It has been quite a while since we have updated our blog. Since our last update, we have had quite a time. First, we arrived in Norfolk, VA for the AGLCA Convention that was held at the Sheraton right along the waterside. In fact, our marina was the Waterside Marina in downtown Norfolk. We were a couple of days early, so we took advantage of the time and had a beauty day, including Heidi! Randy was also able to have his bloodwork done and we are happy to report that all is good!
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| Blue Heron crossed their wake! |
By the time the convention began, the marina was packed with boats from all over the country, all in different phases of the loop. Some were planning their trip, some were in route and some had finished. Boaters that have completed the trip are called Gold Loopers and they can fly a gold burgee.
Owen & Mindy Irvine, friends of ours from back home, joined us aboard Barefoot'n for 3 nights to attend the convention. They traveled by car, as their boat was in storage further north. Joe & Ginny Sadler, also friends from back home, were at the marina. So we were able to take a picture of the 'gang' to send back to SPYC and the Unsinkables boating groups.
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| (From left to right: Owen & Mindy Irvine, R&V Stacy, Ginny & Joe Sadler) |
The AGLCA convention was a great way to learn from other 'loopers' who have completed the trip, about what you will experience along the way. Important things like locking through the Erie Canal, motoring through Canada waterways, etc. These are the folks that you will see all along the 'loop' and they become friends.
After the convention, there was plenty of time to take in the sights. Norfolk has the largest naval base in the country and there were plenty of ships of all kinds in port.
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| Is that cool, or what? |
Portsmouth was just across the waterway and there were ferries that would take you back and forth. General McArthur's museum was a must see with everything from his corn cob pipe to his motorcycle. He and his wife are buried right there in the museum.
After Norfolk, we headed to Deltaville and tied up to Dozier's Point. While there we had a mini-rendevous with some of the loopers and spent a couple of days relaxing and riding bikes around the area. The group had a cookout and celebrated Mother's Day.
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| Can you spot Captain Randy? :o) |
From Deltaville, we spent a couple of nights at Kilmarnock, VA. We officially switched to Verizon and got new phones. Our phone numbers are the same, but we are getting much better service.
From Deltaville, we traveled to Tangier Island. This was one of the most interesting places in the Chesapeake. The island is a waterman's village with a population of about 400.
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| THE Church on Tangier's Island |
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| Cemetery next door to doctor's office...hmmm |
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| View across from our slip |
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| Sunset at Tangier's Island |
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| Homes at Tangier's |
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| These chairs were unbelievable! |
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| Almost looks islandy, but at Tangier's |
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| Milton Parks & his boat |
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| Downtown Tangier's Island |
Moving on, we visited Tilghman's and stayed one night at Knapp's Narrows Marina. From there, it was on to St. Michael's. We anchored out and visited the museum, lighthouse and ate at the popular Crab Claw restaurant. Guess what they serve?
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| Screw Point Lighthouse - St. Michaels |
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| Crab Claw Restaurant - St. Michaels |
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| Barefoot'n on anchor at St. Michael's |
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| Guard Dog - - Heidi |
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| With buddy Bob |
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| At Annapolis Yacht Club |
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| View of Annapolis from Barefoot'n |
Unbeknownst to us, it was graduation week at the Naval Academy. President Obama flew in on a helicopter to give the commencement speech to the graduates. So! With it being Memorial Day and graduation week, there were plenty of people in town.
We took graduation day to make a run to Washington D.C. You can catch the Metro train system and we took it all the way to the Smithsonian Institute. In one day, we were able to see 2 museums (Museum of Natural History and the Air and space Museum). We walked around the Capital and the Washington Monument and then headed back to the boat (really tired feet).
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| The Hope Diamond - on my Xmas list! |
Annapolis is so pretty and there was so much to see. We were able to tour the Naval Academy. We made it a point to speak with some of the graduates and they were so polite and seemed to be so excited about their new adventure in life. The history there was unbelievable. At the chapel, John Paul Jones is buried.
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| Stained glass tribute to the Civil War |
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| Inside the Naval Cathedral |
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| John Paul Jones |
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| Class of 2013 |
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| Wednesday afternoon sailboat races |
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| Navy football field - they don't like ND! |
That brings us to today. Barefoot'n is motoring to the C&D (Chesapeake/Delaware) Canal. We are trying to put some miles under us since the winds will be in our favor the next few days with a warm front. We will be trying to get to Cape May, NJ and then take a peak out at the Atlantic Ocean to see if it looks OK to head to NYC!
So from Barefoot'n.......the adventure continues!
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| Randy & his girl at the USS Wisconsin |
