I'm back...sort of!

Ok, you all had your chance to become a world famous blogger by posting here, and you all passed on it! I can't believe it. Ah well....
Since my last post, I've traveled the rest of the Erie Canal (fleeing YeeHaw Junction), stepped the mast at RCR Yachts in Buffalo, and gotten through Lake Erie, the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River, leaving me at Sarnia at the moment.
Sarnia has always been one of my favourite stops, ever since my first visit. Went ashore, asked someone at the club where there was a grocery store. He handed me a hamburger AND A BEER!, and asked, "What do you need a grocery store for?" 
Well, he certainly had a point, didn't he? 
My first night here, I tied to a mooring ball rather than anchor because of the storm threats. Wasn't that a good idea? About a half hour after getting here, a storm hit and the winds spun the boat 180° in a heartbeat. Aduana was out of the v-berth and sitting on my lap about a half a heartbeat after that, poor pup. The winds probably hit close to 50 mph and stayed there for an hour and there I was, tied to a big fat mooring ball - something I usually don't do. Thing is, when I went to anchor, the ball was right there in the dark, so I thought, 'what the hey!'...another example of WallyLuck© in action.
Here's a map of my travels for the last while. Stopped in Port Colborne, Long Point, Port Stanley (some great memories of fun times there), Erieau (which I've often referred to as Eerie-oh! - there's a very shallow gene pool there that someone needs to put some heavy duty bleach into!), Pelee Island (met some great new people there, hello Jay and Aimee) and then Windsor.
Couple of notes of interest: 10% cream for my coffee is $4.09 a quart (litre) as opposed to $4.25 for two quarts in the US. Diesel fuel is $5.25 a gallon, compared to under $4 in the States. Beer, $5 or more per bottle in a pub, vs an average of under $3 in the US, and wine - don't ask. But we have 'free' health care here. 
Folks, the offer to guest blog here remains open....and I'm a bit surprised not to have heard from a certain lady sailor and writer in Boston (helloooo Meredith?), her boss (helloooo Peter?) and a certain Pirate in Urbanna (HELLLOOOOO Doc?) with some interesting tales...Oh yes, a Seafarer owner in St. Simons (helloooo James?), and some people who own a gorgeous Hinckley Bermuda 40 (helloooo Pat and Joe?). And Terri! 
Helloooo, is anyone listening?

Erie east, out of Buffalo - light winds, motored most of the way

Winds on the nose - as per usual

Actually got to sail from Point Pelee to Pelee Island. From Pelee Is. went to the Detroit River

Ever Wanted to Be a World Famous Writer?

As you all know, I'm working on a project to produce a tv show about cruising around Cuba 
This will be keeping me very busy over the next few weeks, as I try to put the funding together to make it happen, using the Kickstarter funding website. If you want to know more about that, check out Cuba - Forbidden Paradise
So, in order to make it all happen, and keep the fun happening here, I'm opening up LiveBloggin' the ICW to you! Yes, that's right - you too can be a world famous blogger, right here on LiveBloggin'! Ok, maybe not world famous, but there are people reading this blog in places like Russia, South America, Australia and South Africa. That's a lot of the world. It's actually amazing how many people in so many different places are finding this blog.
So - here's the deal: if you have a boating story of your own, or other story that you think would fit well in LiveBloggin', send it to me at bloggintheicw@gmail.com and I'll see if it fits. If it does, you're in! 
It can be about boating, about what you think about boating, about your favourite boater, favourite boat....whatever you come up with is fine with me.
For those of you who aren't professional writers, or who aren't comfortable having others see your writing skills, relax. I'll gently edit whatever you send so that it reads well - that's work that I've done for over 20 years, so your missive will be in good hands. If you're really shy, we'll publish you without using your name.
And for those of you who ARE in the business of writing - we all know there are some great stories that have never been told. Well, here and now would be a great time to put them out, as I'll guarantee anonymity - er, unless I get a really good cash offer or a subpoena! But barring that, I'll protect your identity to the death. Um, maybe make that to moderate pain... more than a hangnail, less than a really bad toothache.
So....who's going to be the first guest blogger here? Let's have some fun with this.

p.s. those of you with outrageous boating stories that include me in them....be gentle. Remember, I know where you live!

