​Current Location:  Charlotte Amalie Harbor Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, windy (15-20), occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: We've been anchored here in Charlotte Amalie for the past week enjoying the weather, XYZZY company, and visits into town for shopping, sightseeing, visiting, and local cuisine.  We've wrapped up a few small projects, had a minor plumbing emergency (leaking water line) that needed to be fixed, and gotten the boat ready for our best loved VIP guest.  Yes, our daughter Jennifer is arriving tomorrow for a week of sun and fun, and we can't WAIT until her plane arrives.  SO EXCITED!!

Current Location:  Charlotte Amalie Harbor Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  12
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: Hawksnest is a very picturesque bay, but deceptively rolly at night.  We checked out the snorkeling around the boat this morning, and saw a sand ray, a good-sized turtle, and quite a few fish (especially near the shore), but otherwise a pretty sparse bay.  Winds will be picking up in a few days, so we decided it was time to head back to St. Thomas and take shelter in the harbor.  Had a very nice sail in 3-4 foot seas and 10-15 knot easterly winds down the west side of St. John and over to Charlotte Amalie harbor.  Dropped anchor around 3PM, then read and relaxed rest of the afternoon.  Grilled chicken and veggies for dinner tonight, then a couple of Longmire episodes from Netflix before turning in for the night.

​Current Location:  Hawksnest Bay Mooring, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  2
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: Left Francis Bay this morning after two very pleasant days getting work on the generator finished (oil change and new impeller) and just lazing around, and motored down to Honeymoon Bay, where we grabbed a mooring and then took the dinghy into town.  Amy went to the grocery store while Terry walked down to Paradise Gas to fill a propane tank, then we motored back to the boat, dropped everything off, and went back into town for a late lunch at High Tides.  Both of us enjoyed the mahi-mahi, but Amy went for the tacos while Terry chose the sandwich.  Back to the boat around 3, then we motored around the point to Hawksnest Bay and grabbed a mooring for the night.

​Current Location:  Francis Bay Mooring, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  10
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, afternoon showers, low-80s
Highlights: Decided to check out the snorkeling in Princess Bay this morning, and were disappointed to see absolutely nothing interesting in the bay - no fish, coral, or other fun stuff.  Got dried off around noon, dropped the mooring lines, raised sails, and had a very pleasant sail out of Coral Bay, around the point, and along the north shore of St. John to Francis Bay.  Grabbed a mooring ball around 2PM, got the boat squared away, and then settled down to reading and relaxing for the rest of the day.

​Current Location:  Princess Bay Mooring, near Coral Bay, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  6
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, evening heavy showers, low-80s
Highlights: We've been wanting to visit Coral Bay (east end of St. John), and decided today might be a good opportunity.  Dropped the mooring lines around 10AM, motored east in choppy seas and 10-15 knot winds around Rams Head and into Coral Bay.  Grabbed a mooring in Princess Bay, then Terry pulled the carburetor from the outboard to give it another thorough cleaning.  Went snorkeling around the boat (no fish, coral or anything interesting, but did cool off), then took the dinghy into Coral Bay for a late lunch/early dinner at Skinny Legs.  Outboard behaved, and we enjoyed good burgers and drinks, but not much else to see in town, so back to the boat around 4:30 for reading and relaxing.  No cell phone or internet service here, so watched a DVD movie and read before turning in for the night.

​Current Location:  Little Lameshur Bay Mooring, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: Pulled the water-maker out this morning to fill the tanks, and Amy did some laundry and made some rolls while we had the generator running.  Wrapped that up around 1PM, then jumped in the water to see what we could find.  Encountered some of the best snorkeling so far this year regarding varieties of fish.  A medium-sized spotted eagle ray joined us early in our swim, and we also saw snapper, grouper, a small moray eel, and lots of reef fish.  Near the end of our sojourn, we spotted a 4-foot long nurse shark sleeping under a ledge, and Terry woke him up by stroking his tail for a bit.  Napped and relaxed after our swim until dinner, then enjoyed lobster salad on fresh rolls with carrots and potatoes for dinner.  Watched a bit of TV and read before turning in for the night.

