Sea Holly - Our Journal Continued

Cuero, Texas

2008-03-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

We recently visited Cuero, the largest town in DeWitt County on the Gulf Coast Plain in South Central Texas. DeWitt County boasts the title of Wildflower Capital of Texas, boasting over 1,000 species of wildflowers. As you can see from the photos, the wildflowers are incredible!! Cuero pioneered the turkey raising industry in south central Texas for years and during the annual turkeyfest, flocks of turkeys were driven on foot through the streets to market. The town also hosts the Great Gobbler Gallop which is an annual race between two prize turkeys, one from Minnesota and one from Cuero.

New Edition

2008-03-22T08:55:00.001-07:00

We've now made our third rescue of one of God's creatures (hopefully this will be the last) ... Abby was our first in Mexico; next is a puppy for my friend Chris and finally this 15 week old puppy, Coda, just home from some surgery to drain fluid from his elbows - the result of 7 weeks in a crate. He looks pretty happy to have a home, Abby's not so sure!!

Muddy Rain

2008-03-22T08:51:00.000-07:00

When we heard the forecast for "muddy rain" overnight we laughed. We weren't laughing in the morning when everything, and I mean everything looked like it had been sprayed with chocolate milk!!! It took us 4 hours to wash truck, chairs, patio mat, bbq and mostly the entire 5th wheel!!

Babies, Babies Everywhere!!

2008-03-11T12:07:00.001-07:00

Spring has definitely sprung in Texas, everywhere you look there are babies - calves, lambs, foals, kids, puppies, kittens, armadillos. This little guy was born right here at River Bend Park and we're expecting another anytime!! The grass is green, blossoms on the trees and lots of little green leaves. The first batch of wildflowers have finished and the next wave getting ready.

Can't believe we'll be on the road again in less than a month and it's still snowing at home !!!!! We have to be in Indianna in early April, hope they have an early spring.

San Antonio Botanical Gardens

2008-03-01T08:39:00.000-08:00

Our latest excursion was to the botanical gardens. The rose garden and wisteria arbor were not in bloom, but for February, it was still impressive. The orchid display was awesome!!

The old carriage house has been converted to a cafe and used the old stalls to make the entrance and booths, neat!!

Pictures say it all ....

Can you remember doing this????

2008-03-01T08:36:00.000-08:00

Our granddaughter, Sienna, is certainly flexible. For those of who can hardly reach past our knees ...

Luckenbach, Texas

2008-02-21T19:59:00.000-08:00

Everybody's somebody in Luckenbach or so they say (population of 3). The tiny town was established as a Trading Post in 1849 and consists of a Dance Hall, Beer Joint and General Store on 10 acres surrounded by huge 500 year old oak trees and two creeks. Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings brought Luckenbach to its ultimate worldwide fame with their hit song "Luckenbach Texas" #1 on the Country Charts for six weeks. I am actually starting to enjoy country music - help!!!

Palmetto State Park

2008-02-14T17:57:00.000-08:00

Life's better outside (especially when it's warm)

Today we took our bicycles and toured Palmetto State Park, one of the many state parks in Texas. This park was named for the dwarf palmetto found in the swamps in a 289 acre tropical refuge in the middle of the brush country.

The San Marcos River also flows through this park about 14 miles south of Luling. We're looking forward to the canoe trip!!

At a bend in the San Marcos we came across trees full of roosting buzzards. It was an impressive sight but these birds sure are ugly!

Sienna

2008-02-05T18:39:00.001-08:00

Sienna is sooo cute, I couldn't resist posting this.

Let's Rodeo San Antonio!!

2008-02-05T18:02:00.001-08:00

The San Antonio Rodeo was awesome, billed as "more than an 8 second ride" it was voted the best large indoor rodeo of the year for the third straight year. Just a side note, if you like trucks, you have to come to Texas and if you REALLY like trucks, visit a rodeo!!! We arrived at the AT&T centre at 9:00am and didn't stop till 5:30, should have worn our pedometers. We were a little underdressed in our sneakers and tee shirts considering most people wore cowboy boots, jeans (high waisted none of those low rise ones) with belts loaded down with silver, fancy western shirts (long sleeve only), more silver, and to top it all of a fancy stetson (with more silver).

The laser and pyrotechnic show was amazing and the opening ceremonies were impressive. We saw the bare back riding; steer wrestling; tie down roping; team roping; saddle bronc riding; barrel racing and bull riding. However the best event, in my opinion, was the Mutton Bustin'. This even was open to children between the ages of 4 and 7 weighing in at less than 50 lbs. The contestants rode sheep and the object was to stay on as long as possible. The little guy who won was only 5 years old and he clung to his sheep like a burr. In fact he refused to let go as he started to slide sideways and actually pulled the sheep over. These are the future rodeo stars!!! The picture doesn't do it justice, it was sooo cute.

We also spent a lot of time checking out the exhibits - lots of silver; hide covered furniture; interesting stained glass and lots of stetsons. The fudge was delicious too!!

I was on the edge of my seat during the 6 horse hitch demonstration. They did consecutively smaller and smaller figure eights and then charged at full speed around the arena - the dirt was flying from the wheels!

