J and B YACHT ULTRA CARIBBEAN SAILING AND OTHER TRAVEL ADVENTURES: PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA TO WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA AUGUST 14, 2010

J AND B YACHT ULTRA ADVENTURE

PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA TO WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA

AUGUST 14-DECEMBER 6, 2010

Sailing gives you alot of time, and alot to drink about. quote by Jimmy Buffet

BILL IN FAMOUS EGO ALLEY , ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL WASHINGTON, D.C.

SABATTICUS SAILING WITH US TO ANNAPOLIS

WAR SHIP IN CHESAPEAKE BAY

KEVIN AND CONNOR DID A GREAT JOB PREPARING DINNER FOR ALL OF US, WE ALL MISSED DENA BEING THERE, TOO.

LIGHTHOUSE IN CHESAPEAKE BAY

DINNER ABOARD ULTRA THE NIGHT BEFORE WE DEPARTED ANNAPOLIS

3,000 CADETS ON THE FIELD FOR DRESS PARADE

WOW! It is amazing how time flies.

We made our way to Annapolis with Sabbaticus. Fun trip! We anchored by the Naval Academy first and then moved into beautiful Spa Creek. We met Drew the Harbour Master that became our very good friend. The first night we were there, we headed to shore. They were having the last performance of the season by the Naval Orchestra. Very impressive! The first week we were there, we had dinner and movie. It was too windy outside, so we set up the movie screen inside and made pizza on the grill. We put pillows and blankets on the floor and Sabbaticus, Drew and us all watched Captain Ron for the 1 millionth time. We still crack up at the movie!

We walked the wonderful streets of Annapolis. This is a spectacular town. Dad and Karen came to visit us in Annapolis on the way up and on the way down from Connecticut. They stayed at the Marriott which is right in Annapolis Harbour. We went to Pusser’s Restaurant for dinner. It is the sister restaurant of the one Soper’s Hole, BVI. We were also joined by Bill’s cousin, Charlie. WOW! They had not seen each other in over 35 years. He was in New York for work and flew to Baltimore and then rented a car to Annapolis. It was great to see him and catch up.

The great thing about Annapolis, is wherever there is a street, there is a free dinghy dock.

While anchored out by the Naval Academy, Ultra seemed to become one of the marks for the race. There seem to be tons of races every weekend and even during the week in Chesapeake Bay. We constantly had people sailing by us at all hours of the day. We did take advantage of the Eastport Yacht Club great Happy Hours, too.

We had to replace all of our batteries on the Ultra. We doubled our "house battery bank" and re-newed the engine bank system. All the guys around us came over to help transfer very heavy batteries from the city park to the Ultra, then the bad news happened. We flew the top off our wet exhaust system, towed by our friends dinks out to our anchor spot, overnighted a new part was was up and running by noon the next day. But a huge THANKS goes out to our boat friends ; Kevin, Bill, and David for all of their hard work to install the batteries and hook them up. We also installed another solar panel, so we have a total of 4 panels, we can light up a small island.
Happy Hour at McGarvey Tavern for the surprise introduction of a new rum drink called Sandy Bottom complete with Fish Dip, Cuban Pulled Pork Sandwiches and fritters. Free samples and free food. That is our kind of Happy Hour. We then headed of to see The Buddy Holly Story live performance. FANTASTIC!!

Dinner aboard the boat with Sabbaticus, Romantisea, Knot Tide Down, Sue An, Drew, and David and his wife, Peggy from the condo/sailboat. Dad and Karen arrived in Annapolis and we had them and Sabbaticus aboard for dinner and then they departed the next day.

Woke up early to catch the bus to Washington, D.C. Dena and Kevin organized everything. The location to pick up the bus at 6:30 a.m. and the cost was only $4.00 round trip. What a deal. We arrived at the Smithsonian Visitors Center. We walked to the memorials, the reflection pool, and saw several of the museums. WOW! What a day! We are even more proud to be an American after seeing all of that wonderful history.

While in Annapolis, we took a wonderful tour of the Naval Academy. It was our lucky day and they were having a dress parade. This consists of 3,000 cadets in their full dress with only their face exposed. Unfortunately, it was 115 degree heat index and several cadets were suffering from heat exhaustion. JoAnne even ran down the bleachers to the field to give water from the water bottle and poured it over the cadets heads to cool them off. We also got to see the famous collection of model navy ships. SPECTACULAR! Some of them were built by prisoners of war and they were built of bone and wood from the food that they were served. They built the model ships to pass the time untill they were released from prison. WOW! They are truly great pieces of art. We also got to see where the term "3 Square Meals A Day" came from. It is amazing how many of the terms we used today come from the old sailor days. The food for the sailors were served was actually served on square wooden plates, therefore, 3 square meals a day.

Dena had to fly home for a couple of weeks. The Sabbatticus Boys were baching it. We invited them for dinner and went ashore while Dena was gone, but both boats spent a lot of time on numerous boat projects while she was gone. Kevin and Connor also invited us for dinner aboard. They made a spectacular dinner complete with Connor's famous French Crepes.

