Mile Hammock Bay Anchorage - Mile 245

Good evening from Master Plan!  Tonight we are anchoring in Mile Hammock Bay which sits just at the southern edge of Camp LeJeune.  This is a very popular anchorage - Paul counted 24 boats here this evening.  A lovely spot and interesting as well as we can see and hear some of the exercises going on at the base. 

We left River Dunes Marina in Oriental this morning and traveled about 72 miles - another beautiful sunny day.  I worked while Paul masterfully guided us through the day.  More dolphin sitings - so cool - and other neat stuff too - see photos below.

Leaving River Dunes - such a beautiful spot - we hope to return.

Passing a Tug and Barge along the way.

Dolphins playing in our bow wake

So cool - they were having a great time!

From our anchorage - I took this on Master Plan's bow - some exercises taking place for Camp Le Jeune

A view of MP with the pretty anchorage in the background.

A peaceful sunset from Master Plan's stern.

I took this because of all of the reflections - all the angles created by the sailboats' masts . . .

Our plan tomorrow is for a shorter day - we're heading to Southport, NC - probably about 65 miles with a few bridges en route (where we'll have to schedule ourselves to be there for the openings - either on the hour or half hour).   Our goal is to be in Charleston on Sunday and we plan to stay there for a week - we're excited to return to this fabulous city.

Thanks again for following along - sending our best to all - love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

There is nothing more genuine than breaking away from the chorus to learn the sound of your own voice.

~ Po Bronson

Oriental, NC - Mile 173

Greetings from River Dunes Marina - by far the swankiest marina we've stayed at on this incredible journey.  It is a residential community with beautiful facilities - swimming pool, etc. - but the highlight was the shower - pretty fabulous to say the least. 

We had a great day in Manteo yesterday - got lots of stuff done - laundry, pump out, exploring, etc - and departed early this morning and headed south along Roanoke Island and then crossed the Pamlico Sound and returned to the InterCoastal Waterway.  The weather Gods were with us and it was a nice calm day - the Pamlico Sound is a very large body of water - in many instances we could not see land - and in bad weather, it can be pretty rough - but today was lovely - an easy crossing.  In addition, we had our first dolphin siting!  They didn't stay with us for a long time, but I was able to snap a photo of them in our bow wake (see below).

We had heard this was a nice marina - so we decided to stop here - about 10 miles north of Oriental where we stayed last April on the trip up.  So same area, but different marina.  It is a lovely spot. 

Our plan is to head to Surf City, NC tomorrow - about 90 miles - so we'll see - we'll keep you posted.  Enjoy the photos!

In Manteo - just a short walk from the marina - was this cool park on the water.  In the summer, they have lots of music festivals and concerts at this pavilion - very cool.  You can see the Outer Banks (Nags Head) in the background.

Sunset last night over Manteo - this replica ship is part of a park close to the marina.  The moon is almost full!

Sunrise over the Outer Banks as we left Manteo this morning.

Dolphins in our bow wake - COOL!  I took this photo leaning over the bow - they love to swim just in front of the boat so they are pushed forward.  It doesn't get old.

Pamlico Sound off Master Plan's stern - this was pretty much the scenery for at least 6 hours.

River Dunes Marina - beautiful.

The mighty captain and his Ship!

Master Plan is about to get a bath - with the beautiful marina buildings in the background.

Inside the Marina building where we had dinner tonight and met some other very nice boaters.

Thanks again for following along - we will be in touch again soon!  Love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:
Never look back unless you are planning to go that way.  - Thoreau*

*This quote was on a sign that was in this great diner in Manteo where we had breakfast yesterday; I just had to write it down, because I knew I'd never be able to remember it!

Manteo, NC

Good evening everyone!

Despite the Patriots' loss (ARG!), we have had a wonderful first day back on the water.  We left Chesapeake, VA at 6:00 AM this morning and headed south. 

What a beautiful morning as the sun rose on the fall foliage.  Note the coffee-colored water.

We veered away from the InterCoastal Waterway (ICW) at about Mile 70 (as a reference point, we started at Mile 12 / Great Bridge) and headed Southeast towards Roanoke Island near the Outer Banks (just a 10-minute drive to Nags Head) and are now docked in Manteo (pronounced "Man-EE-Oh), NC (a total trip of about 80 miles).  It's a great small resort town with lots of cute restaurants and shops.  Although you can tell it's the off-season, it's a quaint and beautiful place.  Our main motivation for coming here was to reconnect with our friends Rick and Linda (and Kirby the Wonder Dog) who greeted us as we docked and it is so great to see them again!  We also wanted to visit places we didn't see last year when we headed South.  We will stay here until Tuesday - it's a great marina with lots of nice amenities - showers, laundry, wifi, etc. - all great!  We arrived at about 2:30 PM and after getting organized and taking a shower - I did a little exploring on foot with my camera - the views and area are just beautiful.