The grand finale was Ronnie Milsap in concert. Ray loved it but I'm not quite so enthusiastic. The sound on my ipod was a lot better and there's no screaming and yelling in the background. Guess I'm getting old.

Flea Market

2008-02-05T17:58:00.000-08:00

We arrived at Bussey's Flea Market with great expectations. 20 acres and over 500 vendors but the only bargain we found was a camera tripod for $2.00 and a spiffy dog crate for my friend's puppy. Overall we were disappointed, the armadillo was pretty neat though.

Bastrop and Old Friends

2008-02-01T21:37:00.000-08:00

Today we visited Bastrop, a town about an hour's drive NW of Luling. The Visitor's Center was very impressive.

The town has changed a little over the years as you can see from the before and after photos of Main Street.

There are still many beautiful old homes.

We had lunch with Franchesca, an old friend from Mexico, at the Roadhouse. It's been more than 4 years since we've seen each other so had lots of news to catch up on. It was great to see her again and the Roadhouse serves the most amazing jalepeno and cream cheese hamburgers - WOW!!

Wimberley, Texas

2008-01-30T21:34:00.000-08:00

Wimberley, about 15 miles northwest of San Marcos, was our first venture into the Texas Hill country. This little town is part of the Blanco River Valleyand home to many artists and authors. Texas is divided into 7 regions: Big Bend Country, Gulf Coast, Hill Country, Panhandle Plains, PineyWoods, Prairies and Lakes and the South Texas Plains. We have barely scratched the surface of this huge state.

Our first stop was at the Gourmet Tamale Kitchen (food first of course). We enjoyed Black Russian Cake (just like the drink); cherry scones and bought chicken, beef and pork tamales to take home. On full tummies, we visited the Central Texas Bonsai Exhibit at the Jade Gardens. Owners, Chuck and Pat Ware, have been working with bonsai (tree in a pot) for 20 years. Their exhibit includes more than 160 species of trees and more than 1000 containers of speciman trees. In some of the photos you can see the wire wrapped around the trunk of the trees to encourage growth in different directions. Chuck smiled as he told us of the people who got "bonsai seeds" for Christmas and then came to him wondering why what grew didn't look anything like his bonsai!!

Next stop was Old Baldy, a large hill with 284 stone steps leading to the top and some pretty fantastic views. Not surprising, Abby is in the best shape and climbed effortlessly.

On to Pioneer Town, a recreation of an 1800's town which has been the set for many movies.

Somehow I doubt the settlers who built this cedar log cabin actually subscribed to Bell Express Vu (note the satellite dish) but it's all in the spirit of things.

Our final stop was a stroll around the market square and all its quaint little shops. Abby enjoyed browsing at Purfect Paws, a doggie boutique. She fancied a new dish set ($58) and a lovely collar ($32) but like the good girl she is, took "no" for an answer. Since the fudge shop was closed, we followed our noses to a store advertising "healthy chocolate" - can there really be such a thing???? Yes, there is - we paid $3.78 for 1.6 oz of chocolate which contained no sugar or dairy products. This delightful little morsel, made with organic ingredients, contained virgin coconut oil, raw agave syrup (from the agave plant - tequila!!); cocoa powder, soy, banana, and almonds. Truly, it was delicious despite the price.

Zedler's Mills

2008-01-29T17:44:00.001-08:00

Here's a view of the river from the top of the dam and a tiny part of the old mill buildings.

Ray is enjoying his new camera and seems to have that photographer's eye for neat shots, unlike your's truly.

Abby likes our afternoon excursions, mornings she just hangs out with a bone and watchs us work!!

Zedler's Mills, Luling

2008-01-29T17:36:00.000-08:00

It was 76F today and you can actually see the green tinge starting ... We have been working most mornings on the 5th wheel, waxing, cleaning, etc. It's a lot easier to do than trying to stand in the dinghy and hang onto a boat!! We usually explore in the afternoons. Today we visited the Zedler's Mills, established in 1874. It was originally a gristmill and saw mill and later a cotton gin and power plant. There is a stone dam across the San Marcos River - the end of this part of the Texas Paddling trail.

2008-01-27T21:52:00.000-08:00

These river barges go up and down the river but of course we hoofed it so that we didn't miss anything.

More views of the River Walk

2008-01-27T21:49:00.001-08:00

Who's the handsome man walking along the river???

The River Walk

2008-01-27T21:45:00.001-08:00

The River Walk or Paseo del Rio winds through the heart of San Antonio. We had a late lunch, early dinner at Casa Rio one of the outdoor patio restaurants along the water's edge, complete with cerveza - nice on Jan. 27 with the temp in the high 60's!

Remember the Alamo

2008-01-27T21:41:00.001-08:00

Today we drove into San Antonio, the first of many trips I'm sure. We toured the Alamo with our friends Al and George who were wonderful guides. I was surprised to find the Alamo in the heart of the city. It was odd to step out of history into downtown!! More than 3 million people visit the Alamo each year.

