Mike
09/30/2007, Annapolis, Maryland

Annapolis...Monday another perfect day. 85 degrees with a pleasant breeze. I spent quite of bit of time this morning on the computer researching solar panels and on the phone tracking down replacement batteries. Around 10 am we were off to town for water, coffee beans, and a few other small items. We returned before noon and transferred the water to our holding tank before lunch. I picked up Steve and we took his sail (using the truck that his friend has loaned him) to a loft to repair a blown out batten pocket. On the way back we tried to find a battery distributor but I must not have had the address just right because it wasn't where it was supposed to be...

Steve's dinghy motor has been running poorly and this afternoon it wouldn't start at all. At some point I went down to see if I could help. Ken, another neighbor with lots of outboard experience, also came over to help. We found water in the gasoline (and everywhere else) and worked at getting it cleaned out. Unfortunately, it still wouldn't start. Steve got on the phone and found a shop on the eastern shore that would look at it in the morning.

Tuesday

I was up at 7 and picked Steve and his motor up at 7:30 and went to shore to transfer our load to his pick-up. We found our way through town and over the nasty bridge that crosses the Chesapeake Bay. The shop took the motor and said that they could probably look at it today and would call. From there we drove south about 20 miles to Easton to drop off our old alternator to be rebuilt. I also picked up 6 new batteries for the house bank. Arriving back at the boat around noon, I began the task of replacing batteries and was finished about 3:00. We took a trip to town for ice and then spent a couple of hours before dinner with Ken and Donna on their Bayfield 40 next door. Ken and Donna have been cruising for a number of years and have tons if valuable information that they kindly share with the rest of us. We took our charts with us and after touring "Second Wind", started marking anchorages, routes, and places to avoid. We left with a wealth of knowledge that will really help when we continue south.

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Mike
09/29/2007, Annapolis, Maryland

Annapolis Saturday


We worked on the boat most of the morning and then went to town for a walk and some lunch.
Fawcett's was our first stop where we picked up a dinghy light and a parachute flare. Then we selected a residential street and started walking. We only lasted a few blocks due to 90 degree temps and shortly found ourselves in an air-conditioned pub for lunch and some football on TV. Shortly after our return to the boat Dave and Joan from the Norhaven "Next Dimension" stopped by and invited us over for snacks. They are leaving in the morning but we may catch up to them at some point on the trip south.


Annapolis... Sunday

One of the good things about being here is that there is no reason to consider the purchase of sea salt. Whenever the need for salt arises we just scrape one of our stanchions and transfer it to the meal at hand. It works quite well... let the spray crystallize for a few days in the sun and we're in business.

Today we spent the day cleaning, waxing, and organizing for company in the afternoon.

We have not been happy with our batteries lately... they just don't seem to hold a charge and after a few tests it became evident that they were on their last legs. We have six group 31 flooded 12 volt batteries in our house bank. Although there are options (and 6 volt golf-cart batteries is probably the way to go) we have had so few problems with our current system that I think I am simply going to replace it.

I spoke with Jack and Debbie today and invited ourselves over for a visit next weekend. It will be fun to
see them again.

We had a few of our neighbors over for snacks ...which became dinner, and had a nice time getting to know each other.

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Mike
09/22/2007, Annapolis, Maryland

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!

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