November Days

Our sweet Jacob (3 months)

Wow it has been quite a while since I have posted on here. As everyone by now knows we returned from our trip in August.  On August 21 our newest grandson Jacob Gregory Nardin was born.
What a little joy he has been to our lives.  In October when his Mom, Amanda went back to work, Jacob came to stay with us during the day.  This was our plan all along.  We would postpone our  big trip and give the kids one year free babysitting.  As much as we want to get back on the Lady J watching this little guy has been such a special gift.  Now it's not to say that we would want one a little of our own every day, because well not to sound negative but we are just getting to old for that.  Instead having him for the time his Mom and Dad are at work is just the right amount of time.  And besides it is such a joy to watch him change and grow everyday.  Neither Mike nor I had the opportunity to stay home with our own children.  So this is a treat.

Haul Out 2014, Sandusky Harbor Marina

We pulled the Lady J out of the water on October 3rd.  The weather was perfect and everything went like clock work.  She is now on the hard and Mike has been back up to Sandusky several times to do some clean up work.  He buffed the hull, did some cleaning, winterized the engines, water system etc.  and of course covered her up as best he can for the winter.  It always kind of sad when you have to take her out of the water, but seeing the kind of winters we have, there is NO WAY she would make it still there in the water.  So we wait until next Spring when once again she will be back in Lake Erie.

Jeff and Sandy Bacon, 4th of July 2014, Seneca Falls, NY

Last week we had some dear friends over for dinner.  We met Jeff and Sandy last summer before we left on our trip over the canal.  They joined us for part of our trip and we soon became cruising buddies.  It was so nice to have someone over to talk "boats" and "cruising" with.  Our family and friends here listen to us for a short time but their interest wanes after a while.  It always helps to talk with folks who have "been there done that".  Mike and I both agreed that after they left it really made us want to get back on the water.  But after hearing todays weather report where Buffalo, NY has way over 6 feet of snow right now and more on the way we'll stay put for a while.  (Buffalo/North Tonawanda area is where you pick up the canal at.)

Besides staying around for a while gives us more time to spend with our two precious grandsons!

Miles, age 3

Jacob, age 3 months

"Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours"

Dodging all kinds of ships/boats

On Wednesday morning we finally saw a good opportunity to get out of Geneva on the lake and make our way to Chagrin Lagoons Yacht Club.  Well at least we thought it was.  We were out on the lake for about 2 hours when things started to go south.  Well to be honest the lake was choppy when we left and it proceeded to get worse.  We ended up ducking into a restaurant called Pickle Bills in Fairport.  We could dock there and jump in out of the storm and catch a bite to eat.  The food was good and it was just great to be able to get off the boat and chill out for a little while.  We (Mike) took some time after lunch to catch up our friends Jeff and Sandy as to our whereabouts.  He is becoming quite the little texter these days.

A white knucke kind of day

Look at him go!

If you notice the photo above when we were going cruising up Grand River to Fairport Mike had some serious maneuvering to do around not only little fishing boats but a HUGE Tanker.  He not only had to do it once but twice because on our return trip back out to the lake the Tanker was pulling away from the dock.

Maneuvering 101...anything bigger than you are stay out of it's way.

After lunch we proceeded to make our way to Chagrin Lagoons Yacht Club on the Chagrin River on the outlet to Lake Erie.  Did I tell you that the Lake was treacherous.  The waves they had suggested would only be 1-3 were actually more like 5 and we were hitting them head on.  I compared it to what it might feel like to ride one of those mechanical bulls, for 5 hours.  We made it to the Yacht Club a little after 3:00 p.m.  And can I just say that the Chagrin Lagoons Yacht Club (CLYC) is a really nice one.  Now I don't mean all big and snooty like Erie YC was, but these folks were friendly, polite and even apologetic that their restaurant wasn't open because it was flooded in the storm several days before.  We took a walk around the property and noticed that it looked as if almost everyone had along with their slips for their boats had a covered patio.  They were great and people had everything from chairs, refrigerators, sinks, popcorn machines, you name it was available.   

