Charis Ways

Baltimore and beyond

2009-08-27T11:03:00.001-07:00

Seeing is not believing! What looks like a substantial pirate ship is actually a number of inflatable dinghys lashed together and manned by a "happy" pirate crew.

Our second summer mini cruise was a delight as we began by motoring 6 hrs up the bay to Annapolis for several days of ambling around this beautiful little town and enjoying the never ending panoply of funny boat tricks in the harbor.

Onward then to Baltimore and a great visit with cruising friends Lynn and Wayne Flatt AKA "Capt Bones" Commander of a pirate ship that raids the harbor five times daily. We stayed at the Henderson Wharf Marina at Fells Point a stones throw from the Inner Harbor. We spent most of the second day exploring the "Inner Harbor" possibly the greatest transformation of a hughly depressed central urban area ever. Stunning hotels, shopping centers and other entertainment abound topped by the Aquarium. The sea life and aquatic displays are magnificently presented in a building that is a work of art in itself. We rode the water taxi around the harbor venues all day culminating in a visit to Fort McHenry. Standing beneath the flag pole where "Old Glory" was first flown and seeing/hearing the details of that occasion was a thrill.

Off then a few hours across the bay to Rock Hall, a once quaint fishing village now home to tons of home ported and visiting cruising boats. As luck would have it, we stumbled in on the major event of the year, the "Pirates and Ladies Weekend". Most of the town participates in decorating and sporting fancy pirate costumes. Visitors add to the scene with numerous pirate related events take place all weekend. Most fun was the pirate dinghy parade and race. About 40 dinghys of all types were dressed out in pirate garb and manned by crews who worked hard not to become thursty during the several hours in the hot noonday sun while boat registration and formation took place. Riding the trolly and our bikes around the old town was great fun as well as visiting with a great assortment of "characters".

Then a 3 hour run up the Chester River to Chestertown perhaps the most beautiful town on the Eastern Shore. Dating from the 1700's, the town surrounds Washington College the only school to bear George's name and one he visited regularly on his trips from points north to Washington. Many streets lined by ancient trees and well maintained old homes are a feast for the eyes.

After two delightful days anchored in the river, we headed back down to a "town" ... Queenstown at the mouth of the river and a few miles from Kent Island and the Narrows. Thinking we might taper off with an evening ashore in a quaint little place we dinghyed to the town after anchoring in an idealic nearby "creek". We climbed up onto the dock and then walked up a hill a short block or two to the "center of town" where a post office and a fire house were found. We asked a nice lady unloading groceries at a nearby home where we might get something to eat. She chuckled and said what we were seeing all of it. Guess there are smaller towns but we have yet to see one.

Finally a sleigh ride downwind on a 15k breeze, 6 hours to the Solomons and our home marina..
All in all a fun and easy two weeks with lots of sights and sounds and the best so far this summer.

As usual too many pictures at in album "Baltimore and beyond" at

picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Going Home

2009-08-22T12:41:00.000-07:00

50 YEARS!!!! It was only yesterday that the wee small town of Libby, Montana was sending 60 youngsters out into the cold, cruel world to make their fortunes. Like bad pennies, many of us came back to our 50th reunion, maybe not with fortunes but fond memories of a time long past. It was fun to hear my classmates relate their impressions of each other tempered by a half century of life. It was especially engaging to hear the many tales of unrequited love throughout our school years. Amazing how long it takes for the truth to be known. I had no idea of the trail of broken hearts left behind. Especially delightful was time spent with my friend Marj. She has accomplished so much in her life and has made Libby proud.

While Larry stayed aboard CHARIS tending her lines, painting the bilge and reorganizing his stuff, I was toddling up and down the highway from Spokane to Libby to Seattle visiting family. Note: out West it is not highways, it is highway .... there is only one ;-)

It was wonderful to find Aunt Grace in fine fettle and once again enjoying life in her new digs overlooking Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. She has been such an inspiration to me over the years. Her daughter, Heidi has done a yomens job working through the many challenges of caring for her mother. Uncle Vince and Aunt JoAnne are still in good health and full of stories of the early Neils family culture. The time spent with my brothers and their families is always full of laughter and there is always a tale of adventure. The latest was nephew James hiking in the woods with his family, when he fell, broke his leg and had to be helicoptered out ... took 5 hours to get to him. My sister-in-law Rene and her family turned out for dinner in Edmonds. They are always so welcoming. Love sitting with Rene overlooking her garden of beautiful flowers, sipping a cup of tea and catching up with the families comings and goings.

Along the way, I stopped at many neat little towns, fruit stands and mom & pop breakfast spots while a patient husband kept track of my escapades and kept the money flowing.

Pictures can be found at picasaweb.google.com/lropka @ going home

Tale of Four Towns

2009-07-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

Visiting the towns dotting the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay is a bit like stepping through Alice's mirror into a different era.

Tangier Island , a stamp sized parcel of land 3' above sea level in the middle of the bay, is a flash back to life in the 1700's. About the only thing new is motors in the boats but crabbing and oystering go on as about the only things to do there. Three or four names dominate the monuments in the cemeteries and the natives treat visitors as long lost friends.

Fifty miles up Pocomoke Sound and then the twisting Pokomoke river is Pokomoke City lodged in the middle of the Delmarva peninsula and reflecting the dual cultures of the Bay and "Shore" being but a few miles from Ocean city. A remarkably clean town with streets lined with charming old 19th century homes and friendly locals happy to engage in conversation about any era or aspect of their split personality. Pokomoke provides free docking with water and electricity on a well maintained dock stretching 1/4 mile along a lush waterfront park.

Back down the river and sound 40 miles (the last 2 hours quite bumpy as we rolled to a NW sea constrained in a narrow channel) to Onancock. Another neat little town with deep roots in revolutionary history. Arriving on a blustery weekend day at a quite "small" town marina we were entertained with all sorts of boat handeling acrobatics as skilled and unskilled boaters were tested by the winds, currents, tides and limited space. We were part of the show as we avoided drifting into a boat eating steel bridge downwind and close to our slip. We shot the boat into our appointed slip only to become jammed between the reported 13' (our beam width)pilings. Needing about 100 of our 150hp to extricate ourselves we serenely backed out and drifted to the adjacent "13'"slip and glided in with room to spare. Admiral's note .... very impressive!!

We attend church at a 200 year old Onancock Baptist church (now standing empty in fresh white clapbord) as members congregate in the new modern building just behind. The Sunday School class loved on us like we were rich relatives and the church service reflected similar warmth. This warmth is reflected outside the church as EVERYONE waves to EVERYONE on foot or riding bikes or in cars as they pass throughout the town. We sat on a bench on the main street enchanted by this phenomenon.

The next day we were off 30 miles directly across the Bay to Kilmarnock,Va where Larry's mother was born and raised. Larry's grandfather was a waterman for forty years before marrying and we were anxious to see if we could get some clues to his and the family lifestyle. Kilmarnock is still a quite small town now with many "come heres" but still a lot of pride in it's heritage. After a 2 mile bicycle ride to town (mostly up hill) we found a very helpful lady at the library who pointed us to some books on the town's history and in but a few minutes Larry found a picture of his mother taken in a 5th grade class picture at the grade school. We also picked up some valuable leads on other sources of information on grandfather's life as a waterman.

After a magnificent sunset seen from our anchorage in a delightful small cove and a nights rest we headed back to the Solomons at dawn a bit nervous about the six and one half hour run having seen mostly rough water the previous moving days. However God was good and we flew up the Bay with a gentle following breeze and sea.

All in all a great mini-cruise, 200 or so miles of Bay beauty and atmosphere with the boat humming along without missing a beat.

Joan is off to Montana mid month for a class reunion in Libby (someone notify Homeland Security!!) and then we hope to take another ten dayer possibly to the central eastern shore.

As usual pictures can be found under Tangier/Pokomoke/Onancock/Kilmarnock at Picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Unfished business 08

2009-06-16T13:13:00.000-07:00

WELLLLL
We could say we were too busy all winter to finish posting our pictures from last year.
Then maybe we could say we lost them.
Hmmm, but you would know better so lets just tell the truth that we procrastinated away seven months. Not a world record but close.

At any rate the pictures from Waterford NY back to the Solomons are posted at picasaweb.google.com/lropka in the album "Waterford to Solomons"

It was a fun ride down the Hudson River in the early fall high lighted by a night anchored in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty and a rough little passage from there to Manasaquan NJ along the Atlantic Coast.

We are aboard CHARIS in the Solomons now (June 09) and finally catching up. More stuff from our trek from home and relaunch is in the album "Heading Out 04/08

BLOGS BACK !!!!!

2009-06-16T08:52:00.000-07:00

The crew of Charis escaped the surly bonds of Ft Walton on 27 April 09 and land cruised via camper to the Solomons to find CHARIS snug and in fine shape after a winter in her shrink wrap. Thank goodness the bottom did not need sanding this year so 3 days of painting and touch up and in the water she went on 12 May.

The crew "coasted" through most of May getting settled in and putting things away in places where they will never be found. An hour voyage and overnight in St. Leonard Creek found all systems in working order.