We were invited aboard Romantisea’s friends from Treasure Cay. All of the guests onboard also had homes in Treasure Cay, Abaco. So fun to hear all of the great stories, and a fun surprise was the wonderful bartender from the Tipsy Seagull Bar was also there.

We and Sabbaticus took the city bus and rode around town, went to a Farmer’s Market, and saw some of the sites.

For JoAnne’s 40th birthday, Bill had bought tickets to the Boatyard Bash. It was a lot of fun. We arrived and staked a spot in the grass. A nice girl named, Kathy, came up right away and let us borrow her beach blanket. She was the photographer for the event. Great island style boat music. One of the players also played with Jimmy Buffet. JoAnne went up on the stage and thanked Bill for such a great time. Bill was half dead with a cold and fever, but still was a trooper. While thanking Bill, the band members autographed a plastic Maritime Museum hard hat for JoAnne. A big thank you to Kathy and the band for making that all possible. Upon departing the party, JoAnne was getting some cookies for Connor as a surprise, and one of the policeman was standing there, too. He wished JoAnne Happy Birthday and then had one request. He wanted JoAnne to play a practical jokes on one of his fellow policeman. That is always fun! He asked JoAnne to go up to the officer and ask him if was the stripper that was hired for JoAnne’s 40th Birthday Party. Too funny. The officer fell out laughing and so did the other officer standing with him. It is so great that they are hard working officers, but have a wonderful sense of humor! We also had another surprise. We were published again. We have a five page article complete with photos in the Lattitudes and Attitudes Magazine the September 2010 issue. The fun thing is this is the largest boating magazine in the world.

We had a great surprise in Annapolis and ran into a lot of friends that we had met in the Bahamas, Bob and Bev from Savage Son (Paris, Texas), Chuck and Patty from Soul Mates (Miami, Fl.)

During our stay in Annapolis we had quite crazy weather. We had many nor’ easters that blew through, a hurricane warning, and then the nor’easter the flooded downtown Annapolis. We had a great time in Annapolis and all of the wonderful happy hours and dinners aboard Sabbaticus, Romantisea, Sue An, and Knot Tide Down. We departed the day before the world renowned Annapolis Boat Show to make our way south.

We tried going on the outside from Beaufort, NC to St. Simons Island, GA, and had downloaded a great weather report. Well, the weatherman was wrong. We should have had 10-15 winds and seas 2-4, we ended up having 20-25 on the nose, gusting 30+ and seas 4-6 ft. After several hours of a very rough ride and 24 hours later, we came into Masonboro Inlet, NC, and then kept on going in the ICW, which made for a 36+hour all day-all night straight run. We made it to Myrtle Beach and did something definitely out of the norm, we tied up at a dock that was $1.00 per ft. We washed down the boat and then showered and headed to walk around. They have a shopping mall and restaurants here. At the dockmaster’s recommendation, we headed to the happy hour at a local restaurant. Half price drinks and half price hors. What a deal! 2 people for $15, you cannot beat it!

FLOODING THE BANKS IN SPA CREEK

HALF PRICE WINE AND HORS' AT YELLOWFIN

GUNNBOAT AT ISLE OF HOPE, GA. THAT GOT DAMAGED IN THE STORMY WEATHER
$2.5 million vessel

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SUNRISE IN THE LOW COUNTRY OF GA.

NAVAL ORCHESTRA

ANTIQUE SAILBOAT AT ANNAPOLIS DOCK

ANNAPOLIS CAPITOL BUILDING

WOODWIND CHARTER SAILBOAT

ULTRA ANCHORED OUT OFF OF NAVAL ACADEMY

CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH'S BOAT (AS IN POCAHONTAS)

HAPPY HOUR AT MCGARVEY'S TAVERN ANNAPOLIS

FREE KILWIN'S ICE CREAM BUCKETS MAKE GREAT WATER TIGHT CONTAINERS

DRINKS WITH COUSIN CHARLIE & BILL WITH HIS LONG HAIRED HAT ON AT PUSSER'S RESTAURANT

DAD & KAREN ARRIVE AT PUSSER'S RESTAURANT

TOY PT BOAT AND LITTLE BOY SAILORS OFF OF MOTOR YACHT IN HARBOUR

DAD and KAREN JOIN US FOR DINNER AND DRINKS ABOARD

PIRATE THEMED CHARTER BOAT IN ANNAPOLIS

DOWNTOWN ANNAPOLIS

WOW!

SELECTING HALLOWEEN COSTUMES AT THE HALLOWEEN SHOP

WOW! WHAT A SAILBOAT!

ANOTHER ONE OF THE CUTE WATERFRONT STREETS WITH THEIR DINK DOCKS

WATERFRONT HOMES IN SPA CREEK, ANNAPOLIS

ULTRA ANCHORED IN SPA CREEK

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR JOANNE FROM SABATTICUS

MARRIOTT HOTEL IN ANNAPOLIS

COOKING UP THE LOBSTAS AND STONE CRAB CLAWS!