Gonzales, Birthplace of Texas Freedom

2008-01-27T21:13:00.001-08:00

Another old town with lots of history, Gonzales was settled in 1825 near the junction of the Guadalupe and San Marcos Rivers. The town was originally laid out with 7 public squares which are still in use today. The survey of the town was completed in 1832 and Gonzales is the only town in Texas that has retained its original Mexican survey. Gonzales rose from the ashes of the Texas revolution to become a mecca for ranchers and cattle barons who built cotton plantations and majestic homes, many of which are still standing today.

Above is a photo of the old jail, built in 1887 and in actual use until 1976 when a new jail was built.

2008-01-27T21:10:00.000-08:00

This town looks like the original old west and how about that, the First Lockhart National Bank!!!

More of Lockhart

2008-01-27T21:06:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of the Caldwell County Courthouse which stands in the town square in Lockhart. The building was originally completed in 1893 and has recently been completely restored. Court was in session so we couldn't take any interior photos but it is beautiful.

Lockhart, Texas

2008-01-27T20:53:00.000-08:00

Yes, there really is a town named after us!!! Actually the town was named after a surveyor, Byrd Lockhart (no relation). In the 1800's Lockhart was a major northward converging point for the herds of cattle being driven along the Chisholm Trail. From Lockhart to Abilene was nearly 1000 miles - at only 10 miles per day it took three months to get the cattle to the railroad. The famous Texas barbecue of today originated on those cattle drives. Mesquite and oak wood was plentiful and those are the same kinds of woods used today to produce the mouth watering barbecue in which all Texans seem to take great pride. The towns of Lockhart and Luling fiercely compete for the best barbecue. We had barbecued prime rib in Lockhart and it was nothing like I've ever tasted - no sauce or spices just cooked over the mesquite coals - it was fantastic. We're hooked now and plan to sample all the local "pits" to make our own comparisons.

Granddaughter

2008-01-23T16:18:00.001-08:00

For those of you who haven't heard about our granddaughter, Sienna Rae Gulevich, here she is at about 4 months. Isn't she just the cutest baby??? we sure miss her, she'll be crawling before we see her again.

Cold

2008-01-23T16:07:00.000-08:00

Abby's wondering where the promised warm weather has gone. It's pretty chilly here today, only 40 F!!! Considering it's minus 20 something where we come from with 50 cm of new snow .... I better be grateful we are where we are. We had a visit today from old friends from our Mexican days, Al and George. They look the same, how can that possibly be???? They are now living in San Antonio so we're planning some get togethers.

Baking

2008-01-23T15:58:00.000-08:00

This cardinal was just one of the lucky birds who enjoyed my first batch of molasses cookies. From my cruising days, I remembered that the flour here in the US has less gluten than Canadian flour. Since I couldn't find any Robin Hood I decided that self rising flour was just what I needed. Unfortunately I didn't read the directions until after the baking flop. The cookies were awful, which is understandable when you think that the batch had the equivalent of 9 tsp of baking powder and 4 tsp of salt with the self rising flour. The birds actually didn't seem to mind but I'm not sure if they suffered from indigestion afterwards. For my second attempt, I used regular Wal Mart all purpose flour and it worked just fine.

Shopping

2008-01-20T10:47:00.000-08:00

We finally visited the outlet mall in San Marcos. WOW, 130 stores - San Marcos is rated 3rd in the world for shopping and apparently busloads of people come to shop and browse. It was pretty impressive. Can't say we found any great bargains - I guess if you are used to paying $1,021.00 for a sweater, then $398 is a pretty good buy .... We did however find some great buys at Marshalls and the 5th wheel is starting to feel like a cozy nest now even though Ray continues to growl about my "junk". Ray has a new camera so he's very preoccupied at the moment - it even has a remote control!! and I'm not going to comment any further on that.

Sightseeing

2008-01-20T10:42:00.000-08:00

It's been chilly this week so we've been getting our shopping and some sightseeing out of the way in anticipation of warmer weather!! Despite the caption, we've decided against skydiving ...

Yikes, things are bigger in Texas

2008-01-17T11:30:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it but it seems to be true - things are definitely bigger in Texas, get a look at this acorn.

The liquor store is unique, even has a drive up window for seniors (we qualify).

Luling

2008-01-17T11:11:00.000-08:00

We bike into town most days - great exercise and lots to explore. Abby gets to hunt every day and she's discovered that standing on top of the hay bales offers a great view of field mice!! She sure is an enterprising creature, she will hunt almost anything from crabs to mice. There are two small cats here at the park and they play around the common buildings. Abby decided to chase them and had a great time putting them under a trailer in record time - great fun until one came out from under the trailer on his hind legs swinging with both arms and really put the run to Abby - she even had scratches on her butt. Very embarrassing to say the least and it happened way too fast for my camera. We mostly ignore them now.

The San Marcos river is very pretty, looking forward to canoeing on it. (above the damm of course, it's part of the Texas Paddling Trail)

Luling is a quaint little town, lots of neat shops and quiet streets. There are oil pumps all over and many are decorated. The one in the photo is in honor of the Watermelon Festival.

