Whirlwind trip to Annapolis!

We spent Wednesday afternoon to Saturday morning in Maryland.  Since Virginia Dare is on the hard for a few repairs, staying aboard was like sleeping in a top notch tree house :)

Our "tree house" for three nights

The stilts!

We spent most of Thursday at the Annapolis Boat Show -- excellent advice from Bob and Christine to spend a couple extra bucks on VIP day where admittance is limited.  You get a lot more time with vendors than the following days.  David had a list of vendors and their locations when we arrived.  It made our "recon" very efficient.

We bought an Australian grill and are quite eager to install it and give it a whirl.  Considering that David grills our dinner several times a week (on land), we can't wait to try this!  It even bakes cakes :)

Marine Barbeques Australia -- our new grill :)

We also bought Gill foul weather gear and a SPOT Gen3 which will broadcast our exact latitude and longitude on a daily basis (I will link it to the blog when we're back on board).  We also got a ton of information about AIS systems and radar upgrades, but that's far too technical for me to explain.

Back at the boatyard, we found out that the propeller was fine (yay!), but the rudder bearings were not.  So Eric at Chesapeake Marine Engineering is making sure everything gets fixed properly.  All the new parts came in this past week; she's expected to be back in the water this week.

Rudder bearings

Rusty rudder bearings, detail

Rudder shaft housing

We managed to have dinner all three nights at Skipper's Pier -- two of the three nights we sat outside.  Friday night brought rain and indoor dining.

Sunset from Skipper's Pier

Virginia Dare at night -- and the full moon rising on Wednesday evening.

Nighttime in the boatyard

Full moon rising

Successful survey and sea trial!

We couldn't have asked for better weather for our survey and sea trial today at Tracy's Landing, MD.  As we suspected, Virginia Dare needs very little work before we set sail next month.  Bob, our surveyor, did a thorough job and David took notes, lots of notes.  Bob (different Bob :))and Christine, who have lived aboard and sailed her for the last three years, couldn't have been more helpful -- pointing out efficient ways to do this or that, telling us what works and what doesn't.  They are lovely people who are genuinely happy to be selling their beloved yacht to another couple eager to get cruising.

It's been a long day, preceded by a night of little sleep, so I'll leave you with some images from our day.

Haul out at Herrington Harbor North

It's not often that you can stand underneath the boat!

Virginia Dare on an Indian Summer afternoon

Sea trial on the Chesapeake Bay - gorgeous day

Friday afternoon and not a whole lot of traffic

Back at the marina, surveyor Bob was hoisted up for inspection of the mast and all her pieces and parts

Green and purple

Bow.  Anchor.