The pace picked up as we prepared for the arrival of Joan's brother, John and sister-in-law Paula, who arrived 2 June and were greeted by two days of torrential rain. Never the less, we threw off the lines and headed for St Leonard Creek and then into Mill Creek getting in practice for a run across the bay. We were able to get a quick dinghy ride between rain drops. The sun finally came out and we were off on a delightful 3 day cruise across the bay to Oxford and St Michaels in almost ideal conditions. Nice dinghy trips, walks, sightseeing, dinners aboard and ice cream cones ashore punctuated the days and a great time was had by all. Continued cool weather afforded a last day trip to DC to cruise the mall on bikes and take in the spring grandure of our nation's capitol.

Fast on the heels of John and Paula's departure was the arrival of Vicki Thornell and Margret Henry having taken a detour from their trip from FWB to Ohio. The tide was a bit high so they were dinghyed (is there such a word) aboard. We managed to make an over night at anchor in St. Leonard Creek with a real dinghy ride up the inlets, a cool glass of tea at Vera's and upon return to the dock, a crab cake lunch at the Pier.

Sat the Japanese PBS crew arrived to interview Larry about a Tibetian caper some 50 years ago, which sent the girls on an exciting tour of all Joan's hangouts .... laundramat, grocery store, park, Navy rec center, etc.

Sunday, as we waved the girls good-bye as we waved hello to Gail and Butch Nelson who came over for lunch at Woodburns. Another brief dinghy ride and of course, the traditional ice cream cone on the boardwalk.

A call earlier from George Jolly saying he was coming too, so Tues evening Larry picked him up at the Holiday Inn dock. We had a delightful evening catching up on all happenings back in FWB.

Would you believe that in 2 years of cruising we have had two folks aboard for the night .... what happened? Loved every moment.

After more than 5000 miles and 650 hours under way the past two summers, we are slowing down and hope to simply explore some of the many cruising destinations the Chesapeake Bay has to offer. Included will be 10 days or so in Washington some time in Aug. Pictures and tales will be considerably less dramatic than the last years but still showing this life we so enjoy.

We are up to date as of this moment. Pictures can be found at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Crossing our wake at Waterford, NY

2008-08-23T10:43:00.000-07:00

Marker #1 at Waterford, NY where Charis crosses our northbound wake completing 800 miles of cruising on some of the most beautiful canals, rivers and lakes in the world.

Lots of water under the keel since our last post. Leaving Ottowa we slipped down a flight of 9 locks taking 2 1/2 hours into the Ottowa River ending the day in Montebello where we tied up at their marina in front of the largest log building (resort hotel) in the world. A really unique and charming place. Then on to Sainte Anne de Beauville and a drop of 65' in a massive lock. Then to Montreal where we stayed 3 days literally right in the center of the charming old town. Our stay was highlighted by a morning at the big city block farmers maket rivaling those of Pennsylvania Dutch country.

Then on to Sorel turning the corner and heading south 60 miles down the Richelieu to Lake Champlain which included about 30 miles on the Chambly Canal, about 20yds wide and truely a unique experience terminating at Sainte-Jean Sur Richelieu at the head of Lake Champlain. There we were treated with a major hot air baloon fly over. Crossing Lake Champlain, we stopped for one night at Wesport NY, a pretty little resort area, from there to the Champlain Canal and 100 miles to Waterford NY completing the triangle.
We have rested up here for three days and will head on down the Hudson River tomorrow, Sunday, begining a three day run to New York City thence onto the the New Jersey Coast and into the Delaware Bay.

We hope to be back in the Chesapeake in about ten days or so and look forward to a few lazy days remembering our summer and cleaning up the 1800 or so miles of grime and nicks and bruises on the boat.

Once again words seem inadequate to tell our tale and we will let the pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka do the talking. (Over 400 pictures have been taken and the Admiral has to do some major pruning .... we will put them up in several batches as they get done. The Admiral tends to take a picture and find a second later there is a better shot and then another better shot and .....)

Admiral's note: The Ottawa flight is thrilling as you get into the first lock with the bow of the boat looking out into space. You are certain that this is the edge of the world. A cruise like this is so packed with fun, scenes, interesting people, beauty, etc that it needs to be done at least a couple more times ... Captain are you listening ;-)

The first batch is up @ Montebella - Montreal - Sorel at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

The second batch is up @ Sorel - Waterford Ny at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

End of the Rideau canal

2008-08-08T07:42:00.000-07:00

All too soon our time on the Rideau Canal comes to an end as we descend the nine flight of locks to the Ottowa river below.

We are in Montreal, our first Wifi hot spot since the Westport about mid Rideau canal. The canal continued to be a joy and we serendipitously found ourselves in the heart of Ottowa for the celebration of the designation of the Rideau as a World Heritage site, rather like a modern version of the Seven Wonders of the world. The canal is most deserving and is truly a world class treasure. As usual we will let the pictures tell the story. Just too difficult to describe in words.
We will post Montreal later, a magnificent old world city where we are parked a stones throw from the heart of old town with all of it's charm and history.

Except for the almost daily rain the cruise continues to exceed our expectations and most of the more technical challenges behind us.

Tomorrow, 08/10 we will head for Sorel 40 miles down (Northeast) the St Lswrence Seaway where we turn south on the Richelieu Canal headed for Lake Champlain, 100 miles further south.

We should be back in daily internet range by next week. You will again find the pictures on picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Cruising in the Garden of Eden

2008-07-23T08:29:00.000-07:00

God has given us this magnificent and unique Rideau Canal area and then failed to give us words or cameras capable of adequately portraying it's stunning beauty. It must be seen to be appreciated!

We have been moving along slowly, about ten miles and 4 up locks a day since leaving Kingston trying to soak up the beauty. The canal is quite shallow (6') in many areas and very narrow and twisted in others. The locks are groomed like a golf course and the lock masters and workers are more than courteous and helpful. Cruising along is like a slow motion ballet with new vistas of high rock cliffs and tree lined banks close at hand everywhere. Quaint "cottages" and villages dot the shore for color and the entire area seems to have been cleaned and tended.

We are in Westport Ontario about sixty miles west of Ottowa and plan about a week getting there. Then down the Ottowa and St Lawrence rivers to Sorel and the Richelieu Canals into Lake Champlain.

We should be back in the US around the the end of August and then move fairly quickly onto the
Chesapeake.

Joan has gone shutter happy with numerous pictures at our picasaweb.google.com/lropka site portraying what we are seeing and doing. No camera can do it justice.

Will post again when we can find the next wifi locale.

Admiral's note: We are just plain having a fine time ;-

OH!! Canada

2008-07-16T12:48:00.000-07:00

Kingston, Ontario on the bow!

A lot of water and good times since our last blog.
The last few miles of the Erie and the Oswego Canals were a delight and the 60 mile crossing of
Lake Ontario could not have been better. After 29 locks and moving most days our aging bones were a bit weary so we holed up in Clayton, NY for three days to recharge and get some welcome rest. Clayton is a neat little town with a magnificent maritime museum dedicated to classic boats primarily wooden.
We went to a nice little Baptist Church Sunday which recharged our spiritual batteries as well.
Monday we took a three hour tour of the Thousand Islands on a small but fast pontoon boat and got to see (with narration) what would have taken us several days and many gallons of $5+ diesel for $12 each. The TI lived up to and exceeded their reputation and it was very special and rewarding to see how grand "Old Money" lived. It really makes the nouveau crowd look tacky.
Tuesday on to Kingston, an absolutely charming small city reminiscent of Victoria B.C. set with many ancient buildings downtown and flowers everwhere it has a true old world charm and populated with ever friendly Canadians, a marked difference in atmosphere from nearby states that will remain unnamed.
Tonight We are going to a tattoo at Fort Henry and then tomorrow up the Rideau Canal 125 miles and 44 locks to Ottawa. We will have spotty internet only at wifi hot spots for the next few weeks so reporting and pictures may be thin.

As usual the latest batch of pics is at Picasaweb.google.com/lriopka with the details of our adventure.

Canajoharie, Herkimer, Utica and beyond!!!

2008-07-06T12:57:00.000-07:00

Downtown Little Falls NY, a charming hilly town along the Erie canal

Acute cruiser syndrome has taken over and we have rarely moved more than 15 miles a day as we poke along the Erie Canal, a150 mile mosaic of heartbreak (industrial towns in decay) and heaven (small villages spruced up and carrying on proudly). The trek has been made all the more interesting by our encounter each evening with other cruisers and the sharing of cruising and life's experiences. As our friend Wayne Flatt says, " dueling with nature strips away the false veneer most of us display" (an unworthy paraphrase on my part). Most of the cruisers we have met are dynamic, highly interesting and within minutes seem like old friends. The anticipation of our next stop includes wondering who we will meet.

The highlights this week were Little Falls with a very neat and welcoming little park/marina, and Joan's three day visit in Utica with her good friend from the 1970's at AAA.

Once again too many pictures tell the story better than words at picasaweb.google.com/lropka.

Cruising in the Adirondacks

2008-06-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

Deep smooth water, large old growth hardwood trees, hill and mountain vistas, very little boat traffic, fun new friends, sensory overload. How good can it get?

We finally got into "prime time" on the Hudson and the Erie canal with a number of great evenings swapping stories with fellow cruisers on the dock or wall and short day runs of 3-4 hours to delightful new spots. We continue to have a "storm of the day" but we have gotten used to them and they present little problem in this sheltered water.