YUMMY!

CONNOR AND BILL CRACKING STONE CRABS

KAREN AND DENA ENJOYING DRINKS AND HORS'

LOBSTER AND STONE CRAB DINNERR ABOARD ULTRA

LUNCH AT EASTPORT YACHT CLUB IN ANNAPOLIS

CONNOR'S NAPKIN RINGS HE MADE FOR KEVIN AND DENA'S WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

WE ARRIVED IN WASHINGTON, D.C. TO SEE THE SITES

GARDENS IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

TRUMPET TREE IN D.C.

WOW! TROPICAL HALICONIA PLANT

TOMB OF JOHN PAUL JONES THAT FOUNDED THE US NAVY

VIEW OF THE REFLECTION POOL IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL

WASHINGTON MONUMENT
SECOND TALLEST ONLY TO TEXAS' SAN JACINTO MONUMENT
BECAUSE WE ADDED TEXAS STAR ON TOP

KOREAN WAR MEMORIAL

VIETNAM WAR WALL MEMORIAL

DENA LOOKING UP HER RELATIVE FROM CALIFORNIA THAT DIED IN VIETNAM

A WONDERFUL VOLUNTEER THAT OFFERS FREE RUBBINGS FOR
FAMILY MEMBERS OF LOST RELATIVES

DENA'S RUBBING

WHITE HOUSE SECURITY AND CONNOR

YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU WILL SEE IN D.C.
PETA PROTESTING AT THE MCDONALD'S WHERE WE GRABBED LUNCH

PETA BROCHURE

JULIA CHILD'S KITCHEN AT THE SMITHSONIAN

KERMIT AT THE SMITHSONIAN

THE FAMOUS HOPE DIAMOND 45.52 CARATS

AMELIA EARHART'S AIRPLANE

THE UNIFORM FOR SOUTHWEST IN THE SIXTIES

DINNER AFTER THE SMITHSONIAN TOUR

SANDY BOTTOMS RUM PARTY

THE STAR OF THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY PERFORMANCE

ANOTHER STORM APPROACHING

ANNAPOLIS MARINA AND ANNAPOLIS YACHT CLUB

VIEW OF SABBITICUS ANCHORED IN SPA CREEK, ANNAPOLIS

THANKING BILL FOR BEING A TROOPER ON MY BIRTHDAY!

OUR FRIENDS THAT LIVE ABOARD A BOAT IN A MARINA IN SPA CREEK, DAVID AND PEGGY
We are anchored out in front of their parent's condo and their boat is in the marina. We had been waving to them every day on their balcony, but never met in person until the party tonight when JoAnne said she and Bill's boat name. Too funny!

BOATYARD BASH FOR JOANNE'S 40TH BIRTHDAY, KATHY JONES IN PHOTO WITH US

LIGHTHOUSE IN CHESAPEAKE BAY

CONNOR MAKING HIS FAMOUS FRENCH CREPES

KEVIN AND CONNOR PREPARED AT FANTASTIC DINNER FOR ALL OF US!

DINNER ABOARD SUE AN

DINNER AND DRINKS WITH THE TREASURE CAY CREW

CONNOR IN OUR STATEROOM WATCHING A DVD MOVIE

HERE WE ARE AT THE US NAVAL ACADEMY IN ANNAPOLIS

A BEAUTIFUL RECEPTION HALL ON THE ACADEMY GROUNDS

THE STORY OF JOHN PAUL JONES
HE IS THE REASON WHY THERE IS A REPRESENTATION OF SCOTTISH BAGPIPES IN THE NAVY

3,000 CADETS ARE MARCHING TO THE FIELD FOR THE DRESS PARADE

IT IS SUPER HOT!!! TEMPS IN THE 90's.

CONNOR DELIVERING JOANNE'S BIRTHDAY STARBUCK'S! WHAT A TREAT!

DENA'S HOMEMADE FRUIT TART
'BIRTHDAY CAKE ABOARD SABBATICUS FOR JOANNE'S BIRTHDAY

THE GUYS WORKING ON OUR NEW BATTERIES
DAVID, BILL, BILL and KEVIN

FLOODING THE BANKS OF SPA CREEK

FLOODED PARKING LOT PARALLEL WITH EGO ALLEY

BILL DOCKED AT END OF EGO ALLEY

SANDBAGGED STARBUCK'S

FLOODING IN DOWNTOWN ANNAPOLIS
The statues are about 2 1/2 feet underwater

HAPPY HOUR AT YELLOWFIN
A BOATER'S PARADISE, HALF PRICE WINE AND HORS'

DINNER ABOARD ULTRA ANCHORED IN SPA CREEK THE NIGHT BEFORE WE LEFT

BEAUTIFUL SUNRISE JUST OFF OF TYBEE ISLAND, GA.

