Always $umthing
| Vessel Name: | Always $umthing |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Tartan 37 |
| Hailing Port: | Worton Creek, Maryland |
| Crew: | Al and Diane Dashevsky |
| About: | |
| Extra: | When clicking on the "Where are we now?" link, PLEASE DO NOT call rescue authorities if the boat hasn't moved in a while. |
11 May 2013 | Green Point Marina, Worton, MD
Chesapeake Bay or Lake??? Ans: HOME!
We spent Thursday night at Calvert Marina in Solomons Island. Was nice to have a courtesy car again to get food for Daisy and a couple of needed groceries since I will be on the boat for a few days while Al goes home to get one of our cars.
09 May 2013 | Solomons, MD
Almost Home!
We hauled anchor at Little Bay this morning at 6:15 and headed north. Was able to get sails up for a while, but of course the wind died, then picked up again - right on the nose. Ah, the sailing life! LOL! Today's pic is a scene I never get tired of...sunrise on the Chesapeake :)
05 May 2013 | Norfolk, VA
Patience, Patience, Patience...
As the sun is beginning to set on our adventure, we are learning how to be patient. It is a bit frustrating to be so close to home and not be able to get there.
01 May 2013 | Dismal Swamp, North Carolina
Dismal Weather in the Swamp
Early Tuesday morning we left Elizabeth City in light fog. After a fuel stop, we headed for the Dismal Swamp South Mills Lock. Traffic on the canal is light and there were only 4 boats, all sail, in the lock.
29 April 2013 | Elizabeth City, NC
Yes, it IS Always $umthing!
Oh my! What a crazy (and chilly) eight days!
21 April 2013 | Southport, NC
Sitting in Southport...
Spent last night at the free dock at the Provision Company and had a good dinner there. Left the dock this morning and headed out to the Cape Fear River...and promptly turned back. It was BRUTAL! Winds have been in the upper 20's gusting into the 30's ALL DAY! Forecast is for more of the same through [...]
20 April 2013 | Isle of Palms to N. Myrtle Beach
Score: Di 107 - Flies 0 !!!
As much as we like the Low Country, we DO NOT like the bugs. We have had our fill of gnats, no-see-ums, and mosquitos...and now flies!
15 April 2013 | Beaufort, SC
Painting done!
The painting of the hull and bottom is complete! It looks like a new boat! Can't believe how shiny it is...you can see your reflection!
08 April 2013 | Beaufort, SC
Biding our time in Beaufort
We have been in Beaufort, SC now for a week. The original plan was to be here for 2 weeks for the boat to be painted. However, we've had a bit of bad weather (quite a bit of rain) during the beginning of the week. So now it looks like we might be here a bit longer than 2 weeks. But as of yesterday, [...]
01 April 2013 | Beaufort, SC
OMG!!!
I'm still shaking! On the way over to Marsh Harbor Marina where the boat is going to be painted, Al walked up on deck to pull up a fender we forgot to pull in...and he FELL OVERBOARD!!!! Good thing we've practiced Man Overboard drills! He's OK...shaken and cold, but OK :)
26 March 2013 | Daytona Beach Shores/Port Orange
Sitting and waiting...and waiting...
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
20 March 2013 | Manatee Pocket, FL (St. Lucie Inlet)
Homeward Bound
Oh my! Where does the time go??? Before leaving Marathon we were so busy with last minute social activities as well as getting "ready" to leave...not to mention also nursing a cold...and the blog suffered. Apologies to all.
04 March 2013 | Marathon, FL
Old Man Winter. . .
. . . has found us. The past few days have been quite chilly, windy, and a bit of rain (as evidenced by the pic above of our friends bundled up and wearing long pants in Key West). Temps are in the 50's during the day with the nights requiring the heat on for a while in the boat. But we aren't complaining! [...]
21 February 2013 | Marathon, FL
Laid Back and Not Too Wasted...
(Apologies to Jim Morris for the blog title today...)
21 January 2013 | Marathon, FL
Time to Catch-Up!
So the question seems to be, "What have we been doing with ourselves for the past couple of weeks?" The short answer is, of course, immensely enjoying being in Paradise!
12 December 2012 | Key West, FL
Reached the end of the road!
Today we joined Flint & Leslie Firestone and their friends George and Jan and hopped on the bus to Key West. Since the bus only cost $1.50 each way (Sr. Rate), it didn't make sense to drive down with the gas rate approaching $4/gal!
