We finished up our chores and visits in Galesville and boy did it feel good to be underway again! We did have some stops before heading north, first of which was a tank top up. Did not REALLY need fuel but did want to test out this fuel fill baffle device. I will tell you it worked like a champ (Clean Way Fuel)!

Magnolia crossed the Chesapeake Bay, went up the Choptank River (think Mitchners Chesapeake), up Broad Creek and then up San Domingo Creek…yes really. Not only is this a lovely anchorage but it also offers super easy access to St Michaels, MD.

The Pentagon Sailing Club was coming here for Memorial Day but before their arrival had the place to ourselves.

The geese were in full training mode for the young ones.

Had a complete test for the new grill and mount…thanks Rip!

Morning radio nets were made easy by fine weather and good radio conditions.

We made time to get ashore and enjoy a soft shell sandwich in St Mikes…there was of course Ice Cream!

On Saturday the first PSC Boat to arrive was Bootlegger who won a bottle of wine for there accomplishment!

Sunday we made the short trip to Brewers Marina Oxxford where there was much socializing and an evening dinner.

Memorial Day Monday Magnolia was up and off early on passage to Rockhall, MD where we were to meet up with MV Arion.

Arion is our sister-ship and Al & Arlene have been hugely helpful during the transition! Al & Arleen had looked at “AmyK” (Magnolia) before we purchased her and we were excited to share our restoration efforts. We had a wonderful dinner aboard Arion and a fun time catching up.

Tuesday first thing we were up an underway and headed north…at that time we were really not sure how far we were going. We were tryign to decide if this was “our” weather window or we were waiting till later in the week. As we headed up the bay, Annette was checking with out weather router and decided we would go today…”go” meant we were headed straight for Great Kills NY, about a 230 mile passage.

Of course we had the fog to contend with first.

Luckily we have a pretty good radar and as long as you stay away from the “blobs” all is good!

We transited the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal about mid day.

We headed down Delaware Bay passing nearby Brandywine Light.

There is a shortcut canal that goes through Cape May. In the past we were not able to transit it because of our sailboat mast.

We approached the canal just about sunset, not the red and green marks at the approach.

The early part of the canal was quite picturesque which the light of the setting sun.

Upon departing Cape May we made an overnight passage up the New Jersey coast arriving in Great Kills, NY in the early afternoon.

It was a GREAT start to our summer cruise. The next few days will find us taking care of some boat chores. We will also be shopping at my new favorite store Frank and Sal Italian Market. Tonight’s dinner was clams and pasta with a healthy dose of bread for mopping…I am in cooking heaven. For now though, “vessel and crew are well” and we are wishing the same for you.

Its was only 20 days ago that we arrived in Galesville, MD. our “home-port” as home as we get anyway.  We had been away nearly a year but it still definitely felt like home!

Our visit was shorter than normal this year so we got right to work. We had Marine Techincal Services of Deale, MD install SmartPlug connectors on Magnolia. Annette had previously made cable covers for our new shore power cables. They also troubleshot a problem we were having with the Inverter. There are few contractors I can give a Magnolia 5 star rating but they are always there when they say they will, do great work at a reasonable cost…my five cents.

We had many people to catch up with. First off the bat was part of our “freshman” class of 2013. SV Eleanor Q and SV Mandala! We cut our teeth together. Good to be together again.

Under the category of freshman these two are just beginning their time aboard but are already surpassing anything we did! They purchased SV Remedy in the Caribbean and are literally in process of bringing here home to the Chesapeake. As I write this, they are departing Turks & Cacaos heading for “home.”

Another MD based crew John & Lizzy we had not seen since Stuart FL. While we were getting Magnolia ready they were busy getting their new Cabo Rico 56 broken in. (and it is BEAUTIFUL) . It was great to share an evening catching up and swapping trip north stories!

Our friend Jim from SV Kismet was left to his devices while his wife made a shore based trip.  He singlehanded Kismet down to the West River where we shared a wonderful dinner and evening together!

Always a treat in Annapolis this time of the year, the Navy’s Blue Angels come to town for the Academy’s Graduation. We were guests aboard SV Exuberant where we a terrific view of the show, a great lunch and got a run-down on their Great Lakes experiences. More on that in a minute.

