NYC, Wine Country, Project House, Farm

One last blog before the end of the year.  We have been busy traveling and doing projects.

One of the things on my Mom's bucket list was to go to New York City.  Mid-October, my mom, her friend Barbara from Colusa, her friend Marilyn from Ellendale, ND and I traveled to NYC for a week of touring.  We arrived on Saturday night and settled into our hotel, The New Yorker  www.newyorkerhotel.com.  Sunday morning, Jacques, one of Barbara's former students, cooked breakfast for us at his art studio.

Jacques, Barbara, Marilyn and Louise at Jacques' art studio

After breakfast we went on a walking tour of Manhattan with stops at Times Square, the library, and Grand Central Station.

Marilyn, Louise and Barbara - Times Square

Barbara and Marilyn - The New York public library

Sunday night, we joined up with our tour group, Road Scholar.  The overview of our trip can be found at their website https://www.roadscholar.org/n/program/summary.aspx?id=1-1OQXQ

We signed in, picked up our paperwork and then went to supper at the Tick Tock Diner.  After supper, we went back to the meeting room, did some introductions and then listened to a lecture about the five boroughs of NYC.  After the lecture we walked to the Empire State Building and rode up to the top for a view of the city.

Monday, we all got subway passes and then rode the subway up to St. Patrick's Cathedral and Radio City music hall where we took a guided tour.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Wall Paper at Radio City Music Hall

Radio City Music Hall Staircase Mural

Supper was at a Chinese restaurant near our hotel.  After supper we listened to a lecture about the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  Tuesday morning we rode the subway down to the Battery and then caught the ferry to Liberty Island.  We spent the morning touring the museum at the base of the statue and walking around the out.  After lunch, we rode the ferry to Ellis Island and toured the immigration station there.

A replica of the torch

B and Louise at Statue of Liberty

After Ellis Island, we walked to the 9-11 memorial.  Back to the hotel and then supper at a nearby Greek Restaurant.  After supper, we rode the subway to the Chelsea District and walked the High Line Park and through Chelsea market.  Somebody in the group clocked our miles walked at over 12 so we were ready for our bunks at the end of the day.

Wednesday morning we toured Broadway and the theater district followed by a picnic lunch outside at Bryant Park.  Wednesday afternoon was free time so we opted for a guided walk through Harlem.  The four of us went to an Italian restaurant near the theater district for supper and then went to see "Beautiful - the Carole King Story".  We all enjoyed the show and were able to sing along to most of the music.

Thursday we walked through Central Park and spent the day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  After Thursday night supper, we took a walking tour of Greenwich Village.  Friday was the last day of the tour.  We checked out of the hotel and flew back to California.

After all of that traveling, Dave and I decided we needed a break so we spent a few days in Sonoma County touring wine country and visiting friends.

B near a butterfly garden at a winery

Dave enjoying a glass of wine

Touring a vineyard with friends Greg and Chris

The first two weeks of November B attended a Captain's Course in Alameda as the final step in applying for her 100-ton Captain's license.  The course included rules of the road, navigation, charting, weather, knot-tying, boat handling, safety, etc.  The last day of class was a series of tests.  The first was rules of the road, followed by navigation/charting, then deck general, then navigation general and finally towing.  If you are interested in the Captain's Course, here is a link to Maritime Institute, based in San Diego  maritimeinstitute.com  I passed all of the tests and spent the weekend preparing my paperwork to submit to the US Coast Guard for my license.  Last time I checked, they were in the process of reviewing my application.

We moved the boat from Oakland to Richmond on Friday afternoon November 13th. 

The Bay Bridge with the San Francisco skyline in the background

Mary, Scott, Nathan and Sara came to visit us in Richmond on Saturday afternoon.  We had lunch and then stopped to visit the Rosie the Riveter monument.

Scott, Mary, Sara and B at the Rosie the Riveter Monument

We spent the rest of the weekend winterizing the boat.  On Monday we headed for Colusa.  Tuesday we went to the casino for senior day and then did a few chores at my mom's house.  Wednesday morning, my brother Kevin drove us to the Sacramento and we flew to Austin.

We decided to buy a fixer-upper in Austin, right across the street from Ben, Cat and the grandkids.  A hoarder lived in the house so it is in pretty bad shape.  So, our project for the winter is to fix it up.  We spent three weeks in Austin doing demolition and getting quotes for the remodel.  The pictures here will give you an idea of the scope of the project.  Everything in the house needs to be replaced with the exception of the studs and the slab.  But... it has good bones and will be a nice place once we finish.  We'll post more pictures as we make progress.

Derek, Chris and Heather suited up and ready to do demo.

Dave and Derek - finished with popcorn and linoleum removal
in the back bedroom.

B taking a break on the back patio

Removal of the attic insulation batts

B removing the popcorn in the kitchen

Kitchen demo

Tree removal

We did have some fun over the long Thanksgiving weekend.  We took the grandkids, Maggie and Benjamin, to the luminarium and then had a huge Thanksgiving feast on Saturday.

Exterior view of the Luminarium

Heather, Derek and Maggie inside the blue room.

Ben and Cat walking with Benjamin

Cat, Ben, Maggie and Benjamin inside the red room

Sheila and Joe at our temporary rental house
in Austin, ready for our Thanksgiving feast.

Mid-December we decided we had accomplished as much as we could on the project house before the holidays and headed to Sweet Pea Farm in Alabama.  Of course, we stopped at the casinos in Coushatta and Biloxi along the way, but no luck.  Since we arrived here, we have been doing farm chores, getting ready for hunting and unlaxing.