SAILOR KITTY HAS A TOUGH LIFE! : )

FORT SUMPTER IN CHARLESTON, SC

BEAUTIFUL SHRIMP BOAT AND SUNRISE OFF TYBEE ISLAND

We tried going on the outside (meaning not the ICW) from Beaufort, NC to St. Simons Island, GA, and had downloaded a great weather report. Well, the weatherman was wrong. We should have had 10-15 winds and seas 2-4, we ended up having 20-25 on the nose, and the winds became stronger gusting 30+ and seas 4-6 ft. After several hours of a very rough ride and 24 hours later, we came into Masonboro Inlet, NC, in early morn and then kept on going in the ICW. We made it to Myrtle Beach and did something definitely out of the norm, we tied up at a dock that was $1.00 per ft. We washed down the boat and then showered and headed to walk around. They have a shopping mall and restaurants here. At the dockmaster’s recommendation, we headed to the happy hour at a local restaurant. Half price drinks and half price hors. What a deal! 2 people for $15, you cannot beat it!

We made our way to Darien, GA for our haul out. This haul out was not very smooth either, but it is what it is. We hauled out, got the boat bottom painted, surveyed and inspected. Should have taken the most 4 days, but it took 10. The electricity kept tripping, so showers consisted of spraying each other down with the water hose while laying in the cockpit and soaping up. Great town though, lots of history! If you want to know the history of Darien, buy the book "Praying for Sheetrock". David and Marla of Adesso had told us that Darien had been written up in Southern Living magazine the September 2010 issue. The restaurant, the PURPLE PICKLE and the Waterfront Gourmet and Wine Shop. David and Marla came to visit us while we were on the rail with their two grandsons and their daughter and son-in-law. We took a raincheck for dinner that night, due to all of our projects. We did go to the Purple Pickle the next night. It was buy one get one free entrees. We had dinner for 2 for $15. The next night was the Humane Society Benefit. It was hosted by the local Humane Society and the Darien Episcopal Church. The title of the benefit named by the church was: “Spay-ghetti and No Balls”and raised funds for spayed or neutering pets. $10.00 Spay-ghetti plates. Too funny.

We returned to Darien for the Fall Fest. Melissa loaded us up in her car along with all of our crafts to sell. We sold our homemade mermaids, jewelry and decorative bottles. It was a lot of fun. Melissa stood out there with us all day and Michelle (her sister) had brought 3 8 ft. tables complete with tablecloths, cornucopias, etc.

It was windy, but at least the sun was out. Tons of people were there, too. That night we had been invited to Dr. B and Donna’s home (Sailor Kitty’s Dr.) for dinner. WOW! We had a great time. They live in a beautiful Italian Villa that they built on an old plantation. Complete with citrus trees and vineyards. We made conch fritters for them and took them some conch horns that we had made. The flounder Donna served was spectacular.

We got a call from Dirk and Nancy aboard Tybee Time that they were on their way down. We told them we were in St. Simons and they anchored by us. We headed to happy hour at Coastal Kitchen with them and Melissa. The next day, a very special day, Veteran’s Day, and Dirk is retired Army. We borrowed Melissa’s car and headed to the regulars, West Marine, Walmart, and Winn Dixie. But first, on our way to St. Simons we stopped over at the airport to see the old B-17 “Liberty Belle” WOW! What a site to see that giant thing take off. We did not take a ride ourselves though, $400 per person for a 1 hr ride. It is a flying museum, so that is how they support a portion of its’ upkeep. After that we headed to the St. Simons waterfront park for the Veteran’s Day celebration.

Halloween was a blast. Melissa had to work late. So Martinis and hors’ aboard Adesso and then we all headed to Coastal Kitchen in costumes. Bill was Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean or “Mr. Squid Face”, JoAnne was a pirate wench, Marla was a witch and David was a pirate. Melissa borrowed JoAnne’s other costume which was titled “The good ship lollipop girl” or Shirley Temple. Complete with Sailor Girl Dress and Giant Red Lollipop. We had a great time.

Marla’s birthday party was fun. We headed to Coastal Kitchen along with Adesso and their friends and Melissa. We then headed back to the Adesso for birthday cake. The Chocolate Malibu Rum Cake that we brought.

We met a lovely family from Sydney, Australia. Stuart, Kylie, and Sami of Clementine I. JoAnne and Sami played a lot together (Sami was always wanting to schedule play dates, and I am thinking I am 40, and playdates.) So fun though, she is a blast! We even fed fish guts to the pelicans, at Sami’s request of course. She told JoAnne that the fishermen were good friends because they always gave her the fish guts to feed the birds.

Sami has lived her entire life aboard the boat. They have sailed all over the world and she is only 6. Her parents home school her and she is super smart and extremely boat savvy!

We scheduled to show a dock movie at the Marina Pavilion. It is complete with tables, chairs, and a BBQ Grill. We loaded up the projector, computer and amp and played Iron Man 2. It was so fun and Melissa made popcorn on the grill and we toasted marshmallows.

The next night, we had a great dinner at Melissa’s friends, Jim and Ruby’s home at St. Simons. Great people and loved hearing all of their great stories and meeting their family.