That evening they were having their sailboat races so we hung around for a while and watched those.  Not much wind, which was ironic since earlier that day the wind just about knocked us out of our boats.  I guess Ole Lake Erie used it up on us.

The next morning our goal was to set out for Lorain.  Again we woke to what we thought was going to be a beautiful day.  Well to a landlubber it was a beautiful day, sunny, breezy, just gorgeous.  According to all the weather folks we checked with they kept telling us 1-3 foot waves, 7-8 knots of wind.  Now where those are ideal conditions we definitely thought we could handle them. WRONG!!! What they stated at 1-3 were more actually like 3-5 with winds of 10-15 knots.  Once again we were hitting the waves dead on.  After about two hours of this beating the First Mate became seasick.  Ugh, Lake Erie how you toy with us.  So bless his heart the Captain turned the boat towards Cleveland and we tucked into Edgewater Yacht Club for the night.  Love those guys there, so polite and even remembered us from when we were there 5 or so weeks ago.  Our Lady J is a little hard to forget.  

After two days of being beat up by Lake Erie a lyric from a Gordon Lightfoot song the Edmund Fitzgerald comes to mind.

  "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours". 

 Lord have mercy is that ever so true.  We spent a peaceful evening at Edgewater, walked around the park and had a bite to eat at the club.  Sounds kind of pretentious but it isn't. Just a good sandwich and time to relax.  

Leaving Cleveland behind

This morning (Friday) we, okay Jana woke early and checked the weather.  It looked like it was "really" going to be a good day.  So without hesitation the Captain was up and we were ready to shove off at 7:30 a.m.  Our goal was to make it to Vermillion.  Well hallelujah the weather couldn't have been more perfect.  After 2 days of solid beatings the lake was calm as could be with very light winds.  So we threw all caution to the wind (no pun intended, well maybe a little) and we just pushed on through to SANDUSKY and our own dock.  We arrived here at the marina around 2:30 p.m. and it was the best site we had seen in days.  We were soon greeted by our dear friend Bob and were able to get the boat settled and put together.  We had a mission from there our goal was:

                                           

                             1 hot, long shower

                             1 dinner at Berardi's

                             and Ice Cream at Tofts.

MISSION SUCCESSFUL!!!

We are back and so glad to be here.  Our trip was amazing.  We learned so much about each other, about boating, traveling in small spaces and that this is not necessarily something we want to do full time.  But maybe part time.  (to be continued)

Thank you to all our family, friends and friends we've yet to meet for following us on our journey.  Your love, thoughts, prayers and encouragement helped make our adventure one of a lifetime.  

I wonder what we will be up to next.  Stay tuned.

And we wait

Mike and his cousins Pat & Tony

Well we are still in Geneva on the lake because of weather.  On Sunday Mike's cousins Pat and Tony came for a visit.  We had a wonderful time walking around the strip and then enjoyed a nice dinner at the restaurant at the State Park.

We had hopes of leaving on Monday morning, but the weather had a completely different idea.  The wind had grown to 20 knots with gusts up to 25.  The waves where, well I have never seen them this high.  (See photos) it was like being at the beach.  Mike used all lines to tie the boat down and it still was rocking and rolling at the dock.  For that matter everyone's boat was rocking and rolling.  It rained off and on all day.  We spent the day reading, surfing (the net), cooking, napping and adjusting the lines on the boat as needed.  We went for a walk after dinner and even treated ourselves to an ice cream treat up at the marina.  The day was not totally lost.  The First Mate was able to get out and take some photos of the incredible waves, clouds, etc.

Today we tried to get underway and got about 5 minutes out in to the lake and decided to turn around and come back.  Water was just unsafe at least for our boat.  So once again we are back at the dock here at Geneva on the Lake and we wait.  We have done what we can to stay patient, but the frustration has reared its head once in a while.  But will wait till it is safe and we can make our passage.