River Bend RV Park, Luling, TX

2008-01-17T10:58:00.001-08:00

Here are a few photos of our "home base" for the next few months. The Cypress is only 32', 4' shorter than Sea Holly but sure seems like a lot more space - I still have empty cupboards!!

We're Here!!

2008-01-13T17:29:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Ray, we're here, safe and sound, 2902km. Austin was really our only boo boo and that's because we couldn't decide which route to follow (Mapquest or Good Sam) so we ended up taking our own after a few moments of intense fellowship but we arrived without incident and I think our route was far less complicated. River Bend Park is exactly what we had hoped for, quiet and private. Our site backs on the San Marcos River (where we hope to do some canoeing) and we are well away from the crowd - don't even have to pull our curtains, the birds don't mind at all. The temperature was 22 C when we arrived at noon. Yeah, no more winter stuff (at least till we head home in April). We are actually in the little town of Luling, Texas (famous for it's barbeques and watermelon and still a few oil wells), about 20 miles from San Marcos; 30 miles from Austin and 40 miles from San Antonio so there should be lots to keep us busy for the next few months. Abby's loving this, lots of room to run free, no crabs to dig but she's making do with birds, cows, goats, a few horses and a llama (he's not too sure about her).

Texas

2008-01-13T17:22:00.000-08:00

Texas at last!! not sorry to see the end of Arkansa. Some of the ranches we passed would make "Southfork" look like shantytown, WOW!! Had our first telephone call via On Star in the truck - we got a free subscription when we bought the truck - it's great. Stopped in Waco, TX for the night. Wal Marts here are stocking fertilizer, mulch, flowers!! We have almost everything unpacked now although the 5th wheel is still winterized and a shower would be sooooo nice. I think of the cruisers especially when the sun sets. Sundowners just aren't the same when you don't have company (but it's ok, we aren't doing without).

Sun

2008-01-13T17:17:00.000-08:00

The sun is pretty bright!!! Check out the green grass. (Arkansa)

Temperature's Rising

2008-01-13T17:10:00.000-08:00

Left Illinois and as we entered Arkansa the temp hit 11 C and finally the rain has stopped and it's sunny!! We crossed the Mississippi as we entered Misouri. We always wanted to cruise down the Mississippi in our boat but I must say it didn't look too inviting, pretty muddy and lots of dredges working. Skirted Tennessee, Kentucky and Missippi and stopped just past Little Rock, Arkansa for the night. Clinton might have like it but Arkansa sure isn't my favourite state. We've gotten a little more brave and now put out all our slides when we stop, besides, we're still drying out carpets!! I must say it's more comfortable than trying to squeeze between things. It's interesting to see how the merchandise in the stores (mostly Wal mart of course) has changed, lots of Mexican food on the shelves - we're loving that. Alana laughted at our Walmart locator guide book but it has been one of our better investments - just think 3700 Wal Marts at your fingertips.

Still Raining

2008-01-13T17:03:00.000-08:00

Travelled through rain, at times heavy, for Monday and all day Tuesday until we stopped in Effingham, Illinois. At least the temp stayed in the double digits and our plan was to get far enough south before the front passed and the cold weather returned. Most of our "westing" has been accomplished and we're ready to head south in the morning. Our roadside slide apparently leaked with all the rain and road water so we had a lovely mess to clean up. I guess it doesn't matter whether it's a new car, truck, boat, house or whatever - there are allways warranty issues - we'll see how the RV Warehouse/Newmar handles this one. We managed to clean up most of the mess thanks to our trusty Honda generator which Ray would absolutely never part with. Driving through Indiana was beautiful even in the rain. You could easily pick out the Amish farms, they are immaculate and so neat and pretty. Interstate 70 must definitely be a truckers route. Ray counted over 100 18 wheelers in just one mile!!!!!!! The good news is that the highways are heavily patrolled (all you speeders beware) and we didn't encounter even one rude trucker. Too bad we can't say the same for the Canadian highways! The size of our rig might be helpful - it's always nice to look out at the doors of the big rigs instead of the hubcaps. Today we crossed Michigan, Indiana and Illinois.

Heading South at Last

2008-01-13T16:55:00.000-08:00

We left the RV Warehouse in Cookstown, ON on Monday, January 7 in the fog and rain. It was interesting trying to set up the electric brakes on the wet pavement. The Cypress hauled like a dream, you would never know it was there - at least until we ventured into a gas station or a parking lot - it's going to take some practice. However, it's a piece of cake compared to trying to get Sea Holly into a dock with wind and current, at least we can stop at a predetermined spot (most of the time anyway). We crossed the border at Sarnia/Port Huron and there was no line up. The customs lady took our eggs but heck that's ok, she left the rum and wine.

Stopped for the night in Lapeer, Michigan at our favourite overnite campground - Wal Mart!!!

The Land Chapters ...