Before we departed St. Simons, we had Melissa, Michelle and their friend Sam aboard Ultra for dinner. We wanted to be sure and thank them for all of their help at the Darien Fall Fest. Chris, Michelle husband was sick with a cold and fever so he could not come. What a bummer.

The next night was dinner aboard with Stuart, Kylie, and Sami and Eric, JenJen and Maria and Melissa. We had a great time and Maria and Sam hopped up in our stateroom to watch a movie, while the adults shared great boating stories.

We are sad to say goodbye to all of friends in St. Simons Island, but we will be back one day and are looking forward to it! We sincerely appreciate all the fun we had there and all of the things that everyone did for us.

After several extremely late nights, we were off to head south. We headed for Fernandina Beach. This is a cute little town and lots of history. We headed to shore and explored the town full of shops, art galleries and many other great things. The next day we worked on a few boat projects and then headed for Fernandina Beach and Fort Clinch. It was a great bike ride and we needed the exercise. There were not any crowds at the Fort which was perfect. We got to explore all of the buildings and then asked the confederate soldier on duty some questions. After a long bike ride, we headed back to the boat and got ready for our departure in the morning.

We heard Knot Tide Down on the VHF and made our way to same anchorage that they were headed to at Pine Island, Fl. The next morning we all left early and anchored at Ft. Mantanzas Inlet. We were not able to Buzz and Betty this time in St. Augustine. We are bummed, but know that we have to make our way south or we will stuck in Florida and will not be able to cross to Bimini if there are so many cold fronts. We arrived at Ft. Mantanzas Inlet and anchored out. We went clamming with them. We were digging with our toes and feet. It was a great pedicure, that is for sure. We met Mike and Rebecca from the Zero to Cruising catamaran. They are from Canada. Anna and Bill from Knot Tide Down invited us for dinner aboard their boat. We also got to finally meet Anna and Bill’s son, Tyler. We have heard so many great stories about him, so it is great to put a name with a face now. We all departed early and made our way to New Smyrna Beach, Florida. This is one of our favorite places, since we can anchor behind our friends’ homes that have a sense of humor. The first time we came through almost 2 years ago, JoAnne had laundry drying on the clothes line, and we anchored in the ICW anchorage. The next morning when we were about to pull anchor, this wonderful lady came out to greet us. She was admiring our boat, and then the neighbors to her left in the blue house also came out to see us off. She asked us about our boat and for our email address. JoAnne shouted across to her the email address and names. Good thing that she has a loud voice. We thanked her for allowing us the privilege of anchoring behind her home, and would see she and her husband, Don, soon. The rest is history. We have kept in touch via email and then honked on our way south last year while making our way to Ft. Lauderdale. We could not stop, but Pat said next time we came through we better stop and they would have a party for us. Well, on Wednesday when we were headed down we phoned Pat to tell her we were on our way south and would it be okay to anchor behind her beautiful home again. She said absolutely and there was a party at her home that night. So fun! We anchored, showered and headed to shore. We arrived to a house full of fun people. We had brought conch fritters and Bill fried them up right away. Pat served up homemade seafood stew and spaghetti. We had a great time visiting and could not get over that we were now on the shore side looking at Ultra. We had left the generator running so that the blue rope lights sparkled on the beautiful waterway. We all sat by the pool by the chiminea and shared all kinds of wonderful stories. Judy and Craig from the blue house came over, too. We invited everyone aboard for a tour of Ultra. It was so great to meet them, too. Pat and Don and their family invited us to their annual Thanksgiving dinner. This year also happened to be their family reunion, too, that they celebrate every other year. Wow! We could not resist. We learned a bit of trivia, New Smryna has the second highest taxes in Florida. West Palm Beach being number 1.