A Visit to YEEHAW Junction...or How I Survived a Visit to Redneck Heaven!

I was nearly to Baldwinsville NY, sailing west towards Lake Erie on the Erie Canal, about a half hour before sunset. The boat was running fine, but a 20¢ gasket on the secondary fuel filter broke just 2.4 miles from my destination and there I was, stranded in front of this guy's trailer site. Picture a nice small camp, nothing nearby, with a ratty 27 foot camping trailer, I think this was an old Rambler trailer, and a bunch of people hanging around the campfire. Looked nice, people having a good time. I went ashore to borrow a phone to call the Boat US towing service.
The guy who was renting the trailer, Al, walked up with beer in hand, no shirt of course, introduced himself - nice enough so far. But then there's the rest of the cast of characters....Dennis, skinny, long hair nearly to his waist and tattoos everywhere, and drunk - he was also only wearing shorts. George - short, stocky, stumbling drunk out of his mind. Do you discern a pattern here? Then there's Carol Ann, who is a brunette version of Ellie May Clampett from the Hillbillies...her mother, who is NOT Granny, but damn near as old. A creepy woman in black, hat and all, who sat and stared into the fire the entire time I was there. Carol Ann's son, Peter, 25. A woman about 35 or so, said she was a Gypsy, about as flaky too, and who apparently had arrived with George and didn't know anyone else. There were others but they were bit players in this drama.
So...let me put it this way...another partier, Lee, loaned me his wife's phone to call Boat US, who indicated they would contact the tow captain and call me back. While I was waiting, Dennis fell in the fire, too drunk to realize it. Burned his legs badly, so badly the tattoos there were burned off. One couple took him to the hospital...and didn't return.
This left Granny and the Woman in Black pissed off because both thought they were going to jump his bones - and he was no prize, believe me. Were I a woman, I'd hate to ever get that lonely. I actually wouldn't have thought it possible, but I was coming to realize, this IS YeeHaw Junction.
Worse however is that I now became a possibility for Granny, since Dennis was out of the picture. Oh no! And I can't leave until I get a phone call back from Boat US, who I'm hoping will come get me at 6:30 the next morning. Or sooner!
While all of this is happening, Al is being as chummy as possible with Ellie May - er, Carol Ann, who is actually his niece. At one point, he tells me she had a fling with his brother (who is of course also her uncle), and he wouldn't mind a bit of that action for himself. Also, apparently, two of her ex husbands (no idea how many she has!) committed suicide. You have to wonder about that one...
The Gypsy, Jessica, had avoided George so assiduously that he got drunker still, and how he did that without alcohol poisoning I have no idea, then fell on and destroyed the beer cooler, then left. This left Jessica with Peter, the 25 year old, and they kept wandering behind the trailer where it was nice and dark. 
I was grateful for this because prior to this, Jessica the Gypsy wanted me to row her out to my boat, coincidentally named Gypsy Wind, which she found just fascinating. Fortunately, I had to remain and wait for my phone call, but things were getting dicey. I'm trying to be polite and social here since Lee is helping me out, and I have three scary women who are looking at me like I'm the winning lottery ticket.
My return call still hadn't come, so I was starting to panic...I needed to get out of there. It was getting dangerous by this point. Carol Ann has decided to chat me up and her mother is resenting the competition - and I didn't have the nerve to tell her there was no competition in any case. 
The woman in the black dress continued to stare into the fire and say nothing; more than a bit creepy let me tell you. A bit later, noticing my lack of interest, Carol Ann heads into the trailer and falls asleep in her uncle's bed. Al, of course, was pleased that she was wouldn't have to sleep in her tent, or some such reasoning...
Finally, my call came. YES! Yes, the tow was arranged for the next morning. Yeee Haw - er, I mean, yahoo! I could make my excuses, tell everyone how nice it had been to meet them, and head back to the boat, anchored at a distance that none of these people would be likely able to swim....I hoped, although, earlier when I was trying to fix the problem, Al had tried to canoe with Carol Ann out to the boat and tipped over. Neither one can swim, but it led to the high point of the evening.....picture Ellie May in a wet t-shirt contest and you'll get the idea.
So that was my Saturday evening. I grew up in a blue collar mining town, so I kind of understand redneck mentality - but the main difference was, we wouldn't sleep with anyone closer than a third cousin! Ok, just kidding, but you know what I mean.
The towboat the next morning was, of course, late by several hours.

