Sailing into port Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is a busy port with war ships and commercial shipping at every turn.  The sights to be seen along the waterways, heavy with industrial and naval history, hold their own unique beauty.

Hardy Minnesotan Winter Training Comes in Handy

My first overnight sail south from Baltimore to Norfolk VA
 

Our overnight sail down the Chesapeake Bay provided us an excellent opportunity to re-live our four years of winter weather training in Minnesota. Winter survival lessons learned sure came in handy. We may have set a layering record with Robert achieving a 4 and Trish achieving a 5! Daisie decided not to layer-up, preferring to curl up on a settee in the warmth of the cabin. Comfortable, lucky dog! 

Amid snow flurries in freezing temperatures (the 20’s F) we’re sailing out of the Magothy River in Maryland, south under the Chesapeake Bay Bridges and on to Norfolk, Virginia. It will be 24 hours before we drop anchor at the Mile 0 mark on the Intracoastal Waterway, (ICW). We need to get south before it gets to the point where staying would mean winterizing the boat and waiting a year to make the trip. Bristol Rose and crew are leaving behind snow flurries and frosted docks for Florida. Come New Year 2009, we hope to be sailing the islands of the Bahamas and the Caribbean. 

Although we’ve sailed at night, this is our first overnight sail. We have a weather window that should allow us to get to Norfolk before high winds and snow is expected in the area. We’ve taken Dave’s advice (S/V Starshine), and timed our departure to arrive in Norfolk during daylight. We’re making good speed, up to 8 knots. Sails are set on a beam reach to close haul. It’s dark now, bitterly cold and cloudy but the sailing is good and steady with both of us managing to get in a few hours of sleep in turn. Close to the shipping channel in the Bay, there’s plenty to keep our attention focused and no chance of falling asleep at the helm, even with BR’s autopilot doing the steering. A glance back over the transom and, oh s#@t! Is that a container ship bearing down on us? Get the engine started, quick! better to move a little further away from the channel. 

In the heat of a Maryland summer you don’t have much appreciation for heating aboard a sail boat. You know it’s cold when ice falls out of the flaked sails onto the deck. We are now benefitting from outfitting decisions made during the semi-custom build of Bristol Rose. Walt Shultz, Shannon Boat Company in Rhode Island got it right adding Espar diesel heating to his Shannon boats. BR is very comfortable below decks right now. 

We had a wonderful farewell with our boys and all our friends coming to bid us farewell.  We’ve been very busy with last minute preparations during our short time at Ferry Point Marina. The owner, Al, John who manages the yard, and everyone at FPM have been very helpful to us and we're grateful. 

Wow, hard to believe we are leaving Maryland

First fall of snow today. Must be time to head south.

So what have we been doing?

• Left our jobs. What! are you crazy?
• Sold our house, settlement is 19th December. In this terrible market!
• Boys have found an appartment in Catonsville, and will move in December 13th.
• Shipped all our stuff in a 40ft container to Sydney.
• Donated a ton of stuff.
• Elliot is doing a great job selling the rest of the stuff. He has 2 great Honda's for sale.
• Preparing Bristol Rose ready to leave. This will continue with reprovisioning, maintenance etc from port to port. Staying ship shape and ready for passage making is a never ending job.

So tomorrow, at noon, we will leave Ferry Point and look forward to meeting new and old friends along the way. We will be doing our first all night sail, getting into Norfolk, Thursday morning. From there, we will head down the Intracoastal Water, ICW, or the ditch, all the way to Florida.
Stay tuned.

Belvedere Yacht Club. 56 Years on the Chesapeake

One of the best things about summers in Maryland is getting together with friends for a crab feast and there's no better place to spread the brown paper and steaming hot crabs than atop a table right beside the water.

Invited by friends who are members of the Belvedere Yacht Club, we made the short trip down the Magothy River from our slip at Ferry Point Marina for an overnight and the club's Annual Crab Feast. The club, founded in 1952, is small and members keep things well organized. As well as a great feast, we thoroughly enjoyed the company and the wonderful hospitality.

Annual Routine Maintenance - Late Summer Haul-Out Special

We've owned Bristol Rose for eight months and this is the first time we've hauled her out for below the waterline annual maintenance.  She was well maintained when we purchased her.  In Canada and North America's northern states boats may be hauled out each winter. At the very least, winter maintenance means winterising the tanks with antifreeze.  A boat may be left in her slip and a bubbler left in the water so it doesn't freeze around the boat.  