2008-01-06T07:33:00.000-08:00

Well, to quote an old friend, we've "swallowed the anchor". Sea Holly, the sail boat, has a new caretaker and home in Montreal, Quebec. We are continuing our travels on land for awhile. Our sailboat left for Montreal in April, 2007; we sold our house in Nova Scotia in June; bought a house near Georgian Bay in Ontario; moved in July; bought a Road Trek in August and travelled across Canada from coast to coast; met our new granddaughter in Jasper, Alberta in September; traded the Road Trek for a Cypress 5th wheel; had an incredible family Christmas in Jasper (first time we have all been together at Christmas in 15 years) and are now ready to continue our travels in 2008. We plan to head south January 7, weather permitting, some things just don't change ... will keep you posted.

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2007-03-14T18:37:00.000-07:00

I can’t believe how long it’s been since Sea Holly’s blog has been updated!!! We are headed north again, winter is almost over. As I read back through my daily journal I keep seeing “another day in paradise” . So far our trip has mostly been just that - wonderful. I think the biggest difference between our trip last year to the Abacos and this year in the Exumas (besides the fantastic weather) is the sailing hours we’ve enjoyed. We changed the oil in Sea Holly in December when we arrived in Nassau and since then (March) still don’t have enough hours to do another change. Following is a brief recap of our adventures since arriving at Lucaya in December.
Lucaya is beautiful and our checkin was easy. We left Lucaya and sailed all the way to Bullock’s Harbour in the Berry Islands. Next stop was Morgan’s Bluff on Andros Island. Ray caught a mahi mahi and a mackerel en route just as we entered the Tongue of the Ocean. Our planned “fish fry” was nixed as it poured rain just as we dropped the hook in Morgan’s Bluff. Next stop was Nassau arriving on Christmas Eve. We enjoyed Atlantis on Paradise Island . The whole resort is set up as an aquarium with sharks; fish; coral; rays and beautiful landscaping. We had fresh conch salad on Potters Cay and checked out the tourist hot spots on Bay Street. Unfortunately, or fortunately, the Bacardie factory was closed for the holidays so we remained relatively sober.
We left Nassau and started south down the Exuma chain. Sea Holly averaged 7 knots under sail en route to Normans - we like sailing in the Exumas!!! Next stop was Hawksbill Cay - probably one of the most beautiful anchorages (looks like Greece). We hiked all the way to the Loyalist ruins at the top of the hill. Abby had a great time digging crabs on the beach. It’s December 31 and we had our first of many swims. Once the wind shifted we discovered the true meaning of “surge” and moved from our beautiful anchorage to a calmer anchorage at Shroud Cay for the first day of 2007. We had our first dinghy adventure at Shroud Cay following the mangrove creeks all the way to the ocean side to Camp Driftwood getting back to Sea Holly just as the sun was setting.
Warderick Wells in the Exuma Land and Sea Park was our next stop. We took a mooring at the Park and volunteered so our mooring was free of charge. The Park is very beautiful and the little birds around the office are so tame they will land on your hand. Abby was a little restricted here especially when she almost swallowed one of the little birds. We are making good use of our glass bottom bucket to see all the coral and beautiful fish. We actually snorkeled here for the first time.
Sampson Cay was next. The resort on Sampson Cay is beautiful and here we collected our first “sea beans” on the beach; saw our first huge rays and lots of nurse sharks quietly cruising along the docks. Bought some ice cream here and it stays nice and frozen in the new Engle freezer we treated ourselves to at the boatshow in Annapolis.
Staniel Cay - now we are changing from our pj’s in the morning right to our bathing suits!! We snorkeled in Thunderball Cave - site of the James Bond movie, Thunderball. On a quiet day we took the dinghy and went fishing out in Exuma Sound - our first dinghy fishing trip, caught a strawberry snapper and a grunt. Abby discovered what a great swimmer she is thanks to her friend , “Molly” on Treasure Island.

2007-03-14T18:36:00.000-07:00

Black Point was our next stop. Great beachcombing; and the best cracked conch so far. The Laundromat was so crowded that we had to fill the machines with a water hose - another new experience.
Headed down to Galliot Cut, our last stop before heading out into Exuma Sound en route to George Town. A fisherman stopped and sold us some fresh conch. We’re getting pretty good at making conch salad! Abby had her first mishap crabbing. She dug up a big guy and he managed to catch her lip, no serious injury except to her pride and Ray rescued her pretty quickly.
Galliot Cut was a nail biter but we managed to make our way into Exuma Sound and had a nice sail to George Town. George Town is like a giant floating RV park. There were 120 boats when we arrived and close to 300 when we left (only 1 week). We enjoyed our stay, all the social activities and the interesting anchorages but a little too crowded for us.
After a week, we headed out to Long Island. Another time we could easily spend our whole winter in Thompson’s Bay. Long Island is beautiful, the people friendly, the harbor has lots of protection and isn’t crowded. We toured the island from Clarencetown at the south end to the Columbus Monument at the north end. We saw our first “blue hole” here, the deepest one in the world, 660 feet. You can stand at the edge in knee deep water and look way down. Spent a beautiful night anchored off Calabash Bay en route to Conception Island, sailed the whole way. Conception is probably one of the prettiest anchorages, the water is so clear it’s hard to believe.
We left Conception and headed to Cat Island . Ray caught a huge mahi mahi as we crossed the Tartar Bank, it’s our favourite fish and our freezer is coming in very handy. Explored most of Cat Island; climbed all the way to the top of the hill to visit the Hermitage; walked miles to the ocean side for some excellent beachcombing. Ray found a beautiful Portuguese glass fishing float - his greatest prize so far. We visited Arthurstown where Sidney Portier was born; Bennetts Harbour and Orange Creek.
After Cat Island we crossed to Little San Salvador, now owned by Holland Cruise Lines. Luckily there were no cruise ships when we arrived so we had the whole island to ourselves, more clear water; white sand beaches and great swimming. A huge cruise ship arrived next morning so we hauled anchor and headed north to Eluethera.