It is difficult to describe in words all of the emotions encompassed in our days afloat. Highs, lows, fatigue, exhilaration, fear and many other emotions cycle by in a kaleidoscopic blur. Our usual overly large batch of pictures tell the story better than we can. picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Fuel prices have clearly impacted boaters and today for example from lock 7 on the Erie for 30 miles to Amsterdam NY we virtually had the Mohawk River to ourselves. We were the only boat in the four locks that lifted us.

Perhaps the biggest "downer" is to walk the streets of these old industrial towns and see the huge number of empty homes, store fronts and factories. They are struggling and most have cared for parks and public areas but the surrounding decay is truly sad.

We are really slowing down with about 100 miles to go to lake Ontario and up to two weeks to get there. Top priority now is to find a haven from the Fourth of July water madness.

A lot of water under the keel

2008-06-24T06:28:00.000-07:00

Sorry to be so long, too much going on to take time to blog.

To catch up, we had a beautiful outside (in the Atlantic) 5 hour run from Atlantic City to Manasquan Inlet and a restful night at anchor. Then onto Great Kills harbor in fine conditions for the worst stop since leaving the Solomons. Great Kills is a man made (WPA) harbor on the SE shore of Staten Island with 4 marinas and other services. On arrival we were informed that all shore facilities were private and we could not land our dinghy anywhere.
The Captain dinghyed into a small marina to beg for mercy which failed so he told the proprietor that Great Kills was a disgrace to the boating community. Must have hit a nerve and he offered a slip at a discount ($30) on the fuel dock. We got to stroll around town and found if full of hyper New Jersey'ns.

Onward the next day for our long awaited leg through the heart of New York City. It is hard to describe the emotions of awe and anxiety swirling around in a mix of fast current , ferries and ships. Actually it went quite smoothly and nobody ran over us. We had a rather long day continuing 50 miles up the Hudson to an anchorage 3 miles north of West Point.

Somewhat worn by the trek through NJ we threw out the anchor and decided to just hang out the next day. We were anchored by one of the most unusual "castles" ever seen and smooth river conditions allowed us to scoot in the dinghy down to Cold Springs, a really charming small town and up to Newburgh a not so charming city. The pictures at picsaweb.google.com/lropka in album Hudson River tell the story of these adventures.

Onward (upward?) on Sunday 22nd to the Poughkeepsie Yacht Club for a very warm welcome and a delightful evening of boat talk and conversation. Further on Monday to the neat little village of Catskill where the main street is lined with 4' cat statues in every conceivable decor. The Admiral wheedled a free dock out of a restaurant owner and we had a great time strolling the streets. (Adrmiral's Note: Had to buy a dinner ....;-) smart bargain huh!)

The tide (current) in contrary so we are going to stay here today and catch the current north at 5 am tomorrow for Troy and the entrance to the Erie Canal system, about 500 miles since leaving the Solomons.

Some fun and serious cruising

2008-06-15T15:04:00.000-07:00

A real sailor comes into Havre de Grace having been through a storm.

Our voyage from Baltimore to Havre de Grace, Md was a joy and our two day stay there even better. We slid easily onto the end of the first T dock to find ourselves welcomed by cruisers on adjacent boats. As usual the Admirals first question was "where is the best place for breakfast". An enjoyable evening of cruising tales and information was followed by a morning walk through old homes on tree canopied streets to a charming coffee shop for muffins and bagels recommended by Bob and Jean DuBois, our dock mates. It was a very relaxing day visiting with new friends Bob And DoraTurner who joined us the next morning for another visit to the the coffee shop before we set off on the "strenuous" 2 1/2 hour run to Chesapeake City at the head end of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal.

Chesapeake City proved to be a charming little village and took more than 30 minutes to walk all of the streets. That was followed by lingering over cool drinks on the deck of a neat restaurant overlooking the small harbor. Off at daybreak for the remaining 12 miles of the C&D canal and the 40 miles down the notorious Delaware Bay. The Bay could not have been kinder being almost flat and with a 1.5 kt boosting current we were in Cape May soon after lunch. We topped off our fuel at the last reasonable price going north and proceeded up the ICW 2 miles to Sunset Lake (you could row across it in 2 minutes) and anchored for the night. The Atlantic was rough the following morning so we elected to proceed up the "Inside" a little earlier than the recommended "half tide rising". Long story short, we saw lots of water less than 5' (we draw 4.5") and a snake like course that took 9 hours to go 40 miles and 30 as the crow flies. It was a very stressful day but God sent 3 Angels at critical times that got us through. On the first occasion we were lightly aground seemingly in the channel (not much wider than the boat) not knowing whether to push left or right. A small runabout came up from behind and saw our dilemma and zigzagged to locate the channel and proceeded to lead us the next mile or so in the very narrow and shallow area. Nearing the end of the day we were very tired and getting desperate for a place to anchor. We saw a number of boats anchored off in a pond listed as 8-10' deep. We joyously headed for it and as we passed another small boat the chap, dropped his cell phone in mid sentence, shouting to us that it was too shallow for us to get over the bar and instead recommended a spot on down. We pressed on and found a sizable area on the south side of Atlantic City and threw out the hook only to find the area alive with jet skis and water skiers. Shortly after anchoring another boater came along and hailed us to say we should move about a mile east to a very small pond where we would be much more comfortable. We did the next morning and we were much more comfortable. We spent the afternoon riding the bus to the grocery store for much need supplies.

This morning (Sunday) we ran 5 miles to an anchorage near the mouth of the Abscom Inlet at Atlantic City in anticipation of jumping off outside (in the ocean, weather permitting) tomorrow for Manasquan Inlet about 5 hours north and 30 miles short of Sandy Hook, the entrance to New York Harbor.

We are still healing up from our Intra Coastal adventure and look forward to a few hours looking at something other than the depth sounder. Also we need a long period to replenish our adrenalin stores.

After all the traumas of the past couple of days, the Admiral declared a day off to explore Atlantic City. We dinghyed across the Inlet in rough waters, found the city dock, tied up, had lunch, found transportation into town, found the boardwalk and the beach, noticed how black the sky was, walked through a casino back to the bus stop, jumped into a wet dinghy and made it back to the boat in time for thunder and lightening all within an hour or two. Tour report: If you get a chance to come to Atlantic City ... don't.

For tooooooo many pictures go to picasaweb.google.com/lropka

These are found in Havre de Grace to Atlantic City

On the road (Bay) again

2008-06-08T12:42:00.000-07:00

We finally got good weather and got out of Dodge (Solomons) last Thursday (5 Jun) with a major three hour cruise to Annapolis. We picked up a mooring ball about 100 yards from Ego Alley (name is very appropriate as everyone cruises the alley with their new boats and looking as good as one can) and felt like two little kids on their first trip to the city. There was stuff going on everywhere you looked. Kinda like being seated at center stage in a large theater in the round. At dark the east wind kicked up and the refracted waves made for a rolly night. Fri morning we moved up Spa Creek (in the heart of Annapolis to a much more placid mooring field. Fri evening we were treated to a magnificent dinner at THE Annapolis Yacht Club by Larry's cousin, Bill and his wife, Monica Kearns. A beautiful dining room overlooking a sea of boats in the harbor and most excellent food well presented.

Sat morning we moved out to the Severn River intending to head for Baltimore when the fog lifted per the forecast at 8AM. At 9 we retreated to the Annapolis Harbor and hung on a ball until 10:30 watching the fog thicken. At 11 with many large plastic wake makers cued to move out we retreated to Spa Creek once more for a lite lunch and a long nap. The thermometer rose to about 95 in the PM so we had opportunity to run the generator and A/C for four hours in a beautiful sunset setting. After a short thunder shower after dark the delightful aroma of honey suckle settled heavily over our little home on the creek.

Sunday dawned calm and clear for an almost perfect three hour run to Baltimore arriving before lunch. After anchoring by ourselves surrounded by waterfront condos in the Canton district , a stones throw from the Inner Harbor, Larry's internet list friends, Wayne and Lynn Flatt motored over for a first and delightful visit. The Flatts have cruised 40,000 miles and are a goldmine of information and beyond that just fun people. We plan join them for a hole in the wall dinner this evening at a near by bistro and then off tomorrow (Mon) to Havre de Grace and a waterborne trip down memory lane and the water playground of Larry's youth.

Pictures are posted at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Admiral's note: The Captain and crew have gotten into the cruising mode rather quickly this year. Just discovered that two sets of pictures full of adventures were not sent up nor noted. So now they are noted and sent up. The captions tell the story of all the excitement that you can't live without knowing. We are having a ball, enjoying it all, even the extreme heat ... well ........

Birthday crabcake lunch

2008-05-27T13:48:00.000-07:00

We eased into our planned two week pre-departure slow down with Joan's birthday being the highlight. The $26 crab cake dinner was judged to be a bit too much so she compromised for the "cheap" $19 lunch in brilliant warm sun on Stonys deck. (Admirals note: How does one eat a $19.00 crab cake .... very slowly.) A mini memory. Dinner suffered a bit as you can see in the pictures at Picasaweb.google.com/lropka.

This was really the first week of enjoyable boating weather and we really enjoyed touring the harbor in the dink and chatting with a number of boat crews headed north along our planned path. We met Canadian and Dutch cruisers and a very interesting couple who have been living aboard and cruising continuously for 14 years!!! Now that's compatibility.

We enjoyed the Memorial Day week-end mostly in the marina with lots of characters doing interesting things. Few of the big boats left the dock, possibly related to diesel price, but that did not slow down the parties.