We hauled out now to service all the thru hulls, apply new antifoul/bottom paint, etc.  It's an annual, mostly male, bonding ritual that takes place in every boatyard. If you can't be sailing you can be doing boat jobs. This year we took advantage of the (out of season) summer special the folks at Ferry Point Marina offered for haul-out and bottom paint. We use Interlux Micron CSC for our antifoul. The image above shows how well it is working after 12 months in the water.

The size of Bristol Rose presented a challenge for the yard crew and established the limit to what size boats they can haul. To get her out of the water the rigger removed the mizzen topping lift and port side mizzen shroud.




















Before and after shot of Max Prop following replacing the zincs and preparation for application of Propspeed. Propspeed is a relatively new product that protects the propeller from marine growth. A power boat, with propspeed applied, was hauled while I was working on Bristol Rose. After 18 months in the water the propellers were clean.

During this haul out I've cleaned and greased all 12 Spartan seacocks. We were very surprised to find this marine ecosystem in one of the seacocks.



Trish calls this the "whale end" of Britol Rose. Lookin' good after 2 days of wax and polish. We gave the Island Girl products a try. The products are expensive and the written instructions are not that great, although the finished result is impressive. To be fair they provide a video guide.

Almost ready to return to her slip.

Farewell Sandpiper

We bought our first sailboat a 30ft 1979, S2 9.2A called Sandpiper in early Spring 2005. She taught us to sail, navigate, and carry out boat maintenance. She safely carried us from Worton Creek to Crisfield MD (the crab capital of the world!) and served as an introduction to new friends. We spent a 4th of July week-end in St Michaels, nights on the town in Baltimore, Spring Break in "Ego Alley" Annapolis and sailed to restaurants in Rock Hall all aboard Sandpiper.

S2's are known to sail well in light winds and Sandpiper proved herself many a summer's day on the Chesapeake Bay. Sailing on the Bay wouldn't be any fun without the occasional "ran aground" story. With the Gunkholers Guide literally as our guide, we tested the soft muddy bottom more than once in far reaching creeks up and down Maryland's Eastern and Western shores. Sandpiper handled it all with ease.

In between week-end and week-long cruises on the Chesapeake, we spent time upgrading and caring for Sandpiper. In July 2008, Sandpiper moved on to a new caretaker. Maybe we'll see her again soon out on the bay.

Margate YC Raft Up on the Rhode River, Maryland

You should have been there! Perfect weather - just a little hot, 93 degrees F.  Randy and Pat from Homeward Bound declared "son, you sure look hot in those cool shades!". Ok, so that's not exactly the way it went. According to Randy and Pat it was perfect, “hot in the sun, cool in the shade”. Daisie Dog was there, looking cool in her best bandanna. The wind blew directly on the nose all the way down the bay, just like it always does when you're going someplace.

On the weekend, the Margate Yacht Club, not to be confused with the less selective Maryland Yacht Club, held the 2008 season annual raft up on the Rhode River, MD.

As soon as we set the anchor we were quick to join the rest of the gang in the water. Daisie was reluctant to get in at first, then after jumping from dinghy to dinghy, whimpering and barking, she threw caution to the wind and leapt on top of Michele, trying to walk on water to get to me.

A perfect Saturday evening, time for pot luck dinner under an almost full moon. Kate brought venison, marinated and cooked to perfection on the grill, Pat's Steak Salad was a hit and Michele's key lime pie was according to Trish "to die for", not a crumb left! Thanks Tim and Michele for hosting aboard Wayward Sun.

Sunday morning and we need to get moving to get back to work Monday. But first we need to take Bristol Rose to her new home at Ferry Point Marina.

We enjoyed sailing back home, Homeward Bound leading the way, Bristol Rose and Wayward Son sailing together until we started running with the wind and Wayward Sun flew her Spinnaker, pulling away from us. It's these moments I think we too need a brightly colored spinnaker. Still dreaming.

Our new marina is about 5 miles up the Magothy River on the entrance to Mill Creek. With assistance from Al, Paul, John and Elliot we got Bristol Rose into her new slip. Big boat in a small mill creek with shoals on each bank can get interesting when it comes to docking. With plenty of assistance, no problem.

We are still experimenting with our Blog, trying ideas. Let us know what you think.
Capt. Robert

Shannons Memorial Day 2008 Cruise

Late in May, with the help of Patrick whose boat, Annie Rose, is slipped at White Rocks, Bristol Rose sailed from Baltimore to Back Creek. Robert has arranged for Jay of Annapolis Rigging to fit the new Monitor windvane from Scanmar International. Robert and Patrick were able to sail as far as the Bay Bridges then with the wind from the South, not helping, the engine took over.