B and Puddy enjoying the fire.

Dave sitting in a tree stand

That's it for 2015.  Happy Holidays to all and see you next year.

Arrival in San Francisco Bay Area

Location:  Oakland, CA

Golden Gate Bridge

We have arrived in Oakland and plan to be docked here in the Bay Area until boating season begins again next spring.  We enjoyed the rest of our journey to Oakland and had great weather coming under the Golden Gate Bridge, with the fog clearing away as we approached.  Details of the rest of our journey and what we’ve been doing since we arrived are below.

Sea Otter and Seagull, Morro Bay

Tuesday, September 15 – Morro Bay to San Simeon, 25 nm, 3.7 hours, avg. speed 6.8 knots

The journey from Morro Bay to San Simeon was uneventful.  We saw a few sea otters swimming in the bay as we left.  We arrived at the San Simeon anchorage about 11:30.  It was calm and we were the only boat there until later in the day when two sail boats arrived.  Hearst Castle was visible up on the hill above the shoreline.

Shoreline, San Simeon anchorage

Wednesday, September 16 – San Simeon to Monterey, 82 nm, 10.8 hours, avg. speed 7.6 knots

This was our longest voyage of our journey up the coast.  We left the San Simeon anchorage before sunrise and arrived in Monterey about 4:00 p.m.  The weather was clear and the views along the coast were spectacular including Point Sur Lighthouse and the Pebble Beach golf course in Carmel.  We tied up at the Monterey Municipal docks and went into town to Peter B’s brewpub for supper.  Great beer!

Point Sur Lighthouse

Several sealions used the dock next to us to sunbathe on every day and to sleep on at night.  Although they were fun to watch, they barked all night and puked fish guts all over the side of the boat.  Gross and annoying! 

Sealions on the dock, Monterey Marina

We spent one day at the Monterey Aquarium which was fascinating.  

Jellyfish, Monterey Aquarium

Puffin, Monterey Aquarium

Ray and shark, Monterey Aquarium

Our timing turned out good as it was Monterey Jazz Fest weekend, so we spent Saturday listening to music.

Dave relaxing in the shade, Monterey Jazz Fest

Sonny Knight and the Lakers, Monterey Jazz Fest

Sunday, September 20 – Monterey to Half Moon Bay (Pillar Point), 63 nm, 8.7 hours, avg. speed 7.2 knots

Half Moon Bay was our last stop before arrival in the San Francisco Bay.  Our original plan was to stay for only one night, but it was a nice quiet anchorage with plenty of restaurants nearby, so we decided to stay and enjoy it for a few days.  We didn’t do much, went ashore for supper a few times and rode the bus into town to get groceries.  We caught up on some maintenance and other chores.  The weather and tide schedule looked good for a Friday journey to the SF Bay. 

Sunset, Half Moon Bay

Friday, September 25 – Half Moon Bay to Oakland, 36 nm, 4.9 hours, avg. speed 7.3 knots

Friday morning we heaved anchor for our last leg of the journey.  We calculated our time of departure from Half Moon Bay as 8:00 a.m. which would put us cruising under the Golden Gate Bridge about 11:00 a.m., at the end of the flood tide close to slack water.  The weather was slightly overcast and the bridge was shrouded in fog as we approached.  As we got closer, the wind picked up slightly and the fog slowly lifted away from the bridge.  Going under was exciting and we had a clear view of the bay and San Francisco.  We decided to dock in Oakland so that we would be close to the Perkins master diesel mechanic who we plan to use to help us with some engine maintenance.

Alcatraz

Coit Tower

Bay Bridge

House boats on the Oakland Estuary

For our first weekend in the Bay Area, we checked out the local casino (not very good) and had dinner at a German restaurant in Alameda.  On Tuesday, Dave flew to Alabama to spend some time on the farm.  

Adding crushed rock to Sweet Pea Farm Lane, Alabama

My brother, Kevin, picked me up and took me to Colusa, where he and my mom both live.  We went to the Colusa Casino for senior day but didn’t win anything.

Thursday, October 1 – San Francisco to Cabo San Lucas

Time for a fabulous girls’ vacation.  Five of us flew to Cabo San Lucas to spend a long weekend in luxury.  We stayed at the Riu Palace all-inclusive resort.  We lounged by the pool, ate delicious food, drank tasty cocktails and shared stories and laughs.  Saturday Rosie, Pam, Rachel and I went diving / snorkeling.  While we were out on the water, a huge rain squall blew in and our trip was cut short.  Rosie went back to finish her dives on Monday while Pam, Mary and I did some shopping in town.  Tuesday was the end of our adventure and we all headed home – Mary, Rosie, Rachel and I to the Bay Area and Pam to the LA area.

B and Mary with a Boogie Nights dancer

B snorkeling near Pelican Rocks, Cabo San Lucas

Pam and Rachel scuba diving, Pelican Rocks, Cabo San Lucas

Rosie and Pam taking a break from shopping, Cabo San Lucas

Wednesday, October 7 – Oakland to Colusa

Wednesday I drove back up to Colusa to spend some more time with family.  We had pizza at Kevin’s, went to the casino, went to Yuba City to do some shopping and on Saturday, I took a first aid / CPR course.  Sunday I drove back to Oakland and the boat.

Kim at the Colusa Donut shop

Although our boating time will be limited over the next six months, we will be doing some day cruises on the SF Bay and some land based traveling.  Until next time…