Annapolis

 10/21- Our very good friends Pat and John came up to visit with us this morning and brought with them a vehicle for us to use. They are being very brave to let us drive something that goes more than 5 knots. 

   It is very odd to drive 50 mph after not going over 10 mph in 2 months. We did manage to get safely to a nearby Walmart where we did a big provisioning. We bring everything back to the the boat and unpack it so we don’t have to lug trash around. 

10/22- We drove through the gorgeous fall countryside of the Eastern Maryland. Alayne had a package to mail so we stopped at a local post office on some small town along the way. We inquired about an envelope to put the scarf she had knitted in and the woman behind the counter said she saved old envelopes to recycle them. So she packaged up the scarf slapped a stamp on it and it got shipped out all while conversing with us. 

  A short while later we pulled into a rest stop and there is a guy with a cockatoo on his shoulder. Turns out they are from Maine and are headed down to Florida. As I was talking to him the bird climbed up my arm and perched on my shoulder. He didn’t talk but he made all these loud clicking noises. We chatted with them for a while before getting back on the road. 

   We spent the day chatting with Pat and John and their dog Lily at their house. Pat cooked us a delicious pot roast for dinner and we then reluctantly had to head back to the boat. 

10/23- I had been looking for an oil filter to replace the one I had used and I was having trouble finding one. Turns out the NAPA in Chesterton had one so we drove there and picked it up. We spent some time walking about the quaint town and even got to see the schooner Sultana. 

   It had been very windy all weekend and today was no exception. While this marina is very protected it was cold and raw. We got back to the boat and closed everything up. I even taped over the insides of the dorade vents. 

10/24- We were up before the sun this morning as we had a long way to go. It was cold! The wind howled down the river right on our nose. After we got around the point we ran up the jib and motor sailed. With the current and wind behind us we were doing 8- 8.5 knots again. Who can argue with that. It was a beautiful cloudless day and we just flew along making the Bay Bridge by noon. We pulled into Annapolis shortly thereafter picking up a mooring in the city mooring field. We walked into town and had a beer at McGarveys Pub which several folks had recommended.

   This is a very busy place with boats coming and going and the town was filled with more people than I’ve seen in one place for a while. It’s great to see way more sailboats than powerboats here. This is also a place where many of the people headed south stop off. There are all kinds of boats with all kinds of gear rigged for cruising. I feel like I’m becoming part of this big community. 

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