Breezehome

Spending Christmas at Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island is such a joy! Especially when you get a chance to visit with family and friends. My cousin Dell and Eric joined us on Christmas Eve Eve for dinner; it’s always so much fun to catch up with them. Then, we were invited to spend some time off the boat at our friends’, Missy and Brian’s house. They wined and dined us, we walked on the beach and hunted for shark’s teeth, watched movies and football, discovered we both have the same tradition of reading “The Cajun Night Before Christmas” - it was a wonderful way to spend the holiday, such a blessing.
Looks like we will be in St. Augustine for New Year’s Eve. From there it’s just a few more hops to Miami where we hope to make our crossing to the Bahamas sometime at the end of January. Love and best wishes to all our family and friends. Thank you for the love you send our way. Happy New Year!

We left Solomons, MD, on Thanksgiving after a delightful Thanksgiving lunch. We took the ICW in lieu of going outside around Hatteras. The highlight of this part of our journey south was being able to meet Abbi and Jordan at Coinjock Marina for their famous prime rib dinner and what a great time we had! We hope to work out a longer visit next time through.
We passed though Belhaven on the weekend of their Christmas Parade and got to enjoy small town Americana at its best. Complete with a toy train display set up in the old Town Hall, right next to Fish Hook’s Cafe, that has the best fried chicken anywhere.
Our stop in Southport, SC, turned out to be just in time for their Christmas Boat Parade. We were docked on the outside and had a front row view of the festivities. We met a lovely couple, Holly and David, and hope to see them in Miami in January before we jump over to the Bahamas.
Eventually we made our way to Charleston and were able to spend a breezy but glorious day in the historic district. We can’t wait to come back and spend more time exploring, but bad weather was coming, and we needed to move further south with our goal being Beaufort, SC. We made it just in time on Saturday to get tucked in before the storm hit on Sunday. Now we are enjoying a very cold, but beautiful day in one of our favorite towns. Next stop – Florida.

Life in a marina isn’t so bad. We refitted Breezehome with a new faucet for the galley sink, new lights for the heads, a sail pack to make Dale’s job safer when dropping the mainsail, and we completed our electronics upgrade of a new wind indicator, new transducer w/depth, speed, and temperature; GPS locator and radar w/option to overlay on the chart plotter. Dale still needs to hook up the additional solar panels, but we’ll get that done as we travel south. A huge thanks goes to Chris (Dale’s nephew-in-law) who spent many hours of his time helping research and determine the best way to get all the equipment talking to each other.
Spending time in Maryland this Fall has been delightful, but now that it’s getting colder, we’re preparing for our trip to the Bahamas in January and will be leaving Solomons on Thanksgiving to begin our journey south. One of the things we enjoyed doing to help us mentally prepare for our second year and new adventures, is opening our messages in a bottle that some of our dear friends in Little Rock gave us when we left. The beautiful and heartfelt messages brought tears to our eyes. We are so thankful for your love and support.
Life in a marina isn’t the plan. We’ll miss the white picket fence neighborhood we walk through to get to the boardwalk that runs along the scenic Patuxent River. We’ll miss the charcoal grill and Dale’s “best ever/anywhere” chicken wings. I’ll miss free laundry. So many things we’ve grown to love so quickly. We’ll miss the honking geese as they do their afternoon “fly overs” but; there’s more to discover out there and we’re happy to replace them with one of our other favorite birds – the goofy yet somehow still handsome pelican.

On our one year anniversary of living on Breezehome, we celebrated by jumping on a train and spending a week in New York City! New York City?! Well, Burke and Malachi finally got to go on their honeymoon, so we had the pleasure of cat sitting Ender in their Manhattan apartment. We tucked in Breezehome at Solomons, MD, and as soon as we arrived in NYC Hurricane Lee started acting like he was headed there as well. Lucky for us that did not happen and we had a beautiful week of weather with just a little rain... and a huge rainbow. We enjoyed The Eagles concert, the Broadway musical Wicked, riding bikes around Central Park, the Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy, a hot dog and lemonade at Nathan's on Coney Island, and lots of pizza (by the slice, because that's how New Yorkers do it). We finished our "Vacation from Retirement" with a spa day on Governor's Island with Burke and Malachi. The view of NYC across the river and watching sailboats sailing by, made for a beautiful day and a perfect way to visit and recount both of our adventures. What a treat!
We're back home now and the projects begin. Only 3 months until we head to the Bahamas!!

We left Little Rock a year ago and made our way to Indian Harbor, FL where we began our new life, September 7, aboard our new home "Breezehome". We spent this last year searching for the perfect anchorage and sunrise/sunset; traveling all the way down to Key West and then back up the east coast to Chesapeake Bay where we can really enjoy some sailing. We have discovered - while not every anchorage is perfect for resting, and not every day is perfect for sailing, every sunrise/sunset is perfect for enjoying.