GET ME OUT OF HERE!

At the canals....

Since my last post, I've made it to Castleton on Hudson, made some great new friends there, taken the mast down, and sailed up to Waterford, NY. I'm now less than 100 yards from the entrance to the Erie Canal and the trip west to Lake Erie, and Canada. 
I've also been busting my butt putting together the website, Facebook page and funding program for the tv show I'm doing about Cuba next winter - Cuba, Forbidden Paradise.
So if you've wondered where I was hiding, I wasn't...I was here, at the keyboard, just not on this blog. And man oh man, am I beat!
If you're curious about what I've been up to, here it is for you to check out - http://facebook.com/cubaforbiddenparadise, http://CubaForbiddenParadise.com and also http://kck.st/LKbOP7, the tinyurl for the funding website where, if you're so inclined, you can donate to 'Cuba, Forbidden Paradise' and get some really spectacular prizes, including a cameo appearance in the video, and your name in the credits as an Associate Producer. If you're not so inclined, then please like the Facebook page, share the funding link on your Facebook page, email it to really wealthy friends - whatever it takes! After all, you don't want to find me on your doorstep, begging for kibble for Aduana, and beer for me.
Well, perhaps some of you do, but you're in a minority I'm afraid!

Hooking up on the Jersey Coast...oh my!

Ok, you're thinking....just what has this goof done this time? Well, I got hooked up with a couple of lovely young things on my way up the Jersey coast....one was named Bonita, as in Tuna, and the other was Spanish, as in Spanish Mackeral. Yes, I had the fishing line out, because everywhere you looked, and I do mean everywhere, you'd see the water jumping and splashing as big fish (like the ones I caught) were chasing little fish. You could actually see the fish as they rolled at the surface - not one or two, but ten or twenty at a time. I've never seen the water so active! So I 'hooked' a couple of fish...what did you think I meant?
Aduana of course got really excited as I reeled these beauties in, barking and peering over the side of the boat as they came up to it. 
So - it was fresh fish for dinner three nights in a row, and mmmmm...was it good! 
Congratulations to my friends Wendy and Mike - they've just bought a new boat and are now nearly home in Toronto with it, having brought it up the Hudson River and through the Canal - in fact, only a few days ahead of me. 
I'm currently in Kingston, NY - beautiful little town. One more day to Castleton on Hudson, where the mast comes down, then the next day, into the canal system. I'll be taking a day out early next week to drive up to Boston to visit the crew at SAIL Magazine (you've been warned guys!), then it's 'west young man, go west', heading for Buffalo and Lake Erie...and home.

In case you've been wondering.....

...where I've been....I'm in Nyack, NY and have been working on my newest project. Check it out at Cuba - Forbidden Paradise and on my Facebook page. Please make sure you like and friend us on Facebook to help give this project new momentum. Oh, make sure you tell all your friends too...thanks.
Now, back to our regular programming...next post will be about two naked hookers I met while sailing up the Jersey coast....really! (he says, tongue firmly in cheek...)

On leaving Chesapeake Bay...