Our highlight was a Memorial day afternoon BBQ at our Sunday School friends, Craig and Kim Williams' home. Their two daughters, Mike and Debbie Syders were there and the food was great. Quite a contrast with the marina crowd and certainly more fun. A wild game of croquet ensued with some wild shots by all participants.

The "To Do list" is about done and we are headed out tomorrow Wed 28th for an overnight in Mill Creek. Mainly to run all systems underway for awhile for a final check. The weather looks good so the quiet serenity of the anchorage will be welcomd.

"D" day is still 2-5 Jun, weather permitting, headed to Annapolis and then probably Baltimore to visit a friend from Larry's Trawler List on the internet. A real character and something to look forward to.

Seven done, Eighteen to go

2008-05-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

The list in the picture is the final pre-departure "to do" list. God willing the remaining 18 items should be done by the weekend and allow us to have an easy week prior to our departure for points north around the 4-5th of June.

Nothing really of note to report. Just the usual spring chores of cleaning out the bilges and finding all of the stuff we "stowed" there last year. Kinda like Christmas sometimes and "I cant believe we brought this piece of junk along".

We took three days off to visit Larry's sister, Jean and brother-in-law, Bob who are in a nursing home in York, Pa about 100 miles or so north of the Solomons. They are in a magnificent Methodist assisted care facility. Squeaky clean inside and groomed outside like a fine golf course. All the staff we encountered were upbeat and helpful. If it weren't for those four letter words such as, snow... cold ... rain, it could be a serious contender not too many years from now. Jean is 84 with little short term memory but otherwise very healthy. Bob has a few ailments but is also doing well. We stayed in our camper in the parking lot so had the opportunity for a number of short visits without wearing them or us out.

Our Sunday School Class Friends continue to provide us a home away from home with visits and fun fellowship. We are going to miss their hospitality such as surprise visits to Baskin Robins.

So, if we can get 4-5 things off of the "to do" list in the next few days we can begin the cruising life as it is meant to be.

Pictures posted on picasaweb.google.com/lropka

It rained and it rained and it rained

2008-05-13T14:41:00.000-07:00

And the wind blew and blew and blew

A soggy first weekend aboard as a major low pressure system camped out over the Solomons for 4 days and drenched the area with 4 or more inches of rain. We were snug in our slip but the high water and wind made for a restless nights Saturday and Sunday and a dreary Monday.

Our Sunday School teacher, Mike and his wife, Debbie gave us a much needed break from togetherness. Debbie has the best recipe for seafood gumbo which was followed by a super piece of green rhubarb custard pie. We are attending the church we went to last fall so it was like returning home. We are finding Christian fellowship a very important component to our cruising life.

We continue doing Spring chores such as a complete redo of tool and parts storage in the engine room, something really irritating and not done properly since Florida. Also installed a new and more powerful raw wash down pump. This Chesapeake Bay mud sticks to the anchor like glue and the new pump will blast it off much better. Joan redid the entire galley arrangement and we spent a lot of time bashing Democrats and cheering on Republicans on tv during our shut in hours. Don't know what the Republicans would do without our help.

We are off via camper to York Pa to visit Larry's sister on Thursday and Joan's niece who is attending a trade show in Harrisburg on Friday. Back Saturday to continue the mercifully shrinking list of chores.

We still plan to hang here until around 5 June and then start our voyage north. We have begun our route planning (Larry) and sightseeing (Joan). Joan's list of things to do is growing ominously.

God has rewarded us with a spectacular day today (Tue) which makes up for the drenching He gave us over the weekend.

More next week and a few pictures for now at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

It Ain't All Fun

2008-05-07T14:22:00.000-07:00

The annual ritual of sanding and painting the bottom is a little like having babies. It is merciful that it only comes around once a year which gives you time to forget just how miserable it really is!!

Charis survived the winter magnificently in her shrink wrap cocoon. Everything was exactly as we left it and even the batteries retained most of their charge. Last years bottom paint more or less died over winter and we elected to remove it lest the new paint not adhere. Soooo two days working under the boat with a heavy vacuum assisted sander (heavy!) got the bottom pristine and then morning and afternoon rolled coats of paint and a morning of painting the white boot stripe finished the job and us!!

In the water on Tue 6 May and wonder of wonders all systems revived in order and it floated. Then began the transition from camper to boat with an amazing pile of stuff we seem to have brought with us. Thank goodness we have the truck!

By noon Wed most of the stuff had found a home and the good life aboard began again. The weather has been perfect albeit a bit chilly at night with the blankets always in the wrong vehicle/boat.

Tomorrow, Thursday, will involve a commissary run with the rest of the day devoted to just lazing on the poop deck and enjoying God's creation, watching for the Spring arrival of baby ducks and swans.

Friday we will begin to think about a few small maintenance chores and what happens next. (Shhhh, not to fear, the Admiral has a honey do list, ready and waiting to be implemented. Don't want the Captain to get into cruise time too quickly. They say you last longer if you have an irritant in your life ;-)).

All in all a great start to the Summer. More dirty pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka in album Splash 5/6/08

Northbound 08

2008-04-30T13:44:00.000-07:00

After several weeks of planning and packing the crew of Charis set off from 508 Mary Esther Blvd via the "pocket rocket" headed for Solomons MD and the landlocked Charis. The pre-departure was actually one of our better efforts and divorce was never very imminent. Naturally with only 180+ days to tour on the boat the Admiral had to hone her skills by driving through most of the Outer Banks to pick up the droppings from our previous half dozen passages through that area.
By accident we wound up the second night at Camp LeJeune Onslow Beach campground nestled a few feet from where Charis transited the ICW last spring. Then on to Beaufort, NC a heretofore missed gem. It was well worth the stop with many neat old homes and tidy waterfront streets. Lunch at the "grocery" was a special treat and 2" deep the apple crumb pie to die for.
The Pocket Rocket landed up in the Solomons Tuesday, mid afternoon to what felt like a long anticipated homecoming. We were fortunate to get a great camp site at the Navy Recreation facility just across the highway from our boat. Like living in the middle of well groomed golf course.
A quick inspection of Charis this morning revealed her to be in pristine condition inside and out. shrink wrap rules!!!. Tomorrow we sand the bottom and apply the new bottom paint Friday and Saturday. Back in the water Tuesday the 6th for several days of reassembly and stowage and then possibly sneak off for a day or two shake down.
We plan to cool it here until after Memorial Day to let it warm up and just enjoy this lovely place that is really hard to beat, following that it is off to Canada. A few pictures of Joan's practice touring can be found on picasaweb.google.com/lropka

ALERT!

2008-04-16T18:20:00.000-07:00

Seven days and counting!

We hope to get underway via camper next Friday the 25th headed for the Solomons and Charis. About three days en route and then five or six days to paint the bottom and get ready for launch o/a 5 May.

We have had a nice relaxing winter with visits to San Antonio, Orlando and Seattle with house maintenance and vehicle chores inb etween. Speaking of maintenance, Joan had a shoulder replacement the end of Jan. She is doing well with more rehab to go before she can pull up the anchor by herself or throw a line.

We will get the pictures going as we get rolling and look forward to our planned cruise from the Chesapeake to the Ontario area of Canada and return. It should be a very photogenic route and we look forward to sharing it with you.

Our Bad (New way to say we are late)

2007-11-13T07:28:00.001-08:00

Captain serves Admiral breakfast in bed to celebrate end of season

Cruisers syndrome finally caught up with us during our last weeks aboard. Almost all things could be done tomorrow and life was easy. If tomorrow ever comes there is going to be a ton of stuff waiting for us there.

Basically, Laura and Joan continued to drag the boys around exploring every last nook and crannies of Calvert and St Mary's counties.
We did get in two delightful nights anchored at Broomes Island and Mill Creek. Then the work began to haul the boat and prepare it for the winter. That was done on 1 Nov at Washburn's boat yard and it went very smoothly. We were most pleased with the condition of the bottom after a year in salt water (Admirals note: One of us on board ran aground twice and we were a bit worried about the amount of living creatures we would find attached to the hull.) which will make preparation and relaunching next spring quite easy. Applying the 40'X75' 120lb piece of shrink wrap on a windy day was a new and exciting experience. The result was a really tough total enclosure which will provide much peace of mind as the winter stroms swirl.

After a frantic weekend 3-4 Nov chasing around we were off to Ft Walton and after a delightful night with our wonderful friends, the Paul and Nancy Goldsmith, in Greenville SC, we arrived home on the 6th.

It is difficult to find words to describe the joys and pleasures we experienced this summer. They greatly exceeded our hopes and dreams and more than rewarded the 5 years of boat building effort. . Although we feel unworthy and undeserving, we saw God's hand up close and personal as time after time mini miracles happened to pave and comfort our way. Not the least of which was the continuous fun and quality brought to our cruise by Laura and Jason, our boat buddies. We will miss them greatly and pray that our paths will cross again.

So this is it for the winter. We will relaunch Charis on 15 April, God willing, and wend our way North to cruise the Canadian canals. Most are unaware of these spectacular waters and if you are looking for something to do this winter Google up " Trent Severn Canal" "Rideau Canal" and "North Channel Cruising".

We thank all of you for your interest in our odyssey and look forward to an encore next year.

