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2002
CRUISING REPORTS
(also
in reverse chronological order)
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December 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS)
One
of the best things about the cruising life is the contrasts it
offers as we move from one area to the next. It makes me think
of a saying from the world of painting: the eye is drawn to where the
lightest and the darkest values meet. I have thoroughly enjoyed
the comforts and conveniences of North America for the last few
months but I am chafing at the bit to get to the quiet anchorages and
endless beaches of the Bahamas. |
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on to FLORIDA
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November 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS)
Oh
the joy of being back in shorts and t-shirts!
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Chesapeake Bay
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October 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS) We're afloat again. There's always that brief irrational moment when they lower the slings and we wonder whether Little Gidding will just sink out of sight. Now we are back to the pleasures of quiet anchorages and a slower pace of living. After taking a break from performing this summer, I played at a couple of events in September while we were still on the hard. That meant a road trip, complete with a big shiny truck, to play at the Southbound Cruisers' Reunion in Baltimore. I also played at the annual party at the Coan River Marina where we were hauled out. Now it's time to shift into high gear (not a very sailorly expression is that?) as we head for Annapolis and lots of playing around the US Sailboat Show. Below you'll find a list of places I'm playing. If you're in the area, I hope you'll come out for a listen and say hello while you're at it. We're looking forward to catching up with the many cruising friends who make the Annapolis boat show an annual touchstone. The re-crossing of paths is such a key part of what makes the cruising life unique. We'll keep running into many of these same folks as we head south to Florida later this month and then on to the Bahamas for Christmas.
See
you out there,
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Another
Cruising Season Begins
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September 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS) I've never quite gotten over the feeling that the fall is the real beginning of the year. I guess it's that old student mentality. We're on our way back to the boat now. Our annual hit of big city excitement is over once again.
I
used to be such a city girl. I loved the buzz of the city, the
crowds, the sense that there's so much going on. But cruising
has changed how I look at the urban swirl. Now I find it's hard
to get past the cell phones and the traffic and the crap everyone's buying. So now it's back to life-on-the-ladder for a couple of weeks. I whine about boat work but there really is enormous satisfaction in "I did this myself". You know. We'll be afloat and back to the proper cruising life before we know it.
Pasted
below is my performance schedule for the fall. Baltimore mid
September, Annapolis during the Boat Show, Florida in November.
Then it's on to the Bahamas for the winter. If you're in the
area, I hope you'll come and listen and say hello.
All the best,
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Lazy
Hazy Summer
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July/August
2002
(see
also our weekly log at BoatUS) We've been sailing the Chesapeake this summer. The Bay of "so many sailboats, so few of them on the water". Who can blame them? This time of year there's little wind out there to push them around. The good news is that it's easy to find quiet anchorages to ourselves. We balanced those with a trip to Washington for Independence Day fireworks and a hit of urban culture. We also had a great time in Annapolis, one of our all time favorite sailing towns. We're just about to haul the boat in a small boatyard in the Coan River near the mouth of the Potomac. We love this little yard; they use a level when they block the boat! After a couple of weeks of routine boat maintenance, we'll be off to Canada to check in with friends and family there.
In
the fall it's back to the boat and playing music. We'll sail
up to Baltimore in September, Annapolis in October, then make a
passage to Florida by November, and hop across the Gulf Stream to The
Bahamas for the winter.
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Back
to the USA
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June 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS) We are in Florida. We had planned to sail from the Jumentos in the southwestern Bahamas directly up to the Fort Pierce inlet but a cold front chased us in early at Miami. We anchored a few minutes walk from South Beach and hit the sidewalk cafes as fast and hard as we could. Any pretense to be SoBe cool evaporated when someone we'd never seen before asked us where we were anchored! Is it the backpacks? Is it the sandals? Is it the body odor? Our passage from the Jumentos got a boost from that good old Gulf Stream current. So good in fact that we watched the Miami skyline slide from north to south of us as we tried to escape the clutches of the Stream. The Jumentos were one of the highlights of our cruising this year. Off the beaten path and incompletely charted, they are peppered with coral heads for snorkelling and sandy beaches for shelling. They are also an active shark breeding ground. On the windward side of the islands and in the passes between them, the infamous sharks including hammerheads and bulls like to cruise for dinner and companionship. In the anchorages on the leeward side of the islands you're much more likely to encounter the docile nurse shark - they seemed to enjoy shadowing us at the water's edge as we walked the beaches. Unprovoked, they are no danger to us. One of the most interesting pieces of shark trivia I know is that statistics on shark attacks put the nurse shark way up there near the top. The sleepy nurse shark! Who would have guessed? Turns out that's because some snorkellers like to prod and tease them, assuming there's no risk involved. And we thought we were further along the evolutionary scale. My favorite pastime in the Jumentos was combing the beach for shells. Came home with two long spined sea stars one day. Such a thrill. We are spending a couple of weeks catching up with some of David's family here in Florida and then we'll make a shot for the Chesapeake. We'll poke about the Bay for most of the summer, with a side trip off the boat to Canada for a month or so. In the fall I'll play at a Cruiser's Reunion in Annapolis and then at a couple of events around the Annapolis Boat Show before we head south again.
