you can always eat well on boat. We have found that tortillas are the most versatile bread and used them for many meals this weekend. Breakfast burrito anyone:









Saturday morning we heard that our new friends' dog was missing. They had taken him to shore and he had run off. Fairlee Creek is a relatively remote area and we worried that something would happen to him, especially when a bald eagle was spotted. What do you do if your dog hasn't returned by the time you have to return home? Luckily we didn't have to find out. Somehow they managed to find him a couple hours later.

Okay, all dogs are accounted for, more friends have shown up, huge bonfire is built, things are looking good. We even saw a relatively rare site - we are accustomed to seeing powerboats raft up together, sailboats doesn't seem to do this very often. I hope this group had a great time:

Sunday morning is when the real "fun" started. As I've said in previous posts, it can be a little tricky getting into Fairlee Creek. There is a sandbar to the starboard side as you enter the Creek. Depending on the tides, this sandbar can be well hidden. They've gotten smart and added a red bouy but these pictures certainly explain why you need to follow your charts:


As you can see, we are anchored very close to the sandbar because there is a quick drop off - or so we thought. We have anchored here many times without any difficulty. Sunday morning we discovered that the sandbars have changed a bit at Fairlee. When the tide went out, one of the boats in our raftup was beached. The rest of us were in deep enough water and we tried everything we could think of to get him off the sandbar. We tightened anchors, we added new anchors, we tried motoring boats forward and pulling him with us. Nothing worked. We finally decided that we were just going to have to wait for high tide to return. Here was our friend's predicament: The boat on the left is one that is stuck.
Once the tide really started going out, Doug was able to stand at the stern of the boat:And walk up the side:This is where karma and lemons come into play. All weekend, many of us were joking about the number of boats we have seen get stuck while coming into or going out of Fairlee. I guess the joke was on us this time.

As for lemons, when life gives you lemons make lemonade (or when life gives you limes make margaritas). Chris, the owner of the stuck boat, was able to wax parts of his boat because he had such easy access. Doug and I were able to clean the cabin of our boat in order to prepare for the next trip. And, best of all, the predicted worst weather day of the weekend ended up being the best. I actually got a sunburn.

One of the women absolutely had to go to work Sunday evening, so the boat to our starboard left around 3 to bring her back to the marina. The remaining 3 boats sat and waited. At 4:30 Doug and I really started thinking about what to do. We didn't want to leave the other two boats in such a predicament. We would really hope that someone would stay with us in this situation. The tide was coming in and the stuck boat was starting to "float." So, the three boats decided to try one more time. We tightened lines and put the two completely floating boats in gear. AND IT WORKED! Everyone was floating. Everyone's engines started. We untied our raft up and went home.

The stuck boat seemed to be working fine and I'm hoping there isn't any unseen damage. And we all learned a lesson about how much things can change season to season. Yes, read your charts. Yes, use your personal knowledge. Yes, follow your instincts. And, more importantly, be prepared for anything.

Hard Yacht Cafe

I'm very happy to say that the boat is FINALLY back in the water. We were able to pick her up on Good Friday. It was a rainy day but the water was calm. This little guy was swimming right next to our boat and I like to think that he was our welcoming committee. The weather yesterday was gorgeous - perfect for a lunch cruise. So, 7 of us set off for the Hard Yacht Cafe on Bear Creek. When we arrived, we pulled up to the fuel dock and sent our friends in to get a table. This is going to be a tough year for fuel prices so we decided to completely fill up while prices are still in the $4 range. Doug is smiling here because Hard Yacht's fuel dock had gas for only $4.19. Has anyone seen anything cheaper? Our friends started to wonder if we had left them. I guess we should have warned them that 200 gallons takes a while. I sure hope it lasts a good long time. Then again, this is still cheaper than having kids and sending them to college.

As gas continues to go up in price, we think we may be making more trips to Hard Yacht this year because it's so close. Granted, a trip via car from our house would only take 10-15 minutes, but it's always more fun to take the boat. And, because it's so close a couple of friends were able to drive over and join us for a short while. Thanks for coming Billy, Rob, Dave and Jo!

The Chesapeake Bay is wonderful because it's so large. There are so many places to go and visit. However, it's also small enough that you never know who you will run into. As we were (finally) walking into the restaurant, we saw a Regal boat that looked very familiar. We were so happy to see Jim and Kathy (and their adorable dog, Rascal). Jim is an experienced captain but they were in a tight spot and we were happy to help them get on their way. Here they are pulling out of the marina: Hard Yacht has great outdoor seating (thanks for getting such a great table guys) and everyone in our group seemed happy with their food choices. Yuengling in the only worthwhile beer on tap but they make fantastic spicy bloody marys and orange crushes. They serve their drinks in plastic cups so our engineer friend, Sara, kept us entertained with her towering creations. The flag on the top of this creation says "Our Lady of the Brackish Water." Doug and I joke that we are very religious and go to Our Lady of the Brackish Water every weekend during the warmer months. We always have communion (aka tasty adult beverages) and frequently are baptised (aka swimming in the bay).

Hard Yacht also has live music. The guy playing this weekend was fun - sorry I don't remember his name. The songs by Blind Melon, Barenaked Ladies, and Violent Femmes were hits for our group. Not sure "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas is the best choice for acoustic guitar, but he sure tried.

