Captain and first mate of the Picobello are back home in Arthur Ont. Canada. We are grateful to Kathy and Harold Rogers of the Sonsie of Meaford, who gave us a ride back home so we could pick up our vehicle .
The plans are to take our own transportation back to Annapolis (where the Picobello is docked) and prepare to get her hauled in due time and be winterized for a overwintering in the Annapolis area.
It is indeed a pleasure meeting all the people we have met so far on the loop. It has greatly enriched our lives!!!!
We especially want to thank the Huggins who have made their private dock our home for the last few weeks, while we were waiting for word on the flooding situation on the Erie canal. We can not transit the other route home (the Champlain) as we are too high to get under some of the fixed bridges. Our only option is to wait for the canal to open again, which will not happen for possibly 2 months. Once it opens again (if it opens again this season) we will not have enough time to make it home in time for other commitments we have in the fall.
So God willing, we will continue our loop next year, and arrive back in our home port in beautiful Georgian Bay!!!

Harold and Bill think the food is finger-licking good

The end result, a delicious feest of corn, potatos, shrimp, sausage, and crab, and delicious spices, that is "dumped" on spread out news papers on the picnic table.!!!! AND every one dig in.....

Saterday July 8th we are invited aboard the Sonsi of Meaford and are guest of Harold and Kathy Rogers (fellow loopers)
Roy and Elvie Short prepare a "low country boil" for us.

Eleanor showes us the sites in Annapolis.

This is the statue of Alex Haley, author of "ROOTS" The reason it is in Annapolis, is that this is the site where the first slave arrived in America.

One of the meals on the deck overlooking the creek
F L T R-- Richard- Joanne- Eleanor- Jeannine and David

The Huggin's residence is nestled in the trees on the bank of the creek

Despite the high water we are very comfortable at the Huggin's private dock.

The severe rains of the past days causes the water to rise in the creek

Entering Saltworks Creek near Annapolis

Last Monday June 26th we arrived in Annapolis. After anchoring out for a night we found the dock of David, and Eleanor (Eleanor is a cousin of our friend Richard Ross) On Friday, we met Richard and Jeannine. We are docked at what must be the prettiest creek in and around Annapolis. We will not soon forget the warmth with which we have been received here, and the beauty of our surroundings.

One thing that is not so nice is the fact that the rains have caused havoc with the waterways we have to travel in order to get home. On the Hudson river just south of where the Erie Canal dumps in to it a marina could not withstand the fast current, and the debris. The net result was that all the docks and all 75 boats in the marina gave out. You can imagine the destruction that caused for marina, and boats alike.

Some of the locks in the Erie canal have sustained severe damage, to the point that they are inoperable. Apparently it could take more than a month to repair them, and rumor has it that the canal might not open again this season.

We will have to wait and see.

The Picobello is finally untied from the dock in Crown Point Marina on the York river.

On our way back from a visit home to Canada, we spent some time in Gettysburg. Toured the battlefields of the civil war of 1861/1865. The battle of Gettysburg is said to have been the turning point of the civil war.

From the marina in the mouth of the York river, we toured the historical places in Virginia, and learned a lot about the first settlers of British decent.

Than on to Deltaville, and Tangier Island with the Picobello. Anyone doing the loop, who has not stopped in Tangier Island has missed a lot. The 600 inhabitants only industry is "crabbing" . You see crab shacks everywhere as you enter one of the two only inlets to the Island. The Island is only about one and a half mile wide, and two and one half mile long. It has a post office, a small grocery store, two churches, a small fire department, and two or three restaurants. The marina owner gave us a personal tour of the island in his golf cart. Mr Milton Parks, is a very nice 74 year old man. The population is very friendly to visitors. Tangier Island is one place we will not soon forget.

From Tangier Island we went to the Solomons Islands. On our way we were intercepted by a military patrol boat. We were asked to change our coarse to port a few degrees, as we were too close to a target ship that was just about to be bombed. (There are several large old ship's used for target practice by the USA air force, in the Chesapeake.) Not long after we were approached we herd the planes thunder overhead on route to their target.
Never a dull moment!!!

The only transportation on the island is, bike, scooter, or golf cart. If you don't have either of these you are walking. That is not all bad, as you can walk around the Island in less than one hour.

We got a personalized tour from Milton Parks, the who runs the only marina on the Island.

Entering "Tangier Island" Population 600 we thought we had gone back in time 100 years or so.
Tangier is an Island in the middle of the Chesapeake. The only business on the Island is "crabbing" Crab shacks is the only thing that lines the only two entrances to the Island.

After having been tied to a dock (while we made a visit home to Canada) we are on our way to Tangier Island.

Oops a close encounter with a container carrying ocean freighter.

Williamsburg, A colonial town near Jamestown.

A reproduction of one of the fleet of three that brought the settlers to Jamestown,
The "Gotspeed"

Hard to imagine this boat just over 60 feet came across the Atlantic!!

Jamestown claims to be the birth place of the USA. This is a recreated village as it was in 1609

(first British settlement)

Home of the famous "Boyed Bears" close to Gettysburg.

I have never seen so many stuffed bears in one place. They claim over 70.000.00

Joanne standing beside our guide during a tour of Gettysburg battlefield

While we were at home the grand kids came to hang arround!!!

Here are Joel and his sister Alexis

Catching frogs not many Girls would do that now would they.

Feeding the fish.

All 7 of them!!

We have been home for almost three weeks. While at home we visited with a lot of Fam. and Friends, and helped out some with our kids projects. Monday June 12th we will be heading back to the Picobello to resume our trip up the Chesapeake. Also I have with the help from my son changed the blog, so that you can add a comment. All you need to do is click on the "COMMENT" box on the last posting, leave your message, and fill in the "WORD VERIFICATION" and click on "LOGIN AND PUBLISH" and whalla, we will receive your comments. Your comments are always welcome!!!

While at home we had to check out the new addition to the fold,
One of three new born Norwegian Fjord 's

Brandy, and her new baby

Now THAT'S a ship!!!!!

Left overs anyone????

One of the many dolphins we saw on our trip... Oops he is gone again....

A crab fisherman getting ready to deposit his crab traps

The Picobello is docked at Crown Point Marina, in the mouth of the York river.
We traveled almost 200 nm in the last couple of days to get here.
The Pamlico river was not very friendly to us, nor the Albemarle sound. The only other times our furniture was thrown all over the boat is when we were crossing lake Michigan, and the Gulf of Mexico. However we survived.

The boat was so covered with salt that it took most of one day to get it all washed off.

We will be staying in Crown Point for the next few weeks, while we go home for some Fam. functions.