Update: Cruisers 2011 Thanksgiving at Vero Beach

The Cruisers 2011 Thanksgiving Gathering in Vero Beach was fantastic. All toll there were 17 tables of Cruisers (minimum of 6 to each table – more like 8 at most) celebrating Thanksgiving with a “pot-luck meal”, music and friendship. 

If this is a pot-luck meal, I’m pretty sure I don’t need to eat anywhere else. The food and company, simply fabulous. We were seated outside on the porch at table #16. It was the only open table we could find when we arrived. The table had seating for four however by the time the food was served we managed to seat 3 couples and one single. That would be 7 people at a table for four. Wouldn't have had it any other way. We had the best time meeting our new victims, oops - I mean friends. I believe everyone had a great time, we surely did.

We were blessed to have the company of Bill Bartlett on s/v “Memento Mori”, Julie and Hunter on s/v “Contigo”, Paul and Elana on s/v “Joie de vivre”. 

Afterwards loud Zeee's could be heard throughout the mooring field and marina.

Bill s/v "Memento Mori"

Julie and Hunter s/v "Contigo"

Elana and Paul s/v "Joie de vivre" 

Ginny and Jesse s/v "Wind Dust"

Once Upon a Time (A Bedtime Story)

Once Upon a Time there were two Very Special Hounds (VSH’s) that graced the Docks of Brunswick Landing Marina in Brunswick, Ga. On a normal day they greeted new arrivals and resident cruisers with the love and affection missed from pet ownership days gone by. Getting a fix of unconditional doggy love was easy. These two hounds (and their owner) brought smiles to most people on the docks as they went about their daily work routines. They represented what all dog lovers seek, a dog friendly marina.

 

Then for reasons unknown, the Two Hounds were banished from the marina. What a sad day! As the news spread every dog loving boater in the marina was heartbroken. After the shock of the news, they were PISSED.  PISSED to the point they will reconsider where to spend their marina money next season.  What a shame!  A great place, with great people, great hounds and one butthead who screwed it all up. What a shame! What a shame!  Oh, what a shame!  

Update: Dock 6 - Heading South Party

It’s been a great summer/fall season here in Brunswick waiting out Hurricane Season. The new friends we have met, the great family trips, the marina parties, Brunswick First Friday events, fishing and shrimping, visits from friends and family have all made for a very special season. 

We consider ourselves very lucky to have spent the season on dock 6 with so many special sailors. We will always cherish the time spent here at a special place with very special people.

As we all know, all good things must come to an end, especially when the weather requires jackets and long pants. So with warmer weather in mind, Dock 6 held our official “GTFOOB Party”  this afternoon and evening. (Get The Flock Out Of Brunswick). 

Notes were compared, destinations contemplated, jokes swapped, BS-ing shared and farewells given. 

Here are a few pictures from the hoe-down. Oops - I mean get together.

Update: Pirate Gathering - Dock 6 – Brunswick Landing Marina

We attended our 1^st Official Pirate Gathering today on Dock 6 here at Brunswick Landing Marina. The Gathering was presided over by Pirateers Sir Jake (aka “Nubs”) and Amy from Sailing Vessel “Gypsy Song”. 

The Gathering came to order with a blast from Sir Jake’s flintlock pistol and was followed by the singing of the Pirate Song “Drink, Drink, Drink”. See the picture below for the words.

The Topic of the Gathering was “The Evils or Virtues of RUM”. It went something like this:

Rum is evil. Let’s all drink to that. Rum makes you happy, let’s drink to that. Rum makes you sleepy, let’s drink to that and when you sleep you can do no evil, so RUM is GOOD! Let’s drink to that! Here’s to the RUM my friends.

Pictures from the Gathering. 

Update: 12th Annual Brunswick Rockin Stewbilee

Hounds (k-9’s), cooks, musicians, runners, antique car owners and enthusiast , stew samplers, sailors, power boaters, the young and the old all came together for Brunswick, Georgia’s 12 Annual Rockin Stewbille at Mary Ross Waterfront Park. The event features a contest for the Best Brunswick Stew in Brunswick. 30 some organizations and individuals went head to head for the Crown. Great food, great music. Fun was had by all.

Here are some pictures from the event. 

UPDATE: Fishing IQ on the Rise

Dummy to Fishing Genius, not yet, and still not as smart as a 5^th grader. But I think, I just passed the 1^st grade. 

It’s really been a good day. Compared to my fishing adventures in the Bahamas where I only caught fish I couldn't eat, I’m on a roll now. 

In the past 24 hours I caught 2 big flounder, 2 big Red Fish, a Speckled Trout and the bait to catch them with right here at our dock. The switch to finger mullet made the difference. Using the right rig with the right bait seems to work great. Duh. Oh, did I mention patience? Got to have a lot of that to go with the bait and rig. 

UPDATE: It's More Than a Happy Meal

Yep, local Georgia shrimp caught fresh by me with our cast net. It’s really getting to be a habit, a crime of passion, a favorite past time, a treat in the making. For those of you who don’t know about Georgia shrimp, they are “THE BOMB”. 

These sweet little critters of the sea rank right up there with the very best shrimp in the world. We decided to buy a cast net a few weeks ago (along with a Georgia Fishing License) and it’s been extremely fun catching our dinner most every day since. Cast netting has been great exercise and therapy. It’s a workout if you decide to make it so.  Just the other night I was joking with a co-shrimper on the St. Simons pier. I said to him “just think how much money we are saving by getting a great workout without paying for a gym” and catching dinner to boot. Good stuff at 3:00 am in the morning. 

