9/14/18
     Some people have asked me what we do all day on the boat. The pace slows down and you become much more aware of the world around you - birds, clouds, wind and the sea. Simple things such as good music, books and food become more important. I love getting up and having coffee, observing early morning in whatever harbor we are in, such as fishermen heading out in Gloucester or    morning light in New Harbor on Block Island. We go ashore and explore such as we did today, walking to Southeast Lighthouse on Block Island. Nico fixes things and we both like to fish. We had Scup for breakfast and we bought a squid jig to try tonight.


Fishing in Great Salt Pond, Block Island


Scup


Fresh fish for breakfast.


Trolling for stripers in the Cape Cod Canal


We read a lot...


and fix things.


We look at clouds...


and watch wildlife, such as these gray seals in Provincetown Harbor.


We enjoy looking at a great variety of other boats such as the lovely schooner, Rebecca, out of Vineyard Haven...


or larger boats in Buzzard's Bay.

Some are old, such as the fishing schooner in the background or are replicas, such as the viking ship in Gloucester. Here, Nico and I went ashore to wander around the town.


We also went ashore for the day in Block Island and took a nice long walk. This was originally the home of the US Weather Bureau when it was part of the Department of Agriculture.


Southeast Lighthouse


with its matching keepers' quarters.


The bluffs on the side facing Montauk.


The wind turbines just off shore.


A great tackle shop filled with old lures.

     9/12/18 Cuttyhunk Harbor
 

  Some of you may wonder how two foodies survive on a boat. We eat well. I probably loaded more food aboard than clothes and gear. One just has to be creative with a two burner stove and a small icebox. We have refrigeration but it draws a lot of energy so we start off with two 5 lb blocks of ice and run the fridge whenever the engine is running. So far the blocks of ice are about half melted and it has been four days. Food is stuffed everywhere - the guest stateroom, in cabinets and piled on top of each other in the icebox. To cook, I turn on a switch at the electrical panel, turn on the gas, and then light it with a lighter. We make coffee in a small percolator in the morning and reheat it on the stove as needed. Most meals are one skillet dishes. I have learned what lasts well and am careful to use up the more perishable items first. This sometimes means we have interesting combinations. Today's meals were coffee and coffee cake first thing in the morning, a breakfast of eggs and kim chee while under sail at 9:30, a snack of fruit, cheese and nuts while going through the Cape Cod Canal, lunch of reheated dinner leftovers (curried beef with cauliflower) at 2:30 when we were in Buzzard's Bay and then dinner of a Cuban dish called Picadillo at 7:00 while anchored in Cuttyhunk Harbor. We have hot water after we run the engine so we can easily hand wash in our little sink.

   
Usually the item I want in the icebox is at the bottom. There is actually a method to my packing everything.

A typical one skillet breakfast. The boat lists slightly to port so the eggs slide to one side and I have to keep rotating the pan to cook everything evenly.

The squash are hanging out in the extra berth along with the beer since we don't have any guests at the moment.

The "drying rack" - Nico is usually in charge of drying operations.

     As I write this Nico and I are anchored in Gloucester Harbor, snug in our cabin with the heat on. Yesterday we left South Freeport Harbor at dawn and rode a lovely SE breeze for 14 hours with speeds of up to 7.5 knots, reaching the entrance to the Annisquam Canal in the dark. It was very tricky entering the narrow channel at low tide with over 2 knots of current but we did it and even managed to snag a mooring on the first try. We had a late start day 2, waiting for slack tide to transit the canal. Everything went well, although we were a bit nervous going through the train bridge which was a bascule bridge (a drawbridge with only one portion that tips up). We had to hug the far side to get our mast through the really narrow opening. Gloucester Harbor is very well protected on this rainy, breezy day. Provincetown tomorrow.

 Loading the boat at South Freeport Harbor 9/7/18

 The castle, emblem of the Harraseeket Yacht Club.

Just one of the many loads to the boat.

A treat after a long passage from Gloucester to Provincetown, mostly in fog.

The skies cleared once we arrived. I took a bracing dip and a hot shower in the cockpit.

     After months of work, planning, changes of plans, and a shakedown cruise it looks like Far and Away is ready to start her adventure. Stay tuned for pictures and descriptions of our trip down the Eastern seaboard.

 Far and Away in her winter quarters

 Taping to do the woodwork

 The state of the interior for most of the winter.

 The state of the exterior for most of the winter

 The state of Nico's car for most of the winter

 Water hoses that we removed and replaced.