September 2nd 2010

Hello friends and family!! First I want to reassure all of you that we are fine and unless hurricane Earl takes a real wide swing to the west, we should be very safe where we are at. We are about 100 miles up the Potomac River, off of the Chesapeake Bay, at Fort Washington. We have spent the past 2 weeks in Washington DC, having a family reunion with Austin, Cindy, Matt, Jacinda, and James. We were sightseeing every day from early morning until late at night, and there was no time for me to update the blog. Sorry, but family always comes first!

We had a fabulous time in DC. The boat was moored at the Capital City Yacht Club, right on the waterfront, in the hub of the city. If we could have jumped over the freeway bridges, we would have been standing at the Jefferson Memorial, and we could see the top of the Washington Memorial from the marina. We were a block away from the busline, and only a few blocks from the subway, so we could get anywhere in the city in a very short time. We were thoroughly spoiled!! The yacht club had great facilities: floating docks, showers, library, computer access, bar, and brand new washers and dryers for only $1.00 a load!! Plus, they had a very active club with events about twice a week!

On August 21st, we made our way up the Potomac River, a very long and wide river, but also very shallow. It has a dredged channel to follow, that allows the ships and barges to get up to DC, but on either side of that, it is only 4 to 8 feet deep! It is a beautiful trip though. We were especially impressed with seeing Mt Vernon, Washington’s home, and Fort Washington across the river. Then cruising right up into DC was spectacular!

We only had a short time to wait, and then all of the kids joined us at the marina, so they could see the boat. After a tour of their parents new home, we all went to the Chinese restaurant upstairs from the yacht club and had dinner. Then, our first night in DC was over!

On Sunday the 22nd, we took a tour of the city on Old Town Trolley Tours. Our first stop was the Archives Building, where we saw the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. James was a little young to understand the importance of what he was seeing, but he was a real trooper! Next we visited the major monuments: Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the Teddy Roosevelt Memorial, and the Abraham Lincoln Memorial. James had studied Abe Lincoln in school, so he was most impressed with this monument! We ended the day by meeting Austin for dinner at a restaurant up by the Marriott where he works .

On Monday the 23rd, we spent nearly the entire day at the Air & Space Museum. This was a big hit with the guys!!! It was pretty amazing to see the Wright Brothers very first airplane. We ended the day with dinner at Union Station.

Tuesday the 24th, we loaded our old inflatable on the roof of Cindy’s Jeep Cherokee, and transported it to Annapolis. We dropped everyone off in the downtown area for sightseeing, and Dave and I worked out the exchange of inflatables and getting the new one registered in Maryland. Then we met up with the group for lunch at Chick and Ruth’s Deli. It is a quaint New York Deli that was featured on the Food Network. Austin had wanted to eat there the last time we were in Annapolis, but it was too crowded. This time we got in, and everyone seemed to enjoy their food. Too bad Austin had to work that day!

We got the new inflatable back to DC and had time to put it to work. Dave took James for a boat ride that I’m sure he’ll always remember! The yacht club had a BBQ dinner that night, so we decided to stick around for some great food!

On Wednesday the 25th, we spent most of the day at the Woodley Park Zoo. We saw some great animals. The best one was the lion. He was really putting on a show. He was roaring, and strutting his stuff! We also enjoyed the gorillas, especially the baby, and getting to watch some research they were doing with the orangatangs.
After that, we met up with Austin, who drove us to the National Cathedral. We got to see the inside this time. Quite impressive!! Then we were off to the National’s baseball game against the Chicago Cubs. It was a perfect night for baseball, but they still lost. We had a great time anyway! We paid $10.00 a head to get in, and because of the low attendance, we were able to sit on the first level, right off third base, in foul territory! Awesome!

Thursday the 26th, we played spy all day, at the International Spy Museum. Everyone had a great time, especially James! He liked crawling through the air ducts. I liked seeing James Bond’s car!! After our mission, we went out to Austin and Cindy’s apartment in Silver Spring. It was time for a dip in the pool. Boy! Did that feel good!

After the sun set, it was time to eat, so we jumped in the car and headed to the Pyrate Tavern!! We had so much fun!!! All of the staff is dressed in pirate garb, and we had us a pitcher of grog!! AAARRRGGGHHH! Was it ever strong! I finally had to add some coke, in order to drink it! James received a gold dubloon from a pirate captain, and had his face painted by one of the wenches. We stayed long enough to watch the “stupid fire tricks”, out in the back alley of the restaurant. A good time was had by all.

On Friday the 27th we split up. Cindy, Jacinda and James went to the Crime & Punishment Museum, and Matt, Dave and I went to the American History Museum. Afterwards, we met up at the White House, then went to a jazz concert in the Sculpture Garden, not far away. Then right about sunset, we met up with Austin and we all went to the top of the Washington Monument. It was spectacular!! What a way to see the city at dusk! When we finally came down to earth, we took a cab over to the Georgetown waterfront, and had dinner on the veranda overlooking the water. Another great day!

Saturday the 28th came all too soon, and before we knew it, we were saying good bye to Matt, Jacinda, and James at the airport!! We had such a great week together!

On Sunday the 29th, Austin, Dave and I took off in the car for Mt. Vernon, George Washington’s home, not far from the nation’s capital. The grounds and buildings have been completely restored and there are demonstrations going on in some of the buildings, from artists in period costumes. You also get to tour the house itself, which was quite interesting! George Washington and his wife, Martha, are buried on the estate, as well as many other family members, and the slaves that worked the plantation. After leaving Mt. Vernon, we drove back to Silver Spring and met up with Cindy for dinner at Red Lobster.

Monday the 30th, we had planned to leave DC and move the boat to Annapolis, but weather reports on Hurricane Earl have caused us to change our plans. If we leave now, we will be in the middle of the Chesapeake when Earl hits. Not a good idea!! Soooo, we will stay put for a few days. With more time on our hands, we decided to visit the Natural History Museum. With temperatures in the mid 90’s, we needed to stay air conditioned. Inside the museum, we were too cold!

Tuesday the 21st, we spent the day at the Newseum. They had a great display of all of the Pulitzer prize winning photographs from years past, as well as an exhibit about the fall of the Berlin Wall. Unfortunately, we ran out of time to see everything the Newseum had to offer. We went back to the club, where they were having a grilled pizza dinner. Delicious!!!

Wednesday September 1st we left DC and moved the boat to Fort Washington Marina, a little further down river, but we will leave the boat here during the storm that Hurricane Earl is bound to send our way, and during the time we are back in the Pacific Northwest. We will fly to Seattle on Wednesday, September 8th, and return to DC on Thursday, September 23rd. During this time we plan to visit family and friends, attend 2 Husky football games, and take care of medical and dental needs. I do not plan to update the blog during this time, as our adventures will be put on hold, but come the end of September, you will be able to read about our newest adventures!

I do have to regress, just a bit, to tell you about an adventure we had on the Yaecomico River in Virginia, after we had just entered the Chesapeake. We needed a place to anchor for the night, so we left the bay and headed up the Yaecomico. We had just gotten settled, and the sun was going down, when a figure silhouetted in the dark, asked if we were friend or foe. Lo and behold, it was a pirate at the helm of his very own ship!! Pictures are to the right. He takes it upon himself to be the welcoming committee to Virginia. What a kick!! We talked with him for several minutes and exchanged emails. We will never forget our evening on that serene little bay. Dave laughed and laughed for hours after our encounter!

So now you know what we’ve been up to, having a wonderful time!! We hope that all of you are doing well and having wonderful adventures of your own.

Love & Hugs,

The Admiral