The sailing sabbatical starts today!

 

Ahoy! Welcome to "Sailing Traveller," a means to keep family and friends apprised of our adventures at sea. This introductory post recaps the past several weeks leading up to our grand departure this morning.

Over the summer, Mike sold his house and purchased a beautiful 1998 Island Packet 350, Traveller. Island Packets are heavy, rock-solid boats perfectly suited for safe and comfortable cruising in the Caribbean. Cabin headroom in the IP 350 is 6'5", a rarity and selling point for Mike, who is 6'3". Another notable feature of the IP 350 is that it only draws 4.25'. We will be able to maneuver Traveller through shallow Bahamian waters that are inaccessible to many vessels.

In case you are wondering, Traveller was so-named by her prior owner. We did not want to risk the wrath of Poseidon, so forewent the complicated purging and renaming ceremonies. Plus, the decals on the hull look nice.

Mike and our friend Aaron transported Traveller from Deltaville, VA to Baltimore, MD in August (thank you, Aaron!). Since then, Traveller has been housed at Anchorage Marina in Canton. Anchorage Marina has that "Charm City" feel. It is steps away from a plethora of trendy shops and restaurants, West Marine, and Ace Hardware. Slip prices are reasonable, staff is attentive, boaters are friendly and eager to lend a hand, and there are concerts every Saturday evening during the summer. I would not eat fish or crabs caught off Canton's waterfront promenade, but it is a great spot to watch herons and other birds on the prowl.

We spent the past two months ping ponging between Traveller in Baltimore and our temporary residence near Annapolis (many thanks to our gracious land lady & lord, Jessica & David!). Mike spent countless hours studying mechanical and electrical systems and completed several projects, including:

• Cutting an opening through the cabin sole to remove a corroding holding tank and crafting a new opening hatch out of the cut-out panel;
• Building a platform for and installing a composting head, which entailed drilling a hole through the deck, wiring a ventilation fan, and running a vent hose from the new head;
• Mounting a massive 425 watt bi-facial solar panel above the dinghy davits, which will maximize energy production by absorbing direct sunlight from above as well as sunlight reflected off the water (thank you, Liz, for helping with the install!); 
• Making removable sunshades that can be hung from the top of the bimini to shield all sides of the cockpit from Caribbean sun rays (thank you, Karen, for the sewing lesson!); 
• Modernizing the electrical system with a new inverter/charger, battery monitor, and system monitoring hub;
• Replacing the house and starter battery banks with new LifeLine AGM batteries;
• Adding an AIS transceiver so we can "see and be seen" by other equipped vessels and, thereby, avoid collision in low visibility (large commercial and passenger vessels are legally required to use AIS); and
• Upgrading all interior lights to LED.

I kept busy provisioning and working on my boat yoga while cleaning, polishing, and stowing cargo. I was also employed until two days ago, whereas Mike left his job a couple of months ago to fully dedicate himself to working on the boat. On that note - rest assured that we budgeted for our upcoming voyage and will return to gainful employment when it ends. 

We took Traveller out for shakedown cruises in the Baltimore Harbor, Patapsco River, and Magothy River (thank you, Mike Busch, for joining us on our first couple of jaunts and imparting sailing wisdom!). We spent our first night on anchor in Eagle Cove, which is located off Gibson Island in the Magothy. 

Now to the game plan - We departed Baltimore this morning and plan to spend tonight anchored off Solomons Island, which is located where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay. From there, we will continue down the Chesapeake Bay to Norfolk, VA, and then take the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) to Florida. We will soak up southern charm as we move down the ICW, stopping to explore Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA. Then we will visit Mike's family, rendezvous with fellow cruisers, and make any necessary improvements to Traveller in Stuart, FL before crossing the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas. 

There's a lot of adventure ahead, so stay tuned!