It’s Friday morning and I just got off my 04:00 to 08:00 watch with Captain Mark for our first night at sea.  We have made great time heading south at a steady 12kts even though we are headed directly into a 25kt SW wind.     Actually, all it takes is 2,000 HP and the willingness to burn 1,000 gallons of fuel a day.  Spray or not, we don’t get a drop as nobody goes outside unless it’s absolutely necessary.

We rounded Montauk around noon yesterday and are currently between the Delaware River and the mouth of the Chesapeake.  I’d guess that we will  pass Cape Hatteras sometime tonight.

I haven’t been able to post since leaving Montauk as the satellite receivers weren’t properly lined up to receive the signal.   However, it’s all fixed now so I can get this post up, thanks Captain Mark.     Oh well, a bit of technical issues with the receiver dishes.  Such is life on the open seas.

Yesterday at around 07:30, we slipped off of the dock and moved over to another spot where the fuel  truck could reach us.  I had to stay on the dock to catch the lines at the other dock where we took on fuel.   She looked great in the early morning light. The fuel truck pulled up and fed her 3,000 gallons of diesel.    The boat carries 15,000 gallons, about the same amount that a semi truck that services gas stations holds.   The truck looked pretty small next to us. For the trip we will use about 3,000 gallons or 1,000 per day of fuel.  Don’t worry, that includes the 100k generator too.   Whew, for a moment you thought that was how much the main engines used.  Nope, they only use about 900 gallons per day.  The generator uses a little less than 100 gallons per day.  Oh yeah, and nobody worries about water.  Use all you want as their water maker puts out, well plenty.

While we were waiting the hour or more that it took to put in all that fuel, they stowed some of the last items aboard including this scooter.  Up she went. The bridge is amazing with redundant equipment for everything.   Very comfy chairs.  And, then there is the communication equipment.  That’s Captain Mark.  Nice guy.   Besides, he loves catboats, just like me and Brenda.  Double nice. There are monitors everywhere to keep the crew appraised of any possible problems.  This screen monitors the fuel and water tanks. Love the schematic to let you know exactly where in the boat something may be amiss.The engineer, a great Aussie, gave me a tour of the engine room.   We had to wear hearing protection as it’s REALLY NOISY in there.  However, outside of that room, it’s very quiet and on the upper levels, you wouldn’t be able to tell that the engines are on if it were not for the low vibration.   It’s so clean you could eat off of the floor.    I expect that isn’t allowed as someone might leave a mess.  “who left that banana peel in the bilge?”There are monitors all over the ship but this is “command central” in the engine room.   Looks like the control wall for a power plant.
The engineer says A-OK, ready for liftoff…Amid all the high tech gear Mark has put together a simple Captain-Mark-made sling cyclometer for measuring the dewpoint.  It’s funny to see such a rudimentary piece of equipment among all the other amazing gear.   Aboard a yacht like this nearly everything is complex, by design and EVERYTHING has an alarm built in to keep you on your toes with the possible exception of this nifty gadget.   No wait, if someone was to “sling” it and rap it against something I expect that Captain Mark would make quite a noise.  So, how about the view from my cabin?  Of course, there are blackout shades on these portholes in the cabin and head to make the cabin dark as night.  They are motorized of course.   Last but not least, there’s Hillary.  It’s alarming to see her just standing there in the “media room”.  How appropriate given her near constant presence in our lives these days.   I have to pass her each time I head to my cabin.Well, that’s all for now. With nearly 300 miles under our keel in a single day, that’s a lot of peddling, especially directly into the wind.

They say that “gentlemen never go to weather”.  Well, those guys must not have been aboard a motoryacht.

Oh yeah, almost forgot.  Steak filets, perfectly done, for dinner last night along with roasted baby potatoes (they never stood a chance) and mixed veggies.   Thanks Chef.  Awesome!

Of course, we do have to keep our strength up.

Time for a nap.

It’s Wednesday evening and I am all settled aboard my “ride” to Florida.  The boat I am on is amazing.  She’s 130′ and a real stunner.  The captain has put me into the “nanny cabin” which is more like a nice hotel room than a cabin on a boat.