Our first sail of the season is a meet up with Dave and Adeena of Starshine, a 38' Shannon. They introduced us to Pete of Spell Bound, a 28' Shannon. The three Shannons anchored in the Little Choptank on Saturday night, along with a Beneteau, appropriately named "Shannon"! What are the odds?


Sunday we sailed/motored to Back Creek, Solomon's Island. Elliot and his friend Josh joined us for Elliot's 19th Birthday. We ate at the Captain's Table and next day after a brisk sail, Elliot and Josh drove back home and we bid farewell to Starshine. On Sunday evening we moved around to Mill Creek for a much quieter anchorage.


We spent most of the week slowly making our way back to Baltimore, dropping in at La Trappe and Rhode River. I was very pleased to have great weather and some relaxing sailing during the week - my long-awaited one week vacation after a full year's work! Australian workers don't know how lucky they are with four weeks annual leave after the first year of service!

Shannon Yachts, Rhode Island Boat Building Heritage. Finding Bristol Rose.

Robert in the cardboard cutout cast of Spamalot on Broadway

During his 53 years you could count the number of rash decisions Robert has made on one hand. Living in a good neighborhood on the US East Coast, married, raising 2 fine children, working for the same company for 21 years… in short, life was fine, on the road to…well, where? He couldn’t help wondering, if life is only about working towards security and retirement, maintaining the status quo? Shouldn't there be something interesting, even exciting, to plan for through all life's stages?

In 2004 while taking a Sunday afternoon drive to the Chesapeake Bay a spark was ignited. Who knows, maybe Bristol Rose sailed past that fateful afternoon as we happened upon a late summer festival at the John H. Downs Park. As we ate hotdogs and enjoyed the Bluegrass band, our eyes traveled with the boats across the Bay to Rock Hall. A plan was hatched to buy a boat of our own. This boat need not be fancy. Maybe a little center cockpit fishing boat, big enough to get out and catch some of the striped bass the Chesapeake Bay fishermen get so excited about. “Stop right there Robert, if you get a fishing boat look forward to lots of quality time by yourself”. 

Old Coot, found hanging around the Chester River, MD

We relocated to the USA in June 1996 with our two children Owen and Elliot, from Sydney, Australia. Like many Australians we’d spent a lot of time at the beach. Although we felt a strong affinity to the water, our collective sailing experience was limited to OPBs (other people’s boats) and the occasional Hobie Cat rental down at Balmoral Beach on Sydney Harbour. We couldn’t have imagined it then, but perhaps we were destined to one day be at the place we are now in our lives.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

In another time and place Charles and Anne Brackett had plans of their own. They’d done some sailing on their 38’ Shannon, also called Bristol Rose, and in 2001, planned to build their 43’ dream sailboat, Bristol Rose. Bristol Rose was designed by Walter Schulz and built by Shannon Boat Company in Bristol, Rhode Island. She was launched in October 2002 and the Bracketts sailed her to the Bahamas where she spent the next few years.

Bristol Rose receives her bottom paint, Shannon Boat Company, Bristol, Rhode Island

After months of book and online research, as well as time spent climbing over boats waiting in boatyards for new owners, we bought our first sailboat, Sandpiper in early 2005. Sandpiper is a 1979, S2 9.2A sloop and she opened our eyes to a lifestyle on the water that fitted us very comfortably. Just to be sure we could handle a 30ft boat on our own; we took sailing lessons with Getaway Sailing in Baltimore. This gave us the confidence we needed to begin sailing in the unfamiliar waters of the Chesapeake and to eventually take off on a two-week cruise down the Bay.

Quiet Boatshed on St. Leonard Creek, MD

We also learned from Matt, our affable sailing instructor, how to tie lines like a sailor (power boaters go round and round and round in knots), and how to laugh at anyone silly enough to be caught out sailing with fenders still hanging over the rails. Most importantly, Matt taught us that sailing is “all about lookin’ good!” Thanks Matt!

The Francis Scott Key Buoy, Baltimore is the site where Francis Scott Key wrote The Star Spangled Banner, the morning after the Brits trained their cannons on Fort McHenry. "And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there."

We've both always been travelers, inquisitive about the world and the many cultural differences that make travel so addictive. We’ve both lived and worked on 3 of the 5 continents. We’ve both experienced life in various parts of our homeland, Australia, from north to south, east to west.  As we’ve traveled over half of the 50 states of the USA, we’ve marveled at the cultural differences from state to state. Exploring by water adds another dimension to our travels. Sandpiper turned out to be the perfect boat for a family to explore the nooks and crannies of the beautiful Chesapeake Bay. We’ve spent weeks aboard, exploring from the waterside industries of Baltimore to the islands and inlets all the way to Crisfield (Crab Capitol of the World) on the Maryland/Virginia border.