We're leaving Colonial Beach, VA today after a longer stay than anticipated. We pulled in 2 weeks ago for what should have been a quick fix to our dinghy's outboard motor throttle....however, as most boaters have experienced at some point, the part didn't come in and it didn't come in, so we waited and waited some more. What to do? Enjoy the town of course!
While exploring this cute little cottage town we noticed bicycles were quite popular as lawn art. We made it a quest to try and find all of them. The first house we named "The Barbie House" and it gets top billing (of course).
We're headed to St. Mary's, MD next and the wind & weather looks promising for a nice sail!

Washington DC was delightful! On the way up the Potomac we passed beautiful Mt Vernon. As we entered Washington Channel, the Washington Monument and the Capital became the back drop for our stay with nightly visits from momma and baby ducks. We were just minutes from the National Mall with all of its monuments, memorials, and museums. Riding our bikes through the area was such an amazing experience. The Korean War Memorial stood out to me as one of the most moving and should be seen by all who visit DC. We had occasional low level fly overs from our military forces and I must say they were impressive. I wish I could have gotten better pictures of the Ospreys, but they came in so fast and close I was frozen with awe for a moment. I finally snapped out of it and grabbed my phone just in time to get a quick picture. We were fortunate enough while visiting the Library of Congress to enter the Main Reading room for a quick view inside - what an honor. And of course, a trip to DC would not be complete without dinner with Kathryn and Jeff. Thanks for the lovely visit!

While in Belmont Bay, we added new bling to Breezehome. Now people can see her name!

We pushed our way north and have been in Belmont Bay (just south of DC) for the last week visiting with Dale's nephew and new wife, Jay & Lizbeth. We had a great visit with my long time friend Mary K and her family when we first arrived in Virginia. She cooked us a delicious pot roast and chocolate cake! Why do I not have pictures??
Pictures I do have from the trek up include, sunsets from the different anchorages, perfectly fried chicken from Fish Hooks in Belhaven, a dragonfly from the Alligator River, fresh blackberries we picked when we arrived in Virginia, and Jay's fabulous jerk chicken grilled for the 4th of July!
Now, with the tune of Johnny Cash's song "I've Been Everywhere" insert all these towns and anchorages that made up our trip from Charleston to DC...Awendaw Creek, Georgetown, Southport, Swansboro, Oriental, Belhaven, Alligator River, North River, Chesapeake VA, Hampton VA, Fleets Bay, Kingscote Creek, Chapel Point, Belmont Bay, and tomorrow we will arrive in DC!

We arrived in Beaufort, SC and were greeted by a lady on the city dock who offered to help us run errands if we needed anything and gave us her phone number! On our way back from the store one day, a man offered to give us a ride to the marina. (We took him up on it.) This town, filled with genuinely nice people, line their river front with front porch swings, beautifully landscaped lawns, and preserves the beauty of their "grandmother' live oaks and historic homes for others to come and enjoy. The church bells ringing in the distance on the hour adds a special touch.
We are now making our way north, spending one night in Charleston under the shadow of the USS Yorktown. We'll be back and do a real visit next time, but we want to keep going for now.

While we were in St. Augustine, Dale installed a new chart plotter and radar system! Dell and Eric came down from Jacksonville for dinner one Sunday. We spent a day exploring the area with Laurie and Bud Smith who were traveling in the area. We had for a fun filled weekend of music, food, and biking around town. We took a break from boat life one weekend and flew to New York City to visit Burke and Malachi. They gave us an amazing tour of what NYC has to offer in way of entertainment and adventure. It was renting bikes and riding through Central Park that convinced us it was time to buy our own bikes for the boat. So, after St. Augustine, we headed to Jacksonville, and picked up our new foldable bikes at Dell's house where we had them shipped. She let us borrow her truck and Dale built a storage spot for them under the solar panels. Then it was on to Amelia Island where we enjoyed spending time with Missy and Brian Tinnermon and riding our new bikes around this precious town. The best house we found is one with carousel ponies decorating the wrap around porch.
Our next stop is Beaufort, SC.

We've been in Titusville, FL mooring field the last several weeks while we waited for an opening in St. Augustine. While we were here we took the opportunity to visit the Kennedy Space Center. It's a must see for the entire family. So cool to see the history of our space exploration and what NASA has planned for the future. In addition to the Kennedy Space Center, our boat had a perfect view of the launch pads and we saw 2 launches, both for Starlink satellites, which was exciting!
Not so exciting was the afternoon, with winds over 25 knots, when we received a call from the Titusville Marina. Someone reported a dinghy floating over to the park - it was ours! Gracie had come loose and was making a run for it! We are so very fortunate the wind was blowing in the direction of land, a kind citizen took the time to call the marina, and the crew at the marina took the time to go get her. We dodged what could have been a very expensive bullet. Lesson learned...lift it or lose it.

