Nice boat! Good friends!

We spent the evening at Herb and Wilma's, along with two other couples. Started our visit there with a tour of their new tug...


I'd really like to be able to show you the beautiful interior in that Ranger Tug and some photos of the 8 of us gathered around the dining table, but my camera batteries died right after I took the shot above. Spirited conversation. We got to hear about some of Herb and Wilma's travels in the Pacific Northwest this past summer, met another budding writer in Jerry and Gay, and tried to convince Herb's neighbors Joe and Pearl that they should bring their 64' boat down from Island Moornings for the boat parade next month. And, Jake the wonder dog got plenty of petting during the evening, too. Fun time!

Wind is howling and spitting rain...

Yeah, sounds like a good day for a boat ride. ;-) We knew it was going to be "spirited", so little Izzy stayed home. She was being especially cute, though...


In her "fortress"...


As expected, the water was sloppy... the weather weasels called it: rough bay conditions. Wild Blue called it: fun. We ran around in a couple of the local channels before heading out to the ship channel; mostly just checking out what has changed... boats moved, some new docks, way fewer shrimp boats. Into the channel, it was pretty flat on the south side of our island with the north wind. It felt good just to be out.


As the boat bounced around in the chop, Joan said, "It doesn't look that bad."

"Um, I'd call this 2 1/2 foot waves stacked right on top of each other. One heck of a fetch from the north."

When we got to the jetties area, the waves were crashing over the jetties, making them barely visible...


First time in a very long time there wasn't a single person out there fishing. ;-)

Wild Blue got a thorough fresh water wash down when we got home, but no point in wiping her down - the wind is just going to howl through the night.

So?

Have you been out and about?

Not much, but thanks for asking. Neither of us has been feeling great (somebody with an ugly cold bug must have breathed on us), it's been hotter and windier than usual, and the red tide makes come and go appearances. But, we've been puttering around on the boat, getting her set up to be home-on-the-water again.

Soon.

More like it...

The weather weasels predicted partly cloudy, breezy, warm... 2 out of 3 ain't bad. Maybe by "partly" cloudy they meant: really overcast? Didn't matter, we were up for a boat ride this morning. Out out canal, down the ICW a short ways to the swing bridge, through the swing bridge and into the Laguna Madre. The view from the helm...


Looks like it should be cold, huh? No, the wind was making for some chop on the water, which splashed on the windshield; but, it was around 75º. We chugged out the jetties and poked our nose into the Gulf; plenty lumpy out there...


Oh well, the boat is going to need a thorough wash down when we get back, anyway. Plenty of people fishing on the jetties (some of the highrises on South Padre Island in the background)...


Back up the ship channel, looking for dolphins. Lots of pelicans diving for fish, but no dolphins. Making the turn into the Port Isabel channel, we slowed to wait for a passing barge. And, right behind the barge...


Yep - dolphins! Lots of dolphins! To the left - to the right!


And, the dolphin shot of the day...


Nice way to start our time on the water back home. The shrimpers we saw in the Gulf made their way in - one towing the other...


Joan at the helm...


Back home, we spent the afternoon cleaning and loading the boat. Still checking out systems as we go... and starting a list of what we need to order. Joan worked inside while I scrubbed down the exterior. We had taken everything out of the boat for storage; I made 6 trips carrying stuff down... and I had the easy part. Joan put it all away. The boat really swallows up a lot of stuff without getting lower on her lines.

Don't forget to set your clocks back tonight (or first thing in the morning). More light in the morning, darker sooner late afternoon. I missed my opportunity this morning to sleep in and still get to photograph the sunrise... had the sun been able to show itself.

Back where she belongs...

Nothing to do with Bill Bailey.

We picked up Wild Blue from the boatyard today... bottom paint done, sorta on schedule. We were told that she would go back in the water after lunch, so we thought we had time to spruce up some metal below the coaming, above the waterline (the swim ladder, the through-hull trim rings)... nope, the boat was in the water when we arrived.

We loaded our stuff (PFDs, lines, fenders, paperwork) onboard, paid the bill (only 10% over the estimate), and shoved off... it should be interesting to see what all works or doesn't. Most things worked. We ran out to the ship channel, did a U-turn, and came back to the fuel dock...


We put on half a tank, reset the fuel flow meter, and headed for our dock. Even with all the cleaning I did last week, Wild Blue is again in need of a bath and a scrubbing. Joan started working on the interior while I did the outside...


We still need to do a thorough check of all the systems - didn't have time to put water on, check lights, etc, etc. No schedule at this point, so it'll get done when it gets done. Wild Blue is back at her dock; life is good.

Tomorrow, tomorrow...

Sadly, you are missing my Annie impersonation. OK, maybe not such a bad thing.

Wild Blue will be done... tomorrow. Would have been done today, but a norther blew in, and it was cold and windy. When I checked on the progress today, I wasn't surprised that no one wanted to be out working in that, um... "frigid" temp... in the 60s. ;-) Everything is done except that small space under the blocks, and they will get that first thing in the morning. Two coats, four hours to completely dry - the boat should be ready to splash after lunch. And that timing works for us, too; the wind was gusting above 35 today. On the bright side, we have lines and fenders ready at the dock, so Wild Blue come home to what she's used to.

On the water...

No, not on Wild Blue - she got her first coat of bottom paint today...


She's looking pretty. Hopefully, we'll get her back in a couple days.

Our water time was via kayaks today, and a beautiful day it was: high around 80º, plenty of sunshine, not much wind. Launching from our dock is a bit of a reach when the tide is out...


Up and down the canals on our island...


Out into the ICW...


That is the marina in the background where Wild Blue is getting her bottom pampered. We ran against the current, feeling like we were hardly moving... and with the current, feeling like real speedsters. Back into our canals, up and around, and home again.

Little Izzy is enjoying life back in the Tropical Tip, too. Backlit on her tower...


Supper out on the deck.

Warmer tomorrow, while I pace and wait for word on when Wild Blue will be done. Probably Thursday, but one never knows - tropical work schedules are ... um ... not done on a schedule.