Happy Thanksgiving! While getting ready to go to shore, we had gotten an email from Sabbiticus. We had passed them in Daytona yesterday and they would be heading south. We emailed this morning and told them where we were anchored. They came cruising by. YEA! We were sure to moon them with our rubber butts. We have not seen each other in over a month. We will see them in Cocoa. Todd and Don loaded us up and we headed to Cracker Creek that is owned by Bob (Pat and Don’s son) and his wife, Jill. This is a fabulous place that is located on several(50) acres that back up to a Nature Preserve and a beautiful creek. The term Cracker comes from the Caucasian cowboys that ran cattle through the marsh. They would wave their whips in the air to make a sound so that they could herd the cattle one way or another. The whips popping or cracking sound (i.e., crack that whip!, as in Devo) therefore, they were called Crackers. A little bit of trivia. They had a great dinner for us, creek cruise and narrated tour, and then of course the ever famous karaoke. Before the karaoke, Don took us on a great golf cart tour of the property. Complete with Peacocks, Gopher Turtles, and lots beautiful native birds. Bob had even set up a stage, projector, and sound system. During the boat tour, we were shown the property of the Gamble that are neighbors of the Cracker Creek Company. As in Proctor and Gamble. The eldest son of Gamble, was good friends with the Disney Family and built a cottage that is full replica of the Snow White Cottage that the 7 Dwarfs lived in. They named it “Snow White Cottage”. Too cute. Todd brought the copy of our Pat Green "Country Music Video" Feels just like it Should we had given him   ; and showed it before the family band started up and played and then karaoke began. We were singing Margaritaville and Brown-Eyed Girl at the top of our lungs. We arrived home and headed to the boat. Early morning departure tomorrow for Cocoa, Florida. Arrived at Cocoa Beach Anchorage. The weather was extremely stormy. We had great night's sleep though. The next morning we were getting ready to go to shore and meet Dad and Karen. We had a great surprise just before we left. Sabbaticus arrived! They anchored right by and came over.  They headed then headed to West Marine, while we headed to shore to have lunch with Dad and Karen. We also went to load up with some provisioning of the libation nature. We then arrived home at the dock and Sabbaticus came to see Dad and Karen and to help take the boxes back to the boat. We unloaded and then headed to shore. They are having a Christmas Tree Lighting in the park and showing the movie, Polar Express on a giant movie screen.  The park was packed. We headed to see Cocoa Village and then to the pub to have a cold beer and catch up after not seeing each other for over a month.
We departed Cocoa Beach and headed for Vero Beach. The funny thing was that we overheard Adesso on the VHF. They are headed south, too, and they told us on the radio that they were also Cocoa last night. WOW! We never even saw each other in the anchorage or in the village. We arrived in Vero Beach. We saw alot of friends that we have not seen in a long time. The boats that we saw in Elizabeth City, NC before we went through the Dismal Swamp were there and came to see Sabbiticus and us while we were both tied up getting fuel.  We then headed to the mooring field.  This is a fun place because they raft you to another boat. We had made a reservation to have both of boats rafted together. Too fun! Bob and Bev from Savage Son and their friend, Mike, came over. We invited them for a drink until the rain began to fall. It was great to see them again.  Sabbaticus invited us over for a great dinner and Sambuco and we brought our game of "Fact or Crap" . What a fun game.   Kevin also showed us his rope trick.  At the end of the night, it was great just to step across from one boat to another.
The next morning we worked on boat projects until Dad and Karen came to visit. They arrived and took us West Marine and Lowe's. We then went back to the boat. We invited Sabbaticus to come over for dinner, too. We had a great time.

November 30, 2010
We departed  Vero Beach and headed for a long run to Lake Worth/Palm Beach. We are making our way downto Ft. Lauderdale. We had a great surprise on our trip today. We were keeping track of Adesso on the VHF and told them that we would have to see them another day and were headed to Lake Worth. Great surprise, they loaded up in their dinghy and zipped up beside. So fun to see them! We ran a long day with Sabbaticus today. The run was great. The lifestyles of the rich and famous line the ICW. We are so shocked how the homes just seem to be getting bigger and bigger. While on our way to Lake Worth/West Palm Beach, we noticed we had an issue with the boat.  Turns out we did and it was time to be hauled again. We scheduled to haul out at the Rybovich Marine Center. We anchored in Lake Worth Lagoon with Sabbaticus and then headed out early the next morning to get hauled. We had a nice time in the shipyard and it was a completely different experience than any other shipyard. Clean, courteous crew, crew quarters, showers, and we rented a Toyota Prius for $20.00 per day. WOW! We were able to provision the boat and then just drive up the boat and unload. Manny did a great job repairing the problem that the other shipyard in Darien caused only a few weeks ago. We did get to visit the other shipyard that is also part of Rybovich. We are in the little yacht area and the other yard has all of the big guys. When we toured the yard, many of the boats that we saw in the Bahamas were there, "Odessa", "Kiss the Sky", " La Diva", "Magic", Quantum of Solstice" and many more. They were all in the midst of getting their beauty treatments for the next charter season. That night we had dinner with E.T. He is the captain for the megayacht just off of our bow in the shipyard.  Since our boat was torn up inside, we took dinner and drinks aboard E.T.'s boat. Got a great tour and then dinner aboard. Along with his famous espresso and ice cream Grand Marnier floats. The next day, JoAnne was able to use the fitness center at the sister shipyard, while Bill took a quick trip to Home Depot. WOW! JoAnne had the fun of being on a treadmill in 2 years. That used to be a daily routine.  That night they were having a crew party . That means that the shipyard invites all of the crew of the yachts to a party with free food and free drinks. WOW! That is right up our alley.     It was great to meet all of the crew from the different yachts. They were all over the world and it was great to share stories of chartering. There were about 100 people there. Some boats had as many as 24 crew! Hard to believe isn't it.
Manny is doing a great job fixing the boat. He and Sailor Kitty are new BFFs. We baked one of the Chocolate Malibu Rum Cakes for Manny in appreciation for all of his hard and efficient work. We headed for Costco, Walmart, and Dollar Tree to provision. Glad to have that behind us. We are ready to go back in the water on Monday. We got a wonderful tour of the President John F. Kennedy's presidential yacht, "Honey Fitz". WOW! What a yacht. So much history and great photos are still on the walls. It is getting a facelift. Paul from Jamaica, gave us a great tour and then we were on our way to be put back in the water.