11 December 2012 | Marathon, FL
Our "Home" - for now
Decided to share some pics of our "home away from home" with y'all. While it's true that "home is where the boat is", the boat is here at Blackfin. Enjoy the "tour".
09 December 2012 | Marathon, Florida
It's Beginning to Look like Christmas
We are enjoying being on "island time" :) Fairly lazy days, warm weather, and on the water...what more could you ask for??
06 December 2012 | Marathon, Florida
We're in Marathon!
We left Jewfish Creek on Tuesday morning around 7:45 and headed south, assuming we would stop in Islamorada or Tavernier on the way. We had the wind at our stern and even had tide with us (dumb luck!) and we were making such good time that when we got to Islamorada it was way too early to stop so we [...]
03 December 2012 | Jewfish Creek - Key Largo
Officially in the Keys!
We stayed in Fort Lauderdale a few extra days waiting for the winds and clouds to blow out. The pic above is the resident iguana at Las Olas Municipal Marina. When he kept coming by our boat, I decided he needed a name and started calling him Iggy. Saturday afternoon he even climbed on the foredeck! Saturday [...]
29 November 2012 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Vero Beach to Ft. Lauderdale
Well this will be another "catch-up" post since, again, our wifi connections have been poor or non-existent :(
22 November 2012 | Vero Beach, FL
Gobble, Gobble, Gobble...
...And that we did! Had a wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner with approx. 200 other cruisers here in Vero Beach. Had turkey, ham, all the traditional go-withs and lots of other unique dishes. The desserts were incredible! And everything but the turkeys and hams came from boat galleys! After dinner there [...]
17 November 2012 | Titusville, FL
Wind, wind, and more wind!
Whew! Lot of "catching up" to do! Our internet access has been sketchy at best. So what's been happening with us?? Since I last posted, we stopped in St. Augustine. Hung out on a mooring ball there for 3 nights since the weather was so lousy...blowing stink and rainy. While it was lousy for sailing/traveling, [...]
12 November 2012 | Jacksonville Beach, FL
There IS justice!
Anyone who sails will understand the "title" today that refers to the attached picture - whether you've traveled The Ditch or not. It is especially frustrating in The Ditch when the PBs blow by you, rock the snot out of you and sometimes force you over into the low water! Hence, today's caption.
10 November 2012 | St. Simons Island, GA
Just Peachy in Georgia
Yes the weather the past 2 days HAS been peachy! Upper 70's - low 80's in the afternoons, but still need the fleece in the mornings and at night - brrr!
08 November 2012 | Savannah, GA
Savannah
Al found a Quest Diag. to have his labwork done. Since it wasn't within walking distance, a taxi was hired to get him there and back. While he was gone, Daisy and I strolled along the Savannah waterfront, enjoying the park and window shopping. Al came along and joined us for the second half of our [...]
07 November 2012 | Savannah, GA
Georgia on my mind :)
As anticipated, we hung out in Marsh Harbor Creek on Tuesday to wait out the rain. Between showers, we managed to get some boatkeeping chores accomplished. Daisy wasn't too thrilled to have to take her "shore breaks" in the rain as you can see from the picture. She actually likes wearing the raincoat, [...]
05 November 2012 | Beaufort, SC
OK, so we didn't make Hilton Head...
Left Mosquito Creek on the ebb tide and FLEW down to Beaufort, SC (that's "bewfort" in SC rather than "bowfort" as in NC) in 3 hrs. Original plan was to go all the way to Hilton Head, but decided to stop here and see a gentleman (Peter Gamble, at Marsh Harbor Marina) about getting the boat painted. [...]
04 November 2012 | Mosquito Creek, Green Pond, SC
On the way to Beaufort, SC
Left Charleston approx. 7:30 this morning and traveled 46.5 miles. FLEW through Elliot Cut and down the Stono River until the current changed. Saw beautiful scenery the whole day as well as lots of aquatic birds and a few dolphins. I kept thinking that I should have taken a Native American linquistics [...]
03 November 2012 | Charleston, SC
Tourist Days
Left McClellanville around 7:45 on Thursday, Nov. 1 and got into Charleston at 1:45 - better than we thought. Rather than go to the City Marina (megadock) which was very expensive, we opted to try the Maritime Center Marina on the Cooper River side of Charleston. The Marina staff were exceptionally [...]
