Blue Heron

Vessel Name: Blue Heron
Vessel Make/Model: Hallberg Rassy 43
Hailing Port: Delaware City, DE
Crew: Bob & Eric Frantz
About: Bob retired in January, 2011 from a career as an environmental attorney and manager, and Eric earned his Bachelor's Degree from The George Washington University in Washington, DC in December, 2010. They began their circumnavigation February 6, 2011.
Extra: In the words of that great American author, Mark Twain, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
19 June 2012
13 June 2012 | Fishing Bay Harbor Marina, Deltaville, VA
12 June 2012
09 June 2012
05 June 2012 | Cannonsport Marina, Palm Beach Shores, Florida
01 June 2012 | in passage to Bahamas
25 May 2012 | Sapodilla Bay
21 May 2012 | Jost van Dyke
18 May 2012
17 May 2012 | BVI
14 May 2012
07 May 2012 | Simpson Bay
03 May 2012 | Charlestown Harbour
01 May 2012
15 April 2012 | St. Lucia
13 April 2012
11 April 2012
06 April 2012
Recent Blog Posts
19 June 2012

The Blue Heron did it!

Today is the 500th day since we began our adventure around the world. We did it! We've completed our circumnavigation! We have not only crossed our wake but have passed the point from which we originally set sail on February 6, 2011. All that remains is to get us and the Blue Heron home. She has [...]

13 June 2012 | Fishing Bay Harbor Marina, Deltaville, VA

Waiting to get back on our way

We passed Little Creek Marina in Norfolk, VA during the middle of the night last night -- that's where our dream voyage began 16 months ago. We then made our way to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay where we were greeted with a howling hello in the form of 30+ knot winds on the nose. Making any headway was almost impossible so, we have diverted for safe harbor once more to wait for this weather system to pass. If anything, the North Atlantic lives up to it's reputation as being predictably unpredictable. Now, we wait (impatiently) for another weather window so that we can make our way home.

12 June 2012

Big Fish - take a look

Our steady progress and, generally, uneventful passage thusfar was punctuated with excitement yesterday afternoon when Eric called out, "I've got one!" He caught a White Marlin in the late afternoon. The fish fought hard and we had quite a time getting the fish on board. The fish measured 6'4" and [...]

09 June 2012

on our way north

This morning we left West Palm Beach at 8:15AM and are making our way north. We're hopeful that weather will be in our favor the entire final passage home -- we'll see. We've started with the benefit of both the gulf stream and favorable winds and are moving along at about 9 knots.

05 June 2012 | Cannonsport Marina, Palm Beach Shores, Florida

weather detour

We're stopping in Palm Beach for a day or so to wait out some weather due to come offshore from the Carolinas. Then we'll continue our northbound journey for home.

Joao Pessoa, Cabedelo and Jacare

07 March 2012
Our previous blog entry noted that we arrived in Brazil and were at Jacare, which sits on a spit of land between Joao Pessoa and Cabedelo, the port town. The spit of land is bordered on one side by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the other by the Pariba River.
Joao Pessoa is the capital of the State of Pariba. You can get there from Jacare, where our boat is at anchor, via a small commuter train. Finding your way around after arrival can be a challenge, as virtually no one speaks English. After following some street signs that looked like they pointed in the right direction, we stumbled upon the Globe Hotel, a lovely little hotel overlooking the old (mostly decrepit) section of the town, and across the river to cane fields.From Joao Pasoa The Globe had both a map (La Carta) as well as a very knowledgeable person who spoke English. In about 15 minutes, he gave us a thumbnail sketch of what to see in the city.
Top on the list was the Cathedral of San Francisco and its related buildings. Franciscan Friars started it as a convent, in 1589. From Jacare Over the years it grew, with the addition of the Golden Chapel, Sacristy, Prayer House, Cloister and a Fountain. The Cathedral contains what is alleged to the longest painted ceiling in South America.From Joao PasoaFrom Joao Pasoa It is an expansive and impressive complex.
For lunch, we happened into a little restaurant that was near the Salon de Lucena Lake. We had Brazilian barbecue, where the meat is cooked on a spit and successive layers are cut off and recooked to get the charred, barbecue state. Delicious!From Joao Pasoa
Then we were off to find Teatro Santa Roza (Santa Rosa Theater) which is an impressive architectural specimen from the 19th century. The interior is richly decorated, but unfortunately was dark and was difficult to see. Afterward, we headed back to the train.
We saw a bit of Cabedelo on our first day during the check in process. It is basically a port town, relatively poor, but very friendly. There were two highlights: One was wandering through the very colorful street markets and the other was lunch at a tiny restaurant where the only item on the menu was barbecued chicken.From JacareFrom Jacare The food was delicious and very reasonable. The only questionable item of consumption was a hot pepper/vegetable mixture that Eric tried, only to find that it was MUCH hotter than he expected. He spent the rest of the afternoon consuming as much water and cold drinks as he could find.
Jacare is really two different villages. One is a sleepy fishing village, with a quiet main streetFrom JacareFrom Jacare; the other is a place where well off Brazilians keep their boats for weekend getaways. Fishing boats, long narrow affairs with rear mounted engines, shafts angling into the water, are visible on the river and tied up at the shore.From JacareFrom Jacare Along with these are yachts, tourboats and waverunners, which are stored out of the water under cover at the marina. It's an interesting contrast, and I'm not sure how long they will coexist.
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Blue Heron's Photos - Main
COP17, TOPtoTOP, and Essenwood Market
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Created 15 December 2011
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