As usual more and final pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka in album "End of Summer"

Joan and Larry

Memory Lane

2007-10-10T16:51:00.001-07:00

Beautiful downtown Port Deposit Md.
Made famous as the birthplace of Charis' Captain. ;-)

A super highlight of our idyllic summer last week as we drove about two hours north to celebrate Larry's 75 birthday in the environs of his youthful boating days at the head end of the Chesapeake Bay.

We stayed in an ancient and antique B&B two nights and toured Havre De Grace, Port Deposit and Perryville. Larry contacted several relatives still in the area and had a delightful visit with his cousin Lee Steinhilber who he had not seen in 60 years. Lee is 85 or so and was very close to Larry's father. He still has total recall of Larry's early years and many long forgotten moments were joyfully recalled. Joan had a voice recorder so the visit is saved for posterity.

Larry also met several old timers who knew his father and all of the hunting and fishing lore of early 1900's. Joan delighted in the architecture and charm of the old towns and the quaintness of the natives. All in all, perhaps Larry's most memorable birthday

After returning to the boat Friday we headed out Saturday evening with our friends Laura and Jason to an obscure fall festival at St Clements, a small town nearby on the Potomac, expecting to see a few fireworks and the usual array of hot dogs and funnel cakes. To our surprise and joy there were all kinds of tasty seafood which we ate and possibly the most beautiful fireworks display we have ever seen this side of Taiwan.

Monday we ventured away from the dock to Broomes Island and Mill Creek for two nights at anchor. What a joy. Mill Creek was our favorite anchorage 30 years ago and we were thrilled to find it had changed very little. Even found the crab cakes at Clarke's Landing, a bar and honky tonk back then, to be as good as remembered.

Plans continue on track to lay the boat up on 1 Nov and be home a week or so later.

Pictures at Birthdays and Memories Picasaweb.google.com/lropka

BOATS, BOATS and more BOATS

2007-09-30T14:33:00.001-07:00

The past week or so has been nothing but boats! The picture at left was taken during the Solomons Waterman's Festival last weekend. The boat in the picture just left a slip at the lower left, applied full (800+hp) reverse and will be doing about 20kts as he goes between the pilings on the left then stop instantly while he throws four dock lines on the pilings, all in 18 SECONDS from the start. We watched boats of various sizes up to 65' doing this for hours last Saturday and it was really a hoot. In the future we may do our docking only after dark!

Mid week the boats began arriving for Trawler Fest just across the creek from our slip. More than 50 trawlers ranging from 27' to 70' were on display and several tents with boat paraphernalia and services. The prices would knock your socks off and we were pleased to come home convinced that our Charis had as nice and in some cases better features than many the "real boats" in our size range.

This week we are driving up to Port Deposit, Md at the head end of the bay to celebrate Larry's birthday at the town where he was born and where he boated with his father as a youth. Joan reserved a room in a neat old B&B and it should be a feast of remembrances

Beyond that, plans are in motion to haul the boat out of the water during the last week in Oct. at Washburns Yard across the creek and cover it with shrink wrap to protect it for the winter. If all goes well we will be headed home to Fl around 5 Nov.

Pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Washington, D.C.

2007-09-12T15:03:00.002-07:00

Our evening view from the after deck last week.

Beginning with a leisurely 3 day cruise up the Potomac River last week, Charis and crew visited Washington, D.C. for a delightfully relaxed 5 days of touring and sightseeing. We anchored in the Washington Channel almost in the shadow of the Washington monument. For $15 per day we had full access to the numerous amenities of the Capitol Yacht Club, just a 10 minute walk to the Metro subway station in L'Enfant Plaza mall.
The highlight was a fabulous morning of touring all of the monuments on the mall on our bikes stopping to touch and feel each in a rare quiet and peaceful manner. In bright sun with few others around every moment was filled with sights and sounds of our history creating a virtual sensory overload. We rode well over 7 miles around the mall, the White House grounds and the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, ending with a great hamburger at the golf course club house on Haynes Point. Another highlight was a morning spent with our friends Laura and Jason at an Art Festival in Old Town Alexandria. More than 200 vendors displayed mostly very high quality art and crafts in the antique setting of King street in Old Town. The 2 day voyage back down the Potomac was broken by anchoring in a scenic small basin behind the village of Cobb Island. Then home to our slip in the Solomons We did have a bit of a thrill as sizable swell rolling up the bay left over from tropical storm Gabriel combined with 20k local winds to create a quite sporty ride as we rounded Point Lookout entering the bay from the Potomac. The boat did very well while the crew developed acute white knuckle syndrome.

Again, pictures can be found in folder Washington D.C., at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Visiting a Century

2007-08-31T15:00:00.001-07:00

The main event of the week was a trip by auto to Hendersonville NC for the 100th birthday of Larry's Aunt Fern. This grand lady is truly amazing. She organized the party gently "encouraging" the more than 150 guests to be there and made several memory filled speeches during the proceedings. Although she is technically blind she walks extensively every day and is very free with advice on the conduct of almost everything about her. Fern's two sons Bill and Dick, who Larry had not seen for 60 years hosted the party in grand style and it was truly a memorable event in every respect. There are several pictures of the affair, including a stunning picture of Fern at age 25, at picasaweb.google.com/lropka at file "Fern"

To the edge of the earth and beyond

2007-08-19T16:58:00.001-07:00

A taste of paradise at Dunn Cove on Tilghman Island

You may think we fell off of the edge but
the past days have been full of adventure on both land and sea. Last Tuesday we ventured to Washington D. C. The evening started with dinner al fresco served at Union Station while watching folks run to catch their train. We took the Metro Rail and thanks to Laura's navagation we found our way to the Washington Monument grounds to hear the U.S. Army band perform a program ending with the 1812 overture replete with the Herald Trumpets, Army Chorus and Cannon Battery from Ft Meyer. Sitting within feet of the monument surrounded with American flags, hearing and seeing the band up close resplendent in dress uniforms was truly a memorable experience. We spent the next few days at our dock armor plating the bow of the boat with stainless steel. Our big anchor has been eating away the stem when we retrieve it so rather than try to repair all of the dings we just formed some heavy stainless plate and tube and screwed it on over the nicks.

We then shoved off Friday for the Choptank River, 5hrs north east of the Solomons, to spend Fri and Sat night anchored in a pristine cove just north of the village on the "Island" which is actually a peninsula. We explored ashore Saturday finding a nice lunch waterside (but isn't everything at Tilghman's waterside) and discovered perhaps the best nautical book store ever. Sunday late morning we weighed anchor and motored 12 miles east to Plaindealing Creek, a mile north of Oxford MD on the Tred Avon River. Oxford is the most charming town we have visited thus far. About the size of a big city block, it is populated with charming little houses, many dating from the 1700's, and not over two stories. A magnificent old Inn built in 1707, could be a movie set, serves the only breakfast in town. Guess where we are off to at 8:00 AM tomorrow.

Oxford deserves at least another day of exploration and then hope to run around the corner and up San Domingo to the south side of St Michaels, possibly the most popular stop on the Eastern Shore. Since we arrived in the bay there has been a shortage of crabs mainly thanks to Joan so I guess we should give St Michaels fair warning.

We have to be back to Solomons Friday as we are leaving Saturday for Hendersonville, NC for my Aunt Fern's 100th birthday party. Be back Monday or Tuesday to a long list of "want to do's". We will see which entries win out. Joan thinks Peach blossom Creek sounds like a good place to look for peach ice cream.

Again, pictures can be found on picasaweb.google.com/lropka in a folder called Choptank. Additional pictures in folder called Oxford St Michaels

Post Patrick syndrome

2007-08-05T05:11:00.000-07:00

Not much to report. We got Patrick off from Regan National at 6:30AM Tuesday after departing Solomons at 3:45 and returned home to crash and burn totally out of gas. We deferred several cruising plans while regenerating and now hope to be off to the Choptank for a week or so midweek. 98 degree weather also contributed to our reluctance to leave our 120v tether that runs the air conditioner :-). We continue to have fun with our slip mates, Laura and Jason and will miss them as they return to fulfill duties in Florida for a few weeks. Should have more to report next week.

Patrick's week

2007-07-27T14:05:00.000-07:00

The dome of the Capitol looking straight up.

A busy week plus as Joan flew off to Fort Walton to pick up the Volvo and her young Patrick. Larry stayed on the boat and "completed" a number things left undone prior to departing Florida. Joan returned "directly" Friday the 20th via the Sky Line Drive, Liberty University and Monticello. Saturday we were off to Washington for a bit of line standing and a tour of the Capitol followed by several hours in the Smithsonian Air and Space museum. Sunday we found a neat Baptist church in Lexington Park which will be our church away from home for the rest of the summer. Monday we ran a few miles up the Patuxent River for an overnight in one of the prettiest "creeks" on the bay. Stayed up late doing star gazing on the fore deck and visited numerous nook and crannies via dinghy Tues. morning. Wed back to Washington with Patrick, Jason and Laura for an introductory tour of the Zoo (awesome), dinner al fresco on Connecticut Ave and a memorable concert by the "President's Own Marine Band" on the Capitol steps as we gazed down the mall at the monuments. Thursday Joan and Patrick toured a nearby plantation while Larry recuperated. Most of Friday was spent with Jason, a marine biologist, and Laura wading and searching for fossilized sharks teeth at Calvert cliffs just up the way. We all got an education in marine life and even found a few teeth .... Patrick promptly lost his while going for a swim! Friday evening we were able to listen in on a concert by Sara Evans performed 100 yards or so on the grounds of the Solomons marine museum. Will report next week if we make it through Tuesday when Patrick leaves, have worn him out several times. They just don't make'm like they used to. All and all it has been a very good time together.