Oh Geneva on the Lake!

Riding the waves!!!

We left Presque Isle, (Erie) Pa early Friday morning.  The weather looked promising and we originally had planned to stop at the Yacht club in Ashtabula and hopefully meet up with some friends.  But found out our friends were actually on a cruise with our Yacht club up to Canada.  (Yes we contacted them unannounced) and the folks at the Ashtabula Yacht club didn't call us back until late Friday evening.  (Epic Fail)

So we made the decision to push on to Geneva on the Lake, since this was going to be one of our planned stops anyway and it was only about an hour or so past Ashtabula.  So we left the dock with high hopes of getting to Geneva early evening.  Well we did arrive at the State park around 5:00 p.m. But not after went for what we considered an 8 hour mechanical bull ride.  Reason being is the waves were cresting at least at 3 feet and we were hitting them dead on all day.  As you can see by the picture above it was one heck of a ride.  Luckily enough though this forward and backward motion doesn't make the first mate sick (only the rocking side to side).  The temperature was great and the sun was beautiful, but boy we were glad to get to our destination.

Morning at Geneva State Park

Now about our destination.  Since we couldn't get any of the so called "Yacht Clubs" to return our call Mike called Geneva State Park.  We were delighted to hear they took reservations, the price was more than reasonable and they had plenty of space.  Best news ever since the weather folks had been predicting some storms are a brewing for the weekend.  As we pulled into our dock we were met by a nice young man more than eager to take our lines (thank you Jesus) and help with docking.  He then said that once we were settled he would take us up to the office (in his golf cart) so that we could get signed in and then bring us back.  Wooooooow what kind of amazing service is this!!!  So glad for the lift since the office was a good hike from where our boat was docked. But the facility is immaculate and found out you can call these guys anytime between 8:00 a.m .and 9:00 p.m and they will come to your dock and bring you up to the main building.  This service is only for the transient boaters.  "lovin it" even though we have chosen not to use this wonderful feature, but it's good to know it's there.  Okay now for our day.

We had a lovely leisurely pace this morning.  I had time for enjoying my coffee while the Captain had some good quality time to sleep in.  We enjoyed pancakes for breakfast and then took off on our bikes to the "strip".  If you have never been to Geneva on the Lake you really must go.  (At least once).  It is like stepping back into time about 50 years ago.  This one road is filled with funky shops, all kinds of food establishments, small businesses selling touristy things.  Arcades, Put-Put,  Flea Market, Craft Shows, Antique shops.  You know it they had it, but it seemed like you were back in the 50's early 60's.  In fact Mike remembers coming here as a kid with his family. It was so much fun seeing the place through his eyes as he was when he was little.  The road winds along the lake and on one side it is filled with all these little "cottages" for rent.  Some in good shape, some well livable, but oh so quaint.  (See more below)

The bike/walking path through the park over to the "Strip"

The weekly Flea Market, and yes we didn't purchase a thing, only parked our bikes nearby so we could walk into town.

Found this wonderful old car in a local parking lot

It seems the First Mate can get her flower fix everywhere

An antique store that used to be the old hotel.  And no family I didn't come back with these, just enjoyed them.

A Ferris Wheel that wasn't in quite working order.

We chose to stop and grab a bite to eat at a place that had outside seating and looked fun and funky.  Sorry can't remember the name of the place.  We ordered  2 cheese burgers and decided to share an order of fries.  Thinking sharing some would be a good choice.  Hah!!!!  What they didn't tell us is how freaking big this "single" portion is.  I guess when the description literally said "single" portion we should have known something was up.  What they brought us looked like a 5 pound bag of potatoes made into fries.  IT WAS HUGE!!!!  We both just stared at the tray and started laughing.  I looked at Mike and said "we are never going to be able to finish these".  His response was "I am sure as heck going to try".  Well we made a good dent in them but ultimately he said "uncle" and was done.