2007-03-14T18:34:00.000-07:00

Rock Sound was our first stop in Eleuthera. We watched our first really big storm approach while anchored here. Luckily it was on a Sunday afternoon instead of during the dark of night. The thunder and lightening were scary enough but when the wind hit, Sea Holly was almost knocked over. Thank goodness it passed pretty quickly. It was one of those days that had us longing for our rocking chairs at home. We spent Valentine’s Day walking a deserted beach and skinny dipping in the ocean - not bad for two old geezers.
Eleuthera is one of the most beautiful islands in our opinion. We stopped at the Pineapple Cays and actually got lost coming back from beachcombing. There were only three roads to choose from and I managed to pick the wrong one. Lesson learned - go back the way you came instead of looking for a new way home. It took us three hours to walk back to Sea Holly, carting all our beach treasures - we hadn’t perfected our hitch hiking technique . We caught lots of king mackerel along the coast of Eleuthera.
Governor’s Harbour - a beautiful town by our standards anyway - had a great bakery. We went to the local park for dinner in honor of the Youth Fest. Didn’t care much for the gospel rap music but the food was great.
Hatchet Bay we almost didn’t stop at because of the write up in the chart book - army green water, dirty town, etc. Luckily we don’t always believe what we read - the anchorage at Hatchet Bay offered 360 degree protection once we braved the narrow cut at the entrance. The water was so clear you could see the grass growing on the bottom. Alicetown was very pretty, neat and clean. The people went out of their way to be friendly. We hitch hiked to Gregory Town and then on to the Glass Window. The Glass Window is an amazing place. It is the narrowest part of Eleuthera and there is a break in the rock which separates the ocean from Exuma Sound with a man made bridge across. During the Perfect Storm in 1991 a rogue wave crashed against the opening and moved the bridge 7 feet!! We scrambled around until we were in the opening and got some great photos. A young couple standing on the road asked if we were rock climbers which was a shock to us. I guess climbing around on Sea Holly has its advantages!!

2007-03-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

We left Hatchet Bay heading for Current Cut - another nail biter. We followed the advice of our friend, Jess on Cattails, and made it through without any problem at all. It was a little disconcerting to travel so close to the rocks but we had plenty of water and timed it for slack current. Decided to skip Royal Island and headed right to Spanish Wells. We were lucky to get a mooring in the harbor. Spanish Wells is a beautiful little fishing town - immaculate and picturesque, even if they did want $22 a pound for what they call lobsters!! We decided to wait till we get home to Nova Scotia. We took the high speed ferry from Spanish Wells to Harbour Island for the day. It was quite a thrill to go through the reefs at Devil’s Backbone at 30 knots!! Had a wonderful day exploring Harbour Island and treated ourselves to lunch at Sip Sip’s on the beach. It’s the first time we have ever paid $18 for a hamburger but the restaurant was lovely.
Checked the weather at 6:30 on Sunday morning and realized that if we didn’t leave immediately we would be stuck in Spanish Wells for at least another week before we could go up the Northwest Providence Channel to the Abacos. Hard to believe but by 7:45 we had taken Abby to shore; hoisted the dinghy on to the deck; stored all our “stuff”; and hired a pilot to take us through the reefs at the northern end of the island; and were untying our mooring lines!! That’s a record for us. We had a wonderful motor sail from Spanish Wells to Little Harbour; negotiated the cut without incident and anchored off Lynyard Cay for the night. The next morning we went into Little Harbour at high tide; it was close, 6’5” but we made it. There is an iron foundry that we wanted to see in Little Harbour. They had some beautiful things - a coffee table with spotted eagle rays and dolphins for a base really took my fancy but for $10,000 I had to just admire it.
We were judges at the conch blowing contest at Hopetown. That was fun. It’s amazing the different tones each conch has. The longest blow was 26 seconds!!
We are now in Marsh Harbour catching up on chores and visiting friends.
Enjoy the photos!!

2007-03-14T18:16:00.000-07:00

Update

2006-12-05T08:52:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I've updated our blog site!! We are currently in Lake Worth, Florida, waiting for a window to cross to Lucaya, Grand Bahama Island en route to the Exumas. We are, or at least we were, a month ahead of last year's schedule. Unfortunately we don't anticipate a suitable weather window until at least next week so .... Just to recap our adventures since October:

We left Oriental and travelled the ICW to Beaufort, NC; visited our favourite spice shop to stock up on hot stuff. After an overnight from Beaufort and we arrived early morning in Wrightsville Beach; weather was crappy and sooooo cold we decided to stay in the ICW for the next leg to Southport where we splurged on a marina night at the St. James Plantation Marina (electric heaters). We had a great trip down the Cape Fear River with the tide and actually clocked 10.6 knots - the fastest Sea Holly has ever been!! Stayed inside to Charleston since the weather has stayed so cold - can't believe we have turned so soft - you would think we should be used to the cold north wind!