Take
care, |
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Leaving
The Bahamas
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Spring 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS) We have raced and socialized our little hearts out here in George Town. And played a lot of music. The Cruisers' Regatta was a charming, old fashioned country fair kind of event. We humiliated ourselves in the tug of war and racing. A few weeks later at the Family Islands Regatta, we limited our involvement to watching and eating. This regatta is the pinnacle of the racing season in the Bahamas. The overcanvassed sloops that evolved from traditional Bahamian smacks tilt precariously across the harbor with a dozen crew hiked out on the board - very exciting. I've been playing weekly on the beach for people who understand all the jokes in my songs! Doesn't get any better than that. We managed to escape the social vortex of George Town to head for quieter anchorages where I wrote a few new songs. In the next few days we'll head for the Jumentos, a lovely and remote island group in the southern Bahamas. Their downside is that they offer little refuge from bad weather. Spring is the ideal time to cruise there - few cold fronts reach this far south now and hurricane season poses little threat for another couple of months. To reach the Jumentos we need to sail for miles over banks where the water is only a foot or so deeper than our keel. The clarity of the water here is reassuring although it can be unnerving to watch your keel push aside the sea fans below! After a couple of quiet weeks in the Jumentos, we'll leave the Bahamas by heading out into the Old Bahamas Channel and then riding the Gulf Stream north. We'll check in with family in Florida and then make a direct passage up to the Chesapeake, weather permitting. We plan to spend time in Annapolis, Washington and Baltimore as well as poking about in some of the Bay's quieter backwaters during the coming hurricane season.
Take
care, |
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Back
to the Bahamas
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March 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS)
It
took us a couple of weeks to get from the Virgins to George Town in
the Bahamas. Actually it only took about five days but we got
stuck in a remote anchorage on the southeast end of Long Island.
We entered the narrow cut into Little Harbour in settled conditions
before a threatening cold front arrived and then found we couldn't
get out for a week because the ensuing storm swell made the cut
impassable. Every day we ventured out in our dinghy to gaze at
the wall of breaking water and to examine the lily whiteness of our livers. |
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Downwind
From The Virgins To The Bahamas
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February 2002 (see also our weekly log at BoatUS) The Virgins have been a great stop for us. We've had a combination of laid back cruising and performance opportunities. But after six weeks, it's time to go. We're particularly fond of the Bahamas and are eager to be on our way there. The panoramic views in the Virgins are pretty amazing. Almost artificial looking in their perfection. The Virgins are the Disneyland of cruising. You know you'll have a good time (and pay through the nose for it) but you can't help feeling that there's a secret underground tunnel system that the maintenance staff are moving through! Clean and lovely and very regulated. If you're looking for a low hassle charter destination, it's definitely a good choice. If you like the party life and lots of company, go to the British Virgins. If you'd like a little more peace and quiet (and free moorings), stick to St. John in the US Virgins. The hard core cruising and liveaboard community is based in Coral Bay in St. John. We kept returning there in hopes of finding our mail had arrived (six weeks for air mail). Coral Bay prides itself on being non-touristy - a haven for liveaboards who got fed up with the Florida Keys. Many of these guys exude the mysterious impression that they've ended up here through a witness protection program. St. Thomas (the relatively big city island next door) bashing is a favourite pastime, but we had a great time there too.
Hopefully
the weather gods will smile on us in the next few days and we'll be
on our way. We'll be in the Bahamas for at least a couple of months.
Take care. |
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Venezuela
to the Virgins
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January 2002
(see also our weekly log at BoatUS) We spent Christmas itself in Francis Bay in the company of many other cruisers. The Seven Seas Cruising Association, the Caribbean 1500, and Women Aboard all spread the word that this was the place to congregate. Christmas Eve involved a uniquely cruiserly event - the dink 'n drink. Rafted up and drifting along in the bay, we passed appetizers from dinghy to dinghy and sang Christmas carols. On Christmas day I played a little music for the crowd before the big dinner. It all helped to battle the inevitable homesickness that comes from being far from home during the holidays.
We've been enjoying the hiking on St. John's. Our upward
scrambles have been rewarded with spectacular views and the
occasional deer sighting. |