A little bit of trivia:
The Rybovich Marine Center where we hauled out is owned by Wayne Huizenga Jr. who is the son of Wayne Huizenga Sr. which owns Waste Management and started Blockbuster Video and former owner of the Miami Dolphins.
The Trumpy Boats all wood and look similiar to Honey Fitz were all named Aurora. There are a total of 6 of them. When we were ready to leave the dock, a Trumpy came and docked next to us. It was named Aurora and looked exactly like the Aurora that we know of in Houston, Texas at Lakewood Yacht Club. The owner told us the story of all of them named Aurora. He is the Aurora II from Palm Beach. The one is Houston is the Aurora V.

We are meeting up with Sabbaticus in a few days and then will be crossing over to the Bahamas when the weather window is right. We will not be using our cell phones soon, so please only send emails after we send you the final email that we are suspending the phones. We will have email going so please send emails. We love to hear from all of you!

We hope that this email finds all of you happy and healthy. We are truly blessed to have all of you watching out for us and saying prayers for us while we are chasing our dreams out here on the seas.


Love to all of you,
Bill, JoAnne and Sailor Kitty : ) XOXO

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN DARIEN, GA

ULTRA ON THE RAILWAY WITH NEW BOTTOM PAINT JOB

M/Y ADESSO DEPARTING DARIEN. VIEW FROM THE BACK DECK OF ULTRA ON THE RAILWAY.

SUNSET IN SOUTHERN GA.

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DARIEN HOME

DARIEN PLANTATION STYLE HOME

PARK IN THE BEAUTIFUL SQUARE OF DARIEN, GA

DEPARTED DARIEN FOR ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GA

ULTRA CRUISING THROUGH GENERAL'S CUT WAS DUG IN 1808 BY SLAVES TO CONVENIENCE THE LOCAL PLANTERS AND LATER USED FOR A FERRY SYSTEM TO TRANSPORT PEOPLE BETWEEN DARIEN AND THE SOUTHERN PLANTATIONS OF THE DELTA. IT IS NOT VERY WIDE AS YOU CAN FROM THIS PHOTO AND THIS IS DURING HIGH TIDE!

WE ARE LOADED UP ONCE AGAIN

DARIEN FALL FEST WITH THE GIRLS THAT SAVED THE DAY! MELISSA FOR HELPING MICHELLE TO DO THE TABLES AND DECORATE AND THEN HELP US DISPLAY! THEY ROCK!
THE BUILDING YOU SEE BEHIND US IS HISTORICAL. IT IS THE OLD BANK BUILDING THAT THE FAMOUS MILLIONAIRES FROM JEKYLL ISLAND DID THEIR BANKING WHEN THEY CAME TO DARIEN ABOARD THEIR STEAMSHIPS. THE ROCKEFELLERS, THE OGLETHORPS, THE PULIZTERS, ETC.

ABOARD "PEACEMAKER" 150 ft. SCHOONER AT SAVANNAH DOCK THAT IS OWNED BY THE 12 TRIBES ORGANIZATION

WOW! THAT LOOKS LIKE ALOT OF WORK TO PUT UP THOSE SAILS!

ASS KISSER WINE! FINE RED WINE!

THE GOOD SHIP LOLLIPOP!

OFF WITCHA HEAD! NO PUN INTENDED. : )

HALLOWEEN 2010 ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GA

ADESSO COMING IN FROM FUN IN THE SUN

OUR WELCOME HOME PARTY ABOARD ADESSO
WE ARE SO HAPPY TO BE HOME IN ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GA

THE RAILWAY THAT ULTRA HAULED OUT ON IS IN THE BREAK JUST OFF OF THE STERN OF THE SHRIMPER IN THE PHOTO, SINCE THIS PHOTO WAS TAKEN, THE SHRIMPER SEA KING SANK OFF OF ST. SIMONS ISLAND. THE MEN ABOARD WERE RESCUED BY THE COAST GUARD.

LIBERTY BELLE B-17 FLYING FORTRESS

DIRK AND NANCY OF TYBEE TIME

GETTING READY FOR TAKE OFF

DINNER AT DR. B AND DONNA'S HOME

LIBERTY BELLE

VETERANS DAY 2010 AT ST. SIMONS ISLAND PARK
WE LEARNED A BIT OF TRIVIA FROM THE SPOKESMAN
"VETERANS DAY IS THE ONLY FEDERAL HOLIDAY THAT IS CELEBRATED ON THE ACTUAL DATE OF WHEN IT OCCURRED NOVEMBER 11. WORLD WAR I ENDED ON NOVEMBER 11, 1918, AND VETERANS DAY HONORS ALL OF THE MEN AND WOMEN THAT SERVED BOTH LIVING AND DECEASED TO HELP KEEP OUR COUNTRY FREE.