Overnight from Charleston to Fernandina Beach - Florida finally!! but it's still cold. Had a great visit with Jean and Bev (our Nova Scotia neighbors) on El Rio as they were just getting the boat ready to put in the water.

Outside again from Fernandina to St. Augustine and this time anchored north of the bridge opposite the Castillo San Marco, what a beautiful spot. We stayed in St. Augustine for my birthday - visited Sailor's Exhange and ate caramel apples, my favourite.

It's turned cold AGAIN so back inside. Stopped at New Smyrna Beach at the newly renovated City Marina (dug the electric heaters out again). New Smyrna is a great little town and the farmer's market was wonderful, especially the bread truck!! Many of us got stopped by the Environmental Police checking sanitation disposal and unfortunately many got fined as well; pretty stiff $250 per head. Luckily all waste on Sea Holly automatically goes to a holding tank so although we were checked, we passed!!

Bad weather coming so we pushed to arrive in Vero before it. Back in Vero Beach for provisioning but determined not to stay toooo long this year. We were here for the US Thanksgiving celebration and what a great time it was. About 180 cruisers got together for dinner - that's a lot of food and we sampled most everything - WOW!! Had a lovely visit with old friends; did the bus route to Walmart, etc. and then on our way again.

We anchored in Peck Lake for several days as it's one of Abby's favourites. We walked the beach for miles and Abby dug trench after trench looking for crabs. She's pretty good at finding them but I don't know how she stands all that sand up her nose.

Next stop - Lake Worth to wait for a window to cross to Lucaya. At least we are far enough south that it is warm finally, although the wind is supposed to be northerly for the next week so we'll see if the sweatshirts come out again. Surely we won't need the heater????

2006-12-05T08:44:00.000-08:00

Ok, the easy way to transit the ICW, good seat at least until one of those darn power boats speeds by!!

2006-12-05T08:41:00.000-08:00

Abby's not minding the cold weather too much!

2006-12-05T08:40:00.000-08:00

The sunsets are incredible!!

2006-12-05T08:36:00.000-08:00

St. Augustine's North Anchorage

2006-12-05T08:35:00.000-08:00

We anchored off the Castillo San Marcos in St. Augustine, Fl.

2006-10-31T04:18:00.000-08:00

We are ready for Oriental's annual Block Party. About 200 cruisers and locals gathered for the event, fabulous food and even better atmosphere. Oriental has to be one of the best places to visit. The logo for the town is of course a dragon but apparently the town got it's name from a ship that went to the bottom back in 1780 just when the little town needed a name. You guessed it, the name of the ship was Oriental. We plan to leave today to head for Beaufort, NC and then go outside the ICW to Wrightsville Beach. We are enjoying each stop on the trip this year, it's nice not to hurry.

2006-10-31T04:14:00.000-08:00

Here's the host of the Oriental block Party, Tenessee Bob. The gloves are to serve the pig, everyone got a huge handful of roasted pig with BBQ sauce (used a spoon for the sauce). Note the mason jar, Bob's famous Tenessee moonshine. Of course, Sea Holly's liquor cabinet has been stocked.

2006-10-31T04:11:00.000-08:00

Pies lined up for the apple pie contest. The cruisers at Deaton's Yacht Services got together and we submitted a pie with a sailboat on it. We didn't win anything but it tasted good!

2006-10-31T04:09:00.000-08:00

Block party in Oriental, the tables were loaded with amazing food.

2006-10-31T04:06:00.000-08:00

Shrimp Boats in Oriental Harbour

2006-10-18T16:51:00.001-07:00

This Mainship trawler has one of the best names. In case you can't see it on the photo, the name of the boat is Miss Mymoney.

2006-10-18T16:51:00.000-07:00

Abby and I outside the "Girls Club" in Elizabeth City.

2006-10-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

One of the historic homes on Main Street in Elizabeth City, North Carolina

2006-10-18T16:49:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Elizabeth City at the end of the Dismal Swamp Canal. What a wonderful stop. The dockage is complimentary and every lady is presented with a rose. There is also a complimentary wine and cheese get together for all the cruisers every afternoon - fantastic hospitality in a beautiful city.

2006-10-18T16:48:00.000-07:00

An aft view of the Dismal Swamp.

2006-10-18T16:47:00.000-07:00

After leaving Norfolk we decided to try the Dismal Swamp route instead of the busy Virginia Cut. It was absolutely beautiful and serene and except for the occassional "bump" with our 6 foot draft we were fine. There was plenty of water, just a few things under the water!

2006-10-18T16:44:00.000-07:00

We left Annapolis and spent the night in this beautiful anchorage on the Rhode River en route to Norfolk.