These guys (shrimp) are going to be good, but I need to decide prep style. Remember Bubba from the Forest Gump movie. Bubba said it best “ shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, bake it, sauté it. Dey’s uh, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that’s about it.”  Whoa. That makes my head hurt. After much thought it’s going to be………Pan Fried Shrimp . 

We will let you know how it turned out.

Go Bubba!

Irene Update- Brunswick, Ga

Friday August 26, 2011

Hurricane Irene D-Day for Brunswick Landing Marina 

10:00 am – All boat preparation is complete and we are monitoring the conditions. Forecast is for winds in the 20-25 mph with gust to 40 mph. We should be spared from major wind and seas from Irene. We are very concerned for our friends in NC, Virginia, Delaware and points north and are praying for their safety.

Current conditions at BLM – Partly Cloudy – Max. Wind Gust so far 36 kts.

1:30 pm - Not much to report. Top wind gust 41 kts, no rain, partly cloudy - getting hot 93 degrees F.  The center of the eye is almost due east and is approximately 215 nautical miles off shore. Post Hurricane Party is being planned.

8:40 Irene was kind to us and allowed the post Irene Dock Party to go off without a hitch. We hope she is kind to our friends up north. Highest wind gust 43 kts, no rain and a high tide about 2 feet above normal. Thank God.

 

It's a Stand Off on the Dock.

It's a question of Right of Way, a test of nerves and who will chicken out first. Looks like the Blue Heron is winning. 

Look Who Came Knocking Today.

We had visitors today. 4 Manatee came by and knocked on our boat. They stayed for about 20 minutes before they moved on. These guys are really big in person.

Some of Our Favorite Photo's Updated

Update: Vero Beach to Brunswick, Georgia

After a week of resting, visiting with cruising friends and enjoying Vero Beach it was time to head north and put our stern north of Cumberland Island, Georgia for hurricane season. The date May 16^th , the day NASA scheduled to launch "Endeavour" for her last space mission. As we turned "Wind Dust" north along the ICW we wondered if we would be able to see "Endeavour" as she lifted our brave astronauts into the heavens. We turned on XM radio and dialed in the countdown. There was much anticipation by everyone as the final countdown began. Over the radio we heard “4,3,2,1 and liftoff of the space shuttle "Endeavour”. Scanning the northern horizon as "Wind Dust" made way we wondered if we would be blessed and be able to see "Endeavour" some 42 nautical miles away. Well about 2 to 3 seconds after liftoff we began to see "Endeavour" make her climb to space. For us there’s nothing better to get our adrenaline flowing than a space shuttle launch. Thinking about how it must feel to have your ass strapped to a rocket with no guarantees of returning home really makes one understand how brave our men and women are that carry out our space missions. We salute them and pray for their safe return.

After Endeavour climbed out of sight, Ginny and I were talking about the launch when we began to feel and hear a low rumble. At first we didn’t realize it was the shuttle because it occurred at least 3 to 4 minutes after 1^st seeing "Endeavour". Wow. Can’t imagine how it must sound really close. What a great way to start the day.

We anchored overnight in the Indian River off the town of Cocoa and shoved off Tuesday morning for one of our favorite stops, New Smyrna Beach City Marina. We love this stop because of all the wildlife in and around the marina. Dolphin, manatee, pelicans, cormorants and herons all putting on a great show of nature. To boot, our friends on s/v “Salty Dog” Jeff and Cindy Rinne were staying at the marina. We met Jeff and Cindy last year at New Smyrna. Being Tuesday, we all went to Maloney’s Oyster Bar for dinner and entertainment. On Tuesdays “Pickin Kind” (Jason Miller and Matt Meehan) play Irish and nautical songs built on a foundation of acoustic guitar and mandolin. These guys are so awesome and the patrons sing along as they know all the words to the songs. We are fortunate Jeff and Cindy turned us on to them last year.   

After a day of rest and a trip to the beach courtesy of Jeff and Cindy we moved on to Palm Coast Marina for the evening and then onto St. Augustine the next day. While in St. Augustine we enjoyed meals at O.C. Whites and Pizza Time. Yum. 


As a Special treat our son Chris (from Jacksonville, Fl) brought our grand kids (Skye, Jake and Zak) Saturday afternoon so they could spend the night with us on the boat. 

The next day Chris and Nicole came and we all shoved off on Wind Dust for a trip up the ICW to Jacksonville and Beach Marine Marina. We stopped along the way and anchored Wind Dust so the kids could swim and we could have lunch. The weather was perfect and we had a great breeze the entire way. 

On Monday evening we had dinner with the kids at the newly opened “Nippers” which is modeled after the one in the Bahamas. 

As a very, very special circumstance to the evening we discovered that tv show “Top Chef” Kenny Gilbert was the chef at “Nippers”. Our meals were all awesome and will be long remembered. Kenny can cook and he was working hard to make sure his meals were served to perfection.

Tuesday we were off to Fernandina Beach Marina and then on to our summer retreat, Brunswick Land Marina for hurricane season. 

We had a very warm welcome from Sherri and Cindy from the marina and its good to be back in Brunswick. Now the maintenance chores and our annual shore leave to visit friends and family.