When I arrived I plunked my gear down in the “TV room” and before I knew it the steward has whisked it way and put everything into my cabin along with a toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo along with a little monogrammed note pad of course, etc, etc.

I have a double bed, all to myself along with a full bath, complete with granite counters and there’s even a full size tub. Happily, there is wifi all the time via satellite so you’ll have to put up with my daily posts until we get to Florida.

Here’s my ride at the dock in Greenport.  She’s the blue one.  Beautiful. Tomorrow at around 7:30 we will shove off and visit the fuel dock. I am told that she burns about 1,000 gallons per day when underway.  Our cruising speed is 12kts.  She will make the trip about twice as fast as Pandora.   She’s big, like a floating condo and a large one at that.

Early today I caught the ferry in New London to get over to Greenport,  What a sight as we passed Electric Boat in Groton.   There is a sub under construction.  I guess that they build them in modules.  Either that or someone forgot to solder the front and back together.  I sure hope that they aren’t planning to launch in a the near future.   Perhaps more than you want to see about partially finished subs but I sort of liked the shot from this angle.   She sure looks like she means business.  Nice crane.Seeing a sub under construction was neat but seeing one steaming into the harbor was even better.  I think that she was the New Mexico, the sub that I encountered last summer off of Groton as I passed by.    I think it’s her because I had heard from the chief of the boat, who I have been corresponding with told me that they were in town, would be out for a week or so on maneuvers and then would be back.  Well, it looks like they are back and I was lucky enough to be there when she arrived. As she passed I was able to get a great shot of the crew on deck.  I expect that there is a very well established pecking order as to who gets to ride up in the sail. They probably don’t draw straws or play rock, paper, scissors.   “get down from there skipper, I won your spot fair and square”.

Love the Victorian  home, if that’s what it is, in the background.   Amazing contrast.Big boat.  Long way from the sail to the tail fin, if that’s what they call it.
How about the gunboat riding shotgun as she came into the harbor.  I waved to him and he waved back.  Not sure he was smiling though.  Probably not allowed. I wonder why they wear camo colored uniforms.   If they are trying to blend in, it’s not working even a little bit.  I’d think that a nice beach pattern with a delicate cerulean blue and sand tan motif would be much more fetching.
Anyway, it’s going to be an amazing trip and I can’t wait to get underway in the morning.   I was warned that I’d have to watch what I ate aboard or I’d surely gain ten pounds on the trip.  After dinner tonight, I believe that the risk is real. Grilled chicken breasts with fresh tomato and shiitake mushrooms with orzo along with asparagus and well, let’s just say that it was amazing.   And my cabin.  Wow!   TV too.  The steward even left the drawers open so I’d know that there was a place for me to unpack. The bathroom is larger than mine at home.  Note:  I use the guest bath as Brenda doesn’t like to share.  I know my place.     And there’s even a bath tub.  And I don’t have to share with anyone.  I wonder how much the water sloshes in a seaway?  Hmm… Better not push my luck. Well, I had better sign off as tomorrow is going to be an exciting day.  My watch tomorrow night and every night after that, will be from 04:00 to 08:00 with the captain.

Yes, I think I’ll take a shower.  I’ll bet that they have a ton of hot water.  I’ll find out soon.

What an experience and surely a lot more comfortable than Pandora.  Good thing Brenda’s not here as this experience would surely spoil her for good as this is grand style indeed.   I do promise to work hard too.  I can do dishes, you know.

Time for a nap.   Did I mention that  I have a tub?   Thought so.

Busy day tomorrow.

 

Economist, Robert Frank, from Cornell, recently published a book about the role of luck in achieving success suggesting that those who do well owe a larger amount of their success to luck than they might think or be willing to admit.  An article about his book was published on Bloomberg.com yesterday.  Successful?Was it luck you or are you just smarter than everyone else?  It’s short and you might find it interesting.  Click here…

Personally, I have wondered many times how important luck is to how things turned out for me as I stumbled my way along over the years.  What might have happened if I had been born into another family or continued to hang out with that bad guy who lived next door when I was in my early teens.  No, don’t ask me about that.  I won’t tell anyway as it was a long time ago.