2006-10-18T16:41:00.000-07:00

The other side of Port Annapolis Marina

2006-10-18T16:40:00.000-07:00

Port Annapolis Marina, we needed a sketch to find Sea Holly!

2006-10-08T18:35:00.000-07:00

We've been in Annapolis since Oct 3 at the Port Annapolis Marina in Back Creek. It's pretty neat; we dinghy across Back Creek to the public dock at the end of Sixth Street and Walk about 5 blocks to the Bascule Bridge that crosses Spa Creek and we are in Annapolis. We spent two full days at the boat show; climbed on and off so many boats that we can hardly tell one from another any more and attended as many seminars as our old brains would allow. This afternoon we concentrated on the "high end" boats - wow. I think our favourite was the Cabo Rico 54, right down to the hand carved bed posts! The Halberg Rossey and Gozzard came a close second. We actually didn't like the Oyster or Swan even though the Oyster was a boat show bargain at just $950,000. Although our primary purchase was at the boat show was to be a glass bottomed bucket so we could see our anchor - we couldn't find one!! We did buy an auxillary fridge/freezer so we can have ice and frozen veggies instead of canned! Ray collected more free hats, tee shirts and pens than he could carry. Lots of neat stuff, beautiful boats and zillions of people. We stopped at the Pusser's Rum booth on the way home and had a "painkiller" with take home tin cups! We plan to leave Annapolis on Tuesday and head "south".

2006-10-08T18:26:00.001-07:00

The Annapolis Boat Show - we walked every inch!!

2006-10-08T18:26:00.000-07:00

Spa Creek in Annapolis, lots of boats!!

2006-10-08T18:25:00.000-07:00

Here we are in historic Annapolis.

2006-10-08T18:15:00.000-07:00

Our holly leaves look pretty tiny from the deck.

2006-09-29T15:53:00.000-07:00

I know that frog is in here somewhere!!

2006-09-29T15:52:00.000-07:00

Frogs are the order of the day!! Found a turtle this morning but alas, no camera.

2006-09-29T15:51:00.000-07:00

Deltaville Yachting Centre - a wonderful place, just can't say enough good things about the facility or the people who own it!!

2006-09-29T15:49:00.001-07:00

Mom's worried; note the grey hair!!!

2006-09-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

Heading back to the water.

2006-09-29T15:48:00.000-07:00

Pretty spiffy!!

2006-09-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

Deltaville Yachting Centre. We are back in the water and heading out to Annapolis on Sept. 30, weather permitting. So far it hasn't co-operated much! We've been hard at work, everything from replacing the head hoses to installing oil and temp guages to making cockpit cushions. Hey Marco, remember that little leak that we thought was from the boiler?? We finally found it - a leaking cockpit drain, the boiler was fine. Ray was very happy about that and I'm glad to have the leak fixed!! We plan to head to the Annapolis Boat Show for a week and then turn south. We are all very glad to be back on the water, (all being Abby too.)

2006-05-20T04:56:00.001-07:00

SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER!!!!!!

2006-05-20T04:56:00.000-07:00

We are back in Amherst. The 1200 mile drive home was far more stressful than the 4,000nm we travelled in Sea Holly!! Sea Holly is safe on the hard at the Deltaville Yachting Centre next to Magali so hopefully her french will improve over the summer. Our friend and mentor, Jim Nixon, told us our learning curve would be steep when we left Point du Chene Yacht Club last summer but he didn't say it would be straight up at times and that we would have to become proficient in plumbing and electrical while still working on our navigation, boating and weather skills!! I am happy to say that we've made considerable progress on our learning "curve" and met some wonderful people. We have had many helping hands along the way, maybe that's part of what make cruising so special. Our thanks to Marco and Sylvie for sharing so many "firsts" with us; Jim for all his wisdom; and Jess and Lyse on Cattails, our weather guru and great cruising partners!!

2006-04-27T17:43:00.000-07:00

We are in Oriental, NC enroute to Deltaville, VA where Sea Holly will spend the summer. We'll be home in Amherst mowing grass, gardening and wishing we were back on board. Hopefully, we'll be back on the water in early September. We're planning another winter in the sunny south, not sure of the details yet. It has taken us 15 days from Vero Beach to Oriental. It took us 34 to go down. It was great going outside for some of the passages, we actually have been sailing!!!!

2006-04-27T17:36:00.000-07:00

Lots of bird colonies along the ICW - it's spring afterall.

2006-04-27T17:35:00.001-07:00

Ray's pretty good at catching crabs and I'm getting better at cooking them.

2006-04-27T17:35:00.000-07:00

The ICW is pretty, especially early in the morning.

2006-04-27T17:34:00.000-07:00

Outside to Southport, Cape Fear River.

2006-04-27T17:33:00.000-07:00

Mega Dock at Charleston City Marina - Abby could hardly make it to dry land to do her stuff - it must be a mile at least!!!

2006-04-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

Ponce De Leon Inlet en route from Titusville to Daytona

2006-04-27T17:29:00.001-07:00

I think he has the right of way going into West Palm!!

2006-04-27T17:29:00.000-07:00

Arriving in West Palm Beach the next morning, culture shock