We popped into a place called Fascination.  Mike had remembered coming to it when he was a child.  It was a room filled with all these games, that you had to throw these two balls continuously up the ramp and into the holes.  When someone in the room got 5 across they won and you got tickets to be redeemed on "stuff".  We played three games and I must admit it was a lot of fun.  I actually won 3 tickets but gave them to some little kids that were playing on the other side of the room.

Just a fun old place.

After walking through the strip we decided to ride our bikes down the strip.  That was a fun experience.  The cars were not going fast at all and it is only a two lane road, that you also shared with motorcycles, golf carts and these peddle carts .  It was a wonderful day.  Tomorrow we plan to meet up with Mikes cousin Pat and her husband Tony.

Just peddling down the road.

Having a grand ole time.

Lady J with her newest edition a tarp to help shade the sun.  It's working!!!!!

Change of location, change of attitude

Crossing the Bay

It is amazing what a change in location can do for ones attitude.  Thursday morning the rain had finally stopped, the temperatures had dropped and the wind had picked up.  So we made the decision to stay in Presque Isle, PA one more night but move from the Erie Yacht Club over to Wolverine Park.  It was one of the best moves we made.  The folks at Wolverine were attentive, helpful and cheaper.  The location was also more conducive to visiting town.  We docked at Wolverine around 11:30 a.m. and quickly decided to get off the boat and do some site seeing. We had been cooped up on the boat for the past two days and our attitudes had gone south.  Oh before I get to our excursion I must let you know that as we were pulling into the marina and trying to communicate with the young man at the dock as to what slip he wanted us to pull into our radio on the flying bridge died right as the young man was telling us where to go.   The first mate mad a quick scramble down to the other radio below and continued the conversation and we were then back on track.  Always something to humble you.

Erie Museum of Art

So back to getting off the boat.  Our first stop was down to the bay to a local marine store to buy a hand held radio to supplement the one on the bridge. They had exactly what Mike needed and we were on our way.  Downtown Erie, PA is a wonderful town.  We walked about a mile up the hill to town, past a large Hospital complex and also through Gannon University (which we had never hear of).  We actually for the first time on this trip came across a farmers market.  Needless to say we purchased some goodies (corn on the cob, tomatoes and zucchini) for our dinner this evening.  We have had the worst luck trying to get any kind of fruits or vegetables on this trip.  It seems whatever port we get to we have missed the farmers market by a couple of days.  So we were overjoyed to see this one.

Yum!

By this time we were getting a bit hungry and started looking for a place to grab lunch.  Well we came across a hot dog vendor in the town square and thought what the heck.  We ate hot dogs and sausages on a wall at the park and had the best time.  We then spent the next hour or so just walking around.  We came across a street performer entertaining a bunch of children along with some folks that were in the park enjoying their lunch.  We walked through part of the campus on Gannon University and enjoyed all the wonderful scenery.

We returned back to the boat for a rest and to return our new found "goodies".  The rest didn't last long as Mike wanted to go visit the museum where the flagship Niagara was docked.  We had seen the Niagara at Put N Bay last summer when it was partaking in the anniversary celebration of the battle of Lake Erie.  The museum was a wonderful place and we recommend it to anyone visiting the area.

Fountain in town square

A street performer entertaining some kids in the park.

Frogs seem to be the "thing" in Erie.  Like lighthouses are in Sandusky.

Great old buildings.  We had linner at this Tap house.

The flowers around town were spectacular

This stone road was actually blocked off and had a marker stating this was some
of the original road from when the town was first built.  How cool is that?

Part of Erie Courthouse

After spending most of the afternoon site seeing we soon realized that the hotdogs we had earlier left us a bit hungry by 3:30 so yes we stopped for "linner" you know that meal between lunch and dinner (actually instead of dinner).  We had an enjoyed our meal eating outside watching people and enjoying the beautiful weather.  Erie we will be back some day and be sure to stay at Wolverine Park.

Shucking corn for our upcoming dinner. 

Look another frog at the museum

The USS Niagara

Enjoying the day!