Current Location:  Little Lameshur Bay Mooring, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  7
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, evening heavy showers, low-80s
Highlights: Swells from the north were building last night, and expected to continue for a few days, so we decided to move around to the south side of St. John.  We dropped the mooring lines around 11 and motored about 7 miles around to Little Lameshur Bay, grabbing a mooring there around 12:30.  Had a 6-foot barracuda (same one as last spring??) hanging out under the boat all afternoon, so we decided to pass on any swimming today.  Relaxed, read, and napped most of the afternoon, then had lobster over linguini with creamed corn for dinner tonight.  No internet or cell service here, but we did pick up a few OTA TV stations, and watched some football until bedtime.

Current Location:  Honeymoon Bay Mooring, St. John, USVI
Miles Traveled:  22
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: Had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner yesterday with Dennis and Deb.  Turkey was delicious, served with all the fixings, and we had a fierce game of dominoes between the main course and desert of apple pie, cheese cake, and ice cream.  Caught up via phone calls with family, and altogether a very nice holiday.  Raised anchor this morning around 8:30 to look for a change of scenery, snorkel, and maybe catch some lobster.  Succeeded on all accounts - had some good snorkeling at the Cow and Calf rocks near Christmas Cove, and Terry was able to snare one good-sized lobster in about 18 feet of water.  Only one mooring was available, so XYZZY continued on to The Ledges of St. James, which also provided good snorkeling but no lobster.  After snorkeling, we motored up to Hawk's Nest Bay and grabbed a mooring.  Amy cooked up the lobster and made some fabulous lobster pasta salad.  Waves were picking up from the north by late afternoon, and both boats were starting to rock from our northerly exposure, so we all decided around 4:30 to head around the point to Honeymoon Bay (after unsuccessful anchorage attempts off Lovango Cay).  Got settled in just after sundown, then took the lobster salad over to XYZZY for dinner, served with grilled potatoes, veggies, and dessert of cheesecake and ice cream.  Yummy!

​Current Location:  Charlotte Amalie Harbor Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, low-80s
Highlights: Happy Thanksgiving from sunny St. Thomas to all our family and friends.  We're still here in Charlotte Amalie Harbor, enjoying the island life with our buddy boat XYZZY.  Went out to dinner with Deb and Dennis last night, enjoying good food and conversation at Virgilio's, a nice Italian restaurant a couple of blocks up the hill from the waterfront.  Went to Home Depot the other day to pick up smoke / CO detectors (yes, we know - way past due), and got them installed, plus wrapped up a couple of other minor projects on the boat.  We're hosting Thanksgiving dinner today, with Deb and Dennis bringing over much of the food that we'll cook.  This will be a first for us (grilling turkey breasts on our grill), so cross your fingers!

​Current Location:  Charlotte Amalie Harbor Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: We've been hanging out here in St. Thomas (Charlotte Amalie Harbor) for the past week enjoying the weather, company, and relaxed atmosphere of the island.  Terry has been working on the outboard motor, pulling the carburetor apart for a thorough cleaning and reassembly, which helped quite a bit, but the motor still idles rough, so more work ahead.  Deb and Dennis came over for dinner and dominoes on Friday, and we did lunch and shopping today.

​Current Location:  Charlotte Amalie Harbor Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  6
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, evening showers, low-80s
Highlights: Motored over to Christmas Cove on Tuesday with XYZZY, grabbed the last 2 moorings, and then relaxed and got caught up on laundry and small projects around the boat.  Spent a couple of days relaxing on the mooring, then the wind started to pick up and swing around from the north, so we motored over to Charlotte Amalie Harbor and dropped anchor just off the main waterfront area.  Finished the day with a very enjoyable dinner on XYZZY with Deb and Dennis.

​Current Location:  Brewer's Bay Anchorage, St. Thomas, USVI
Miles Traveled:  11
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Wanted to get some snorkelling in this morning, so motored over to the west shore of Culebrita, where last spring we had found a couple of day moorings and good reefs.  Unfortunately, the balls had been removed, and we couldn't find a good patch of sand to anchor in, so had to scrap Plan A.  Since it was still early, winds and seas were calm, and we were only 15 miles from St. Thomas, we decided to go ahead and motor across today, rather than wait further.  Arrived at Brewer's Bay anchorage (next to the airport) around 1PM, got some lunch, then closed up the boat, turned on the A/C, and settled in for the rest of the afternoon.  Used the grill for the first time this season (chicken breasts and veggies), then watched Netflix before bedtime.

