Recap on travels (loop earlier sent) Maine to VA

Here's how the trip has gone so far: From Portland area (actual departingfrom Saco, Maine) we were joined by delivery Capt. Jim VanderSchaaf and his wife Anna for the first leg of our shakedown, a sort of "get acquainted" trip along the Eastern seaboard down to Norfolk. Took us 10 days with overnight stops along the way in some beautiful anchorages in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York City, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland andVirginia. The boat has handled wonderfully with only a handful of mechanical issues to be dealt with so far, so we're pleased with our purchase choice.

We left Maine early on a foggy September morning, heading out of our anchorage area down the Saco River into the big Atlantic. The first day we headed south to Newburyport, MA to pick up Suz' bro and sis-in-law, Andy andRebecca Lobb. They joined us for the next leg starting in the morning forNewport, RI. Had a beautiful sail south to Newport through the Cape CodCanal and were sorry to drop them off two days later and say good-bye as they headed back home and the work-a-day world. Continuing down the coast the next day found us anchoring in picturesque Potter's Cove, RI. A lovely New England coastal site with everything stereotypically "New England" surrounding us as we sat at anchor for the night. Suz and Rick had a nice dinghy ride around the cove enjoying views of the lovely homes around the bay. We next journeyed south to one of the most beautiful spots we've been. It's called the Thimbles in Connecticut. It is a very interesting spot on the coast deriving its name from the rounded outcroppings of rocks jutting up from the water just off shore. This anchorage was one of our favorites. We continued south the next couple of days along the coast toward NYC. Hoping to connect with daughter Nancy who lives in the city, we pushed along the inside of the Long Island Sound right among the big sky scrapers of the city. Suz motored the boat through the notorious section of the river called Hell's Gate without difficulty and after passing the Staten Island Ferry Terminal, we headed in close for a good view of Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. After refueling on the Jersey side and picking up some famous Jersey deli sandwiches, we stopped for the night right off Liberty Park in the shadow of the Statue. A really surreal sight seeing the statute loom overhead. Scheduling commitments kept Nancy from connecting with us while we were "in the City" but we felt like we could reach out and touch her from where we were "parked" for the night. We headed off early to get a good jump on the Jersey coast we stayed in Barnegut Inlet then completed the coast the next day anchoring at Cape May,the southern most tip of the New Jersey shore.

Next we headed up the Delaware Bay toward the C&D Canal which connects the northern end of the Delaware Bay with the Chesapeake Bay. Anchoring in the canal allowed us to enter the Chesapeake Bay the next afternoon and journey part way down the bay to St. Michaels, MD. St. Michaels is a quaint fishing/tourist village with wonderful restaurants and shops. Staying there for only one night seemed a shame and we vowed to return some day. The next leg took us down the bay and within a couple of days, into Norfolk,VA., our "resting place" while we returned to Colorado to complete preparations for our return for the winter trip aboard our boat.

We left Norfolk for Steamboat Springs, as Anna and Jim headed back to their home in Maine, we felt ready to assume command of the boat on our own after such a thorough and educational trip with our new-made friends.