A retired friend of mine does loads of traveling and I once asked him how he managed to retire young and do so well in spite of a relatively modest background.  His answer was “I chose my parents wisely”.  Ok, got it, luck again… Perhaps Frank is on to something…

“Bob, what in the #$*& are you talking about?”

Ok, to the point…  When Brenda and I were visiting Sag Harbor the other day aboard Pandora,  we visited briefly with friends who were there aboard their Nonsuch 30 cat rigged sailboat.   Before going ashore that morning Brenda and I took our dink over to say Hi and saw that there was a launch (when dinks grow up they are called launches) alongside with two guys aboard.  It turned out that they were the captain and engineer aboard a 130′ motor yacht.

Brenda and I enjoyed talking to them and after a while I mentioned, in my always shy and retiring way, that I’d love to crew for them, unpaid of course, if they needed an extra set of hands when making a passage.

The captain, amazingly said, and I paraphrase here but you’ll get the gist of it,  “How about making the run with us to Florida next week?”   “Well, sure”, I said, after making a quick glance toward Brenda to see if I was going to get in trouble.  (I wasn’t.  Whew!)   So, that’s it.  I rendezvous with them next Wednesday and head out for Ft Lauderdale.

The captain’s name is Mark.  I’ll call him Captain Mark.  (It would have been fun if his name was Ron, wouldn’t it?)   You know, the cult classic Captain Ron?  In keeping with my love of random stuff in blog posts, here’s the trailer for that flick.Anyway, I asked Captain Mark what I should bring and he said simply, “a foul weather jacket and a good appetite”.   He added that they have an awesome chef on board.  Count me in!  I can do dishes!

Based on what I’ve learned so far I expect that the run won’t be even a little bit like a trip with the “real” Captain Ron.  However, we are timing our departure to dodge Hurricane Hermaine who’s headed up the coast over the weekend. Happily, Captain Mark uses a weather router so details to come.

The boat was built in 2003 and she’s a beauty, all 130′ of her.  As she’s private and not in charter, there isn’t much on the Web about her.   I did find this photo though.  Nice ride.   Notice that there isn’t a name on the boat as it’s a top secret and if I tell you I’d have to kill you.  Besides, I am way to busy to take the time to track down and kill all four of you that read my blog. It will be interesting to see how voyaging aboard a yacht of this scale compares to Pandora.  Yes, the food will likely be better.  And, I am pretty confident that it will not be at all like spending time aboard with anyone wearing an eye patch.

As they often say, right place, right time.  Lucky break for me.  Indeed.   I get to go on a boat ride and yes Captain Mark, put me to work and no, I won’t forget to my appetite.  I promise.

Like you, I am wondering how their biscuits compare to Pandora’s?

Details to come.

 

 

It’s Saturday morning and we are on a mooring here in Sag Harbor, “the” harbor in The Hamptons, where the big money plays and play they do.

Sag Harbor has been off limits to us or many years as the harbor has the distinction of being the most expensive place on the east coast to get a mooring, even more expensive than Nantucket.  The moorings here are $2/ft per day.  So, for Pandora’s 47’, that would be close to $100 per night and we’d still have to make your way ashore in a rubber dink.  Horrifying.

However all is not lost.  Essex Yacht Club maintains two moorings here in the harbor so we can camp out here for a few days and we don’t have to pay anything for the privilege of being here.   Well, we don’t have to pay till we go ashore at least as nothing is free in this town.

However, I think it’s safe to assume that we are about the ONLY ones not paying, and I am sure that they are plenty happy to pay big for the privilege of “being seen” among the “glitterati”, the “who’s who” of New York Society and entertainment.

The local “rag” Dan’s Papers, lists benefit events being held and there are literally dozens each month, offering many opportunities for the 1% set to show that while they don’t pay taxes, they are willing and able to support any number of causes and happy to be seen doing it.  I’ll bet that this area is the ONLY one in the U.S. where there is a local paper that actually lists the top billionaires that keep a home here, include their picture, the name of their “current” wife, note what they paid for their home and how much they are worth.

