Today we had to say goodbye to our good friends Jack and Helen as they needed to head home. We truly enjoyed the past couple of weeks with them and cherished their company. Let us try and catch you up since our last posting several days back. On Sunday, Jack and I took the bus into Vineyard Haven to get some supplies as well as check out the West Marine store for some spare parts. After fixing the head, I used up all of my spare clamps and you never want to run out of those. When we returned, we were informed that the Harbor Master had opened up Katama Bay for anchoring and suggested we move because the winds were expected to blow out of the north. Staying out our current anchorage would leave us with little protection. We pulled up anchor and headed upstream to a Katama Bay. This used to be a beautiful anchorage, but was closed because the rich folks didn?? t like looking at cruisers anchored in their front yard. The next morning I took the kids knee boarding in the bay and they had a great time. Nicole was finally able to get up on her knees while DJ tried all kinds of tricks. I can?? t remember if I mentioned how warm the waters are here, they are extremely warm averaging around 76 degrees. After a fun filled morning, we decided to head west with Jack and Helen to spend one more evening with them and it was a great jump off spot for them to catch the tides through Woods Hole. Lake Tashmoo, which is just west of Vineyard Haven, was a recommendation of Rob?? s on Dream Maker as a nice stopover. We had hoped to sail over but with only 5 knots of wind from the stern it proved futile. It turned out to be an interesting trip though when a boatload of coasties (Coast Guard) singled us out for a routine boarding and safety check. The funniest thing was Lisa?? s fine washables were air-drying on the railing as they pulled up so she scurried to the railings to pull down her laundry as she greeted them with a big smile. It turned out to be a real hoot and DJ just loved asking them a million questions (as only DJ can). The officer that interviewed us first said he selected us because Lisa?? s unmentionables were on display and then admitted they picked us out because he wanted to show his buddies what the inside of a catamaran looked like. They turned out to be a great bunch of guys and we really enjoyed talking with them.

We entered Lake Tashmoo cautiously. It was a narrow channel and was extremely shallow on either side. Once we were safely moored, the kids put on their suits to swim. They both jumped in one time before we spotted a jellyfish the size of a Frisbee. It?? s tentacles were three feet long. YUCK! So, no more swimming for us. We tucked in for an early night. The next morning, we were greeted by four swan, a mama, a papa with their babies. They came pretty close. Helen and Jack took off at 9:00 a.m. this morning. Saying goodbye was tough. They have been our travel companions for two weeks now. It was like having a bit of home with us. By the time we got back on Dream Catcher, there wasn?? t a dry eye. We will miss them very much! They are good people.