Thursday Sept. 20 Annapolis

After coffee, I took the dinghy down stream about 100 yards to introduce myself the other B 40... "Second
Wind". We left for town around 9:30 and spent a couple of hours wandering around the Naval Academy which was impressive. We then hiked up main street mostly window shopping, before having lunch at a little bar. We made a stop a Fawcett's for some containers to transport water and another at a deli for snacks and a sandwich for supper. By the time we got back to the boat is was mid-afternoon and we went to work. Kathy took the grate out of the shower and scrubbed everything in the head.. I taped off the eyebrow, sanded and got two coats of Cetol on them as well as the butterfly hatch before the evening dew began to set.

As we finished, the captain and crew of "Second Wind" stopped to invite us out to dinner with two other couples moored in our end of Spa Creek. We got cleaned up...well, at least I put on a clean shirt, and followed along in the dinghy. All streets that end in the water have either a dock for dinghies or a wall with cleats which makes it easy to get around town. After securing the inflatables, we walked a few blocks to a "non-tourist" place and had a very nice meal.

Friday, Sept. 21

This morning we hauled up both of our anchors and moved about 100 yards to a mooring. The city controls all moorings and before long one of the harbormaster boats was along side signing us up. I may have mentioned before that there is an ordinance here that precludes anchoring within 75 feet of a moored boat or a dock (this turned out to be untrue-one set of docks had a sign that said that, but it is not a city ordinance). To comply, I was forced to set a stern anchor as well as our 45 pound Bruce off the bow. We were in fine shape as long as the weather was calm, but the combination of not swinging with the wind and a very soft bottom forced us to bite the bullet and fork over the $150 / week.

Our main goal today was to get to the grocery store which is a challenge here. But first we needed to run into the city docks for some water. My estimate is that if we add about 8 - 10 gallons a day our 100 gallon tank will stay full. While in town we had to stop at the Harbor Master's office for some added paperwork and a trip to the hardware.

After returning to the boat to unload, we headed out with Steve and Carol for the bus stop. In moments the correct bus came along and we jumped on. Our trip to the store was uneventful. We bought too much stuff but that is to be expected with our ship stores as low as they have been lately. Back at the bus stop for our return, we waited in the sun for an hour and a half sweltering in the heat. However, in the end we were successful and have a much better idea of how the local bus system works.

We arrived back at the boat in time to unload, make a dish to pass, pack some dining utensils and head for a potluck over on Back Creek. The way I understand it the meal was sponsored by the people who put on the upcoming boat shows....first the Sailboat show and then the Powerboat show. They are still looking for workers. Many cruisers work the show year after year to boost the sailing kitty a little. It would be fun, but they work mostly 12 hour days....putting tents up, moving docks, erecting fences etc. and I really need to spend some time at the show which wouldn't be possible.

We had a nice time but after driving around after dark two nights in a row, the purchase of a night light for our dinghy may be in order.

Since we will be staying here for a couple of weeks, we will only update every two or three days. We don't want anyone to get bored with all the details of getting water and shopping!