Master Plan docked at Manteo Waterfront Marina - we are on "face dock" - in other words - at the end of the dock.

In the distance is the Outer Banks - the beach - very built up - lots of houses and condos.

Rick and Linda are on the next face dock - doing a little work with their lines.  We docked behind them in Charleston last year and it's really great to see them again.

I walked across a bridge over to a small island and looking back, you can see both Rick and Linda's boat (Catamaran MakeItSo on the left) and Master Plan - almost in the center of the photo.  The Marina buildings are on the right - the top floors are condos.

Views of the marsh and waterways - breathtaking.

Looking at Master Plan from Rick and Linda's Dock - you can see the bridge in the background - which is where I was standing when I took some of the previous photos.

Southern Marshes Lighthouse - right next to the Marina - on the left, you can see the Outer Banks in the background.

We will spend a little more time tomorrow exploring the area and relaxing.  Our plan is to leave Tuesday and head to Oriental, NC - about 90 miles - we'll keep you posted! 

Thanks again for following along and for your friendship and support!  Love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

I shall make of this day–each moment of this day–a heaven on earth. This is my day of opportunity.

~ Dan Custer

On the "Road" Again!

Greetings to our dear friends, family, and followers - We're back!  I am so excited to be sitting at the RLC Events Floating Office entering this blog post.  Paul and I are currently cruising along the ICW at mile 35 - and we just crossed over into North Carolina.  We took advantage of "falling back" and the extra hour and left the dock at 6:00 AM this morning.  Early mornings are my favorite time on the water - peaceful and lovely.

Let me back up.  Captain Paul posted last - he and a friend (from our RI marina) brought the boat from Rhode Island to Chesapeake, VA (near Great Bridge) in early October in a mad dog mission - 2.5 days.  We left the boat in a covered slip in Shed #2 at the Atlantic Yacht Basin just south of Great Bridge. Then Paul and Jarrod flew back to RI on October 4th.

Paul left Rhode Island via our van on Monday (Halloween - the day we left RI in Master Plan last year) and drove to Chesapeake arriving after midnight in the pouring rain.  He spent the week getting the boat ready for our journey - cleaning her, "feeding the bitch" (fueling her), getting her out of the shed, etc.  I was on-site for a program at Gillette Stadium for the entire week - starting early Monday (Halloween) and arrived back to the apartment mid-afternoon on Friday.  I did laundry, cleaned the apartment, and got it ready for vacancy and flew from Providence to Norfolk, VA yesterday (Sat, Nov 5) morning - arriving into Norfolk in the early afternoon.  We spent the rest of the day getting organized, grocery shopping, and getting ready for our journey south.  It had been a long time since I'd been on the boat and it feels so good to be back aboard.  We are leaving the van at the marina - once we get settled in Stuart, FL again, Paul will fly to Norfolk, VA and get it and drive it down to Florida sometime the first week of December. 

Here are some photos to give you an idea of where we stored the boat - Shed #2:

Shed #2 - with our van in front

The right side of Shed #2 - you can see the water on the right.

If you look carefully - you can see the dock under the shed.

This gives you a better idea of what it looks like once inside - it's pretty cool.  The white boat on the left is where Master Plan spent October.

There she is - Paul took this photo on his phone earlier in the week before she was moved to the Face Dock.

Master Plan on the Face Dock in the "go" position - this is where we left from this morning.

Here is the Great Bridge - this photo is taken from the boat - so it's super close to the marina.

So we are now heading to Manteo, NC which is on Roanoke Island - we expect to be there at about 3PM this afternoon.  We were originally going to go to Elizabeth City - since we loved it so much last year - but Paul and I agreed that we should see different places this time and stay at new marinas.  Also - our friends Rick and Linda from MakeItSo are there for the month, so we plan to spend a few nights there.  Rick and Linda are the couple we docked behind in Charleston last November and are also the proud parents of "Kirby the Wonder Dog" who has been featured on this blog before.  They're great people and we're looking forward to reconnecting with them.