I'm guilty of forgetting that many of you aren't active sailors....so sometimes my posts don't make a lot of sense for some of you either from lack of sailing knowledge or not knowing the area I'm talking about. It's ok, my posts sometimes don't make a lot of sense to me!
Still....here's my route from Annapolis, heading for New York. Leaving Annapolis, we go north up Chesapeake Bay to the C&D Canal. At this point, you want to be watching the tide so you get the current behind you - it gets quite strong here.
I usually layover in Chesapeake City, then head out the next morning for Delaware River. The trick is to get the tide behind you, which then pushes you along as much as two to three knots faster. On a five knot boat, that means you can do the 42 mile trip in five hours, rather than 8 hours. Makes for a much easier day. Ask Doc about that!
The challenge of Delaware Bay is that there are a LOT of big ships - I've seen as many as a dozen in one day. As long as you stay to the side of the channel, there's no problem.
Delaware River and Bay are not pretty - it's just a part of the trip that you have to get by. At the south end, you come to Cape May, an attractive tourist town. One thing about it I don't care for though - they charge you to go on their beach. Coming from where I do, that's just wrong but of course, this is New Jersey.
From Cape May, it's north on the Atlantic to New York, 118 miles away. I make a point of picking my weather for this part of the trip. I've seen it get nasty out there - this is the North Atlantic after all. In fact, just a few months ago, a 38 foot sailboat was wrecked at the entrance to Barnegat when it hit a shoal. That ought to bring some memories back to Terri, right? Except that was Absecon Inlet at Atlantic City...another story for another time.
In all, this part of the trip, Annapolis to New York, can take from three to five days, unless the weather kicks up and holds you back, as it did two years ago when I was coming south - had to hang out in Manasquan for about a week, until high winds and 10 foot plus seas laid down.
Do I know how to have fun or what?

Cruisin' Cuba

Most of you know I've been to Cuba twice now - and you can catch some of the video action on SAIL Magazine at Paso Malo and on TheSailingChannel at Forbidding, Forbidden Cuba. You can also read several of my stories on Cuba at SAIL telling you what this amazing country is like. 
My current project involves returning to Cuba next winter to put together the video for a PBS television show, a one hour look at what it's like to sail, cruise and explore Cuba. 
The show will explore some of the aspects of Cuba we expect - we'll look at cigars and rum - may even smoke a cigar and sip a little Havana Club Anejo or order up a mojito. This will be a truly authentic look at Cuba and its people - not some fluffy production - and as such, there will be some nitty and gritty to it...kind of like me I suppose!
I'll be announcing the kickoff of the sponsorship program here in just a few days and I hope that all of you will at least be curious enough to take a look at it - and impressed enough to pass the information on to their own contacts. 
In the meantime, here are a couple of photos of Cuba to tempt and intrigue you...

Dominoes is big in Cuba - they play everywhere, this game is on the street

Rolling cigars...it's a manual process

 Ok, that's it for now....back to work everyone!

Naked News No Longer on Top...

Ha! That got your attention, didn't it? For months now, my post on Naked News has been the most read post on this blog. What did I expect from a bunch of pirates, right?
According to the blog stats, Tahiti Teasing, the blog previous to this one, is now first in page views for the week, with Naked News coming in second. NN still has the number one spot for the month, but TT is in second and closing in, and fast!
Now, here's where it gets really interesting. I checked the all time figures and, naturally (he says with a broad grin), Naked News is in first place. Tahiti Teasing, as a newer post, is in fifth but that's only after a few days. I suspect it will rise to second place in short order and perhaps even take over the all time top spot.
But like the gag says, Who's on first, What's on second? Rather than tell you, here's the link. Why am I not surprised that that particular post would get big views from a group of sailors?
Nice to see everyone has their priorities in place! Naked, free and tropical sunsets...I'm proud of all of you!

Tahiti Teasing....