As soon as Joan cleans up the pictures they will be posted on picasaways.google.com/lropka

The End of the Begining

2007-07-16T14:04:00.001-07:00

This week Charis and crew arrived safe and sound at Solomons MD and is snug in a marina just behind the steeple in the picture. Solomons is a quaint sailing/boating village lodged securely in better times past. Lots of boats and boat people but respectful of the boating arts,skills and practices. We scouted Solomons via auto from Norfolk and were blessed with finding a smallish offbeat marina in the backyard and operated by a Comfort Inn motel. It provides a perfect base of operations an gives us a safe place to hole up in bad weather or leave the boat for land excursions. The town is charming with great seafood restaurants and almost all stores and services within walking and biking distance.
The beauty and charm of the Bay "Creeks" is still stunning and a two hour dinghy cruise around the Solomons this afternoon revealed an almost endless panoply of old and new homes,traditional bay fishing boats,sail boats, cruisers and almost every other imaginable type of boat and water activity.

Joan's young friend Patrick arrives this week and we will have a busy time of sightseeing around the Washington area for the 10 days or so after he arrives. Then we will be off to follow in the wake of John Smith and rediscover the treasures of this magnificent body of water. A few more enroute and local pictures are posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/lropka/Solomons
Gradually the cruisers syndrome is setting in wherein clocks go slower and calendars loose their grip on our lives. Almost everything can be done "tomorrow" or perhaps the day after-if the weather is OK and the spirit moves.

The Chesapeake!!!!

2007-07-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

Eighteen hundred plus miles and Charis nosed into the Chesapeake bay via the Elizabeth River on Saturday morning June 30. With the 4th of July holiday week at hand and water weary crew we found a snug berth at the Norfolk Naval Station and tied up for the week to rest and clean up the much neglected boat.
On Sunday we went to church at the base Chapel where we were astounded as the Southern Baptist Chaplin preached a Hell fire and Salvation sermon reminiscent of an old time camp meeting. Wonders will never cease. Tuesday was boat work day and Wednesday we spent with new boat friends Jason and Laura aboard their sailboat at a downtown marina very close to the great fireworks display put on by the city. Thursday was off with Laura and Jason via rental car to scout marinas in the Patuxent river area. After several disappointing queries we stumbled on a small marina at a very fair price ideally suited to our needs as a home base for our summer cruising. Almost too good to be true. It is owned and operated by the Comfort Inn chain and in their back yard and most convenient to all stores and services.
Friday saw the boat work finished and Saturday ended with a outing to Fort Story to see a play on the beach, depicting the first days of the Jamestown colony replete with the "naturals" (Indians), John Smith and other rowdy English. Sunday was church at the Ocean View Baptist Church near the Naval Base. Really nice folks, Chuck and Daryl Ferris, took us to lunch and to return the rental car.
Tomorrow Monday 9 July, we are off to anchor in Chrisman Creek 30 miles north and then on to Deltaville to explore boatyards for winter layup. We hope to be at our new home in the Solomons by Thursday.
It is great to be able to slow down and smell the seaweed. No real cruising plans yet but will be about that shortly.

More pictures posted to be posted to picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Back in the 21st century

2007-06-29T16:45:00.000-07:00

Apologies to our North Carolinian friends but the eastern part of the state is still in the cell phone dark ages.For the past week or so We able the access weather radar and tediously get email in and out but no pictures.

We are now about 30 miles south of Norfolk in the middle of the Dismal Swamp at the Virginia/NC line welcome center. The canal is spectacular. At some points less than 20yards wide with overhanging trees. You can see a bit of the canal behind the Joan and friend in the picture. We came up from Elizabeth City this morning following a 42' sailboat at a leisurely 5mph pace as he picked his way along in 6' of water with his boat drawing 5.5'.

We greatly enjoyed Elizabeth City. They have 14 free slips "managed" by a cast of volunteer characters right out of last century. The whole town is hospitable to boaters and one old gentleman meets and provides roses to the ladies and hosts and wine,beer and cheese party in the evening. The "old " theater has been converted into a "Dinner" theater where you are seated at tables where you order by phone and enjoy tasty offerings as the movie show begins.

Before EC we spent the night at a Alligator river marina far removed from any civilization. and before that a night at Belhaven NC doing our sightseeing via marina courtesy car. Took over 15 minutes to see it all.

Aaaand, before that we had a great two day stop at Oriental NC, the neatest little town we have seen thus far. Quite small (600 or so) and so far unsullied by developers Oriental has attracted many interesting adventurers, artists and just plain neat people. Reportedly 6 sailors who have circumnavigated live there.

Previous to Oriental was Morehead City. We had intended to visit Beaufort just across the bridge but economized but choosing a less expensive marina in MC with intentions to bike over the mile or so bridge. As luck would have it no sidewalk or bike lane so we were stuck in MC which placed well down our MFP list. In fact we had to create a deeper bottom.

Before that is too far back to remember.

Do you know where this is?

2007-06-21T14:52:00.001-07:00

Neither did we! About as far off of the beaten track one can get but a delightful little town, Swansboro NC, just West of Beaufort NC our next stop.

It has been a great week as we continue to move from the boondocks into semi-civilization.
On Saturday early we found a quaint little broken down marina hidden behind a postage stamp sized island OFF of the ICW. the perfect and only place to hide from the gazillion jet skis and plastic wake makers.
Sunday we attended church at Socastee Baptist Church actually in south Myrtle Beach. Neat church with a fine young pastor. Monday we dropped into the marina at St James Plantation a mega development, four golf courses much like San Destin only bigger. Lovely marina in a man made basin off of the ICW. Tuesday saw us anchored at Wrightsville Beach a suburb of Wilmington, threatened all afternoon by kamikaze jets skis and fast boats. Wed we ducked into a marina at Surf City, bet you haven't heard of that either, on Top Sail Island to ride out an all afternoon thunderstorm. We were nicely snug and enjoyed walking in the rain through the 2X4 beach village. Wall to wall "Wings!" style stores. Today, Thursday, we are docked at Swansboro, a fishing village where most downtown homes date to the late 1700's. The weather front passage yesterday brought cool dry air and the run up this morning was blissful including a 20 or so cannon salute from the Marines at Camp LeJeune.

From the Admiral: At St. James Plantation and Wrightsville we did not even get off the boat as we were a bit "road weary". Coming through a pass about an hour out of Swansboro the depth sounder went from 12 feet to 3 in a heart beat. With bells ringing on every instrument, I want it noted in the log that the person at the helm did not loose her cool but acted in an orderly manner and ran aground ...... real easy. With the swift action of the Captain .... his pay scale ... we easily backed off with only one observer ... a sailboat on the stern who was advised of the situation. He had indeed witnessed the sudden stop and assumed the canal would be closed for hours while SeaTow was called to the rescue. Also a note for the log .... It is now two to one. Wonder who is ahead.

This mornings departure from Surf City was a bit shaky as the Admiral was to help head the boat out and get it turned. The instructions were to make a flying leap at the last moment. This is not a good picture. Larry ended up rescuing the Admiral from a certain morning swim. From now on we will work on another way to get the back end around.

North Carolina has a number of historical seaports that are about 40 miles or a 5 hour run apart... just right to fill up the day. Each day has been full of new sights and lots of fun.

Pictures from this week will have to wait for a faster cell, maybe tomorrow at Beaufort.

Hilton Head, Beaufort, Charleston and beyond

2007-06-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

A quick week on the move. A great stop at Hilton Head where Kristy and Michael Gonzalez, our neighbors daughter and son-in-law, hosted us and loaned us their car to re provision.

We really enjoyed our time together. Then on to Beaufort and a rendezvous with the Pat and Stew Stewart who hauled our mail and a spare anchor up from Fort Walton, a great kindness. We went to church Sunday at another ancient Baptist Church full of "tradition". Unfortunately we got put in our age group for Sunday school. We had several nice visits with Pat and Stew and toured Pat's home town.

Then off to Charleston for lunch at Pogans Porch with our new boat friends Jason and Laura on Blue Blaze a 38' Babba sloop. Charleston is still a magnificent walking town and gets better with each passing visit. We were docked at the Maritime Center operated by the city right in the heart of town, rolly from passing wakes but most convenient to everything.

Thursday onward to Georgetown, gem from the past, 40 miles or so North. . The boat was doing fine but we "ran out of gas" so parked in a downtown marina for two days to recharge our batteries. We rode our bikes around town this afternoon enjoying the unspoiled beauty of the old houses many dating to the mid 1700's. The old homes invite you to sit a spell on the front porch and sip cool mint tea.

Tomorrow off to Myrtle Beach and North Carolina, the last state to cross before our destination, the Chesapeake Bay. We will post a few more pictures of these meanderings at picasaweb.google.com/lropka
when we get to a high speed cell area, hopefully in Myrtle Beach.