RLC Events is still buzzing along, but things will slow down a bit in the next few months, which will be nice.  I've been pretty much sprinting since mid-April and I am truly grateful for the business and for my great clients, but I must admit I am looking forward to catching my breath a little bit.

I will blog again very soon - maybe even tonight - with another update as we work our way South.  We will be in Charleston, SC from November 14 to 21 - then our goal is to be in Stuart at the same marina by December 1st.

Until the next post - take care - thanks for your love and support!  Love, Jen & Paul

Today's Quote:

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." - Ghandi

Mad Dog Delivery

With our challenging schedule this fall, Jen and I decided to move Master Plan south to Chesapeake VA before November.  We will not be heading south until the first week in November.  We got really lucky last year when we departed on Halloween (Oct 31).  As you get further into the fall, weather windows start getting smaller and smaller.  The Inter-coastal waterway really begins in Norfolk VA so we wanted to be set up and ready to go when we are ready for our departure.

With this in mind I departed our home port in East Greenwich at 6 AM on Monday with my friend Jarrod.  Jarrod is a sailor who lives on his boat full time.  He has sailed his boat to Key West every winter for the last 10 years.  He usually does this single handed.  So needless to say, I had a very experienced first mate on board.  The weather was marginal to start.  Hurricane Isabel had passed several hundred miles off shore on Sunday.  this had churned up the surf on the east coast.  So when we rounded Point Judith RI we were bounced around in a beam swell for a few hours.  As we got into Long Island Sound the seas calmed down significantly.  We had timed our departure so we would be going with the flood tide going down the sound.  This set us up to arrive in New York's east river with the tide with us.  There is a section in New York where the East river and the Harlem river converge known as "Hell Gate".   Hell Gate has very strong currents, timing your arrival at hell gate is critical as they can run as much as 8 knots.  Our 6 PM arrival was perfect to shoot us through New York.
Going through NYC reminded me of this 9/11 video, very cool
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDOrzF7B2Kg

Lower Tip of Manhattan 

      We checked the weather down the coast of New Jersey while still in NY.  The coast of NJ can be a very rough piece of water.  If the weather changes there are few places to get in and out of the weather.  The forecast for that night was for northwest winds 10 to 15 knots.  This was not great but it was good enough to go.  So go we did, taking 4 hour shifts at the wheel.  We spent the night cruising down the coast with little to no other traffic out there.  It was very overcast so except for the lights on shore it was very dark.  We arrived in Cape May New Jersey at 7 AM to refuel at Utches Marina.  At this point we had a choice to make, continue across the moth of Delaware Bay and down the Delaware and Virginia coast or go up the Delaware and down the Chesapeake and Delaware canal to the top of the Chesapeake bay.    After another check of the weather we decided to continued up the Delaware Bay.  Although this adds around 80 miles to the trip, it is more protected with lots of places to bail out if the weather got to bad.  Going down the outside is faster but there are very few places to bail.  We arrived in the Chesapeake around 3 PM with a decent forecast for that night.  This was a surprise as we thought we would have to stop to let the low pressure system clear out.  Apparently it moved faster than the weather guessers had predicted.  So with 15 to 20 knots of a northwest wind we headed to Norfolk.  It was a bumpy night as we cruised along under a half moon.  As I reported for my 2 AM watch we were crossing the mouth of the Potomac River.  This area can be treacherous as the waves have a very long fetch to build in the Potomac.   Jarrod had his hands full as I arrived in the pilot house.  We were passing a tug that was towing 3 barges and there was tow other commercial ships heading straight at us.  We were also in a following sea that makes Master Plan very difficult to keep on course.  After taking over for Jarrod we finally cleared the Potomac and found some better seas.  We continued uneventfully to Norfolk, arriving in the Elizabeth River just after 9 AM.  We passed the worlds largest Naval Ship Yard in Norfolk.  So from here it is just 12 miles to Atlantic Yacht Basin where we were leaving the boat.  I called Jen and had her book flights home for that evening.  We had traveled over 500 nautical miles in just 48 hours.  The last 12 would take us 6 hours.  We had the worst bridge luck ever.  There are 3 train bridges that are normally in the up position.  Each one came down for a train just before our arrival.  Then at the great bridge lock a red flag (dangerous cargo) barge arrived.  They will not allow pleasure craft to transit the locks with a red flag barge.  So we waited another hour for that one.  At 2:30 PM we finally arrived at the Marina.  After cleaning up Master Plan we caught a cab to the airport and flew home.  

Where did the Summer go?