​Current Location:  North Culebrita Bay Anchorage, Culebrita Island, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  9
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Dropped the mooring lines early and motored around the NW point of Culebra, along the north shore, and then into Culebrita, where we picked up a mooring just off the beach.  Had hopes of stopping along the north shore and looking for lobster, but NE winds were bringing big rollers into the bays, so we kept going.  Arrived at Culebrita around 11, found just a few other boats until noon, then all the day tourists arrived and the place got busy.  Read, napped, and people-watched most of the afternoon.  Everyone except one other boat cleared out before dinner, so we took a nice walk on the beach and then had a quiet dinner and evening to ourselves.

​Current Location:  Bahia Melones mooring (west side of Culebra), Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  2
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Top priority today was to refill one of our propane tanks, so we took the dinghy into town and asked at the grocery store where we could find a source.  They directed us to a place up near the airport, but after a long hot walk, arrived to find that they only did swaps, not refills.  They did have a number for Flamenco Gas, so we called, Eddie (the owner), who very nicely offered to come pick us up, took us up into the hills to his operations, got our tank filled, then drove us back to our dinghy.  We thanked him profusely, tipped him generously, and made our way back to the boat, all set for another month of cooking and grilling.  The world is a much better place because of people like Eddie!

Current Location:  Lana's Cove mooring, Cayo de Luis Pena (off west coast of Culebra), Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, occasional showers, low-80s
Highlights: Hot night at anchor last night (almost zero breeze through the boat), and eventually surrendered to the heat and turned on the generator and A/C for a few hours.  Planned to take the dinghy into town this morning to fill up the propane tanks, but outboard motor was sputtering and stalling on us.  Terry cleaned and lubricated the engine and changed the spark plugs, which helped some, but still needs some work.  We're pretty sure that all of these issues resulted from when we overturned the dinghy and dunked the motor last May in Culebrita with Jim and Donia.  Guess we'll have to find someone in St. Thomas that knows more than we do about fixing outboards.  Until then we'll have to minimize our use of the dinghy, and break out the oars as necessary!

​Current Location:  Lana's Cove mooring, Cayo de Luis Pena (off west coast of Culebra), Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  19
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Slept in this morning after a peaceful night of sleep, then raised anchor around 10AM and motored in 2-3 foot seas with light winds on the nose over to Culebra.  Picked up a mooring in Lana's Cove, a very picturesque anchorage on the small island of Cayo de Luis Pena, just west of Culebra.  Got the boat squared away, then decided to check out the coral reefs along the shore.  Jumped in and were greeted by a huge turtle grazing on the bottom, as well as a couple of rays and lots of fish.  Some soft corals are coming back, but the hard coral was bleached and dead.  Napped and read most of the afternoon - breeze died down and boat was hot and muggy.

​Current Location:  Isla Pineros Anchorage, South of Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  3
Weather:  Mostly sunny, light winds, hot, mid-80s
Highlights: Topped off the water tanks first thing this morning, and wrapped up some last-minute items before heading down to the marina office to settle our final bill.  Got all squared away, then cast off the dock lines at 11AM and motored over to Isla Pineros, where we had the anchorage all to ourselves and enjoyed our first night under the stars and away from the marina in over 5 months.

​Current Location:  Puerto del Rey Marina, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, afternoon showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Last full day here in Puerto del Rey - tomorrow we cast off the lines and truly begin a new sailing season.  Past few days have been filled with shopping trips to grocery stores, hardware stores, and WestMarine as we stock up for the next 6 months and check provisions, boat systems, and projects off our lists.  Really pleased with the way all this has come together - boat's in great shape and if we've forgotten any items, we're always only a short trip away from a store or marina.  Had dinner one last time with Dennis and Deb at the marina restaurant (really enjoyed the full moon and nice breeze off the water), and then back to our boats for a good night's sleep.  Tomorrow we're outta here!