I know, I know...I promised to tell you all about cruising in Tahiti. Then I got here to Annapolis, and caught up in the social whirl with my many good friends. Since it's about time to sober up - er, take a break, now seems a good time to tell you about Tahiti.
Simply put, everything you've ever heard about how beautiful Tahiti is - is true, but times 10. It's that spectacular. 
I was about to leave for South Africa in 2010 on an assignment for SAIL Magazine when I got an email from my editor: "Would you like to go to Tahiti?" What kind of a question is that? Of course I do. I've never typed 'yes' and hit 'send' as fast as I did then.
SAIL wanted me to cover the Pearl Regatta, which coincidentally has just finished this year. This regatta is one of the world's top regattas for cruising boats, with entries of nearly every conceivable type of boat.
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For example, in this video (click here), the yellow boat you see is a ferro cement boat that was one of the top performers, but there were even boats under 30 feet racing.
Here's another video of the event, taken when I was there...
I just went looking for photos of the event for you - found a blog from Tahiti - and darned if the article on the event they linked to wasn't my own, in SAIL - here's the link - SAIL article.
As you read in the SAIL article, one of my crew was a Japanese sailing writer - well, guess who ended up on the cover of Japan's national sailing magazine? Yup, you got it. Isn't that a hoot? The Japanese magazine cover is shown below in the photos.
Ok, that's it for today, more photos next post...enjoy!

Two of the crew...

This is what Tahiti is all about...

Bora Bora in the background, and look at the colour of the water...

The sailing was fabulous....

Can you believe it?

Coming soon....Tahiti...

Tahiti - yes, it's this beautiful...

...a couple of people have asked me to talk about my trip sailing in Tahiti...so just putting together some photos - Tahiti is so beautiful...you'll love it.

Early morning sunshine coming over Bora Bora, complete with thunderclouds

Annapolis is bad for your health...

...more accurately, you're liver's health, especially if you have friends like Mike, Dennis, Jeff, Joe, Cheryl, Michelle, Matt, Crystal...which is not to discount friends such as James, Joe, Pat, Susan, Troy and the Timinator® in St. Simons, GA, who are equally as dangerous!
I have managed, barely, to survive my first weekend back in Annapolis. Friday evening, Mike and I got together for a brew at the Boatyard. That led to Pussers (Kathy, you like that place don't you, or is it their Painkillers, lol?), then Middletons....you get the picture? Got to hear some good music at Middletons, which has always had good bands if you enjoy classic rock and roll and dancing. I do believe we also dropped into the Rockfish and a couple of other pubs...it must be age, my memory isn't quite what it used to be. Yeah, that's it - age!
Saturday, I felt it important to relax (read sleep in and recuperate) and work on the boat, then visit some friends at the nearby marina. Perhaps read up on memory enhancing techniques...
Sunday - oh oh, here we go again. Got a call from Dennis, everyone is meeting at Pussers...well, that took care of the afternoon and Aduana made all kinds of new friends while I reacquainted myself with some of my old ones. While shuffling - er, walking - back to the boat from Pussers, who do I run into but Joe and his lovely new ladyfriend Amy, and Joe's brother, at Davis' pub - so near to my boat and safety, but too late, too late. 
Sat down, chatted, then Joe suggests I check out his new place, we'll play some music (Joe's plays guitar and sings, I sing, badly) and perhaps have a Fat Tyre (type of beer) or three and some laughs. Well, a good time was had by all....Aduana got into what was left of the shrimp dip while no one was watching, and turned her nose up at her kibble later...spoiled pooch.
We won't discuss what time I got back, but I've never seen the streets of Annapolis so quiet. 
Thank God for Mondays...

Annapolis, storms and the dock goat...

I know, I know, you all want to hear about the storm and the dock goat... well, here's a photo of the damn dock goat...

and this is a photo of the little bastard about to eat my furling line... welcome to Reedsville, VA!