The good,the bad, the ugly

2007-06-08T14:59:00.000-07:00

A week with a little bit of everything. After leaving St Augustine We spent the night anchored in the Fort George river visiting an old plantation. Awoke on Sat June 2 to be greeted T.S. Barry with 35+ wind and drenching rain. After an hour of worrying about the anchor holding we elected to make a run for Fernandina beach 3 hours to he north. Visibility was about 500 yards or less with lots of bends in the waterway to navigate. Joan steered and Larry worked the computer and Binocs. White knuckles glowing we arrived safely and tucked the boat into the remaining tight spot on the inside of a long face dock to securely wait out the blow. We attended Church Sunday at "THE First Baptist Church" (est. 18--something)and enjoyed it greatly. Monday we were off to Cumberland Island just north and walked around the ruins of the awesome mansions there. In its day would have put the pretenders in Palm Beach to shame. We continued running 6+hours per day up the waterway anchoring each night in comfortable side rivers. 8' tides and swift current make anchoring interesting and challenging but so far we have hade few problems.

Admiral admires approach to St Augustine

2007-05-31T14:33:00.000-07:00

Looong day runs are about to end with St Augustine just around the next bend. We had a very nice overnight at the New Smyrna Beach City Marina, a very nice new marina, the night before last and then ran about 60 miles to St Augustine yesterday. Amazing how the countryside and stuff thereupon changes as we go along. Mansions to shacks. Yachts to kayaks and everything in between. A kaleidoscope of ever changing flora, fauna and human embellishments or perhaps detractions.
We spent today touring St Augustine, a really unique city with a most colorful history. A must do for those who have not been here. A uniquely American tale of a few great men with vision creating beauty and pleasure in a most improbable place. Also, of course, the site of the earliest efforts to colonize America. All in all a day well spent recharging our bodily batteries.

Tomorrow off to Amelia Island or there abouts en route to Savannah in 4-5 days. All to keep our boat insurance company from having a fit about us being south of 30 degrees in hurricane season.

A dozen cinnamon rolls

2007-05-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

A bit delayed report on our stop at Melbourne last week. On Sunday we attended the Melbourne Baptist Church and were treated like long lost family. Joan made a call to see if they had bus service .... doesn't every 1st Baptist church. To our delight we were picked up close to the boat. After the service Bob and Betty Pisle (see picture) took us to lunch where we were treated to the best steak this side of the Mississippi ... maybe even the other side too.

Tony Kessinger, the Sunday School teacher and author has written a book titled "Come out of her my people: The encouragement and exhortation of the book of Revelation Chapters 1-3" He is a gifted teacher so know his book will be worth reading. Plan to start this week.

Monday morning Jack and Marge Salmela came by to see the boat and Marge took Joan to the grocery store to pick up all those heavy things that are hard to carry on bikes. She even got to JoAnn's Fabrics for some much needed velcro to finish off the mosquito netting (Fran where are you when I need you). Larry and Jack stayed aboard swaping tool stories ... exciting stuff.

We found a darling little breakfast spot and found it very handy each morning. It was the old railroad depot so had lots of history. All and all Melbourne was a super cinnamon roll. Melbourne really marked the beginning of our cruise as we transitioned from getting around Florida to stopping along the way to smell the roses or perhaps we should say "Cinnnamon rolls"

The object of Joan's affection

2007-05-25T13:14:00.001-07:00

A glorious but still windy day in Melbourne. We lost the alternator belts yesterday morning due to inattention by the Captain and dropped into Melbourne Harbor to buy replacements. A charming little town and comfortable marina convinced us to just hole up here for the holiday weekend. This will avoid confronting the mega wake makers chasing around showing off their big diesels consuming gross quantities of $3+ a gallon fuel.
Joan took the opportunity to wash all day. She married me for my microwave but has changed her affection to the washer/dryer aboard. It receives much more endearing murmurings than the Captain.
We are finding the bicycles to be most useful and enjoyable. I rode all over town today. It was great fun and managed to pick up several needed items enroute.

A few more pictures at "Melbourne" at www.picasaweb.google.com/lropka

A world of opulence

2007-05-22T16:55:00.001-07:00

From Miami to Fort Pierce the waterside view is one of endless mega houses and mega yachts. The example at left is but a medium sized sample. Visually it is like swimming in a vat of melted ice cream. You long to see an ordinary little house with a tidy yard and a bit of landscaping. The values are incomprehensible. Most houses are close to sea level and the density of yachts affords no possibility of safe havens from storms. The insurance risks must be astronomical.
Today we came to Fort Pierce from an anchorage in North Lake Worth (Palm Beach) and the scene changed to more pleasing modest homes on several acre lots well above sea level with natural but tidy landscaping. Much more appealing than the sardine packed areas to the south.

The highlight of the Miami stay was our visit with Coral Hadler and Tom "Terrific" Graham. We spent a delightful evening on their deck eating ribs until the rain hit and had to rush to shelter. It was an evening sharing stories of adventures on the water. Another memory made.

The wind has been BLOWING 15-25kts from the east for the last 5 days. We have been sheltered by the barrier islands and narrow waterway most of the way but today had about 2 hours in the Indian River area and rocked and rolled a bit. The weatherman says this will contnue through the comming Memorial Day weekend. So we hope to be in Titusville by Saturday am and hole up in a marina for the weekend and stay out of the way of the combination of mega horsepower super wake makers and wind driven waves.

More pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka
In album Miaminorth

Charis' first foreign port of call

2007-05-17T16:36:00.000-07:00

Last night was spent anchored on the edge of the Everglades across from Key Largo. The breezes were cool and the bugs stayed in hibernation. With no lights around one could reach out and touch the stars.

Charis approaches Miami after a delightful run up the Bay of Biscayne in light northerly breezes. The compass saw true North for the first time today finally headed to where we are going. We spent the afternoon visiting with a delightful Trawler internet list friend sharing boat and travel stories. Tomorrow we will borrow his truck and replenish heavy supplies such as soft drinks, propane and canned things. Mean while we are anchored in a beautiful lake like area 50 yards from our friends home and about 1/4mile from where the cruise ships dock on Government Cut.
They tell us there will be a fireworks display after dark near where we are anchored. All in all a splendid couple of days.

Charis gets a bit of notice

2007-05-15T15:26:00.000-07:00

We have been pleasantly surprised by the daily compliments we receive both underway and at anchor about the appearance of Charis. The boat has also been written up on an Internet boating magazine called "Trawlers and Trawlering". If you have absolutely nothing better to do, you can check it out at http://www.trawlersandtrawlering.com/news/charis,alobsterb.html

Charis gets a bath

2007-05-15T15:11:00.000-07:00

Charis was covered in salt when we arrived in Marathon only to find that boat washing was not allowed due to a severe water shortage. God solved the problem in a mighty way last evening when the skies opened and we learned how Noah felt. Unfortunately God through in a bit of lightening and thunder for effect but the result was a squeaky clean boat and dinghy once again a good feeling under foot and hand.

We layed over today to allow the winds accompanying the storm to die down a bit and hope to be off to Key Largo to anchor out tomorrow( Wed) night.

Turning the corner

2007-05-13T15:20:00.000-07:00

After three and one half weeks and almost 800 miles we tie up to a mooring in Boot Key Harbor in the central Florida Keys. The voyage continues to exceed our expectations and we have had very few uncomfortable moments. Last night we expected to spend a rather lonely night anchored just inside the mouth of the Snake River, about as remote location as there is in the southeast US. The guides also warn of man eating no-see-ums, flies and bugs. We pulled in about 1PM to find another boat there and by sundown were surrounded by nine others. We wound up having a pleasant evening on the back deck sans bugs and watching the others party. The trip down today was on glassy waters like a azure blue magic carpet. We will rest here and do a few boat chores then off Tuesday finally headed toward where we are going, north to the Chesapeake Bay. Hopefully Miami by Thursday and points north at about 40 miles per day with a few days off until we get to Savanna, the magic latitude to keep our insurance company peaceful.

The Admiral speaks:
Had a wonderful stop at Gasparilla We tied up at a marina across the bay where it was quiet and out of the rolls. In the morning decided to venture across to the little village of Boca Grande about 5/6 miles away. It was a beautiful day with flat seas and all was right with the world. We had a delightful walk around the town and expected to find a quaint little cafe to sit a spell and take in the passing tourists. The main water main in town had broken so ended up on a sidewalk eating a shared tuna sandwich. Hey, life is not what you expect. We got in the dinghy and cast off into a fine channel headed back across the bay. We edged slowly along the coast and then made a break for the 5 mile run across the bay. Just got away when the wind started to blow and the smoke from all the fires descended upon us. I suggested that we turn back only to be told by the Captain that it was better to continue. A sports boat came up asking where the bridge was and since we were wondering the same thing were no help. We pounded on into the wind straining to see land and hoping not to get run over by the big boats running in the main channel. About this time I made mention that I thought we had made a mistake not paying the $50.00 fee for car rental to do our touring in for the day. About the time I thought the Lord himself should take over the smoke lifted and the relieved look on the Captain's face told me he knew where we were. Lessons are learned in every adventure ... this one will not be forgotten. A few more pictures on picasaweb.google.com/lropka.

Evening in Sarasota

2007-05-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

What to tell?? The picture albums "first and second leg"on picasaweb.google.com/lropka
tell some of the story. Each day has been a joy and now that we have slowed down to running 5hrs or so a day it is becoming moreso.Today is a day off to explore Sarasota and rest up. The natives seem to be friendly if a bit ancient. Tomorrow ,weather permitting, we will be anchoring down around Captiva then Marco before jumping off for Marathon later in the week.