LIBERTY BELLE BOEING B-17

MOVIE NIGHT COMPLIMENTS OF ULTRA AND MELISSA

AND MORNINGSTAR MARINA AT GOLDEN ISLES

JOANNE TURN TO FEED THE PELICANS

READY TO CHUCK IT OVER THE RAIL

SAMI GETTING MORE FISH GUTS FOR US TO FEED THE BIRDS

CHECK OUT THE CLOUDS!
ST. SIMONS ISLAND BRIDGE AND TO THE LEFT IS GOLDEN ISLES MARINA

OUR VIEW FROM THE ANCHORAGE

SAMI IN THE GALLEY

SAMI HELPING US REANCHOR AFTER OUR COAST GUARD INSPECTION AT THE DOCK
SHE IS SO SMART ABOUT BOATS BEING RAISED HER ENTIRE LIFE ABOARD

SAMI AFTER SHE HELPED MAKE THE CAKE AND THEN WE WATCHED MADAGASCAR THE MOVIE! SHE IS WEARING JOANNE'S JACKET WITH A LIFE JACKET UNDERNEATH. TOO FUNNY!

MAKE A WISH MARLA

DAVID AND MARLA AND ULTRA'S BIRTHDAY PARTY HAT

MARLA CHOCOLATE MALIBU RUM BIRTHDAY CAKE THAT SAMI HELPED JOANNE MAKE

BIRTHDAY DINNER FOR MARLA AT COASTAL KITCHEN

KICKING BACK AFTER BIRTHDAY CAKE AND LOTS OF PORT WINE

KYLIE AND SAMI

SAMI BLOWING THE CONCH HORN. SHE CAN BLOW IT FOR A LONG TIME AND LOUD!! SHE LOOKS LIKE A CHIPMUNK WITH HER CHEEKS FULL OF AIR.

DINNER ABOARD ULTRA WITH MELISSA, ERIC, JENJEN, MARIA, STUART, KYLIE AND SAMI
DINNER WAS COMPLIMENTS OF THE RED SNAPPER THAT MELISSA AND HER BROTHER, MATTHEW HAD GIGGED

NOVEMBER 21, 2010
ANCHORED FERNANDINA BEACH, FLORIDA

ENTRANCE TO FORT CLINCH SIGN

BEAUTIFUL COTTAGE IN FERNANDINA

MARIA AND SAMI WATCHING A DVD IN OUR STATEROOM. TWO PEAS IN A POD.

THE DRAW BRIDGE TO FORT CLINCH

BILL KICKING BACK IN THE CAPTAINS' QUARTERS

HARD TO BELIEVE THIS IS AN ORIGINAL PHOTO ABOVE THE FIREPLACE FROM THE CIVIL WAR

FERNANDINA FORT CLINCH

VIEW OF ULTRA FROM DON AND PAT'S

PAT AND HER MERMAID

ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA

FORT CLINCH MOTE

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2010
ANCHORED NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FLORIDA
29.01.682N,080.54.773W

BILL MAKING CONCH FRITTERS WITH JOYCE AND TODD

PAT AND DON

PAT BLOWING THE CONCH HORN

SUE AND DON IN THE DINK UPON RETURN FROM THEIR ULTRA TOUR

SWEET BABY JOY, PAT AND DON'S BIJON

OUR TOUR BOAT

THE LOCATION FOR THE CAMPFIRE

WOW! WHAT A SET UP FOR THANKSGIVING FOR 60!

GETTING READY FOR DON'S GREAT GOLF CART TOUR OF THE PROPERTY

THE LINE UP FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER

THE CRACKER CREEK BOAT TOUR

ONE OF THE MANY PEACOCKS

GETTING READY TO GO ON THE BOAT TOUR

SNOW WHITE COTTAGE

LET THE KARAOKE BEGIN

AND MORE KARAOKE

JOANNE JOINS IN ON THE KARAOKE ,TOO

JUDY AND HER FAMILY SEE US OFF THIS MORNING.

DON AND PAT'S HOME ON LEFT AND CRAIG AND JUDY'S HOME ON THE RIGHT

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DINNER ABOARD WITH E.T.

ULTRA ON THE HARD AT RYBOVICH MARINE CENTER

CREW LOUNGE AREA AND POOL AT SISTER RYBOVICH SHIPYARD

MEGASAILBOAT

M/Y ODESSA
LAST SEASON IT CHARTERED FOR $250,000 PER WEEK

IN THE BAHAMAS

BILL AND PAUL ABOARD HONEY FITZ

CREW PARTY

Meeting new people from Denmark at Crew Party

SEA SCOOTER PROMOTION AT CREW PARTY

ALL OF THE ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS ARE STILL ONBOARD!

THE MAIN SALON

CREW QUARTERS HONEY FITZ

THE HONEY FITZ GALLEY

WAYNE HUIZENGA'S Jr's. BROTHER'S BOAT

THE YACHT THAT WAS DIRECTLY ACROSS FROM US IN THE SHIPYARD

THE ON-SITE TIKI BAR WHERE WE ATE OUR BREAKFAST WE BOUGHT FROM THE BREAKFAST/LUNCH WAGON (also affectionately the Roach Coach by some) Super Clean Hot Buffet Every Morning and for only $2.00 WOW!