Ok, now about the storm - there are no photos. It was dark, and I was too busy saving my life to take video. Ok, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it WAS dark. Honest. Ok, it's a lot of an exaggeration, as in an Olympic gold medal whopper. However, just at sunset, about 20 miles outside of Annapolis, NOAA weather came on the radio with their 'Armaggedon' message. Basically, it's this - the weather is about to take a nasty poop, you had best bend over and kiss your butt goodbye because it's going to get nastier than you'll enjoy out there and why are you so stupid anyway?
So I looked up and yup - sure enough - there's a roll cloud coming out of the west. Picture a rolled carpet, with evil looking clouds behind it, lightning crackling every which way coming out of it, and moving towards you FAST.
Everything in front of it - i.e. the weather I HAD been enjoying, was a light grey. Everything behind it - the weather I was about to experience - was dark, broody, ugly, mean looking grey. You know, kind of like the look your ex-wife gives you when you suggest -well, when you suggest almost anything other than increasing her support.
The NOAA guy on the radio was telling those of us idiotic enough to be out on Chesapeake Bay at this time that 'winds of 20 to 30 miles per hour can be expected, with gusts to 40 mph'. He went on to describe 'cloud to ground lightning', thunderstorms ("winds and waves may be higher in thunderstorms"), gee, thanks for that bit of cheery news...and on and on. About the only thing that wasn't mentioned was fist sized hailstones. One must be grateful for whatever mercies the weather gods may choose, in their mercy, wisdom and kindness, to bestow. Do I sound cynical or what? Especially when they say 'Mariners should seek shelter'....right, and just where will I find shelter when I'm 10 or 20 miles from shore? According to Employment Stats, there are 80,000 comedians out of work. Where did they find this guy?
Ok - the truth? I wouldn't have even been there had I not gone to Reedsville (home of the damn dock goat), instead of carrying on to Solomon's Island, as was the plan. However, the dockside bar, Leadbelly's, has the world's best crab bisque ($7 for a big bowl) and it had been a couple of years since I'd feasted on it. The locals are friendly, if a bit - (HA!) - redneck and always good to chat with. (They must be redneck, they like goats...)
So, like a fool, I abandoned the 15 - 20 knot south winds that were blowing me cheerfully and quickly up the bay from Deltaville to head in to Reedsville, VA. Loved the soup, as good as ever. Tanya, the owner, told me she puts two pounds - yes, that's pounds - of crab in every pot to make this soup. You ever priced blue crab? Do you have any idea how much two pounds of picked crab meat costs? But it was oh so good. I didn't quite have the nerve to lick the bowl, but I'll admit to thinking about it.
Later, on my way back to the boat, I walked behind the restaurant, following Aduana on one of her wanders along the dock. Found a bunch of aquariums and probably three to four hundred blue crab in them. No wonder the soup tastes so good. They pick the crab meat right there. Anywhere else, this bowl of soup - were it even possible to get it like this - would cost closer to $20 and would be worth it at the price.
Next morning, got up at 6 am - yea yea, I know, those of you who know me don't believe that, but there are times I actually LIKE getting up that early, given a good enough reason - rowed Aduana to shore for a walk (not a good enough reason!), and headed out. Winds had abated from the 15 knots the day before, so with 80 miles to go, I fired up the diesel to help the emergency white things - you know, the sails. Most sailors only use them when their motors quit, hence the 'emergency white things' nickname...
Ok, NOW can we talk about Annapolis? Sheesh, the things I do to keep you guys happy!
Sailed into Annapolis at 12:30 am, 17 hours after leaving Reedsville - had it not been for the storm, I would have made it by 11, dry and comfortable, instead of wet and miserable. Had I gone with the winds of the day before, it would have been even sooner and I would have missed the storm entirely.
Put down the anchor, made sure it was backed down well, given how strong the winds were - and then rowed to shore to walk the pup. In the rain.  Do I know how to have fun or what? Meredith, one of my editors at SAIL, is now laughing at this - aren't you? Busted!
I love this place. Annapolis is my second home, the place I should have been born. I left Canada with people I knew thinking I was out of my mind, going to travel on a boat, explore the world, when I could stay home and shovel snow for six months of the year...(and just who is out of their minds here?). Basically, most people thought I wasn't normal. Most people still think that, come to think of it.
Got to Annapolis, and discovered....I was just another damn sailor. Walked the docks, met all kinds of people doing what I was doing, some in fancy boats, some in better boats, lots in similar boats and some in really rough boats, old, young and not so young, healthy and not so healthy, sober and - well, not so sober but by and large, all happy about being there - there being out there, doing it. Felt at home here ever since, and always feel like I'm coming home when I return. Only my liver shudders in fear....this town started the t-shirt that says 'A sailing town with a drinking problem'. Oh yes, indeed.
Ok, that's it for tonight. Oh, the storm? About ten minutes of strong winds, rained for a half hour, ruined the sailing and slowed me down a bunch, but that was about it. So much for NOAA and their ability to predict weather.
Time to walk the dog. It's still raining. Meredith, STOP laughing.
Sheeesh!