We just hit our 6 month mark of living on a boat! While it may not sound as glamorous as cruising the Bahama Islands, we are having a grand time hanging out in Jensen Beach and accomplishing one of our goals, which is to learn about the little communities we pass through. It just so happens Dale's nephew-in-law, Chris, has an uncle and aunt who live in Jensen Beach. They gave us the grand tour of Stuart and Jensen Beach on Sunday. We went to downtown Stuart where there is a farmers' market every Sunday and this week there was a band playing on the boardwalk. The downtown is filled with unique, locally owned, shops and restaurants - Delightful! Then we went over the causeway bridge for a snack by the beach at the beach cafe. On the first Sunday of every month, there is an open air concert at the old Colgate Mansion "Tugahoe" (which means "Welcome") on the river. https://www.martin.fl.us/Mansion
This month the band was "Jambush", a hilly billy, blue grass group playing everything from the Eagles to Johnny Cash. It was a glorious day ending with a great dinner on the water at "The Dolphin Bar & Shrimp House", a historical restaurant built by Frances Langford and frequented by movie stars and politicians starting back in the 40's. Thank you Debbie and James, for your hospitality and being such great ambassadors for your community.

We anchored at No Name Harbor for a couple of weeks. The sunsets were breathtaking and we enjoyed watching people get engaged, married, and have romantic picnics at the point. Our "back yard" included tree canopied walking paths and a resident dolphin who entertained the crowds as they walked along the park seawall. We had easy access to the grocery store, nice dining, and even made a trip to the dentist for a long needed cleaning. Almost no one speaks English as their first language (if at all) in Key Biscayne, but the village streets and parks are beautifully manicured and the family life here is a happy one with friendly and helpful people.
We enjoyed spending time with Bob, a 73 year old seasoned sailor and retired marine; and Deborah and Arthur from New Jersey on "Day Dreamer". We were especially happy when Russ and Kelly on "Bliss" showed up our first day on anchor. We were in the slip next to them at Marathon, but they left the next day, so we didn't have a chance to get to know them. Lucky for us, they were waiting for a window to go to Bimini and so we went to the Miami Beach boat show together, shared sun downers with them, and hope to meet up with them again, possibly in St Augustine, as we make our way up the East Coast this summer.
We are now back in Jensen Beach, preparing for a haul out in March to paint the bottom and upgrade some electronics.

Key West was adorable and we had fun renting bicycles to explore the town. But a day or two was really all we needed, so we headed back to Marathon. After an unexpected rough day on the ocean, high winds and more rough seas forecasted for the next week - it was time to take a break and got a slip at the Marathon Marina & Resort. Pool time was the perfect place to meet great people, trade tips, and learn about anchorages we might otherwise have overlooked. I highly recommend trying a Key Lime Martini if you ever get the chance! The marina was a wonderful respite, and now we are ready to head back north and pull Breezehome out of the water for some maintenance, before we start making our way up the East Coast.

We made it to Key West!

After New Smyrna, we returned to our hurricane hidey hole to ride out Nicole, which was supposed to be a tropical storm, but wasn’t! We were fortunate to have called in time to secure a spot and are grateful for the people who gave us advice on how to tie Breezehome down. We ended up snapping a pylon and would have lost our line for the bow if we had not followed their suggestions. 2 hurricanes in 45 days, with Nicole landing at midnight on my birthday. Yikes!
We spent the last few weeks at the Jensen Beach mooring field. Jensen Beach is a delightful little fishing community, and we are looking forward to coming back someday. The mooring field is ½mile from the grocery store, Mailbox Etc, an open-air fresh produce market, “Kirk’s” dive shop (who gave us great advice and insight), Four Fishes marina where we filled up with fuel, all with the most genuinely nicest and friendliest employees. And then there is “Lures”, the local hang out, with it’s outdoor bar, picnic tables; the inside with its tv’s tuned to every known sport channel, decorated with mounted fish on the walls and fishing lures hanging from the ceiling – you would almost forget how great the food and service was – but you don’t! Good job Jensen Beach!
Now we continue heading south toward Ft. Lauderdale, Miami/Biscayne Bay, and ultimately the Keyes.

St. Augustine was fabulous. We enjoyed spending time one Saturday with my cousin Dell and her husband Eric, hanging out on the boat (it was raining), walking the historic streets, getting a ride to the grocery store, and just visiting. Thank you Dell, for giving me your Sam's bag! How have I survived all this time without it?
We left St Augustine early Friday morning and planned on sailing to New Smyrna Beach. It was too rough to chance putting up the sails, so we motored. The travel time was estimated at 10 hours, and we needed to be at Ponce Inlet before dark. When we got to Ponce Inlet, the waves were so strong, we were glad we didn't have to take them down. It was an exciting trip though - In looking back I would compare it to a Colorado white river rafting experience, an 8 hour one! We saw our first Atlantic sunrise, we missed a rain storm, and Dale took a picture of what he thought was just a pretty ocean and sky, but there seems to be a creature in the middle. We were in Right Whale territory, so zoom in - what do you think?

St. Augustine is amazing! We arrived yesterday, got a mooring ball at the city marina, and will be here through November 1. We are located right in front of the historic district and the fort. From here, we have easy access to the Atlantic Ocean inlet and are looking forward to testing Breezehome out on the ocean at last. The weather over the next few days is promising.
The anchoring lessons learned along the way were pretty scary at times. But knowing the anchor can hold during 22 knot winds and a fast current is reassuring. However, I will say, we don't want to do it again any time soon. It's nice to be on a mooring ball for a few days.