We’re having fun now!!
Monday, September 24, 2007
 
On Friday afternoon, we were able to leave the dock with our dinghy, shore power lines, and dock lines and take off for our first weekend away on our own. We talked every procedure through before we did anything so we didn’t make any major mistakes. The wind was light so we exited our slip without any trouble. We decided to spend the night in the Magothy River (just north of Annapolis) where we had visited a nice anchoring spot with our slip neighbors last Sunday. The sail was very enjoyable and getting away from the dock and sailing made us both relax and confirm that this is what we’ve been waiting for. Anchoring went smoothly even though we got there later than we would have liked and sleeping at anchor was so soothing. We couldn’t believe how tired we were. Sailing tuckers you out more than you would think. On Saturday we headed to the opposite shore up the Chester River. This destination was totally new to us so we were studying the charts intently and reading the cruising guide to pick where we would anchor tonight. The point of sail was perfect to get us to the Chester River. We did have to motor the last part but we got to our anchorage by 4 pm. That’s the latest we like to get to our spot. That gives us time to anchor properly, get settled and start happy hour asap. We love to be on deck during sunset eating dinner. Terry found a spot to string his hammock so he was loving it. I love the chart plotter! With the Chesapeake being shallow in many spots, the chart plotter is a god-send. We keep paper charts handy also and use our eyes to make everything agrees with what we see. On Sunday we decided to head back to Rock Hall and anchor in a nearby creek so we would be ready on Monday morning for more work to be done on the boat. It took longer to get there than we thought because we were tacking a lot, but we were anchoring by 2:30 pm. We had bought a WindScoop, so we rigged it up to provide better ventilation over our bed. It turned out to be rather cool that night, but Terry thinks it’s the best thing since sliced bread. We were so proud of ourselves for getting through the weekend. Sunday was the best night yet.