After a few days in very cold Annapolis we got back to Florida. There, the cold Janaury was fading and e were finally getting the "weather we paid for".
Century Club: mike pitchford
Tuesday, January 28, 2025 to Monday, February 3, 2025
Number of days:
8 days
Distinctly Flordia Art
Saturday, January 11, 2025 to Monday, January 20, 2025
Number of days:
10 days
Night Heron posing for a photo in Florida
Winter on the boat will be different this season. I have a consulting gig that takes me to San Antonio TX mid week for several days. Generally this will be every week.
So, we have a boat in Florida, to escape the cold winter in Annapolis. I have a small corporate apartment in San Antonio. It is a work focused and monastic life there. And, of course, we need to be in Annapolis and home home some days over the winter.
The biggest part of all this is logistics. Flights are a challenge (but getting lots of Southwest points). Rental cars, Ubers, trains and time zones all add to the mix. It is a wonder I don't run out of underwear.
For this ten day run I was supposed to be in San Antonio but my favorite crew-mate and life partner was sick, the Flu. So, I worked from the boat while making her meals every day for a week. She survived the Flu and my cooking, so it is all good.
Wednesday, January 1, 2025 to Monday, January 6, 2025
Number of days:
6 days
winter home, Sunset Bay Marina, Stuart FL
With the holidays over we finally go to Florida on the 1st. The weather has been cooler but we got a few days where shorts and t-shirts were ok. Given the snowstorm back in Annapolis, we are glad were are here.
The boat has been in Florida since before Thanksgiving. Our arrival necessitated restarting some systems, hanging canvas and grocery shopping. All good.
Thursday, November 14, 2024 to Saturday, November 23, 2024
Number of days:
10 days
Sometimes you travel the ICW at a slow and enjoy the ride. Sometimes you do it fast, a "delivery pace" because the schedule called “life” said fast was required.
The trip from points on the Bay, like Annapolis, to various warmer South Florida destinations is at least 1100 miles, more if you are headed to the west coast. In the fall, daylight limits the long days to maybe 10 hours. The sun angles in November, in particular, make the earliest and latest of those hours problematic.
Traveling inside, in the ICW generally means you don't worry about offshore weather. However, the run down the Bay and the crossing of the NC sounds do call for manageable weather.
In most sailboats, you are pushing to get 50 miles a day. In an eight-knot trawler, you can push it to maybe 80 miles. No wake zones and slop passes can limit a planing powerboat but 160 mile days are a possibility on some stretches.
On this trip, we did it in eight days of travel, averaging 142 miles a day. We waited on weather for two days. Run times were between seven and nine hours a day.
To read more about this trip, look for a story in the January issue of PropTalk.
Friday, October 25, 2024 to Sunday, October 27, 2024
Number of days:
3 days
We have been blessed with a nice fall. The weekends in October have almost begged you to get on your boat and wake us in some quiet cove under all the blankets you can muster. We did so this weekend.
First, it was a Friday afternoon cruise to let a friend who is boat shopping behind the wheel of our boat. He and his wife have refined their search for a cruising boat to a Back Cove 37. We have one, and they have never been in one on the water. That was an easy fix, and he had a mile-wide smile as he took the helm.
Next, it was an overnight with friends who have a new to them boat. We spent a very pleasant evening on Clements Creek and broke bread together.
And, Sunday when we got back, I got to change the engine oil, my final task before taking Winsome Winn south to Florida for the winter.
Saturday, October 12, 2024 to Sunday, October 13, 2024
Number of days:
2 days
These October weekends are to be savored. Not always are they so nice. Both boat show weekends end even next weekend look sunny cool and dry. We took advantage of this one to slip up the Severn and grab a mooring for a quick overnight with our oldest granddaughter.
Sunday, September 29, 2024
Number of days:
1 day
Granddaughter Quinn, 5, was with us for the weekend. We picked her up on Saturday and brought her home on Sunday. She got to two pumpkin patches and had plenty of drawing time. The thing she wanted to do in Annapolis was take a boat ride. On Sunday we motored over to the club to have lunch.
Friday, September 20, 2024 to Sunday, September 22, 2024
Number of days:
3 days
Weekend club cruise to Solomons. Crab feast on Saturday evening.
Saturday, August 31, 2024 to Tuesday, September 3, 2024
Number of days:
4 days
Labor Day weekend cruise with the Club. The first stop was the Bohemia River where we enjoyed a happy hour and meal at the beach club. Sunday we traveled to Georgetown on the Sassafras. Monday, Labor Day, we headed to Rock Hall where the boat would be hauled on Tuesday for some needed work in preparation for the trip to Florida for the winter.
Saturday, July 27, 2024 to Sunday, August 4, 2024
Number of days:
9 days
The end of the Hudson River/Lake Champlain cruise for Sue was at Liberty Landing, NJ. The "boys" my college roommates, had agreed to swap places with Sue as crew and join me for an extended cruise into Long Island Sound.
The first to join was Skip who drove from Virginia Beach to Liberty Landing. He gave his car to Sue and she drove home to Annapolis while Skip and I set out to clear Hell Gate and head into the Sound.
Our first stop was the great little eastern Long Island town of Greenport. From there we made our way to Newport. In Newport a second college roommate, Kevin joined us. Stops in Mystic and Milford Connecticut followed. Naturally, Ice Cream was an important component of each stop.
Both coming and going through NY harbor we made the required slow pass of Lady Liberty. It was a new experience for Kevin and Skip and it never gets old.
Watching offshore weather we had added a day in the Sound. With better weather offshore we left Sandy Hook bound for Cape May. It was still a little rough but manageable. The next day we departed Cape May early for Annapolis.
All in, Sue, the boys, and I have been traveling on the boat since July 7. We have covered 1500 miles up the Hudson, into Lake Champlain, within spitting distance of Canada, then back down the Hudson into Long Island Sound as far east as Newport and back home to Annapolis.
The stop in Annapolis was a virtual "touch and go". The boys packed their bags and drove home to Virginia Beach and Newport News. Sue jumped on the boat and we headed to St Michaels for the weekend. For me, it was 29 days straight on the boat.