Sailing with Nine of Cups
| Vessel Name: | Nine of Cups |
| Vessel Make/Model: | Liberty 458 |
| Hailing Port: | Denver, Colorado, USA |
| Crew: | Marcie & David |
| About: | We've lived aboard Nine of Cups since 2000 and have managed to accumulate 86,000+ nm under the keel since that time. We completed a circumnavigation in April 2015 and managed to sail around the five great southern capes. Come along with us for the ride! |
| Extra: |
07 July 2016 | Us: East Walpole, MA / Cups: Chesapeake, VA
Taking a breather ...
Since we'll be off the boat during July and August, we plan to post only three times per week. The Captain will continue writing a practical Blue View post each week, we'll keep you up to date on what's happening with us and then throw in some cruising nuggets as well.
06 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
Keeping fit
We’ve written before about keeping fit on the boat. David is so much better at a regimented exercise program than I am. I have all the best intentions, but I can always think of something better to do than sit-ups, push-ups, leg lifts and running in place. It doesn’t take much to distract me. Walking, [...]
04 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
Happy 240th Birthday, America
Growing up in New England, I took for granted just how lovely a summer’s morning can be in Massachusetts. It’s comfortably cool and everything smells clean and fresh. Spider webs glisten with morning dew and it’s just great to be alive and breathe in the new day. Being back at Lin’s house conjures up wonderful childhood memories of summer mornings past. And this is not just any morning … it’s the 4th of July, the best holiday of the summertime in the USA.
02 July 2016 | East Walpole, MA
Leaving Cups and a Road Trip
Leaving Nine of Cups is never easy. We know she’ll pout while we’re gone and so we do our best to make sure she’s as comfortable as possible before we leave. We were whirling dervishes trying to get everything ready.
01 July 2016 | Virginia Beach, Virginia
Hunting & Gathering - Virginia Beach
We had lots to do before leaving Cups. David was intent on getting as many chores done in advance of our departure as possible so that once we return in September, we can spend time sailing in the Chesapeake rather than doing repairs and maintenance. Much of what we needed in the way of parts and supplies, [...]
Mad dogs & Englishmen (and us!)
The desert was brilliant with color. The sky was a clear, cerulean blue. Mountain peaks in the far distance still showed a frosting of snow. Traveling through different altitudes as we descended from over 4300' to below sea level allowed us to observe significant changes in flora and desert scape as well as a drastic temperature change. By Noon, it was 107F in Badwater Basin. Epitomized in Noel Coward's poem, “only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun”, we nearly fried on the salt flats at Badwater, the lowest (-282' below sea level), hottest (2nd highest recorded temperature in the world 134F) and driest place in North America.
We took short hikes to Golden Canyon and Harmony Borax Works, but the heat was oppressive. We drove along the circuitous Artist's Drive to the Artist's Palette, rock formations and hills rich in mineral deposits. displaying brilliant reds, oranges, greens, blues and yellows. Dante's View, a mile high in the sky above the Badwater Basin, was cool and windy with unsurpassed views of the simmering salt flats below.
A full day and we were hot and dusty when we headed back to Beatty and our hotel. Tomorrow, another day in the park and then we'll move on.
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