WE’VE BEEN WORKING/PLAYING ON OBSESSION

We’ve been working on Obsession

All these past few days. 

We’ve been playing on Obsession

Just to pass the time away.

We can hear Key West a calling

“Rise up early in the morn”

And the ICW whispering

“Obsession, Come on Down!”

(Sung to the tune of 

I’ve been working on the Railroad”

The refrigeration and freezer are installed and working very well. However, we are thinking we’d like thermostats for both units. It’s hard to regulate the temperatures otherwise. Combined they use about the same voltage the single 14 year old Adler Barbour used. But with the extreme heat and humidity the past 10 Days, and several days in a row with relatively little sun, we had to run the engine often to keep up. Having a freezer means lots of good food too. Pan seared Salmon with fresh cucumbers, zucchini and summer squash and porcini mushroom couscous with chopped almonds and craisins. And fresh Vineyard Sound Striped Bass with tomato and melon salad and the leftover couscous from the salmon a few nights earlier. David pronounced them both “restaurant fare”. 

On our most recent trip to the Vineyard our VHF radio started acting up. Believe it or not-3 years to the day we purchased it. (Warranty is good for 3 years from date of purchase). So our first stop in Vineyard Haven was to West Marine to order a replacement. It was shipped the very next day to the surprise of the clerk and us! 

Our second stop was to a sailmaker. The sail cover zipper broke and had to be replaced. Annabelle from Sperry Sails had it all done by Friday. 

In between we enjoyed a dinner at The Red Cat and Illumination Night in Oak Bluffs, 

A morning out of the scorching heat at theVineyard  Haven Library, 

A day of window shopping in Edgartown

And finally the Oak Bluffs Fireworks. They did not disappoint. 

The next day the weather made a turn for the worse, thunderstorms and gusty winds, 

so we hunkered down in The Lagoon for two days, before heading back to Cuttyhunk one last time.  

The weather was perfect for David to dive on the bottom and replace the zincs on the prop in Cuttyhunk. 

A final Raw Bar delivery a fuel and water stop were on our agenda while we waited for the final round of thunderstorms to slowly work their way through before venturing out to Block Island.

 A minor delay, the port rub rail came loose when we were dockside getting fuel and water in Cuttyhunk and David again earned his lobster lunch. 

NOAH’s forecast of of 5-10 knot winds from the NW was seriously wrong. We encountered almost 20 knots, and it was more from the west, switching to the SW making it difficult to sail against the current. So, motor-sailing was the way to go, resulting in a pretty fast, salty 5 hour trip anchor to anchor. Along the way we encountered a tug and barge, fishing boats and cargo ships. 

Finally! Beautiful, sunny, drying weather In New Harbor, Block Island. 

We found our Favorite Anchor Spot open and with precision and ease (and the help of our new headphones) dropped anchor, showered and headed in to The Oar for Mudslides and  Sushi. 

We always seem to find the same seats at the upstairs bar, and enjoy meeting new people in that corner.  

The 

The next few days we fiddled with a few more things, tightened lifelines, sorted through “stuff” in drawers and cupboards, made covers for the dinghy fender and replaced the screens.  

We plotted and planned, then re-plotted and planned, met up with George and Marge Webster, (MAGGIE) Eddie Homer (IRISH WAKE) and Paula and John Joaquin (DOGS)

A few more laughs, a few more remembrances and a few more Mudslides. 

Sunday we finally moved on. While the plan was  to head to Fishers Island, we steered further west and headed to Coecles Harbor in Shelter Island. We passed 1GI. Gardiners Island Bell and it officially welcomed us to New York waters with a loud GONG!

Reasoning? Other than it’s a beautiful spot? And a North Pacific 43 sighting!

It’s an hour or less from Greenport where we will stay dockside for 4 nights (stay 3 get the 4th free), 

Grocery shopping, laundry, cleaning and charging batteries are on our list of things to do along with a trip to the library to update this blog, a surprise evening band concert, a movie (Mission Imposdible) to stay cool and some window shopping. 

Meanwhile, we’ve made FB friends with several Catalina42 owners planning to travel south this winter. Melvin Buster Bellwood and Michelle (Belle), Merri and Doug Purdy (Purdy Suite) and Dave Schiever and Michelle Mctygue  (Half Baked) who are presently in Lake Erie with their mast down headed this way through the Erie Canal. We share stories  and chat on FB, and can’t wait to meet in person. Others, like Ann Snider in Northport, Long Island, Addison Chan who spends much time in Cuba, Stephen Pace in CA was such a help with the refrigeration installation, Danny Villagoza with hisnever ending questions and research skills have offered ideas and encouragement, we look forward to meeting you and others in the coming months. We bumped into (not literally) Deb and Steve Crane (Outbound) from WI in Cuttyhunk on their way back from a summer “down east”. 

Our Current thinking is to be in NYC around Sept. 7. But who knows? We still  have to consult Eldridge and the weatherman, (Zack Green, I’ll miss sharing my sunrises with you and your forecasts), so here are a few last sunrises of Cuttyhunk, Block Island and Coecles Harbor. 

 

I think  “We hear Key West a calling...”