I grill a LOT and was not happy with my last one. On the recommendation of Rip on MV Lab Partners I invested in this beauty. Its an O-Grill with a European heritage. So much so that the first time looked at the temperature gauge and it only showed about  250…scratched my head untill I realized it was 250C which is about 500F! I am in love!

We also received our Chelsea Clock back from service. It was good to hear the bells again. It really sets the rhythm aboard Magnolia

A trip home is NEVER complete without seeing my pal and his family. Those two ladies are the only ones I held as babies and now looking forward to the first wedding. Still unbelievable to me!!

A spring golf cart trip is always a welcome afternoon.

We were short on time this year to see everyone and so opened Magnolia on a Sunday afternoon. I so much enjoyed catching up with friends I completely forgot the camera. We did get a snap of dinner with some of my cousins (Go GenIV)!

Another visit we really enjoyed was our friends from SV Journey. Journey was a boat we met on our freshmen year and always very impressed with their vision of their future. They were thinking about the same things we were but they were 15 years younger! We had a lovely evening aboard Magnolia catching up and sharing first world problems. Thank you for making time on a stormy weather night!

We got underway yesterday to start our summer adventure. I am writing from the Choptank River which was the setting for Mitchners Chesapeake. It is every bit beautiful as depicted and a great place to “hide-out” for a holiday weekend. Remember its Memorial Day and the reason for this holiday. “Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. … Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971.”

Note: I get so confused about privacy and what information to share on here whether its pictures or names etc. I have always highly protected names of minors and trying to have respect for information. If there is ever something on here that makes you feel uncomfortable, CONTACT ME and I will IMMEDIATELY make ANY edit to make you feel comfortable.

Departing Southport and St James the first traffic we came to was a super sized cargo ship arriving into the Cape Fear River.

We made a long day trip from Southport to Camp Lejeune where we anchored for the night. We made and early arrival to Swansboro to visit with Annette’s cousin.

From Swansboro it was onto Campbell Creek and a visit with MV Lab Partners and SV Braveheart.  We had a terrific couple of days gabbing with Mike, Kathy, Beth & Rip.

The morning of departure from Campbell Creek gave us a wonderful sunrise with a slight foggy mist…always afforded a beautiful gift.

100 miles to Portsmouth, VA

We generally avoid car traffic but yet there is the occasional car ferry!

We are having a problem with our Northern Light Generator so made a stop into Atlantic Yacht Basin to have that resolved. One of the tasks we had planned for our time in the Norfolk area was to get these kids out of storage.

Being moored at AYB affords us a clear view of the Intercostal Waterway and all the various boats and barges that transit this section of the waterway. This portion of the waterway bypasses the notorious Cape Hatteras so I assume that is why there is so much barge traffic.

The upside of delay was a family visit with my sister, her daughter and new baby hanging out ready to get on with her nap!!

Even as sun is setting the big barges are still moving….

Even before arriving back in Galesville for our spring visit we are planning our next adventure. The next adventure is our version of the “Loop.” We will depart directly from the Pentagon Sailing Club event in Oxxford MD heading west on the Erie Canal to Rochester, NY, north across Lake Ontario through the Canadian Trent Severn Canal system.  We will make a brief visit to Georgian Bay heading though the straights of Mackinac to a visit with my folks in Ludington, a visit with a very old friend in Wisconsin returning back east via Detroit and Sandusky, OH. As with any new water we travel there is a certain level anxiety but the accompanying excitement far out weighs. We try and do our homework to be as prepared as we can. Most of all we are excited that for some of the way we will travel with a friends boat and then further on in the trip visiting places and seeing friends and family and having them visit our home. Going to be an exciting summer that is for sure!!!

Tragic Wake Up Call: I finished this blog a couple of days ago and had yet to get it published. Yesterday we were on our from Hampton, VA to Reedville looking forward to meeting up with some friends we had not crossed paths with in a couple of years. Approaching Reedville Annette heard a PAN-PAN from a boat a couple miles behind us. As the woman related to the Coast Guard ; she and her husband were returning to their home dock have a cruise to NC. It appeared the woman had medical experience and related that her husband had a heart attack and after CPR etc had no signs of life. After the relevant information had been exchanged we called her and offered any assistance she may need. She declined and was focused on getting to their dock in Reedville where appropriate help was waiting. It was a tragedy for sure and reminder to us, you never know the time, so live like it could be soon….btw, the man that passed was 55 years old.