Current Location:  Puerto del Rey Marina, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, afternoon showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Past 2 days we've been busy stocking up on provisions and getting the boat back to normal.  Sails went back on yesterday (Terry did the genoa, but we hired Bianca's team to re-rig the main sail).  Morning trip to a couple of stores for provisions, then went over to the marina gas station to fill up the dinghy gas tank and spare jugs.  Around 3PM, we drove down to Humacao to return the rental car.  Deb and Dennis followed us in their rental in order to give us a ride back, so we treated them to dinner at La Pescaderia, one of our favorite places.  Dennis has been fighting a cold/flu for past few days, and Terry has been feeling out of sorts also since morning, so looks like tomorrow will be a well deserved R&R day for us.

​Current Location:  Puerto del Rey Marina, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, afternoon showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Day started early with getting a slip assignment, settling up bills with the boatyard and painting crew, and then getting the boat back in the water.  The lift showed up just before 2PM, but our offical splash time was scheduled for 3:30, so they had to wait while Bianca and her crew finalized their preparations and final cleaning.  The boat was in the slings by 3PM, final touch-up paint was applied to the bottom, then the slow trek out to the docks where she was finally lowered back into the water where she belongs.  Engines started right up, then after a quick check of the bilges and engine rooms, we motored the 50 yards over to our assigned slip at the end of the dock.  Got the dock lines squared away, then had a slight hitch in our plans when the office told us that we were on a premium slip, and the rate would be 3x normal.  After some back and forth, they finally found an inside slip for us, and with the wind picking up and rain moving in, we quickly motored over to our new assigned slip and got squared away.  Deb and Dennis were holding dinner for us, and we hadn't had time to get our berths squared away, so we decided to spend one more night on XYZZY.  So glad to finally have our home back in the water!

​Current Location:  Puerto del Rey Marina, Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, afternoon showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Splash day tomorrow!  We checked out of our hotel yesterday morning, and have spent the last two days getting the boat ready to launch, and stocking up on provisions and spare parts.  The boat is looking good both inside and out, and so far no issues with systems or engines.  Deb and Dennis from XYZZY have been hosting us on their boat each night, and while we've enjoyed their company and hospitality, we're anxious to be back on our own boat as soon as possible.

​Current Location:  Wyndham Candelero Beach Resort, Humacao, PR
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, afternoon showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Started the day with some shopping at Walmart and Marshalls, picking up some bulk provisions plus new linens and other items for the boat.  Stowed everything, started a load of laundry, then test-started the engines to make sure everything was working.  Sail drive alarm displayed on the port engine (similar to what we experienced last May), so will need to research and resolve that issue before launching.  Drove out to Costco with Deb and Dennis around 3PM to check out prices and pick up some additional provisions, then dinner at Olive Garden before returning back to the hotel.

Current Location:  Wyndham Candelero Beach Resort, Humacao, PR
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Terry drove out to the boat to change the sail drive oil and glue up the cabinet for the port cabin while Amy relaxed at the hotel.  Napped and read in the afternoon, then down to the hotel bar for dinner and to watch the Nats win game 7 of the world series.  Great game, and fun time at the bar chatting with guests and the bartender (Pete), who catered to our every desire and stayed open way past closing time to allow us to enjoy the game.  Go Nats!

​Current Location:  Wyndham Candelero Beach Resort, Humacao, PR
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: Drove over to inspect the boat, and were very pleased with the conditions we found.  No mold or mildew (yeah!!), bottom paint looks good, and Ancla Marine has started wash, wax, and polish jobs.  Stowed some of the items we had brought back from the states, then had lunch with Deb and Dennis from XYZZY at the marina pub.  Back to the hotel by late afternoon for a light dinner, reading, and early bed.

Current Location:  Wyndham Candelero Beach Resort, Humacao, PR
Miles Traveled:  0
Weather:  Mostly sunny, hot, occasional showers, mid-80s
Highlights: We start our third season on the boat today.  Long travel day started early with Karen giving us a ride from Hickory to the Charlotte airport.  Checked all our luggage ($140 in baggage fees), then had a smooth (but crowded) direct flight to San Juan, PR.  Landed around 2PM, picked up our luggage and rental car, then drove down to Humacao to the Wyndham hotel, arriving around 5.  Checked in, then had dinner (mahi-mahi for both of us) at the restaurant at the Palmas del Mar marina.  Both of us were exhausted after a long day, and were happy to crash early back at the hotel.