Fair winds....

This is actually rather hard to believe - I'm heading out of Deltaville tomorrow, going north - and the winds, for once, will not only be strong enough to sail with, they'll be from the right direction. That is so rare, ask any cruising sailor with a destination. So should be a great day on the water tomorrow - wind, sunny and mild. Life is good.
The goal is to make Annapolis, MD, which is about 85 nm from here. I don't expect to do it all in one jump - I'd be looking at about a 15 hour day and I don't need to push that hard tomorrow. So I'll split the trip into two days and probably anchor out at Solomon's tomorrow evening. That's about 55 miles - still a long day, but doable in daylight, provided I don't oversleep.

You can see by the lines on the chart what my route will be tomorrow. Red in, and blue out. Probably won't have internet access tomorrow, but you never know, so be prepared! I may just surprise you...

Red Neck Yacht Club Party...

Deltaville's premiere marina is Regatta Point, and that's where I am now. This weekend, the Virginia Yacht Club is partying here - big powerboats everywhere you look, bedecked with flags and bunting. Friday evening when I pulled in, there were close to 100 people on the deck, men in white pants and blue jackets with ties, women all dolled up, everyone with fancy drinks in hand - and on the docks were the sailors - scruffy t's, shorts, beers in coozies, every one of them looking a bit bemused at the ostentatious display of spiffery up on the deck.
Of course, I headed to my natural environment, after donning a good shirt and tie and polishing up my black oxfords - ok, ok - stop laughing so hard people. Some of you are going to hurt yourselves. But I do have a nice shirt, tie and good shoes on board, and a jacket. You never know when some hottie might want to go out dancing someplace hoity toity!  Mind you, you could fly a small plane using the lapels of that jacket as wings, but I digress here...
What really happened is that a couple of the sailors from the next boat over grabbed my lines and I joined them for some beer and laughs. Someone suggested the next evening we have our own 'redneck yacht club' party at the barbecue pit - and as fast as that, it was decided.
So last night, there we were in our scruffiest outfits - and where sailors are concerned, that's SERIOUSLY scruffy, hokey hats, beers in hand, cooking dead animals on the grill, going 'hyuck hyuck, y'all havin' fun now?' Had to laugh when a couple of the yachties wandered over from their dinner party to chat - seems they weren't all as hidebound as they looked. A couple of the guys looked as if they wanted to hang with us, but with wives pulling on their arms like a terrier on a leash, off they went.
Five of us ended up the evening helping the marina 'social directors' prep for the marina breakfast some seven hours hence, slicing potatoes and fruit, setting out tables and chairs. Raiding the fridge, we found a huge piece of smoked salmon, cream cheese and crackers left over by the hoity toitys. Well, since we were busy prepping and working, it only seemed right that we have a nibble...I mean, no point in wasting good smoked salmon is there? I'm sure you would have agreed. 
So there we were, noshing on smoked salmon and cream cheese, sipping 18 year old rum that one of the guys had - an incongruous end to the Red Neck Yacht Club party when you think about it.

Fog, and other things...

Left Hampton today, and started up the Chesapeake to Deltaville. Not a very long run, about 33 miles, but the wind never picked up and so I motorsailed (motor and sails up) for most of the trip. 
There was some fog early on - that always makes for some nervousness. Funny thing about sailing in fog - it's a bit like life in its way.  You can see just far enough for your next step, but have no idea what might be hiding behind that grey veil. It's a matter of proceeding cautiously, knowing where you want to be, while hoping there is nothing unseen out there that can cause you harm or damage. There's always that risk, in sailing and in life, but you don't get the joy out of either one if you don't accept at least some risk.