01 November 2012 | South Carolina
Myrtle Beach to McClellanville
Sunday afternoon (10/28) we were so pleased to be able to get together with two of Al's friends from his days in the Jaycees - Sue and Mike. They live not far from Myrtle Beach and drove up to spend some time visiting. We hope to connect with them again on the way back.
27 October 2012 | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Heeeerres SANDY!
Spent yesterday (Friday) doing laundry (long walk), boatkeeping chores, dog bathing/grooming and then I borrowed a neighbor's bike and rode to the grocery store for a few things for us and others on the dock. Last evening we had a "Storm Watch Dock Party" on a neighboring trawler. Hmmmm....our next [...]
26 October 2012 | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Goodbye NC, Hello South Carolina!
We got an early start on Thursday, leaving Southport at 7 am. Even had to use our nav lights. The 45 mile trip to Myrtle Beach was a fairly slow ride as the tide and current changed on us along the way, shoaling to watch out for, bridge openings to wait for, no wind to speak of (what we had was right [...]
24 October 2012 | North Carolina
Swansboro to Southport
Spent Monday night in Wrightsville Beach watching the anchor...sleepless night (just didn't seem to have a good set - turns out we were set, just had more rode out than neighboring boats). Moved the boat in the morning to a better location - farther into the basin where there was less current. Then [...]
21 October 2012 | Swansboro, NC
Oriental to Swansboro, NC
Arrived in Oriental Thursday afternoon and pulled into Sailcraft Services on Whittaker Creek. We had noticed an unusual amount of white smoke coming from the exhaust. Since it could be a sign of a serious problem, Al contacted Beta Marine to find out who to contact in Oriental - thus the stop [...]
17 October 2012 | Belhaven, NC
Elizabeth City to Belhaven
We said farewell to Elizabeth City around 8:45 am. Sailing down the Pasquotank, we passed the blimp hangar pictured above. All blimps (except Goodyear blimps) are manufactured here. Elizabeth City is also home to the largest Coast Guard base in the country.
15 October 2012 | Elizabeth City, NC
Another Pleasant Day :)
Short day on the water Monday. We left the Dismal Swamp Visitor's Center approx. 7:45 and made the first locking at South Mills.
14 October 2012 | Rappahannock River to Dismal Swamp Canal
Saying Goodbye to Virginia
We said "goodbye" to Joanne and her brother Friday afternoon and left Carter's Creek at 7:30 Saturday morning. We had tide, current, and WIND against us all the way down the Rappahannock and out on the bay. About a mile past Stingray Point (Deltaville), Al decided that he wasn't having much fun - to [...]
11 October 2012 | Carter's Creek, Rappahannock River, VA
Peeee Uuuuu!
Talk about a "stinky" day! :P Al removed the old head and some of the hoses today, then capped off the tank and the rest of the hoses - which we will remove later. It's a dirty job, but somebody has to do it. We probably should have contacted Mike Rowe from "Dirty Jobs" to do it for us! So while we [...]
10 October 2012 | Carter's Creek, Rappahannock River, VA
We're in Virginia :)
Internet access has not been great so haven't been able to update for a couple of days.
06 October 2012 | Annapolis, MD
Boat Show Day
Headed over to the Boat Show after installing our reprogrammed AIS transceiver (another item off the checklist - Yay!). Naturally we spent more than we had planned on, but our purchases will make our life aboard MUCH more comfortable. We pick up our new Spade anchor tomorrow afternoon since we made [...]
05 October 2012 | Chesapeake Bay
Here We Go!!!!
Left Green Point Marina around 10 am and arrived in Annapolis at 2 pm. Had both sails up briefly, but motorsailed most of the way. Wind was extremely light and when it did pick up enough to sail, it was right on the nose.
30 September 2012 | Green Point Marina
Moving In!
This is Move In weekend! We stuffed the car to the roof and headed for Green Point. Got down Friday later than we originally had hoped, so we put the refrigerator on to chill down and started moving "the stuff" onto the boat. Got our clothes for the first part of the trip put away then loaded the refrigerator. [...]
23 September 2012 | Green Point Marina, Worton, MD
SURPRISE!
WOW! We are soooo overwhelmed! Our wonderful friends at Green Point gave us a wonderful surprise Bon Voyage Party last night! Great friends, great food, clever and useful gifts! One of our "newer dockmates" even wrote and performed a song for us :) "Thank You" just doesn't seem adequate. An extra big [...]