Container Terminal, Baltimore Harbor

Was it the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean” or maybe that Christmas read “An Embarrassment of Mangos” about sailing the Caribbean? Who knows, but a search began for the boat that would take us to far away places.

In 2007 the decision was made to sell the much loved Sandpiper and buy the “dream” boat. Now, looking for a dream boat has a lot to do with the romance of sailing, of escapism, and above all else, “lookin’ good” while doing it. Our dream boat would be special; not brand new but one that previous owners had loved and cherished. She had to be an American design with traditional lines, solid, sea worthy, comfortable, sail well, have a good reputation, be big enough to live on for a year or more yet small enough for two of us to handle.

We did the research, hung out at the Annapolis Boat Show, read books about the cruising life and along the way, fell in love with Shannon boats. Sure, we looked at other boats, but we always came back to the dream, like others we've met, of maybe one day owning a Shannon.

Boat stands at Quality Boatyard, Tiverton, RI

As if by fate our search came to a happy ending with Bristol Rose; it was meant to be. When we first stepped below, Robert knew what Trish was thinking – Ahhh, American cherry wood interior! A standing joke is that Trish would have every piece of furniture in the house made of cherry, if she could. The closing date on our offer was 11th August, Robert’s Birthday. Bristol Rose’s tender is named Rosebud; we named our pets after flowers, Rosie Bud and Daisie Dog. The “signs” were stacking up. Bristol Rose not only met, she far exceeded our expectations of a previously owned, well-designed, much-loved and cared-for sailboat. Bristol Rose is a special boat that we feel is perfect in every way. Love at first sight!

Our first look at Bristol Rose 2007. Custom built American cherrywood cabinetry, teak and holly sole.

Bristol Rose is a Shannon 43, hull # 51, launched in 2002. She is the second-to-last of the 43’ hulls made by Schulz Boat Company in Bristol, Rhode Island. Walter Schulz’s experience working with boats began when he was still at school. In February 1975, he began construction on his own design, Shannon 38 hull number one, in the same building that now houses the Herreshoff Museum and employing craftspeople who had worked for Herreshoff. The boat was unveiled at the Annapolis Boat Show in October 1975. In the Fall of 1985, the first Shannon 43 was shown at the Annapolis Boat Show. Schulz named his Shannon yachts after the Shannon River in Ireland, where both his grandmothers were raised.

Nathanael Greene Herreshoff (1848-1938) revolutionized yacht design and produced a succession of undefeated sailboats for the America's Cup between 1893 and 1920. (Wikipedia)

One of the four boats built by Bill Koch's America3 Syndicate for the 1992 challenge.

When we visited the Herreshoff Museum and America’s Cup Hall of Fame in Bristol, RI in 2007 on our search for our “dream” boat, we learned about the legendary boat building skills of the Herreshoff brothers. It's clear that Walter Schulz has been greatly influenced by the Herreshoffs, as well as some other greats in sailing. “Also I never build a boat without twin headstays. With them you can wing and wing or have roller furling on one and hank-on jib on the other. I mean what the hell do you do when you roll up your furling jib? How can you run up a smaller headsail? I copied the system of Chichester’s boat when he was in Newport long ago. As soon as I saw that on Gypsy Moth I said to myself, ‘That is going on every boat I build’, Walter Schulz (Ferenc Máté, The World’s Best Sailboats, Vol I).

Herreshoff boats

Bristol Rose has the Shannon Sketch sail configuration. She is equipped with sails made by Clarke Bassett of Kappa Sails in Westbrook, CT, auxiliary power provided by a 75hp Yanmar diesel, carries 200 gallons of water and 100 gallons of Diesel.

So what’s it like owning a Shannon? The first thing you notice is a lot of rubber necking. If we are in a slip people stop to admire her. We are often asked, “What type of boat is that”? A woman walking past one day stopped and asked, “Is that really a Shannon?” She had never seen one up close but just as we had done, dreamed of owning a Shannon.

An earlier vintage Shannon called Sandpiper, caught our eye on the Chester River.

There’s an air of romance around the Shannons, thanks in large part to the character of the man, Walter Schulz. On a trip up the Patapsco River to Baltimore this Fall a large power boat was bearing down on us as we crossed the shipping channel. The power boat slowed down as she came near, while the passengers took pictures of Bristol Rose. As they powered past us we noticed the Australian flag flying proudly. Small world! They might also have noticed we were flying the green and gold, Boxing Kangaroo!