Want to know who’s the “fairest” of them all?  Well, it’s Mayor Bloomberg at a cool, make that a very cool, $48.3 billion and his home here is a 22,000 sq/ft on 35 acres.  You should feel sorry for Lloyd Blankfein, the CEO of Goldman Sachs, as he’s only worth a paltry $1.1 billion.  Poor Lloyd.

Anyway, no shortage of folks with plenty of green to spend and spend it they do. Poor little Pandora among the big kids.  And, some of the “kids” look pretty grown up to me.

How about this one?  She carries her own Mini, complete with the name of the yacht, Indiscretion on the side.  I’ll bet that it’s safe to say that their dink has more HP than the Mini.  “Honey?” “Yes, Buffy, what is it?”  “Oh, I think that our Mini looks just adorable aboard Indiscretion but I just don’t feel comfortable as it was your ex that chose the color”.  “That’s nice honey but can we talk about it when I’m finished reading Baron’s?”

And the “dinks” on some of these “megas” are quite impressive. If Darth Vader wanted one I’ll bet that he’d pick this.How about this lovely? She’s well into the “mega” range and yet has the lines of a small sport boat.  Note the crew on the bow.  They look totally teeny tiny up there.  I’ll bet her “carbon footprint” could squash a billionaire like a gnat. However, all the yachts here aren’t “mega”.  How about the latest in a line of beauties owned by Billy Joel, Argos.  I recognized the guy who takes care of Billy’s boats from an article I saw a few years ago in Soundings, a boating newspaper.  Billy has very nice taste in boats. From any angle.
Scout, which I have seen in Newport, is a beauty.   Yes, I’d enjoy a G&T aboard her.And, if you can’t afford MEGA you can always put mega HP on your micro yacht.  This one has 1,400hp.  I’ll bet that she can outrun all but the fastest 1%.In the parking lot near the marina there are some very nice cars that fit just fine in the neighborhood.  Love these two, the Aston Martin and the beachy thing.  Note the mega hydrangea behind them.  It seems that flowers love the climate here too. The florist in town was getting ready for the weekend.  All of these phalaenopsis orchids were in a room that said “all the flowers in this room are sold”.  White sells well here.Not to worry, there were plenty still ready for you to take home.  The staff had to work out on the front lawn to arrange all the flowers that had been ordered.  There were many dozens of red rose arrangements being prepared for just one Friday night party.

I don’t know anywhere else that celebrates white like the Hamptons.  We saw a number of stores that only had white.  It’s tough to be a “mega consumer” so one less decision about color is a big time-saver.   While it wasn’t white, a very nice mega planter in downtown Sag Harbor.  I wonder what the statue guy thinks of what Sag has become?   I’ll bet that he wishes he had held onto the property he owned longer so he could afford something mega himself.  Nice view down main street for him though.  And speaking of flowers, which I sort of was, we rented a car and drove around and visited some wineries.  Along the way we spied this amazing field of sunflowers.  I nearly rear-ended someone who had stopped to take a photo too. No, we hadn’t had too many tastings, not yet anyway.   I’ll admit that we visited our first winery before noon.  But, it was only a very little taste.  Ok, it was just a little tastes of five different lovely whites.  Just five or was it ten sips? Whatever… Besides, we had to be absolutely certain that we liked it.

It was also good to confirm that the wines were made in a very clean winery.  Love the stainless. No dirty wooden barrels in sight.   What a relief.  We only drink hygienically made wine, of course.

“Look Brenda, I’ll bet these are wine grapes!”We drove along the south fork, up the north fork,  took two ferries across Shelter Island and back to Sag Harbor. Let me tell you, it’s the most expensive per mile of any ferry that you will ever take.  Each ride takes less than ten minutes, including docking.  Total, one way,  $30

Impressive?  Don’t forget “if you have to ask what it costs, you can’t afford it”.  Well, I can for one day.  After that, not so sure.   We stopped for yet another glass of wine at this lovely hotel on Shelter.  What a spot.  Can’t recall the name but where else can you have two glasses of wine on a lovely afternoon and spend $40, with tip of course?  However, if you are willing to have sparking water, it’s only $10++.  Such a deal.