Well - my sweet Captain has inspired me to post on our blog once again.  I've been back at the Warwick location of RLC Events since mid-April and have been pretty much sprinting ever since.  This past summer is the busiest in RLC Events history and I feel so grateful to be busy on such cool events with so many amazing clients.  I added two more clients to my roster this summer and along with my existing ones, I was hopping.  I traveled a tremendous amount - Tacoma, WA; Dallas, TX; Tucson, AZ; Los Angeles, CA; White Plains, NY; Orlando, FL; New Orleans, LA; Asheville, NC; Dulles, VA; and quite a few local programs as well.  I worked on some really cool projects and continue to meet some great people along the way.  I am really blessed.  Paul has also helped me so much this summer, which has been awesome - I am truly grateful to have his unwavering support.

Between it all, we did have some great fun with wonderful friends and managed to get out on Master Plan quite a bit.  Here are some photos of the highlights:

June 4, 2011 - one of the most beautiful weddings I've ever been to!  Our dear friends Nicole and Mark were married at the Fairmont in Washington DC.  In addition to being our dear friend, Nicole is also my client with the National Association of Free Clinics - she and I have been working together for almost 4 years!  It was an absolutely beautiful wedding - and a blast as well!  All of our friends from all of the one-day clinics were there - a treat to work with but even more fun to play with!  Really an amazing and wonderful group of people!!  So much joy that day!!  Sigh.

Me and the beautiful bride!  What a glorious event!

Then on Father's Day - our dear friend Amy treated us to a day at Fenway from the Hill Holliday luxury Suite - and the Bruins paraded around Fenway before the game with the Stanley Cup - What a THRILL! 

World Champion Boston Bruins throw out the first pitch to the entire Red Sox team - you can see the Cup on the pitchers' mound - what a moment to be a part of!

Amy and me - dear friends!  Lucky me!

Well - I am once again challenged as to how to turn this photo so - lean to the right please!  This is Paul on the swim platform of Edgartown Harbor on 4th of July weekend - we spent the entire week there.  It was AMAZING.

We hosted the entire Squeglia clan - including Aunt Sheila! - on Master Plan on July 2nd.  Left to right - Peter III, Peter Jr., Mae, Brynnie, and Erin

Silliness on the cockpit!  Where's Peter III?  L to R - Rose, Brynnie, Will, Mae, Patricia, Peter, and Aunt Sheila!

We also celebrated Patricia's big 7-5 - festive hat and all!

July 3rd - we welcomed John and Nancy with their niece and boyfriend - a great day!!

Welcome dear friends Catharine and Kevin - they stayed with us one night - very very fun!

4th of July Fireworks in Edgartown Harbor - here is our friend Jiva grabbing a few photos of the breathtaking sunset!

Sigh . . .  Last year, the 4th of July sunset was amazing too.

Sweet Amy and Paul on the front steps of Edgartown's newest and most fabulous hot spot - Black Sheep and Trio!  Our dear friend Mark opened his business in May - a gourmet cheese and "pantry luxuries" shop during the day which turns into a wonderful wine and cheese and dessert restaurant in the evenings.  FABULOUS!

Amy and Bob joined us on a trek to Point Judith in July - remind us not to have them take charge of the captain duties - clearly they're very silly!  :-)

I love this shot bu once again can't figure out how to turn it (arg) - Amy, Bob, Steph and Ben on board - a spectacular summer day!  Lean to the right please!

My dear friend Barb Brabec - from my summers in the Grand Tetons (Wyoming) - we were roommates in 1986 (we were in kindergarten - ha!) - Barb, her husband Geoff, daughter Hayley (16) and son James (13) joined us for a great day on Narragansett Bay!  They're based in Los Angeles, but spent the summer in Boston - Geoff is an Assistant Director for movies and is in Boston until January filming!  Barb and the kids are now back in California.

Well, you survived all the photos!  It was a crazy, fun-filled summer and it's hard to believe that we'll be heading south within the next two months.  I have 5 more programs before early November, so I'll be plugging away.  Paul will probably try to bring the boat as far as Norfolk in early October - then the first weekend of November, we'll head south via car - reconnect with the boat - and then continue our journey south.  Our goal is to be in Stuart on December 1st.  Once we start getting closer, I promise to start blogging more frequently with updates!

Until the next time - thanks so much for following along and thanks for being cherished friends!

Today's Quote:

It is essential to our well-being, and to our lives, that we play and enjoy life. Every single day, do something that makes your heart sing.                   -Marcia Wieder