All in all, it was a great day on the water and we are looking forward to many more trips in the future. Thanks for lunch Mike, Bonnie, Sara, Sean, and Greg!

Caribbean Cruise

Okay, so it's been a long time since I've posted anything. Let's face it, there isn't much boating on the Chesapeake Bay during the winter. Luv'n Life III has been dry docked for a couple months now.

However, a couple weeks ago, I returned home from a trip on this boat:

We had a fantastic 7 night cruise on the Norwegian Pearl. We left out of Miami and went to Roatan, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; Costa Maya (Mahahaul), Mexico; and Key West.

Our favorite stop was in Honduras where we had the opportunity to SNUBA. I love snorkeling but I'm a little apprehensive about SCUBA. This was a great chance to experience underwater breathing without any fear. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes the water.

A few thoughts from the trip:

*We weren't expecting a bon voyage party but this boat had other ideas. Sorry guys, I've colored over the inappropriate for a public blog parts. The thought going through my mind when I saw this boat -- "Hey! Riding on the bow of that boat while it is in motion is illegal!" Granted I don't know Florida's boating laws but I know it would be illegal in Maryland.

*I have many boating friends who won't take a cruise because they can't drive the boat. While I understand that thought, I suggest that you book one anyway because you will have so much fun that you will forget that you aren't driving.

*For my friends who think you can't feel a big boat moving -- think again. Of course, you aren't constantly feeling the boat move and your wine glass isn't going to tip over but your body does sense the movement. Try bowling on a cruise ship; let's see how many strikes you get.

*Don't pay a lot for your room. I know the ones high up have the best view, but how much time do you really plan to spend in your room? Plus, if you are at all prone to motion sickness, get an inside room on a lower deck because the middle of the ship moves less with the rocking of the boat.

*This was our second cruise on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship. While we sailed on two different ships, they were the same design. This took away a little of the excitement of first day exploration as you find everything onboard. Then again, we already knew the quickest way to our favorite bars. This similarity is not the same for all NCL ships, but it is something to think about.

*I should take a tropical vacation in the middle of winter every year. This was so much fun and we are looking for some place warm and wonderful to go next year.

San Diego

I just returned from a conference in San Diego. Aahh, Southern California, where the marinas are still full... And you can eat outdoors in January...

It made me wonder what it's like to live on the other side of the US on a boat. Does anyone know what it's like on a boat during an earthquake? My initial thought is that it would be safer than being on land. Maybe year-round boating makes up for that threat.

Back in Maryland, I'll just have to keep dreaming about spring....

Boats and Politics

During Election season, we see people campaigning for their favorite candidates in many ways. If you have a boat, why not get it in the mix too? Look at this boat in my marina:

I would like to point out that I am not campaigning for or against Jessamy. This candidate is not even in my district.

Make sure you get out and vote today!

Fairlee Bonfire

Fairlee Creek gets pretty quiet after Jellyfish Joel's closes for the season. This makes it the perfect spot for an end of season raft-up and bonfire.

After watching the weather for issues from the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole, we headed out Friday night. While I'm really glad we left, I would not have recommended anyone else venture out in that weather. There were white caps in the Inner Harbor and without the strataglass in place we would have been soaked. We were throwing water over the hard-top once we got out into the Bay.

Since we were the only ones in our group to actually leave Friday night, we figured Fairlee would be dead. We were right, there were only 2 other boats anchored in a spot that has a few hundred anchored boats during the summer months. Unfortunately, one of the boats was already at the beach. The whole purpose of going to Fairlee was a beach bonfire so we pulled up alongside the other boat. I guess I should really say that we struggled to anchor beside them. The wind was whipping and the current was strong. At least the wind was blowing us away from the other boat. After getting the bow anchor set and trying twice to set the stern anchor, Doug got in the zodiac, went to shore, and physically pulled the boat into position using the stern anchor line. It did not look like fun from my viewpoint but you do what you gotta do (or you man the helm while the captain does heavy labor).Once finally situated, we set up our "kitchen" for the night. As we said numerous times that night "there is just something about a campfire that makes you feel like a kid again." Hot dogs and s'mores cooked on long thin branches are a perfect fall dinner.

We were really pleased when the couple on the other boat joined us. We had a great time making new friends around the camp fire. When we said goodnight we made plans to merge our raft-ups in the morning and Doug and I looked forward to making even more new boating friends. People always ask me how we make boating friends. Well, basically it's as organic as the situation this past weekend. We are in the same place and the same time, we have a boat - they have a boat, we discover that we are all nice people, and Ta-Da! new friends are made.

By Saturday night, we had 7 boats rafted up together (3 we already knew and 3 new boats, plus us). We built another bonfire, we drank, we cooked, we made new friends, we talked smack about the upcoming Ravens/Steelers game (great win Ravens!). We also saw a really cool mode of transportation - wouldn't this be fun:

The entrance to Fairlee is a great spot to fish because of the strong current. Doug caught striped bass, catfish, croaker, spot/perch, and even a blue crab.

One tip for those who are unfamiliar with Fairlee Creek - follow your charts VERY CAREFULLY! The entrance into the creek is tight. The areas right outside of the channel are VERY SHALLOW! After all the rain from the tropical storm, it was difficult to see the beach/shoal that became flooded on the starboard side of the entrance. We saw a couple boats with near misses and one sailboat that was lucky that my husband and one other guy in the group are so nice. They had to push him off of the beach.