HELLO WORLD!

2007-05-02T12:55:00.000-07:00

We are back in the real world lying in a beautiful lagoon in Crystal River at Kings Bay, Fl. We ran 11hrs yesterday from Steinhatchee in idealic almost calm conditions and enjoyed the ride even if a bit long. Our laptop and Verizon air card worked at all of the stops along the way. But the rural cell systems were not fond of picture uploads hence no pictures so far. We planned to post a few pictures of our trip thus far today while enjoying this super fast connection but the bilge monster ate or hid the camera tether cable and will not reveal where it is. So will buy a new one in Tarpon Springs tomorrow and show a bit of our trek so far.

All in all the trip has been a sheer joy with very few problems. We have to pinch ourselves regularly to make sure it is real. Our plans are to continue drifting down the West coast at 50 or so miles a day headed for Marathon Key when we get there. Then we will hang a left and begin the trek North.

Off to a good start

2007-04-28T17:15:00.000-07:00

Left FWB on schedule Wed 25 for an eight hour run to Panama City and a visit with Rich and Mary Gano. The boat ran fine and the Gano's were five star hosts. A major weather front was forecast for Thur so we stayed over getting a few boat chores done and being hosted to a fine dinner at Gano's, another 5 star dinner. They are neighbors of Butch and Kathleen Gould. All in all a great two days playing boats with friends. We were so well taken care of that we were considering becoming taking up residence.

Joan's imput: Something Larry neglected to tell .... We were walking along the dock to the boat after a fine time when Larry disappeared from sight but did hear a splash. YUP, he did it again. Went swimming. We found his glasses the next morning so all was not lost.

Back to Larry
Friday we were off to a 5hr run to beautiful downtown White City. Bet you never heard of this place. Tied up to a free dock at the county park just off the waterway and had very nice afternoon and evening walking the park and watching a bunch of fishing boats come and go.

Joan's imput: I ran the washing machine for the first time. Awesome. I just sat there and watched the little thing do its job.

Today, Saturday, we cruised 2 whole hours to Apalachicola and checked in at the Scipio Creek Marina to do some more wash and prepare for the voyage across the arm pit of Florida tomorrow. The weather is forecast to be fine so hope to be just under 12 hours into Steinhatchee.

The scenery and pleasures of cruising along the way so far have been all and more than we had hoped for. This is just plain fun. Our only regret is we cannot share it with you all. Just endless beautiful scenes and all kinds of critters. Slowly moving along the mostly placid waterways unfolds and ever changing panaroma of God's master work of creation.

Took some pictures and attempted to upload them for this post but the cell signal is a bit too weak for much data. Will get them up as stronger area.

Joan & Larry

Creature from the black lagoon

2007-04-21T16:32:00.000-07:00

Hope I can read a chart better than a calendar. Our "D-Day" was Tuesday 24 Apr vice 21 Apr as noted in the previous post.

Yesterday I put the Hookah rig together for the first time and inspected the boat under water. The rig worked perfectly and will be a great asset along the way. My total cost was about $150 thanks to Ebay. Commercial versions are over 1k.

The bottom was fine but there was 1/2" of barnacles on the prop. No wonder the boat felt sluggish Wed when we ran over to Destin to top off our diesel tanks.

We now hope to be underway Wed 25 Apr headed 8hrs to Panama City and an over night visit with our friends the Gano's.

The predeparture checklist is now relatively short and seemingly under control.

D-10 and counting

2007-04-13T18:02:00.000-07:00

The dinghy goes aboard and miracle of mircales fits. This rig was designed in pieces over a span of several years and had never been "proofed" other than some cardboard silhouettes. But! Praise the Lord, it fits like a glove. Otherwise departure prep is on schedule and weather permitting we hope to be underway Tuesday 21 April headed for Panama City and points east and south.

Maden Voyage!

2007-03-24T16:33:00.000-07:00

CHARIS IN PENSACOLA. We spent last night in one of the nicest marinas in Northwest FL. A fitting debut for for such a high class lady. Five hours each way and all systems never missed a beat except the Capitan narrowly missed a humpy little sand bar when the Adrimal pointed it out at the last minute. Please see picasaweb.google.com/lropka
for a few pictures of the neighborhood and especially the gormet breakfast served by the Adrimal.

Mini Cruise

2007-03-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

A beautiful sunny day and it all came together as we ventured all of the way to Destin for fuel and beyond. Joan almost fell overboard taking pictures of the dolphins frolicking around the bow. A bunch of big ones! Then 200 gal of diesel (OUCH) at the Harbor Marina fuel dock followed by lunch around the corner on the bay. We ran about 4 hours and all systems worked as planned. More pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/lropka/minicruise

The People Catcher

2007-02-26T15:14:00.000-08:00

The long awaited bow rails are finally installed. A very tedious job involving about one hundred trips from deck to fore cabin and back to align and finally get the rail bases bolted down. Even some blood letting from attempting to reach into unreachable places to screw on and tighten retaining nuts. Tomorrow will get the nose piece formed and installed.This can be rotated out of the way to allow lines to be repositioned without being taken aboard if necessary. Forty eight bolts closer to finishing construction. :-)

Time out

2007-02-26T14:50:00.000-08:00

Foul weather and a laundry list of house repairs has caused a pause in boat work for the past week or so. We replaced 11 thermopane windows and completed a number of interior details left over from the hurricane Ivan rebuild. Because the windows are custom built in cedar frames we had to break them out and then painstakingly remove the bits of glass, metal insulation strip and original adhesive, a 2-3 hour process per window. NOT FUN. We also pressure washed most of the exterior and will re-stain the washed areas over the next few days. Hopefully by the weekend we will be able to do our long delayed mini shakedown to Pensacola.

The" LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL!"

2007-01-30T15:08:00.000-08:00

This bright light is our friend Eric welding a stainless steel stanchion on our bow rail. The stanchion is clamped in a jig that exactly (we hope) replicates the fore deck of the boat in three dimensions. It has been a interesting challenge. This is the last major fabrication task to be completed on the boat. The rails will be polished and we will get them installed the next few days. Hopefully the rails reduce the number involuntary swimming sessions.

Larry gets under foot

2007-01-13T16:40:00.000-08:00

We are getting down to the small stuff now and today finished the foot rail in front of the pilothouse bench/berth. The cushions are some 28 inches off of the floor (deck for the purists) and you really feel silly and insecure setting with you feet dangling six inches off of the floor. The rail folds up to stow flat against the teak bench front so as not to interfere with our dancing in the pilothouse.

Joan gets it all together, finally

2007-01-13T16:23:00.001-08:00

After five years of planing Joan finally got all of the bedroom elements together. The crowning piece of course is the magnificent quilt handmade by Joan's good (real good!) friend Fran Mueffelmann. The picture does not do the quilt justice and it is a work of art when seen in place. Larry thinks it is beautiful but doubts he will get to sleep under it unless it is a very special occasion with royalty aboard.
Double click on the picture to see detail :-)

Sleepeze

2007-01-09T17:43:00.000-08:00

Perhaps the most important cruising accessory is the anchor. We am naming this 65lb beauty "Sleepeze". We expect to rest comfortably many nights when the wind blows knowing Sleepeze is down there holding tight. Getting it aboard in the morning may be a chore but at least we will be rested for the task.

New pictures on Picasaweb

2007-01-04T17:11:00.000-08:00

The new interior photos are finally here. As you will see the mattress has at last been assembled so we are close to overnighting if the weather will cooperate. Should finish the propane system tomorrow and bring up the fresh water system early next week. With those we essentially have a whole boat except for the stainless bow rail still at the fabricators. Pictures at www.picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Adm Joan commanding sea trial

2006-12-29T14:13:00.000-08:00

Great sea trial today. Temperature in the low 70's and 10k wind. First real chance to confirm performance numbers and found 7.8k at 1700 rpm and 10.5 at 2500, a bit more than expected. Also made 3.5k with the Yamaha outboard at 60-70% throttle a very good number. Ran 2.5hrs and all systems functioned normally except a minor glitch in the autopilot.

Joan and Larry Snuggle

2006-12-28T15:05:00.000-08:00

Our great friends Chuck and Judy Miller gave us a "snuggle blanket" for Christmas and we just had to give it a test. Report: works great but sure slows down the work. :-)

New pictures on Picasaweb.

2006-12-26T18:26:00.000-08:00

We have posted a series of pictures taken on launch day Nov 9 or maybe 8. The operation whet very smoothly thanks mainly to my friend James Flores who orchestrated the whole thing and provided the trailer free of charge. A real pro and yachtsman. Pictures at picasaweb.google.com/lropka

Interior pictures comming soon

2006-12-26T18:18:00.000-08:00

We put the carpet in the Saloon (rimes with spittoon- trust me) today and will get some interior pictures during the next few days. Also hope to get in a sea trial or two weather permitting.

Christmas card photo 2006 sans bow rail

2006-12-20T14:19:00.000-08:00

Joans first look

2006-12-17T20:07:00.000-08:00

This is Joans first look at our new blog.

In the beginning

2006-12-17T19:12:00.000-08:00

This is the beginning of "Charis Ways" a journal of the voyages and adventures of Larry and Joan Ropka.