Ophelia, enough already!

In the words of Natalie Merchant, “Ophelia was a tempest cyclone” From New York to New Jersey, it continued to rain. Enough already, seriously.

Sag Harbor, New York

Navigating the puddles, we walked about Sag Harbor.  Like Tumbleweed, we enjoy this little spot.

Sag Harbor Fire Dept.

Civil War Memorial

This memorial, “In Liberty and Union” commemorates the lives lost during the Civil War. 

The 1864 cannon is nearly 1,500-pounds.

Sag Harbor Trivia

Phineas Taylor “P.T” Barnum once owned a segment of land running through the village.  The adage “there’s a sucker born every minute” was frequently attributed to P.T. (Wikipedia).

It turns out, Barnum aimed to establish a home base for his circus in Sag Harbor, but disapproving residents put a stop to his dream. To that I say, New Yorkers are smarter than the average circus bear! Much later the Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey ended up in Sarasota Florida. For all of you Florida transients, no additional comments required.

Port Jefferson, New York; Danforth Marina

Named after Thomas Jefferson in 1836 (he spent big bucks in the region), locally the area is called Port Jeff.

Port Jefferson

A very walkable village, it shall always remind us of that one time, when we saw Tumbleweed! It is also a place of great pride. 

Great Kills, Staten Island, New York

Before you question the soundness of this alarming village name, I found it was the result of the Anglicization of the words “Groote Kell” which, from Dutch, may translate to “many creeks“.  To me it sounded like an original name from Sandy Grosvenor. By the mid 19th century the village was a popular fishing spot. 

New Yorkers pick some great boat names!
Knot Shore
Semper Fi sh

As tropical Storm Ophelia was bearing down on the coast, we traveled 114 nautical miles from Staten Island, NY to the safety of Cape May, New Jersey – departing at 3:45 am with only the twinkling stars to guide us (Dave Lub was spared the morning photo!).

No need to romanticize, the run was very stressful, especially for 4 seniors who have crappy eyesight to begin with. When we arrived around 6 pm, after more than 14 hours on the water, strong survival/arrival drinks were a must.

Cape May, New Jersey; South Jersey Marina

This quaint little town was preparing for Halloween!

Halloween Colors including the candy corn fire hydrant.

Pumpkin for Morgan

Flowers for Morgan

As the boats were safely tucked in, the rain and wind hit hard.

Cape May New Jersey Boat names also worth mentioning.

This is for Alisha!

This name is NOT a good choice – no sense in practicing misery, right Sideways?

You decide … good name or maybe not?

Foodies Bonus

It’s been a long time since we have featured a restaurant. Introducing Brine, located at the South Jersey marina.  

Char Octopus

Brine is BYOB, so we were spoiled by Tonto’s Reward, they supplied the best wine!

Duck Confit

Although not the same as Sandy’s lump crab, the food was very good.

Crab Cakes

Something Rotten

After a long day on the water, I sat down in my favorite corner and stretched out my legs. Instantly I was overwhelmed by the pungent smell of something rotten. Was it my stinky feet? Embarrassed – without saying a word to Capt. Rick – I went below, scoured my questionable feet with a brush and my favorite scented soap (thanks to Fred and Deb Luddington, NP45), dried them, and put on socks. Feeling confident I had eradicated the offensive odor, I returned to the salon and got comfy again; yet the stench remained.  Without a doubt, it wasn’t from me. It was someone else’s malodorous toes (go ahead, Commodore, look up that word).

Inquiry for the Followers

At what point do you decide it’s time to part with your shoes?  I know the birthday boy, Roger B has a brilliant system for inventory rotation. He writes a date on all his running shoes, with a thick black sharpie, to safely avoid equipment failure! SFYC members can attest Roger is an award-winning runner, so this practice serves him well. I have no proof, but I suspect Connie B donates her beautiful extra shoes to charity whenever they have collected too much dust, and Donna W trades them in as the season changes.

Boat Shoes

Since we began this journey in April, Capt. Rick has purchased multiple pairs of boat shoes, planning to retire his beloved Timberlands.  Perhaps relating to Goldilocks, he keeps trying to find a pair that was “just right”; he also claimed to Gail B and David B that the old pair would last a little longer. Really??

Now back to the saga of “something rotten”. This morning I found the real source of the bitter smell. The soaking wet shoes refuse to dry. Notice the lack of tread and the bona fide holes. Followers feel free to chime in, is it time for a burial at sea?? Gail and David will attest, there are several new pairs of shoes on board, just waiting to be worn.  

Delaware Bay Lighthouse

Closing this post with a fun pic of a lighthouse that seems to have eyes, watching you.

With that, we are current on our posts, Ann J, at least for now! Hope you enjoyed your coffee break. 

Celebrating Milestones.

Belated birthday wishes: September 23, Bruce Peck

September 27, David Floyd and Roger Berardinis

Coming Up: 

Bear, Delaware; Summit North Marina