Yes, Sag Harbor is a very nice spot indeed and it’s fun to be here hanging out with the big kids even if we only sort of fit in because EYC maintains a mooring here.   Well, I expect that there are plenty of others that only look like they fit in.

Tonight, dinner at the American Hotel.  In the garden room…of course. After that, well, we’ll be out of money and have to head home.   Yes, this is indeed the playground of the “big kids” and I while I have more in common with the “little people” I do have a boat.  Besides, my mom has always told me that I’m big and not even a little bit grey.

Thanks mom…

Those that know me would probably agree that there is no job that I would be more ill suited for than that of a lighthouse keeper.  By definition, lighthouses are located in remote, hard to get to areas and while most have been automated, some still require the constant attention of someone who lives on site to be sure that everything is in working order.  And, any mariner would agree that it’s a really good thing when lighthouses are working as they are supposed to.

To that point, the Bahamas are famous or lights on charts that haven’t worked, often for decades.  Not so, it seems, in Uruguay.

I subscribe to a daily (I think I get it daily) e-mail newsletter from Soundings, a terrific boating publication that I worked for as a sales rep for short time years ago.  However, that was a long time ago and is a story for another time perhaps.

Anyway, this newsletter titled “Soundings Dispatches” is free and is worth signing up for.  Of course, some of the videos that they feature, and they send a lot out in the course of a year.  Yes, some are pretty lame but once in a while a real gem shows up in my inbox and today was one of those days.   To be fair, it’s probably not too easy to come up with really good daily videos.  Trust me on that as it sometimes takes me hours to wade through many clips to find something worth sharing.

So, back to my story…  The joke in our family, well at least I think it’s pretty funny, is that “dad doesn’t EVER want to be alone, except perhaps when he’s going in the bathroom, and that assumes that it’s a quick trip”.  Ok, ok, perhaps it’s my joke but it’s pretty much true.

So, today’s piece from Soundings, and it’s only a bit longer than 3 minutes, is a real gem.   The editor of the newsletter describes the short documentary…

“To the south of Brazil is Uruguay, a relatively small country on South America’s eastern coast that experiences heavy ship traffic along its 410-mile shoreline.

Twenty-three active lighthouses protect ships along Uruguay’s ocean borders, all built between the late 1800s and the early 1900s. They are owned and operated by Uruguay’s navy, the Armada Nacional.

Cabo Polonio Faro (faro is the Spanish word for lighthouse) was built in 1881 on a remote peninsula on Uruguay’s eastern shore. Leonardo da Costa is one of two keepers who alternate two-week-long shifts manning the lighthouse.

Like any lighthouse, Cabo Polonio Faro requires daily maintenance. When Costa is on duty he is solely responsible for repairs and for operating the lighthouse manually if it loses power.

Costa’s neighbors are few. Seal colonies live on nearby islands, and the remote village of Cabo Polonio, about a half-mile away to the west, is home to fewer than 100 people. Solar panels and wind turbines power their homes, and they lack running water.

Cabo Polonio can only be reached by walking or by using four-wheel-drive trucks to cross dunes of sand to the road nearest the village; no public roads reach the lighthouse or the village. Life on the secluded cape is quiet and solitary.”

There isn’t a single word spoken in the documentary which I suppose is the point, actually.For sure, I just can’t imagine a job that I would be more ill-suited for. However, I thought that the piece was just mesmerizing and hope that you agree.

The group that produced this video has a number of other short documentaries on YouTube including this charming piece about bikes in Cuba.   It’s in Spanish but it has subtitles.

We visited Cuba for two months aboard Pandora last winter I am compelled to share this one too.  It provides a very good feel for the resourcefulness of the Cuban people and the story would be pretty much the same with regards to cars as well as bikes.  Make do with what you have.  That’s the rule in Cuba.   Amazon Prime?  Not likely. So, there you have it, two really nice short pieces that made my day.  I hope you enjoyed them too.

I guess that it’s time to move along with my day and get something done or Brenda will ship me off to some remote lighthouse.

The “honey do list” isn’t getting any shorter.