14 September 2012 | Annapolis, MD
Finally got out for a short cruise!
Left Green Point this morning at 9:45 for a short cruise to Annapolis. Of course something had to happen. This time it was our chartplotter. Turns out we have 1 broken pin and a bent pin where the power cord attaches. At least we were going to Annapolis! If there is anywhere it can be fixed [...]
17 August 2012 | Worton Creek
Another item off the punchlist!!
Finally got the Wind Generator installed and wired!! Hooray!! Wasn't the easiest task we needed to accomplish, but we did it :) That's the good news. Bad news is we need to replace the 20 yr old refrigerator before we leave. While it is still working - most of the time, it is on it's last legs. If [...]
08 July 2012 | Worton Creek, MD
Our Boat Has the Right Name!
Yes, it's "Always $umthing"!! Two weeks ago we had not one, but TWO washdown pumps go belly-up as well as the refrigeration motor. Neither of these repairs/replacements are a particularly difficult job. But for our non-boating friends, I've attached these pics to demonstrate how even a "simple" job is [...]
28 May 2012 | Worton Creek, MD
Memorial Day Weekend
Just back from spending Memorial Day Weekend at the Marina. Great Dock Party to kick-off the season Sat. evening...great food, great friends, great fun! Sat. morning we took the boat out and got to fly the spinnaker! Whoo Hoo!! First time it's been out of the bag...she's a pretty one. A friend sailing along took the attached pic of Al & I in front of the sail. Very hot, humid weekend - but very relaxing and enjoyable.
20 May 2012 | Green Point Marina, Maryland
At our "Summer Home"!
Always $umthing was put in the water last week and I got the majority of the "spring cleaning" done by Thursday. Friday morning we left Greenwich Boat Works at 9 am and had an uneventful motorsail to Worton Creek ("uneventful" is a good thing! LOL). Pulled into our slip at 5 pm.
03 May 2012 | Vineland, NJ
Welcome!
This is the year! As we are working through the Spring Commissioning tasks, thoughts of moving aboard in October for our journey south for the winter are never far away. Our general plans are to finish preparing the boat for the winter trip throughout the summer as well as doing a couple of "shakedown [...]
Gobble, Gobble, Gobble...
We arrived here in Vero Beach on Tuesday afternoon. The mooring field gets very crowded for Thanksgiving, so most of the balls have 2 boats rafted on the ball. Some even have 3.
The North mooring field
The South mooring field
I should have taken a picture of the dinghy dock at dinner!!! Looked like the Annapolis dinghy dock during the boat show!
Yesterday, we took advantage of the free bus and rode out to WalMart to pick up another vacuum and hair dryer. Both items bit the dust since we left. Since it was a Super WalMart I was also able to pick up some foodstuffs. But we did have to take it back on the bus, so we only got the must-haves for now. Then we rode out to the beach. Decided after seeing the rough surf that we were very content to be sitting on a mooring ball - even with winds in the 20's gusting to 30 for over a week now.
Thought you all might enjoy seeing some of the pics from the Cruiser's Thanksgiving (Thanks to Bill Newman for the dinner pics!):
The Crowd - and there were more folks sitting outside the building. Hampels and Amlings, probably some people you know here!
The Food - YUM! Yep - Fed an army! :)
The Desserts - Double YUM!
The Music - quite good!
Our Table - This event has gotten so popular that you have to go over to the building early in the morning and put your name on a table so you have a seat!
After dinner, returned to the boat and I took Daisy to shore for her evening "walk". Now, mind you, I've never been good with a tiller (always push it the wrong way)...so you should have seen me trying to get away from the dinghy dock! You ALL would have rolled with laughter! Actually, I was laughing at myself so hard it made it worse! But when push comes to shove (so to speak), you find a way to get it done and I FINALLY figured a way to remember which way to push the bloody thing to go in the direction I want...so Daisy and I did return to the boat without touring the whole mooring field. Yay!!
Our "loosely made" plans were to leave Vero tomorrow. What was that I heard about this place being called "Velcro Beach"??? LOL! Well we have decided to stay until Saturday, not only because Al became a bit injured today, but also because the winds are FINALLY supposed to come down to the teens on Saturday. Next stop...anyone's guess - we'll see how far we get! All part of the adventure!
Hoping that everyone back home had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! We were thinking about you and counted all of you among our many blessings. We truly have much to be thankful for this year :)
