EXTENDED STAY IN ANNAPOLIS 10.27.2017

10.23.2017 makes it exactly three months that we are on the water. We didn’t anticipate having to be in Annapolis this long but it is not a bad place to have to stay; nice people to work with, great showers, a short walk to groceries and (did I mention) great showers. Did I say they had great showers? Engine issues have kept us here for a week longer that we had planned. So what have we done while we were here?

It is amazing how quickly time can pass. Yes, I have done some reading – which I have enjoyed. Check out the Library section to see the books that I have read. Once I got back from Washington and we knew we were going to be here a while longer, we rented a car for two days and did many of the errands that having a car makes easier – grocery shopping and multiple trips to West Marine. We also took a day trip to Mt Vernon – Washington’s home. We not only enjoyed the tour of the mansion and grounds but the ride to and from was also enjoyable.

Mt Vernon

An Actress portrayed Lady Washington. She was funny and engaging.

We also took an afternoon to visit St. Michaels. We had wanted to go there by water, but since we have been delayed we figured this was a great way to still see the place. We had a lovely lunch out on a patio at a seafood place that was recommended (can’t remember the name) and walked down the main street, which is full of cute little boutiques. The maritime museum occupies numerous acres, has an original screw-pile lighthouse, numerous old boats and exhibits that document the history of crabbing and oystering in the area. We are a little sensitive about the whole crabbing topic since we caught our prop and shaft on a crab pot; but we enjoyed the museum immensely. ll see the place. We had a lovely lunch out on a patio at a seafood place that was recommended (can’t remember the name) and walked down the main street, which is full of cute little boutiques. The maritime museum occupies numerous acres, has an original screw-pile lighthouse, numerous old boats and exhibits that document the history of crabbing and oystering in the area. We are a little sensitive about the whole crabbing topic since we caught our prop and shaft on a crab pot; but we enjoyed the museum immensely.

Bridge to St Michaels

Crab shack at St. Michaels

Her Diamond has teak hand rails and eyebrows on the deck which have been staring us in the face since we left Cleveland. The eyebrows had been sanded prior to our leaving by David Ashpis (Thank you again!!!) and were in need of varnish. The hand rails needed their annual coat of varnish. So, one day was spent sanding, taping and varnishing the teak. Now having completed three coats on the eyebrows – they look great.

Happy eyebrows and hand holds

The Engine problem has been very difficult to diagnose. Of course you have to fix one part at a time to see if it corrects the problem. Hitting a crab pot started the whole thing going and even as late as 8:00 AM Thursday morning, as we were trying to leave, the engine overheated due to a loose hose clamp. We had to wait for Chris, who had done all the engine work, to come and diagnose the problem before we could get underway. We left Annapolis around 9:30 Thursday morning and had a ripping sail to Solomons, Maryland – wind NW between 12 and 14 knots. We covered 45 nautical miles in 7.25 hours!The dock crew leaves at 5:00 promptly and we got here at just about 10 minutes to 5:00. A dock hand helped us get tied up and gave us the rundown on the place.

Boardwalk at Solomons, Maryland

One more thing happened in Annapolis – We got a ride up to the grocery store so that we could buy a few things before we left. We decided to walk back because it is only a mile away from the boat yard. We got some Rocco pizza (the best in Annapolis)to take back and started walking. We were enjoying the cool air and the chance to get some exercise. Unfortunately, construction was underway on the road and I didn’t see some uneven pavement. I took a tumble and because I was holding groceries landed right on my face. This was very traumatic for me. Thank goodness I didn’t break my glasses (they flew off) but my face took the brunt of the fall and I got a fat lip and cuts on my nose, upper lip and the area between nose and lip. I also chipped one of my front teeth. I sat on the road for a while to gather myself and a car stopped to see if I was okay. They gave us a ride the rest of the way back to the marina. After I tried to wash up, I realized that there was gravel in my facial cuts so we headed off to the emergency room. Three hours later we returned and went to bed. Thank you to Ben from Kosovo who gave us a ride to the hospital. It is going to take a week or more for me to start looking like myself again.

So now we are in Solomons, Maryland, a beautiful place that we are going to spend the next few days exploring. I hope that my face doesn’t scare anyone away.