Bristol Rose at anchor, proudly flies the Boxing Kangaroo, as well as the Star Spangled Banner!

The people at Shannon make their owners feel like members of a large family. It was a delight to meet Walt, Bill Ramos and Walt’s daughter Erin Schulz at the Annapolis boat show in 2007. Trish proudly wore her Shannon cap, thanks to Bill, for the rest of the day. No ordinary hat; you can't buy one anywhere. As Bill explained, you have to own a Shannon to get one of these. Walt Schulz has designed over 20 Shannon models and the company has launched over 335 boats to date and still building. Even though we had just recently bought a previously owned Shannon, they knew who we were. There's no substitute for being able to speak with your boat's builders from anywhere in the world. Walt is quoted by Ferenc Máté: “….I like to hear where they are. I like to keep track. Before I go to bed I listen to the weather, and when I hear that there is such and such a storm blasting where one of the Shannons is cruising, I can smile and feel good and sleep well that night. I get a great kick out of that.”

Walt Schulz launches Bristol Rose. "Every boat Shannon launches, I launch with a few drops of blackberry brandy, some on the bow for good luck and a few drops in the water for the gods."

Baltimore's Inner Harbor on our new sailboat, Bristol Rose.

Now that Bristol Rose is ours, we will move her to the Anchorage Marina at Canton in Baltimore.

The Anchorage Marina, Canton MD

This year I returned the sails to the maker, Kappa Sails to have them cleaned, checked for repairs and sunbrella UV covers added to the Yankee and Genoa ready for the summer. Typically boats seem to fill in the available time with jobs to do. Bristol Rose is no different. I have a short list of projects we want to attend to over the next year. These include:

• Engine Service. Previous owners put 2000 hours on motoring up and down the Intracoastal Waterway
• Brightwork 
• New TV
• Laptop computer, navigation & photography software
• Repace the Dinghy, we now have 2, a Trinka 10 and an Avon and a Honda 2hp outboard. I am thinking of getting a Walker Bay RIB
• New life raft and replace flairs
• Ham radio licence
• Windvane, still looking but like Cape Horn and Monitor
• Lots or organization, downsizing and packing stuff away

We will stay over some weekends and holidays. We can't wait to explore the Inner Harbor, Fells Point and Canton and enjoy the inner city location.

White Rocks Marina, Pasadena to Crisfield, Home of Crabs. Two Weeks on the Chesapeake Bay

S/V Sandpiper, 30ft S2

We purchased our first sailboat, Sandpiper, a 30ft S2 9.2, in 2005. Our collective sailing experience prior to Sandpiper was gained aboard OPB's (other people's boats) and on Hobie Cats rented on stormy afternoons (how to test sailing skills!) at Balmoral Beach in Sydney. During July of 2005, we spent two great weeks exploring the Chesapeake Bay with our son, Elliot and Daisie Dog. 

Although we'd spent the past 3 months putting our mark on Sandpiper with a few coats of varnish on the brightwork, re-caulking of the toerails and chainplates, installing a new hatch and new head, removing the microwave and re-installing the original Origo fuel-burning stove, and a general spit and polish above and below decks, we learned a thing or two during that 2 weeks about prudent and thorough boat maintenance. Quick attention to the stuffing box and a new forestay were both on the agenda during that trip. Luckily there are many services on the Chesapeake and we had no worries getting things in order and back underway quickly.

St Michaels Museum

We sailed out of White Rocks Marina on Rock Creek, Pasedena Maryland on the 4th of July weekend, heading to St. Michaels. From there we criss-crossed the Bay all the way to Crisfield (the Home of Crabs) in the first week, then turned around and headed back towards Baltimore during the second. Anyone who sails the Chesapeake Bay will tell you that July is not the best time to sail. Despite the heat and light winds resulting in running the engine when we'd rather be sailing, we count those 2 weeks as two of the best weeks we've spent on vacation.
Crisfield, old and new.

On the final day, we sailed back into White Rocks with a storm chasing us up from Annapolis and another closing around us out of Baltimore. A spectacular moment at the very end of our journey; the skies pitch dark all around, a small craft advisory over the radio, power boats tearing across the water for shelter, sailboats docked, and one bright shaft of skylight breaking through the clouds directly above the entrance to Rock Creek. Like a light in the window welcoming us home, it was as if someone had turned on the light waiting for our return; an incredible sight and the perfect ending to a special vacation.

These are the things that make sailing so special.  We ask ourselves why we waited so long to buy a sailboat.