Some people however would rather play it safe, not risk the fog and the uncertainty of life, and they miss out on some of life's truly great adventures. Yet as you travel through life, there will be fog at times - it's unavoidable - and staying tied to the dock gets you nowhere. You miss out on some truly amazing adventures when you do that.
Today, the fog cleared off and the day was sunny, warm and beautiful, and the trip was fabulous - beautifully scenic. I'm so glad I didn't stay at the dock and miss all that. But before I could experience the beauty of this day, I had to take the risk and travel through that fog. It was certainly worth it.

Just got a text from one of the crew about her pirate name - we can welcome Dirty Mary Flint aboard....now, how about everyone else? What is YOUR pirate name? Check it out at Ye Olde Pirate Store... and let us know who you really are!
Arrrrrgggghhhhh!

Lights, Camera, ACTION!

So there we were, Aduana and I, sitting at the coffee shop by the marina when a young woman comes over to tell me that the guy with a gun shooting the two policemen is all faked - a movie shoot. How entertaining. So we walked over to watch 'the show'. 
Let's see - anyone famous? Nope, in fact, it's quite likely that I was the best known person there, based on my own media exposure, but no one asked for my autograph...got to work on that.
The show they were shooting is for the Discovery Channel, one of their crime features. The action involved some clean cut young guy walking along, when a white van pulls up, two policemen leap out and tackle the young guy. They struggle, then the young guy falls to the ground, pulls a gun from his waistband and shoots the policemen. That's it.
Interestingly enough, there was no gunfire - no sounds, no flashes. That's all added in during post production I was told. Made the entire scene very surreal, it would be interesting to see what the final cut looks like. I would think it will appear quite different from what I saw. 

 

Pirate Names....

Had a great evening tonight, the marina staff invited me to a party locally. Met a great bunch of people, had a really good time. Even met a fine old pirate, and he's got a message for everyone.

This be Bloody Roger Reid here speakin' to ya. I just be discoverin' that not all of ye has yer very own pirate name - arggghhhh, and what's that about lads and lasses? If ye be good pirates (where's Doc - oh yes, he's out plundering on his chum's Sabre 42), ye need to be havin' yer own piratical name.
So, hurry yerself on down to Ye Olde Pirate Store and be orderin' up yer very own Pirate Name. Just be clickin' on that there link, then be ye mailin' us and tellin' yer pirate name for everyone to be knowin' just who ye are!
ARRRGGGGG! That's right mateys - I be hearin' from all 40 and more of ye!

Shark vs. Octopus....an amazing video

This is an astounding video, you're going to have a hard time believing what you're about to see...

Cruisers' U a Hit!

I'm back on Gypsy Wind in Hampton after spending a very busy weekend in Annapolis at Cruisers University. I gave three seminars - two on Cuba and one on the ICW. I'm quite pleased to say that the comments that came back from those in attendance were very very good. Everyone enjoyed themselves, including myself, and the students felt that they'd learned something from the experience. I had several people come to me over the course of the weekend and thank me for the seminar they had attended - very gratifying for me of course. 
A heck of a contrast to the seminars I gave at Port Credit during Hurricane Irene, when I was terrified that my boat, on the hard in Virginia, would be destroyed by the raging winds that were howling around her even as I was speaking in Toronto. Those seminars were - shall we say - not my best ones? I felt badly about that, but was way too stressed out about the boat to do as good a job as those attending deserved.
After my last seminar, I got together with some friends at Pusser's for some Painkillers, a rum concoction that should be taken in moderation. I must remember this in the future...anyway, I survived that experience to find myself and several of the group at the Spinsheet Magazine party a bit later in the afternoon, where free rum was on offer....oh oh, here we go again...this is gonna hurt!